Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:40,917 --> 00:00:42,627
Australia -
2
00:00:42,752 --> 00:00:44,545
an island continent
3
00:00:44,670 --> 00:00:49,425
cast adrift
during the time of the dinosaurs.
4
00:01:09,570 --> 00:01:15,243
Isolated from the rest of life on land
for millions of years,
5
00:01:15,368 --> 00:01:21,499
the animals cast away here
are today like none elsewhere.
6
00:01:24,919 --> 00:01:28,547
This is a land of survivors.
7
00:01:57,201 --> 00:02:02,623
The jungles of northern Australia -
the oldest on our planet.
8
00:02:05,293 --> 00:02:09,672
Unchanged for 180 million years.
9
00:02:13,050 --> 00:02:16,846
The animals and plants here are armed...
10
00:02:19,515 --> 00:02:22,643
...built to live alongside dinosaurs.
11
00:02:25,980 --> 00:02:29,900
Now there is just one giant left.
12
00:02:34,780 --> 00:02:39,327
With claws longer than a velociraptor
and nearly two metres tall...
13
00:02:40,578 --> 00:02:43,831
...the cassowary rules this forest.
14
00:02:54,216 --> 00:02:57,553
But the key to its success
is not its stature...
15
00:03:01,474 --> 00:03:05,686
...it's the male's abilities as a parent.
16
00:03:08,064 --> 00:03:11,650
This one's chicks are six weeks old,
17
00:03:11,776 --> 00:03:15,237
and he will raise them by himself.
18
00:03:22,161 --> 00:03:24,622
Every morsel of food is valuable
19
00:03:24,747 --> 00:03:28,125
if his chicks are to grow up
tall and strong.
20
00:03:33,464 --> 00:03:35,383
But in this forest,
21
00:03:35,508 --> 00:03:38,636
most of the fruit
is too big for the chicks.
22
00:03:44,433 --> 00:03:46,185
It must be cut up for them.
23
00:03:57,988 --> 00:04:01,409
There is food to be gathered
throughout their territory...
24
00:04:02,785 --> 00:04:06,038
...but it's not easy to find.
25
00:04:14,171 --> 00:04:17,049
He shows them how to cross water.
26
00:04:19,593 --> 00:04:23,597
But when your legs
are only ten centimetres long,
27
00:04:23,722 --> 00:04:26,767
a stream like this is very deep.
28
00:04:31,897 --> 00:04:34,442
One takes the plunge...
29
00:04:37,153 --> 00:04:40,531
...but for the other,
this is too daunting.
30
00:04:45,286 --> 00:04:49,790
He turns and goes back the way he came.
31
00:04:51,083 --> 00:04:54,587
Out of sight and without
his father's protection,
32
00:04:54,712 --> 00:04:56,714
he's vulnerable.
33
00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:07,016
Only half of cassowary chicks
make it to adulthood...
34
00:05:08,350 --> 00:05:10,227
...and for very good reason.
35
00:05:16,150 --> 00:05:21,197
Australia's prehistoric forests
are still full of predators.
36
00:05:33,334 --> 00:05:35,669
Many manage to survive here
37
00:05:35,794 --> 00:05:40,382
by eating almost anything
that's smaller than they are.
38
00:05:41,759 --> 00:05:43,844
He needs to find his father...
39
00:05:43,969 --> 00:05:45,387
...and quickly.
40
00:06:03,614 --> 00:06:07,076
The male hears his cries and answers...
41
00:06:08,494 --> 00:06:14,291
...using a special call that carries well
through the thick forest.
42
00:06:23,092 --> 00:06:28,639
And then, a glimpse
of some reassuring, bright colours.
43
00:06:52,496 --> 00:06:55,791
Their bonds are stronger than their fears.
44
00:07:03,507 --> 00:07:08,637
The male will guide and protect his chicks
for another eight months
45
00:07:08,762 --> 00:07:10,514
before he mates again.
46
00:07:21,025 --> 00:07:26,739
Australia was once part of
the vast supercontinent of Gondwanaland...
47
00:07:26,864 --> 00:07:30,618
...covered in forest and full of life.
48
00:07:32,161 --> 00:07:34,246
Dinosaurs dominated.
