All language subtitles for B.W.S06E12.Photoshoot.With.Smiling.Salamanders.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

Welcome to "Base
Camp," a special Japanese

giant salamander edition.

That's right.

Hopefully this week, you've
seen some of our segments

that we released on the
Japanese giant salamander.

And today, we're
going to discuss

a little bit of the
behind-the-scenes aspects

of filming in Japan.

This was one of the
most difficult episodes.

Well, I guess
difficult's the right way

to put it because it took so
long to produce this trip.

Getting to Japan was one of
the most grand adventures

we've ever been on.

It
was a challenge.

First of all, we don't
speak the language, right?

No.

It's a bit tough.

Yeah, so we
had to have an excellent guide

with us, Richard.

And he helped us navigate
through the country.

Right, absolutely.

And I know a lot of you
wanted to see me stung

by the Japanese
giant hornet, which

we managed to get that episode.

But the real reason
we went to Japan

was for the giant salamanders.

And it's all about seasonality.

We had to be in
country at exactly

the right time when
the salamanders are

active if we were to find them.

Right.

So we had to plan it based on
when the animals are active

and how we're not
going to interfere

with their life histories,
like breeding, and hatching,

and so on.

And, of course, we
also picked the time

when it was typhoon season.

Yeah, a lot
a lot of rain, but that also

meant higher water
levels, so the salamanders

were more active at that point.

Now, we got to work with
Okada-sensei, who was amazing.

And I know upon
first meeting him,

it's like he speaks a
little bit of English.

Not a lot.

He understands more
than he can speak.

But you have that language
barrier when it comes

down to, OK, this is what we
would like to do in the field,

and him trying to
explain to us, all right,

well, it might take
this much time.

It could be several days before
we actually find a salamander.

Right.

And productions for the
episodes took us almost a week.

Right.

And back to Dr.
Okada, I mean, he

is the rock star of salamander
biology and research.

He has dedicated 20 years
of his life studying

the Japanese giant salamander.

I mean, he is actually the
reason why these animals still

exist in Japan.

So it was quite the
honor to work with him.

Well, a big threat that
these salamanders face--

you may be asking yourself,
so what sort of predators does

a salamander like that have?

And certainly, there
are smaller mammals

that would feast on the younger
ones, the juvenile sub-adults.

But it really is
the encroachment

of humans that is destroying the
environment for these animals

with the building of
dams and barrier walls.

I know in the first
episode, we really

made that point at
the end to say it's

the addition of concrete to the
environment that is preventing

the salamanders from
traveling from breeding

spot to breeding spot.

Right, yeah.

Habitat destruction,
degradation,

that is the biggest
threat to these animals.

They require healthy ecosystems.

Their water needs to be clean.

Essentially, these animals
breathe through their skin,

right?

Right.

So I have the little one
here, which we gave away

in the Tokyo scavenger hunt.

And this is what would be
considered a sub-adult.

And we did find some smaller
ones like this in the field.

We'll get into that in a second.

But you can see-- and we
showed in the episode--

these flaps of skin on
the side of their bodies.

Just like hellbenders,
they absorb

a lot of their environment
through their skin.

As you guys know, most
amphibians do, but salamanders

specifically are a
great indicator species

for how healthy an environment.

Exactly.

Of course, it was
probably unique for you guys

to see an episode
where I wasn't actually

allowed to catch and handle
the salamanders myself.

But again, there are very
strict laws and regulations

that only licensed
researchers are

allowed to make physical
contact with the salamanders

in the wild.

Now, of course, the episode
that came out about the Hanzaki

Research Institute, where
the great Osanshouo lives,

the largest Japanese giant
salamander on record in Japan,

which I was able to
get hands-on with.

Right.

And what
an incredible experience

for all of us to just
interact with that creature.

I
mean, it was massive.

It weighed, what, 14 kilograms,
which is roughly 30 pounds.

That's like the size
of a small dog, right?

