Talking Apes
A primate podcast examining the world of great apes - chimps, gorillas, orangutans, bonobos, and humans. Our remarkable guests are at the forefront of science and conservation, exploring our brains, evolution, anatomy, disease, wildlife, biodiversity, and the ecosystems we all depend on for survival. Visit our official website: talkingapes.org
Talking Apes is a program of the nonprofit GLOBIO.
Episodes
81 episodes
What Are Chimpanzees Saying? | Chimp Communication and the Origins of Language with Dr. Katie Slocombe
How did human language evolve and what can our closest relatives teach us about its origins? In this episode of Talking Apes, Gerry Ellis sits down with primatologist
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1:23:44
Painting Primates in the Heart of Africa with Robin Huffman | Episode 77
This week on Talking Apes, we record on site in the rainforests of Cameroon at Ape Action Africa’s Mefou Sanctuary, where art and primate conservation intersect. Our guest is primate portrait artist Robin Huffman, ...
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41:50
BONOBOS: More Than Just Sex - with Ariel Rogers & Dr. Brian Hare | Episode 76
Bonobos may be our closest living relatives, but we still have so much to learn about and from them. In this episode of Talking Apes, we sit down with Ariel Rogers, Executive Director of Friends of Bonobos, and evolutionary ant...
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1:19:43
Why Humans Walk Upright with Dr. Carol Ward | Episode 75
Have you ever wondered how we became the upright, big-brained, tool-wielding species we are today? In this fascinating episode of Talking Apes, Gerry Ellis sits down with Dr. Carol Ward - Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Pathology ...
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1:20:31
The Truth About Female Evolution with EVE Author Cat Bohannon | Episode 74
Join us for a lively, curiosity-filled deep dive with author and researcher Cat Bohannon, whose award-winning book Eve reframes 200 million years of evolution through the female body. Cat brings her signature blend of ...
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1:23:17
Uncovering the Hobbit Mystery: What Homo floresiensis Reveals About Us with Dr Matt Tocheri | Episode 73
Paleoanthropologist Dr. Matt Tocheri joins host Gerry Ellis to explore the remarkable discovery of Homo floresiensis — the so-called Flores “Hobbit” of Indonesia. What does this small-bodied, small-brained human tell us about our own e...
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Season 5
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Episode 73
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1:44:15
Inside the Society of Gorillas: World Gorilla Day 2025 with Dr. Robin Morrison | Episode 72
This World Gorilla Day, Talking Apes kicks off Season 5 with a fascinating guest: behavioral ecologist and evolutionary biologist Robin Morrison.Robin ha...
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1:12:42
World Chimpanzee Day with Dr Rachna Reddy | Episode 71
In this episode of Talking Apes, we follow Dr. Rachna Reddy into the the African rainforest, where the laughter of chimps and the quiet rhythms of bonobo life echo deepe...
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Season 4
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Episode 71
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1:08:17
What BaYaka Children Can Teach About Being Human with Dr Deniz Salali | Episode 70
What does a Congolese rainforest childhood reveal about the roots of human cooperation? In this captivating episode of Talking Apes, we sit down with Dr. Gul Deniz Salali, evolutionary anthropologist at University College Lon...
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Season 4
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Episode 70
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1:22:00
Talking Apes, Yes, All Apes! with Dr. Adriano Lameira | Episode 69
Are we really the only "talking apes"? Get ready for a mind-blowing episode with Dr. Adriano Reis E Lameira, one of the world’s leading experts on the evolution of speech and language! Dr. Lameira has spent years de...
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Episode 69
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1:22:58
The Climbing Secret Behind Monkey Bars with Luke Fannin | Episode 68
Hanging with Our Ancestors: Luke Fannin on Climbing, Evolution & Ape LocomotionEver wondered why kids instinctively love monkey bars? Or why apes move so deliberately in the trees? In this episode of
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1:10:58
Happy EARTH DAY! With Jane Goodall Institute's Anna Rathmann | Episode 67
The Amazing People Behind Jane Goodall What does it take to lead one of the most iconic conservation organization...
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59:42
IUCN’s Role in Saving Our Planet with Sean Southey | Episode 66
Earth Month Special: A Deep Dive into Global Conservation with Sean Southey “This is our global education moment. This is the time to champion. This is the time to be noisy. This is the time to dream.”W...
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1:11:04
Southeast Asia’s Secret Monkeys with Dr. Andie Ang | Episode 65
In this episode of Talking Apes, we’re joined by Dr. Andie Ang, a primatologist dedicated to the conservation of Southe...
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Season 4
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Episode 65
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47:57
Tracing Our Footsteps Through Time with Jeremy DeSilva | Episode 64
Bipedalism - How Walking Made Us Human with Jeremy DeSilva“The history of our lineage is filled with multiple species coexisting—this moment, with only one upright walking ape on the planet, is exceptionally rare.”
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Season 4
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Episode 64
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1:08:43
Celebrating Three Decades of Roots & Shoots with Mary Ford | Episode 63
In this episode of Talking Apes, we sit down with Mary Ford, Senior Director of Roots & Shoots USA, t...
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Season 4
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Episode 63
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52:51
Yikes! Chimps Eating Bat Poop? With Disease Detective Dr. Tony Goldberg | Episode 62
Why are chimpanzees in Uganda scooping up bat guano and eating it? This strange behavior, captured o...
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Season 4
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Episode 62
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1:00:36
Voices from the Ape House with Beth Armstrong | Episode 61
This week on Talking Apes, we’re entering the personal world of gorillas and a remarkable woman who has dedicated her life to their stories: Beth Armstrong. As a former gorilla keeper at the
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Season 4
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Episode 61
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1:19:14
Growing Up Chimp with Dr. Kris Sabbi | Episode 60
Growing Up Chimp: Lessons on Life, Leadership, and the Mystery of PubertyWhat does it really mean to grow up? For chimpanzees, our closest living re...
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1:42:30
Orangutans Using Wild Medicines with Dr Isabelle Laumer | Episode 59
In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists have observed a male orangutan, Rakus, using plants as medicine—a first-ever recording of a w...
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Season 4
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Episode 59
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30:14
The Chimps of Gombe with Dr. Elizabeth Lonsdorf | Episode 58
Generations at Gombe: Elizabeth Lonsdorf on Chimpanzee Mothers, Babies, and the Power of Long-Term StudyIn this episode of Talking Apes we’re joined by Elizabeth Lonsdorf whose decades spann...
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1:13:55
Gorilla Doctors! World Gorilla Day Special with Kirsten Gilardi | Episode 57
Season 4 Premiere: World Gorilla Day Special Episode! 🦍We’re thrilled to launch Season 4 of Talking Apes with a special release in celebration of
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Season 4
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Episode 57
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1:22:05
Chimps of the Fiery Savanna with Dr Jill Pruetz - World Chimpanzee Day 2024 | Episode 56
Amidst the harsh terrain and frequent fires of Senegal's savanna landscape lives a community of remarkable chimps. What makes them different from their forest-dwelling kin? And what can they reveal about human evolution? Join us o...
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Season 3
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Episode 56
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2:00:18