All language subtitles for Titanoboa_-Monster-Snake_English-ELSUBTITLE.COM-29365938
Afrikaans
Albanian
Amharic
Arabic
Armenian
Azerbaijani
Basque
Belarusian
Bengali
Bosnian
Bulgarian
Catalan
Cebuano
Chichewa
Chinese (Simplified)
Chinese (Traditional)
Corsican
Croatian
Czech
Danish
Dutch
English
Esperanto
Estonian
Filipino
Finnish
French
Frisian
Galician
Georgian
German
Greek
Gujarati
Haitian Creole
Hausa
Hawaiian
Hebrew
Hindi
Hmong
Hungarian
Icelandic
Igbo
Indonesian
Irish
Italian
Japanese
Javanese
Kannada
Kazakh
Khmer
Korean
Kurdish (Kurmanji)
Kyrgyz
Lao
Latin
Latvian
Lithuanian
Luxembourgish
Macedonian
Malagasy
Malay
Malayalam
Maltese
Maori
Marathi
Mongolian
Myanmar (Burmese)
Nepali
Norwegian
Pashto
Persian
Polish
Portuguese
Punjabi
Romanian
Russian
Samoan
Scots Gaelic
Serbian
Sesotho
Shona
Sindhi
Sinhala
Slovak
Slovenian
Somali
Spanish
Sundanese
Swahili
Swedish
Tajik
Tamil
Telugu
Thai
Turkish
Ukrainian
Urdu
Uzbek
Vietnamese
Welsh
Xhosa
Yiddish
Yoruba
Zulu
Odia (Oriya)
Kinyarwanda
Turkmen
Tatar
Uyghur
Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:08,060 --> 00:00:12,560
Narrator: A lost world of
giants, 60 million years old.
2
00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:19,160
Ruled by a slithery monarch
of unbelievable size.
3
00:00:20,360 --> 00:00:24,127
It sounds like fantasy, but it's not.
4
00:00:25,860 --> 00:00:28,627
This world was once here.
5
00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:33,160
Among these seams of coal
lies the evidence.
6
00:00:33,194 --> 00:00:34,727
Man: This is
a once-in-a-lifetime discovery,
7
00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:37,227
really, this is just amazing.
8
00:00:37,260 --> 00:00:40,027
Narrator:
A treasure trove of fossils.
9
00:00:42,694 --> 00:00:45,827
One, a terrifying stealth killer,
10
00:00:45,860 --> 00:00:48,660
straight from our darkest nightmares.
11
00:00:48,694 --> 00:00:50,060
Man: You make a discovery
12
00:00:50,094 --> 00:00:52,260
and you know that
it's gonna be something
13
00:00:52,294 --> 00:00:54,627
that everyone knows about.
14
00:00:54,660 --> 00:00:57,160
Narrator: It's the biggest
of its kind ever to live.
15
00:00:57,194 --> 00:01:02,327
Man: We're absolutely ecstatic,
we were giddy schoolboys.
16
00:01:04,694 --> 00:01:09,127
Narrator: This mighty predator
dominated then disappeared.
17
00:01:12,060 --> 00:01:15,960
Now, science is bringing it back.
18
00:01:18,327 --> 00:01:19,327
Man: Wow.
19
00:01:20,694 --> 00:01:23,994
Narrator: This is Titanoboa.
20
00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:31,074
Advertise your product or brand here
contact www.OpenSubtitles.org today
21
00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:36,560
[Dinosaur roars]
22
00:01:36,594 --> 00:01:38,194
[Explosion]
23
00:01:39,594 --> 00:01:42,894
65 and a half million years ago,
24
00:01:42,927 --> 00:01:46,694
a giant meteorite hits the earth
near Mexico.
25
00:01:47,894 --> 00:01:51,860
The rule of the dinosaur is over.
26
00:01:54,227 --> 00:01:57,827
The next 10 million years is
one of the most mysterious times
27
00:01:57,860 --> 00:01:59,627
in earth's history,
28
00:01:59,660 --> 00:02:03,227
and in one part,
the South American tropics,
29
00:02:03,260 --> 00:02:05,827
the mystery is total.
30
00:02:05,860 --> 00:02:07,927
There is only silence,
31
00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:10,994
until something remarkable happens.
32
00:02:24,660 --> 00:02:26,927
This is Cerrejon.
33
00:02:29,660 --> 00:02:32,960
A grand canyon carved by vast machines,
34
00:02:32,994 --> 00:02:37,260
gouging out 35 million tons
of coal every year.
35
00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:44,860
A hole in the earth the size
of 8,000 football fields.
36
00:02:44,894 --> 00:02:48,027
But this mine is not just
spitting out coal,
37
00:02:48,060 --> 00:02:51,294
it's also an accidental time machine.
38
00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:56,027
Every layer is a slice
of earth's history.
39
00:02:57,660 --> 00:03:01,960
In December 2002, a sharp-eyed
Colombian geology student,
40
00:03:01,994 --> 00:03:06,094
Fabiany Herrera, spotted
something completely unexpected
41
00:03:06,127 --> 00:03:07,860
at the mine...
42
00:03:07,894 --> 00:03:10,627
A fossilized leaf.
43
00:03:10,660 --> 00:03:16,327
It was the first tiny step in an
unparalleled scientific quest.
44
00:03:16,360 --> 00:03:17,960
Over the coming decade,
45
00:03:17,994 --> 00:03:22,760
it would reveal a vanished world
and a lost time.
46
00:03:24,194 --> 00:03:27,927
Herrera showed the fossilized
leaf to his mentor,
47
00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:30,594
an expert in prehistoric plants.
48
00:03:31,927 --> 00:03:33,594
Carlos Jaramillo: He brought
the leaf back to the lab
49
00:03:33,627 --> 00:03:35,894
and I realized the amazing opportunity
50
00:03:35,927 --> 00:03:38,594
and potential that this mine had.
51
00:03:38,627 --> 00:03:40,994
Narrator: Carlos Jaramillo
eventually got permission
52
00:03:41,027 --> 00:03:44,860
for a team of scientists
to dig at Cerrejon.
53
00:03:44,894 --> 00:03:47,827
The results were extraordinary.
54
00:03:47,860 --> 00:03:52,127
The single leaf fossil was only
the first clue to the lost world
55
00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:55,160
that emerged after the dinosaurs.
56
00:03:55,194 --> 00:03:58,960
They found the very first bean plants
57
00:03:58,994 --> 00:04:02,360
and fossils showing an explosion
of plant families,
58
00:04:02,394 --> 00:04:04,360
like the banana,
59
00:04:04,394 --> 00:04:06,160
the palm,
60
00:04:06,194 --> 00:04:08,127
the avocado,
61
00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:10,627
and even chocolate.
62
00:04:10,660 --> 00:04:14,994
It all added up to a huge
and stunning discovery.
63
00:04:16,327 --> 00:04:19,694
Jaramillo: The coal itself
is a chunk of rainforest
64
00:04:19,727 --> 00:04:21,594
that is preserved back in time.
65
00:04:21,627 --> 00:04:22,860
Fabiany Herrera: We believe that
66
00:04:22,894 --> 00:04:23,894
this might represent
67
00:04:23,927 --> 00:04:25,360
the birth of modern rainforest
68
00:04:25,394 --> 00:04:26,560
in South America.
69
00:04:26,594 --> 00:04:31,294
Narrator: 60 million years ago,
this massive bowl of coal
70
00:04:31,327 --> 00:04:35,027
contained the first recorded
tropical rainforest.
71
00:04:36,727 --> 00:04:38,694
This is the new living earth
72
00:04:38,727 --> 00:04:43,327
that emerges after the meteorite
destroys the old.
73
00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:48,660
Amid the coal dust, it seems
almost impossible to imagine it.
74
00:04:50,127 --> 00:04:51,827
Jaramillo:
Today it's a very dry place,
75
00:04:51,860 --> 00:04:54,727
but 60 million years ago,
this was a tropical rainforest
76
00:04:54,760 --> 00:04:59,560
with tree birds meandering,
big trees and mist.
77
00:04:59,594 --> 00:05:00,960
Narrator: But this is much more
78
00:05:00,994 --> 00:05:03,360
than a story of trees and leaves.
79
00:05:03,394 --> 00:05:05,927
Jaramillo: We want to study
the whole ecosystem,
80
00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:09,260
the geology, the plants,
and the animals.
81
00:05:09,294 --> 00:05:10,627
Narrator: It is those animals
82
00:05:10,660 --> 00:05:13,160
that will capture
the world's imagination,
83
00:05:13,194 --> 00:05:17,894
identified from an amazing
variety of clues...
84
00:05:17,927 --> 00:05:22,127
Ribs, shells, and vertebrae,
or backbones.
85
00:05:23,660 --> 00:05:27,994
It will need a specialist in
animal fossils to decode them.
86
00:05:29,960 --> 00:05:34,627
In 2004, Jon Bloch, an expert
in fossil vertebrates
87
00:05:34,660 --> 00:05:37,594
traveled from the university
of Florida to Cerrejon
88
00:05:37,627 --> 00:05:39,227
for the first time.
89
00:05:40,694 --> 00:05:42,260
He was astonished.
90
00:05:42,294 --> 00:05:44,994
A whole new ancient world
of vertebrates,
91
00:05:45,027 --> 00:05:48,760
animals with backbones that
would dominate earth's future,
92
00:05:48,794 --> 00:05:50,160
was opening up.
93
00:05:51,660 --> 00:05:53,194
Jon Bloch: The most exciting
observation was that
94
00:05:53,227 --> 00:05:56,760
these were bones from
the tropics of South America,
95
00:05:56,794 --> 00:05:58,060
from that 10 million years
96
00:05:58,094 --> 00:06:00,094
following the extinction
of the dinosaurs.
97
00:06:00,127 --> 00:06:04,694
And why that was so exciting is
that we had no record whatsoever
98
00:06:04,727 --> 00:06:08,660
of vertebrates on land
during that time period.
99
00:06:08,694 --> 00:06:11,060
We just had no idea what was here.
100
00:06:11,094 --> 00:06:13,760
Narrator: Cerrejon was becoming
a laboratory
101
00:06:13,794 --> 00:06:16,960
for investigating
the lost tropical world.
102
00:06:18,394 --> 00:06:21,327
In 2005, Carlos Jaramillo joined
103
00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:24,827
the Smithsonian tropical
research institute.
104
00:06:24,860 --> 00:06:27,260
It was able to guarantee
this huge endeavor
105
00:06:27,294 --> 00:06:30,694
the long-term backing
it would now need.
106
00:06:30,727 --> 00:06:32,327
Jaramillo:
Every time we come here,
107
00:06:32,360 --> 00:06:35,227
we are mesmerized with
all the new things we found
108
00:06:35,260 --> 00:06:38,027
that we never expected.
109
00:06:38,060 --> 00:06:42,060
Narrator: Jon Bloch and his
colleagues begin their search.
110
00:06:42,094 --> 00:06:47,060
It is soon apparent that the
lost world teems with animals.
111
00:06:47,094 --> 00:06:48,794
Bloch: Initially,
when we started collecting,
112
00:06:48,827 --> 00:06:50,194
especially on this slope,
113
00:06:50,227 --> 00:06:51,194
there was so much bone
114
00:06:51,227 --> 00:06:53,927
that we picked up a lot
of things all at once,
115
00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:56,827
it was almost like a salvage
kind of operation.
116
00:06:56,860 --> 00:06:58,094
Narrator: It's also clear
117
00:06:58,127 --> 00:07:01,327
that two creatures particularly thrive.
118
00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,660
Bloch: This is a piece of
a very large turtle here,
119
00:07:04,694 --> 00:07:06,160
and then right next to it,
120
00:07:06,194 --> 00:07:09,227
there's a backbone of
a very large crocodile,
121
00:07:09,260 --> 00:07:11,027
beautifully preserved.
122
00:07:11,060 --> 00:07:14,194
Narrator: The sheer scale
of the fossils is amazing.
123
00:07:14,227 --> 00:07:17,794
Turtles with shells
the size of pool tables,
124
00:07:17,827 --> 00:07:21,894
snub nosed crocodiles as long as an SUV,
125
00:07:21,927 --> 00:07:24,560
and species never seen before.
126
00:07:24,594 --> 00:07:27,227
Bloch: We would pick up things
very quickly, wrap them up,
127
00:07:27,260 --> 00:07:30,927
so we could clean them back
at the lab and then study them.
128
00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:34,127
Narrator: The turtle
and crocodile fossils
129
00:07:34,160 --> 00:07:36,160
were temporarily loaned
to the research team
130
00:07:36,194 --> 00:07:39,027
by the Colombian geological survey.
131
00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:47,227
Then, one night at the lab
at the university of Florida,
132
00:07:47,260 --> 00:07:49,960
something strange begins to happen.
133
00:07:50,994 --> 00:07:52,860
Grad student Alex Hastings
134
00:07:52,894 --> 00:07:56,194
is sorting yet another box
of fossils from Cerrejon.
135
00:07:57,327 --> 00:07:58,927
Alex Hastings:
I received the fossils
136
00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:01,194
and was just unpacking them
late one night.
137
00:08:01,227 --> 00:08:04,727
All of these were
labeled "croc vert."
138
00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:07,827
I get out several crocodile vertebrae.
139
00:08:07,860 --> 00:08:09,927
A couple of vertebrae did not match,
140
00:08:09,960 --> 00:08:12,194
they were very, very distinct,
very large,
141
00:08:12,227 --> 00:08:14,927
and I didn't know
exactly what they were.
142
00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:16,327
Other than that I knew
143
00:08:16,360 --> 00:08:19,194
that they were definitely not
of crocodiles.
144
00:08:23,627 --> 00:08:25,994
Narrator: Another grad student,
Jason Bourne,
145
00:08:26,027 --> 00:08:30,127
a reptile specialist,
is also working late that night.
146
00:08:30,160 --> 00:08:31,594
Jason Bourne: So I was just
coming back from class
147
00:08:31,627 --> 00:08:33,094
and Alex was there,
148
00:08:33,127 --> 00:08:34,894
and he just had a couple of
things he wasn't sure about,
149
00:08:34,927 --> 00:08:37,794
and so he said, do you have
any ideas what this might be?
150
00:08:37,827 --> 00:08:39,127
And I picked it up
151
00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:40,694
and I just kind of stared at it
for a second.
152
00:08:40,727 --> 00:08:43,760
It was, you know, crushed pretty flat.
153
00:08:43,794 --> 00:08:45,294
My eyes got really wide
154
00:08:45,327 --> 00:08:48,794
and I was like, oh, this is
a, you know, giant snake.
155
00:08:51,027 --> 00:08:53,660
Hastings: Once we compared
that to modern snakes,
156
00:08:53,694 --> 00:08:54,960
it became incredibly clear
157
00:08:54,994 --> 00:08:57,627
that they were definitely
snake vertebrae,
158
00:08:57,660 --> 00:08:58,594
and we were able to figure out
159
00:08:58,627 --> 00:09:01,360
that we really had,
not only a large snake,
160
00:09:01,394 --> 00:09:06,194
but the largest snake that
has been known to science.
161
00:09:06,227 --> 00:09:08,694
Narrator:
It hardly seems possible.
162
00:09:08,727 --> 00:09:10,560
The vertebrae indicates a snake
163
00:09:10,594 --> 00:09:14,060
vastly bigger than any snake today.
164
00:09:14,094 --> 00:09:18,960
So big that it stretches
the entire length of the lab.
165
00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:22,860
Bourne: Probably this big.
166
00:09:22,894 --> 00:09:24,927
Hastings: That's probably
a bit smaller.
167
00:09:24,960 --> 00:09:27,627
We were absolutely ecstatic,
it was a very exciting moment,
168
00:09:27,660 --> 00:09:30,994
and for that evening, we were
the only people in the world
169
00:09:31,027 --> 00:09:32,627
that knew about it at the time.
170
00:09:32,660 --> 00:09:33,960
It wasn't until the next day
171
00:09:33,994 --> 00:09:35,794
we started bringing in
Jon and everybody else.
172
00:09:35,827 --> 00:09:38,694
So for one evening,
we're the only people that knew
173
00:09:38,727 --> 00:09:41,327
we had this enormous, massive snake,
174
00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:43,794
and we were very, very excited.
175
00:09:43,827 --> 00:09:45,227
Narrator:
Incredible though it is,
176
00:09:45,260 --> 00:09:48,027
it seems two grad students
have on their hands
177
00:09:48,060 --> 00:09:51,560
one of the biggest discoveries
of the century.
178
00:09:51,594 --> 00:09:54,327
It's like finding t-Rex.
179
00:09:54,360 --> 00:09:57,260
The next morning,
a third person, Jon Bloch,
180
00:09:57,294 --> 00:09:59,594
is let in on the secret.
181
00:09:59,627 --> 00:10:00,727
Bourne: I just couldn't wait
to get in the next day
182
00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:01,894
and tell Jon what happened.
183
00:10:01,927 --> 00:10:03,360
You know, I just remember saying,
184
00:10:03,394 --> 00:10:05,027
"do you know you have
the largest snake in the world?"
185
00:10:05,060 --> 00:10:07,027
And his face just kind of dropped,
186
00:10:07,060 --> 00:10:09,194
and, you know, he was just like,
"are you kidding me?"
187
00:10:09,227 --> 00:10:10,694
Bloch: I think, probably,
188
00:10:10,727 --> 00:10:12,960
my reaction was pretty similar
to the reaction
189
00:10:12,994 --> 00:10:16,094
that maybe my seven-year-old son
would have experienced.
190
00:10:16,127 --> 00:10:18,594
And just complete excitement and awe
191
00:10:18,627 --> 00:10:20,627
that such a huge snake exists.
192
00:10:20,660 --> 00:10:22,027
Narrator: It is a sublime moment
193
00:10:22,060 --> 00:10:24,894
that most scientists can only dream of.
194
00:10:24,927 --> 00:10:26,594
For a few precious hours,
195
00:10:26,627 --> 00:10:30,027
the two young students and
their teacher hold a secret
196
00:10:30,060 --> 00:10:33,894
that will open up a whole
new chapter in natural history.
197
00:10:35,727 --> 00:10:37,160
Bloch: During the course
of your career,
198
00:10:37,194 --> 00:10:39,560
you don't have a lot of moments
where you make a discovery,
199
00:10:39,594 --> 00:10:42,027
and you look at it, and you just
sort of get that feeling,
200
00:10:42,060 --> 00:10:44,860
you know that you're really
not gonna be the only person
201
00:10:44,894 --> 00:10:46,694
that knows about this thing,
202
00:10:46,727 --> 00:10:49,927
that it's gonna be something
that everyone knows about.
203
00:10:49,960 --> 00:10:51,927
Narrator: The extraordinary
night in the lab
204
00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:56,127
will propel Jon Bloch into
an age-old human obsession.
205
00:10:57,660 --> 00:11:01,827
Snakes have always been symbols
of threat and danger.
206
00:11:05,927 --> 00:11:08,260
From the serpent in the garden of eden,
207
00:11:08,294 --> 00:11:11,194
to the mythical dragon
snakes gave rise to,
208
00:11:11,227 --> 00:11:16,960
they are the beasts humans
must fight or be destroyed by.
209
00:11:16,994 --> 00:11:19,694
An animal that strikes awe and terror
210
00:11:19,727 --> 00:11:23,894
into cultures from ancient China
to the new world.
211
00:11:28,260 --> 00:11:32,327
There are frighteningly good
reasons for these fears.
212
00:11:32,360 --> 00:11:35,260
Around a million people are
bitten by venomous snakes
213
00:11:35,294 --> 00:11:36,694
each year.
