Artwork

Content provided by Audioboom and Science Friday. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Audioboom and Science Friday or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.
Player FM - Podcast App
Go offline with the Player FM app!

852: Why Eels Are So Mysterious—And In Demand

17:59
 
Share
 

Manage episode 438183370 series 3381328
Content provided by Audioboom and Science Friday. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Audioboom and Science Friday or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.

Eels have fascinated humans for thousands of years, even captivating big thinkers like Aristotle and Freud. Despite having been around for some 200 million years, eels are still rather mysterious creatures. For example, scientists still aren’t sure exactly how they spawn.

But those unanswered questions haven’t stopped humans from wanting to eat them. So much so that they’re now endangered in some areas—and a lucrative criminal enterprise has risen up to poach baby eels from the wild.

Guest host Rachel Feltman talks with Ellen Ruppel Shell, author of Slippery Beast: A True Crime History, with Eels about her journey into the wild world of eels.

Read an excerpt of Slippery Beast: A True Crime History, with Eels.

Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

  continue reading

1350 episodes

Artwork
iconShare
 
Manage episode 438183370 series 3381328
Content provided by Audioboom and Science Friday. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Audioboom and Science Friday or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.

Eels have fascinated humans for thousands of years, even captivating big thinkers like Aristotle and Freud. Despite having been around for some 200 million years, eels are still rather mysterious creatures. For example, scientists still aren’t sure exactly how they spawn.

But those unanswered questions haven’t stopped humans from wanting to eat them. So much so that they’re now endangered in some areas—and a lucrative criminal enterprise has risen up to poach baby eels from the wild.

Guest host Rachel Feltman talks with Ellen Ruppel Shell, author of Slippery Beast: A True Crime History, with Eels about her journey into the wild world of eels.

Read an excerpt of Slippery Beast: A True Crime History, with Eels.

Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

  continue reading

1350 episodes

All episodes

×
 
Loading …

Welcome to Player FM!

Player FM is scanning the web for high-quality podcasts for you to enjoy right now. It's the best podcast app and works on Android, iPhone, and the web. Signup to sync subscriptions across devices.

 

Quick Reference Guide