© 2026 New Hampshire Public Radio

Persons with disabilities who need assistance accessing NHPR's FCC public files, please contact us at publicfile@nhpr.org.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Support local news and essential programs and you could win a trip to Ireland.

Outside/In: Red is the warmest color

A red male cardinal perches on a branch.
John Flannery
/
Flickr

There are few certainties in life. But the sun will always rise, the seasons will change, and the Outside/Inbox will forever remain answered.

From lighthouse paint hues to polar bears lovers, this week the team takes up your questions on all things red.

  1. What makes cardinals red? 
  2. Why do albino animals have red eyes? 
  3. Why are so many lighthouses painted red? 
  4. Do our dogs love us? 
  5. Do some animals have same-sex relationships?
  6. How do environmental changes affect pair-bonding? 

Featuring Alex Funk, Jeremy D'Entremont, Karyn Anderson, and Francesco Ventura.

We’re looking for new submissions to the Outside/Inbox! Give us your weirdest, nichest, most bizarre questions you can think of. Send us those questions by recording yourself on a voice memo, and emailing that to us at outsidein@nhpr.org. Or you can call our hotline: 1-844-GO-OTTER.

LINKS

Here’s Karyn Anderson’s paper on how same-sex behavior in animals is far more common than previously thought.

Olney, Illinois is known as “the home of the white squirrels.” Learn more about how they’re trying to protect these rare albino animals in this small Midwest town.

Here’s the Northeast District’s 2025 US Light List, which lists an astounding 40,000 different lights, sounds, signals, and other visual aids to navigation.

Francesco Ventura’s paper analyzing divorce rates in albatrosses came out in 2021. You can find it here.

Reported, produced, and mixed by Marina Henke, Felix Poon and Nate Hegyi. For full credits and transcript, visit outsideinradio.org.

Marina Henke is a producer and reporter for NHPR’s Podcast Team, including Outside/In and Civics 101. Before NHPR she helped produce Classy from Pineapple Street Studios and contributed to publications including The New Territory with work exploring the Midwest.
Outside/In is a show where curiosity and the natural world collide. Click here for podcast episodes and more.

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.