Encore: The misfit mammal that defies biological conventions
From Conversations by ABC Australia
May 7, 2026 · 51 min
About this episode
Jack Ashby shares his lifelong passion for platypuses and other unique Australian animals.
It was love at first sight, when Jack Ashby first set eyes upon a platypus specimen as a young university student. The introduction set him on a lifelong mission to meet these quintessentially Australian creatures in the wild, and redefine their reputation as "weird" or "primitive". He's met many other animals along the way, coming face to face with an elusive snow leopard family in the Himalayas, with wombats and echidnas, and seeing only the eyes of a sloth bear, reflecting his torchlight in a pitch black forest. Further information Platypus Matters is published by Harper Collins This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2022, the producer was Meggie Morris and the Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney. It explores platypus, mammals, zoology, echidnas, Australian animals, Winston Churchill, animal behaviour, Indigenous Australians, baby platypus, the biology and anatomy of platypus, weird animal facts. To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists…
People in this episode
Hosts: Richard Fidler, Sarah Kanowski
Guest: Jack Ashby
Topics covered
- platypus
- mammals
- zoology
- Australian animals
- animal behaviour
- Indigenous Australians
Keywords
- platypus
- mammals
- animal behaviour
- Australian wildlife
- weird animal facts
- echidnas
- snow leopard
- sloth bear
- biology
- anatomy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Harper Collins, ABC Australia
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