All language subtitles for B.W.S02E08.Eaten.Alive.by.Leeches.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

So check out what Mark found.

Get out of here!

You are kidding me.

The Costa
Rican rain forest

is considered to be one of
the most biologically diverse

ecosystems on the planet.

Home to literally thousands
of species, the crew and I

have been fortunate
enough to encounter some

of its most iconic animals.

From the striking
led eye leapfrog

to the adorable Ocelot.

Now, she has found
the microphone.

No, no.

When exploring in
Central America,

one of our favorite
places to visit

is the Costa Rican
amphibian research reserve

which is famous for having
some incredibly rare and almost

never seen creatures.

Mark, Mark come here.

What is it?
Hurry up.

Harry up.
Hurry up.

What have you got?

You are not
going to believe this.

Oh my God.

And while I have
been present for nearly all

of these initial finds,
every once in a while,

Mark and Mario stumble
upon an animal without me.

And on this rainy evening
they just so happened

to encounter what
may be considered

the rarest animal we have
ever found in the rain forest.

Mario.

Yeah.

Come look what I found.

What?

What did you get?

I've got a
giant onychophora.

The rare one.

Oh, man.

Right here on this rock.

This is the one that's
on the wall in the cabin.

Yeah that truly is.

What do we do?

Coyote is not even here.
What do we do?

We just film it?

Well, certainly,
we have to film it.

I've got a container
in my backpack.

We can contain it, take
it back to the lodge,

have Coyote check it out and
we'll get some great big shots.

We have to right?
Yeah.

We have to.
Yeah.

We'll bring it back.

Yeah. we'll bring
it right back after

and that'll be awesome.

Deal.

Great find dude.

OK.

So.

Oh my goodness.

Oh my goodness.

Let's be gentle.

Careful, careful.

Be careful.

You know those
things could spray stuff.

Oh.

It was very velvety.

Oh and I got to touch it.

Let me see.

Oh it's so cool.

All right let's
go I'm so excited.

I can hardly see it.

Secured.

Yes.

Coyote?

Coyote?

You guys found
anything cool to photograph?

Yeah, maybe.

Maybe.

So check out what Mark found.

So.

Get out of here.

You are kidding me.

We found it on
the rocks like 4 paces

where we found the brown one.

Yeah.

Get out of here.

I cannot believe that.

Go inside get to get
the picture, show everybody.

Oh, my gosh.

I cannot believe you guys
found the Holy Grail.

Oh my goodness, guys.

They

Good, good.

That's what we were looking for.

That reaction.

Get out of town.

We've been
just like jumping

for joy the whole way home.
Look at it.

Yep.

There it is.

So we brought it back What
we want to do is we want

to build a little tomb set.

That's a great idea.

Oh, you know we should do
like a planet earth type suit

where we set it up
on a little table.

I've got a little table up
here, we'll get some moss,

get some logs, set it up
and do a presentation.

This will kind of be like
a mole cricket episode

only with a much rarer animal.

Yeah.

Oh my gosh I can't believe
you found onychophora.

This is insane.

So wait, who found it?
You found it?

Yeah.

I mean we do just
need to film with you.

Yeah.

Wow.

This is crazy.

Not a bad gig, Coyote,
when you can do your job

and wear sandals.

I do.

I got my sandals on.

I don't even have
my snake boots.

I mean I was working
on the orca script

and just kind of lounging so I
saw the rain start to come down

I was like man,
these guys better

hurry back before those
cameras get soaked.

Let me see if I
can get it to just

stay totally calm on my hand.

Woah!

You are looking at
the velvet worm.

Quite possibly the rarest
creature you can come across

in the Costa Rican rain forest.

This creature's ancestors
date back 500 million years

to the Cambrian period.

That is before the
time of the dinosaurs.

And this was one of the
first terrestrial creatures

to ever walk this planet.

And even to this day, they
are strictly terrestrial.

Which means that
they stay on land.

Now, let's talk about where
this animal gets its name from,

the Velvet worm.

Believe it or not this creature
feels just like velvet.

And does not have any hard outer
exoskeleton like an arthropod.

But in fact has a very
soft squishy body.

Almost feels like a gummy worm.

But if you pet it very
gently, come on Mark,

put your hand out there.

Tell everybody at home.

Feels just like velvet

Oh wow.

Yeah, like a fresh velvet suit.

So soft.

Yeah, that is so cool.

There's something really cool.

They are actually
capable of shutting

the outer layer of skin around
once a month just like a snake.