49
00:07:34,371 --> 00:07:37,041
Mammals had only just appeared.
50
00:07:38,834 --> 00:07:42,379
Then, Australia began to break away.
51
00:07:43,881 --> 00:07:49,595
Cast adrift on this new island were
reptiles, birds and early mammals
52
00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:53,724
that then evolved in isolation
from the rest of the world.
53
00:07:54,975 --> 00:07:57,436
None could now leave this giant island,
54
00:07:57,561 --> 00:07:59,313
and very few could get here...
55
00:08:01,231 --> 00:08:02,816
...unless they could fly.
56
00:08:08,072 --> 00:08:10,240
A little red flying fox.
57
00:08:13,202 --> 00:08:16,372
Their ancestors flew here,
58
00:08:16,455 --> 00:08:19,124
travelling along the chain
of volcanic islands
59
00:08:19,249 --> 00:08:21,502
that links Asia to Australia.
60
00:08:24,797 --> 00:08:31,095
But their huge wings, which stretch
from their fingers to their toes,
61
00:08:31,220 --> 00:08:34,848
make it difficult for them
to walk or take off from the ground,
62
00:08:34,973 --> 00:08:41,021
so, when they want to rest,
they hang upside down in trees.
63
00:09:05,254 --> 00:09:08,882
But the bats have to drink every day.
64
00:09:11,468 --> 00:09:14,263
And they do so on the wing.
65
00:09:27,776 --> 00:09:30,237
They swoop just low enough
to wet their bellies
66
00:09:30,362 --> 00:09:34,241
and then, back in their roosts,
they will suck out the water.
67
00:09:42,374 --> 00:09:44,752
Each evening, 10,000 of them come here.
68
00:09:59,057 --> 00:10:01,643
Not all of them return.
69
00:10:03,562 --> 00:10:05,898
Every two metres of river, there is...
70
00:10:06,023 --> 00:10:07,858
...a crocodile.
71
00:10:11,320 --> 00:10:16,325
They were here long before the bats...
72
00:10:19,244 --> 00:10:24,166
...survivors from
Australia's prehistoric past.
73
00:11:00,077 --> 00:11:04,665
These dramas have been taking place
for millions of years...
74
00:11:09,002 --> 00:11:11,129
...aerial agility...
75
00:11:12,506 --> 00:11:13,632
...versus patience...
76
00:11:16,093 --> 00:11:17,261
...and deadly speed.
77
00:11:34,903 --> 00:11:41,368
Australia's forests are hostile places
in which to make your home.
78
00:11:49,459 --> 00:11:54,172
As you move inland,
the forest thins, the air cools
79
00:11:54,298 --> 00:11:58,427
and the land, as it gets higher,
changes dramatically.
80
00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:15,527
The Great Dividing Range,
2,000 metres above the jungle.
81
00:12:18,780 --> 00:12:23,952
To survive here, you must be able
to tolerate really harsh conditions.
82
00:12:38,383 --> 00:12:42,638
Kangaroos, like nearly all
of the continent's native mammals,
83
00:12:42,763 --> 00:12:44,348
are marsupials...
84
00:12:47,184 --> 00:12:51,730
...mammals that rear their young
usually in a pouch on the mother's belly.
85
00:12:55,484 --> 00:12:58,820
And the young up here
certainly need such shelter.
86
00:13:11,416 --> 00:13:15,796
No kangaroos can survive for long,
higher than this.
87
00:13:36,108 --> 00:13:39,736
But there is an even tougher marsupial
up here.
88
00:13:53,917 --> 00:13:55,544
A wombat.
89
00:13:55,669 --> 00:14:00,424
She usually shelters underground
in a burrow,
90
00:14:00,549 --> 00:14:04,553
but now that is under a metre of snow,
91
00:14:04,678 --> 00:14:06,972
together with all the grass
on which she lives.
92
00:14:08,015 --> 00:14:10,976
She weighs as much a big dog
93
00:14:11,101 --> 00:14:14,187
and has the legs of a small one -
94
00:14:14,312 --> 00:14:16,940
not ideal for deep snow.
95
00:14:24,406 --> 00:14:27,534
Fragments of bark hardly count
even as a snack...
96
00:14:29,453 --> 00:14:31,705
...and she's hungry.
