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Brazil has a secret.
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A big secret.
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The wide open spaces at its heart.
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The country is best known for
the rainforests of the Amazon,
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yet, the little known central highlands
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are home to some of the most
extraordinary animals on Earth.
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This is a place of extremes of
climate, and of great drama.
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It can be both a hell on
earth and a paradise.
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The grasslands of the central highlands
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once covered over two million square kilometers,
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and even today, they extend to 300,000.
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This makes this part of Brazil
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10 times the size of the Serengeti.
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And the animals that live here
couldn't be more different.
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Perhaps the strangest inhabitant
is the giant anteater.
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The anteater is a specialist,
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highly adapted to feeding on ants and termites.
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The termites are the architects of the many mounds
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that dot the grasslands.
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A hard outer wall protects these social insects
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from most predators.
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But, not the anteater.
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It has powerful front legs
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armed with impressively large claws.
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No termite mound can resist this savage onslaught.
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Once the wall is breached, the
anteater extracts the insects
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with his long, sticky tongue.
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As much as 60 centimeters in length,
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the tongue reaches deep into the mound.
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Each sweep picks up dozens of insects.
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The anteater needs to eat as
many as 30,000 termites a day.
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But, it only stays long enough at each mound
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to slurp up a few thousand.
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The reason is the termites themselves.
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Well armed soldier termites attack any intruder,
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irrespective of size.
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The anteater knows when is time to leave,
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perhaps just by the number of
termites biting its tongue.
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The termites rush to repair the damage.
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They use a mixture of mud and saliva
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to plug the gap in the defenses.
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They must work fast, for they
have enemies on the grassland,
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including several kinds of ants.
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This time, the termites are too slow.
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A raiding party of ants
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discovers the open mound and attacks.
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The ants overrun the termite defenses.
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They steal the grubs and eggs.
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All seems lost.
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But reinforcements arrive,
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and the termite soldiers fight back.
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Their only role in life is defense,
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and they're prepared to die to save the colony.
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The ants retreat.
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The conflict has been terrible,
the casualties huge,
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but the colony will survive.
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The termites redouble their efforts.
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At last, the mound is again intact.
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The anteater walks as much as six kilometers a day
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on its strange, clawed feet,
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just to satisfy its hunger for termites.
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As it travels, it encounters other bizarre beasts
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of the grassland.
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If the termites are the
architects of the grassland,
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then armadillos are the engineers.
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They are constantly digging,
both for food and shelter.
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Old tunnels don't remain empty for long.
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Burrowing owls soon take up residence.
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A grasshopper makes a big
meal for these small owls,
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and an owl would make a big
meal for the maned wolf.
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It's the largest wild dog in South America,
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yet it spends much of its
time chasing the same insects
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as the owls.
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The two insect killers keep
a wary eye on each other.
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The maned wolf must hunt alone,
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for there are no herds of grazing animals
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to support a pack of wolves.
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This is one of the mysteries
of the Brazilian highlands,
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why so few large animals?
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No vast herds, for there is grass aplenty.
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The mother anteater sets out
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in search of a shelter for the night.
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The anteater's strange appearance
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is not just down to its heavy duty front legs
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and long, pointed head,
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its tail is just as bizarre.
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But it has a purpose.
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The large tail acts like a blanket,
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and shields the mother and her baby
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from the cold of the night.
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After the long walk in search of termites,
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the mother needs to sleep.
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But her baby has different ideas.
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She wants to play.
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She's both hungry and curious,
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a ticklish combination for Mom.
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The baby has reached the dangerous age
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where she wants to explore.
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For now, she's content to
keep warm with her mother.
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The highlands suffer from an extreme climate.
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As the days roll by, the grassland
is becoming ever drier,
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and a harder place to live in.
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But to the north and east, the
highlands are even tougher.
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The rolling grasslands gradually transform
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into a strange landscape.
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Here, droughts are common,
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and nothing is guaranteed except hardship.
