All language subtitles for B.W.S04E15.Blue.Iguana.Fights.Extinction.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

COYOTE PETERSON
Deep

in the heart of
the Caribbean Sea,

on one of its many
craggy islands,

lives a lizard that
has been brought back

from the brink of
extinction and now

roams this tropical
landscape by the hundreds.

That island is Grand Cayman.

And that lizard is none
other than the blue iguana.

And while an iguana might
not immediately strike you

as being unique or noteworthy,
I assure you this one absolutely

is, because it's blue.

Very blue.

Making it one of the
most beautiful and rarest

iguanas on the planet.

Now, to put things
in perspective,

these lizards dwindled all the
way down to an estimated 15

total individuals
in the wild, making

them functionally extinct.

Which is where our friend,
Fred Burton, steps in.

Directly responsible for
creating the blue iguana

recovery program,
Fred has offered us

the unique opportunity
to get up close

with these endangered
reptiles and tour the facility

he started 15 years ago.

With such a rare chance to
see one of these creatures

in person, the crew and
I loaded up our cameras

and made our way to the most
remote part of the island.

Right now what
we're doing is we're

trying to find one of
the resident blue iguanas

that's habituated to humans.

His name is Peter,
and apparently

he's big and friendly
and a great ambassador

for his species.

So we're trying to
get close to Peter.

Try to get the GoPro close.

Try to get the cameras up close,
so you can see why this is

such a unique lizard species.

So, Fred, you want
to lead the way?

So Peter's on
his favorite rock.

Oh, is this Peter here?

Look at him.

Yes.

Now that is an
impressive iguana.

All right, guys.

Let's come in Peter's
enclosure here.

Wow, look at that.

Let's get a shot of Peter
before we approach, just

in case he wants to
hop off that rock,

because that is a great display
of a blue iguana right there.

Yeah, this
is a unique species that's

only found in Grand Cayman.

OK, so
the blue iguana

is endemic to the
Cayman Islands,

and it is a species
of rock iguana.

We've seen rock
iguanas in the past,

but I have never seen
one this color, I mean.

And you're telling me
that these blue iguanas

get even more blue than this.

When they are
in the breeding season, yeah.

He's kind of dull right now.

Really?

When he
gets hot and excited--

I think
you look great.

- and in March
and April when he's courting

the girls, he will blaze blue.

Really, really, really bright.

Hi, Peter.

Are we buddies?

Are we going to be pals?

I think so.

So, Fred, tell us a
little bit about Peter.

How did he come to the program
and why is he so friendly?

He's
an interesting case,

because we were just walking
around out in the open there,

a good many years ago.

And we saw a young two-year-old
just on the gravel,

and we thought, where
did he come from?

I figured it must have been one
of the free roaming iguanas had

laid and hatched and whatnot.

But we start thinking,
OK, we better

catch it so we can
get a blood sample

and do the genetics
and all these things.

And so we're creeping up to this
thing, which was looking at us.

It's not afraid, you know, and
we just walk up to this iguana

and pick him up, and
he doesn't run away.

And he's been like
that ever since.

It's just like he was born
without the fear gene,

you know.

He just-- he doesn't.

He has no natural
reaction to humans.

Friendly
since day one.

I like it.

So Peter's turning more blue,
because he's warming up to us.

Is that what this is?

He likes
the attention, yeah.

All right.

Well, who doesn't like
a good head scratch?

So, quick little disclaimer
to everybody at home,

don't go up to a wild
iguana and pet it.

This is not a normal iguana.

This is an iguana that has
been habituated to humans

and is used to this kind
of interaction, and is

why we are able to get
so close to Peter today.

If you try to do this
to a wild rock iguana,

you're going to get bit.

And if you look here
at Peter's mandibles,

they have quite
the powerful bite,

and they also have a couple
rows of razor sharp teeth.

So, you definitely
do not want to get

your finger or your
hand caught in the jaws

of a wild rock iguana.

So best to leave them alone and
give them their safe distance.

But, man, are they cool.

So these beads, we
put on every iguana we release,

and we also put them
on the captive iguanas

in case they get out.