214
00:11:36,727 --> 00:11:39,327
Up to 90,000 die.
215
00:11:39,360 --> 00:11:44,760
Tens of millions are gripped
by snake phobia.
216
00:11:44,794 --> 00:11:48,694
The giant discovered in
Cerrejon, though long extinct,
217
00:11:48,727 --> 00:11:53,594
will add an unimaginable
new dimension to snake lore.
218
00:11:53,627 --> 00:11:57,660
But the single vertebra
is only the start.
219
00:11:57,694 --> 00:12:00,194
The team's investigation
will take them away
220
00:12:00,227 --> 00:12:01,927
from the long dead,
221
00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:06,127
into the living world of large snakes.
222
00:12:06,160 --> 00:12:09,027
From there, they will enter
a time tunnel
223
00:12:09,060 --> 00:12:12,560
and confront a creature
unlike any other.
224
00:12:12,594 --> 00:12:16,894
The scourge of the lost
rainforests of South America.
225
00:12:16,927 --> 00:12:20,960
A predator squeezing the life
out of its victims.
226
00:12:22,027 --> 00:12:25,594
The snake to beat all snakes.
227
00:12:29,960 --> 00:12:33,560
Man: It tagged you good,
look at that, Jesus.
228
00:12:33,594 --> 00:12:35,594
Narrator: It was
the fossils unearthed
229
00:12:35,627 --> 00:12:37,627
in the vast coalmine of Cerrejon
230
00:12:37,660 --> 00:12:41,794
that opened up the lost world
of 60 million years ago.
231
00:12:41,827 --> 00:12:44,994
But these ancient bones
give only a glimpse
232
00:12:45,027 --> 00:12:47,594
of the creatures that live there.
233
00:12:47,627 --> 00:12:49,594
To see the past more clearly,
234
00:12:49,627 --> 00:12:53,894
the team turn their attention
to the animals of today.
235
00:12:57,194 --> 00:12:59,660
After the students'
discovery in the lab,
236
00:12:59,694 --> 00:13:02,060
the next stop for
the investigating scientists
237
00:13:02,094 --> 00:13:04,327
is the collection of
modern snake skeletons
238
00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:07,627
at the Florida museum
of natural history.
239
00:13:09,627 --> 00:13:12,994
Its biggest specimen
is from an anaconda,
240
00:13:13,027 --> 00:13:15,760
the heaviest snake living today.
241
00:13:17,060 --> 00:13:19,194
How will its backbone compare
242
00:13:19,227 --> 00:13:22,227
with the giant vertebra from Cerrejon?
243
00:13:23,994 --> 00:13:26,994
Bloch: We went and got a
skeleton of a 17-foot anaconda,
244
00:13:27,027 --> 00:13:29,794
which was the largest anaconda
that we had in our collections.
245
00:13:29,827 --> 00:13:32,060
That's a big snake.
246
00:13:32,094 --> 00:13:34,694
The largest piece of
the backbone of that snake,
247
00:13:34,727 --> 00:13:37,060
and it was about this big,
248
00:13:37,094 --> 00:13:39,894
compared to the vertebra
that we've just unwrapped,
249
00:13:39,927 --> 00:13:41,560
which was about this big.
250
00:13:41,594 --> 00:13:43,860
So, you know, I thought,
well, my goodness,
251
00:13:43,894 --> 00:13:47,860
if this is 17 feet,
then this thing must be 80 feet.
252
00:13:49,927 --> 00:13:51,094
Narrator: The team
is finding itself
253
00:13:51,127 --> 00:13:54,027
swept up in an enduring pursuit...
254
00:13:54,060 --> 00:13:57,260
The quest for the world's longest snake.
255
00:13:58,827 --> 00:14:02,694
One pioneer was the Victorian
explorer Percy Fawcett
256
00:14:02,727 --> 00:14:05,760
who claimed to have seen
a 60-foot-long anaconda
257
00:14:05,794 --> 00:14:08,727
in the South American rainforest.
258
00:14:08,760 --> 00:14:10,694
But he went missing in the forest
259
00:14:10,727 --> 00:14:13,560
before supplying any evidence
260
00:14:13,594 --> 00:14:16,027
and was never seen again.
261
00:14:16,060 --> 00:14:20,027
In 1912, the former U.S.
President Theodore Roosevelt
262
00:14:20,060 --> 00:14:23,694
offered a prize at the Bronx zoo
of $1,000
263
00:14:23,727 --> 00:14:25,660
to anyone who could produce a snake
264
00:14:25,694 --> 00:14:28,060
of more than 30 feet in length.
265
00:14:29,727 --> 00:14:32,327
Explorers and collectors
scoured the globe,
266
00:14:32,360 --> 00:14:34,227
from Peru to the Congo.
267
00:14:34,260 --> 00:14:38,794
But a 30-foot snake remained
tantalizingly elusive.
268
00:14:40,060 --> 00:14:43,127
A species from Asia,
the reticulated python,
269
00:14:43,160 --> 00:14:44,660
has come the closest,
270
00:14:44,694 --> 00:14:49,127
measuring up to a staggering
28 and a half feet.
271
00:14:49,160 --> 00:14:51,894
But not one snake has yet
been brought forward
272
00:14:51,927 --> 00:14:55,560
that can claim Roosevelt's
century-old prize.
273
00:14:59,794 --> 00:15:02,294
Zoos across the world
remain on the lookout
274
00:15:02,327 --> 00:15:04,960
for the longest snake.
275
00:15:04,994 --> 00:15:08,594
One of the oldest is the
zoological society of London,
276
00:15:08,627 --> 00:15:12,127
where Ian Stephen is
the resident snake expert.
277
00:15:13,660 --> 00:15:15,827
Ian Stephen: Whether it's
the biggest dinosaur on earth,
278
00:15:15,860 --> 00:15:17,360
you know, the blue whale,
279
00:15:17,394 --> 00:15:20,627
people are always fascinated
by big animals.
280
00:15:20,660 --> 00:15:23,694
It's almost every
reptile curator's dream,
281
00:15:23,727 --> 00:15:25,794
I think, sort of secretly
282
00:15:25,827 --> 00:15:29,794
to have the biggest snake in the world.
283
00:15:29,827 --> 00:15:31,894
Narrator: But the size
of these modern snakes
284
00:15:31,927 --> 00:15:33,160
is nothing compared with that
285
00:15:33,194 --> 00:15:36,560
suggested by the find at Cerrejon.
286
00:15:42,827 --> 00:15:45,994
After the discovery
of the giant vertebra,
287
00:15:46,027 --> 00:15:50,660
Jon Bloch contacted Jason head,
an expert on extinct snakes,
288
00:15:50,694 --> 00:15:52,760
at the university of Nebraska.
289
00:15:52,794 --> 00:15:55,660
Bloch: We were unwrapping fossils
from Cerrejon this morning,
290
00:15:55,694 --> 00:15:56,660
we found something really incredible
291
00:15:56,694 --> 00:15:58,160
that I wanted to show you.
292
00:15:58,194 --> 00:16:00,894
Narrator: By now, more and more
huge vertebrae
293
00:16:00,927 --> 00:16:03,560
were being unearthed at Cerrejon.
294
00:16:03,594 --> 00:16:06,694
Jon began by showing
one of the smaller examples.
295
00:16:06,727 --> 00:16:09,760
Bloch: I think it's
a snake fossil, but it's big.
296
00:16:09,794 --> 00:16:11,360
Yeah, sure.
297
00:16:11,394 --> 00:16:15,827
Narrator: Jason still vividly
remembers that video conference.
298
00:16:15,860 --> 00:16:17,894
Jason head: Jon's students
had actually realized
299
00:16:17,927 --> 00:16:19,927
that they had a very large snake fossil.
300
00:16:19,960 --> 00:16:21,927
And Jon brought it to the video camera,
301
00:16:21,960 --> 00:16:23,694
and he held it up and said,
302
00:16:23,727 --> 00:16:26,594
"look at this, I think this must
be the world's biggest snake."
303
00:16:26,627 --> 00:16:28,694
That's definitely a snake,
304
00:16:28,727 --> 00:16:31,594
and that specimen is about
the same size as Gigantophis,
305
00:16:31,627 --> 00:16:35,227
so that's the same size
as the largest known snake.
306
00:16:35,260 --> 00:16:38,794
Narrator: Gigantophis, which
Jason had recently measured,
307
00:16:38,827 --> 00:16:43,327
was the largest snake so far
known to have lived on earth.
308
00:16:43,360 --> 00:16:45,127
36 million years ago,
309
00:16:45,160 --> 00:16:48,294
it preyed on primitive elephants
in the swamps of Egypt
310
00:16:48,327 --> 00:16:52,194
and measured a colossal 33 feet.
311
00:16:52,227 --> 00:16:56,560
Jason's world record holder
was now under challenge.
312
00:16:56,594 --> 00:16:58,627
Head: The vertebra he showed me
was about the same size,
313
00:16:58,660 --> 00:17:00,160
and I was kind of, you know,
314
00:17:00,194 --> 00:17:03,994
it's big, but maybe it's not that big.
315
00:17:04,027 --> 00:17:05,794
Bloch:
Okay, yeah, we have others.
316
00:17:05,827 --> 00:17:07,560
I mean, he was impressed,
it was a big snake,
317
00:17:07,594 --> 00:17:10,227
but he wasn't really
taken aback, he'd seen bigger.
318
00:17:10,260 --> 00:17:13,094
So, at that point, I felt like
I hadn't really given him
319
00:17:13,127 --> 00:17:14,594
the correct impression.
320
00:17:14,627 --> 00:17:16,760
Narrator: Jon had a larger
vertebra from Cerrejon
321
00:17:16,794 --> 00:17:18,594
up his sleeve.
322
00:17:18,627 --> 00:17:20,794
Head: And he said, "well,
hold on, I'll be right back."
323
00:17:20,827 --> 00:17:22,094
Bloch: So I went running
out of the room
324
00:17:22,127 --> 00:17:23,694
and grabbed the biggest one I could find
325
00:17:23,727 --> 00:17:24,927
that we had unwrapped.
326
00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:28,294
Head: He came back
with a much bigger vertebra.
327
00:17:28,327 --> 00:17:30,660
Bloch: This is bigger.
328
00:17:30,694 --> 00:17:34,227
Head: Seeing him holding this,
very excited, in his hand.
329
00:17:34,260 --> 00:17:36,894
That is the world's largest snake, Jon.
330
00:17:36,927 --> 00:17:38,227
I was absolutely surprised.
331
00:17:38,260 --> 00:17:40,894
That's the largest snake I've ever seen.
332
00:17:40,927 --> 00:17:43,260
That's got to be the largest
snake in the world, Jon.
333
00:17:43,294 --> 00:17:45,327
If you would have told me that
there were snakes that big
334
00:17:45,360 --> 00:17:47,760
in the fossil record, I probably
wouldn't have believed you.
335
00:17:47,794 --> 00:17:49,760
Bloch:
That was impressive enough.
336
00:17:49,794 --> 00:17:52,594
He said, "Jon, look at
your office door."
337
00:17:52,627 --> 00:17:54,127
And I looked over to the office door,
338
00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:57,327
and he said, "if that snake were
to come into your office,
339
00:17:57,360 --> 00:17:59,860
it would have to squeeze
through the doorway
340
00:17:59,894 --> 00:18:02,060
as it was slithering in."
341
00:18:02,094 --> 00:18:06,660
And that was enough to set
the impression completely.
342
00:18:06,694 --> 00:18:08,094
Narrator:
By the end of the call,
343
00:18:08,127 --> 00:18:12,294
Jason head was convinced
Jon had found something special.
344
00:18:12,327 --> 00:18:14,927
Head: Most of the other
fossil snakes we find
345
00:18:14,960 --> 00:18:17,660
are kind of in the vicinity
of the largest estimates
346
00:18:17,694 --> 00:18:19,094
of the biggest giant snakes today,
347
00:18:19,127 --> 00:18:22,560
which has kind of suggested,
at least to me, previously,
348
00:18:22,594 --> 00:18:25,794
that maybe that was roughly the
maximum size snakes could get,
349
00:18:25,827 --> 00:18:27,960
either physiologically or ecologically.
350
00:18:27,994 --> 00:18:30,194
I'm getting a flight ticket and
heading down there right now.
351
00:18:30,227 --> 00:18:31,227
Bloch: Okay.
352
00:18:36,594 --> 00:18:38,060
Narrator: At the Florida lab,
353
00:18:38,094 --> 00:18:39,994
Jason's first line of investigation
354
00:18:40,027 --> 00:18:43,060
is into the kind of snake this is.
355
00:18:44,627 --> 00:18:46,927
Is it related to a type already known,
356
00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,660
or something completely new?
357
00:18:50,694 --> 00:18:52,127
With only vertebrae to go on,
358
00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:57,694
this is a complex task
requiring an expert eye.
359
00:18:57,727 --> 00:18:58,760
Head: In the case of snakes,
360
00:18:58,794 --> 00:19:00,027
figuring out who's related to who
361
00:19:00,060 --> 00:19:02,127
would be easy if we had complete skulls.
362
00:19:02,160 --> 00:19:03,694
But most of the fossil record of snakes
363
00:19:03,727 --> 00:19:06,060
consist of isolated backbones.
364
00:19:06,094 --> 00:19:08,660
Narrator: But snake skulls
are extremely fragile
365
00:19:08,694 --> 00:19:10,827
and hard to find.
366
00:19:10,860 --> 00:19:12,827
So Jason has to begin a process
367
00:19:12,860 --> 00:19:15,960
of comparing these isolated backbones
368
00:19:15,994 --> 00:19:19,127
with a huge range of snakes
in his database,
369
00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:22,327
both living and dead.
370
00:19:22,360 --> 00:19:24,560
Head: In order to figure out
who this animal's related to
371
00:19:24,594 --> 00:19:27,694
and who it was, what we need
to do is make comparisons
372
00:19:27,727 --> 00:19:29,760
between subtle changes in the anatomy,
373
00:19:29,794 --> 00:19:33,094
between this animal and
other living and fossil snakes.
374
00:19:34,594 --> 00:19:37,227
Narrator: All snakes have
one thing in common...
375
00:19:37,260 --> 00:19:39,927
They are a type of lizard
that lost their legs
376
00:19:39,960 --> 00:19:42,327
as they developed elongated bodies.
377
00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:46,560
They may look similar
to the untrained eye,
378
00:19:46,594 --> 00:19:50,260
but their evolution is highly varied.
379
00:19:50,294 --> 00:19:53,794
Head: Somewhere about
100 million years ago or so,
380
00:19:53,827 --> 00:19:56,227
snakes evolved this elongate, limbless,
381
00:19:56,260 --> 00:19:58,194
or limb-reduced body plan.
382
00:19:58,227 --> 00:20:01,060
And in that body plan or that body form,
383
00:20:01,094 --> 00:20:02,694
they immediately started inhabiting
384
00:20:02,727 --> 00:20:03,994
different environments.
385
00:20:04,027 --> 00:20:06,127
They were burrowers, they were swimmers,
386
00:20:06,160 --> 00:20:08,894
and the body itself,
the actual vertebral column
387
00:20:08,927 --> 00:20:10,627
and the ribs and that muscular system,
388
00:20:10,660 --> 00:20:12,694
that becomes the method of locomotion,
389
00:20:12,727 --> 00:20:14,760
that becomes their
means of moving around,
390
00:20:14,794 --> 00:20:17,160
that snakelike motion that you see.
391
00:20:17,194 --> 00:20:19,594
Stephen: It seems almost
counterintuitive
392
00:20:19,627 --> 00:20:21,227
that an animal should lose its limbs.
393
00:20:21,260 --> 00:20:23,227
And yet the snakes
are still with us today
394
00:20:23,260 --> 00:20:26,694
and are actually one of the most
successful groups of vertebrates
395
00:20:26,727 --> 00:20:28,560
on the planet.
396
00:20:28,594 --> 00:20:33,660
Narrator: Over their 100 million
years, snakes have diversified.
397
00:20:33,694 --> 00:20:36,627
Some families have developed
super-toxic venom
398
00:20:36,660 --> 00:20:42,127
with specialized fangs, like
cobras, vipers and rattlesnakes.
399
00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:44,060
Others don't use venom at all,
400
00:20:44,094 --> 00:20:47,294
but kill by crushing the life
out of their prey...
401
00:20:47,327 --> 00:20:48,927
The constrictors.
402
00:20:50,927 --> 00:20:53,894
From his initial comparison
of the Cerrejon vertebra
403
00:20:53,927 --> 00:20:56,360
with the backbones of modern snakes,
404
00:20:56,394 --> 00:21:00,794
Jason soon concludes that it is
similar to boas and pythons,
405
00:21:00,827 --> 00:21:03,294
both constrictors.
406
00:21:03,327 --> 00:21:04,660
Head: The group of snakes
that it belongs to
407
00:21:04,694 --> 00:21:06,294
are absolutely not venomous.
408
00:21:06,327 --> 00:21:08,127
They, of course, acquire their
prey in a very different way,
409
00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:10,760
and that's the kind of iconic
constricting behavior
410
00:21:10,794 --> 00:21:13,160
that everyone thinks about
when they think about boas
411
00:21:13,194 --> 00:21:16,127
and pythons and anacondas
and things like that.
412
00:21:16,160 --> 00:21:18,227
Narrator: To advance
their investigation,
413
00:21:18,260 --> 00:21:19,227
the scientists must enter
414
00:21:19,260 --> 00:21:22,260
the extraordinary and
highly successful world
415
00:21:22,294 --> 00:21:24,627
of the big constrictors.
416
00:21:24,660 --> 00:21:29,627
How do they hunt, kill,
breed, and adapt?
417
00:21:29,660 --> 00:21:32,694
There's one surprising place
to find out,
418
00:21:32,727 --> 00:21:35,027
just 500 Miles from the lab.
419
00:21:40,227 --> 00:21:42,827
Jon Bloch heads for
the Florida everglades,
420
00:21:42,860 --> 00:21:46,694
now home to one of the biggest
snakes in the world.
421
00:21:46,727 --> 00:21:49,694
It can grow to over 20 feet in length,
422
00:21:49,727 --> 00:21:52,227
and it's not native to Florida.
423
00:21:52,260 --> 00:21:55,694
It's the Burmese python.
424
00:21:55,727 --> 00:21:59,660
Jon's guide is a local
reptile expert, Shawn Heflick.
425
00:22:11,827 --> 00:22:15,094
Before they go hunting,
Jon shows Shawn the vertebra
426
00:22:15,127 --> 00:22:17,660
from the giant snake from Cerrejon.
427
00:22:17,694 --> 00:22:18,760
Bloch: We've got a snake
for comparison.
428
00:22:18,794 --> 00:22:20,660
Shawn Heflick:
Uh-oh, you got goodies?
429
00:22:20,694 --> 00:22:22,860
Bloch: Yeah.
430
00:22:22,894 --> 00:22:27,994
What we've got here is
the cast of the original bone.
431
00:22:28,027 --> 00:22:29,360
This is one of the vertebra.
432
00:22:29,394 --> 00:22:30,294
Heflick: Wait a minute, what?
433
00:22:30,327 --> 00:22:31,794
Bloch: Yeah.
434
00:22:31,827 --> 00:22:34,360
So this is a vertebra,
so one piece of the backbone.
435
00:22:34,394 --> 00:22:35,927
Heflick: Get out of here.
436
00:22:35,960 --> 00:22:37,627
Wow.
437
00:22:37,660 --> 00:22:39,227
That is impressive.
438
00:22:40,694 --> 00:22:42,760
This is a modern-sized
whale vertebra.
