Look At Me: New Guardian Australia Podcast Features Lesser-Known Wildlife

What do Australia’s lesser-known animals teach us about ourselves and our environment?

Join animal-lovers Benjamin Law and zoologist-turned-filmmaker Chris McCormack as they explore Australia’s unusual fauna in Look at me, a fun new six-part podcast series launching today.

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Look at me goes beyond the fame of koalas and kangaroos and showcases lesser-known but fascinating animals, their strange habitats, their strange habits and, in some cases, the deep connections they’ve made with people.

Ben Law said: “Like all kids in the antipodes and beyond, I’ve always had a soft-spot for Australian fauna.

“Kangaroos, wombats, platypuses and echidnas – how could you not love these loveable and outrageously odd critters?

“What I didn’t know before signing up to this project was how odd they can get.

“We’re talking about nightmarish giant worms carving through the earth and the sluttiest cephalopods you can imagine.

“(Of course, I’m saying this in a slut-positive way.) I can’t see Australian animals the same way now, and I doubt you will too.”

Chris McCormack said: “There is great reward in being curious about the world around us, and I think these stories are proof of that.

“These are some truly special Australians and they remind us how lucky we are to live on this unique continent.

“Some of them are incredibly endangered, some just plain elusive, and all of them are lesser known than they ought to be.

“It has been beyond gratifying learning their stories and meeting the people who study and conserve them: their passion can show us all how we can do more to love and support our native wildlife.”

Lenore Taylor, editor, said: “In a world full of political upheaval and bitter debate there is something wonderful about a series focussing on the fascinating attributes and habits of some seriously weird Australian creatures.”

This podcast highlights the weird and wonderful traits of a selection of native Australian animals to create more awareness of the diversity of our fauna. See if you can guess the Look at me line-up:

The rockstar of the undersea world. An outrageously beautiful animal who is a skilled crossdresser and has much to teach about coming to terms with mortality.
A single mum who works hard to provide her offspring with enough food to secure their future, yet could lose everything when her offspring are eaten and replaced without her knowledge.
A bird that could be extinct in our lifetimes, has an interesting love life and has farmers putting conservation before profit.
This enormous species is hardly ever seen, sheds one slimy egg per year and everyone who encounters it falls in love.
A creature that lives in islands in the sky, inspires resorts to build tunnels of love and shares some habits with North American bears.
A species so underground you are unlikely to have heard of it or seen its silky white coat or giant terrifying claw hands – yet it’s been here for more than 60 million years.

You can listen to the first episode of Look at me from today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Acast or on theguardian.com/au

The Look at me podcast is proudly supported by the Australian Conservation Foundation and produced by Remember The Wild in collaboration with Guardian Australia.

The series is overseen by Guardian Australia’s award-winning podcast producer, Miles Martignoni, who also produces Guardian Australia’s Politics Live podcast and #MeToo podcast, Witch Hunt.

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