And the idea is the
combination of bead sizes

and bead colors is
unique to each animal.

So that, you know, if we're
walking around the park

and we see an iguana we want to
know who that is, all we need

to do is train
binoculars on the beads,

look them up in the
database, and we'll know

exactly who we're dealing with.

But the other thing we do--

the other thing we do is
we photograph the sides

and the top of his head, and
these big and large scales.

You look at the scales
on the snout here.

They're all a little
bit irregular.

They're not perfectly
symmetrical.

OK, yeah.

Every iguana has
a slightly different scale

pattern.

It's like a fingerprint.

So we got pictures of this guy.

And if this guy turned up
somewhere it didn't want to be,

and the PIT tag was gone
and the bead tag was gone,

we'd still be able to
match the photograph

and say that is that iguana.

That is Peter.

That is Peter.

But, just judging
on how we're able to approach

Peter, I don't think
it would take very

long to figure out who it was.

So, one of
the other cool things

about rock iguanas,
generally, are the toes.

OK.

So,
this is like a hook.

Looks
like a talon to me.

So,
they can-- they're

quite good at climbing trees.

You know they spend most
of the time on the ground,

but they're quite good
at climbing trees.

And these claws hang onto
things really effectively.

And for females digging
nests, of course.

They're great for digging, too.

But the weird thing is, you know
how our hands bend like this.

These guys bend like this.

Oh, they
bend right to left.

They
don't bend this way.

They don't bend this way.

But they bend backwards.

That is very
interesting, Peter.

And think about
why, because right there.

They're constantly pulling
these things through vegetation.

And
now, Fred, is there

any other distinct
characteristic

about the blue iguana
that's worth noting today?

I like to mention
this little thing here.

OK.

You see
that little scale there.

It looks translucent.

I do.

So,
that's the pineal eye.

That's a very primitive
feature in reptiles,

but these aren't
primitive animals.

Right.

Light
can get through there,

and we think that there's
a brain receptor in there.

And they probably, we
don't know this for sure,

but we suspect that they use
this for tracking day length.

And that's how they
subconsciously know what time

of year it is and the
triggers for when they need

to start thinking
about breeding season

and all that sort of thing.

A very unique
sensory mechanism.

Very cool, Peter.

A lot of the stuff
that I've described to you is

useful, because what we
need, always, is for people

to relate to these animals.

If we want to conserve
an animal like this,

people need to be
engaged in it, right.

And the thing about
an animal like this

is it responds to us in a
way we can understand it,

we can empathize.

So knowing about iguanas helps
us tell stories about them.

And we tell stories about
these iguanas and people

start to love them.

And if people
start to love them,

they want us to preserve them.

And that's, that's
the way it all works.

Well, I think Peter
has done a phenomenal job today

hanging out with us so we can
learn more about his species.

And as far as love
ability, I mean,

I think the proof
is right here, guys.

This is about the coolest
customer I've ever witnessed

when it comes to an iguana.

What's going on, Coyote Pack?

Well, spring is officially
here, and today I'm

going to head out on the
kayak and see if I can

catch the first turtle of year.

Look at this.

There's the drone right there.

The drone is actually
going to follow me

and, hopefully, get up close
when I jump off the kayak

and catch a turtle.

Today is our first
day of testing this out,

and we'll see if
it actually works.

All right guys, stay tuned.

We're about get to
the kayak here and get

it unchained and out the water.

Water test rocky.

OK.
Whew!

That water's cold!

All right, guys.

Well, a lot of you have
written in asking- Coyote,

when are we going to see new
episodes of Dragon Tails?

Today is officially
the first day

of a new Dragon Tails shoot.

It's cold today.

It's only about 63
degrees, but it's sunny.

So there's a good chance
we might see some turtles.

Now if you look this
way, over my shoulder,

way down on the far
end of the lake,

there's no movement
in the water.

That means there's
no ripples, which

means the turtles may be down
there in the shallows, fighting

for territory.

So what I'm going to do
is head out on a kayak,

see if we can catch
a turtle, and then

I'll bring it back here.

