Overview
356 Episodes
Ellen gets her claws out for seriemas. We discuss terror birds, reverse mullets, sickle claws, weird scenes from Jurassic Park, golf ball physics, and so much more.
Transcribed - Published: 28 May 2026
Join Ellen & special guest, senior conservation scientist at Woodland Park Zoo and founder of the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program Lisa Dabek, as we put these charming ghosts of the forest in the well-deserved spotlight.
Transcribed - Published: 21 May 2026
Join Ellen & special guest, technobiologist and professor Jack Koch, for a review of the iconic crustacean known and loved by many names: the crawfish.
Transcribed - Published: 15 May 2026
Curious about the exclusive bonus content for Maximum Fun members? Enjoy some free samples from special episodes!
Transcribed - Published: 30 April 2026
Ellen & special guests Ella Hubber and Tom Lum of Let’s Learn Everything, turn their gazes to the skies and talk animals in space.
Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2026
Ellen jaws away about the great white shark.
Transcribed - Published: 23 April 2026
It's MaxFunDrive. And here, for the first time, we give you an exclusive look (well, listen) at the craft of podcasting: presenting Casters on Casters. In this episode, Teylor Smirl (Still Buffering) and Ellen Weatherford (Just the Zoo of Us) bond over the media they consumed that shaped who they are today, and how that media informs their perspectives on their shows. Plus, each host reveals their dream guest. If this glamorous, in-depth journey into what makes your favorite hosts tick inspires you, support them by joining as a member at maximumfun.org/join. Edited by Laura Swisher and Produced by Hannah Muroz for Maximum Fun.
Transcribed - Published: 20 April 2026
Join Ellen & special guest, co-founder and CEO of conservation organization Wildlife SOS Kartick Satyanarayan, for a review of Asian elephants.
Transcribed - Published: 16 April 2026
Join Ellen & the Cryptonaturalist Jarod K. Anderson to talk about the ways that nature and wildlife can inspire our creativity and shape our stories, particularly the enticingly unknowable cryptids.
Transcribed - Published: 2 April 2026
Don't call it a comeback, coelacanth's been here for years.
Transcribed - Published: 26 March 2026
Join Ellen & Dalton Mason, creator and bird parent behind Apollo and Frens, for a look into life alongside the world-famous African grey parrot.
Transcribed - Published: 20 March 2026
Join Ellen & special guest, science communicator and Certified Bug Friend Emily, for a review of the tiny little bugs that fly around your nearest kitchen sink.
Transcribed - Published: 5 March 2026
Ellen goes on a journey through time and space with Triops, the tadpole shrimp.
Transcribed - Published: 25 February 2026
Join Ellen & special guest artist and reptile keeper Lyn for an up close and personal look at a little snake with a big appetite.
Transcribed - Published: 19 February 2026
Ellen takes things slow with the iconic banana slug.
Transcribed - Published: 12 February 2026
Join Ellen & special guests Shannon Hackett and John Bates in the intersection of science, history, and birds with a love letter to the natural history museum.
Transcribed - Published: 5 February 2026
Ellen sets the record straight on Norway lemmings, busting over 400 years of myths.
Transcribed - Published: 29 January 2026
Join Ellen & special guest comedian, writer, and nature enthusiast Vinny Thomas for a review of some of the furry, feathered, and scaly neighbors making themselves at home right in our very own cities.
Transcribed - Published: 22 January 2026
Ellen gives the Tasmanian devil his due.
Transcribed - Published: 15 January 2026
Join Ellen & special guest, wildlife educator and zookeeper Jungle Jordan, as we round up his top 3 friend-shaped carnivores.
Transcribed - Published: 8 January 2026
Ellen gets into the festive spirit with sea angels.
Transcribed - Published: 24 December 2025
Joined Ellen & special guest wildlife ambassador and care specialist Marco Wendt from the San Diego Zoo Safari Park for a review of the towering birds that are ready to literally rumble: cassowaries.
Transcribed - Published: 18 December 2025
Ellen irons out the kinkajous. We discuss Thomas Jefferson's giant moose sidequest, the dessert hypothesis, bad pets, who the real Frankenstein monster is, and so much more.
Transcribed - Published: 11 December 2025
Join Ellen & host of Bizarre Beasts Sarah Suta for a lineup of some animals she’d like to see get a second chance.
Transcribed - Published: 4 December 2025
Ellen goes on an odyssey through history with the wild turkey.
Transcribed - Published: 26 November 2025
Ellen has a bone to pick with turkey vultures.
Transcribed - Published: 20 November 2025
Join Ellen & special guest from the world of wildlife rehabilitation Emma Ratway for a review of the chompy rogues lurking at the bottom of ponds all over the country: snapping turtles.
Transcribed - Published: 13 November 2025
Ellen comes clean about the bluestreak cleaner wrasse.
Transcribed - Published: 6 November 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, zoology and science communication powerhouse Lindsay Nikole, for a review of some of the animal kingdom’s greatest hits throughout the history of the Earth.
Transcribed - Published: 30 October 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, writer and science journalist Cara Giaimo, for a highlight reel of some of the animal kingdom’s biggest surprises.
Transcribed - Published: 16 October 2025
Ellen jumps to conclusions about jack jumper ants.
Transcribed - Published: 9 October 2025
Join Ellen & special guest artist and science communicator behind Nature Disturbed for an appropriate kickoff to the month of all things wretched with a review of disgust.
Transcribed - Published: 2 October 2025
Ellen comes along for the ride with Galápagos tortoises.
Transcribed - Published: 25 September 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, primatologist and author Dr. Keriann McGoogan, for primatology storytime!
Transcribed - Published: 18 September 2025
Join Ellen & birder and science communicator Jason Hall for a review of a little bird full of big surprises: the American dipper.
Transcribed - Published: 11 September 2025
Ellen demystifies the deep sea-dwelling bigfin squid.
Transcribed - Published: 4 September 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, wildlife veterinarian, filmmaker and science communicator Dr César Puechmarin, for a review of Australia’s masters of song: the lyrebird.
Transcribed - Published: 27 August 2025
Ellen & Christian team up as a coyote and badger in a cozy duet TTRPG adventure.
Transcribed - Published: 21 August 2025
Ellen gives the mysterious wing-clapping nightjars a round of applause.
Transcribed - Published: 14 August 2025
Join Ellen & returning guest, science communicator and comedy writer Katie Goldin, for a roundup of her 3 weirdest facts about sharks.
Transcribed - Published: 7 August 2025
Ellen lets Pallas's cat out of the bag & Christian probes into the world of the sensitive kiwi.
Transcribed - Published: 30 July 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, marine biologist and seabird wrangler Melina Watson, for a review of the ocean’s bravest little walkerwalkers: Leach’s storm petrel.
Transcribed - Published: 17 July 2025
Ellen pokes her nose into the giant anteater's business.
Transcribed - Published: 11 July 2025
Join Ellen & special guest, digital artist and character designer Roxy Valdez, for a multimedia exploration of the intersection where real-world biology and ecology meets the imagination: speculative evolution!
Transcribed - Published: 2 July 2025
Christian takes charge of rhinoceroses & Ellen gives bird-eating tarantulas a hair-raising review.
Transcribed - Published: 25 June 2025
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