All language subtitles for B.W.S01E03.Ravenous.Reptiles.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

I'm Coyote Peterson,
and today, I'm

going to go toe to tooth
with the apex predator

of the Florida Everglades,
the American alligator.

COYOTE PETERSON
Today, we're

near Homestead, Florida,
on a private wildlife

preserve in the Everglades.

This environment is perfect
for the American alligator

to thrive in.

My goal is to encounter
one of these reptiles

so I can show you some of its
amazing features up close.

I won't be using snares
or ropes to capture it.

I want the interaction
to remain as stress-free

on the animal as possible.

- OK, you rolling?
- Rolling.

All right, so we've been
cruising on the airboat

for several hours now.

We've seen lots of alligators.

We have not seen one that's
been in shallow water,

and right by that bush, I
can see him from this height.

It looks like a pretty
good sized alligator.

Let me go first, you guys just
kind of follow close with me.

We don't know how this
alligator is going to react.

You have to remember this
is an aggressive reptile.

This is a very
dangerous situation, OK?

I want you guys to be
on point at all moments.

See, this is how we
were able to track him.

All of the sawgrass is kind of
matted down, and at the end,

we probably have about
a 10-foot alligator.

Whew, my heart is
racing right now.

Where is he?

OK, here we go,
he's right here.

And he's big.
- All right.

It is a big alligator.

All right, Chance, come up slow.

This is the apex
predator that lives

here in the Florida Everglades.

This reptile has been on the
planet for 150 million years.

They have outlived
the dinosaurs.

So this is about as
prehistoric as it

gets for an animal encounter.

Bit of an aggressive
posture here.

So it opened up its
mouth, he's saying,

I'm the top predator
around here, Coyote,

you better have
some respect for me.

And trust me, you have to
respect the American alligator.

And that's the first
defensive posture

that these gators
will use, is to kind

of flip the tail around.

All the muscle mass
is in the tail,

and that's what I really
need to watch out for.

He can take out my legs
with a single swing.

Now, the reason I

want to catch this alligator
is so I can get under control,

because it'll be safer for
myself, safe for the crew,

and safer for the alligator.

Basically, what I'm going to
do is lunge on top of his back

and hold his neck in place.

Now, he's probably going to
squirm around a little bit.

So long as I keep my hands
away from those jaws,

I should be OK.

Are you guys ready?

Yeah, ready.

Wow!

OK.

You hear that hiss?

He's not exactly happy
to have me on his back.

OK, go ahead.

You guys can get in
a little bit closer.

I think I've got him
pretty well positioned.

Kind of got him in
a saddle lock here.

All right.

Whew.

Now that is the
American alligator,

and this is one of
the reptiles that I

want to show you out
here in the Everglades,

because these guys are top dog.

Now, the alligator has a bite
force of about 2,000 pounds

per square inch, and that is
the highest bite force on record

in the animal kingdom.

They have about 80
teeth in those jaws,

and their teeth constantly
are breaking off,

they're constantly losing them.

You can see kind of in
his front jaw there,

he's missing a few
teeth, and those teeth

will constantly
rejuvenate themselves

over the life of the animal.

And just because
he's calming down,

does not mean that
I need to be any

more comfortable sitting here.

At any second, he
could erupt in action,

throw me off, and probably
give me a pretty good chomp.

All right, what
I'd like to do is

kind of get his jaws
under control here,

and show you a real interesting
thing about their eyeballs.

All right, so what I'm going
to do is close his eyes down.

All right now, this doesn't
hurt the alligator in any way,

but you see I've got my
finger over his eyeball right

here, my pinky finger.

You see that?

OK, so what's really
interesting and unique

about all crocodilians
is that they have what's

called a nictitating membrane.

And when I let that
go, you're going

to see the nictitating
membrane, which

is actually a third
eyelid, kind of fold back.

And they use this membrane to
protect their eyes when they're

swimming underwater in
all this murky sawgrass

and Everglades nastiness.

Ready?

One, two, three.

Now, these reptiles
are built like tanks.

Yeah, he said, all
right, I've had enough

of the underwater business.

Now any time you come near
an American alligator,

you don't want to do
what you just saw me do.

Bad idea.