439
00:22:42,794 --> 00:22:44,560
That's insane.
440
00:22:44,594 --> 00:22:47,727
Bloch: And this isn't even the
largest bone that we've found.
441
00:22:47,760 --> 00:22:49,194
Heflick: I'm almost speechless,
442
00:22:49,227 --> 00:22:54,727
because that is truly
a monstrosity among snakes.
443
00:22:54,760 --> 00:23:00,760
It's hard for me to conceive
an animal of that mass and size
444
00:23:00,794 --> 00:23:02,894
having lived on this planet.
445
00:23:12,160 --> 00:23:13,960
Narrator: The snakes
in today's everglades
446
00:23:13,994 --> 00:23:18,127
may be 60 million years away
from the lost world of Cerrejon,
447
00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:21,894
but now, as then,
they're certainly thriving.
448
00:23:24,860 --> 00:23:26,994
Heflick: Seen a lot of pythons
in this area right here,
449
00:23:27,027 --> 00:23:28,360
it's got everything they need...
450
00:23:28,394 --> 00:23:32,094
A lot of cover, access to water,
a lot of prey.
451
00:23:40,860 --> 00:23:43,360
Narrator: But there's
a curious twist.
452
00:23:43,394 --> 00:23:44,994
The Burmese python belongs
453
00:23:45,027 --> 00:23:47,860
in the rainforests of southeast Asia.
454
00:23:47,894 --> 00:23:50,127
It shouldn't be here at all.
455
00:23:53,694 --> 00:23:57,660
In 1992, hurricane Andrew hit Florida.
456
00:23:59,360 --> 00:24:02,060
Among its casualties was
an animal warehouse
457
00:24:02,094 --> 00:24:04,594
containing hundreds of Burmese pythons,
458
00:24:04,627 --> 00:24:06,694
destined for the pet trade.
459
00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:11,227
Around 900 escaped.
460
00:24:11,260 --> 00:24:14,627
They flourished in
the hot, humid conditions,
461
00:24:14,660 --> 00:24:17,727
devouring everything in their path.
462
00:24:19,127 --> 00:24:20,827
Over the past 19 years,
463
00:24:20,860 --> 00:24:22,994
the number of pythons on the loose
464
00:24:23,027 --> 00:24:26,060
is thought to have risen to 10,000.
465
00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:32,560
Shawn Heflick is licensed by the
state of Florida to catch them,
466
00:24:32,594 --> 00:24:35,994
in an effort to keep
the population under control.
467
00:24:37,794 --> 00:24:40,627
Nothing is safe from
these rampant pythons...
468
00:24:40,660 --> 00:24:44,527
Birds, mammals, reptiles
are all easy victims.
469
00:24:45,994 --> 00:24:50,927
Even the top predators, the
alligators, are potential prey.
470
00:24:56,094 --> 00:24:58,160
It may be a long distant echo
471
00:24:58,194 --> 00:25:02,094
of how Jon's giant snake
once terrorized Cerrejon.
472
00:25:03,627 --> 00:25:05,660
There are other snakes here, too,
473
00:25:05,694 --> 00:25:08,827
like the eastern diamondback,
a venomous rattlesnake.
474
00:25:10,594 --> 00:25:14,227
Heflick: Be aware, you're in eastern
diamondback territory as well.
475
00:25:14,260 --> 00:25:15,527
Bloch: Okay.
476
00:25:16,927 --> 00:25:18,827
Heflick: We've got some
saw grass here, so watch...
477
00:25:18,860 --> 00:25:20,260
Bloch: I see that.
478
00:25:20,294 --> 00:25:23,060
Heflick: ...Watch your face
as you pile through.
479
00:25:23,094 --> 00:25:26,694
See, there's a lot of
really good cover in here.
480
00:25:26,727 --> 00:25:29,160
They're so hard to spot.
481
00:25:29,194 --> 00:25:32,560
Narrator: Snakes are the snipers
of the animal world.
482
00:25:33,660 --> 00:25:37,194
First, find a good place for an ambush.
483
00:25:38,694 --> 00:25:41,694
Modern or ancient, small or giant,
484
00:25:41,727 --> 00:25:44,127
every snake needs somewhere to hide.
485
00:25:44,160 --> 00:25:45,994
Bloch: Every once in a while
I hear a little scurrying,
486
00:25:46,027 --> 00:25:47,227
but I'm assuming those are just rodents.
487
00:25:47,260 --> 00:25:48,694
Heflick: Yeah, a lot of rodents
in here,
488
00:25:48,727 --> 00:25:51,927
all these rock piles and all this cover.
489
00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:54,560
There could be a 16-foot Burm
right there,
490
00:25:54,594 --> 00:25:56,794
unless it moves or you just
happen to, you know,
491
00:25:56,827 --> 00:25:58,927
catch a little piece of it,
492
00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:00,660
you'd never know it was there.
493
00:26:00,694 --> 00:26:01,860
Bloch: Sure.
494
00:26:01,894 --> 00:26:04,694
Heflick:
It's a needle in the haystack.
495
00:26:04,727 --> 00:26:06,360
Narrator:
Camouflage and concealment
496
00:26:06,394 --> 00:26:09,560
are part of the snake's arsenal.
497
00:26:09,594 --> 00:26:11,594
Their prey may move faster,
498
00:26:11,627 --> 00:26:16,727
so they must catch it by the
speed of their initial strike.
499
00:26:16,760 --> 00:26:18,894
Heflick: Jon, look over here.
500
00:26:18,927 --> 00:26:21,627
Bloch:
Yeah, that's python, no doubt.
501
00:26:21,660 --> 00:26:23,694
Heflick: Over there.
502
00:26:23,727 --> 00:26:25,594
That's a good sized snake.
503
00:26:25,627 --> 00:26:28,027
Bloch: This is not the whole thing,
but it's definitely a snake.
504
00:26:28,060 --> 00:26:29,260
That's got me excited now.
505
00:26:29,294 --> 00:26:31,627
Heflick: Oh, now you believe me
that there are pythons here.
506
00:26:31,660 --> 00:26:33,627
Bloch: They're here. Okay.
507
00:26:33,660 --> 00:26:34,994
Heflick:
See if we can find a live one.
508
00:26:35,027 --> 00:26:36,294
Bloch: Alright.
509
00:26:36,327 --> 00:26:37,860
Heflick: I see, there's
the fossil hunter in you,
510
00:26:37,894 --> 00:26:39,694
you're still looking for...
511
00:26:39,727 --> 00:26:41,660
Bloch: Yeah, this is the kind of
thing I'm used to looking for.
512
00:26:41,694 --> 00:26:43,927
Heflick: You're still looking
for the dead stuff.
513
00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:46,294
I can appreciate that.
514
00:26:46,327 --> 00:26:47,927
Narrator: Like a modern snake,
515
00:26:47,960 --> 00:26:51,660
the Cerrejon monster's forked
tongue is a crucial organ,
516
00:26:51,694 --> 00:26:54,360
sensing the world around it.
517
00:26:54,394 --> 00:26:57,360
The fork in the tongue makes
its surface area bigger
518
00:26:57,394 --> 00:26:59,294
and more sensitive.
519
00:26:59,327 --> 00:27:02,360
It may help snakes to detect
the direction of prey
520
00:27:02,394 --> 00:27:04,094
and other items of interest,
521
00:27:04,127 --> 00:27:08,960
all the while staying hidden
in the undergrowth.
522
00:27:11,194 --> 00:27:13,194
Bloch: Oh, something?
523
00:27:13,227 --> 00:27:14,660
Heflick: Like I say,
524
00:27:14,694 --> 00:27:17,794
you'd almost have to step on it,
you know.
525
00:27:17,827 --> 00:27:19,227
Bloch: Something moved in there.
526
00:27:19,260 --> 00:27:20,094
Heflick: You hear something?
527
00:27:20,127 --> 00:27:21,594
Bloch: I did.
528
00:27:23,960 --> 00:27:26,927
Heflick: Might be easier to find
a 58-million-year-old animal,
529
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:28,894
doesn't run from you, huh?
530
00:27:41,894 --> 00:27:43,994
Narrator: The search continues.
531
00:27:45,394 --> 00:27:49,694
The everglades national park
is 2,300 square Miles
532
00:27:49,727 --> 00:27:52,160
of land and water.
533
00:27:53,660 --> 00:27:55,260
The Burmese pythons have penetrated
534
00:27:55,294 --> 00:28:00,794
deep into these wetlands, by
swimming from island to island.
535
00:28:03,660 --> 00:28:05,694
But the snake hunters' persistence
536
00:28:05,727 --> 00:28:08,660
will shortly pay off.
537
00:28:08,694 --> 00:28:11,860
Jon Bloch is about
to see first-hand
538
00:28:11,894 --> 00:28:15,827
what constrictors are capable of.
539
00:28:15,860 --> 00:28:17,094
Heflick: Oh, right there,
Jon, Jon, Jon.
540
00:28:17,127 --> 00:28:20,594
Bloch: Oh, God,
look at that's huge.
541
00:28:20,627 --> 00:28:23,194
That's a big snake.
542
00:28:23,227 --> 00:28:24,827
So you're gonna grab it by the tail?
543
00:28:24,860 --> 00:28:27,727
Heflick: Yeah, we'll walk
her back and, oh, yeah.
544
00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:28,594
Bloch: Uh-huh.
545
00:28:28,627 --> 00:28:29,960
Heflick: Not happy.
546
00:28:29,994 --> 00:28:30,960
Now that's the difference between these.
547
00:28:30,994 --> 00:28:32,627
This thing's strong.
548
00:28:32,660 --> 00:28:34,560
That's the difference between
these in captivity
549
00:28:34,594 --> 00:28:39,960
and these wild caught ones,
is not happy right now.
550
00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:44,694
So the whole game on this,
so now she knows...
551
00:28:44,727 --> 00:28:46,560
Oh, that's a bad area.
552
00:28:46,594 --> 00:28:48,827
Narrator: Though the python
kills by constriction
553
00:28:48,860 --> 00:28:50,827
and does not inject poison,
554
00:28:50,860 --> 00:28:53,194
it still has a ferocious bite
to grab its prey.
555
00:28:53,227 --> 00:28:55,694
Heflick: That's a younger
Burmese python.
556
00:28:55,727 --> 00:28:57,694
Bloch: It'll be a second, she'll
realize you're back there, huh?
557
00:28:57,727 --> 00:28:58,760
Heflick: She wants to
go, go, go,
558
00:28:58,794 --> 00:28:59,960
and she's being restrained.
559
00:28:59,994 --> 00:29:01,894
Narrator: Once the prey
is in range,
560
00:29:01,927 --> 00:29:05,560
the snake launches itself
like a heat-seeking missile.
561
00:29:06,627 --> 00:29:07,760
Bloch: Oh, yeah.
562
00:29:07,794 --> 00:29:09,260
There we go. Nice.
563
00:29:09,294 --> 00:29:10,594
Heflick: Okay, sweetie.
564
00:29:10,627 --> 00:29:11,560
Bloch: Okay.
565
00:29:11,594 --> 00:29:13,260
Heflick: Switch hands. Yeah.
566
00:29:13,294 --> 00:29:14,827
Bloch: Beautiful.
567
00:29:14,860 --> 00:29:16,794
Heflick: She's not happy.
Bloch: No, she's not.
568
00:29:16,827 --> 00:29:17,894
Heflick: Not happy,
but if you can do me a favor
569
00:29:17,927 --> 00:29:18,960
and grab that tail?
570
00:29:18,994 --> 00:29:19,927
Bloch: Yeah.
571
00:29:19,960 --> 00:29:21,327
Heflick: She's gonna musk.
572
00:29:21,360 --> 00:29:23,060
No, keep it back,
keep it back, keep it back.
573
00:29:23,094 --> 00:29:24,260
[Laughter]
574
00:29:24,294 --> 00:29:27,194
That's what they do
as a defense mechanism.
575
00:29:27,227 --> 00:29:30,627
Narrator: The snake sees Jon
as a predator.
576
00:29:30,660 --> 00:29:32,094
Its instinctive reaction
577
00:29:32,127 --> 00:29:35,294
is to squirt the contents
of its bowels all over him.
578
00:29:35,327 --> 00:29:37,194
Heflick: They're going to musk,
they're gonna, you know,
579
00:29:37,227 --> 00:29:39,627
evacuate their bowels
on a would-be predator.
580
00:29:39,660 --> 00:29:40,960
Bloch: Okay.
581
00:29:40,994 --> 00:29:42,627
Heflick: And that's enough
to get anybody to say,
582
00:29:42,660 --> 00:29:44,294
I don't know if I want to
eat this thing or not.
583
00:29:44,327 --> 00:29:45,660
But let's unwind her.
584
00:29:45,694 --> 00:29:46,694
Bloch: Okay.
585
00:29:46,727 --> 00:29:48,594
Heflick: Just here.
586
00:29:48,627 --> 00:29:49,560
Yeah.
587
00:29:49,594 --> 00:29:50,860
Bloch: Oh, she's heavy.
588
00:29:50,894 --> 00:29:52,027
Heflick: She's powerful,
isn't she?
589
00:29:52,060 --> 00:29:53,694
Bloch: Yeah.
590
00:29:53,727 --> 00:29:55,760
She also has recurved teeth.
591
00:29:55,794 --> 00:29:57,360
Oh, did she get you?
592
00:29:57,394 --> 00:29:59,827
Heflick: Yeah, just one little
Nick and you see, you know,
593
00:29:59,860 --> 00:30:03,160
the teeth are pretty sharp,
like hypodermic needles.
594
00:30:03,194 --> 00:30:05,827
Narrator: The ancient snake's
recurved teeth
595
00:30:05,860 --> 00:30:08,094
lock on to its prey.
596
00:30:08,127 --> 00:30:11,760
The more the prey struggles,
the deeper the teeth go.
597
00:30:11,794 --> 00:30:14,227
Stephen: The bite is really
just to secure the prey.
598
00:30:14,260 --> 00:30:18,294
So the snake is gonna obviously strike,
599
00:30:18,327 --> 00:30:19,894
bite the prey item,
600
00:30:19,927 --> 00:30:23,960
and literally get it secure
in its jaws and then constrict.
601
00:30:23,994 --> 00:30:26,860
Narrator: 60 million years ago,
as today,
602
00:30:26,894 --> 00:30:29,960
the constrictor throws
coils around its victim
603
00:30:29,994 --> 00:30:31,527
and crushes it.
604
00:30:32,827 --> 00:30:35,627
Constriction is unique to snakes.
605
00:30:36,860 --> 00:30:39,360
Jon's getting his first view of it.
606
00:30:39,394 --> 00:30:40,560
Heflick: She's got a pretty good
lock on my arm.
607
00:30:40,594 --> 00:30:41,827
Bloch: Yeah, I can see that.
608
00:30:41,860 --> 00:30:42,994
Heflick: We need to
get her in a bag,
609
00:30:43,027 --> 00:30:44,694
I think my hand might be turning purple.
610
00:30:44,727 --> 00:30:45,960
Stephen: When you're
handling snakes,
611
00:30:45,994 --> 00:30:49,060
sometimes they then start
constricting your arm.
612
00:30:49,094 --> 00:30:51,660
And it's when they do that,
that you actually realize,
613
00:30:51,694 --> 00:30:54,660
wow, these snakes are just
incredibly powerful,
614
00:30:54,694 --> 00:30:56,627
a muscle machine, if you like.
615
00:30:58,594 --> 00:30:59,927
Narrator:
A constrictor this size
616
00:30:59,960 --> 00:31:04,594
can exert a pressure of
30 pounds per square inch.
617
00:31:04,627 --> 00:31:05,860
On the human chest,
618
00:31:05,894 --> 00:31:09,594
it's equivalent to being crushed
by a small car.
619
00:31:11,627 --> 00:31:12,860
As snakes get bigger,
620
00:31:12,894 --> 00:31:15,560
their muscles generate ever more force,
621
00:31:15,594 --> 00:31:18,960
and they can throw more loops
around their prey.
622
00:31:18,994 --> 00:31:20,560
Heflick: If I was a prey item,
623
00:31:20,594 --> 00:31:24,227
she would constrict me until
she constricted me so much,
624
00:31:24,260 --> 00:31:26,794
there was vasoconstriction
constriction, and my heart
625
00:31:26,827 --> 00:31:28,727
would literally almost explode,
626
00:31:28,760 --> 00:31:30,594
because, you know, it just stops it,
627
00:31:30,627 --> 00:31:33,560
and there's so much pressure
on your circulatory system,
628
00:31:33,594 --> 00:31:35,660
as well as suffocating you as well,
629
00:31:35,694 --> 00:31:37,694
you know, the prey item gets suffocated.
630
00:31:39,027 --> 00:31:41,127
Narrator:
Constriction is so effective
631
00:31:41,160 --> 00:31:44,527
that snakes can take on
the largest prey.
632
00:31:45,794 --> 00:31:49,060
In Cerrejon, 60 million years ago,
633
00:31:49,094 --> 00:31:52,227
it would have been
a battle of the giants.
634
00:31:53,594 --> 00:31:56,194
Heflick: Magnificent.
635
00:31:56,227 --> 00:31:58,294
I don't know how you don't
look at this and not go, "wow."
636
00:31:58,327 --> 00:31:59,327
Bloch: No, it's gorgeous.
637
00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:00,960
Heflick:
Truly a gorgeous animal.
638
00:32:00,994 --> 00:32:03,560
Bloch: But this is gonna come
out of this habitat.
639
00:32:03,594 --> 00:32:06,227
Heflick: We have to remove it,
it doesn't belong here.
640
00:32:06,260 --> 00:32:07,894
Bloch: Well, that can be useful
for us, because...
641
00:32:07,927 --> 00:32:09,994
Narrator: Despite
Shawn's best efforts,
642
00:32:10,027 --> 00:32:15,094
it's an ongoing battle to keep
the pythons in check.
643
00:32:15,127 --> 00:32:19,060
The most effective control
so far has been cold winters.
644
00:32:19,094 --> 00:32:21,127
Big snakes need heat to thrive
645
00:32:21,160 --> 00:32:23,694
and are vulnerable to low temperatures,
646
00:32:23,727 --> 00:32:25,860
a phenomenon that may become relevant
647
00:32:25,894 --> 00:32:29,560
in explaining why the giant
snakes at Cerrejon died out.
648
00:32:29,594 --> 00:32:31,360
Heflick: Big female.
649
00:32:31,394 --> 00:32:34,627
Narrator: But for now, there are
more immediate questions.
650
00:32:36,660 --> 00:32:38,060
The initial evidence suggests
651
00:32:38,094 --> 00:32:41,994
the Cerrejon snake was
the biggest that's ever lived.
652
00:32:45,727 --> 00:32:48,694
But precisely how big
653
00:32:48,727 --> 00:32:50,594
and what type?
654
00:32:54,994 --> 00:32:58,560
In the Florida lab, Jason head
is narrowing the options
655
00:32:58,594 --> 00:33:00,594
by comparing the Cerrejon fossil
656
00:33:00,627 --> 00:33:03,094
with vertebrae from living snakes.
657
00:33:04,594 --> 00:33:07,160
The final choice comes down to a python
658
00:33:07,194 --> 00:33:10,060
or a group of
so-call boid snakes,
659
00:33:10,094 --> 00:33:13,560
that includes boas and anacondas.
660
00:33:13,594 --> 00:33:14,860
Head: If we compare the fossil
661
00:33:14,894 --> 00:33:17,194
with the vertebra of this living python,
662
00:33:17,227 --> 00:33:18,627
what we can see is that
663
00:33:18,660 --> 00:33:21,060
they're actually very similar
to each other.