97
00:14:40,547 --> 00:14:42,382
She needs grass.
98
00:14:51,266 --> 00:14:55,812
But it's over a mile away,
across a frozen river.
99
00:14:59,733 --> 00:15:03,028
Wombats might not be fast,
100
00:15:03,153 --> 00:15:04,738
but then they don't need to be up here.
101
00:15:05,989 --> 00:15:08,325
They can survive on next to nothing.
102
00:15:13,914 --> 00:15:17,959
A few mouthfuls will be enough food
for over a week.
103
00:15:21,421 --> 00:15:26,301
And there's not much competition for it
in this small corner of the continent.
104
00:15:34,226 --> 00:15:38,271
Snowy peaks are hardly typical
of Australia,
105
00:15:38,396 --> 00:15:42,484
but the Great Dividing Range is a remnant
106
00:15:42,609 --> 00:15:46,446
of what were once some of
the longest mountain chains on Earth.
107
00:15:49,199 --> 00:15:53,453
They connected Australia and Antarctica.
108
00:15:55,622 --> 00:15:59,376
But then these sister continents
broke apart.
109
00:15:59,501 --> 00:16:04,339
Antarctica, drifting southwards,
became locked in ice.
110
00:16:04,464 --> 00:16:08,468
Australia drifted northwards
towards the equator
111
00:16:08,593 --> 00:16:11,179
and became hotter and drier.
112
00:16:12,973 --> 00:16:15,517
Woodlands developed,
113
00:16:15,642 --> 00:16:18,895
and in places where rainfall was low -
114
00:16:19,020 --> 00:16:21,439
open grasslands.
115
00:16:26,778 --> 00:16:29,698
On these grassy plains,
116
00:16:29,823 --> 00:16:32,200
animals had the space to thrive.
117
00:16:35,287 --> 00:16:37,747
These are also eastern grey kangaroos,
118
00:16:37,873 --> 00:16:40,959
and this is their true home.
119
00:16:41,084 --> 00:16:43,378
Here, they are well fed and powerful.
120
00:16:45,088 --> 00:16:51,219
Adults can stand over two metres tall
and travel as fast as a racehorse.
121
00:16:59,561 --> 00:17:04,065
And on these open plains,
you need speed...
122
00:17:05,483 --> 00:17:10,155
...because where there are large herds,
there will be predators.
123
00:17:17,329 --> 00:17:20,498
Dingoes - descendants of wolves
that were brought here
124
00:17:20,624 --> 00:17:25,420
over 4,000 years ago
by human visitors from Asia.
125
00:17:29,799 --> 00:17:33,595
This pack is led by a white female...
126
00:17:34,971 --> 00:17:36,598
...and they are hunting.
127
00:18:00,497 --> 00:18:05,752
Creating panic tests the herd.
128
00:18:34,322 --> 00:18:37,367
Mothers with young in their pouches
might be slower...
129
00:18:40,662 --> 00:18:43,623
...but they can still outrun a dingo.
130
00:18:47,794 --> 00:18:50,088
Maybe an ambush will work.
131
00:18:58,430 --> 00:19:04,686
But even young, newly independent
kangaroos seem uncatchable.
132
00:19:11,693 --> 00:19:15,030
Across these open, flat plains,
133
00:19:15,155 --> 00:19:18,366
the dingoes are just not fast enough.
134
00:19:22,287 --> 00:19:25,874
But what makes the white female
their leader is her stamina
135
00:19:25,999 --> 00:19:29,669
and, particularly, her intelligence.
136
00:19:32,589 --> 00:19:37,093
She has run 18 miles today,
but she still doesn't give up.
137
00:19:39,679 --> 00:19:44,267
A different group of kangaroos,
this time on uneven ground.
138
00:19:47,687 --> 00:19:49,814
It's what she's been looking for.
139
00:19:57,030 --> 00:20:02,202
Driving them uphill,
she's struggling to keep up with them.
140
00:20:20,804 --> 00:20:25,433
And as they hurtle down the other side,
the kangaroos pick up speed.
141
00:20:27,977 --> 00:20:32,399
They will easily outpace her,
if they stay in control.
142
00:21:15,692 --> 00:21:20,155
The white dingo has more than one reason
to be so relentless.
