Political Animals: Sex, Monkeys and the 'Coy Female' Myth - 1/3

Zoologist Lucy Cooke is on a mission: to break down the 'sexist
stereotype' she believes has permeated our understanding of the
natural world...


In Political Animals, she sets out to prove that females of the
species can be just as fiesty, ardent, manipulative, aggressive,
varied, strategic and political as males - questioning some of
the theories laid out by the 'father of evolution', Charles
Darwin, and hearing from pioneering scientists moving
evolutionary biology beyond a male-centric narrative.


For the opening episode, Lucy focuses on sex: uncovering stories
of the female animals defying Darwin’s “coy” label, and using
sexual strategies to further their own evolutionary influence.


This takes her on a journey from soliciting capuchin monkeys in
the forests of Costa Rica, to studies of promiscuous fruit flies,
to the northern jacana bird in Nicaragua, which relies on a harem
of males to raise her chicks. Lucy also hears from scientists and
specialists including Megan Mah, Joe Cain, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy,
Patricia Gowaty, Robert Trivers and Salvador Mirales.


Featuring excerpts from ‘The Descent of Man, and Selection in
Relation to Sex’ by Charles Darwin, read by Derek Frood.


Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Lucy Taylor.


First broadcast on Friday 18 February 2022.