<p>Zoologist Lucy Cooke is on a mission: to break down the 'sexist stereotype' she believes has permeated our understanding of the natural world...</p><p>In Political Animals, she sets out to prove that females of the species can be just as fiesty, ardent, manipulative, aggressive, varied, strategic and political as males - questioning some of the theories laid out by the 'father of evolution', Charles Darwin, and hearing from pioneering scientists moving evolutionary biology beyond a male-centric narrative.</p><p>For the opening episode, Lucy focuses on sex: uncovering stories of the female animals defying Darwin’s “coy” label, and using sexual strategies to further their own evolutionary influence.</p><p>This takes her on a journey from soliciting capuchin monkeys in the forests of Costa Rica, to studies of promiscuous fruit flies, to the northern jacana bird in Nicaragua, which relies on a harem of males to raise her chicks. Lucy also hears from scientists and specialists including Megan Mah, Joe Cain, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, Patricia Gowaty, Robert Trivers and Salvador Mirales.</p><p>Featuring excerpts from ‘The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex’ by Charles Darwin, read by Derek Frood.</p><p>Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Lucy Taylor.</p><p>First broadcast on Friday 18 February 2022.</p>