143
00:21:24,367 --> 00:21:25,452
She's a mother.
144
00:21:30,540 --> 00:21:32,542
This is a rare sight.
145
00:21:33,835 --> 00:21:36,963
Dingo pups are hardly ever seen.
146
00:21:42,051 --> 00:21:44,512
With so much effort for just one meal,
147
00:21:44,637 --> 00:21:49,350
the open plains are tough places
on which to raise young.
148
00:21:56,107 --> 00:21:58,610
These are gumtrees.
149
00:21:59,861 --> 00:22:03,281
They have leaves
that are poisonous to most animals.
150
00:22:05,325 --> 00:22:07,285
But not the koala.
151
00:22:07,410 --> 00:22:09,496
They eat almost nothing else.
152
00:22:13,333 --> 00:22:16,044
There are echidnas in these forests, too -
153
00:22:16,169 --> 00:22:21,841
mammals that don't even have pouches
but lay eggs like reptiles.
154
00:22:29,307 --> 00:22:33,978
And there is an assassin here
that has only recently been discovered.
155
00:22:39,484 --> 00:22:42,028
A Jotus jumping spider.
156
00:22:44,072 --> 00:22:46,741
She's only five millimetres long,
157
00:22:46,866 --> 00:22:51,663
but nonetheless
she's a stealthy and ferocious hunter.
158
00:22:53,456 --> 00:22:56,709
She searches for prey
among the grass stems.
159
00:23:18,606 --> 00:23:21,859
She's single-minded
and focused on hunting.
160
00:23:29,158 --> 00:23:32,495
But today might be different.
161
00:23:36,874 --> 00:23:39,877
This is something new,
162
00:23:40,003 --> 00:23:42,589
something fast...
163
00:23:45,300 --> 00:23:47,260
...and a little trickier.
164
00:23:53,558 --> 00:23:55,476
But what is it?
165
00:23:55,602 --> 00:23:57,020
Is it food?
166
00:24:17,457 --> 00:24:22,086
It's a male Jotus, looking for a mate.
167
00:24:27,592 --> 00:24:31,638
He needs to catch her attention,
168
00:24:31,763 --> 00:24:35,933
but female Jotus only mate once.
169
00:24:36,059 --> 00:24:39,395
If she's mated before, she might kill him.
170
00:24:43,191 --> 00:24:45,902
He will need to seduce her with care.
171
00:24:49,989 --> 00:24:54,452
Waving his arms
makes his intentions clear.
172
00:24:54,577 --> 00:24:56,704
He's a friend, not food.
173
00:25:00,875 --> 00:25:03,336
No sign of an attack... yet.
174
00:25:09,342 --> 00:25:12,720
But she doesn't seem
particularly impressed.
175
00:25:17,350 --> 00:25:20,478
Time to try his best move...
176
00:25:22,021 --> 00:25:24,315
...the double paddle.
177
00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:26,859
That surely will do the trick.
178
00:25:46,003 --> 00:25:47,964
One final wave...
179
00:25:57,557 --> 00:25:59,225
...and he's tamed her.
180
00:25:59,350 --> 00:26:02,145
She stays still for just long enough.
181
00:26:22,999 --> 00:26:26,711
And then he retreats quickly,
before she has second thoughts.
182
00:26:44,020 --> 00:26:47,774
If you travel still further
towards the centre of Australia,
183
00:26:47,899 --> 00:26:51,110
the landscape changes yet again.
184
00:26:51,235 --> 00:26:54,822
Trees and grass disappear.
185
00:26:57,408 --> 00:27:01,621
The continent, throughout prehistory,
continued to drift north
186
00:27:01,746 --> 00:27:06,584
and as it entered the tropics,
it got hotter and hotter.
187
00:27:08,211 --> 00:27:12,215
Over thousands of years,
the grasslands of the centre dried
188
00:27:12,340 --> 00:27:14,801
and lakes and rivers turned dust.
189
00:27:17,428 --> 00:27:22,517
The rocks have been reduced to sand
by the hot, blasting winds.
190
00:27:24,977 --> 00:27:28,815
Now Australia's centre is one vast desert.
191
00:27:30,441 --> 00:27:33,861
Its immensity is almost impossible
to comprehend.
