Endling
20 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 3 years ago -The sixth extinction is currently taking place. We are losing more species yearly than we have since the dinosaurs were wiped out. This podcast is one part history lesson, one part elegy, and one part cautioning tale for the future. Endling was started to spread awareness of these events and shed light on how often they are happening all around us. Each episode covers one species we've lost during the sixth extinction and highlights their evolutionary history and how they ended up becoming extinct.
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Episodes
Episode 10 - The Moa
November 24, 2020 06:10 - 21 minutes - 33.4 MBHello, everyone, and thank you for your patience while I moved back to the US! In this episode I cover the extinction of the moa. While we think of the moa as a giant bird-and rightly so- it is imperative to realize that there were actually 9 species of moa living on New Zealand when humans first arrived to the islands. What happened that could have brought an entire family down? Find out in this episode! Editing for this episode was provided by Kalie Shaw. For more information about edi...
The Good with the Bad - September 2020
October 03, 2020 05:36 - 30 minutes - 44.8 MBThis month, I cover the removal of an invasive species from Hawaii, the destruction of nearly the entire population of Tiehm's Buckwheat in Nevada, and the hard work done to remove invasive predators from a massive area in Australia's Mallee Cliffs National Park in order to restore native species, and an update on the California Condor populations after the wildfires across the western US. I was also fortunate enough to speak with Dr. Stephen Ngulu, Head Veterinarian at Ol Pejeta Conservan...
Episode 9 - The Rocky Mountain Locust
September 20, 2020 01:12 - 31 minutes - 46.9 MBThis insect caused millions of dollars in damage right around when the passenger pigeon was at its peak, but then suddenly disappeared never to plague the western US again. The plague in 1874 holds the Guinness Book of World Records title for the greatest concentration of animals ever speculatively guessed- nearly 12.5 trillion grasshoppers! But in only 28 years they would go from blacking out the sun to completely extinct. Sources: Books: Locust: The Devastating Rise and Mysterious ...
The Good with the Bad - August 2020
August 30, 2020 22:30 - 32 minutes - 47.8 MBThis month, I wanted to take the time to highlight what is happening at the US/Mexico border. I was fortunate enough to be able to speak with Laiken Jordhal, a Borderlands Campaigner with the Center for Biological Diversity. The environmental, cultural, and humanitarian crisis that is happening at the border is only getting worse while not being thoroughly covered by many major news outlets. The photo I used for the cover art for this episode depicts a dead buck who had struggled to find she...
Crossover Episode with the Women in Archaeology Podcast - Traditional Use in the Face of Extinction
August 17, 2020 00:55 - 1 hour - 91.3 MBIt was such a joy to speak with 'The Women in Archaeology Podcast' about the impacts to native cultures when traditional animal use is displaced. We travel across North America from west to east talking about the salmon, bison, and Passenger Pigeon. Two of these species recovered from near extinction and are still incredibly important to First Nations/Native American tribes in those areas today. Women in Archaeology Podcast Episodes Follow WiA on Twitter Follow Endling on Twitter Buy me ...
The Good with the Bad - July 2020
August 01, 2020 19:53 - 21 minutes - 33.8 MBHello, everyone! Thanks so much for taking the time to listen to the end of the month episode. This one is a bit longer than my usual updates, but with the new IUCN Red List coming out, there was a lot to cover. Stay tuned for the next full length episode which will be a crossover with the Women in Archaeology Podcast! As I state in the episode, if you're interested in using this podcast as a teaching resource, please reach out to me at [email protected] Buy me a Ko-Fi: https...
Episode 7 - The Japanese Sea Lion (Nihon ashika)
July 15, 2020 05:29 - 18 minutes - 28.2 MBThe Japanese sea lion, locally known as the Nihon ashika, disappeared sometime around 1974 at the latest. It was thought to simply be a subspecies of the California sea lion, but genetic mapping in 2003 led scientists to realize that we had lost another species completely. Just like the passenger pigeon, the ashika wasn't studied while it was alive. Find out what we do know about it in this episode. If there are any papers that you would like to read but do not have access to, I highly reco...
The Good with the Bad - June 2020
July 01, 2020 05:02 - 8 minutes - 13 MBA very quick update with only a few good news stories for the end of the month. If you are interested in purchasing a sticker to support the podcast, please reach out. Thanks for listening and please rate, review, and subscribe! Sources: Smoky Mouse: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/21/endangered-smoky-mouse-feared-wiped-out-during-bushfires-found-alive-in-kosciuszko-national-park Bison: https://news.mongabay.com/2020/06/bison-back-home-on-the-range/ Asiatic Black Bear: h...
Episode 6 - The Passenger Pigeon
June 21, 2020 19:09 - 1 hour - 161 MBThe loss of the passenger pigeon is one of the most well documented and well known modern extinctions. Their population went from billions to none in a little over 40 years. How did they go from blotting out the sun with their huge numbers to a single bird sitting in a cage in the Cincinnati Zoo? Find out in this episode. Listen through to the end for an interview with the author of 'A Feathered River Across the Sky', Joel Greenberg. He talks about the book, how every day people can help wi...