I know exactly what I'm doing.

But if you come out
here, Everglades,

your backyard, and you encounter
an alligator, give it respect.

Back away slowly.

They want nothing
to do with you.

They're actually more afraid of
you than you should be of them.

Give them their space,
and you'll be just fine.

What a wild encounter
with the apex predator

of the Everglades, the
American alligator.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

Be brave stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

See you later, buddy.

Wow!

I'm Coyote Peterson.

He's Mario Aldecoa,
and common sense

might tell you, never wander
into a nest full of crocodiles.

But tonight, we're
looking to do just that.

Tonight, we're in Homestead,

Florida, on the grounds
of Turkey Point, which is

a nuclear power plant facility.

This location is home to one
very unique conservation effort

that is helping
revitalize the population

of American crocodiles
in South Florida.

Working closely with wildlife
biologist Mario Aldecoa,

our mission is to check nesting
sites to retrieve freshly

hatched baby
crocodiles so they can

be tagged and recorded,
before being released

back into the environment.

The cooling
canals are meant to provide

water for the reactor.

However, the property,
which is like 4,000 acres

of just canal system,
turned out to be

excellent nesting habitat.

Are any of
these crocodiles radioactive?

No, no,
they're not radioactive.

OK, so we're
not going to run into Godzilla

out there tonight?

I'm always hoping
to find Godzilla out there.

I don't think it's
going to happen,

but there are some monster
crocs out there for sure.

This is where Mario
found a nest earlier today,

and we just saw a hatchling
right along the side here,

but it got away.

So hopefully as we
go up by the nest,

we'll find a few that
are still unearthing.

This is
exactly what I'm looking for.

You see this?

Yeah.

This trail,
that's called a crocodile drag,

and it's basically the female
coming up to inspect the nest.

So let's follow the trail, and
see if we come upon the nest.

Oh, this is interesting.

Unfortunately, hatchlings
have a lot of predators.

Fire ants are a big predator.

So we're standing
in fire ants?

We're standing in fire ants.

I don't see any dead
crocs here, so luckily

the female took them
all into the water

before they got preyed on.

Yeah, look at
that there's just covered-- ow!

Geez.

Just-- Ow!

Wow, they really burn
when they bite, too.

OK.

No more handling of fire ants.

Geez.

So
one thing I always

do is, I always want to
make sure that there's

nothing inside the nest.

I
like how you're just

digging in the fire ants there.

Yeah but I'm also making
sure that there's no, like,

hatchlings that
were left behind.

OK.

Sometimes a female, she'll
try and grab as many as she can,

but she might forget something.

So, I'm just going
to check real quick.

Nothing, OK.

We built ponds on
some of these islands,

and the ponds fill
up the fresh water,

and the females will transport
the babies to those ponds.

OK.

That's where we're
going to go check.

That's our highest probability
of getting some hatchlings.

Sweet, let's go to the pond
and find some hatchlings.

Mario
gave me the signal

that he's got some
hatchlings in this pond,

but there are so many
mosquitoes, we're

getting eaten alive.

So we're going to move
quick, get in there,

extract the babies, get
back on the airboat,

and get away from
these mosquitoes.

All right.

Come on, Let's go.
Coyote.

Yeah.

I got
one here for you.

All right.

Don't go off the edge.

I got you.

Ready?

Got him?

Got him.

Here we go.

Little hatchling.

So what
they do, is they usually

stay in clumps for protection.

OK.

Especially when they're
just born like this,

that makes it really easy for
us to come and just snatch them.

Gotcha.

Baby crocodiles!

Listen to them chirping.

Hopefully they're
not calling mom.

So what we're going to do
now is head back to the lab,

get the data that Mario
needs, and then take

them back out to release them.

Yeah.

Sounds good, all right.

And get out of these
mosquitoes, too.

And this is the
success of all the work

that the crocodile research team
is doing here at Turkey Point.

OK, so we had the
adventure in the field.

And now it's time
to collect the data.

First, let's
put them on that scale there.

Let's get its weight.

Perfect.

What do we got?

All right, 53.8 grams.

53.8.

OK, so this is an
important aspect.

So these scutes can be cut off.

They won't grow back.