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The rock outcrops stand like
fortresses in the landscape.
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They are home to bands of Capuchin monkeys.
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They use their inquisitiveness and intelligence
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to investigate for food.
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Even in the most unlikely places.
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For a time, hummingbirds join the monkeys
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in their rocky stronghold.
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They fight amongst themselves,
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and take care to avoid the fierce wasps
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that nest on the rocks.
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And then they depart as
mysteriously as they appeared,
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leaving the rocks to the Capuchins,
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for this tough place is their permanent home.
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An alpha male bosses the troupe.
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But he's not just a big bully,
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for he's old enough to have learned
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where food and water can be found
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in this unforgiving land.
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The scant rain that falls gathers
at the base of the cliffs.
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And here, springs offer precious water.
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Trees keep their leaves deep into the dry season.
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The alpha male will lead his
troupe to the promised land.
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But it is no easy road.
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The springs are drying up,
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but for now, there is just enough.
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And the trees still have a few fruits left.
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But those that are left are hard
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and have bitter tasting skins.
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Even after some food processing,
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the unripe fruits are hard to digest.
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Eat too many, and you risk terrible stomachache.
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Nearby, other animals, found
only in the northern highlands,
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have found ways to cope with the problems
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of this spartan land.
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Mocos live in a harem,
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with a single male and several
females with their young.
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The male guards a pile of rocks
and its neighboring trees.
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These benefit from the rainwater
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that the rocks funnel to their roots,
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so they keep their leaves
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long after others have lost theirs.
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And that is the key to the moco's survival.
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They can harvest the leaves all year.
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Unless the dry season turns into a major drought.
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The mocos share their rocky
mound with other creatures,
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some as specialized to living amongst rocks
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as the mocos themselves.
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Clefts and crevices in the
rocks provide a sanctuary
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for the mocos from their many predators,
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including boa constrictors.
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The snake approaches, and the mocos call out,
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alerting the other mocos
all around the rock stack.
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As the snake moves ever closer,
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the nearest moco keeps calling,
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allowing the other mocos,
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even those that can't see the snake, to escape.
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With this advanced warning system,
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the mocos survive to eat another day.
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But food is getting scarce.
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The rains are now a distant memory.
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The monkeys strip bark, in a
desperate search for insects.
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The mocos eat the few remaining leaves.
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Most of the trees around their mound are bare,
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and the rains may be months away.
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On the grassland, too, the
dry season is biting hard.
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The armadillo makes a rare appearance.
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He's normally nocturnal,
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but hunger has driven him out
into the heat of the day.
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All the creatures are waiting for the rains.
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But, for now, life is tough.
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The female anteater carries her youngster
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on her never ending search for food.
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She has poor eyesight,
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but finds the termites by her
finely tuned sense of smell.
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Even those termites that build no mound
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but instead, live underground.
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After a few licks, it's time to move on.
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In the air conditioned constant temperature
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and perpetual dark,
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the many hundreds of thousands of blind termites
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go about their work.
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Every termite has a place and
role in this complex society
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ruled by the queen.
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She is enormous, a vast egg laying machine.
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She may live for more than 10 years.
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The queen produces chemicals, pheromones.
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These are collected and
passed from worker to worker,
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helping control the colony.
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She can lay as many as 1,000 eggs a day.
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As she lays egg, after egg, after egg,
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she is brought food by her workers.
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The eggs are taken to special chambers
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and cared for by the workers.
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Outside, the relentless heat
finally brings storm clouds.
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At last, the rains are coming.
203
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But instead of rain, the lightning triggers fires.
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They spread rapidly through the dry grasses.
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The termites are safe in
their air conditioned mound
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insulated by the mud wall.
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00:22:59,793 --> 00:23:03,293
But, other creatures are not so fortunate.
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An owl is out of harms way
in an old armadillo burrow.
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00:23:18,019 --> 00:23:21,186
The fires race on, driven by the wind.