The Good with the Bad - May 2020
June 01, 2020 03:42 - 9 minutes - 15.2 MBHere's some more good news for the month of May. I feel like we all need it. Sources: https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/dogs-trained-protect-wildlife-saved-22019204 https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/5/19/watch-algeria-reports-sighting-of-ultra-rare-saharan-cheetah https://news.mongabay.com/2020/05/from-a-sri-lankan-rainforest-a-new-species-of-orchid-blooms/ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/white-tailed-eagles-extinct-england-isle-of-wight-a9497476.html?fb...
Episode 5 - Northern White Rhinoceros
May 19, 2020 07:27 - 50 minutes - 77.3 MBHumans and rhinoceros have coexisted in Africa for thousands of years, but have only recently begun a massive decline. How did the Northern White Rhino go from a population that was steady enough to be hunted by the likes of Teddy Roosevelt in 1910 to only 2 110 years later? Find out in this episode. Donate to Ol Pejeta Conservancy: https://donate.olpejetaconservancy.org/ Books: Dodging Extinction: Power, Food, Money, and the Future of Life on Earth by Anthony D. Barnosky https://books...
The Good with the Bad - April 2020
April 30, 2020 17:07 - 11 minutes - 17.3 MBHey, everyone! I figured everyone might need some uplifting news this month, so this one is just all good news dealing with wildlife conservation. If you are interested in purchasing a sticker for the podcast, please reach out on Twitter or Instagram (@endlingpodcast) or by email ([email protected]). The art was done by my friend Wes, who can be found on Instagram as @artandanimals_wesjames. Please be sure to rate, review, and subscribe. Thanks! Sources: Rigid Cactus Corals: https:...
Episode 4 - The St. Helena Olive
April 16, 2020 04:59 - 18 minutes - 27.1 MBSt. Helena is a tiny volcanic island off of the coast of southwestern Africa. This small island was completely uninhabited when it was discovered in 1502, but was covered in plants whose closest cousins were thousands of miles away. On this episode, I cover the St. Helena Olive, one of what was likely the rarest plants on earth before its disappearance in 2003. Sources: Green Imperialism: Colonial Expansion, Tropical Island Edens, and the Origins of Environmentalism (1600 - 1860) by Richar...
The Good with the Bad - March 2020
April 01, 2020 05:29 - 13 minutes - 19.4 MBJust a quick update about some wildlife news this month that you may have missed with all of the news about coronavirus/COVID-19. There's good news about wildlife trafficking and not so good news about your cat. Hear all about it on this episode! Sources: https://www.traffic.org/news/airasia-adds-momentum-to-the-effort-to-combat-wildlife-trafficking/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/19/world/europe/south-africa-rhino-poaching-leroy-bruwer.html https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020...
Episode 3 - Spix's Macaw
March 18, 2020 20:09 - 43 minutes - 66.7 MBIn this episode, I cover the Spix's Macaw. This bird is most well known from its portrayal in the movie Rio, but there is much more to it's story than most people know. This little blue macaw is a symbol of perseverance in a quiet corner of Brazil. Will these blue macaws ever fly in the caatinga again? What happened to the last birds? Find out in this episode! Sources: Spix's Macaw the Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird by Tony Juniper: https://www.tonyjuniper.com/content/spix%E2%80%99...
The Good with the Bad - February 2020 Conservation News
February 28, 2020 23:00 - 15 minutes - 23.9 MBIn this episode, I cover a few pieces of conservation news that came out over the past month. I also talk about what one of the best band names ever might be. Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe! Thanks! Sources: China's Wildlife Trading Ban: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00499-2 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-wildlife/china-bans-trade-consumption-of-wild-animals-due-to-coronavirus-idUSKCN20J069 Antarctic Penguin Colonies: https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/...
Episode 2 - The Great Auk
February 09, 2020 05:43 - 38 minutes - 57 MBIn this episode, I cover the great auk- the penguin of the north. But was it a penguin as its coloration would suggest or something totally different? What happened to this giant bird? Were these animals killed off completely by humans, or were their populations already on the way out? The range of the great auk stretched from Europe to the shores of eastern Canada, so where did they go? Find out in this episode! Sources: Razorbill Vocalizations by Stanislas Wroza: https://www.xeno-canto....
The Good with the Bad - January 2020 Conservation News
January 31, 2020 23:48 - 21 minutes - 18.4 MBSurprise! A month end round up of some of the good and not so good news coming out of wildlife conservation and extinction. This is a much more informal episode, where you can listen to me cheer on a tortoise that saved his whole species (Go Diego!), nerd out about how cool pine trees are, and get really excited about some brand new bird species. If you are an environmental scientist and are publishing some work in February that you would like people to hear about, please reach out to me a...
Episode 1 - The Thylacine
January 25, 2020 19:15 - 46 minutes - 66.7 MBIn this episode, I cover the thylacine- Tasmania's most famous extinct animal. Were these animals killed off completely by humans, or were there other factors at play? Thylacines were the dominant carnivore within Tasmania until European settlers arrived and began to kill them to protect their sheep. But, were these animals killed off completely by humans, or were there other factors at play? Sources: https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.12029 https://web....
Episode 0 - Introduction
January 10, 2020 01:50 - 1 minute - 2.17 MBIn this introductory episode, I cover why I was inspired to start this podcast. This podcast will cover recent extinction events that have happened since humans came onto the scene. Oftentimes, recent extinctions are only covered by people posting about it on social media, but I hope to tell the full life histories of these creatures and talk about the conservation efforts that were in place before they slipped away. Join me on January 25th, 2020 for Episode 1 of Season 1 - The Thylacine