It's going to be
like a little pinch,

but the key is to do
it fast and accurate.

Kind of
like the Social Security

number for the crocodile?

Yeah.

Yeah, so if we ever capture
a juvenile or an adult

out in the system, we could
see if it's been recaptured

just by looking at its tail.

OK.

OK, so 1,752.

Now, we've got our AVID chip.

Oh, now this is a
little tracking meter

that you put in these guys that
we're out there in the field

scanning them, that's
what shows us its number?

Yeah.

So that's going to go
at the base of the tail

just like that.

Done.

So he's good to go.

We could actually
release him now.

So that is a
crocodile ready to be

released back into the wild.

Mario, I can't thank you enough
for this experience tonight.

This is conservation at
its finest, right here.

The American crocodile
heading back off

into the wilds of Turkey Point.

You guys ready?

They say, get me in the
water we're ready to thrive.

All right a handful of
crocodiles, and off you go.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

Be brave, stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

I'm Coyote Peterson,
and you're never

going to believe the encounter
I just had with the fastest

lizard in the West.

Ah, he's biting me!

Ow, he's got a
hold of my finger.

As we begin our journey

into the second season
of Breaking Trail,

I find myself at
home in the desert.

The Southwest has always been
one of my favorite places

to explore, and if you can
withstand the intense heat--

it is about 108 degrees
out here today--

spine covered plant life--

oh my gosh, that thing is
really wedged into my hand.

Ah, I knew this was
going to happen--

and the venomous creatures,
you might find yourself

loving it just as much as me.

I find that exploring in a wash
or narrow canyon near sunset

almost always yields an animal
encounter, some of which

can really keep
you on your toes.

Got a snake!

Got a snake!

Yes!

Check this out.

Oh look at that.

Do you know what
species that this?

That is a coachwhip, and this
is one of the fastest snakes

that you're ever going to come
across out here in the desert.

Get this guy on the ground, you
have no shot of catching him.

I saw him just dart off
that tree branch, sorry I

couldn't even give
you any warning,

just had to launch for him.

Look at that.

Look how long and
beautiful that snake is.

Now, these snakes are
feeding on lizards,

and, you know, any other
little rodents might be running

around out here in the desert.

Look at how beautiful
those eyes are, though.

Wow, so perfectly streamlined.

That obviously allows them
to move incredibly quick.

The reason that they're
called coachwhips

is that you can see the snake
pretty much looks like a whip.

These snakes are non-venomous,
certainly have no interest

in going after humans.

They're just out here to explore
the desert and look for dinner.

So cool.

Let's get him back
up in his tree

so that he can continue hunting.

That was cool to see him
climbing up into the trees.

All right, let's head up towards
the base of this mountain.

Some big boulders, let's see
if we can find living up there.

COYOTE PETERSON
In my book,

any snake encounter
has made the day.

But when I explore
the desert, my mind

is fixated on one thing,
and one thing only: lizards.

And which ones will I
try to catch this time?

The Sonoran desert and its
expansive, beautifully rugged

ecosystems provides a home to
many species, some of which

are safe and simple to catch,
like the Regal Horned Lizard.

And some that you should
never try to catch,

like the venomous Gila Monster.

He doesn't want anything
to do with us right now,

just laying low in
the sand saying,

OK, don't get any closer.

COYOTE PETERSON
I love

looking for and trying
to catch lizards,

because they always
pose such a challenge.

The skill of actually
making a capture

requires stealth, precision,
and a whole lot of luck.

Look, look, look.

That is a collared lizard,
see his little yellow head?

Barely see him.

Barely see him?

All right, I'm going to
leave my snake stick here.

Come up slow, try
not to startle him.

Got him.

Ow, ow, oh, he's biting me!

Oh, ow, he's got a
hold of my finger.

I got a hold of him,
he's got a hold of me.

Look at that.

Oh, geez.

I guess that's one way to
catch a collared lizard.

I can't even believe he
let me get that close.

Holy cow.

All right, well, those
teeth are super sharp.

He is locked onto my finger.

Oh, geez.

I didn't see that coming.

And as you can see, he kind of
said, you're going to catch me?

Well, guess what, Coyote?

I am also going to catch you.