664
00:33:21,094 --> 00:33:23,627
However, there is a key feature
of the fossil.
665
00:33:23,660 --> 00:33:26,360
Specifically, these two holes
666
00:33:26,394 --> 00:33:29,327
that we see on either side of
the vertebra right here,
667
00:33:29,360 --> 00:33:32,294
that are not present in pythons.
668
00:33:32,327 --> 00:33:34,627
Narrator:
Having eliminated pythons,
669
00:33:34,660 --> 00:33:36,594
Jason knows what type of constrictor
670
00:33:36,627 --> 00:33:40,094
the Cerrejon giant must have been.
671
00:33:40,127 --> 00:33:41,294
Head: It actually
shared characters
672
00:33:41,327 --> 00:33:42,827
with boa constrictors,
673
00:33:42,860 --> 00:33:44,760
suggesting that they're closely
related to each other,
674
00:33:44,794 --> 00:33:47,327
despite being very different in size.
675
00:33:48,860 --> 00:33:51,560
Narrator: The Cerrejon snake
was a gigantic relative
676
00:33:51,594 --> 00:33:53,760
of boas and anacondas,
677
00:33:53,794 --> 00:33:56,794
snakes that are still alive
in South America today,
678
00:33:56,827 --> 00:33:58,294
though a fraction of the size
679
00:33:58,327 --> 00:34:01,660
of their 60-million-year-old
forebear.
680
00:34:04,194 --> 00:34:07,060
Calculating the Cerrejon
monster's exact size
681
00:34:07,094 --> 00:34:10,860
requires an ingenious and
painstaking set of calculations
682
00:34:10,894 --> 00:34:14,294
from the vertebrae the team had
collected back in Cerrejon.
683
00:34:14,327 --> 00:34:16,360
Bloch: In order to tell
how large a snake is,
684
00:34:16,394 --> 00:34:19,660
you have to know what part of
the body the bone is from
685
00:34:19,694 --> 00:34:20,794
within the vertebral column.
686
00:34:20,827 --> 00:34:22,227
And the reason for that
687
00:34:22,260 --> 00:34:25,660
is because within the same exact
skeleton of a snake,
688
00:34:25,694 --> 00:34:29,660
you can have very small ones
and very large ones,
689
00:34:29,694 --> 00:34:32,194
depending on where you are
in the position.
690
00:34:32,227 --> 00:34:33,694
Narrator: The first question is
691
00:34:33,727 --> 00:34:35,794
how to work out where
the fossil vertebra lay
692
00:34:35,827 --> 00:34:39,294
in the giant snake's spinal column.
693
00:34:39,327 --> 00:34:42,694
David Polly of Indiana
University in Bloomington
694
00:34:42,727 --> 00:34:46,660
is drafted in to make
a mathematical model.
695
00:34:46,694 --> 00:34:49,027
The first clue is the minute changes
696
00:34:49,060 --> 00:34:51,160
in the shape of a snake's vertebrae,
697
00:34:51,194 --> 00:34:54,094
which depend on where they're situated.
698
00:34:54,127 --> 00:34:55,760
David Polly: One of
the things about snakes,
699
00:34:55,794 --> 00:34:58,627
even though they look like
they're a long tube,
700
00:34:58,660 --> 00:35:01,827
they do different things with their neck
701
00:35:01,860 --> 00:35:03,594
and with their body and with their tail.
702
00:35:03,627 --> 00:35:06,227
Sometimes they strike, and
sometimes they're slithering.
703
00:35:06,260 --> 00:35:09,194
So they've got lots
of different muscles.
704
00:35:09,227 --> 00:35:12,594
Narrator: It is these muscles
that dictate the tiny differences
705
00:35:12,627 --> 00:35:16,094
in each vertebra's shape and proportion.
706
00:35:16,127 --> 00:35:17,660
Polly: As you go from
the head of the snake
707
00:35:17,694 --> 00:35:19,060
to the tail of the snake,
708
00:35:19,094 --> 00:35:21,194
you get different lengths
of these projections
709
00:35:21,227 --> 00:35:23,094
and different proportions.
710
00:35:23,127 --> 00:35:25,627
Narrator: For his model,
David Polly first creates
711
00:35:25,660 --> 00:35:29,694
a mathematical map of
the Cerrejon vertebra.
712
00:35:29,727 --> 00:35:31,327
His ultimate aim is to work out
713
00:35:31,360 --> 00:35:35,594
exactly where it fits
in the snake's body.
714
00:35:35,627 --> 00:35:37,960
Polly: So what we're
looking at here
715
00:35:37,994 --> 00:35:41,360
is a stylized representation of this.
716
00:35:41,394 --> 00:35:47,560
This point here is this point,
this point is the top up here,
717
00:35:47,594 --> 00:35:49,327
and these, this down here.
718
00:35:49,360 --> 00:35:52,660
So this represents the shape
of this particular vertebra.
719
00:35:52,694 --> 00:35:54,327
Narrator:
Then, the shape and gradient
720
00:35:54,360 --> 00:35:57,160
of hundreds of vertebrae
in modern boid snakes
721
00:35:57,194 --> 00:36:01,627
from every part of the body are
also entered into the model.
722
00:36:01,660 --> 00:36:06,160
Finally, the Cerrejon vertebra
is matched against them.
723
00:36:06,194 --> 00:36:07,760
Polly: What we did
mathematically
724
00:36:07,794 --> 00:36:11,627
was we took this gradient
from one to the other
725
00:36:11,660 --> 00:36:13,827
in all of the snakes
726
00:36:13,860 --> 00:36:15,760
and found where it matched best
727
00:36:15,794 --> 00:36:19,094
as you went from the front to the back.
728
00:36:19,127 --> 00:36:21,694
Bloch: We could then measure
the shape on this vertebra
729
00:36:21,727 --> 00:36:23,827
and then with some degree of likelihood,
730
00:36:23,860 --> 00:36:29,760
be able to place it within
some position in the body.
731
00:36:29,794 --> 00:36:31,627
It's a fairly simple idea,
732
00:36:31,660 --> 00:36:33,927
but it actually takes
quite a bit of work
733
00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:37,660
and took us the greater part
of a year to do.
734
00:36:37,694 --> 00:36:40,794
Narrator: With the ancient fossil
embedded into the snake map,
735
00:36:40,827 --> 00:36:42,694
it is now possible to reconstruct
736
00:36:42,727 --> 00:36:44,894
the size of the snake.
737
00:36:46,894 --> 00:36:48,994
In the courtyard of the Florida museum,
738
00:36:49,027 --> 00:36:53,127
Jon Bloch and Jason head are
ready for the big revelation.
739
00:36:54,727 --> 00:36:56,794
Bloch: Where would this go,
do you think, in the body?
740
00:36:56,827 --> 00:36:59,260
Head: So that specimen would be
just over halfway
741
00:36:59,294 --> 00:37:00,627
between the head and the tail,
742
00:37:00,660 --> 00:37:03,260
so just about here.
743
00:37:03,294 --> 00:37:04,827
Bloch: Okay.
744
00:37:04,860 --> 00:37:07,894
Narrator:
The result is awe inspiring.
745
00:37:16,260 --> 00:37:18,860
The longest modern snake,
the reticulated python,
746
00:37:18,894 --> 00:37:21,227
measures 28 feet.
747
00:37:21,260 --> 00:37:26,027
The biggest previous fossil
snake, Gigantophis... 33 feet.
748
00:37:28,127 --> 00:37:32,227
The Cerrejon snake smashes the record.
749
00:37:32,260 --> 00:37:34,794
48 feet long,
750
00:37:34,827 --> 00:37:38,760
it is the longest snake
in world history.
751
00:37:38,794 --> 00:37:39,727
Bloch: That's a big snake.
752
00:37:39,760 --> 00:37:41,794
Head: This is a huge snake.
753
00:37:41,827 --> 00:37:45,060
Narrator: This is just the first
specimen from Cerrejon.
754
00:37:46,394 --> 00:37:50,260
There could be even
longer snakes out there.
755
00:37:50,294 --> 00:37:52,627
And further mysteries remain.
756
00:37:52,660 --> 00:37:55,694
How did it live?
What did it eat?
757
00:37:55,727 --> 00:37:57,660
What did it really look like?
758
00:37:57,694 --> 00:38:02,694
Above all, how could it possibly
have grown so big?
759
00:38:09,360 --> 00:38:11,560
It's time to name it.
760
00:38:11,594 --> 00:38:14,960
To reflect its ancestry,
as well as its enormity,
761
00:38:14,994 --> 00:38:18,560
it will be called Titanoboa,
762
00:38:18,594 --> 00:38:21,527
a boa of Titanic proportions.
763
00:38:22,894 --> 00:38:25,794
In honor of the Colombian mine
where it was found,
764
00:38:25,827 --> 00:38:30,860
its full name...
Titanoboa Cerrejonensis.
765
00:38:30,894 --> 00:38:34,960
With its credentials proved,
titanoboa can be launched,
766
00:38:34,994 --> 00:38:38,594
a creature to make headlines
and capture the imagination
767
00:38:38,627 --> 00:38:43,127
of the scientific, phobic
and expert across the world.
768
00:38:45,327 --> 00:38:48,294
Stephen: Wow, you know,
this is an amazing animal.
769
00:38:48,327 --> 00:38:50,560
It's just one of those things
that you know
770
00:38:50,594 --> 00:38:52,060
you're not gonna have happen
771
00:38:52,094 --> 00:38:53,894
that many times in your lifetime.
772
00:38:53,927 --> 00:38:56,894
Finally, snakes are on the map.
773
00:38:56,927 --> 00:39:00,594
Bloch: Many people's reaction is
just sort of that of horror.
774
00:39:02,827 --> 00:39:04,960
There's a certain fear of snakes
that exists out there,
775
00:39:04,994 --> 00:39:06,327
and I think for a lot of people
776
00:39:06,360 --> 00:39:08,827
that's sort of the root
of the fascination.
777
00:39:08,860 --> 00:39:11,294
Narrator: To fully
comprehend titanoboa,
778
00:39:11,327 --> 00:39:14,594
it needs, somehow, to be seen.
779
00:39:16,694 --> 00:39:18,560
Snakes are not just bones,
780
00:39:18,594 --> 00:39:21,027
there's also flesh on those bones.
781
00:39:21,060 --> 00:39:23,094
At Indiana university, Bloomington,
782
00:39:23,127 --> 00:39:27,694
a snake is coming under
a highly expert knife.
783
00:39:27,727 --> 00:39:30,127
Matt Rowe used to be a Sushi chef,
784
00:39:30,160 --> 00:39:33,860
now his skills are unveiling
the complete snake.
785
00:39:35,194 --> 00:39:39,594
The meat, a delicacy
in many exotic cuisines.
786
00:39:39,627 --> 00:39:44,627
The skin, used for ladies'
handbags, belts and boots.
787
00:39:44,660 --> 00:39:47,194
But the most striking thing
Matt can reveal
788
00:39:47,227 --> 00:39:49,560
is how much larger a snake becomes
789
00:39:49,594 --> 00:39:52,694
when its bones are fleshed out.
790
00:39:52,727 --> 00:39:54,094
Matt Rowe: Alright.
791
00:39:54,127 --> 00:39:57,060
So this is the vertebra inside
of the cross-section here.
792
00:39:57,094 --> 00:39:59,694
It's a little bit difficult
to see at this point,
793
00:39:59,727 --> 00:40:01,127
because they're relatively small
794
00:40:01,160 --> 00:40:04,094
in comparison to the size
of the cross-section,
795
00:40:04,127 --> 00:40:07,360
and you can see the centrum
of the vertebra here.
796
00:40:07,394 --> 00:40:10,027
In our research, in
the dissections that we've done,
797
00:40:10,060 --> 00:40:12,627
the size of the vertebra
in comparison to the snake
798
00:40:12,660 --> 00:40:14,327
has always surprised me,
799
00:40:14,360 --> 00:40:18,760
in the sense that
they are always much smaller
800
00:40:18,794 --> 00:40:20,660
than I would think.
801
00:40:20,694 --> 00:40:22,294
As you can see here,
802
00:40:22,327 --> 00:40:24,627
a small vertebra does not
necessarily indicate
803
00:40:24,660 --> 00:40:26,160
a small snake.
804
00:40:27,727 --> 00:40:29,027
Narrator:
In some big living snakes,
805
00:40:29,060 --> 00:40:32,227
the ribs are about five inches long.
806
00:40:32,260 --> 00:40:34,927
Scaled up to the Cerrejon giant snake,
807
00:40:34,960 --> 00:40:38,660
the ribs must have been
more like two feet long,
808
00:40:38,694 --> 00:40:42,894
with a wall of muscle strong
enough to crush a rhinoceros.
809
00:40:48,227 --> 00:40:51,260
To recreate the full glory of titanoboa,
810
00:40:51,294 --> 00:40:53,827
a Canadian model maker, Kevin Hockley,
811
00:40:53,860 --> 00:40:56,227
is drafted into the team.
812
00:40:57,960 --> 00:41:01,794
He's commissioned to build
a life-size replica.
813
00:41:01,827 --> 00:41:05,160
His previous life-size creations
include two animals
814
00:41:05,194 --> 00:41:08,794
that also once seemed the stuff
of myth and fantasy,
815
00:41:08,827 --> 00:41:12,594
but are monstrously
alive and well today...
816
00:41:12,627 --> 00:41:16,360
A narwhal and a giant squid.
817
00:41:16,394 --> 00:41:22,360
Titanoboa, though long dead,
will overwhelm even them.
818
00:41:22,394 --> 00:41:23,594
Kevin Hockley: It's a huge snake
819
00:41:23,627 --> 00:41:25,294
and bigger than any living snake
820
00:41:25,327 --> 00:41:28,827
and certainly bigger than any
snake that I've made to date.
821
00:41:28,860 --> 00:41:30,927
And the other challenge was,
822
00:41:30,960 --> 00:41:34,194
there's only a few actual
fossils of the bones,
823
00:41:34,227 --> 00:41:37,694
so we're going by
a scientist's speculation
824
00:41:37,727 --> 00:41:41,560
as to what it actually looked like.
825
00:41:41,594 --> 00:41:43,794
Narrator: One key part
is missing...
826
00:41:43,827 --> 00:41:46,694
A fossil of Titanoboa's skull.
827
00:41:46,727 --> 00:41:49,027
Kevin is starting his model
from the tail end,
828
00:41:49,060 --> 00:41:52,994
in the hope that Jason head and
his colleagues will find one.
829
00:41:53,027 --> 00:41:55,960
Head: He's a biologically
realistic model.
830
00:41:55,994 --> 00:41:57,594
Narrator: Only with
the head in place
831
00:41:57,627 --> 00:42:01,260
will we know exactly
how titanoboa looked.
832
00:42:01,294 --> 00:42:04,194
Head: And it gives you both
the biology and the fear factor,
833
00:42:04,227 --> 00:42:08,227
the punch, that would
get people interested.
834
00:42:08,260 --> 00:42:11,560
Narrator: Back at Cerrejon, the
fossil hunters scour the mine
835
00:42:11,594 --> 00:42:13,660
for the skull bones whose fragility
836
00:42:13,694 --> 00:42:16,527
makes them so elusive and rare.
837
00:42:17,860 --> 00:42:19,960
They know a headless snake
838
00:42:19,994 --> 00:42:23,127
will always be a story without an end.
839
00:42:25,694 --> 00:42:28,194
And other mysteries remain...
840
00:42:28,227 --> 00:42:30,294
What did titanoboa eat?
841
00:42:30,327 --> 00:42:33,360
How did it hunt and reproduce?
842
00:42:33,394 --> 00:42:37,527
One place on today's earth
can provide some clues.
843
00:42:40,627 --> 00:42:43,860
The flooded grasslands of
the Venezuelan llanos.
844
00:42:53,827 --> 00:42:55,894
Here, the average temperature
845
00:42:55,927 --> 00:42:59,160
is more than a sweltering 80 degrees.
846
00:43:02,894 --> 00:43:04,994
Though this is not a rainforest,
847
00:43:05,027 --> 00:43:08,360
the similarity of the animals
in these sultry wetlands
848
00:43:08,394 --> 00:43:11,860
makes it almost a mini Cerrejon.
849
00:43:11,894 --> 00:43:14,560
Turtles and caiman flourish,
850
00:43:14,594 --> 00:43:15,760
and alongside them,
851
00:43:15,794 --> 00:43:19,294
an animal with similar habits
to titanoboa,
852
00:43:19,327 --> 00:43:23,227
the heaviest snake
in the modern world...
853
00:43:23,260 --> 00:43:26,660
The green anaconda.
854
00:43:26,694 --> 00:43:30,594
Jesus Rivas is the leading
authority on the anaconda.
855
00:43:30,627 --> 00:43:32,227
He spent 20 years in these wetlands,
856
00:43:32,260 --> 00:43:35,694
studying them close up
and what they like to eat,
857
00:43:35,727 --> 00:43:37,527
like this turtle.
858
00:43:38,894 --> 00:43:42,094
Jesus Rivas:
Wow, it's a monster!
859
00:43:42,127 --> 00:43:44,927
Narrator: Titanoboa may have
been 10 times as heavy,
860
00:43:44,960 --> 00:43:48,560
but Jesus believes the anaconda
gives the best possible insight
861
00:43:48,594 --> 00:43:49,860
into its world.
862
00:43:51,660 --> 00:43:53,694
Most boas live in trees,
863
00:43:53,727 --> 00:43:56,560
an unlikely move for titanoboa.
864
00:43:56,594 --> 00:44:00,860
So the anaconda, also one of
the boid group of snakes,
865
00:44:00,894 --> 00:44:04,060
offers the best comparison.
866
00:44:04,094 --> 00:44:07,894
Rivas: Titanoboa is
an aquatic, tropical snake
867
00:44:07,927 --> 00:44:09,894
that is very related to anaconda.
868
00:44:09,927 --> 00:44:14,027
I can't think of a closer model
of standard snakes
869
00:44:14,060 --> 00:44:19,260
to understand what titanoboa
was like than living anacondas.
870
00:44:21,060 --> 00:44:25,294
Narrator: Jesus walks these
snake-infested swamplands barefoot,
871
00:44:25,327 --> 00:44:28,860
so he can feel reptiles he can't see.
872
00:44:30,360 --> 00:44:34,227
There are leeches, stingrays,
caiman, crocs, and piranhas
873
00:44:34,260 --> 00:44:36,294
in his path.
874
00:44:36,327 --> 00:44:37,860
But it's worth it
875
00:44:37,894 --> 00:44:41,994
to get to grips with these
magnificent but shy creatures.
876
00:44:44,660 --> 00:44:50,027
Suddenly, Jesus feels a familiar
slithery presence underfoot.
877
00:44:50,060 --> 00:44:52,060
Rivas: Got something for ya.
878
00:44:54,694 --> 00:44:56,260
Okay, got you.
879
00:45:00,327 --> 00:45:02,627
Narrator:
Jesus has found anacondas
880
00:45:02,660 --> 00:45:04,794
measuring a massive 18 feet.
881
00:45:04,827 --> 00:45:06,894
Rivas: Just like
they're three and a half.
882
00:45:06,927 --> 00:45:09,160
Narrator: He knows that
dry land is their enemy.
883
00:45:09,194 --> 00:45:10,160
Rivas: Okay.
884
00:45:10,194 --> 00:45:12,227
Narrator: Something that
must have also been true
885
00:45:12,260 --> 00:45:13,694
for titanoboa.
