Pigs tried for murder, weevils expelled from heaven and how a bloke dressed as an executed French monkey became mayor of an English town.

Topsy the elephant travelled the US performing for cheering circus-goers, but when her drunken trainer rode her into town wreaking havoc, was that her poor decision-making … or his?

Content warning: This program contains stories where animals are punished as if they are criminals. Some listeners may find this confronting.

Featuring:

Professor Katy Barnett, Melbourne Law School at the University of Melbourne, and co-author of Guilty Pigs
Dr Michelle Granden, psychologist
Stuart Drummond, former Mayor of Hartlepool UK

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.

Nature’s Most Wanted: Odour in the court