Original subtitles

Today, we're headed out on a snake scavenger hunt.

I'll be working alongside my friend and wildlife

biologist, Will Robertson.

Say hi, Will.

Hi, Will.

This region is known for its plethora of species.

We're going to be scouring the fields, searching the forests,

flipping rocks, and rolling logs.

Doing whatever it takes to find some of these cool reptiles.

Will, are you ready?

Let's find some snakes.

Pollen.

Oh, snake.

I think it was a garter snake.

He went down into this little hole right here.

Oh, yeah.

There's his little face.

He's right there.

See if I can tickle him out.

There he is.

Gotcha.

Whoa, there we go.

All right, let's take a look at this one.

So that is the Eastern garter snake.

One of the coolest things most people

don't realize about garter snakes

is that they are mildly venomous.

Not a venom that could ever hurt a human.

But for the most part, these are super calm, super docile snakes.

You can see that little defense mechanism right there.

Totally flattening out the body and almost making the head look

as if it's V shaped, which, of course, would be

indicative of a venomous snake.

But as we know, the garter snake is completely harmless.

This is cool.

It's like a river of moss.

Look at that.

Now normally, you'd probably have water flowing down

through this spillway and towards this lake

that we're getting toward.

But it's just a really unique looking habitat,

almost like "Lord of the Rings."

And it seems as if the lake might

pay off, because Will just said he's

got a big watersnake basking.

Oh yeah, that's a nice one.

These guys are non-venomous, but they do bite quite a bit.

So we'll see what this guy does.

All right, Will's got the water snake.

Oh yeah, beautiful.

And definitely a species that people oftentimes think

is venomous, but completely harmless.

The Northern watersnake.

That's another one for the list, Will.

Yeah, there we go.

Looking good.

Oh, Coyote, sanitize real quick.

Don't want to spread those snake fungal diseases.

Oh, red-bellied snake.

Oh.

Red-bellied snake.

Pretty basic looking snake, except for the fact that it

has a pretty vibrant red belly.

Let's flip it.

Oh.

Whoa, whoa.

Look at the little tunnel.

Hey, buddy.

Got an interesting little precarious scenario here.

There is a rock ledge that a black racer's up on.

I think if I drop myself down into this little hole,

might be able to come around the edge and get it.

I see it.

But it does not see me.

It's right there.

Right on the edge of this cliff.

Got it!

Getting under control is going to be a whole other story.

And these snakes are really bitey.

Oh, geez.

That is one angry black racer.

Will, got a black racer for the snake scavenger hunt.

Oh!

Let's see if we can do this without taking a bite.

There we go.

OK.

Focus is on the camera at the moment.

And there we have it.

Another species for the snake scavenger hunt.

That is the black racer.

Looks like it's getting ready to shed its skin.

You can tell that from the cloudiness in the eyes.

And the thing that I love most about this species

is its agility and its speed.

Not to mention the coloration is very similar to the black mamba.

But of course, this is a non-venomous species.

So a bite is going to be nothing more than a little soap

and water to clean up.

All right, watch how fast this snake is when I let

it back into the environment.

Ooh, look at that.

Big ringneck snake.

That's a nice orange belly.

So these guys spend most of their time

underground looking for things like salamanders to eat.

They're very tame snakes.

They never bite.

You can see they have tiny, tiny little heads

with a prominent yellow ring right around the neck.

Double flip.

No.

Right here?

Nope.

Guess who found a hognose snake.

Right here, Will.

Oh, it's on the move.

I got it!

I got it, I got it, I got it.

I'll grab him up here.

OK.

Whoa.

Wow!

A hognose snake for the scavenger hunt.

This is a difficult one to find,

and look at that pointed nose right there.

Ooh.

Uh-oh.

Uh-oh.

You know what happens when they poop, right?

Yeah, these guys are known for playing dead.

Oh my gosh, the smell is unbearable.

Wow!

Dude, you are covered in poop.

Let's wipe that off.

Oh my gosh.

Hands.

When lifting rocks--

Swallowed a bug.