192
00:27:44,372 --> 00:27:48,376
This train running north
is a half a mile long.
193
00:27:52,129 --> 00:27:54,173
Travelling at nearly 50 miles an hour,
194
00:27:54,298 --> 00:27:58,010
it takes almost three days
to get from one side to another.
195
00:28:06,352 --> 00:28:12,692
Australia today is the driest
inhabited continent on Earth.
196
00:28:16,988 --> 00:28:21,284
Rain hardly ever falls in 70% of it.
197
00:28:25,037 --> 00:28:30,835
From space, the continent is seen
to be stained red by iron oxide -
198
00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:34,297
rust from its disintegrating rocks.
199
00:28:37,717 --> 00:28:44,140
In the surface are lines carved by winds
over millennia.
200
00:28:45,391 --> 00:28:49,395
The very bones of the continent
are now stripped bare...
201
00:28:51,981 --> 00:28:55,318
...the foundations of what once
were mountains.
202
00:29:07,955 --> 00:29:13,085
At its heart,
stands the great rock mountain of Uluru...
203
00:29:16,964 --> 00:29:22,511
...sacred to the first people
to arrive here 60,000 years ago.
204
00:29:48,579 --> 00:29:54,043
There is almost no soil here,
few plants, few animals
205
00:29:54,168 --> 00:29:56,337
and almost no permanent water.
206
00:29:58,965 --> 00:30:03,010
It's a place
where only the toughest can survive.
207
00:30:07,682 --> 00:30:10,643
This is the land of reptiles.
208
00:30:12,395 --> 00:30:16,440
Australia has more species of them
than any other continent.
209
00:30:17,984 --> 00:30:20,778
The perentie, two metres long,
210
00:30:20,903 --> 00:30:24,865
is the biggest here, and he's thirsty.
211
00:30:32,039 --> 00:30:35,251
It only rains here once or twice a year.
212
00:30:35,376 --> 00:30:38,462
And when there isn't any rain,
213
00:30:38,587 --> 00:30:42,717
perenties get their water
from eating lizards.
214
00:30:47,596 --> 00:30:51,058
There are several kinds to choose from...
215
00:30:54,895 --> 00:30:57,023
...bearded dragons...
216
00:31:00,317 --> 00:31:02,111
...blue-tongued skinks...
217
00:31:06,657 --> 00:31:07,950
...and thorny devils.
218
00:31:08,075 --> 00:31:10,244
All are on the menu.
219
00:31:13,664 --> 00:31:17,501
The thorny devil also gets its water
from its food.
220
00:31:23,841 --> 00:31:25,134
It's only the size of a mouse,
221
00:31:25,259 --> 00:31:31,557
but, even so, it must eat hundreds of ants
every day to get what it needs.
222
00:31:38,522 --> 00:31:44,528
Most storm clouds pass by
without releasing any water.
223
00:31:48,532 --> 00:31:50,868
But just sometimes,
224
00:31:50,993 --> 00:31:53,454
there's a brief shower.
225
00:32:18,104 --> 00:32:21,273
Everyone makes the most
of the opportunity.
226
00:32:29,990 --> 00:32:34,912
It's so hot the droplets will disappear
within minutes.
227
00:32:36,038 --> 00:32:38,457
But the thorny devil has a trick.
228
00:32:45,548 --> 00:32:46,841
He's found a tiny puddle,
229
00:32:46,966 --> 00:32:49,969
only a few millimetres deep,
230
00:32:50,094 --> 00:32:51,554
and he dips his toe into it.
231
00:33:04,483 --> 00:33:07,444
H is skin is like blotting paper.
232
00:33:13,534 --> 00:33:16,328
It collects moisture by capillary action,
233
00:33:16,453 --> 00:33:20,916
sucking it up along the inter-connecting
grooves until he glistens all over.
234
00:33:25,796 --> 00:33:27,089
When the water reaches his mouth,
235
00:33:27,214 --> 00:33:29,758
he can collect it...
236
00:33:29,884 --> 00:33:33,846
...while still keeping his head up,
on the lookout for danger.
237
00:33:37,725 --> 00:33:42,146
The perentie is 200 times the size
of a thorny devil...
