The Common Descent Podcast

Paleontology discussions on fossils, evolution and deep time AI summary

Common Descent Visit website › Science · EN · 393 episodes · latest 2026-11-07

Rank 3102

0 upvotes, 0 downvotes

Embed a widget with this podcast’s standing on your website

What it is about

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!

Publisher’s own description, taken unchanged from the podcast feed.
Copyright 2017 . All rights reserved.

Listen

Available at these services — the RSS feed works in any podcast app.

Apple Podcasts

Latest episodes

Episode 256 - Predatory Lures

2026-11-07 · 2 hr 3 min · Episode 390

Why spend all that effort chasing after prey when you could just convince them to come to you? This episode, we explore the many and varied ways that predators lure their prey, from dangling lights to…
Cute-E - Tribbles

2026-10-31 · 58 min · Episode 389

Welcome … to Cute-E! During our Spook-E series, we speculate on the evolution of monsters from myth and popular media, but we leave out fiction’s more adorable creatures. In Cute-E, we choose cuddlier critters and…
Episode 255 - Plant Origins

2026-10-24 · 2 hr 19 min · Episode 388

Here on our blue-and-green planet, the green is plants. This episode, Aly joins us again to explore the beginnings of this all-important group of life. We’ll discuss which ancestors gave rise to true plants, what the…
Spook-E - Andalites

2026-10-24 · 54 min · Episode 387

Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution. It’s Spook-E Season! All throughout October, we pick monsters from myth and media and speculate how they – or something like them – could evolve here on Earth, pulling inspiration…
Spook-E - Headcrabs

2026-10-17 · 1 hr 11 min · Episode 386

Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution. It’s Spook-E Season! All throughout October, we pick monsters from myth and media and speculate how they – or something like them – could evolve here on Earth, pulling inspiration…
Episode 254 - Abelisaurs

2026-10-10 · 2 hr 13 min · Episode 384

During the Cretaceous Period, while tyrannosaurs stomped around the northern continents, the less famous abelisaurs were the top predatory dinosaurs of the south. This episode, we piece together the history and…
Spook-E - Greys

2026-10-10 · 1 hr 2 min · Episode 385

Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution. It’s Spook-E Season! All throughout October, we pick monsters from myth and media and speculate how they – or something like them – could evolve here on Earth, pulling inspiration…
Spook-E - Xenomorphs

2026-10-03 · 1 hr 42 min · Episode 383

Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution. Spook-E Season is back! All throughout October, we pick monsters from myth and media and speculate how they – or something like them – could evolve here on Earth, pulling…
Episode 253 - Kangaroos

2026-09-26 · 2 hr 43 min · Episode 382

Kangaroos – and their wallaroo and wallaby cousins – are some of the most recognizable, charismatic, and impressively strange mammals on the planet. This episode, we explore the surprising diversity of this group, we…
Episode 252 - The Ice Age

2026-09-12 · 2 hr 11 min · Episode 381

About 10% of the Earth’s land surface is currently covered in persistent glacial ice, but for most of Earth history, that number was much closer to zero. This episode, we explore what happens when ice overtakes our…

Episode details from the publisher’s feed. Playback happens at the publisher.

Publisher details

Oldest episode in feed: 02/2017 · over 9 years
Typical length: 1 hr 47 min
Format: Episodic Newest first, episodes stand alone

The Common Descent Podcast in the rankings

The best Science podcasts The best English-language podcasts All rankings ›

For podcasters

Is this podcast yours? Verify it — afterwards you can correct details, get the widget for your website, and we let you know when your podcast is nominated or wins.

Without an account you can use an email address on your show’s own domain — we create the account along the way. The other methods need a login.