That's like-- a lot
of the snapping turtles

I catch are like 30 pounds.

Yeah.

Yeah, so it was quite amazing
to see such a large amphibian.

Their structure is amazing.

So well adapted to their
stream and water environment.

Well, it's
that flat body structure

and those little hands
with those nuptial

pads that can really just
grip them in place, even

with a strong flowing current.

The family of salamanders, the
genus that this group belongs

to thrives in cold water.

And that's actually
why they live so long.

So everything is slow when you
live in a cold environment,

your metabolism, how you move.

You basically grab a prey item.

That prey item will last for
you a long time as a meal.

And as we know, the
giant salamanders

can live a long time, right?

Mhm.

Well, the great Osanshouo
is over 100 years of age.

That's
pretty amazing.

Which
is crazy to think

that a salamander of that
size is over 100 years

old dwarfs us when it comes
to age and may outlive us.

Nobody really knows.

And it's, like I said, the
largest one that is currently

in captivity in Japan.

Now, the smaller
salamander, something

that is this size or
smaller, is considered

incredibly important
to the science

that Okada-sensei is doing.

And, Mario, why
don't you explain why

the juveniles are so important.

Right, so juveniles
in a population

are really important
because they're an indicator

that, number one, the
population is growing,

they're reproducing.

That's good.

And especially for
the salamanders,

another reason why
it's a good indicator

is because they have these
life stages or life cycles.

They start off as eggs,
then they turn into larva,

then they metamorphosis
into sub-adults, and then

into the adults themselves.

So the larva stage is really
sensitive to the environment.

The little larva have
actually gill slits.

And the water needs to be
really clean and really healthy.

So if you find
these juveniles, it

means that the
larva have survived,

and that the ecosystem
is probably healthy.

Right.

So when you have the bigger
salamanders, the ones that

are between 50, 60, 70,
80, 90, 100 years of age,

they've adapted.

And while they are
susceptible to pollution,

they've at least allowed
their bodies to become--

Exactly.

- in
tune with the environment.

So introduction of
pollution, sometimes they

can sustain a bit longer
than the young ones.

Like you said, young ones with
the gill slits and breathing

through their bodies become very
much impacted by the addition

of something like a pollutant.

The small one that
you found, which was--

I mean, it was tiny.

It was the smallest salamander
we found on the trip.

Yeah, so I think the
highlight of my Japan trip was

the fact that we
found during actually

one of our b-roll days, right?

Mhm.

So we often go out into the
environment and gather b-roll.

And we were out during the day.

And it's not likely to
find them during the day

because they're
primarily nocturnal.

But underneath a rock, Dr.
Okada found a little salamander,

a little giant salamander.

Teeny, tiny giant pretty much.

Right.

And so we had to
gather biometrics.

And I was helping
them do that while you

guys were getting b-roll.

And we determined that it was
roughly around five years old,

and it was not a
marked individual,

so it was new to his study.

So after biometrics,
we actually put

a pin tag in it, kind of like
what we do with the crocodiles.

So it's got an
identification number.

And in his notes, he actually
named it Mario, after me.

So essentially, I have
a salamander right

now in Japan that's swimming
around, doing its thing.

And hopefully, it might
actually outlive me.

It can live up to 100 years.

If it's lucky, it will
definitely outlive you.

Yeah.

Even though you will stay
incredibly healthy, just

like hopefully the
salamander will,

it's definitely going to
live longer than you are.

See you later, Mario.

You also had an experience
like that as well, right?

I did.

Yeah, well, what's cool is that
after we filmed the main scene,

and actually in
total, we caught six

salamanders on the entire trip.

Yes.

But you really only
saw the one largest

one we caught in the field.

Once the cameras had wrapped
and we were breaking everything

down, I'm just looking around
on the side of the river

and I shine my flashlight
right into the water,

and here's a salamander
about this size

just scurrying along the rocks.

I call out to Okada-sensei.

I'm like, small salamander!