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00:23:31,793 --> 00:23:35,876
The morning light reveals a scene of devastation.
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The anteater searches for her young one.
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The baby is dead,
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the victim of the storm and wind fed fires.
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00:25:18,637 --> 00:25:22,637
Only the scavengers benefit from the desolation.
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00:25:28,382 --> 00:25:31,507
Another storm, but this time,
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it brings long awaited rain.
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Fresh brush shoots emerge from the ashes.
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Within days, the grassland starts to turn green.
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The land is transformed from hell on earth
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to an earthly paradise.
221
00:26:38,910 --> 00:26:40,801
Plants grow rapidly,
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00:26:40,802 --> 00:26:45,466
and the lush vegetation feeds a myriad of bugs.
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The land fills with the hum of wings.
224
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There is fresh grass to eat,
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and clean water to drink.
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There's even enough for a bath.
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And not just for the birds,
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though the armadillo prefers to roll in the mud.
229
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An anteater washes away the
smoke and soot of past fires.
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The rains continue for weeks.
231
00:28:36,162 --> 00:28:39,579
And even paradise becomes a little soggy.
232
00:28:52,757 --> 00:28:56,924
Now, termite kings and queens
make their maiden flights.
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They've waited for the rains to soften the soil
234
00:29:00,902 --> 00:29:05,069
before they mate and found
new colonies underground.
235
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There can be over a hundred mounds per hectare,
236
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and the sky fills with millions of termites.
237
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The vast clouds of protein on the wing
238
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do not go unnoticed.
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00:29:27,168 --> 00:29:29,497
Marmosets don't know which way to look.
240
00:29:29,498 --> 00:29:32,081
So many insects are in the air.
241
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Anteaters make the most of this
brief moment of abundance,
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and gorge on the winged termites.
243
00:30:12,271 --> 00:30:15,938
Birds are quick to pounce on the open mound.
244
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It's in this time of plenty
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that the armadillos become frisky.
246
00:30:26,224 --> 00:30:29,141
Males detect the scent of a female.
247
00:30:34,096 --> 00:30:37,679
The air is full of the aroma of armadillos.
248
00:30:47,060 --> 00:30:51,227
The males are drawn in by the
fragrance of the female.
249
00:30:56,901 --> 00:31:00,401
One seizes the moment, and goes acourting.
250
00:31:24,039 --> 00:31:27,539
Male and female follow each other's odors.
251
00:31:50,123 --> 00:31:51,873
The smell of success.
252
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An unrequited onlooker can only hope
253
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for better luck next time.
254
00:32:04,984 --> 00:32:08,692
The rainy season is a better time for armadillos,
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00:32:08,693 --> 00:32:12,860
winners and losers, as they
can easily dig down for food.
256
00:32:16,563 --> 00:32:20,480
Burrowing owl chicks have emerged above ground.
257
00:32:22,933 --> 00:32:26,183
They quickly learn how to hunt insects.
258
00:32:51,819 --> 00:32:55,986
But, a beetle is too big a
handful for the young birds.
259
00:32:57,116 --> 00:33:00,299
They must find out about their new world,
260
00:33:00,300 --> 00:33:03,133
including what constitutes danger.
261
00:33:06,251 --> 00:33:08,108
A large hawk poses a threat,
262
00:33:08,109 --> 00:33:11,526
and the young owls scurry back to safety.
263
00:33:21,056 --> 00:33:25,223
The juvenile owls aren't the
only youngsters out and about.
264
00:33:32,394 --> 00:33:36,227
The rhea is the largest bird in South America.
265
00:33:43,399 --> 00:33:44,339
It's the male we heard that keeps
266
00:33:44,340 --> 00:33:47,756
a nervous eye out for his young chargers.
267
00:33:52,538 --> 00:33:56,158
The grasslands are at their most verdant.