Follow me with the drone.

We've also got these
nifty walkie talkies.

Mark, I see a turtle.

Can you hear me?

Check, Coyote.

Sending you the drone now.

See, so now I can let
him know if I see a turtle,

and then, hopefully, I catch it.

You guys ready to get muddy?

All right.

Let's do this.

We're going to find a
turtle before Coyote does.

Let's go fire up the drone.

All right.

Looks like we are ready to fly.

The scouting
potential of using this drone

is going to be incredible.

It's so much fun.

It's like all I want to do now.

Chris, you're hired as the
new cameraman for the show.

I'm just going to fly the drone.

Saw that coming.

I have not
seen Cornelius in two years.

So I'm really hoping
that we see him

this season on Dragon Tails.

He is my favorite turtle.

He's my big boy who lives
out here on Thoreau Lake.

All right, guys.

Let's mosey on down
into the shallows here

and see if we can
find something.

I think a sea turtle.

Nope, that's a log.

False alarm, false alarm.

Ooh.

Tough to keep you balanced while
looking through binoculars.

OK, let me radio into Mark.

Hey, Mark.

I've got no sightings
on any turtles yet,

but I'm going to move
in a little closer.

Copy.

Go for it if you see it.

But we are
just about into Cornelius' zone.

So, I'm going to actually
stand up here and see

if we can get a cool shot.

Oh, I just bumped something.

Might have been a turtle.

Shoot.

I think it's OK.

I think it scared a heron.

But as long as you
keep it high enough--

hold on a second.
I got a turtle.

I see a turtle.

Want me to dive in?

Come in straight towards
me, I got a turtle.

100%, a turtle.

100%.

All right, guys, this is here.

We got the first turtle
of the year right

here off the edge of the boat.

He doesn't sense me coming in.

I'm coming right
from the backside.

He's big.

He's big.

Actually, this
might be Cornelius.

All right, I'm making
a go for it here.

He doesn't sense me yet.

I'm going.

Oh, there it is.

That's Corny.

That's Cornelius, right there.

Yes.

Hey, buddy.

You're big and cold.

Wow.

OK.

There it is, first
turtle of the year.

He's very cold.

He's just woken up.

Guarantee he just came out
today for the first time.

He's looking right at me.

There he is.

That's Cornelius right there.

All right.

There we go.

It's Cornelius.

I got him.

Definitely Cornelius,
really cold.

He definitely just
woke up for the year.

I'm bringing him in.

Follow me back.

Got him.

That's awesome.

And that's the most
famous turtle, too.

This is Cornelius.

This is the infamous,
huge snapping turtle

that lives here in Blendon
Woods in Columbus, Ohio.

And it's awesome that he
made it through the winter.

I'm sure Coyote's going
to be very happy when

he gets back to shore here.

Stay, buddy.

Oh boy, he's making a go at me.

Hold on, I got to turn
him back a little bit.

First turtle of the year.

Hi, buddy.

Good to see you.

Yes.

My big boy, Cornelius.

Talk about calling your shot.

Literally, the first
turtle that I came up on,

and it is the big one
that we were hoping

to come across this spring.

Oh, this is great news
because Cornelius has not

been caught in two years now.

And sure enough, we have him
up close for the cameras.

Whoa!

How'd I look on the drone?

I did get a shot.

You can definitely see the
turtle before you jumped in.

Could you?

Oh, yeah.

Wow, neat.

Got it.

It's called a catch landing.
It's for the pros.

Whoa!

Come here, buddy.

Oh, that is a monster
snapping turtle right there.

He is about 50 pounds.

Little light because
he's just woken

up for his summer hunting.

We're going to bring him up here
and give him a good look over.

This turtle is
absolutely enormous.

It's not often that
you see snapping

turtles grow to this size.

He is, in my opinion, the
most famous snapping turtle

in the world at this point.

And the thing that's most
impressive about Cornelius,

look at the claws
on his front feet.

Go ahead, buddy, put
a paw out here for us.

Look at that paw.

Those claws are
absolutely massive.

His paws are about
the size of my hand.

