Terrestrials
by WNYC
From the publisher
Welcome, nature lovers, to the home of the Terrestrials podcast and family-friendly Radiolab episodes about nature. Every other week, host Lulu Miller will take you on a nature walk to encounter a plant or animal behaving in ways that will surprise you.
Good for
Collections Terrestrials landed in, based on what its reviews say.
What parents actually say
High confidence · 167 detailed reviewsPlenty of detailed reviews to work from, so these patterns are pretty dependable. We summarise the 167 reviews long enough to describe the show, out of 308 in total — one-line raves don't tell you much.
Why parents put it on
The moments it actually gets used for.
- Great for car ridesTop10
See what they saidHide
- “Our whole family loves listening in car rides, during bath time, and more.”
- “My son requests to listen to Terrestrials nearly every time we are in the car and at bedtime to fall asleep to, especially “The Trio”.”
- Works for mixed ages10
See what they saidHide
- “Our whole family loves listening in car rides, during bath time, and more.”
- “Our whole family enjoys Terrestrials show SO much.”
- Parents enjoy it too8
See what they saidHide
- “This is a show my kids and I can listen to together and enjoy.”
- “55 year old grown up here and I LOVE this show and everything about it (got hooked with the one about the little boy who was totally into butterflies and the kind scientist who…”
- Kids ask to replay it7
See what they saidHide
- “My 11 year old twins are obsessed with the Terrestrials Podcast.”
- “Our seven year old is obsessed out here best way.”
- Works at bedtime7
See what they saidHide
- “The same pace just stories meant for bedtime.”
- “Science themes in a bedtime story is a great idea.”
What it's about
What comes up when parents describe it.
- Original songs & musicTop30
See what they saidHide
- “The big fib can you spot the lie oops wrong theme song terrestrial terrestrial we are not the worst.”
- “We love Terrestrials so much: The powerful stories, the new ways of understanding creatures and the world around us, a way it inspires us to love science, the songs, and the sen…”
- Science & STEM28
See what they saidHide
- “Science themes in a bedtime story is a great idea.”
- “We love Terrestrials so much: The powerful stories, the new ways of understanding creatures and the world around us, a way it inspires us to love science, the songs, and the sen…”
- Storytelling & adventure18
See what they saidHide
- “The same pace just stories meant for bedtime.”
- “Science themes in a bedtime story is a great idea.”
- Animals & nature12
See what they saidHide
- “I love the show I don't if you will read this but I just wanna know if you could do an episode that includes pink armadillos or like a baby animal episode!”
- “I love terrestrial I also have an animal it’s a ladybug I mean I always thought of it as a regular day bug until I found some interesting stuff about it also big cats part two”
- Humor & silliness11
See what they saidHide
- “It is sooooooooo funny and interesting and i have learned so many new things.”
- “First of all I have to say this is a great podcast I just love science and I love learning and especially I love the songs there’s so funny and fun I love also how everyone has…”
- Imagination & creativity11
See what they saidHide
- “It’s so good and it makes me wonder about a lot of things But sometimes it’s a bit cringe.”
- “They take on complex ideas and find delightfully creative ways to inspire curiosity in all of us.”
What it feels like
The mood parents describe.
- EducationalTop33
See what they saidHide
- “I live the show, it’s so fun and educational.”
- “It is sooooooooo funny and interesting and i have learned so many new things.”
- Funny10
See what they saidHide
- “It is sooooooooo funny and interesting and i have learned so many new things.”
- “First of all I have to say this is a great podcast I just love science and I love learning and especially I love the songs there’s so funny and fun I love also how everyone has…”
- Engaging9
See what they saidHide
- “55 year old grown up here and I LOVE this show and everything about it (got hooked with the one about the little boy who was totally into butterflies and the kind scientist who…”
- “A friend recommended this podcast to us and we’re HOOKED.”
- Wholesome5
See what they saidHide
- “In these crazy times, this wholesome science pod that addresses kids like they’re actually smart (they are!) is a comfort.”
- “I really like this because it’s funny, family friendly, interesting AND so much effort goes into it!!”
Who's actually listening
From the 16 reviews that name a child's age.
- Tweens (9-12)6
- Early elementary (6-8)5
- Preschool (3-5)4
- Teens (13+)3
How to read this: each number is how many reviews raised that topic in their own words — not a percentage or a score. Bars compare topics within a box only, so the longest bar is whatever came up most here, marked Top. The dots above show how much evidence we have, not how good the show is.
This summarises what reviewers said. It isn't our verdict, and we don't write reviews ourselves. See exactly how every number is calculated.
About Terrestrials
In the publisher's own words, as they describe the show on its feed.