238
00:33:42,271 --> 00:33:46,525
tiny puddles and droplets
are of no use to him.
239
00:33:49,445 --> 00:33:53,616
What he needs is a juicy lizard.
240
00:34:16,513 --> 00:34:21,185
That was a bearded dragon
that wasn't quite quick enough.
241
00:34:29,485 --> 00:34:34,323
Even the perentie sometimes
gets a chance to quench his thirst.
242
00:34:42,623 --> 00:34:48,462
There is one species that has truly
conquered the Australian desert.
243
00:34:51,048 --> 00:34:53,550
They don't wait for water to come to them.
244
00:34:53,676 --> 00:35:00,015
They sometimes travel over 300 miles
in a single day to find it.
245
00:35:01,642 --> 00:35:04,061
Australia's hardiest animal...
246
00:35:07,022 --> 00:35:08,983
...the wild budgerigar...
247
00:35:12,361 --> 00:35:16,323
...the most accomplished
of all desert nomads.
248
00:35:16,448 --> 00:35:19,451
These have been travelling together
for weeks...
249
00:35:21,161 --> 00:35:27,376
...and that has evidently caused
a few domestic arguments.
250
00:35:35,718 --> 00:35:40,264
This is truly an immense community.
251
00:35:40,389 --> 00:35:43,517
There are over 10,000 budgies
in this flock.
252
00:35:50,733 --> 00:35:53,944
Every one of them is thirsty.
253
00:36:01,869 --> 00:36:04,246
But although they've found
this billabong...
254
00:36:05,748 --> 00:36:07,833
...they must be wary.
255
00:36:10,878 --> 00:36:13,505
A hawk - and one that eats budgies.
256
00:36:20,596 --> 00:36:26,143
As long as it remains on the ground,
the budgies will risk taking a drink.
257
00:36:45,287 --> 00:36:50,626
Once it takes to the air, however,
the budgies are in danger.
258
00:36:53,837 --> 00:36:57,716
And it's not the only bird of prey here.
259
00:36:59,551 --> 00:37:04,348
The budgies have a simple
but very effective defence -
260
00:37:04,473 --> 00:37:06,975
they all take to the wing at once.
261
00:37:11,939 --> 00:37:15,442
An aerial hunter needs to lock on
to a single target for a few seconds
262
00:37:15,567 --> 00:37:16,902
if it is to catch it,
263
00:37:17,027 --> 00:37:20,114
but in this swirl, that's very hard to do.
264
00:37:30,791 --> 00:37:37,589
Flying in a flock keeps the budgies safe,
but they're still desperate to drink.
265
00:37:44,638 --> 00:37:49,351
As soon as a particularly brave one
takes the plunge, they all do.
266
00:37:55,858 --> 00:37:58,986
But once on the water,
they are easier to target.
267
00:38:05,284 --> 00:38:08,537
They must drink quickly
and stick together.
268
00:38:28,474 --> 00:38:33,270
The last ones to leave
will be the ones in most danger.
269
00:38:58,837 --> 00:39:04,051
Only one has been taken
from a flock of 10,000.
270
00:39:13,519 --> 00:39:15,979
In a few days,
they will leave the area,
271
00:39:16,104 --> 00:39:18,273
on their never-ending search
272
00:39:18,398 --> 00:39:22,027
for the next brief opportunity
to feed and drink.
273
00:39:40,337 --> 00:39:43,549
As the continent continued to drift north,
274
00:39:43,674 --> 00:39:47,177
it eventually entered warm, tropical seas.
275
00:39:50,055 --> 00:39:54,101
And here,
in the crystal-clear, sunlit water,
276
00:39:54,226 --> 00:39:56,520
just a metre or two beneath the surface,
277
00:39:56,645 --> 00:40:00,357
life proliferated.
278
00:40:03,652 --> 00:40:08,198
Coral grows into reefs
in these shallow seas.
279
00:40:10,826 --> 00:40:12,244
This is N ingaloo...
280
00:40:14,371 --> 00:40:18,333
...today one of the richest
anywhere in the world.
281
00:40:25,966 --> 00:40:30,679
Thousands of species of fish
and all kinds of other organisms
282
00:40:30,804 --> 00:40:33,807
thrive in these coral cities.