Isn't that crazy?

I mean, I'm not
even kidding you.

I said to the camera,
all right, right now

I'm moving through
Oscar's territory,

just getting into
Cornelius' realm.

And, sure enough, I could see
a carapace just kind of bubble

at the surface.

And I wasn't certain
it was Cornelius

until I jumped in and grabbed
hold of the back of his shell

and saw that tail end.

I can't
wait to go back

and look at the drone shot.

Yeah, you
think it's going to be cool?

Yeah, I
got in there like you

could definitely see the turtle
before you jumped in the water.

So that was really interesting.

That tells me that we
really can use this drone

to actually scout locations--

That's cool.

- for wildlife,
which is something

we've never been
able to do before.

You can literally

walk for miles across
the desert and never come

across a single drop of water.

So, it's safe to say that the
last place you would think

to look for aquatic
turtles is in the middle

of this parched ecosystem.

I can smell water.

Can you guys smell that?

Oh, yeah.

It's like the air
just cooled off.

Wow, it feels great down here.

All right, let's move
up slow just in case

there's any animal right here.

Sometimes it happens.

We approach a body of water
and all of a sudden, boom,

an animal jumps in.

Wow.

It is crystal clear.

Not going to be hard to
find animals in this.

All right, let's get into it.

COYOTE PETERSON
Today

I will be exploring the flowing
waters of the Santa Cruz

River, which runs like
a life-giving vein

through Arizona's
Sonoran desert.

This water system is home
to many different animals,

but the one creature
I am specifically

searching for today
is a reptile known

as the spiny softshell turtle.

Wow, this is a pretty
cool environment.

I've never been in the
water before in the desert.

Look at this.

It is just globs
of algae and sand.

It's like this magical mix
of desert and swamp land.

This is super cool.

All right, well, let's
head this way upriver.

You can see the water
is fairly shallow.

It's also crystal clear, which
means if we see any animals,

we should be able to catch them.

Now when I'm looking
for turtles in Ohio,

I'm used to looking at a
mound in the mud and saying,

oh that's a carapace
buried down.

Same tactic is going
to be used here,

because at this
time of day spiny

soft shells are burrowing
in the shallow sand

and just sticking their
noses up out of the water so

that they can breathe.

Many different creatures that
we can come across out here.

You guys ready?

All
right, let's do it.

Mario, you good?

All
right, let's keep moving.

We have tried for many years
to get the spiny softshell

turtle in front of the
cameras with, unfortunately,

no success.

However, I have a good
feeling that today

might be our lucky day.

Whoa.

These trees are like
covered in cotton.

It's like I'm walking through
the entire world of spiders

right now.

All these webs.

Wow.

There's spiders
all over the trees.

Let me see if you
guys can see this.

Look at that,
covered in spiders.

I know this would probably be
somebody's worst nightmare.

If you had
arachnophobia, this is

not where you would want to be.

Turtle!

What kind?

Soft shell.

Oh man, it was
booking, though Ouch!

You OK?

He
nailed my knee.

Wow, it was fast.

Just caught it out of
the corner of my eye.

Missed it, though.

Not big, only about that big.

So, they are in the water.

Man,
he was just jetting

right down the middle of that.

OK, that's a
good sign, though.

This is the sort
of area where he

would be laying out
in the

So keep your eyes peeled.

COYOTE PETERSON
These turtles

are hard to catch, but
at least having seen one

proves that they
live in this river.

So we headed further
into the wild,

searching for
slower moving water.

A lot of times they'll bury
up underneath an embankment

like this.

That's what I'm looking for.

A turtle right here!

Oh, burying down.
Hold on.

Hold on.

Got it!

Oh!

They're so
unbelievably slippery.

Whew!

I went to the
net for a second.

I was like maybe we should
better get her with the net.

Feel how slippery
this turtle is.

He started burying down
underneath the sand.

Yes!

There is.

That is a spiny softshell.

That's our turtle.
- Woo!

That is exactly what
we were hoping to find.

What about that timing?

I mean, literally,
as I'm saying- yeah,

right up underneath these
embankments sometimes

I'll see them burying down.