Oh, this is just a totally,
totally uncomfortable

situation, but I got him.

And we're going to get the
most beautiful and the fastest

lizard in the Southwest up
close for you right now.

All right, let me
get off of this.

OK.

What does that feel like?

It feels like a bunch
of little tiny needles.

Oh, yes, thank you
for letting go.

Ouch.

All right, now let's
try to get a better

look at this beautiful,
beautiful lizard.

Look at him.

Now, this is one of the most
aggressive species of lizards

that we have out here,
and certainly not

aggressive towards humans.

They're aggressive
towards the other animals

that call the desert home.

This is kind of like
a little mini T-Rex.

As he's roaming
the hillsides here,

he's looking for anything
that's unfortunate enough

to get close to those jaws.

And I can tell you
firsthand that their bite

is a serious powerhouse.

Now this is probably the
fastest lizard species that we

have here in the Southwest.

In fact, they are so quick
that when they're running,

their front half will lift
off the ground, kind of

like a basilisk
lizard, and they'll

use these back feet to project
themselves up in the air.

And this long, skinny tail kind
of works like a rudder to help

direct them through
the environment.

I would put him down and show
you what that looks like,

but he is going to take
off so incredibly quick,

we would not be able
to catch him again.

Look how beautiful the
coloration is on this lizard.

He's got this
bright yellow head,

and the reason they're
called collared lizards

is because you see that
double black striped collar

on the back of his neck there?

The teal skin, the yellow
and white speckling,

unbelievably beautiful.

And you may be
saying to yourself,

gosh, this lizard looks like
it would really stick out

in the desert environment,
must be easy for predators

to pick this guy off.

Actually, because this
lizard is so fast,

it's almost impossible
for predators to catch it.

I'd say the only thing that's
going to be able to get one

of these lizards and
turn it into dinner

would be a roadrunner
or maybe a coachwhip.

What an awesome experience.

Getting close, actually
catching, and then getting

chomped by the Eastern
collared lizard,

one of the most beautiful
and fastest lizards

that we have here
in the Southwest.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

Be brave, stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

All right, are you ready
to get back up on your rock

and not bite any more coyotes?

I hope so.

This was only the
second time in my life

that I was able to
capture a collared lizard,

and despite getting bitten,
I'd consider this a lucky day.

I'm Coyote Peterson,
and right now

I am face to face
with the deadliest

rattlesnake in the world.

Dancing with a
Mojave rattlesnake.

This is one dangerous
dance, my friend.

The
heart of rattlesnake territory

is truly Arizona, which is
home to 13 different species,

more than any other state.

Tonight, we're in
the Sonoran Desert

and the temperature
is absolutely perfect

to find snakes.

I got my snake hook ready.

We're going to head out there,
and see what we can find.

The rattlesnake,
specifically, has

taken an unbelievable
amount of negative press.

Holy moly, OK.

Don't get any closer.

COYOTE PETERSON
Probably

because if startled
or provoked, they

can inflict a very painful,
and potentially lethal,

venomous bite.

Check this out.

This environment is absolutely
perfect for finding snakes.

You can see how dry
and arid all this is.

Oh, I just saw-- look,
you got some kangaroo rats

running around over here.

Now, that is a great sign that
you're going to find snakes.

Where there are rats, there are
definitely going to be snakes.

OK, I got him.

Trying to be as
gentle as possible.

I do have him by the
scruff of his neck, which

is OK to handle him like that.

Look at that cute
little bushy tail.

How adorable is that?

And these big hind feet.

And that's how they move so
quickly through the desert.

Look, he's holding on to his
toe right now, he's so scared.

This is proof that
not everything

out there in the desert is
covered in scales and stingers.

You better be careful
out there, buddy.

If I can catch you, you better
believe that a rattlesnake can.

I'm going to let him go.

You ready?

Hang around in the vicinity

of kangaroo rats
long enough, and you

are almost certain to
come across a rattlesnake.

Got a snake right here.

Snake, snake, snake.

Western Diamondback.

Come up slow.

I see the tail.

That is a Western Diamondback.

OK, he's rattling.

Oh, wait a minute.

That is not a
Western Diamondback.

That is a Mojave rattlesnake.