283
00:40:35,309 --> 00:40:40,606
And they have attracted
the most ancient of living predators.
284
00:40:48,155 --> 00:40:50,157
Sharks.
285
00:40:50,282 --> 00:40:56,163
They were around 200 million years
before the dinosaurs.
286
00:41:00,417 --> 00:41:02,169
They're fast and agile,
287
00:41:02,294 --> 00:41:06,006
well able to pick off
the small reef fish.
288
00:41:08,300 --> 00:41:13,055
But they come here for bigger rewards.
289
00:41:17,392 --> 00:41:20,437
These are fish from the open ocean,
290
00:41:20,562 --> 00:41:25,108
and every so often, for some reason,
they swim over the reef.
291
00:41:35,994 --> 00:41:40,957
The small fish swirl like the budgies,
and for the same reason.
292
00:41:41,083 --> 00:41:45,545
It makes it harder for a hunter
to single out a particular target.
293
00:41:51,635 --> 00:41:55,597
But, in fact, the sharks aren't trying
to catch them individually.
294
00:42:03,063 --> 00:42:07,317
They're driving them closer to the shore,
penning them against the beach.
295
00:42:12,155 --> 00:42:17,452
Slowly, the sharks drive
each new wave of fish into shallow water
296
00:42:17,577 --> 00:42:21,206
and the bait ball grows.
297
00:42:28,797 --> 00:42:33,510
More sharks arrive,
some from many miles away.
298
00:42:43,520 --> 00:42:46,189
And still the sharks don't attack.
299
00:42:47,899 --> 00:42:49,234
They're waiting...
300
00:42:49,359 --> 00:42:52,404
...for the right moment.
301
00:42:59,953 --> 00:43:04,082
Millions of fish are now trapped
in these shallow waters.
302
00:43:05,917 --> 00:43:09,463
It only happens like this
once in every decade or so.
303
00:43:16,344 --> 00:43:19,222
The time has come to strike.
304
00:43:32,527 --> 00:43:35,155
For the sharks, this is a bonanza.
305
00:43:37,365 --> 00:43:39,451
They work together.
306
00:43:40,869 --> 00:43:44,414
Each shark now fills its stomach.
307
00:43:51,004 --> 00:43:56,218
These shallow seas
are exceptionally rich in sharks.
308
00:43:58,553 --> 00:44:03,350
There are more species here
than anywhere else on Earth.
309
00:44:15,695 --> 00:44:20,617
Australia is not only fringed
by rich reefs
310
00:44:20,742 --> 00:44:26,373
but girdled with islands -
some big, some small.
311
00:44:32,796 --> 00:44:36,842
Off the south coast
lies by far the biggest of them.
312
00:44:37,968 --> 00:44:39,261
Tasmania.
313
00:44:43,265 --> 00:44:47,269
And that has its own special marsupial...
314
00:44:48,728 --> 00:44:53,233
...one that seldom appears
until after dark.
315
00:44:54,693 --> 00:44:57,153
The Tasmanian devil.
316
00:45:04,286 --> 00:45:08,373
Many predators inhabit
a territory packed with prey.
317
00:45:08,498 --> 00:45:11,376
But here,
there's nothing like that for them.
318
00:45:20,886 --> 00:45:24,681
Each may travel for miles
night after night,
319
00:45:24,806 --> 00:45:29,352
prepared to eat anything it can find,
dead or alive.
320
00:45:39,195 --> 00:45:42,073
The shoreline is a good place to search.
321
00:45:43,241 --> 00:45:46,870
There might be some small creatures
to catch here,
322
00:45:46,995 --> 00:45:49,706
or maybe something
that the tide has brought in.
323
00:46:00,592 --> 00:46:04,054
The carcass of a wallaby
has been washed ashore.
324
00:46:11,811 --> 00:46:17,609
Tasmanian devils can eat
40% of their body weight in one session,
325
00:46:17,734 --> 00:46:20,445
and they have hugely powerful jaws.
326
00:46:20,570 --> 00:46:23,281
They tackle everything - even bones.
327
00:46:28,745 --> 00:46:30,080
Back at the den,
328
00:46:30,205 --> 00:46:33,291
there are other hungry mouths.