I didn't know what to
say, because if you say

"giant salamander,"
you just think big one,

but it was a small
giant salamander.

With the rules and regulations,
I was not allowed to actually

catch it myself, so
Okada-sensei comes running down

and scoops it up with the net.

And then we filmed
an entire scene.

It didn't make it into
the actual episode.

So if you guys want to see it,
should we show a deleted scene?

Absolutely, yeah.

OK, so if you guys
are ready, let's

roll the footage of us tagging
and collecting the biometrics

for a small giant salamander.

I was able to just
corral it gently

until Dr. Okada got down there.

So look at how
small this one is.

So this is incredibly important.

Finding a salamander
of this size

means that reproduction
is happening.

And it's not likely that this
one even has a tag in yet,

so we're going to definitely
need to collect its biometrics.

We had just wrapped
on the scene.

I looked down off the side,
and it's a baby salamander!

I mean, it looks big to you and
me as compared to salamanders,

but this is tiny
when we're talking

Japanese giant salamanders.

Now, it's actually more rare to
find a salamander of this size

than it is a large one, so
this is really exciting.

And there's a good chance
that this salamander

does not have a tag in it yet.

Look at that little junior.

That's so cool.

A little bit easier
to handle a small one

like this than it is a giant.

That looks just like a
big one, only junior size.

Look at all that
speckled patterning.

Perfect camouflage for
this river ecosystem.

A little bit of water in there.

The water actually helps to
keep the salamander calm.

See that?

It's wanting to get
out of the tube.

And as soon as you
get water in there,

it just goes, woop,
and calms down.

32.5 centimeters is
the total length.

Here's the moment of truth.

Does it have a tag in it?

No tag.

No tag!

Oh, ho!

That's great!

This is an undocumented animal.

That's so cool.

So this is really important
for your research, right?

Yes.

All the time that Dr.
Okada spends out here finding

these salamanders, catching
them year after year,

finding out they
have tags or not,

and this is a completely
new animal not yet recorded.

Yeah, I spotted it.

Does that
mean you get to name it?

Yeah, do I get to name
it since I spotted it?

- Yeah.
- Oh, all right.

Coyote.

Call it Coyote?

Coyote the Japanese
Giant Salamander?

What's
"Coyote" in Japanese?

- Koyote.
- Koyote.

Koyote.

This salamander is officially
going to be named Koyote.

All right, so you're
going to get--

- 3.8.
- ...

What was it?

And [inaudible].

7.8.

3.8.

Oh, 3.8.

OK.

Head width.

4.3.

4.3.

Tiny as compared to the
adult that we caught.

Look at the belly.

Much lighter in color.

Much lighter.

This is male.

Oh, and it's a male.

Yeah.

How are
you able to tell that?

His thing--

OK.

A swollen cloaca.

We've got ourselves
a juvenile male here.

So how old would you guess
that this salamander is?

Uh, 15.

OK.

So what Dr. Okada said is that
he's guessing this salamander

is around 15 years of age.

Really?

It takes 15 years
to get that big?

15 years to get this big.

That's pretty incredible.

All right, so this is important.

We're going to put a PIT
tag into this juvenile male.

And like I said before, because
it does not have a tag in it,

it needs one.

And this will allow Dr. Okada to
continuously track this animal.

And this is not a
tracking chip, so we

can't come out with a,
you know, little wand

and detect where the animal is.

It's an ID chip.

So if it's caught
again, he can scan it,

just like we did
with the larger one,

and that will allow us to
see the health and the growth

of this animal over time.

We're going to
insert the tag here.

And it's just like
a little pinprick.

Right there behind the arm.

Perfect.

All right.

Got it.

There we go.

All right, this baby
giant is officially tagged.

Yeah.

That would be great.

That would be great.

So
you're going to get

some updates on Coyote Jr. if
he's captured in the future.

This is officially my son now.

My son, the Japanese
giant salamander.

All right, so the
last thing to do

is to let Koyote back into the
river where hopefully he will

flourish and breed,
and there will be

more salamanders here in Japan.