This situation just
went from dangerous

to extremely dangerous.

OK.

He's kind of tucked back in
here by this barrel cactus.

Mark, go ahead and come
around on this side.

Keep your distance back.

Got it.

That is the
most venomous rattlesnake

in the world right there.

He's getting ready to go.

OK, hold on.

I'm going to try to work him
up into this clearing here.

Go ahead and come into
this open area, here.

Oh, now he's rattling.

Whew, dancing with
a Mojave rattlesnake.

This is one dangerous
dance, my friend.

All right, now we've
got him out in the open.

Keep your distance.
Keep your distance.

This is a very
dangerous situation.

We're now talking about the
most venomous rattlesnake in

the United States right here.

Let me see if I can just
get him to calm down.

Holy cow.

All right, my heart is racing.

Mark, keep your
distance right there.

We've got the snake calm.

You got an OK shot on him?

Yeah, decent.

These snakes can
strike incredibly far.

I'm going to keep
him still if I can.

They will actually lunge 2/3
of the length of their body.

Now the way I was able
to tell that this was

a Mojave and not a
Western Diamondback,

they're so easy to confuse.

It's that the white banding
on the tail, the white bands

are thicker than
the black bands.

And you can kind of see
once the light is on him,

he has a slight greenish tinge.

Can you see that?

Now people often confuse
this for Western Diamondback,

because you see the
patterning on its back

looks just like diamonds.

They're a little
more oval in shape.

When I walked up on it, I
thought, oh, yes, sweet.

Western Diamondback.

Until I saw that
tail and realized

it's a Mojave, the most
dangerous rattlesnake that's

out here in the Sonoran Desert.

It's just, whew.

It is nerve-racking.

Hold on, he's starting to move.

I can hear his rattle.

I can hear his
rattle, he's just

got a couple of little buttons.

Now, he is not-- you'll
notice she's not striking.

This is good.

Now, snakes do not want
to use their venom.

Striking and biting is
definitely a last resort.

Hold on, hold on.

Look out!

Talk about what just happened.

OK, so, just like
that the snake decided,

OK, I'm going to move.

And he's getting
a little agitated.

They're so incredibly strong.

And as soon as he decides,
OK, I'm out of here,

it's really, really
difficult to get

him to curl back up like this.

See that, he's
puffing up his body,

he's getting ready to strike.

Now, a snake will only strike
if it feels like that's

its last resort for escaping.

There you go.

There you go, calm down.

Stay calm.

There you go, buddy.

All right Oh, my heart is
going about a million miles

a second right now.

That one make me nervous.

He was, like, darting
right at the camera.

Were you recording
the whole time?

I tried to.

I don't know, I might
have turned it off.

All right.

Mark, you can probably
come around this way now.

Real slowly.

Go slow, go slow.

All right, keep rolling.

That's OK, go very slow.

He can sense that you guys are
coming around his backside.

Stay calm.

Wow, this is about as close as
I want to get to this snake.

Let's talk about
its venom toxicity.

Now, the Mojave
rattlesnake has two

different venom types,
depending on what

region the snake is living in.

I cannot tell, just looking
at the snake, whether or not

he has type A or type B venom.

The type A venom is a
much stronger neurotoxin.

Type B is more hemotoxic.

Either way, you get bitten by
this snake, its venom load?

Off the charts.

You get tagged by this snake,
you want to get to the hospital

immediately.

Their venom has almost 10 times
the toxicity of the Western

Diamondback rattlesnake.

Now you guys have
seen me capture

the Eastern Diamondback.

The Western Diamondback,
sidewinders, and a lot of times

I do head snakes and
show you their fangs.

This snake I just feel is far
too dangerous to do that with.

All rattlesnake species
are potentially deadly,

but because this is the most
toxic rattlesnake in the world,

I'm even more nervous.

And the fact that I
can't tell whether or not

it has type A or
type B venom, really

makes me want to just keep
my distance from this snake.

I don't want to
try to handle it.

Don't want to head it.

It commands respect,
and that is exactly

what we're going to give it.

What an intense encounter.

Getting face to face
with the most venomous

rattlesnake in the world.

I'm Coyote Petersen.

Be brave, stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.