Original subtitles

[thunderous ocean roar]

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- [distant chanting] - [drums pounding]

[chanting continues]

[thunder crashing]

[man] We are attracted to places where people spend their evenings dancing

and telling stories rather than watching TV.

Where there's a possibility to discover underwater cliffs

that have yet to be explored.

Papua New Guinea,

an island with the second widest variety of animal species and ethnic groups,

is just such a place,

a destination that could make our dreams come true.

[birds tweeting softly]

[woman] There are two of us traveling: Libor and myself.

This way we are accepted more readily by the locals.

In a canoe made from a sago palm,

they take us around the settlements in the Tufi region

to give us a glimpse of their lifestyle in the jungle.

Ah!

[insects chirping]

[tapping]

[tapping]

[blowing]

[fire crackling]

[man] This is how flour-like batter is made from the sago palm trunk.

First the pulp is scooped out, mashed and rinsed out with river water.

Then it is hammered with a big club until the starch is released.

There is a net at the end of the canal to catch the fiber,

while the water and starch run into a wash tub,

where the starch settles at the bottom.

[overlapping conversations]

[fire crackling]

[woman] The dough is heated in fire, where it stiffens, holding its shape.

Then you can use it to make pancakes, dumplings or sweet pudding.

You can even use palm leaves as a bag to easily carry the dough around.

And now he's tying it up with the rope.

[chatting indistinctly]

[man] This will take about a month.

[woman] Sago flour is an ingredient in most dishes,

so it can be bartered for other necessities.

[soft rhythmic music playing]

[woman] We may be revealing an old magic trick,

but this boy has string between his feet.

[distant chirping]

[soft rhythmic music continues]

[man] We thought about how we should celebrate New Year's,

but in the end the locals solved it for us.

They invited us to a big feast.

People from several villages in the Tufi region meet every year

to maintain good relationships, gossip

and give the young ones a chance to meet.

Until recently, they didn't even have a clue they had neighbors.

Now, neighbors cook together with shared ingredients and pots.

Petra doesn't feel like cooking today,

and so she decided instead to record the preparations.

[woman] Ah, so these are probably the sago palm pancakes.

And here you can smell the sprouts...

and batatas, sweet potatoes...

Mmm...

[laughs]

[overlapping conversations]

[indistinct shouting]

[man] Papuan pig is used as currency.

With it they pay for brides, resolve conflicts,

and, moreover, the currency doesn't fluctuate.

Tonight the pig will be the highlight of the feast.

[drums pounding]

[chanting]

[all chanting]

[man] Every tribe has its own original body decoration

and their own unique dance called "sing sing."

The dance serves multiple purposes.

It can induce a trance which is necessary to communicate with the ghosts,

as a psychological preparation for war,

but mainly to show off in front of potential partners.

[chanting]

[woman] The birds of paradise and parrots' feathers look simply great,

but it's an ornithologist's nightmare,

because a single headband is made from the feathers of ten or more birds.

[chanting continues]

[ambient music playing]

[man] We couldn't wait to dive.

Nowhere else can you find such a variety of species on a single coral reef.

[ambient music continues]

[woman] To increase his chance of survival,

the lionfish uses a number of strategies to lure its prey,

camouflage itself from other predators,

to find a mate or just to have a peaceful sleep.

[ambient music continues]

[man] Something moves under my hand... a sea snake.

One of the most venomous snakes in the world,

it is very well equipped to defend itself against potential predators.

[woman] The clownfish are quite unprotected,

but find sanctuary in the venomous tentacles of anemones.

In return they keep their poisonous home clean,

an amenable deal for both parties.

[ambient music continues]

[man] Sea creatures' physical appearances not only protect them,

it lures some while threatening others.

It relays information about which species they belong to,

even communicating information about their health or what mood they're in.

The colorful commotion on the cliff

is something like thousands of tiny creatures

shouting over each other without words.

[water laps gently]

[wind blowing]

[woman] Fortunately, we don't have to learn the 848 indigenous languages

to be able to understand the locals.

English has been taught in schools since the 1970s.

[man] New Guinea is the second biggest island in the world,

in the region of Melanesia not far from the northern shores of Australia.

Today it is politically divided.

The western part is claimed by Indonesia,

the eastern half is Papua New Guinea.

[water laps softly]

[eerie music playing]

[man] During dusk, the second shift gets busy on the cliff.

While the day shift prepares for sleep, night predators start their hunt for food.

The ragged nudibranches, as well as the big cauliflower nudibranch,

are specialists at using toxins.

They are not ashamed to expose their colorful bodies.

It is a statement to the world around them:

"I am poisonous and definitely not edible."

[woman] Squid are cephalopods and they have a rich wardrobe.

They change their color not only because of the camouflage,

but also in, so to speak, social situations.

This fashion show is a result of evolution.

While vertebrates were equipped with hard shells,

the cephalopods relied on their intelligence

and ability to use camouflage.

[eerie music continues]

[man] The octopus is the most intelligent of cephalopods.

It has the biggest brain,

but the majority of their neurons are actually in their tentacles.

Moreover, each tentacle thinks independently.