I was going to try to tell you about rock etiquette.

Back to one.

When lifting rocks, it's important to have

good rock etiquette.

Which means you lift a rock gently,

and you place it right back exactly where you found it.

Ants.

Whoa.

Do they bite or sting?

Let's find out.

They don't really do anything.

They run away.

Not a sting episode.

Will just called out to me that he found an abandoned

car that I need to check out.

I don't know what an abandoned car would be doing out here

on the side of this mountain.

Like, how did it even end up here?

Wow, that is-- what?

I would not be surprised if rattlesnakes

were using this old rusted car.

That's really interesting.

I mean, how did this get here?

They must have rolled it down the hill

and crashed it.

It'd be really creepy if we found a body in it.

Not that I can see.

Just some Bush Light.

Yeah.

Don't drink and drive.

Yeah, that's good message.

Let's see if we can lift this hood and give it a flip-a-roo.

I don't see any rattlesnakes.

No.

Worth a check, though.

This tire. Spin.

Yeah.

Fixed in place.

Creepy.

There's a ratsnake on top!

Oh my gosh, there is.

Oh my goodness!

In the abandoned car.

A new species.

New one? New one?

All right, what do you need me to do?

I might be able to-- here, here, here.

Let me get--

Take a look--

There we go.

Whoa!

New species. - Whoa!

Careful, careful.

It's slipping.

Yes!

How about that?

All right, Will, what do we got?

We've got a black rat snake, and this

is actually a small one.

Despite being a pretty decent-sized snake,

these guys are the largest snakes around here.

They can get almost eight feet long.

They eat birds, and they climb right up trees to nab squirrels.

This guy is in sheds, so his eyes are pretty blue.

Unbelievable. Awesome.

What would you say is the Holy grail

of snake species in this area?

I would say the green snake.

They're bright, bright green.

They look like nothing else from around here.

They're super tropical looking.

You'd never believe that they're right here in the Appalachians.

When it comes to garter snakes,

we found the mother lode.

A whole pile of stunning snakeys, right there.

These rocks are alive with snakes.

This is perfect conditions at the moment to find a number--

Whoa!

Geez.

Huge water snake.

Really, really big Northern water snake.

All right, here.

Let's, uh, let's-- yeah, I'm going to need at least you

to hold the hold the camera.

OK.

Wow, that's a big one.

Hopefully it does not decide to give me a chomp.

But this is a good size.

Wow.

Oh, they got a green over there.

They got a green! - What?

They got a green over there!

Man. Ow!

Oh.

OK, we're coming, we're coming!

Ho!

Wow, beautiful.

Amazing.

And that's one of the rare ones

for around here.

I was walking and sure enough just saw a little movement.

And reached down and got the little green snake.

Amazing.

That is the Holy grail.

Wow.

OK, well, all in one two-minute clip.

Huge Northern water snake and a smooth green snake here.

Let me give you this.

All right, let me see this guy.

Oh my goodness.

Wow.

This smooth green snake.

That is the ultimate right there.

Look at that.

Big snake, little snake.

Cute snake, seemingly dangerous snake,

but both completely harmless.

No way.

Marty just got another green snake.

How big is this one?

Oh my gosh.

And it's even tinier.

Oh my goodness.

Look at that little guy!

Wow.

Oh, that is gorgeous little green snake.

Will, we did it.

Two beautiful smooth green snakes.

Now what's your favorite thing about this reptile?

It's got to be the vibrance, hands down.

I mean, it's a bright green snake.

It looks like it came from the jungle.

But here we are in the Appalachians, and we've got it.

So this is one of my favorite snake species as a kid.

I used to always see them in my backyard.

But they're becoming more and more scarce.

And what is the reason for that?

Well you know, along with habitat destruction,

when people spray pesticides on their lawn, these guys

eat insects.

So if they eat insects that have pesticides on them,

well, you know what happens.

It's going to wipe out the snake.

So less pesticides means more smooth green snakes.

Will, an enormous thanks to you for taking us out today in some

of your favorite herping spots.

