Cougars caught killing donkeys in Death Valley, and decoding the nose

<p>On this week’s show: Predators may be indirectly protecting Death Valley wetlands, and mapping odorant receptors </p> <p>First up this week on the podcast, News Intern Katherine Irving joins host Sarah Crespi to talk about the first photos of <a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/first-photos-cougars-killing-donkeys-death-valley-suggest-big-impacts-ecosystem">cougars killing feral donkeys</a> in Death Valley National Park. They also discuss the implications for native animals such as big horn sheep, and plans to remove donkeys from the park.</p> <p>Also this week on the show, <a href="http://feinstein.bioweb.hunter.cuny.edu/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=104&amp;Itemid=69">Paul Feinstein</a>, professor of biology in the department of biological science at Hunter College, discusses a <em>Science Signaling </em>paper on <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scisignal.Abm6112">a new approach to matching up smell receptors with smells</a>—a long-standing challenge in olfaction research.</p> <p>This week’s episode was produced with help from <a href="https://podigy.co/">Podigy</a>.</p> <p>[Image: Angel Di Bilio/iStock; Music: Jeffrey Cook]</p> <p>[alt: photo of a burro on a hillside near Death Valley with podcast overlay symbol]</p> <p>Authors: Sarah Crespi; Katherine Irving</p> <p>Episode page: <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade3366">https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade3366</a> </p> <p>About the Science Podcast: <a href="https://www.science.org/content/page/about-science-podcast">https://www.science.org/content/page/about-science-podcast</a> </p><p>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.</p>