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The Common Descent PodcastAuthor: Common Descent
Join David and Will as they explore the paleontologists perspective on various topics in life and earth history. Each episode features a main discussion on a topic requested by the listeners, presented as a lighthearted and educational conversation about fossils, evolution, deep time, and more. Before the main discussion, each episode also includes a news segment, covering recent research related to paleontology and evolution. Each episode ends with the answer to a question submitted by subscribers on Patreon. New episodes with new topics every fortnight! Language: en Genres: Earth Sciences, Natural Sciences, Science Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Episode 240 - Terror Birds
Episode 362
Saturday, 28 March, 2026
For most of the Cenozoic Era, South America was home to an incredible group of predatory birds called phorusrhacids, which included some of the largest carnivorous birds of all time. With their giant axe-like beaks and powerful clawed legs, these giants have gained the nickname “terror birds.” This episode, we explore what makes these birds unique, how they varied across their diversity, and what exactly they were doing with all those terrifying tools. In the news: a bitten plesiosaur, wildflower adaptation, a new croc, and dinosaur parents. Time markers: Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00 News: 00:06:25 Main discussion, Part 1: 00:51:30 Main discussion, Part 2: 01:29:30 Patron question: 02:30:05 Some helpful links mentioned in the Announcements: The Trevor Project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ The National Immigrant Justice Center: https://immigrantjustice.org/ Pal Humanity: https://chuffed.org/project/122818-support-north-gaza-rebuilding-lives-restoring-hope-with-pal-humanity?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio Check out our website for this episode’s blog post and more: http://commondescentpodcast.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast Got a topic you want to hear about? Submit your episode request here: https://commondescentpodcast.com/request-a-topic/ Lots more ways to connect with us: https://linktr.ee/common_descent The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome. More music like this at http://ocremix.org Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