886
00:45:13,727 --> 00:45:16,127
Rivas: I don't think titanoboa,
being that large,
887
00:45:16,160 --> 00:45:19,194
would have been very easy
to crawl through dry land,
888
00:45:19,227 --> 00:45:21,694
maybe for very short time.
889
00:45:24,227 --> 00:45:27,960
Narrator: Titanoboa weighed
as much as 20 people.
890
00:45:27,994 --> 00:45:31,627
Movement on land was a constant
fight with gravity.
891
00:45:34,327 --> 00:45:37,794
Like the anaconda, its friend was water,
892
00:45:37,827 --> 00:45:42,127
where it becomes effectively
weightless and faster.
893
00:45:44,827 --> 00:45:47,027
Today's snake habitat in Venezuela
894
00:45:47,060 --> 00:45:50,760
reinforces the evidence
that Titanoboa's kingdom
895
00:45:50,794 --> 00:45:53,960
was a rainforest water world.
896
00:45:53,994 --> 00:45:56,194
Head: And this is a very large,
897
00:45:56,227 --> 00:45:58,760
either a slow-moving
river system,
898
00:45:58,794 --> 00:46:01,327
or kind of a backwater of
a major river system.
899
00:46:01,360 --> 00:46:04,594
So what we have is a big, wet
landscape full of water
900
00:46:04,627 --> 00:46:07,127
with a lot of aquatic snakes in it.
901
00:46:07,160 --> 00:46:11,827
Narrator: On land, Titanoboa's
weight is suffocating it.
902
00:46:11,860 --> 00:46:15,794
Sliding into the water,
it is coming home.
903
00:46:21,360 --> 00:46:23,794
In this ideal environment,
904
00:46:23,827 --> 00:46:26,694
it becomes the ruling predator,
905
00:46:26,727 --> 00:46:28,594
a lurking killer.
906
00:46:29,894 --> 00:46:32,360
Despite their lack of legs or fins,
907
00:46:32,394 --> 00:46:34,694
snakes are natural swimmers,
908
00:46:34,727 --> 00:46:36,094
faster than humans.
909
00:46:37,594 --> 00:46:40,327
The secret is their flexible spines.
910
00:46:42,227 --> 00:46:45,227
They turn themselves
into a fluid "s" shape,
911
00:46:45,260 --> 00:46:48,660
using their whole body
to carve through the water.
912
00:46:49,927 --> 00:46:52,127
The anacondas of the Venezuelan llanos
913
00:46:52,160 --> 00:46:55,860
are the nearest living echo
of the long lost snake
914
00:46:55,894 --> 00:46:58,594
and the world it dominated.
915
00:46:58,627 --> 00:47:01,960
And to get even closer to
their extraordinary discovery,
916
00:47:01,994 --> 00:47:06,294
the scientists must encounter
the anaconda face to face.
917
00:47:07,994 --> 00:47:11,627
But they won't give up
their secrets without a fight.
918
00:47:15,960 --> 00:47:17,794
Jon Bloch and Jason head,
919
00:47:17,827 --> 00:47:20,060
experts in the prehistoric world,
920
00:47:20,094 --> 00:47:23,827
land in the Venezuelan llanos,
close to the equator.
921
00:47:33,060 --> 00:47:35,860
It's oppressively hot and humid.
922
00:47:37,660 --> 00:47:39,327
Hell for humans,
923
00:47:39,360 --> 00:47:43,260
paradise for the biggest snakes
on today's earth.
924
00:47:47,694 --> 00:47:50,960
Jon and Jason have come
in search of the green anaconda,
925
00:47:50,994 --> 00:47:54,094
which thrives in this steaming swamp.
926
00:47:55,594 --> 00:47:58,627
The anaconda's lifestyle is
the closest they can find
927
00:47:58,660 --> 00:48:01,127
to the giant snake, titanoboa,
928
00:48:01,160 --> 00:48:04,927
which flourished in Colombia
60 million years ago
929
00:48:04,960 --> 00:48:08,694
in the lost world of Cerrejon.
930
00:48:08,727 --> 00:48:10,594
Their guide is Jesus Rivas,
931
00:48:10,627 --> 00:48:14,960
the world's leading expert
on the green anaconda.
932
00:48:14,994 --> 00:48:18,627
He shows the new arrivals
that the best way to find one
933
00:48:18,660 --> 00:48:21,860
is to feel for it with bare feet.
934
00:48:21,894 --> 00:48:23,794
Alarmingly, he can also tell them
935
00:48:23,827 --> 00:48:27,960
that anacondas can be lethal,
even for humans.
936
00:48:27,994 --> 00:48:31,827
Rivas: An anaconda is potentially
a danger for a person
937
00:48:31,860 --> 00:48:33,827
because of the sheer size.
938
00:48:33,860 --> 00:48:36,027
They're generalist predators.
939
00:48:37,227 --> 00:48:39,827
As long as capacity of killing a person,
940
00:48:39,860 --> 00:48:42,560
definitely can kill a person.
941
00:48:42,594 --> 00:48:45,094
Narrator: Anaconda mainly hunt
in water,
942
00:48:45,127 --> 00:48:48,060
where they're hardest to spot.
943
00:48:48,094 --> 00:48:51,960
Just like titanoboa,
lurking beneath the surface,
944
00:48:51,994 --> 00:48:55,160
waiting for unsuspecting prey
to pass by.
945
00:48:56,827 --> 00:49:00,694
Dead still, heart, a silent murmur,
946
00:49:00,727 --> 00:49:03,827
holding its breath for up to 45 minutes.
947
00:49:05,894 --> 00:49:09,660
Waiting for the perfect prey
948
00:49:09,694 --> 00:49:11,994
until the moment comes.
949
00:49:18,627 --> 00:49:19,694
Head: Oh, you got tagged.
950
00:49:19,727 --> 00:49:20,827
Bloch: It's all right.
951
00:49:29,594 --> 00:49:30,760
He came out of nowhere,
952
00:49:30,794 --> 00:49:32,594
it was like the monster from the deep.
953
00:49:32,627 --> 00:49:36,260
Narrator: Jon has suddenly
become the target.
954
00:49:36,294 --> 00:49:38,294
Rivas: Bad girl.
955
00:49:38,327 --> 00:49:42,060
Let it bleed, let it bleed.
956
00:49:42,094 --> 00:49:43,560
Bloch: It hurt,
there's no doubt it hurt,
957
00:49:43,594 --> 00:49:44,260
and it's bleeding a lot.
958
00:49:44,294 --> 00:49:45,260
Man: Does it hurt a lot?
959
00:49:45,294 --> 00:49:47,327
Woman: We have band aids, so.
960
00:49:47,360 --> 00:49:48,694
Bloch: Is that normal
to puff up like that?
961
00:49:48,727 --> 00:49:49,894
Woman: No.
962
00:49:49,927 --> 00:49:51,627
Man: Probably need
to put something over it.
963
00:49:51,660 --> 00:49:53,227
Narrator:
Jon will later find out
964
00:49:53,260 --> 00:49:57,894
the anaconda has left two
vicious teeth buried in his leg.
965
00:50:00,360 --> 00:50:04,727
It saw him either as
potential prey or as a threat.
966
00:50:04,760 --> 00:50:05,660
Rivas: Welcome to the club!
967
00:50:05,694 --> 00:50:06,694
Bloch: Oh, thank you.
968
00:50:06,727 --> 00:50:08,194
[Laughter]
969
00:50:08,227 --> 00:50:12,127
Narrator: To Jesus, it's part of
everyday life in snake land.
970
00:50:13,727 --> 00:50:18,227
The anaconda that bit Jon
was relatively small fry.
971
00:50:18,260 --> 00:50:24,594
Even the largest anaconda here
would be dwarfed by titanoboa.
972
00:50:24,627 --> 00:50:26,694
Bloch: Oh, my God, look.
973
00:50:26,727 --> 00:50:28,727
Narrator: But whatever
the difference in size,
974
00:50:28,760 --> 00:50:31,127
they eat the same way.
975
00:50:31,160 --> 00:50:33,360
Rivas:
Look how skinny he becomes.
976
00:50:33,394 --> 00:50:37,160
That looks like a Galapagos,
like a turtle.
977
00:50:37,194 --> 00:50:40,560
Bloch: So there's an example of
an anaconda with a turtle in it,
978
00:50:40,594 --> 00:50:41,627
you think?
979
00:50:41,660 --> 00:50:42,660
Rivas: That's right.
980
00:50:42,694 --> 00:50:44,127
Bloch: That is
pretty interesting,
981
00:50:44,160 --> 00:50:48,260
so sideneck turtles,
just like we have in Cerrejon.
982
00:50:48,294 --> 00:50:50,560
Narrator: The anaconda
has swallowed a meal
983
00:50:50,594 --> 00:50:52,660
wider than its own body.
984
00:50:52,694 --> 00:50:54,294
Man: Oh, look at that.
985
00:50:54,327 --> 00:50:55,760
Rivas: Her tail looks fine.
986
00:50:55,794 --> 00:50:56,960
Bloch: Okay.
987
00:50:56,994 --> 00:50:58,694
Rivas: Not a catcher,
sorry, girl.
988
00:50:58,727 --> 00:51:02,627
Look at this, look at the piece,
the chunk missing over here.
989
00:51:02,660 --> 00:51:04,794
Come on here, come on here,
look at the chunk of flesh.
990
00:51:04,827 --> 00:51:07,860
Narrator: Jesus spots a wound
on the anaconda's side.
991
00:51:07,894 --> 00:51:09,960
It was inflicted by the prey.
992
00:51:09,994 --> 00:51:13,094
Rivas:
Maybe it's a baby Capybara.
993
00:51:13,127 --> 00:51:15,627
It's expensive for a snake
to take a meal.
994
00:51:15,660 --> 00:51:16,627
Bloch: Yeah.
995
00:51:16,660 --> 00:51:20,694
Narrator: On every hunt,
a snake risks its life.
996
00:51:20,727 --> 00:51:23,294
It's kill or be killed.
997
00:51:23,327 --> 00:51:25,127
Rivas: Okay, let's move around,
let's move away,
998
00:51:25,160 --> 00:51:29,260
leave her address her meal,
we don't want her to lose it.
999
00:51:29,294 --> 00:51:31,860
Narrator: The anaconda wants
some privacy and safety
1000
00:51:31,894 --> 00:51:33,927
to digest its catch.
1001
00:51:36,894 --> 00:51:40,227
These snakes don't stop at turtles.
1002
00:51:40,260 --> 00:51:44,160
They also prey here on caiman,
a type of crocodile.
1003
00:51:45,894 --> 00:51:49,694
Snakes have always been willing
to take on the largest prey,
1004
00:51:49,727 --> 00:51:52,260
both now and 60 million years ago.
1005
00:51:53,694 --> 00:51:56,294
Is any animal safe from titanoboa
1006
00:51:56,327 --> 00:51:58,827
in Cerrejon's lost world?
1007
00:52:00,260 --> 00:52:04,094
Even the half ton blunt-nosed
crocodile is at risk...
1008
00:52:05,694 --> 00:52:09,527
...unable to escape the giant
snake's recurved teeth.
1009
00:52:11,594 --> 00:52:13,027
Crushed by coils of muscle,
1010
00:52:13,060 --> 00:52:16,760
delivering 400 pounds
per square inch of pressure.
1011
00:52:18,060 --> 00:52:20,694
Each time the crocodile's chest moves,
1012
00:52:20,727 --> 00:52:23,260
titanoboa tightens its grip.
1013
00:52:24,694 --> 00:52:27,760
Inducing unconsciousness,
1014
00:52:27,794 --> 00:52:30,760
then cutting off its victim's blood...
1015
00:52:32,127 --> 00:52:33,860
...until death.
1016
00:52:43,394 --> 00:52:45,560
There's movement in the water.
1017
00:52:47,694 --> 00:52:50,060
Rivas:
That's what we're here for.
1018
00:52:50,094 --> 00:52:52,594
[Indistinct]
What do you have?
1019
00:52:52,627 --> 00:52:53,727
Bloch: Oh!
1020
00:52:53,760 --> 00:52:55,327
[Laughter]
1021
00:52:55,360 --> 00:52:58,360
Narrator: This anaconda's
big enough to crush a human.
1022
00:52:58,394 --> 00:52:59,694
Rivas: Woo!
1023
00:52:59,727 --> 00:53:02,594
She wants to give me a kiss,
look at that.
1024
00:53:02,627 --> 00:53:03,827
Or is it Jon you like?
1025
00:53:03,860 --> 00:53:05,927
Narrator:
Four human adults struggle
1026
00:53:05,960 --> 00:53:10,227
to resist the massive, twisting
force of the snake's muscles.
1027
00:53:10,260 --> 00:53:11,760
Rivas: She is...
1028
00:53:11,794 --> 00:53:12,927
Bloch: Strong.
1029
00:53:12,960 --> 00:53:14,627
Narrator: Holding it
behind the head
1030
00:53:14,660 --> 00:53:16,294
is the only way to make it safe...
1031
00:53:16,327 --> 00:53:18,160
Rivas:
Why won't you hold his ears?
1032
00:53:18,194 --> 00:53:21,060
Narrator: ...As head movement
controls the body's twisting.
1033
00:53:22,227 --> 00:53:25,627
This snake is big, powerful and hungry.
1034
00:53:25,660 --> 00:53:27,194
Rivas: Let me do that.
Bloch: I've got it.
1035
00:53:27,227 --> 00:53:28,694
Rivas:
Let me hold the first part.
1036
00:53:28,727 --> 00:53:32,660
This girl, this size
will feed on anything.
1037
00:53:32,694 --> 00:53:37,327
Small crocs, turtles, deer,
small children, anything.
1038
00:53:37,360 --> 00:53:38,627
[Laughter]
1039
00:53:38,660 --> 00:53:39,927
Bloch: So this is probably
about the size
1040
00:53:39,960 --> 00:53:43,727
of a juvenile titanoboa,
maybe about a year old?
1041
00:53:43,760 --> 00:53:45,827
[Laughter]
1042
00:53:45,860 --> 00:53:49,027
Rivas: How long do you reckon
this vertebrates are?
1043
00:53:49,060 --> 00:53:50,560
Head: The vertebrae
on this animal?
1044
00:53:50,594 --> 00:53:51,327
Rivas: Yeah.
1045
00:53:51,360 --> 00:53:52,460
Head: Be about that wide.
1046
00:53:52,494 --> 00:53:54,594
Narrator: Snakes keep growing
throughout their lives.
1047
00:53:54,627 --> 00:53:58,827
The bigger ones are the longest
lived and the most successful.
1048
00:53:58,860 --> 00:54:01,160
Bloch: No, no, no,
titanoboa is like that.
1049
00:54:01,194 --> 00:54:03,227
Narrator: Given the size
of this anaconda,
1050
00:54:03,260 --> 00:54:05,160
it seems almost unbelievable
1051
00:54:05,194 --> 00:54:08,594
that it's nothing
compared with titanoboa.
1052
00:54:08,627 --> 00:54:12,327
Head: No, Titanoboa's probably
60, 70 centimeters wide.
1053
00:54:12,360 --> 00:54:14,127
This snake looks like
she's got a diameter
1054
00:54:14,160 --> 00:54:18,994
of about nine, maybe 10
centimeters at the widest point,
1055
00:54:19,027 --> 00:54:20,627
which is one-fifth
to one-seventh
1056
00:54:20,660 --> 00:54:22,694
the width of titanoboa.
1057
00:54:22,727 --> 00:54:25,827
Rivas: This is a very skinny
snake for her size.
1058
00:54:25,860 --> 00:54:28,627
If she were nice and plump,
1059
00:54:28,660 --> 00:54:31,160
she would be probably 10 inches across.
1060
00:54:31,194 --> 00:54:32,294
Head: Okay.
1061
00:54:32,327 --> 00:54:34,594
Rivas: She probably gave birth
last year,
1062
00:54:34,627 --> 00:54:36,027
for how skinny she is.
1063
00:54:36,060 --> 00:54:40,827
And she probably is aiming for
a Capybara or a good caiman
1064
00:54:40,860 --> 00:54:44,927
or something to make up
for the energy lost.
1065
00:54:44,960 --> 00:54:46,894
Narrator: This is as close
as the scientists can get
1066
00:54:46,927 --> 00:54:48,994
in the living snake world of today
1067
00:54:49,027 --> 00:54:51,760
to the lost world of titanoboa.
1068
00:54:54,160 --> 00:54:56,660
Rivas: Okay.
1069
00:54:56,694 --> 00:54:57,994
Let's go home.
1070
00:54:58,027 --> 00:55:00,660
Narrator: The habitat and plants
may be different,
1071
00:55:00,694 --> 00:55:02,927
and this is not a rainforest.
1072
00:55:05,960 --> 00:55:10,794
But the similarities in the mix
of animals are striking.
1073
00:55:10,827 --> 00:55:13,560
Head: If you think about
this ecosystem,
1074
00:55:13,594 --> 00:55:15,160
how many snakes we found just today
1075
00:55:15,194 --> 00:55:18,194
and how many caiman we've seen
and how many turtles.
1076
00:55:20,394 --> 00:55:24,194
Where we're standing right now,
that's basically Cerrejon.
1077
00:55:25,727 --> 00:55:26,994
Bloch: It's really
an incredible experience
1078
00:55:27,027 --> 00:55:29,894
for me to be able to see
this habitat like this.
1079
00:55:29,927 --> 00:55:32,560
At Cerrejon, we find this big
layer with, you know,
1080
00:55:32,594 --> 00:55:34,894
all of these skeletons of snakes
closely spaced,
1081
00:55:34,927 --> 00:55:36,727
and you think, well,
how could an ecosystem sustain
1082
00:55:36,760 --> 00:55:39,194
that many snakes in such a small place?
1083
00:55:39,227 --> 00:55:41,060
And then here we're finding
snakes all over the place,
1084
00:55:41,094 --> 00:55:43,927
together, giant, huge snakes.
1085
00:55:45,260 --> 00:55:49,094
Narrator: The team finds
five anacondas in just one day.
1086
00:55:49,127 --> 00:55:53,094
Jesus has counted 2,000
of these snakes here.
1087
00:55:53,127 --> 00:55:54,727
Bloch: Watch your hands.
1088
00:55:54,760 --> 00:55:58,860
Narrator: Cerrejon would
probably have been the same.
1089
00:55:58,894 --> 00:56:02,260
Not just one or two titanoboa,
1090
00:56:02,294 --> 00:56:04,327
but thousands.
1091
00:56:04,360 --> 00:56:05,694
Rivas: Go for it.
1092
00:56:05,727 --> 00:56:06,927
There you go.
1093
00:56:06,960 --> 00:56:09,627
Bloch: Beautiful, look at that.
1094
00:56:09,660 --> 00:56:10,927
Narrator: As the trip ends,
1095
00:56:10,960 --> 00:56:14,560
Jon Bloch turns snake catcher
for the first time.
1096
00:56:14,594 --> 00:56:15,794
Head: Gorgeous snake.
1097
00:56:15,827 --> 00:56:18,294
Rivas: Your first worry is
to protect the head.
1098
00:56:18,327 --> 00:56:21,327
Their muscle cladded,
all the things protection,
1099
00:56:21,360 --> 00:56:22,627
but the head is very sensitive.
1100
00:56:22,660 --> 00:56:23,860
So when they feel in danger,
1101
00:56:23,894 --> 00:56:26,660
they'll wrap their head around anything.
1102
00:56:26,694 --> 00:56:27,760
That's what she was trying to do
1103
00:56:27,794 --> 00:56:29,960
to protect her head between her loops,
1104
00:56:29,994 --> 00:56:31,560
that's what tangles you up.