This was the ultimate snake scavenger hunt.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

I'm Will Robertson.

Be brave.

Stay wild.

We'll see you on the next adventure.

All right.

Smooth green snakes, back into the grass.

Getting up close with a coyote

is much more difficult than one might think.

Approaching coyotes in the wild is virtually impossible,

as these skittish canids will often flee at the first smell,

sound, or sight of humans.

So it wasn't till we teamed up with the Colorado Wolf

and Wildlife Center that this fateful meeting finally appeared

as if it was going to happen.

Renowned for their conservation efforts

specifically centered around wolves,

this location is also home to an adorable pair of red foxes.

I had some pretty good luck frolicking

around with Rhett and Scarlett.

We had some cheese, we played on the fox slide.

Rhett stood on my head and even stole my glove, which wasn't

exactly easy to get back.

I only have one glove.

And the odds of me being able to get that glove back

are not real good.

Uh-oh.

Uh-oh.

You see what's happening?

Rhett?

My--

Oh boy.

Rhett has taken my glove up and through the fox skyway.

COYOTE PETERSON What

we learned was that the foxes trusted me and the cameras

in their enclosure.

But I know gaining the trust of a coyote will be much more

difficult. So to help in making a friendly introduction,

I'll be working alongside Wolf Center's

founder and CEO, Darlene.

For the past 20 years, she has dedicated her life to rescuing

wolves and their cousins.

All while educating the public about the importance

of having these predators present

in their natural environment.

Now as I understand it, the coyotes are

very skittish though, correct?

They are.

Yes, they are.

But we'll give it our best shot.

OK, now in getting the coyote to come close, what's

going to be my best approach?

What's going to be the tactic?

So we're actually going to go in there

and you want to sort of be natural and just sort of maybe

talk to him a little bit.

His name is Wiley. - OK, Wiley.

That sounds about right.

Yes.

And they like for you to be more on their level.

So standing up is sort of a little bit intimidating to them.

And then I've got some power treats,

as I call them, to see if we can say, hey, this is an offering.

We just want to say hi to you.

All right, you lead the way. OK.

We're filming. Let's go.

Let's go.

For over a century,

coyotes have suffered an unbelievably bad

rap, portrayed as vicious killers

that pose a threat to mankind.

Yet this conviction couldn't be further from the truth.

My goal is to demonstrate how timid

these animals are, even one that has been practically

hand-raised by humans.

According to Darlene, I am one of the only outsiders

that has ever tried to interact with this coyote.

And physical contact by anyone other than Darlene

has never been achieved.

So it is completely possible that this animal will

want nothing to do with me.

So Darlene, what we were thinking

is maybe set up in this back snow area here.

Back over here? OK.

Back over here.

And I'm going to try to figure a good spot to place the cameras.

OK.

And we will see if the coyote will come down and hang out.

What I'm going to do is set up this camera.

He's in here?

Oh, he's in here.

He's in his little--

he's in his little thing there.

Oh. Wiley.

There he is.

That's his castle.

It's like Game of Thrones in there.

Yes.

Hey, buddy, I'm going to take off my sunglasses.

There he is.

There he is.

Hi.

Hi, Wiley.

There he is.

Good boy.

So that's his little coyote castle.

And what I'm going to do is set up the cameras over here.

It's going to take some time.

I'm going to have to be very patient.

But with any luck, he'll warm up to us and come out,

and we'll have this moment.

Mario and the crew

are setting up their cameras on an overlooking observation

porch.

Their presence in the enclosure will definitely be too

intimidating for the coyote.

Keeping the technology footprint small is important.

So I have a pair of GoPros that shouldn't seem too threatening.

I'll set those up next to me with the hope

that they will catch any up-close moments

with the coyote.

If I am simply able to get this animal to investigate

my presence, I will consider the encounter an incredible success.

Today is Coyote's big day.

He's going to meet a real coyote.

Myself and Matt, we're up here.

We've got this vantage point.

Coyote the animals are very skittish.