The ornate ghost pipefish has its way of how not to became easy prey.

The see-through youngster turns into a very colorful adult

as it imitates the branch of a sea whip.

[eerie music continues]

[man] The sea cucumber entirely imitates the anthozoa.

It catches plankton

and, with its graceful tentacles, puts them directly into its belly.

It's a way to hide as well.

[gentle music playing]

[woman] One of the most eccentric fish, the frogfish,

uses its little fins for walking.

It catches other fish with an illicium above its mouth,

which resembles a fishing rod and a lure.

The spiny lobster has two long antennas for protection

and two shorter ones to detect movement

and for chemical analysis of the water.

[gentle music continues]

[man] Our strategy to get the best pictures and remain unharmed,

was to get a good guide.

Even though we don't have to be afraid of cannibalism like the first missionaries,

it is good to be with somebody who is respected in the local community

and familiar with their cuisine.

Sepik, the longest river on the island.

We take it upstream to visit remote tribes famous for their traditional art.

They worship the crocodile.

According to a legend, the crocodiles in ancient times

migrated up the Sepik river and created the human population.

[chattering in the distance]

[man] Winding over a thousand kilometers,

the region around Sepik River is a living anthropological museum.

More than 300 languages are spoken here,

and it is one of the most remote areas of the country.

[boat engine humming]

[woman] Even though Christianity is the official religion,

locals preserve their customs and beliefs.

Most villages have the spirit house, Haus Tambaran,

which can be entered only by devout men.

But the souls of ancestors are believed to rest here.

After the chief's approval, I can enter the house,

something that's impossible for local women.

[tense music playing]

[man] The wood carvers, creators of wooden statues,

are highly respected here.

Filip is taking us to see one of them.

Peturus has his own style.

He learned his craft from his father, just like his forefathers before him.

[muffled conversations]

[talking indistinctly]

[talking indistinctly]

[woman] Various pigments are produced from different shades of the soil here.

They can be used to decorate statues or as body colors.

- [drums beating] - [people singing]

- [blows horn] - [drum beating fades]

[people singing]

[drums beating]

[man] Chewing betel nut is a part of everyday life.

It produces a mild euphoria and suppresses hunger and fatigue.

The poor condition of the majority of the local inhabitants' teeth

are proof of its popularity.

[singing fades out]

[insects chirping]

[woman] After dusk, life in the wilderness quiets down a bit.

That's why any opportunity to dance

is preferred to chewing betel in the dark house.

[people singing]

[drums beating]

- [people singing] - [drums pounding fast]

[ambient music playing]

[man] We dive near the capital, Port Moresby.

It played an important role in World War II.

The Japanese invaded it to obtain a strategic position to attack Australia.

Without an Allied victory here, history might have gone a different way.

[woman] Both sides of the conflict left several plane and shipwrecks

near Loloata island.

Today, these sunken machines of war are only armed with poisonous scorpionfish.

Despite the foreboding atmosphere,

diving among the various organisms living in this darkness

is an unbelievable experience.

[somber music playing]

[somber music continues]

[somber music continues]

[man] The MV New Marine shipwreck

offers us more than remnants of complicated human history.

A new kind of pigmy seahorse has been discovered on its foreship.

Searching for this tiny creature is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Hidden 35 meters under the foreship,

it reveals itself with the wink of an eye.

[somber music continues]

[somber music continues]

[woman] Visitors from "advanced civilization"

left their relicts in the jungle, too.

These relics will take centuries to disappear,

quite the opposite of traditional life on the island.

[soft rhythmic music playing]

[soft rhythmic music continues]

[man] The vast majority of people here work as farmers.

The main crop is palm oil.

Climate conditions are favorable,

the soil is fertile and droughts are very rare.

[birds chirping]

Traditional farming with minimal amount of fertilizers

produces organic food which is in high demand not just locally,

but internationally as well.

[woman] But massive demands cannot be reached

without cutting down huge swaths of forest, creating new plantations.

This type of farming threatens the lush natural beauty of the island.

[ethereal music playing]

[man] After long negotiations with our guides,

we were granted permission to observe the secret initiation ceremony

of the crocodile men.

The transformation of a boy into man takes three months.

During this time, they are isolated from the rest of the village

and they are subjected to various tests.

Tomorrow's painful ceremony will be the hardest part.

[boat engine humming softly]

[woman] We will be the first foreigners allowed

to record the ceremony in Maramba

and I will be the first woman allowed to witness it.

[birds tweeting]

[man] There is no other way.

The generator and all of our supplies must go with us.

[man chanting]

[all chanting]

[man chanting]

[all chanting]

[drums pounding]

[man] The dance of the crocodile.

The last man is impersonating its tail.

The ceremony starts at five in the afternoon and ends at night.

Everybody takes part.

Thirteen boys are given "magic" herb beverage

with slightly dazing effects.

- [festive singing] - [drums pounding]

[woman] Half past five in the morning.

The boys are waiting to be allowed to enter the spirit house,

where only adult men who have gone through the crocodile ceremony are admitted.

[incoherent shouting]

[celebratory shouts]

[muffled conversations]

[woman] Boys are given a package with bamboo sticks,

whose sharp edges were used for cutting till last century.