And when they do shed that,
they basically walk out

of the skin similar to the way a
snake slithers out of its skin.

And then they're even softer
and more brilliantly bright.

Oh, it's so cool.

Let's take a look at the
anatomy of this animal.

It looks like a mix
between a caterpillar,

a worm, and a slug.

But anachophra is
actually its own phylum.

And there are close to
200 of them worldwide.

However, scientists
don't even know

how many truly exist because
they're very rarely seen.

This is a nocturnal creature.

And the fact that
Mark you and Mario

just stumbled upon it tonight
is why they're so hard to find.

Because oftentimes they're
out on rainy nights

when most people aren't
out venturing around.

Now despite the fact
that this creature is

actually kind of cute,
believe it or not

it is a voracious predator.

And the way that
they hunt is they

slowly move through the
rain forest for foraging

amongst leaves and dead logs.

And they'll use those 2 front
sensory organs to kind of tap

on their prey.

And as soon as they
sense something to eat,

this is crazy they have 2
glands on the side of their face

that shoot out a sticky slime.

It's like spider man's webbing.

And it is so incredibly
strong that it can

immediately pin the prey down.

It actually shoots
out on 2 streams

and those streams will
cross creating a net.

So let's say it's
a small beetle,

it will go shoot out
those two streams.

Tangle up the beetle and then
slowly walk up on top of it.

And they have a
little mouth up front.

I don't know if you'll be
able to see that or not.

But inside that mouth
is a single tooth

that is like a razor blade.

They insert that tooth
into their victim

and then they leak in saliva.

That saliva is similar to the
saliva of a giant water bug

and it slowly breaks down
the insides of their prey

and they drink it up
just like a milkshake.

Are you afraid of
being bitten right now?

No.

It's tooth is much too small
to potentially bite me.

And they're not aggressive
in any way whatsoever.

It's not like a
centipede or a water bug.

This is something that is
completely safe to handle.

However, it's
incredibly fragile.

So as you can see, I'm trying to
be just as careful as possible.

And I also don't want it to
shoot me with that sticky slime

because it's just like glue.

Is it toxic, the slime.

Is like poison
you or what is it?

As far as I know
everything I've read no.

The slime is
completely harmless.

So if it does get
slime on me I'm

going to be absolutely fine.

Now each one of those
little stump feet

has 2 little hooks claws.

They almost look
like cat's claws.

And they use those to
hold onto rigid surfaces

when they're moving
over like let's

say a log or a dry branch.

However, if they're
walking on something moist

and soft like moss,
those claws retract in

and they have these
little tiny soft pads

on the ends of their feet.

I can actually feel it
gripping onto my hand

and it doesn't hurt at all.

But it feels really
interesting because those legs

on each side move in
unison with one another.

And just like a worm
and remember this

is not related to a
worm but like a worm,

it has a very soft body.

And it's the expanding and
contraction of the muscles

inside of its body that allow
it to get longer if it needs So

like let's say it's moving
through some crevices in a log

it can stretch its body out
and get itself completely

out of a sticky situation.

Oh, hi there buddy.

I see you.

And look at the
strength of its body.

Can completely extend itself out
just like we've seen millipedes

do in the past searching
for the next move to make.

And there it goes
right up on my fingers.

Wow!

Lucky night
in the rain forest.

Man, that thing is so cool.

All right well you
build a pretty awesome

little stack here Coyote.

Yeah.

I think this is a good
opportunity for us

to get this Velvet worm
down on the miniature set

and start filming
some epic B roll.

You guys ready?
Let's do it.

All right.

Let's get the voiceover going.

And turn this into a
planet Earth episode.

The red velvet
worm is a creature

that is almost never seen
in the wild with human eyes.

Their elusive nature
and nocturnal lifestyle

combined with their
tendency to exist

in other remote areas
of the rain forest

make encountering them
nearly impossible.

To our knowledge, we are
one of the only teams

to have ever captured video
footage of this animal.

So having this opportunity was
truly a once in a lifetime.

This lucky moment
will now be held

near the top of our
greatest memories

we as animal enthusiasts
will forever carry with us.

And we are incredibly
proud that we have now

been able to share
this encounter

with each and every one of you.

Wow!

What an absolutely
incredible night.

Getting the Holy Grail
of bizarre rain forest

creatures, the red Velvet worm.

Up close for the cameras.

I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave.

Stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

All right, guys.

Here we are.

Back at the rock where we
found this amazing rain forest

creature.

The onychophora.

By far the coolest
animal I've ever found.

Coyote was pretty impressed.

And jealous.