I just kind of slightly
looked up and saw movement out

of the corner of my eye
and it shows, literally

burying down into the sand.

Great grab.
- Oh.

All right.

Well, let's get it.

Let's go over here where
I can get my big camera out.

OK.
Yes!

Ha!

I cannot believe we got one.

There it is.

That is the spiny
softshell turtle.

You guys have no
idea how long I've

been trying to get
one of these turtles

up close for the cameras.

We've tried to do this
episode before in Ohio,

and they have eluded me on
every single expedition.

And then, of course,
the episode doesn't

end up getting released.

And sure enough,
it's here in a river

system in the Sonoran
Desert that we

finally managed to catch one.

Now, let's take a good
look at the structure

of this turtle's body.

I'm going to very carefully
tilt it up like this, Mark,

and take a look
at that carapace.

That
is something else.

Right, it's very
streamlined, extremely smooth.

You'll notice that it
doesn't have typical scutes

like most turtle species.

Go ahead and put your
hand out there and touch

the shell of that turtle.

Tell me what it feels like.

Oh, wow.

That feels just like leather.

Exactly, right.

And it's very pliable.

That's what allows
these turtles to quickly

bury down in the sand and hide
up underneath embankments.

On top of that, this
streamlined body

structure allows them to move
very, very quickly underwater.

I love the feet.

Look at those feet.

It's like a mix between
a foot and a fin.

These turtles are
perfectly aquatic,

and very rarely do
you see them on land.

Only out ever to
bask in warm up.

As we know, they are ectotherms,
which means that they need

the sun to heat up their body.

Oh, I see you looking
at my hat there.

Don't you bite my nose.

Now I do not want to take a
bite from one of these turtles.

They have extremely sharp beaks.

Razor sharp, in fact,
and they use that beak

to catch and kill their food.

And what they're
looking for out here

are small fish, frogs,
crayfish, anything

that this turtle comes across
and can turn into a meal.

It's fair game.

They are opportunistic
predators.

Ow!
Ow!

Ow!
I am getting clawed up here.

Here, let me put him down
to the water for a second.

Watch this.

I'm going to hold onto
this shell really tight.

Let's see if you can see
those feet in action.

Here we go.
Look at that.

Oh, yeah.

Can you see that?

So this is
a very aquatic turtle?

Yes.

They are very, very slippery.

Look at that.

You see its feet going?

And look at that.

You see the head sticking
up above the water there?

They have extremely
long necks and that's

what allows them to stay
buried down in the sand.

And all they have to do is
extend that little piggy

looking nose up through the
water, through the sand,

just like that and
they can breathe

without even being noticed.

That's another reason why they
are so incredibly hard to find.

Oh, this is kind of cool.

Can you see these little spines
on the back of the shell there?

Yeah, I cant.

They're like little nodules.

That is where
they get the name

spiny softshell turtle from.

OK.

Let's look at the
underside of the turtle.

The plastron.

Extremely white.

Very white.

Very, very smooth.

Also helps in
allowing these turtles

to move quickly across the
sandy basin of this river.

Oh, he's so cool.

All right, let's do this.

I'm going to set him
down gently here,

and look at the camouflage of
this turtle against the sand.

You see that?

Now, notice the coloration
of the turtle's skin.

It's very light,
just like the sand,

and all these little dark
markings help it blend--

Ow, he tried to bite
me-- blend in perfectly

to the granules of sand that
are on the basin of the river.

Look at that.

Look at his head just up
above the water there.

Boop.

Just like that, it goes down.

And then the turtle can
quickly make a run for it.

I got you, come here.

We're going to hang out
just a little bit longer.

Wow!

This has got to be
the coolest feeling

turtle I have ever held.

It is so slimy.

Oh, he's so cool.

I can't believe we caught one.

He's clawing up my
hand pretty good, too.

Well, how cool was this?

Finally catching a spiny
softshell turtle and, of all

places, here in
the Sonoran Desert.

I'm Coyote Petersen.

Be brave, stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

All right, let's get
him back into the river.

Watch how fast it takes off.