Oh, that was awesome, Dr. Okada.

Thank you so much.

Wow.

How cool was that, right, guys?

Awesome.

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

How cool was that, right?

Koyote Jr.

Right.

And what a special
moment for both of us.

And actually, one thing
that we got is this.

See this little
number tag down here?

You have one on the
front of yours too.

Okada-sensei gave this to us.

And he wrote in
Japanese scripting

there, "be brave, stay wild,
from Okada-sensei to Coyote."

You've got one too.

Right.

And this little tag here
is the official number

of Coyote Jr. and Mario Jr.

Right.

Yeah, this is definitely
a highlight and a treasure

that I brought back from Japan.

It shows the date that we
captured and tagged the animal.

So this is very special
to us because once again,

these animals are
going to be out there.

They're out there
right now thriving.

Think about that, right?

That's pretty neat.

Well, and like we said,
there's a good chance

that these salamanders, if
they stay healthy and manage

to avoid human
encroachment, they

will potentially outlive us.

Wow.

But what's so amazing, and
certainly for Okada-sensei is

that on that trip, when you
think about the areas that he

does research, he's been
researching these areas

for over 20 years,
and on this trip,

we magically find two
new specimens that

had never been
tagged before, which

is a pretty cool moment for us.

Yeah, definitely special.

I think Dr. Okada was
very happy with us.

When we come and work with
these researchers or groups,

sometimes they're nervous
because they don't

want a camera
crew, like, messing

up what they're doing and
encroaching on the research.

But we always come in in
a very respectful manner.

And, you know, we help
out with the research.

A lot of times when you come
in as a production company

and you're like, hey, we want
to film an episode on this,

people might look at you and
be like, uh, I don't know.

Cameras and lights.

Are you guys going to
know what you're doing?

Are you going to tell
the story that we want

to tell as an organization?

So I think we did a great
job making sure to really

stick to the storyline
of not turning

these things into monsters.

Nope.

Because there is a lot of
myth and lore throughout time

that they were these
river dragons, but it's

not something to be afraid of.

They're the most
sentient docile creatures

you'll ever encounter.

And they rely on us as humans
to protect their environments,

and, of course, with what
Okada-sensei is doing

to promote that
conservation so that they

can continue to thrive.

Right.

And probably one of the
coolest aspects of this

is that the viewers
can actually go

out and do exactly what we did.

Right.

This is not exclusive to
film teams or research teams.

Now, that does not mean
you can go out and look

for giant salamanders
on your own,

but the group that
we worked with,

if you search
"bushidojapan.com," you'll get

connected with
our amazing guide,

Richard, who actually
leads eco-tourism

into these environments
with the Hanzaki Institute

so that people can see these
salamanders in the wild.

So you can go out and
watch Okada-sensei

do his thing collecting data.

Right.

And you will contribute to the
conservation because through

ecotourism, the money that
is made goes into funding

Japanese salamander .

Conservation

Which actually, I
just had a crazy idea.

I don't know if we'd be able
to do this at some point,

but you know how we did
the golden adventure

ticket for the "Brave
Adventures," the first book?

Right.

We should
do something, maybe,

where we take some members of
the Coyote Pack back to Japan

for some ecotourism.

Oh wow.

Oh, it's got my
gears grinding!

OK, got a couple of ideas.

We'll have to put a pause on
that and see what happens.

Yeah.

But it would be pretty cool
to take some of the audience

members out there into Japan.

It's a unique environment.
- Yeah!

It's not an easy
environment to get through.

But once you're there, just
the history of that place

is-- oh, it's magical.

That would be
quite the adventure.

That would be pretty cool.

All right, guys, well make sure
you go back and watch the two

Japanese giant
salamander episodes,

if you have not seen
them at this point.

Write in the comment section
below and tell us what you love

about the giant salamander.

And let us know, would you
like to go on an ecotourism

trip with myself,
Mark, and Mario

to look for giant salamanders?