1105
00:56:31,594 --> 00:56:33,694
Bloch: Got it.
1106
00:56:33,727 --> 00:56:35,660
She's got me around the neck.
1107
00:56:35,694 --> 00:56:36,594
Do you want to help me there, Jason?
1108
00:56:36,627 --> 00:56:37,627
[Laughter]
1109
00:56:37,660 --> 00:56:38,660
Thank you.
1110
00:56:38,694 --> 00:56:40,627
You're a good friend.
1111
00:56:40,660 --> 00:56:43,260
Head: Oh, that's fantastic,
look at that.
1112
00:56:46,594 --> 00:56:49,627
Narrator: Jon and Jason's work,
both in the lab and the field,
1113
00:56:49,660 --> 00:56:52,094
is fed back to their model maker
Kevin Hockley
1114
00:56:52,127 --> 00:56:55,160
thousands of Miles away in Canada.
1115
00:56:59,827 --> 00:57:02,794
But to complete his recreation
of titanoboa,
1116
00:57:02,827 --> 00:57:05,260
he urgently needs a skull.
1117
00:57:14,627 --> 00:57:15,960
The team of scientists investigating
1118
00:57:15,994 --> 00:57:19,194
the giant prehistoric snake, titanoboa,
1119
00:57:19,227 --> 00:57:22,560
return to the coalmine
at Cerrejon in Colombia,
1120
00:57:22,594 --> 00:57:26,094
the place they first discovered
fossils of its vertebrae.
1121
00:57:27,660 --> 00:57:29,094
They're in a race against time
1122
00:57:29,127 --> 00:57:32,760
to find the one missing piece
in their Jigsaw puzzle,
1123
00:57:32,794 --> 00:57:35,827
a remnant of Titanoboa's skull.
1124
00:57:39,594 --> 00:57:42,827
Soon, the diggers will penetrate
beneath the seam of coal
1125
00:57:42,860 --> 00:57:46,894
that revealed the lost world
of 60 million years ago.
1126
00:57:48,894 --> 00:57:50,194
Bloch: The operations
at the mine
1127
00:57:50,227 --> 00:57:52,894
will eventually destroy
this hill completely
1128
00:57:52,927 --> 00:57:54,860
and probably this will be
our last trip here,
1129
00:57:54,894 --> 00:57:57,127
on the LA puente pit
that's been so good to us
1130
00:57:57,160 --> 00:57:58,560
in terms of collecting.
1131
00:57:58,594 --> 00:58:00,194
This is the only place in the world
1132
00:58:00,227 --> 00:58:04,194
that we've ever, in fact,
found titanoboa, for example.
1133
00:58:04,227 --> 00:58:07,227
Narrator: The mine has not just
produced titanoboa,
1134
00:58:07,260 --> 00:58:10,894
it has revealed a dazzling
variety of giant animals.
1135
00:58:12,294 --> 00:58:15,694
One of the most remarkable
is the freshwater turtle,
1136
00:58:15,727 --> 00:58:19,327
discovered by Colombian
scientist Edwin Cadena.
1137
00:58:23,960 --> 00:58:25,694
He could hardly believe his eyes
1138
00:58:25,727 --> 00:58:29,860
when he began scraping away
at the first fossil.
1139
00:58:29,894 --> 00:58:32,760
Edwin Cadena: So I start working
with this screwdriver,
1140
00:58:32,794 --> 00:58:34,860
carefully removing all the sediment
1141
00:58:34,894 --> 00:58:37,127
that was covering this specimen.
1142
00:58:37,160 --> 00:58:40,694
And wow, it was
a really, really nice moment
1143
00:58:40,727 --> 00:58:46,160
for me to see this almost
two-meters-long turtle
1144
00:58:46,194 --> 00:58:48,194
coming at the surface.
1145
00:58:49,827 --> 00:58:53,827
This is the head of the turtle
and this is the shell,
1146
00:58:53,860 --> 00:58:56,827
the carapace and the plastron
of the turtle.
1147
00:58:56,860 --> 00:58:59,894
It was a surprise for me.
1148
00:58:59,927 --> 00:59:01,827
Narrator: The final measurement
turns out to be
1149
00:59:01,860 --> 00:59:06,027
an astonishing eight feet,
as big as a dinner table.
1150
00:59:08,027 --> 00:59:11,160
The lost water world
contains strange species,
1151
00:59:11,194 --> 00:59:15,594
like the lungfish, capable of
breathing in surface air.
1152
00:59:15,627 --> 00:59:18,627
It grew as big as a man.
1153
00:59:18,660 --> 00:59:21,260
And there were massive crocodiles.
1154
00:59:21,294 --> 00:59:22,660
Hastings: So we have
three different types
1155
00:59:22,694 --> 00:59:25,094
of crocodile relatives from Colombia,
1156
00:59:25,127 --> 00:59:28,894
we have a small-bodied form
with a relatively narrow snout,
1157
00:59:28,927 --> 00:59:31,627
good for small prey items.
1158
00:59:31,660 --> 00:59:33,994
Medium sized,
long-snouted form here,
1159
00:59:34,027 --> 00:59:37,827
this lower jaw is very good for
catching slippery, quick fish.
1160
00:59:37,860 --> 00:59:39,694
Here is
a blunt-snouted crocodile
1161
00:59:39,727 --> 00:59:40,760
with a really short snout,
1162
00:59:40,794 --> 00:59:44,660
which is perfectly adapted
for really tough foods.
1163
00:59:44,694 --> 00:59:46,027
So something like a turtle shell
1164
00:59:46,060 --> 00:59:48,594
that needs a lot of force
in order to deal with that.
1165
00:59:48,627 --> 00:59:50,560
When you have your upper
and your lower jaws
1166
00:59:50,594 --> 00:59:52,660
coming together like this,
1167
00:59:52,694 --> 00:59:54,827
you have to have a really strong tooth
1168
00:59:54,860 --> 00:59:56,827
in order to withstand that pressure.
1169
00:59:56,860 --> 00:59:59,260
And these blunt, round teeth
are perfectly adapted
1170
00:59:59,294 --> 01:00:02,627
for taking on tough foods
like turtle shells.
1171
01:00:02,660 --> 01:00:06,760
Narrator: Pieced together, the
crocodile measures 15 feet long.
1172
01:00:08,127 --> 01:00:11,794
The team has complete crocodiles
and complete turtles.
1173
01:00:11,827 --> 01:00:15,994
What they're desperate for
is a complete titanoboa.
1174
01:00:16,027 --> 01:00:18,294
But there's still no skull.
1175
01:00:19,694 --> 01:00:22,960
Finding a skull remnant
is almost impossible.
1176
01:00:22,994 --> 01:00:25,560
They're fragile shards
that have disintegrated
1177
01:00:25,594 --> 01:00:27,327
over the millions of years.
1178
01:00:28,660 --> 01:00:31,060
To give the team
the best possible chance,
1179
01:00:31,094 --> 01:00:33,994
Jason head, their expert
in extinct snakes,
1180
01:00:34,027 --> 01:00:37,027
makes his first visit to Cerrejon.
1181
01:00:37,060 --> 01:00:38,727
Head: Now, of course, we don't
really have a lot of skulls
1182
01:00:38,760 --> 01:00:40,827
for the fossil record of snakes,
'cause they're very light,
1183
01:00:40,860 --> 01:00:43,327
and they break apart
after the animal has died.
1184
01:00:43,360 --> 01:00:45,860
Narrator: Even though
they haven't found a skull,
1185
01:00:45,894 --> 01:00:48,027
each time they return to the mine,
1186
01:00:48,060 --> 01:00:52,660
the team does discover more and
more evidence of titanoboa.
1187
01:00:53,727 --> 01:00:56,994
One find is extraordinarily intact.
1188
01:00:57,027 --> 01:00:59,327
Head: This is a really
incredible specimen.
1189
01:00:59,360 --> 01:01:02,127
This snake, when it died,
1190
01:01:02,160 --> 01:01:06,694
was roughly angled so that the
front of the animal was here,
1191
01:01:06,727 --> 01:01:08,927
probably coming around
1192
01:01:08,960 --> 01:01:12,694
and going all the way around
1193
01:01:12,727 --> 01:01:17,294
and then coming back
toward the tail here.
1194
01:01:17,327 --> 01:01:20,060
Bloch: How big do you think
this snake was, about?
1195
01:01:20,094 --> 01:01:21,760
Head: We're probably
looking at a skull,
1196
01:01:21,794 --> 01:01:22,927
based on the relationship
1197
01:01:22,960 --> 01:01:24,694
between skull size to body length
1198
01:01:24,727 --> 01:01:25,927
in living boas and pythons,
1199
01:01:25,960 --> 01:01:28,260
of about this long from
the tip of the snout
1200
01:01:28,294 --> 01:01:29,727
to the back of the skull.
1201
01:01:29,760 --> 01:01:31,260
Bloch: That's the size of
a lot of the crocodiles
1202
01:01:31,294 --> 01:01:32,194
we get out of here.
1203
01:01:32,227 --> 01:01:32,760
Head: That's right.
1204
01:01:32,794 --> 01:01:34,260
This is a big animal,
1205
01:01:34,294 --> 01:01:37,360
this is the largest animal
in the ecosystem.
1206
01:01:37,394 --> 01:01:40,727
Narrator: Despite this great
spread of ribs and vertebrae,
1207
01:01:40,760 --> 01:01:43,560
no skull is found.
1208
01:01:43,594 --> 01:01:45,160
Bloch: Finally back here...
1209
01:01:45,194 --> 01:01:48,294
Narrator: But the size of this
fossil snake raises the question
1210
01:01:48,327 --> 01:01:52,894
of why some titanoboa seem to be
so much bigger than others.
1211
01:01:59,294 --> 01:02:03,894
The answer to that lies here
in the Venezuelan llanos.
1212
01:02:06,760 --> 01:02:08,827
Jesus Rivas has stumbled on something
1213
01:02:08,860 --> 01:02:12,227
that's rare for humans
to catch sight of.
1214
01:02:12,260 --> 01:02:14,360
Rivas: Right here,
this is a small anaconda,
1215
01:02:14,394 --> 01:02:16,060
it's a male-sized anaconda.
1216
01:02:16,094 --> 01:02:20,127
And it's wrapped around something.
1217
01:02:20,160 --> 01:02:24,227
At least one male, could be two,
but hard to tell for now.
1218
01:02:24,260 --> 01:02:29,660
And the female's body is
definitely in that direction.
1219
01:02:29,694 --> 01:02:30,994
So then I dig it out.
1220
01:02:31,027 --> 01:02:33,760
Yeah, that is the female's body
for sure.
1221
01:02:38,627 --> 01:02:40,294
And that is a third.
1222
01:02:40,327 --> 01:02:41,660
Don't bite me, please.
1223
01:02:41,694 --> 01:02:43,894
Narrator: This is a mating ball,
1224
01:02:43,927 --> 01:02:47,660
several male anacondas
wrapped around a female.
1225
01:02:52,727 --> 01:02:55,694
The males are competing
to mate with her.
1226
01:02:55,727 --> 01:02:57,794
Only one will succeed.
1227
01:02:57,827 --> 01:02:59,527
Rivas: He's leaving.
1228
01:03:01,760 --> 01:03:03,627
Two boys.
1229
01:03:03,660 --> 01:03:07,227
Second boy is here.
1230
01:03:07,260 --> 01:03:09,094
There's a third boy.
1231
01:03:10,927 --> 01:03:12,627
Narrator: Not surprisingly,
1232
01:03:12,660 --> 01:03:16,794
the male anacondas are angry
at being pulled off the female.
1233
01:03:16,827 --> 01:03:18,194
Rivas: Oh, there you go.
1234
01:03:18,227 --> 01:03:20,594
Grab it, grab you, it doesn't matter.
1235
01:03:20,627 --> 01:03:21,294
[Laughter]
1236
01:03:21,327 --> 01:03:23,727
She was tagged.
1237
01:03:23,760 --> 01:03:26,827
The snake tagged her, look.
[Laughs]
1238
01:03:26,860 --> 01:03:28,127
Oh, beautiful, look.
1239
01:03:28,160 --> 01:03:32,727
I need to see the head,
which is somewhere here.
1240
01:03:32,760 --> 01:03:35,627
Now she's backing up.
1241
01:03:35,660 --> 01:03:36,727
Coochie, coochie, coochie.
1242
01:03:36,760 --> 01:03:39,294
Okay, got you.
1243
01:03:39,327 --> 01:03:41,027
Oh, she's a big one! Woo!
1244
01:03:41,060 --> 01:03:43,727
Narrator: This anaconda
is 15 feet long,
1245
01:03:43,760 --> 01:03:46,594
a huge snake in today's world.
1246
01:03:48,227 --> 01:03:50,927
Rivas: Okay.
1247
01:03:50,960 --> 01:03:54,660
Narrator: The reason for
the snake's size is simple.
1248
01:03:54,694 --> 01:03:55,794
She's female.
1249
01:03:55,827 --> 01:03:58,960
Rivas:
She had four males with her.
1250
01:03:58,994 --> 01:04:02,260
You can see the difference in size,
1251
01:04:02,294 --> 01:04:05,660
how much smaller the males are.
1252
01:04:05,694 --> 01:04:07,360
Narrator: Based on
living anacondas,
1253
01:04:07,394 --> 01:04:10,194
it is likely that
in the lost world of Cerrejon,
1254
01:04:10,227 --> 01:04:14,360
the female titanoboa is also
bigger and deadlier
1255
01:04:14,394 --> 01:04:16,694
than the male.
1256
01:04:16,727 --> 01:04:21,227
Males avoid females most of
the year for very good reason.
1257
01:04:21,260 --> 01:04:24,927
They're in danger of
being eaten by them.
1258
01:04:24,960 --> 01:04:26,594
But in the mating season,
1259
01:04:26,627 --> 01:04:30,260
chemical signals in the water
show it's safe to approach.
1260
01:04:32,127 --> 01:04:35,594
And then, the fight is among the males.
1261
01:04:38,160 --> 01:04:40,194
The wrestling can last for weeks,
1262
01:04:40,227 --> 01:04:43,627
as the males try to
push each other aside.
1263
01:04:46,260 --> 01:04:50,660
Until, finally, one manages to mate.
1264
01:04:51,894 --> 01:04:53,760
The pregnant female breaks off,
1265
01:04:53,794 --> 01:04:57,294
her young now growing inside her.
1266
01:04:57,327 --> 01:04:58,894
She's stored enough food in her body
1267
01:04:58,927 --> 01:05:02,627
to survive the seven months
of pregnancy.
1268
01:05:02,660 --> 01:05:05,927
She won't eat again
until she's given birth.
1269
01:05:10,594 --> 01:05:13,894
In the autopsy lab at
Indiana university, Bloomington,
1270
01:05:13,927 --> 01:05:17,560
grad student Beth Reinke shows
the huge number of eggs
1271
01:05:17,594 --> 01:05:20,260
a female python carries.
1272
01:05:20,294 --> 01:05:21,894
Beth Reinke: These are all eggs.
1273
01:05:21,927 --> 01:05:26,694
I see 29, 30 right now, 31, 32.
1274
01:05:26,727 --> 01:05:28,260
Narrator:
In the female titanoboa,
1275
01:05:28,294 --> 01:05:31,660
there may be as many as 100 offspring.
1276
01:05:33,027 --> 01:05:36,860
After seven months,
she's ready to give birth.
1277
01:05:36,894 --> 01:05:39,127
Head: The baby snakes are in
a little, tiny shell membrane,
1278
01:05:39,160 --> 01:05:40,260
they punch through that,
1279
01:05:40,294 --> 01:05:42,094
and then they actually leave the mother,
1280
01:05:42,127 --> 01:05:46,594
in a way that's very similar to
modern birth in most mammals.
1281
01:05:46,627 --> 01:05:49,927
Narrator: Titanoboa is likely
to give birth in the water,
1282
01:05:49,960 --> 01:05:53,260
but may sometimes do so on land.
1283
01:05:53,294 --> 01:05:57,027
The babies are already over
three feet long at birth,
1284
01:05:57,060 --> 01:05:59,894
as big as some modern snake adults.
1285
01:05:59,927 --> 01:06:02,294
Their size will be
their only protection.
1286
01:06:02,327 --> 01:06:03,994
Head: Once the babies hatch,
1287
01:06:04,027 --> 01:06:06,594
they're pretty good in terms
of taking care of themselves.
1288
01:06:06,627 --> 01:06:08,860
They're fully functional,
they're able to hunt,
1289
01:06:08,894 --> 01:06:10,660
they're able to move around.
1290
01:06:10,694 --> 01:06:11,994
All their senses are fully developed.
1291
01:06:12,027 --> 01:06:14,160
So they're pretty good to go.
1292
01:06:14,194 --> 01:06:17,960
Narrator: Female Titanoboas
do not mother their children.
1293
01:06:17,994 --> 01:06:19,794
The only attention they pay them
1294
01:06:19,827 --> 01:06:22,727
is to eat any that don't survive birth.
1295
01:06:26,094 --> 01:06:28,660
After abandoning the newborns,
1296
01:06:28,694 --> 01:06:31,894
the mother titanoboa heads off
in search of prey
1297
01:06:31,927 --> 01:06:34,327
to relieve a hunger grown ferocious
1298
01:06:34,360 --> 01:06:36,960
from seven months without food.
1299
01:06:40,660 --> 01:06:44,960
The giant fossil at Cerrejon
could be one of those females,
1300
01:06:44,994 --> 01:06:48,727
but the skull still
eludes the searchers.
1301
01:06:48,760 --> 01:06:51,327
Head: If we are gonna find one,
it should be over here.
1302
01:06:51,360 --> 01:06:53,694
Maybe we should think about
searching off in this way,
1303
01:06:53,727 --> 01:06:54,994
excavating more of the hill.
1304
01:06:55,027 --> 01:06:56,127
Bloch: All we can do is look.
1305
01:06:56,160 --> 01:06:58,294
Head: That's right, let's do it.
1306
01:07:09,360 --> 01:07:11,727
Bloch: Looking for fossils
can be a little bit
1307
01:07:11,760 --> 01:07:14,060
like searching for
a needle in a haystack.
1308
01:07:14,094 --> 01:07:15,227
If there's going to be a skull,
1309
01:07:15,260 --> 01:07:17,627
it should be over here somewhere.
1310
01:07:24,827 --> 01:07:26,960
Narrator: Finally,
with time running out
1311
01:07:26,994 --> 01:07:28,260
and the ever present threat
1312
01:07:28,294 --> 01:07:30,794
of the mine's need to resume digging,
1313
01:07:30,827 --> 01:07:34,160
a Colombian grad student strikes gold.
1314
01:07:37,294 --> 01:07:40,694
Not one, but three skull bones.
1315
01:07:42,394 --> 01:07:43,894
Head: This is
a once-in-a-lifetime discovery,
1316
01:07:43,927 --> 01:07:46,627
really, this is just amazing.
1317
01:07:46,660 --> 01:07:48,560
For somebody who has
gone around the world
1318
01:07:48,594 --> 01:07:49,927
and picked up vertebrae,
1319
01:07:49,960 --> 01:07:51,660
to actually pick up pieces of the skull
1320
01:07:51,694 --> 01:07:57,360
is an absolutely unique and
unbelievable experience,
1321
01:07:57,394 --> 01:07:59,194
it's almost indescribable.
1322
01:08:01,627 --> 01:08:04,560
Those three bones include
parts of the lower jaw,
1323
01:08:04,594 --> 01:08:05,994
and you can see right here,
1324
01:08:06,027 --> 01:08:08,594
these are the tooth positions
where teeth would have been
1325
01:08:08,627 --> 01:08:10,560
when the animal was alive.
