S01E01 Maternal Instinct
Mothers – all mothers – cannot help being maternal. What is this trait, this characteristic common to all mothers?
Mammas
S01E05: Cichlid Fish
Cichlid Fish Mammas store their eggs in their mouths, so that’s where Cichlid fathers have to fertilize them. Naughty! Soon after that, lots of Cichlid babies swim out and those Mammas are free to use those mouths for things like eating again.
Overview
Isabella Rossellini is convinced that, in the maternal animal world, anything goes. 'Mammas,' a series of short videos, has Rossellini playing the role of nine different animals to show the viewer that some mothers lie, are polygamous, and walk out on their animal children all the time.
Episodes
S01E02 Wasp
Wasp Mammas don’t need fancy bottle warmers or breastfeeding pillows. They make sure their babies have all the nourishment they’ll need ahead of time by paralyzing caterpillars and burying them alive with their wasp eggs....
S01E03 Cuckoo
Good babysitters are hard to find, so Mamma Cuckoos use some slight-of-wing to trick other birds into hatching and raising their young. They slip their eggs into the nests of smaller birds. When the Cuckoo...
S01E04 Spider
Being a Mamma requires some sacrifice, especially if you are a Spider, Diaea egrandros. The number one priority for almost all Mammas is to make sure their babies have all the food they need to...
S01E05 Cichlid Fish
Cichlid Fish Mammas store their eggs in their mouths, so that’s where Cichlid fathers have to fertilize them. Naughty! Soon after that, lots of Cichlid babies swim out and those Mammas are free to use...
S01E06 Toad
Toad mammas don't carry one big baby in their bellies, but many littles babies on their backs.
S01E07 Hamster
Hamster Mammas have a lot of babies. Up to 10 at a time! Sometimes that is too many mouths for one Mamma to feed, so she eats a couple up so she can give those...
S01E08 Dunnock
Raising babies can be expensive! That’s why Dunnock bird Mammas practice polyandry and have more than one male mate. More men means more dads bringing home the bacon. Or in this case, bugs and seeds.
S01E09 Oil Beetle
Oil beetle larvae can trick themselves onto a bee mamma and eat all that she provides for her babies, and the babies too!
S01E10 Piping Plover
The Piping Plover is an actress! Charadrius melodius pretends to be wounded in order to protect its eggs from predators.
Cast
Isabella Rossellini