Sounds pretty cool, right?

Yeah, I think so.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

I'm Mario Aldecoa.

Be brave.

Stay wild.

We'll see you on the
next "Base Camp" adventure.

So I'm at one of my
locations where I tend

to find a lot of amphibians.

And I've got this
one spot where I

think we could find a
really charismatic species

to photograph.

There it is, our target
species, the spotted salamander.

Now, they're fairly
common in this area.

And to find them, all we have
to do is flip over some logs.

All right.

This looks like a good log.

It's big.

It looks like it's actually
situated down into the soil

quite a bit.

And with any luck, we're going
to find our target species.

Right there.

Check it out!

A spotted salamander!

This is a perfect
spot for you, buddy.

There you go!

The next step is
to find a location

where we can actually
set this guy up

and get some really cool shots.

Ready?

I think this might
be a good spot

to set up for a little
photography session.

So first step is we're
going to actually

set up a little spot here.

We're going to actually
place this guy under.

We're going to keep this guy
here for now, nice and hidden.

And this is why I really wanted
to actually find this species.

It's such an easy
species to handle.

It's safe.

And, of course, we
want to be very gentle

and be very conscious of the
stress levels of this animal.

So the fact that I could
actually place it down

and cover it under some debris
to make sure it feels secure

is really good, especially
while we set up our cameras.

So I always go into the
field and have my backpack.

So this backpack,
my camera backpack,

has all these
little compartments

that has my different
photography equipment.

Of course, we've got the
main body and the lens.

Today, we're going to be
doing macro photography.

And macro photography
requires a macro lens.

Now, what's special
about a lens like this

is that you could actually get
really close to the subject.

It's got a 1:1
magnification, and that

means that you can see the
details really well and, once

again, get really close
to subjects that are

small, like that salamander.

Now, of course, every
situation is unique.

So the fact that our
subject matter today

is not dangerous, it's
not going to run fast,

it's not going to just hop away
means that we could actually

be very deliberate
with our setup

and try to get the
best shots possible.

So when working with
amphibians, it's

very important to make sure
we keep them nice and moist.

Make sure they're out
of direct sunlight.

And I always bring a
water bottle with me.

And I use this to keep
my hands nice and moist.

It's very important.

And I actually use it to
help moisten the salamander.

There you go, buddy.

A wet salamander is
a happy salamander.

So once you've got your subject
in the right spot or position,

you've got to get
creative with your angles.

To me, it's very important
to get a nice low perspective

on the species.

It all depends on the
species we're working with.

For the spotted
salamander, it lives

in a terrestrial environment.

So I want to get nice and
low to show that perspective.

So don't be afraid to
get down and dirty.

The first shot I'm going to get
is what I call my tight shot.

I want to make sure I get
its face in a profile angle.

So when it comes to
macro photography,

the goal is to basically almost
eliminate the background.

You want to make sure
subject is in focus

and that is the primary
focus of the viewer.

Now, when it comes to
any shot that you're

taking of an animal,
the eyes are the focus.

If the eyes are not in
focus, then unfortunately,

image is not as strong.

Let's go for the medium shot.

So I've got my tight shot.

I got a medium shot.

So now, I'm going
to get the wider

shot, which is the entire body.

This is what I kind of
call the "field book shot."

When you want to
identify an animal,

you want to make sure you've
got the entire body in view.

So that's what I'm
going to do now.

Get my wider field book shot.

Macro photography, it's
one of my favorite types

of photography out there.

It really gives us a
close look into the world

of these small and
bizarre creatures.

And I think that's really neat.

Hopefully, this
little photo session

inspires you to go out and get
your own photos of the wildlife

that you find in your area.

This spotted salamander
definitely did a great job.

I think it's time to put
him back underneath his log.

I'm Mario Aldecoa.

Be brave.

Stay wild.

We'll see you on
the next adventure.

All right.

Thanks, buddy.

You were an excellent
model today.

Off you go.