329
00:46:39,965 --> 00:46:42,217
Her two youngsters are six months old.
330
00:46:44,761 --> 00:46:50,141
They still rely on their mother's milk,
but they're feeling peckish!
331
00:46:54,312 --> 00:46:57,774
There must be something solid
they could find for themselves,
332
00:46:57,899 --> 00:47:00,902
while they're waiting for a drink.
333
00:47:09,077 --> 00:47:10,662
Is this food?
334
00:47:17,168 --> 00:47:21,006
That possum smells tasty...
335
00:47:23,091 --> 00:47:25,677
...but it's a little high up.
336
00:47:28,138 --> 00:47:30,682
This looks more promising.
337
00:47:42,485 --> 00:47:45,071
At last, a giant stick!
338
00:47:47,032 --> 00:47:49,284
Not bad for a first go.
339
00:47:55,290 --> 00:47:59,961
Their mother will protect and feed
these youngsters for another three months.
340
00:48:01,796 --> 00:48:06,801
Their survival is important to her,
but also for us...
341
00:48:08,428 --> 00:48:12,766
...because these are one
of the last devil families in the world.
342
00:48:19,272 --> 00:48:22,317
Tasmanian devils are now endangered...
343
00:48:23,610 --> 00:48:25,361
...found in only a few places,
344
00:48:25,487 --> 00:48:30,283
such as this remote islet
off the coast of Tasmania.
345
00:48:36,831 --> 00:48:40,210
But they once lived
across the whole of Australia.
346
00:48:42,087 --> 00:48:44,923
Evidence that this was so
347
00:48:45,048 --> 00:48:50,011
can be seen nearly 2,500 miles away
from the devils' family den,
348
00:48:50,136 --> 00:48:54,140
on Australia's northern coast.
349
00:49:02,440 --> 00:49:04,943
This great stretch of boulders
350
00:49:05,068 --> 00:49:12,117
is covered by the largest concentration of
prehistoric images anywhere in the world.
351
00:49:18,081 --> 00:49:21,709
Over one million pictures of wildlife...
352
00:49:26,548 --> 00:49:27,715
...and among them...
353
00:49:29,634 --> 00:49:31,344
...a Tasmanian devil.
354
00:49:34,180 --> 00:49:39,018
It was engraved on stone
60,000 years ago
355
00:49:39,144 --> 00:49:43,314
by some of the first human beings
to reach the continent.
356
00:49:47,193 --> 00:49:49,863
Then, just 200 years ago,
357
00:49:49,988 --> 00:49:55,869
European settlers arrived
with guns and dogs, foxes and cats.
358
00:49:57,287 --> 00:50:01,291
Together, they decimated
Australia's unique wildlife.
359
00:50:07,672 --> 00:50:11,843
This was one of the continent's
biggest animal predators -
360
00:50:11,968 --> 00:50:14,929
a marsupial wolf or thylacine.
361
00:50:16,973 --> 00:50:21,936
The last-known remaining one
was filmed in 1936
362
00:50:22,061 --> 00:50:24,439
in a zoo just before it died...
363
00:50:25,982 --> 00:50:31,112
...and so brought the final extinction
of its species.
364
00:50:36,117 --> 00:50:40,371
These rocks are now its memorial.
365
00:50:44,292 --> 00:50:48,254
And they may become that
for the Tasmanian devil, as well.
366
00:50:50,006 --> 00:50:57,222
Mammals in Australia are disappearing
faster than anywhere else on Earth.
367
00:51:01,184 --> 00:51:06,439
They succeeded in adapting to life
as their home changed around them.
368
00:51:08,191 --> 00:51:11,527
But now they face
their greatest challenge -
369
00:51:11,653 --> 00:51:15,949
the change to their world
brought by humanity.
370
00:51:18,159 --> 00:51:22,288
Which of its unique species
will survive the coming decades
371
00:51:22,413 --> 00:51:24,707
now depends on us.
372
00:51:31,547 --> 00:51:36,302
Next time -
a world transformed by mankind...
373
00:51:36,427 --> 00:51:39,097
...where extraordinary animals
are found...
374
00:51:41,891 --> 00:51:44,727
...in surprising places.
375
00:51:52,944 --> 00:51:55,530
Europe.
30670
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.