Welcome, nature lovers, to the home of the Terrestrials podcast and family-friendly Radiolab episodes about nature. Every other week, host Lulu Miller will take you on a nature walk to encounter a plant or animal behaving in ways that will surprise you. Squirrels that can regrow their brains, octopuses that can outsmart their human captors, honeybees that can predict the future. You don’t have to be a kid to listen, just someone who likes to see the world anew. You’ll hear a range of nature stories on this podcast. Sometimes these will be brand new Terrestrials episodes, full of original songs (by “The Songbud” Alan Goffinski) that tell a fantastical-sounding story about nature that is 100% true. Sometimes these will be our very best, shiniest, furriest, leafiest Radiolab episodes about animals or plants or nature. The stories that drop here will always be family-friendly and safe for kids. They will always be sound-rich and full of the vivid, gripping storytelling you’ve come to expect from Radiolab. They will always transport you to the beyond-human world: into the depths of the ocean, into jungles, prairies, forests, space, snow, wildflower fields and beyond. Sometimes we’ll encounter something so wild we just have to break out into song about it! Don’t worry, good voices not required. Join us on this adventure!
Parent reviews (308)
Real reviews from real parents — the ones we gather from public sources link back to where they were written, and the ones written here are marked as such.
Listened to Terrestrials?
Tell other parents what you thought. It takes a minute and genuinely helps.
Rat question
Can rats kill a cat(s)?
like it lot · Oct 2026
Great but…………………………………………………..
Could you do some episodes on big cats and worms 🪱. And recently you have not been adding enough episodes to us
Luca L7Y7 · Oct 2026
Review
I live the show, it’s so fun and educational. I think it would be amazing if you made an episode for Hampstead
Watermelon we rrrrr · Sep 2026
Auditorily busy
Good content, but it’s hyper-produced, to the point my kids are overwhelmed with all the intense sounds fighting to be heard over each other. I think if you dialled it back from 11 a bit, this thing would be unstoppable.
Canadian Lenze · Sep 2026
My life
Ever since the bedtime story released it changed my life now I listen to this ever night
Da best Kiiiing · Sep 2026
So good
I LOVE this pls make more sleep one
Ava 🎀. · Sep 2026
Good
Cats more !!!!!!!!!!!!!!🐕🐈🐈⬛
Cats are not evil 🐈🐈⬛ · Sep 2026
Yawn.
Celestials is good for helping out with headaches so please give more. A good one would be about an Irish turtle drifting through life.
Bob 2537 · Sep 2026
Showing the 120 most recent of 308 reviews we analysed. The summaries above use all of them.
Questions parents ask
How long are Terrestrials episodes?
Most episodes run about 29 minutes, so an episode fits comfortably into a school run or a bedtime routine.
Is Terrestrials any good?
It holds 4.5 out of 5 from 1,391 ratings, with 308 written parent reviews, which works out to an A- on our scale.
Is Terrestrials appropriate for kids?
Terrestrials is marked clean, with no explicit content flag. Parents describe it as educational, funny, engaging.
Where can I listen to Terrestrials?
Terrestrials is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Amazon Music and other podcast apps. It's free to listen to.
Why do parents recommend Terrestrials?
The point that comes up most is "great for car rides" — mentioned in 10 of the 167 reviews we analysed.
Episodes
60 to play, newest first
The Hideout: A Monarch Butterfly Mystery
Sep 24, 2026 · 34 min
Mexican mountains, moms, magnets, and… monarch butterflies.
The Snow Beast: A Mystery Animal (Replay)
Sep 10, 2026 · 30 min
The unpredictable story of a globetrotter.
The Wallowers: A Buffalo Comeback Story
Aug 27, 2026 · 33 min
The resurrection.
Celestials: A Bedtime Snail Story Experiment
Aug 20, 2026 · 14 min
Slow down.
The Fuzzy Ruckus: The Power of Lichen (Replay)
Aug 13, 2026 · 29 min
Artist Ashley (Ash) Eliza Williams was so shy growing up that they found it hard to speak to people. They found comfort scavenging in the forest. One day, Ashley discovered lichen, which quietly changed the course of their life.
The Jimothy: Seattle Raccoon Steals Hearts
Aug 6, 2026 · 30 min
It’s a Hot Jimothy Summer.
Dung Beetles from Just the Zoo of Us
Jul 30, 2026 · 35 min
All about poop. And the bugs who love it???
The Charmer: King Cobras' FANGtastic Powers
Jul 16, 2026 · 36 min
Thank you bag.
The Travelers Update: A Moon Tree Grows in New York
Jul 2, 2026 · 40 min
Breaking Moon Tree news!
The DADventure: Wild Animal Dads from Owl Monkeys to Seahorses
Jun 18, 2026 · 34 min
Father Nature
BIG CATS 2: Leopards & Jaguars (2 Fast, 2 FURious)
Jun 4, 2026 · 31 min
Fear, forests, felines.
BIG CATS: Lions, Tigers & Roars (Oh My!)
May 21, 2026 · 25 min
The secret lives of big cats.