Mammalwatching

Charles and Jon turn the podcast over to three of the youngest mammalwatchers we know: Ellen Linton (20), Bruno Kovacs Gomez (16) and Moses Swanson-Mwamasika (15).
In a lively chat the three share stories about their passion, why they love it and what their friends and family think. We hear stories about pizza with a Caracal in South Africa; close encounters with pouched rats in Zimbabwe; and a quest for a Golden Jackal in Hungary. The next generation also offer advice on how to encourage friends to join a trip. So press play if you want to learn how to sneakily turn a road trip with your bestie into a pocket gopher safari or are contemplating more extreme measures ... 
The podcast starts with 'notes from the field' from Jannico Kelk and Nicolas Rakotopare, recorded live in Darjeeling moments after a spectacular Red Panda encounter.
For more information visit www.mammalwatching.com/podcast
Notes: All three of our guests have submitted several reports to mammalwatching. See for instance Ellen's road trip through Oregon and Idaho; Moses's goodbye to Zimbabwe report; and Bruno's family trip through Corfu, Vienna and Hungary.
Download Scythebill to manage your mammal list here https://www.scythebill.comhttps://www.scythebill.com
You can find wildlife filmmaker Nicolas Rakotopare and wildlife photographer Jannico Kelk on Instagram. Their notes from the field was recorded on a scouting trip for their upcoming Red Panda photo safaris.
If you would like to submit you own notes from the field then please get in touch with Jon at [email protected]
You can support mammalwatching and buy us a coffee here https://buymeacoffee.com/mammalwatching
Finally did you know you can sign up to receive a weekly mammalwatching newsletter here? https://www.mammalwatching.com/subscribe-to-updates/
Cover art: The Next Generation
Dr Charles Foley is a mammalwatcher and biologist who, together with his wife Lara, spent 30 years studying elephants in Tanzania. They now run the Tanzania Conservation Research Program at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.

Jon Hall set up mammalwatching.com in 2005. Genetically Welsh, spiritually Australian, currently in New York City. He has looked for mammals in almost 120 countries.

Charles and Jon don't have a guest this month. Instead we talk to each about our recent trips to southern Tanzania (Charles) and Tierra del Fuego (Jon).
Charles's adventure coincided with the Tanzanian elections and an outbreak of protests. These may have shut down the country but did not deter its mammalwatchers! In between negotiating their way through road blocks and buying diesel from trucks stuck on the road, they managed to see a ridiculous number of mammal species (almost 80) including the Kipunji, a primate only discovered by scientists a few years ago.
Jon's trip through Patagonia went more smoothly. The highlight was a day looking for Leopard Seals in a remote area of Chilean Tierra del Fuego. He had crippling views of the seal amongst jaw dropping scenery. One of his best days ever.
For more information visit www.mammalwatching.com/podcast
Notes: Charles's report is here https://www.mammalwatching.com/community-post/rare-mammals-and-riots-in-southern-tanzania/ . He organized his tour through African Pangolin Safaris. The owner, guide, and all round troubleshooter, Mansoor Mohamed can be reached at [email protected]. Learn more about the discovery of the Kipunji in Season 1 Episode 4 of this podcast when we talk to Tim Davenport.
Jon's Patagonia report is at https://www.mammalwatching.com/community-post/patagonia-buenos-aires-province-december-2025/. He organized his trip with Marcelo Gavensky from Birds Argentina, also a former podcast guest.
If you interested in joining Jon's trips to Brazil or Antarctica the details are here
NE Brazil for primates and porcupines with Jon Hall & Regina Ribeiro, May 27 – June 8 2026
Antarctica with Jon Hall & Naturetrek, January 2027
And if you want to support mammalwatching and buy us a coffee please do! https://buymeacoffee.com/mammalwatching
Finally did you know you can sign up to receive a weekly mammalwatching newsletter here? https://www.mammalwatching.com/subscribe-to-updates/
Cover art: Leopard Seal, Jon Hall.
Dr Charles Foley is a mammalwatcher and biologist who, together with his wife Lara, spent 30 years studying elephants in Tanzania. They now run the Tanzania Conservation Research Program at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.

Jon Hall set up mammalwatching.com in 2005. Genetically Welsh, spiritually Australian, currently in New York City. He has looked for mammals in almost 120 countries.