268
00:33:56,159 --> 00:33:59,884
The mystery remains as to why
no large herds of antelope
269
00:33:59,885 --> 00:34:01,718
graze on these plains.
270
00:34:08,625 --> 00:34:11,592
It's on humid nights in the rainy season
271
00:34:11,593 --> 00:34:15,260
that an extraordinary spectacle takes place.
272
00:34:19,187 --> 00:34:22,937
Glow worms take up station on the mound wall.
273
00:34:32,828 --> 00:34:36,911
They've lived inside the mound with the termites.
274
00:34:43,884 --> 00:34:47,384
Now, their lights attract passing insects.
275
00:34:57,748 --> 00:35:01,236
The glow worm's lights are not to guide,
276
00:35:01,237 --> 00:35:02,237
but to lure.
277
00:35:29,209 --> 00:35:33,042
This ghoulish display lasts for several weeks.
278
00:35:43,285 --> 00:35:45,235
The glow of another killer,
279
00:35:45,236 --> 00:35:47,961
but one of a very different nature,
280
00:35:47,962 --> 00:35:50,795
and hunting a very different prey.
281
00:35:55,086 --> 00:35:57,673
Maned wolves are now active in the night,
282
00:35:57,674 --> 00:35:59,424
their preferred time.
283
00:36:04,129 --> 00:36:07,035
The wolf has the scent of food.
284
00:36:07,036 --> 00:36:08,786
But it's not insects.
285
00:36:10,067 --> 00:36:11,150
It's a fruit.
286
00:36:16,885 --> 00:36:21,075
The low bearer tree is a true
survivor of the grasslands,
287
00:36:21,076 --> 00:36:25,243
for it has thick bark that
protects it from the fires.
288
00:36:26,471 --> 00:36:29,738
It produces large fruits that the maned wolf eats,
289
00:36:29,739 --> 00:36:32,739
and, in doing so, spreads its seeds.
290
00:37:01,150 --> 00:37:03,722
Other creatures stir at night,
291
00:37:03,723 --> 00:37:07,854
ones that hold the answer to
the mystery of the grasslands,
292
00:37:07,855 --> 00:37:11,022
the lack of large herds of herbivores.
293
00:37:13,452 --> 00:37:15,938
There can be many different species of termites
294
00:37:15,939 --> 00:37:18,065
living under one mound.
295
00:37:18,066 --> 00:37:21,831
All the types are fed by
workers who venture outside,
296
00:37:21,832 --> 00:37:23,832
under cover of darkness.
297
00:37:32,047 --> 00:37:35,630
The different species work in diverse ways.
298
00:37:37,238 --> 00:37:41,405
Some build covered trails,
others travel underground.
299
00:37:44,973 --> 00:37:48,956
They have evolved to feed on poor quality food,
300
00:37:48,957 --> 00:37:53,124
living on dead grasses, wood,
and the roots of plants.
301
00:38:01,454 --> 00:38:03,167
Termites are able to consume
302
00:38:03,168 --> 00:38:06,252
the low nutritional value grasses
303
00:38:06,253 --> 00:38:09,920
that wouldn't sustain large grazing animals.
304
00:38:17,714 --> 00:38:21,297
This is the secret to the empty grasslands.
305
00:38:31,521 --> 00:38:34,854
The maned wolf returns to feed her pups.
306
00:38:39,809 --> 00:38:43,976
The young still depend on food
brought back by the parents.
307
00:38:55,041 --> 00:38:57,289
It will be one year before these pups
308
00:38:57,290 --> 00:39:00,957
are able to scratch a living for themselves.
309
00:39:07,052 --> 00:39:10,837
Soon, this time of plenty will be over,
310
00:39:10,838 --> 00:39:13,379
and the young animals will face the dry season
311
00:39:13,380 --> 00:39:14,963
for the first time.
312
00:39:19,419 --> 00:39:22,461
But however harsh life becomes here,
313
00:39:22,462 --> 00:39:26,629
it is nothing compared to the
conditions in the north.