1326
01:08:10,594 --> 01:08:12,694
And this is actually
a bone of the jaw joint.
1327
01:08:12,727 --> 01:08:14,194
This is the back of the skull,
1328
01:08:14,227 --> 01:08:16,727
and right here is where the lower jaw
1329
01:08:16,760 --> 01:08:19,060
actually connects with the upper jaw.
1330
01:08:19,094 --> 01:08:20,727
So up here on us.
1331
01:08:20,760 --> 01:08:22,294
From these three bones,
1332
01:08:22,327 --> 01:08:25,627
we can make inferences about
its ecology, where it lived,
1333
01:08:25,660 --> 01:08:28,960
what it ate, how it behaved,
how it reproduced,
1334
01:08:28,994 --> 01:08:32,127
all of the aspects of its life history.
1335
01:08:32,160 --> 01:08:35,094
Narrator: The precious skull
fragments are carefully packed up
1336
01:08:35,127 --> 01:08:38,094
and flown back to the museum
for analysis.
1337
01:08:39,727 --> 01:08:44,660
They are the clue to exactly
how and what titanoboa ate.
1338
01:08:44,694 --> 01:08:45,694
Head: Turn that around.
1339
01:08:45,727 --> 01:08:47,260
This piece of the jaw of titanoboa
1340
01:08:47,294 --> 01:08:50,060
corresponds to that part of
the jaw in a living snake.
1341
01:08:50,094 --> 01:08:51,960
Bloch: Wow, look at that,
yeah, right.
1342
01:08:51,994 --> 01:08:53,827
Narrator: Jon and Jason
fit the bone fragments
1343
01:08:53,860 --> 01:08:55,660
to positions on the skull.
1344
01:08:55,694 --> 01:08:58,227
Titanoboa's head begins to take shape.
1345
01:08:58,260 --> 01:08:59,627
Bloch:
Great, so that would be...
1346
01:08:59,660 --> 01:09:00,594
Boy, look at that.
1347
01:09:00,627 --> 01:09:03,294
So this jaw would have been,
1348
01:09:03,327 --> 01:09:05,027
there would have been
a little bit more on the front.
1349
01:09:05,060 --> 01:09:06,627
Head: The skull of this animal
would be about that long.
1350
01:09:06,660 --> 01:09:08,694
Bloch: Fantastic, and we have
some other pieces here, too.
1351
01:09:08,727 --> 01:09:10,060
Narrator: Even more important
1352
01:09:10,094 --> 01:09:12,594
than the huge size of titanoboa's head,
1353
01:09:12,627 --> 01:09:16,660
is how wide it can open its mouth.
1354
01:09:16,694 --> 01:09:19,660
Its gape determines what it can eat.
1355
01:09:19,694 --> 01:09:21,594
Head: They have these
very long lower jaws,
1356
01:09:21,627 --> 01:09:24,994
with the jaw joint suspended far
behind the back of the skull.
1357
01:09:25,027 --> 01:09:27,327
So when they open their mouths,
this jaw swings down
1358
01:09:27,360 --> 01:09:30,127
and gives them a very,
very, very wide gape.
1359
01:09:30,160 --> 01:09:30,827
Bloch: Okay.
1360
01:09:30,860 --> 01:09:32,094
And then it would have swung,
1361
01:09:32,127 --> 01:09:33,160
basically, at the back of the jaw.
1362
01:09:33,194 --> 01:09:34,227
Head: Exactly.
1363
01:09:34,260 --> 01:09:36,960
Bloch: It would have swung down.
Boy, look at that.
1364
01:09:36,994 --> 01:09:38,160
So how big?
1365
01:09:38,194 --> 01:09:40,127
Head: It would have had a gape,
probably about like that.
1366
01:09:40,160 --> 01:09:40,994
Bloch: At least, right?
1367
01:09:41,027 --> 01:09:42,660
Head: Yeah.
Bloch: Yeah.
1368
01:09:42,694 --> 01:09:44,694
Head: Now also the lower jaws
are actually separate,
1369
01:09:44,727 --> 01:09:47,194
so that when the lower jaws
open, when this swings down,
1370
01:09:47,227 --> 01:09:48,594
the lower jaws will actually spread
1371
01:09:48,627 --> 01:09:50,160
wide apart from each other.
1372
01:09:50,194 --> 01:09:53,560
So titanoboa could have
had a gape that wide.
1373
01:09:53,594 --> 01:09:58,627
Narrator: Even modern snakes display
appetites that defy belief.
1374
01:09:58,660 --> 01:10:01,560
In the everglades,
a large python once swallowed
1375
01:10:01,594 --> 01:10:04,227
an alligator as big as itself.
1376
01:10:04,260 --> 01:10:06,794
It didn't end well for either of them.
1377
01:10:06,827 --> 01:10:09,827
The snake exploded.
1378
01:10:09,860 --> 01:10:13,327
But prey like that
was easy meat for titanoboa.
1379
01:10:18,894 --> 01:10:22,227
In ancient Cerrejon,
there were monster meals
1380
01:10:22,260 --> 01:10:24,194
for a monster appetite.
1381
01:10:24,227 --> 01:10:27,194
The biggest lungfish, at 10 feet long,
1382
01:10:27,227 --> 01:10:30,594
a nice little entree.
1383
01:10:30,627 --> 01:10:34,760
The crocodiles,
15 feet long and powerful.
1384
01:10:34,794 --> 01:10:37,960
Satisfying as the main course.
1385
01:10:37,994 --> 01:10:40,560
Perhaps only one animal
would have been too big
1386
01:10:40,594 --> 01:10:43,594
for even titanoboa to consume...
1387
01:10:43,627 --> 01:10:46,227
The giant adult turtle.
1388
01:10:46,260 --> 01:10:48,594
Cadena: They've got
really thick shells,
1389
01:10:48,627 --> 01:10:52,594
and that means a lot of bone
for a snake to get, digest.
1390
01:10:52,627 --> 01:10:56,594
So it's really not a good idea
for a snake to get something
1391
01:10:56,627 --> 01:10:59,694
that is gonna stay in
your stomach for so long,
1392
01:10:59,727 --> 01:11:02,127
because it has so much bone on it.
1393
01:11:02,160 --> 01:11:04,860
So, for the largest turtles at Cerrejon,
1394
01:11:04,894 --> 01:11:07,094
they had so many chances to survive,
1395
01:11:07,127 --> 01:11:10,327
because the snakes probably
preferred to eat crocodiles
1396
01:11:10,360 --> 01:11:13,927
or other small animals.
1397
01:11:13,960 --> 01:11:16,294
Narrator: Titanoboa's ability
to swallow prey
1398
01:11:16,327 --> 01:11:20,060
so much bulkier than itself
is extraordinary,
1399
01:11:20,094 --> 01:11:24,160
and its solution,
the same as for all snakes.
1400
01:11:24,194 --> 01:11:26,860
Stephen: Once they're sort of
sensing that the prey's dead,
1401
01:11:26,894 --> 01:11:29,594
and they sort of figure out
where the head of the prey is,
1402
01:11:29,627 --> 01:11:32,227
and then they start to eat the prey.
1403
01:11:32,260 --> 01:11:33,827
Snakes, obviously, are not like people.
1404
01:11:33,860 --> 01:11:35,194
They don't have hands
1405
01:11:35,227 --> 01:11:37,660
that they can shovel food
down their throat.
1406
01:11:37,694 --> 01:11:40,694
They've got a left and a right jawbone.
1407
01:11:40,727 --> 01:11:42,760
So that degree of flexibility
1408
01:11:42,794 --> 01:11:45,594
enables them to eat much larger prey.
1409
01:11:45,627 --> 01:11:51,094
So they can almost walk their
jawbones across their prey.
1410
01:11:51,127 --> 01:11:54,927
And if you imagine a combination
of muscle contractions,
1411
01:11:54,960 --> 01:11:58,727
their recurved teeth, all help
sort of bring that prey
1412
01:11:58,760 --> 01:12:01,060
into their mouth and into their throat.
1413
01:12:01,094 --> 01:12:03,560
Narrator: Flexible ligaments
allow titanoboa
1414
01:12:03,594 --> 01:12:08,560
to stretch its jaw
wider and wider apart.
1415
01:12:08,594 --> 01:12:12,860
Little by little, it maneuvers
its jaws over the crocodile,
1416
01:12:12,894 --> 01:12:17,594
dragging it into its throat
and down into its stomach.
1417
01:12:25,927 --> 01:12:28,860
The next challenge is digesting.
1418
01:12:30,194 --> 01:12:33,127
Reinke: So this would be
whatever the snake last ate.
1419
01:12:33,160 --> 01:12:35,994
This is the stomach,
and we cut right through
1420
01:12:36,027 --> 01:12:39,260
in our cross section,
whatever the last prey item was.
1421
01:12:39,294 --> 01:12:43,060
So all this brown, gray,
hairy area is the prey,
1422
01:12:43,094 --> 01:12:44,994
and I'll cut open the stomach some more,
1423
01:12:45,027 --> 01:12:46,794
so we can...
1424
01:12:48,694 --> 01:12:50,094
...get a better view of him.
1425
01:12:50,127 --> 01:12:51,794
There we go.
1426
01:12:54,727 --> 01:12:56,660
Here's some ribs.
1427
01:12:56,694 --> 01:12:58,660
Rowe: Here's the tail.
1428
01:12:58,694 --> 01:12:59,994
Reinke: Oh, yeah.
1429
01:13:00,027 --> 01:13:02,827
Narrator: This snake's prey
was swallowed whole.
1430
01:13:02,860 --> 01:13:03,927
Reinke: Oh, is that the skull?
1431
01:13:03,960 --> 01:13:05,927
Rowe: That should be the skull.
1432
01:13:07,294 --> 01:13:09,027
That looks to be a rat.
1433
01:13:09,060 --> 01:13:10,294
Reinke: Yep.
1434
01:13:10,327 --> 01:13:12,194
Narrator: All the meat is
stripped from the rat,
1435
01:13:12,227 --> 01:13:14,760
even the bones will end up being eaten.
1436
01:13:14,794 --> 01:13:15,760
Rowe: Rather large rat.
1437
01:13:15,794 --> 01:13:17,627
Reinke: Yeah, very large rat.
1438
01:13:17,660 --> 01:13:19,260
I mean, you can see here,
1439
01:13:19,294 --> 01:13:21,927
there isn't really that much
fat or soft tissue anymore,
1440
01:13:21,960 --> 01:13:23,660
it's mostly the bones,
the connective tissue,
1441
01:13:23,694 --> 01:13:25,627
and a lot of the fur.
1442
01:13:25,660 --> 01:13:28,627
But all of it will be
broken down along the way.
1443
01:13:28,660 --> 01:13:31,127
Everything goes, it's pretty cool.
1444
01:13:45,294 --> 01:13:49,260
Narrator: For titanoboa,
the kill is the easy part.
1445
01:13:51,260 --> 01:13:56,560
The effort of constriction is
nothing to what comes next.
1446
01:13:56,594 --> 01:13:58,927
For titanoboa now has to digest
1447
01:13:58,960 --> 01:14:02,194
half a ton of
blunt-nosed crocodile...
1448
01:14:02,227 --> 01:14:05,860
Skin, bones, everything.
1449
01:14:05,894 --> 01:14:07,627
Its stomach stretches,
1450
01:14:07,660 --> 01:14:11,694
and its temperature rises from
the energy needed for digestion.
1451
01:14:11,727 --> 01:14:14,660
Hydrochloric acid fills the stomach,
1452
01:14:14,694 --> 01:14:18,594
slowly dissolving bone
and tissue to liquefy it.
1453
01:14:18,627 --> 01:14:21,760
It may be its only meal in a year.
1454
01:14:23,927 --> 01:14:27,760
With a skull found, titanoboa's
model maker Kevin Hockley
1455
01:14:27,794 --> 01:14:30,060
can complete his creation.
1456
01:14:32,027 --> 01:14:35,960
Shaping the head is
the most complex part.
1457
01:14:35,994 --> 01:14:41,027
This face has not been seen
on earth for 60 million years.
1458
01:14:41,060 --> 01:14:42,994
Hockley: I kind of have
a visual in my mind
1459
01:14:43,027 --> 01:14:45,627
of what the shape it's supposed to be,
1460
01:14:45,660 --> 01:14:47,794
and I arrive at that mental image
1461
01:14:47,827 --> 01:14:51,560
by going over
all my records and material
1462
01:14:51,594 --> 01:14:54,060
and try and picture it without
all the chunks on there,
1463
01:14:54,094 --> 01:14:55,327
and then just start whittling away
1464
01:14:55,360 --> 01:14:59,327
all the pieces that don't belong.
1465
01:14:59,360 --> 01:15:03,194
Narrator: The model maker is not just
conjuring an image of the snake,
1466
01:15:03,227 --> 01:15:05,927
he's creating the exact individual
1467
01:15:05,960 --> 01:15:07,660
from that initial vertebra,
1468
01:15:07,694 --> 01:15:11,827
based on the scientist's years of work.
1469
01:15:11,860 --> 01:15:16,994
A real 60-million-year-old
creature is coming back to life.
1470
01:15:17,027 --> 01:15:20,227
But one overriding mystery remains.
1471
01:15:20,260 --> 01:15:24,994
How on earth did it get so big
in the first place?
1472
01:15:25,027 --> 01:15:27,994
Bloch: Why aren't there snakes
that big today?
1473
01:15:28,027 --> 01:15:32,694
Why are they so large in
the past and not so large today?
1474
01:15:32,727 --> 01:15:35,694
What made titanoboa into a giant?
1475
01:15:37,360 --> 01:15:40,294
Narrator: What was it about
Cerrejon's lost world
1476
01:15:40,327 --> 01:15:42,194
that was so different?
1477
01:15:45,594 --> 01:15:47,027
Bloch: The first possibility
1478
01:15:47,060 --> 01:15:49,027
that we thought quite a bit about,
1479
01:15:49,060 --> 01:15:52,894
in terms of why titanoboa
would have been so large,
1480
01:15:52,927 --> 01:15:56,660
is that maybe what
it was eating was larger.
1481
01:15:56,694 --> 01:16:01,227
Narrator: Cerrejon was not just
a water world of giant snakes,
1482
01:16:01,260 --> 01:16:04,160
there were giant crocodiles,
turtles and fish,
1483
01:16:04,194 --> 01:16:08,694
a food chain of monsters
to be eaten by monsters.
1484
01:16:12,594 --> 01:16:13,994
And the skull bones of titanoboa
1485
01:16:14,027 --> 01:16:18,294
prove that its gape was big
enough to eat almost anything.
1486
01:16:21,194 --> 01:16:25,894
But why were all these animals
so big in the first place?
1487
01:16:25,927 --> 01:16:29,960
One answer is emerging...
Temperature.
1488
01:16:29,994 --> 01:16:33,927
Mammals are warmed by the energy
they get from food.
1489
01:16:36,094 --> 01:16:40,860
Snakes and other reptiles,
which are cold-blooded, are not.
1490
01:16:40,894 --> 01:16:43,660
Instead, their body temperature
is controlled
1491
01:16:43,694 --> 01:16:45,660
by the climate around them.
1492
01:16:48,894 --> 01:16:52,027
In Venezuela, Jesus Rivas
has been experimenting
1493
01:16:52,060 --> 01:16:54,660
with anacondas to show how this works.
1494
01:16:54,694 --> 01:16:55,594
Rivas: We need a transmitter.
1495
01:16:55,627 --> 01:16:58,694
Woman: Which one is that?
1496
01:16:58,727 --> 01:17:00,027
Narrator: He uses a transmitter
1497
01:17:00,060 --> 01:17:02,794
to keep record of
the snake's body temperature.
1498
01:17:04,827 --> 01:17:06,627
Rivas: This is a transmitter
we're gonna give her.
1499
01:17:06,660 --> 01:17:11,727
It has a temperature sensor
encapsulated in the resin.
1500
01:17:12,994 --> 01:17:16,127
It's a small thing,
it looks a little rough,
1501
01:17:16,160 --> 01:17:19,627
but beware that she can swallow
a full-grown caiman,
1502
01:17:19,660 --> 01:17:22,627
so this is not even a snack.
1503
01:17:22,660 --> 01:17:24,027
Come on, girl.
1504
01:17:25,694 --> 01:17:28,127
I knew you were going to do that.
1505
01:17:28,160 --> 01:17:29,660
Yes, that was.
1506
01:17:29,694 --> 01:17:31,927
It's difficult to overcome her muscles
1507
01:17:31,960 --> 01:17:33,594
and get it far enough down.
1508
01:17:33,627 --> 01:17:37,260
But I think now the transmitter,
1509
01:17:37,294 --> 01:17:38,760
I feel it all the way here,
1510
01:17:38,794 --> 01:17:42,694
so I think it's deep enough now
that it should be okay.
1511
01:17:44,194 --> 01:17:45,694
Okay.
1512
01:17:53,627 --> 01:17:54,694
Good girl.
1513
01:17:54,727 --> 01:17:56,160
Narrator:
With the radio transmission,
1514
01:17:56,194 --> 01:18:00,560
Jesus can trace his anacondas
over years of life.
1515
01:18:00,594 --> 01:18:02,560
Man: Look at her.
1516
01:18:02,594 --> 01:18:04,794
Get a picture, Roseanne, if you can.
1517
01:18:04,827 --> 01:18:06,627
Rivas: Beautiful girl.
1518
01:18:06,660 --> 01:18:08,994
That's the best part of
working with snakes,
1519
01:18:09,027 --> 01:18:11,860
letting them go and
seeing them swim away.
1520
01:18:11,894 --> 01:18:13,327
Narrator:
Jesus' measurements show
1521
01:18:13,360 --> 01:18:16,027
the snake's body temperature
goes up and down,
1522
01:18:16,060 --> 01:18:18,994
in a way that matches with
extraordinary precision
1523
01:18:19,027 --> 01:18:22,527
the changing temperature
of the world they live in.
1524
01:18:23,994 --> 01:18:25,860
And it's temperature that determines
1525
01:18:25,894 --> 01:18:28,827
how big a snake can grow.
1526
01:18:30,694 --> 01:18:32,227
Head: In order for
a cold-blooded animal
1527
01:18:32,260 --> 01:18:33,627
to reach a certain size,
1528
01:18:33,660 --> 01:18:36,694
the bigger they get,
the more warmth they need.
1529
01:18:36,727 --> 01:18:41,227
So, to get a big snake, what you
need are very hot environments.
1530
01:18:41,260 --> 01:18:43,694
Narrator: The distribution of
snakes in today's world
1531
01:18:43,727 --> 01:18:48,760
shows the direct correlation
between temperature and size.
1532
01:18:48,794 --> 01:18:50,794
In mild climates like Great Britain,
1533
01:18:50,827 --> 01:18:54,027
there's nothing bigger than
a six-foot grass snake.
1534
01:18:56,627 --> 01:18:58,360
In the central United States,
1535
01:18:58,394 --> 01:19:02,227
gopher snakes at eight feet
are the largest.
1536
01:19:02,260 --> 01:19:04,694
And in the heat of the Amazon basin,
1537
01:19:04,727 --> 01:19:08,894
there is the anaconda,
up to 25 feet long.
1538
01:19:08,927 --> 01:19:11,927
In the modern world,
that's about the limit.
1539
01:19:13,327 --> 01:19:15,227
Head: In cold-blooded animals,
the ultimate regulator
1540
01:19:15,260 --> 01:19:18,660
is always going to be climate,
it's gonna be temperature.