A little bit jealous.

But man, we had a great night.

All right buddy, right
back where we found you.

Just like we promised.

I don't think there's
anything that can truly

prepare you for sticking
your arm into a container

full of leeches.

My arm is shaking a little bit.

It's the real deal.

I'm not going to lie.

I'm definitely nervous.

Oh my gosh.

They're just swarming
all over the place.

This is going to be intense.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

And I'm about to be
eaten alive by leeches.

Ready?

1, 2, here we go, 3.

You know, normally
on a day like this,

I'd be out there
in the lily pads

catch and snapping turtles.

But today we're going to do
something a little different.

Now we post these dragon tales
episodes, a lot of you write in

and say Coyote,
how many times have

you been covered in leeches?

The answer to that question
is absolutely never.

In fact in 20 years of catching
turtles being in swamps,

ponds, lakes, ankle
deep to neck deep,

I have had virtually 0
leeches end up on my body.

The only time I think I've
ever actually had a leech on me

is when I've been
holding a snapping turtle

and one has actually crawled
off the turtle and onto my hand.

And even when they did, they
would suction on but they

would never suck blood.

I'm sure a lot of you have
seen the movie Stand by me.

You know that scene when the
kids wander down into the swamp

and get covered in
leeches and they're like,

Oh we're being eaten alive.

That does not happen.

So what we're going to do
today is prove that not

all leeches suck human blood.

Now I'm sure you're thinking
to yourselves, Coyote,

I thought we were going
to see some leech bites.

And you just said, not all
leeches suck human blood.

And they don't.

But I wouldn't
let you guys down.

So today we are
going to test what

happens when my arm
goes into a container

with 2 different species.

What I have here are
2 separate containers.

This one has your
common freshwater leech.

Once like we would find in
the pond right behind me here.

These live in North America.

And in this hand, are
European medicinal leeches.

These ones are from overseas and
trust me when I say that they

absolutely love human blood.

All right.

What I'm going to do now
is dump the freshwater

leaches into the
container and I'm

going to put my arm in there.

You guys ready?

You go guys.

Look at that.

They are creepy looking.

But I'm not nervous
right now because I

know that these leeches
will not suck blood.

Even if they attach
to my arm, it's

more of them being
curious and testing

out the environment than it
is them wanting to get a meal.

A moment of truth.

My arm is about to
go into the container

with the freshwater leeches.

Ready?

Yep.

1, 2, 3.

I said I wasn't nervous.

But even still, putting
your arm into a container

with any leeches, I think
get your heart rate going.

Oh, boy.

That one looks like it's
actually going towards my arm

right there.

You see that?

Most species of freshwater
leeches especially the ones

that can be found in
the United States feed

on small invertebrates
or cold blooded species

like reptiles and amphibians.

They are rather intelligent
and this is something

new in their environment.

They're going
right up to my arm,

they're actually turning away.

Look at that.

I kept my arm submerged in
the container for 15 minutes.

And wasn't bitten
by a single leech.

OK.

So I think at this
point we have proven

that the freshwater
leeches have no interest

in sucking my blood.

Let's bring out your
pee medicinal leeches

and see what happens with that.

The next type of leeches
native to Eurasia.

And is likely the most famous
species as they have often

been used in various
medical procedures

like reconstructive surgery.

They live in muddy
freshwater ecosystems

and are notorious for
feasting on blood.

I just went and
picked up a container

of European medicinal leeches.

You probably even
change, you probably

even noticed the change in
the inflection of my voice.

I'm actually nervous
at this point.

These leeches are going
to adhere to my arm

and they are going
to consume my blood.

They haven't eaten in a
few days and trust me when

I say that they are hungry.

Are you ready for me to put
them into the container Mark?

Right.

Release the beasts.

Here they go.
All right.

This is it.

No turning back now.

This is for science.

Oh, boy.

A lot of leeches
in there, Coyote.

This is
going to be crazy.

All right.

I think it's about
time to stick my arm

into a container for leeches.

Oh my gosh.

They're just swarming
all over the place.

This is going to be intense.

Are we ready for me to be
eaten alive by leeches?

I think so.
- You're ready?

Mark you're ready.

I know you're ready.

The camera's ready.

Camera's ready.

Coyote pack?

I feel like you're
probably ready.

All right.

There's a lot
of leeches in there.

It's a lot of leeches.
All right.

So without further ado,
I'm Coyote Peterson

and I'm about to be
eaten alive by leeches.

Ready?

1, 2, here we go, 3.

That gets your nerves going.