314
00:39:34,080 --> 00:39:37,203
Here, there has been no rain,
315
00:39:37,204 --> 00:39:40,787
and it may not rain for many weeks to come.
316
00:39:43,914 --> 00:39:46,914
Each day just brings more suffering.
317
00:39:49,456 --> 00:39:53,623
The sun heats up the rocks
to 50 degrees centigrade.
318
00:39:55,743 --> 00:39:58,167
Most of the trees have long shed their leaves
319
00:39:58,168 --> 00:40:02,168
in an attempt to survive the increasing drought.
320
00:40:05,151 --> 00:40:07,227
For the young monkeys in the troupe,
321
00:40:07,228 --> 00:40:09,636
even the trees at the base of the cliffs,
322
00:40:09,637 --> 00:40:12,804
those that have leaves, offer no food.
323
00:40:17,546 --> 00:40:20,296
All the usual cupboards are bare.
324
00:40:41,329 --> 00:40:44,579
A termite mound offers only false hope,
325
00:40:47,331 --> 00:40:51,414
for the soldiers are quick to repel the Capuchin.
326
00:40:57,162 --> 00:41:00,662
All he receives for his efforts are bites.
327
00:41:06,225 --> 00:41:09,043
The babies are most at risk.
328
00:41:09,044 --> 00:41:11,958
Mothers try to suckle their little ones,
329
00:41:11,959 --> 00:41:16,126
but the moms must drink water
if they are to produce milk.
330
00:41:22,748 --> 00:41:26,503
Water is an even greater concern than food.
331
00:41:26,504 --> 00:41:30,671
The springs at the base of
the cliff dried up long ago.
332
00:41:34,863 --> 00:41:37,279
It is the Capuchins' group memory
333
00:41:37,280 --> 00:41:41,447
that holds the secret to
surviving the hardest of times.
334
00:41:42,505 --> 00:41:45,263
The troupe are forced to
travel far from their fortress
335
00:41:45,264 --> 00:41:48,264
in their desperate search for water.
336
00:42:00,669 --> 00:42:04,836
They now have one tree that
produces these strange fruits.
337
00:42:14,184 --> 00:42:16,070
The monkeys don't eat the fruits,
338
00:42:16,071 --> 00:42:17,770
but bite a hole in them
339
00:42:17,771 --> 00:42:21,271
and then drink the precious liquid inside.
340
00:42:41,980 --> 00:42:46,905
Revitalized, the Capuchins
set out again to find food.
341
00:42:46,906 --> 00:42:50,573
An old wasp nest might harbor a grub or two.
342
00:42:51,958 --> 00:42:55,458
Everything tastes good when you're hungry.
343
00:43:01,468 --> 00:43:03,327
Even in the hardest of times,
344
00:43:03,328 --> 00:43:07,797
there is a rich source of food
for the Capuchin monkeys.
345
00:43:07,798 --> 00:43:08,798
Palm nuts.
346
00:43:10,041 --> 00:43:12,102
The problem is, you have to break through
347
00:43:12,103 --> 00:43:13,936
the tough outer shell.
348
00:43:21,599 --> 00:43:24,244
The young monkeys know the principles,
349
00:43:24,245 --> 00:43:28,078
but they haven't quite mastered the technique.
350
00:43:43,551 --> 00:43:45,218
Frustration sets in,
351
00:43:48,854 --> 00:43:51,437
and leads to a painful mistake.
352
00:44:00,098 --> 00:44:02,472
The young monkeys learn by their mistakes,
353
00:44:02,473 --> 00:44:05,806
and by watching the older males at work.
354
00:44:07,852 --> 00:44:10,483
First lesson, you need to test the rock
355
00:44:10,484 --> 00:44:14,252
to see if it's strong enough for the job.
356
00:44:14,253 --> 00:44:15,336
Not this one.