1541
01:19:18,694 --> 01:19:20,827
Narrator: Titanoboa's size
is evidence
1542
01:19:20,860 --> 01:19:24,660
of a hotter temperature,
60 million years ago.
1543
01:19:27,827 --> 01:19:30,127
There's further support
for a warmer climate,
1544
01:19:30,160 --> 01:19:33,027
from a much tinier piece of evidence.
1545
01:19:35,060 --> 01:19:36,960
The humble leaf.
1546
01:19:43,160 --> 01:19:46,260
A decade ago, fabiany Herrera discovered
1547
01:19:46,294 --> 01:19:49,927
the very first leaf fossil
1548
01:19:49,960 --> 01:19:53,694
that revealed the lost rainforest
1549
01:19:53,727 --> 01:19:56,960
that led to titanoboa.
1550
01:19:56,994 --> 01:20:00,760
Ever since, he's been scouring
the area around Cerrejon,
1551
01:20:00,794 --> 01:20:03,894
comparing present with past.
1552
01:20:03,927 --> 01:20:06,094
Herrera: The fossil plants that
we're finding on Cerrejon
1553
01:20:06,127 --> 01:20:07,227
are extremely similar
1554
01:20:07,260 --> 01:20:09,927
to the plants that we see today
in modern rainforests
1555
01:20:09,960 --> 01:20:12,627
in South or central America.
1556
01:20:12,660 --> 01:20:14,094
Some of the plants that we have today,
1557
01:20:14,127 --> 01:20:16,760
that are present at Cerrejon
60 million years ago,
1558
01:20:16,794 --> 01:20:19,760
are the legume family
or the bean family.
1559
01:20:19,794 --> 01:20:23,860
We also had the chocolate
family, the banana family,
1560
01:20:23,894 --> 01:20:26,794
the palm family, the avocado family.
1561
01:20:26,827 --> 01:20:28,160
All the ones that you see today
1562
01:20:28,194 --> 01:20:32,127
in modern rainforests in South America.
1563
01:20:32,160 --> 01:20:36,060
Narrator: A plant's leaves are
a way of measuring temperature.
1564
01:20:36,094 --> 01:20:40,160
The edge is where
a leaf loses vital water.
1565
01:20:40,194 --> 01:20:44,060
In hotter climates, it needs
that water more than ever.
1566
01:20:45,894 --> 01:20:49,627
Leaves with smooth edges lose
less water to evaporation
1567
01:20:49,660 --> 01:20:51,827
than leaves with jagged edges.
1568
01:20:53,727 --> 01:20:56,560
The higher the proportion
of smooth-leaved species,
1569
01:20:56,594 --> 01:20:58,560
the hotter the climate.
1570
01:20:58,594 --> 01:21:00,027
Herrera: What we are
finding at Cerrejon
1571
01:21:00,060 --> 01:21:02,994
is that even more of the species
have the smooth edges,
1572
01:21:03,027 --> 01:21:06,227
and that indicates a higher
or a hotter temperature
1573
01:21:06,260 --> 01:21:09,060
60 million years ago.
1574
01:21:09,094 --> 01:21:11,027
Narrator: For Jon Bloch
and Jason head,
1575
01:21:11,060 --> 01:21:13,360
as they near the end of
this part of their journey
1576
01:21:13,394 --> 01:21:15,760
into Cerrejon's lost world,
1577
01:21:15,794 --> 01:21:18,094
this research on temperature
has produced
1578
01:21:18,127 --> 01:21:21,194
a fascinating byproduct.
1579
01:21:21,227 --> 01:21:26,327
There's a limit to how high
a temperature leaves can show.
1580
01:21:26,360 --> 01:21:30,260
But they believe that the size
of titanoboa may be able to show
1581
01:21:30,294 --> 01:21:34,694
how hot the lost world
of Cerrejon really was.
1582
01:21:34,727 --> 01:21:36,860
Bloch: We use titanoboa
as a thermometer
1583
01:21:36,894 --> 01:21:40,360
that we dipped into the past
to tell the temperature.
1584
01:21:40,394 --> 01:21:44,360
It provided us with a new way of
telling temperature in the past
1585
01:21:44,394 --> 01:21:47,260
that had not been used before.
1586
01:21:47,294 --> 01:21:48,694
Narrator:
They've calculated that
1587
01:21:48,727 --> 01:21:51,194
titanoboa can only have grown so big
1588
01:21:51,227 --> 01:21:54,560
at a rainforest temperature
60 million years ago
1589
01:21:54,594 --> 01:21:59,594
significantly higher than
in the rainforest of today.
1590
01:21:59,627 --> 01:22:01,027
Head: Our estimates
are basically
1591
01:22:01,060 --> 01:22:06,560
between about 29 to somewhere
of 33, 34 degrees.
1592
01:22:06,594 --> 01:22:09,727
Narrator: That's a range
of 84 to 93 Fahrenheit,
1593
01:22:09,760 --> 01:22:11,594
average annual temperature.
1594
01:22:11,627 --> 01:22:14,760
At times, it must have
soared far higher.
1595
01:22:16,194 --> 01:22:19,894
It's a piece of research with
intriguing implications.
1596
01:22:19,927 --> 01:22:22,960
It suggests that 60 million years ago
1597
01:22:22,994 --> 01:22:25,227
the rainforest of Cerrejon thrived
1598
01:22:25,260 --> 01:22:26,960
at a very high temperature,
1599
01:22:26,994 --> 01:22:29,927
which, according to some of
today's computer models,
1600
01:22:29,960 --> 01:22:33,127
would kill off its plants.
1601
01:22:33,160 --> 01:22:36,294
So Cerrejon appears to show
that global warming
1602
01:22:36,327 --> 01:22:39,827
won't necessarily destroy
the rainforest.
1603
01:22:41,127 --> 01:22:44,160
But could it lead to much bigger snakes?
1604
01:22:44,194 --> 01:22:48,027
Could titanoboa itself make a comeback?
1605
01:22:48,060 --> 01:22:49,660
Bloch:
It's theoretically possible.
1606
01:22:49,694 --> 01:22:51,260
Something like an anaconda, for example,
1607
01:22:51,294 --> 01:22:53,627
could become as large as titanoboa
1608
01:22:53,660 --> 01:22:59,127
if the temperature on the planet
were to become that warm again.
1609
01:22:59,160 --> 01:23:02,794
Narrator: The future remains
speculation.
1610
01:23:02,827 --> 01:23:06,127
The reality of the past
is that, in the end,
1611
01:23:06,160 --> 01:23:08,627
titanoboa disappeared.
1612
01:23:08,660 --> 01:23:12,827
Whether cooling temperatures
or something else killed it off
1613
01:23:12,860 --> 01:23:16,627
remains the subject of ongoing research.
1614
01:23:16,660 --> 01:23:18,960
And soon, the seam of coal at Cerrejon
1615
01:23:18,994 --> 01:23:21,160
that allowed it to be rediscovered
1616
01:23:21,194 --> 01:23:22,894
will disappear, too,
1617
01:23:22,927 --> 01:23:26,827
as the diggers move down
to the next layer.
1618
01:23:26,860 --> 01:23:28,560
Bloch: So, on one hand,
that's sad,
1619
01:23:28,594 --> 01:23:30,860
on the other hand, we have
a big sample from this slope,
1620
01:23:30,894 --> 01:23:33,560
so I think we've done pretty well.
1621
01:23:33,594 --> 01:23:36,327
I'm pretty happy that the mine
is continuing to work,
1622
01:23:36,360 --> 01:23:39,660
because it's going to expose
all kinds of new layers,
1623
01:23:39,694 --> 01:23:41,294
and I'm ready to see what else is there.
1624
01:23:41,327 --> 01:23:42,927
So I say bring it on.
1625
01:23:42,960 --> 01:23:44,760
Take out the slope
and open up some more,
1626
01:23:44,794 --> 01:23:47,260
so we can see what else is there.
1627
01:23:47,294 --> 01:23:48,660
Narrator: But before it goes,
1628
01:23:48,694 --> 01:23:52,194
there's a last twist from Cerrejon.
1629
01:23:52,227 --> 01:23:54,927
The fossils are starting to
hint that there was something
1630
01:23:54,960 --> 01:24:00,127
in its lost water world
to rival even titanoboa.
1631
01:24:00,160 --> 01:24:03,660
On this huge turtle shell
are the bite marks
1632
01:24:03,694 --> 01:24:07,260
of truly enormous teeth.
1633
01:24:07,294 --> 01:24:10,660
They don't match
titanoboa's dental records.
1634
01:24:11,927 --> 01:24:14,594
And this turtle was probably too wide
1635
01:24:14,627 --> 01:24:17,660
for even titanoboa to swallow.
1636
01:24:19,227 --> 01:24:20,927
They look like croc teeth,
1637
01:24:20,960 --> 01:24:23,127
but most of the croc bones so far found
1638
01:24:23,160 --> 01:24:26,960
aren't big enough to
take on a giant turtle.
1639
01:24:26,994 --> 01:24:30,694
This new bone suggests
another colossal predator,
1640
01:24:30,727 --> 01:24:33,727
nearly as big as titanoboa itself.
1641
01:24:33,760 --> 01:24:36,194
But this one, a crocodile.
1642
01:24:36,227 --> 01:24:37,827
Hastings: So we have
a single vertebra
1643
01:24:37,860 --> 01:24:40,027
from a 13-meter individual.
1644
01:24:40,060 --> 01:24:41,760
Lengthwise, it would have been
a little bit shorter
1645
01:24:41,794 --> 01:24:44,027
than a full-grown titanoboa,
1646
01:24:44,060 --> 01:24:45,227
but still very closely related
1647
01:24:45,260 --> 01:24:46,994
to the other crocodiles of this site,
1648
01:24:47,027 --> 01:24:50,194
based on overall morphology and shape.
1649
01:24:50,227 --> 01:24:53,694
Here we have a large
saltwater crocodile vertebra.
1650
01:24:53,727 --> 01:24:54,827
This is from
a 14-foot individual,
1651
01:24:54,860 --> 01:24:57,960
which is towards the upper bound
of saltwater crocodiles.
1652
01:24:57,994 --> 01:24:59,594
You have the same basic elements,
1653
01:24:59,627 --> 01:25:00,394
this is where it articulates
1654
01:25:00,427 --> 01:25:02,860
with the rest of the skeleton here.
1655
01:25:02,894 --> 01:25:05,994
The comparison in size
is just ridiculous.
1656
01:25:06,027 --> 01:25:08,694
This is a duck-billed dinosaur
vertebra.
1657
01:25:08,727 --> 01:25:10,127
Same element from the body
1658
01:25:10,160 --> 01:25:11,860
of roughly
an elephant-sized animal,
1659
01:25:11,894 --> 01:25:13,760
at least in weight and girth.
1660
01:25:13,794 --> 01:25:16,094
We're dealing with
a very, very large crocodile
1661
01:25:16,127 --> 01:25:19,260
that was roaming around in Cerrejon.
1662
01:25:19,294 --> 01:25:20,694
Narrator: At 40 feet,
1663
01:25:20,727 --> 01:25:24,627
this is among the biggest
crocodiles ever found.
1664
01:25:24,660 --> 01:25:28,260
This new crocodile species
is on such an epic scale,
1665
01:25:28,294 --> 01:25:32,594
it could even give titanoboa
a fight for its life.
1666
01:25:34,960 --> 01:25:37,027
Any snake, even the largest,
1667
01:25:37,060 --> 01:25:41,360
is at its most vulnerable
when digesting a big meal.
1668
01:25:41,394 --> 01:25:43,894
Bloated by the smaller croc inside her,
1669
01:25:43,927 --> 01:25:48,194
titanoboa is a tempting target
for a super croc.
1670
01:25:50,927 --> 01:25:54,927
But she has an unexpected
defense mechanism.
1671
01:25:54,960 --> 01:25:56,827
She regurgitates her meal,
1672
01:25:56,860 --> 01:26:00,560
to focus all her energy on the enemy.
1673
01:26:06,627 --> 01:26:07,960
In the croc's death grip,
1674
01:26:07,994 --> 01:26:11,727
she retaliates by
throwing coils around it.
1675
01:26:20,327 --> 01:26:23,660
Exerting a pressure of
400 pounds per square inch,
1676
01:26:23,694 --> 01:26:26,560
this ultimate constrictor
squeezes the life
1677
01:26:26,594 --> 01:26:31,060
out of her biggest rival
in Cerrejon's lost world.
1678
01:26:47,694 --> 01:26:50,627
And now, 60 million years later,
1679
01:26:50,660 --> 01:26:55,227
it's time for the scientists
to meet her face to face.
1680
01:26:57,694 --> 01:26:59,794
After five years loan for research,
1681
01:26:59,827 --> 01:27:04,160
the Cerrejon fossils will soon
be returned to Colombia.
1682
01:27:04,194 --> 01:27:09,994
And in their place, a new vision
of titanoboa is about to emerge.
1683
01:27:11,627 --> 01:27:13,294
Jon Bloch and Jason head,
1684
01:27:13,327 --> 01:27:17,160
experts in the prehistoric world
titanoboa inhabited,
1685
01:27:17,194 --> 01:27:20,794
are finally going to meet
their discovery for real.
1686
01:27:22,360 --> 01:27:26,860
The life-sized model
is ready to view.
1687
01:27:26,894 --> 01:27:28,027
Head: We've been talking about
1688
01:27:28,060 --> 01:27:30,160
how big this animal was for so long,
1689
01:27:30,194 --> 01:27:32,327
and we've marched out
how long it would look,
1690
01:27:32,360 --> 01:27:36,327
and we've made estimations
of its volume and its size,
1691
01:27:36,360 --> 01:27:38,127
but now we can actually see
1692
01:27:38,160 --> 01:27:40,194
a reconstruction sample
filling the space.
1693
01:27:40,227 --> 01:27:41,427
Bloch: Yeah.
1694
01:27:41,460 --> 01:27:43,860
Head: We can really get a sense
of how big this animal was.
1695
01:27:43,894 --> 01:27:45,727
Bloch: I hope it'll be
scaled correctly,
1696
01:27:45,760 --> 01:27:47,927
and it'll give people an opportunity
1697
01:27:47,960 --> 01:27:49,660
to really stand next to this thing
1698
01:27:49,694 --> 01:27:52,994
and really understand, you know,
how much bigger and strange
1699
01:27:53,027 --> 01:27:54,327
this snake would have been
1700
01:27:54,360 --> 01:27:56,294
than anything that is
on the planet today.
1701
01:27:56,327 --> 01:27:57,927
Head: Yeah, that's right.
1702
01:27:57,960 --> 01:28:00,760
Narrator: If the model passes
the scientists' scrutiny,
1703
01:28:00,794 --> 01:28:04,060
titanoboa will go on a world tour.
1704
01:28:11,727 --> 01:28:12,560
Hockley: Come on, guys.
1705
01:28:12,594 --> 01:28:13,827
Head: Okay.
1706
01:28:15,260 --> 01:28:17,194
Bloch: Oh, my God.
1707
01:28:18,594 --> 01:28:19,560
Wow.
1708
01:28:19,594 --> 01:28:21,627
Head: Wow.
1709
01:28:21,660 --> 01:28:23,594
Bloch: Look at that.
1710
01:28:32,094 --> 01:28:33,294
Holy cow.
1711
01:28:33,327 --> 01:28:35,727
Head: Gorgeous.
1712
01:28:35,760 --> 01:28:36,927
Bloch: So the coloration
1713
01:28:36,960 --> 01:28:39,694
you modeled after an anaconda, kind of?
1714
01:28:39,727 --> 01:28:40,927
Hockley: It started to blend.
1715
01:28:40,960 --> 01:28:43,960
Jason requested that I treat
with boa constrictor patterning
1716
01:28:43,994 --> 01:28:46,827
and the anaconda background.
1717
01:28:46,860 --> 01:28:48,860
Bloch: Yeah, wow, it's amazing.
1718
01:28:48,894 --> 01:28:50,160
Head: It's beautiful.
1719
01:28:50,194 --> 01:28:51,260
Hockley: Well, thanks.
1720
01:28:51,294 --> 01:28:53,027
Narrator: It's extraordinary
to think
1721
01:28:53,060 --> 01:28:57,094
that this is the actual creature
derived from the single vertebra
1722
01:28:57,127 --> 01:29:00,627
that began this journey of discovery.
1723
01:29:00,660 --> 01:29:03,627
And there's one last
snake secret revealed
1724
01:29:03,660 --> 01:29:07,694
in the way hockley has
modeled the replica.
1725
01:29:07,727 --> 01:29:10,360
Titanoboa probably used gravity
1726
01:29:10,394 --> 01:29:15,027
to help move its enormous prey
down its throat.
1727
01:29:15,060 --> 01:29:18,594
He's captured that
in all its grotesque detail,
1728
01:29:18,627 --> 01:29:20,594
in this massive model.
1729
01:29:22,060 --> 01:29:23,594
Bloch: Wow.
1730
01:29:23,627 --> 01:29:25,927
That's incredible.
1731
01:29:25,960 --> 01:29:29,294
Yeah, the scale is really amazing.
1732
01:29:29,327 --> 01:29:30,994
Head: The scale that
it's portrayed at
1733
01:29:31,027 --> 01:29:34,627
really brings the tremendous
size of this animal home.
1734
01:29:34,660 --> 01:29:39,627
It's mind boggling to think of
a living snake that large,
1735
01:29:39,660 --> 01:29:42,327
moving through an environment.
1736
01:29:42,360 --> 01:29:45,094
To really see it in its color,
1737
01:29:45,127 --> 01:29:47,294
with the skin and the muscle
underneath it
1738
01:29:47,327 --> 01:29:50,794
and in this lifelike pose,
really for the first time
1739
01:29:50,827 --> 01:29:53,627
in the whole time I've been
working on titanoboa,
1740
01:29:53,660 --> 01:29:57,194
really gives me an appreciation
for it as an animal.
1741
01:29:59,027 --> 01:30:01,827
Bloch: We're really at the point
now where the snake has grown up
1742
01:30:01,860 --> 01:30:04,194
and we're giving away what we know,
1743
01:30:04,227 --> 01:30:07,194
essentially giving
titanoboa to the world.
1744
01:30:10,227 --> 01:30:14,694
Narrator: Today, all that's left
of titanoboa's lush world
1745
01:30:14,727 --> 01:30:17,094
is this barren landscape,
1746
01:30:17,127 --> 01:30:20,027
the vast Cerrejon mine.
1747
01:30:20,060 --> 01:30:24,227
But it's our window onto
a world of super crocodiles
1748
01:30:24,260 --> 01:30:27,060
the size of small trucks
1749
01:30:27,094 --> 01:30:30,194
and turtles the size of bears.
1750
01:30:31,727 --> 01:30:34,594
Here among trees that are now coal,
1751
01:30:34,627 --> 01:30:37,194
titanoboa reigns supreme,
1752
01:30:37,227 --> 01:30:40,894
queen of the ancient
tropical rainforest.
1753
01:30:42,760 --> 01:30:46,660
In her domain, she hunts down her prey.
1754
01:30:48,894 --> 01:30:51,794
She mates and gives birth.
1755
01:30:52,894 --> 01:30:56,394
She fights off other ancient monsters.
1756
01:31:00,127 --> 01:31:04,894
Then, one day, her reign is over.
1757
01:31:08,160 --> 01:31:10,560
And she disappears...
1758
01:31:12,627 --> 01:31:15,527
...for 60 million years.
1758
01:31:16,305 --> 01:31:22,154
Support us and become VIP member
to remove all ads from www.OpenSubtitles.org
140041
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.