How much booze does it take to intoxicate an elephant?

The answer isn't as much as you might expect, because not all guts are created equal when it comes to metabolising alcohol.

This explains why an elephant might be considered a lightweight and your donkey got into a fight last weekend.

But alcohol isn't the only cause of misbehaviour — so what motivated the legless serial doorbell pranksters?

Featuring:
Dr Mareike Janiak,  postdoctoral associate at the University of Calgary
Dr Christine Sutton, particle physicist and past editor of CERN Courier
Kate Connolly, Berlin correspondent for the Guardian Newspaper
Dr Imogen Cavadino, freelance malacologist

With news audio thanks to NPR

And extra sounds from bird enthusiasts:
Mike Dooher, XC355140. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/355140 (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)
Lonnie Bregman, XC373738. Accessible at  www.xeno-canto.org/373738 (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)
Mike Dooher, XC402422. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/402422 (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)
Frank Lambert, XC1031363. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/1031363 (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0)

Production:
Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer
Rebecca McLaren, Producer
Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer

This episode of What the Duck?!  was produced on the land of the Wadawarrung and Taungurung people.

Find more episodes of the ABC podcast, What the Duck?! with the always curious Dr Ann Jones exploring the mysteries of nature on ABC Listen (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. You'll learn more about the weird and unusual aspects of our natural world in a quirky, fun way with easy to understand science.

What The Duck?!

ABC Australia

Nature's Most Wanted: Trunk and disorderly

APR 16, 202625 MIN
What The Duck?!

Nature's Most Wanted: Trunk and disorderly

APR 16, 202625 MIN

Description

<p>How much booze does it take to intoxicate an elephant?</p><p>The answer isn't as much as you might expect, because not all guts are created equal when it comes to metabolising alcohol.</p><p>This explains why an elephant might be considered a lightweight and your donkey got into a fight last weekend.</p><p>But alcohol isn't the only cause of misbehaviour — so what motivated the legless serial doorbell pranksters?</p><p>Featuring:</p><ul><li>Dr Mareike Janiak,  postdoctoral associate at the University of Calgary</li><li>Dr Christine Sutton, particle physicist and past editor of CERN Courier</li><li>Kate Connolly, Berlin correspondent for the Guardian Newspaper</li><li>Dr Imogen Cavadino, freelance malacologist</li></ul><p>With news audio thanks to <a href="https://www.npr.org/2008/05/22/90714738/nasty-donkey-now-has-police-record">NPR</a></p><p>And extra sounds from bird enthusiasts:</p><ul><li>Mike Dooher, XC355140. Accessible at <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/355140">www.xeno-canto.org/355140</a> (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)</li><li>Lonnie Bregman, XC373738. Accessible at  <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/373738">www.xeno-canto.org/373738</a> (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)</li><li>Mike Dooher, XC402422. Accessible at <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/402422">www.xeno-canto.org/402422</a> (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0)</li><li>Frank Lambert, XC1031363. Accessible at <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/1031363">www.xeno-canto.org/1031363</a> (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0)</li></ul><p>Production:</p><ul><li>Ann Jones, Presenter / Producer</li><li>Rebecca McLaren, Producer</li><li>Hamish Camilleri, Sound Engineer</li></ul><p>This episode of What the Duck?!  was produced on the land of the Wadawarrung and Taungurung people.</p><p>Find more episodes of the ABC podcast, What the Duck?! with the always curious Dr Ann Jones exploring the mysteries of nature on ABC Listen (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. You'll learn more about the weird and unusual aspects of our natural world in a quirky, fun way with easy to understand science.</p>