That's for sure.

Look at that.

This one already, boom!

Just like that.

Instantaneous secured to my arm.

Holy mackerel!

They're just like
swarming towards my arm.

Look at that.

One on my arm there, that's 3.

In a matter of seconds.

My arm has been in here
for the little ones

so I try to build my shirt.

Go this way.

Another one there on my hand.

My heart is racing right now.

Look at that.

They are all over me.

Oh, I can definitely
feel something happening.

It feels like sandpaper
grinding against my skin.

My hand and arm have been in
the water for about 60 seconds.

And all but one leach
is now on my arm.

Now the way that the leeches'
sucker works is they adhere on

and they release from their
saliva an anticoagulant enzyme.

That enzyme not
only numbs the skin,

it also doesn't allow
the blood to clot.

Now they have teeth that are
kind of in the shape of a y.

Here, Mark look at my fingers.

It looks like this.

The three teeth of a leech.

They go like that and
they slice into you.

And I can feel them actually
cutting into my arm.

And look at that.

Look at how that
leech is bent over.

It is holding on
with the posterior

sucker which is the tail.

And it is consuming
blood from the anterior

sucker which is the mouth.

And holy cow is
this uncomfortable.

It has been about 20
minutes so far since my arm

has been in the water.

Pan the camera down, look at
how big the leeches have gotten.

They are completely swollen
with blood at this point.

At this juncture I
think these leeches

have had enough of a feast.

And it's time to get them
off of my hand and arm.

Now there is a right way
and a wrong way to remove

a leech from your body.

You may think, let
me yank it off.

Yanking it off is bad
because you can actually pull

their teeth out into the wound.

Those teeth get left
in the wound you

can end up with an infection.

Now, you may think to
yourself, well maybe

I should put salt on it
or put a lighter behind it

and heat it up and it
will be like, I'm scared

let me get out of here.

That's also really bad
because it will actually

cause the leech to
regurgitate some of its food

into the wound.

That also will
cause an infection.

Now the best way
to remove a leech

is to just use the
edge of your finger.

And what I want to do is softly
slide the interior sucker off

of the wound.
OK.

You ready for that?

How do you know
which is which side?

Well, it's
obvious that this

is the anterior side as
you can see the back end is

not attached to anything.

And look at that leech,
that one just popped off.

And that one popped off too.

Look at that.

Well, there's also
the instance where

the leech has eaten enough
and it's going to just

release itself on its own.

Those 2 leeches are
so full of blood.

They're done eating.

Look at how big that leech is.

It is full of blood.

And look at the blood just
pouring out of my hand

at this point.
Wow!

That leech
basically said, OK.

I'm done eating.

Back into the water with me.

What you want to do is just
gently slide your finger

over the interior sucker.
Here you go.

Look at that.

Got the leech to pop
up and then I can just

pop the posterior sucker off.

And plop!

Back into the water
with that leech.

There we go.

That one hurts.

Look at that.

You could see blood
just seeping out.

There's 4 of them right there.

This is going to be
the bloodiest spot.

You guys ready?

1, 2, there you have it.

Final leech.

You guys ready?

Dinner is over buddy.

The blood.

It's like there's a lot
of water in my blood.

That's the anticoagulant
just breaking down

all the platelets.

And you can just
see my blood almost

looks really, really thin.

And it's all about the
amount of anticoagulant

that actually went into my hand.

I may be bleeding for
hours at this point.

My hand is actually numb and
that's how these leeches.

Look at how big
and fat and heavy

they all are at the
bottom of the tank there.

And the water is all red.

You can see the drips blood
falling down into the water.

It's like a shark
attack happened

right here in this container.

That's crazy.

Well I think ultimately
at this point

we've proven that while there
are some species of leeches

that will not give you a
bloody bite on the other hand,

there are definitely
some that will.

Only thing left to do now
is clean up this mess.

Stick around and I'll
show you exactly how

to dress a leech
bite if you're ever

unfortunate enough to get one.

I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave.

Stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

Man, that's a lot of blood.

There are nearly 700 species
of leeches found on our planet.

And the good news
is that only a very

small percentage would even
consider consuming human blood.

This is not an animal you
ever need to be afraid of.

They do not transmit
diseases and have never been

responsible for human death.

As for me, I took on a massive
amount of anticoagulant

and blood for nearly 24 hours.

In the end, was it worth it?

Well if you no longer
fear going into a lake

or pond because we
have proven that most

North American
freshwater leeches have

no interest in
drinking human blood,

then I would definitely
say that the answer is Yes.