Today they use razors.

[chattering]

[chattering]

[man] Each boy is guided through the ceremony by his uncle,

who makes the ritual marks on him.

[somber music playing]

[overlapping conversations]

[man] The scars after cutting wounds represent crocodile teeth

which consume the adolescence

and turn the boys into strong crocodile men.

They are chewing ginger to relieve the pain.

It takes an endless two hours.

They are convinced that the experience of pain

will help them face hardship in their adult life.

[somber music continues]

[muffled conversations]

[drums beating]

[indistinct chattering]

[woman] The wounds are coated with gwat tree oil

with anti-inflammatory effects.

[overlapping conversations]

[man] They will stay in the sprit house for several weeks,

separated from their families.

During this time, the wounds will be coated with clay

which causes the scars to raise and be visible for the rest of their lives.

[muffled conversations]

[water laps gently]

[gentle music playing]

[birds calling in the distance]

[serene music playing]

[woman] Libor is wearing a necklace with a sea turtle.

He fell in love with them and they don't feel threatened in his presence.

No wonder he got lost with this big green sea turtle for such a long time.

[serene music continues]

[woman] By its camouflage and nonchalant behavior

we can tell we've encountered a dangerous character.

The leaf scorpionfish can suck its prey into his mouth

and it is very poisonous.

Did we manage to annoy it?

[dreamy music playing]

[man] What the eyes can't see, the teeth can't bite.

That should be the golden rule of this underwater world.

The cuttlefish, just like other ammonoids, is the master of illusion.

Cells on the surface of its body reflect its surroundings.

On top of that, it can change colors based on observing its surroundings.

It consciously sends signals to its pigment areas,

which change the color of the skin.

Unlike us, it can only see shades of gray.

But on the sea bottom, contrast is much more important information than color.

It can confuse us perfectly.

[ambient music playing]

[ambient music continues]

[man] When things get really rough and its colorful magic won't do,

the cuttlefish uses its best trick.

[dreamy music playing]

[woman] From all the different types of camouflage,

this reptilian-looking character fooled us the most.

[insects chirping]

[rhythmic music playing]

[woman] And you won't find him or any other crocodilefish

in the crocodile river, either.

There is an abundance of real crocodiles.

And piranhas.

Piranhas are the reason why you don't feel like having a refreshing dip

even in the 40 degree heat.

They have teeth similar to humans,

and they can crack a nut that fell in the water.

Unfortunately for men, they can't tell a nut from...

[man] Well, it seems like the locals have a strange sense of humor.

They told me they call piranha "nut cutters,"

but only after I've had a swim.

[rhythmic music continues]

[woman] Blue Sepik is an orchid,

which can only be found in the east part of Sepik.

Thanks in part to its scarcity,

it became an unofficial national plant of Papua New Guinea.

- [people chanting softly] - [drums beating]

[dog barking]

[laughs]

[people chattering in the distance]

[drums beating]

[soft chiming]

[woman] The crocodile cult is important not only for men.

The women and children from Yentchen

worship the crocodile with the Puk Puk dance.

[chiming accelerates]

- [rhythmic chiming] - [distant singing]

[muffled conversations]

[thunder crashing]

[somber ambient music playing]

[man] Out of all the resourceful camouflage

and hunting techniques we have encountered,

we admire the sharks the most,

perfected over hundreds of millions of years.

No other group of predators has such elaborate hunting techniques.

Shark can recognize their prey from over two kilometers away.

[somber ambient music continues]

In the dark, sharks can see ten times better than humans.

It is possible thanks to a layer of reflective discs

which reflect the light behind the retina back on the light sensitive cells.

They are not blinded by light

even as they quickly approach the sunlit surface of the water.

Taste cells are incorporated in their skin

and sharks find out by touch what is edible.

[woman] The sharks' sensitivity enables them to recognize

even the slightest change of intensity in the electric field,

registering even the weakest electric currents created by its prey.

They can even recognize fear,

so we try to concentrate on shooting.

[man] For fish, who are neither as big as sharks

nor equipped with the ability to hide thanks to camouflage,

or to poison its rivals, there is still one strategy left:

to get lost in the crowd.

An individual is always more difficult to target

if it's surrounded by a crowd of others.

Fish in the school change their direction according to the water pressure,

caused by the movement of a different school,

attacking predator, or even curious divers.

[somber ambient music continues]

[ambient music continues]

[boat engine humming softly]

[woman] There is one thing these strategies,

perfected through many generations,

didn't count on: humans.

Out of control fishing is genocide of the marine environment and its inhabitants.

Disrupting the fragile balance of the underwater world

is a much bigger threat for humans than many realize.

[distant chanting]

[drums beating]

[man] We were reminded of this

by the eruption of the volcano Tavurvur in 1994,

which buried Rabaul,

one of the biggest and most spectacular cities of the Pacific,

in ashes.

We climbed to the lip of the caldera

to be sure that this active volcano

keeps sending its smoke signal warnings.

- [chanting intensifies] - [drum beating continues]

[chanting continues]

[chanting stops]

[music fades out]