In the first podcast of 2026 we talk with professional bird and mammal guide János Oláh from his home in Hungary. János set up Sakertours in 1994. Initially focussing on birding tours in Eastern Europe they expanded to run hide-based photography tours and now mammal tours.
János explains how he was drawn to birding as a child, and the formative role an aversion to summer camp chores played in the process. He describes how and why he set up his Romania Mammal Tour, on which participants can expect to see over 50 mammal species in 9 days! And he shares a very important life lesson he learned as a boy while looking for a 'Dawn Bird': preferred habitat is far more useful to a successful search than a species' common name!
The podcast begins with a 'live from the field' account of our heroically unsuccessful search for a Sumatran Striped Rabbit, which János was lucky enough to be a part of.
You can stream the episode here or listen on your favourite podcast platform.
For more information visit www.mammalwatching.com/podcast
Notes: Here is the most recent Romania Mammal Tour report from Sakertours. Details of the 2026 tour and how to join are here. Other Sakertours reports are on mammalwatching's Romania page including the 2025 Mole-rat safari we talked about.
A report of our ill-fated trip in search of Sumatran Striped Rabbits is here.
Cover art: János in Ladakh.
Dr Charles Foley is a mammalwatcher and biologist who, together with his wife Lara, spent 30 years studying elephants in Tanzania. They now run the Tanzania Conservation Research Program at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.

Jon Hall set up mammalwatching.com in 2005. Genetically Welsh, spiritually Australian, currently in New York City. He has looked for mammals in almost 120 countries.

The Season 4 opener to the mammalwatching podcast has Charles and Jon talking about their September 2025 expedition to Sulawesi.  
This is a blow by blow - and mammal by mammal - account of a remarkable two week trip that recorded over 80 mammal species. Our story is interspersed with interviews from the field with Carlos Bocos, the trip leader; bat guru Prof Juliana Senawi; and the other participants (Stuart Chapman, Nick Cox, János Oláh, Martin Royle and Ian Thompson). We also include a conversation witth Ating Solihin from Sulawesi's Malenge Island about his role in bringing the Togean Babirusa back from the brink of extinction.
Highlights include:
Explaining why the initial excitement of seeing species that were likely new to science quickly turned to frustration.
Hearing why giving a seven year old a mammal book might just dictate the rest of their life.
Advice for others planning to visit Sulawesi, including the importance of bringing your own sleeping mats and never wearing flip flops into a bat cave!
You can stream the episode here or listen on your favourite podcast platform.
For more information visit www.mammalwatching.com/podcast
Notes: The trip report from our expedition to Sulawesi should be available here by the end of 2025.
Cover art: Togean Babirusa, Carlos Bocos
Dr Charles Foley is a mammalwatcher and biologist who, together with his wife Lara, spent 30 years studying elephants in Tanzania. They now run the Tanzania Conservation Research Program at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.

Jon Hall set up mammalwatching.com in 2005. Genetically Welsh, spiritually Australian, currently in New York City. He has looked for mammals in almost 120 countries.

Charles and Jon speak to conservation power couple Nachiket Kelkar and Kadambari Deshpande from their home in Bangalore. for the finale to Season 3 of the podcast.
Kadambari and Nachiket both work to better understand how wildlife and people can co-exist in India, with Kadambari focussing on bats and Nachiket looking at riverine ecosystems and wildlife including the Ganges River Dolphin.
In a fascinating interview they discuss some of the threats facing the species they are working to protect as well as some of the facets of Indian society - and its sometimes striking tolerance for living alongside wildlife - that help to allow  wildlife and people to co-exist.
They describe a recent trip in search with Bob Pitman (a 2022 podcast guest) in search of India's remaining two Indus River Dolphins and also explain how Indian Flying Foxes are a cashew-farmer's best friend!
For more information visit www.mammalwatching.com/podcast
Notes: Jon's recent Borneo trip report - during which a few seconds birding almost cost him his binoculars - is here:
Details of the IUCN-approved splitting of the Giraffe into four species is here.
Cover art: Kadambari & Nachiket
Dr Charles Foley is a mammalwatcher and biologist who, together with his wife Lara, spent 30 years studying elephants in Tanzania. They now run the Tanzania Conservation Research Program at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.

Jon Hall set up mammalwatching.com in 2005. Genetically Welsh, spiritually Australian, currently in New York City. He has looked for mammals in almost 120 countries.