357
00:44:19,578 --> 00:44:23,422
The Capuchins can walk
upright, and that's important,
358
00:44:23,423 --> 00:44:27,256
for it frees up the hands to carry the stones.
359
00:44:29,295 --> 00:44:31,389
They can weigh more than a quarter
360
00:44:31,390 --> 00:44:33,890
of the Capuchin's body weight.
361
00:45:03,156 --> 00:45:07,323
It may take more than 10
attempts before the nut cracks.
362
00:45:32,013 --> 00:45:36,290
Success is not just a matter of intelligence,
363
00:45:36,291 --> 00:45:38,196
for the larger the monkey,
364
00:45:38,197 --> 00:45:41,030
the heavier the stone it can lift.
365
00:45:47,434 --> 00:45:51,267
And so, the older males have a real advantage.
366
00:46:10,429 --> 00:46:11,762
Success at last.
367
00:46:19,156 --> 00:46:21,989
The young monkeys watch and learn.
368
00:46:29,544 --> 00:46:31,888
The Capuchins, with their quick wits,
369
00:46:31,889 --> 00:46:35,272
have found a way to live in this hard place,
370
00:46:35,273 --> 00:46:37,940
even during the deepest drought.
371
00:46:42,863 --> 00:46:44,929
After many months of searing heat,
372
00:46:44,930 --> 00:46:47,847
the land looks completely lifeless.
373
00:46:48,989 --> 00:46:53,072
The trees resemble nothing more than dead sticks.
374
00:46:54,849 --> 00:46:56,766
The mocos are starving.
375
00:46:59,217 --> 00:47:02,634
They have stripped their trees of leaves.
376
00:47:07,999 --> 00:47:11,067
The mocos are now reduced to eating bark,
377
00:47:11,068 --> 00:47:15,580
and as they do, they may be sealing their fate.
378
00:47:15,581 --> 00:47:18,200
If the mocos chew the bark around the trunk,
379
00:47:18,201 --> 00:47:20,409
the trees will die,
380
00:47:20,410 --> 00:47:23,298
and without them, this little group of mocos
381
00:47:23,299 --> 00:47:24,716
will perish, too.
382
00:47:30,882 --> 00:47:32,726
The creatures of the northern highlands
383
00:47:32,727 --> 00:47:35,644
are able to endure great hardships.
384
00:47:37,482 --> 00:47:39,897
But unless the rains arrive soon,
385
00:47:39,898 --> 00:47:42,065
there will be more deaths.
386
00:47:54,810 --> 00:47:57,560
The first clouds for many months.
387
00:48:03,140 --> 00:48:05,557
The morning brings more hope.
388
00:48:13,702 --> 00:48:16,535
A sound not heard for over a year.
389
00:48:17,978 --> 00:48:19,478
Rain on hot rocks.
390
00:48:29,657 --> 00:48:32,074
Is it too late for the mocos?
391
00:48:34,241 --> 00:48:36,537
The water tumbles off the cliffs
392
00:48:36,538 --> 00:48:38,788
and down to the dry plains.
393
00:49:12,538 --> 00:49:14,105
Within a couple of days,
394
00:49:14,106 --> 00:49:17,439
the rain transforms the rocky highlands.
395
00:49:29,468 --> 00:49:33,385
For a few months, this will be a generous land.
396
00:49:43,668 --> 00:49:47,835
Their stomachs full, young
monkeys have time to play.
397
00:50:23,230 --> 00:50:25,397
The hummingbirds reappear.
398
00:50:48,658 --> 00:50:52,317
When the dry season returns,
the hummingbirds will depart,
399
00:50:52,318 --> 00:50:55,568
leaving the land to its true residents.
400
00:51:04,638 --> 00:51:08,859
The highlands of Brazil are
harsh and little known lands
401
00:51:08,860 --> 00:51:13,786
that have forged strange animals
with bizarre adaptations
402
00:51:13,787 --> 00:51:16,704
and clever ways of making a living.
31514
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