They're intelligent animals, and they've

survived for so long because of the fact

that they are so skittish and they could actually hide

from predators and from humans.

They actually are very good at living

on the peripheral of urban environments,

or actually even in urban environments.

But they're seldom seen.

They're just super secretive and elusive.

So right now, Darlene is trying to coax

Wiley out of his little castle.

You guys have to remember, the coyotes,

they're very smart animals.

So any time there's something different in a coyote's

environment, it's going to be very, very skittish.

So it's going to take some time, it's

going to take some patience.

But with any luck, I'm going to go face to face with one

of my adorable cousins.

There he is, good boy.

Very nice.

Good boy.

Hi, Wiley.

Good boy, buddy.

It's OK.

OK, Wiley is officially out of his castle at this point.

Just a few feet from me.

Hi, good morning.

He's getting comfortable.

There he is.

Good boy.

Here he comes.

He's right here.

There he is.

Look, here to say hi to you.

Good boy.

I'm going to actually put a bag of treats into my pocket

and see if Wiley will get a little more comfortable with us.

See this?

Little tiny meat treats.

Those are just little pieces of bologna right there.

A perfect treat for a coyote.

He's coming right up to me.

There you go, bud.

Look at that.

There you go.

Oh my gosh, you're right there.

That's so cool.

That's really good.

What a good coyote.

Hi, bud.

I'm just going to lay down like this.

Wiley.

Look, treats.

Oh!.

You see that?

He took it right out of my hand.

That's really good.

That's really good?

He doesn't do that for people

that he has never met before.

OK.

I'm feeling pretty good about this.

You need--

that's your relative right there.

OK.

Wiley.

This is amazing.

Only a few minutes in, and already, coyote

has eaten out of my hand.

Wiley.

Good boy.

Good boy.

Look at this.

Look.

There we go.

Very good.

OK.

What a good boy.

This is amazing.

Amazing.

I thought it was going to take so much longer

for him to get comfortable.

He must know that I'm one of his friendly cousins.

Look at the hesitation.

That timid pause in the seconds that

seem to last forever, as this creature

slowly lends me its trust.

Does this behavior scream bloodthirsty killer to you?

I didn't think so.

Next to wolves, there isn't a predator on our planet

that has been more aggressively driven toward annihilation

than the coyote.

It hurts my heart that humans choose to destroy

before they care to understand.

And whether you believe it or not,

our planet needs coyotes and the predator

versus prey balance they bring to the ecosystem.

This is amazing.

My first contact with a coyote.

I'm so thrilled right now.

So we came to Colorado in the winter

because we wanted to experience the wolves

and coyotes in their best coat.

So in the winter, they have their big fluffy coats.

And in order to prepare for this,

Coyote actually started to grow out his beard.

Actually, I did as well.

As of right now, Coyote's got his big beard

and he's got his big actual coat on that has some fake fur that

looks like Coyote.

So I think he's trying to not only think like a coyote,

but he's trying to actually look like one, too.

That is awesome.

That is me face to face, about as close as you're

going to get with a coyote.

Such a beautiful, beautiful creature.

That was awesome.

OK.

Well, Wiley has moved up and into the other enclosure.

I don't think it could have gone any better than that.

How did I do?

Oh my gosh, that was amazing.

Simply amazing.

You did fantastic.

Within the first five minutes, getting

Wiley to come up and actually take

a piece of cheese out of my hands

was beyond my expectations.

We spent about 20 minutes filming the scene.

We thought it may take hours.

But I think Wiley realized, hey, I'm a coyote, you're a coyote.

We should be buddies.

You've got little meat and cheese treats.

Let's hang out. - That's it.

I didn't even think that would happen,

so you must have some coyote blood in you.

Well, my namesake has come true.

I'm officially one with the coyotes.

Darlene, I cannot thank you for getting me up close

with one of these animals.

The audience has been waiting to see this for quite some time.

And I think at this point, we're ready to move on to wolves.

Let's move on to wolves.

I'm Coyote Peterson.

Be brave, stay wild.

We'll see you on the next adventure.