Original subtitles

Ready?

Yeah. No pressure.

Okay.

Sweet.

Most mammals are placentals, like us.

So we spend a long time in the womb,

and then we come out fully formed.

But most marsupials are only pregnant for a few weeks,

then, they grow outside of the mother, in a pouch.

Right.

Marsupials are mostly nocturnal,

um, which means that they hunt for food at night.

And we have meat-eating carnivores,

plant-eating herbivores and omnivores,

which basically just eat whatever they can get.

The wombat, they have this defence mechanism.

It runs head-first into its tunnel

and then the dingo sticks its head in and tries to fight.

The wombat pushes its back up

and crushes the dingo's head against the roof of the tunnel.

Little hard-arse.

I respect that.

But on a serious note,

Australia now has more than 100 endangered species.

And if we don't get them help now, they'll become extinct.

It's Ben, master field biologist.

Hey!

This is Bailey, the film-maker I told you about.

They said it might be hard to find a team that wanted to do it,

so I really appreciate it.

Ben was the only one who volunteered.

Hey. Look, none of the others would have been any good.

Trust me.

Okay.

Did you not want to do it, Grace?

I was just nervous about being on camera.

Oh, look, it's fine. I totally get that.

So if ever you guys feel uncomfortable,

just tell me and we'll do something else.

Wait, did you already get filmed?

I sounded like a boring know-it-all.

Ah, it's just who you are.

Uh, my name's Matt. Uh, I'm a park ranger.

We, uh, we look after thousands of hectares of forest,

so I'm on the road a lot.

But every day, there's always something different happening.

Okay.

We maintain camp grounds, control feral animals.

And uh...

What else do we fucking do?

Um, do you wanna just tell me...

Oh, yeah, we keep an eye out for illegal hunting.

And then there's the bloody greenies,

always getting into it with the loggers.

And then there's you lot, from the government,

who are always checking in on us. Never stops.

Don't you work for the government, Matt?

Yeah, I... don't be a smart-arse about it.

Bailey?

You okay?

Yeah.

He's got our coordinates, but we can activate the emergency beacon

and send out a distress signal if we need to.

Love that.

Oh, there's no reception past here, so...

we've got the satellite phone, but if you wanna message anyone,

you should do it now.

Nah, I'm good. Let's do it.

Okay.

Let's go.

So, uh, what were you doing before you decided to follow us around?

I usually shoot just like corporate stuff, safety videos and whatnot.

Really exciting things.

But then, after the fires happened,

I just wanted to help make things better, you know?

At least I want to feel like I'm trying.

If we play a tiny part in saving one single species, it'll be worth it.

Sure. But, I also want my contribution to be that

I discover a species that's never been seen before and it gets named after me.

Amazing.

Yeah.

And what if it's a swamp-dwelling rodent?

Oh!

- Hey? - Yes.

If I change my mind about something I say,

can I take back permission to use it?

Yes, you can revoke consent at any time.

Right, that's what you say now and then later on, you could be, like,

"Oh, no, you signed this form, so..."

Yeah, well.

And do you have any tips for how to be good on camera, or...

you know, just like how to be not shit?

Top tip. Try not to sound like your idea of how you think you should sound,

- if that makes sense. - Um...

Just use like your normal, regular talking voice.

Right, okay. Just talk like a normal person.

Yeah, like you're explaining stuff to your friend,

who doesn't know anything about science.

You know, you just don't want to be condescending, is the main thing.

Oh! I mean, that's the best thing about being a scientist.

Okay.

Tell me about Ben.

Yeah, I was one of those kids that was just, like, obsessed with dinosaurs.

No.

And I had this massive crush on my biology teacher.

Okay, yep. Right.

Not like a sex thing.

No, that's, um...

It was a nerdy crush. Like it...

- I got it. - Like a brain crush.

I totally got it. I just don't know if it's...

- Do you want me to go again? - Um...

I think we've got it.

So in order to survey the bushfire regrowth area for wildlife,

we plant four of these at every site,

we leave them for a month

and they get activated by heat and motion.

What kind of animals are we looking for?

Koalas.

Potoroos, a couple of kinds of possums.

And another 43 marsupial species that also live in trees.

How'd you end up doing this job, Grace?

Like, did you always want to be an ecologist in conservation?

I've always loved animals.

Kind of easier than people.

Yeah.

I wanted to use science to help save animals from extinction.

And the work we do is critical to that.

But seeing how bad things are

can be... overwhelming.

So we count them

and if we find the right number of target species,

they can't log the site.

But sometimes, we get overruled and they log it anyway.

You know, then I think,

if we weren't out here doing this kind of work,

all the land will get cleared and all the animals will die, and...

Yeah.

We want to help the animals but the thing we have to save them from is us.

It's the weight of all of that that crushes you

and makes you feel helpless.

We have to make plans for the future, even if there isn't gonna be one.

We have to keep going and even when we fail,

we have to get up and try again.

Do you believe that science can save the world?

Hey, these are pretty chic.

- These protect you... - Shit...

from snakes, spiders, ticks,

leeches, bull ants, itchy plants.

Oh.

Okay, so quite useful, then.

Scientist at work.

What is it?

It could be an extremely rare swamp wallaby.

It's a kangaroo.

We're scientists, Ben.

Yeah, I'm being accurate. I'm doing my... my...

Uh-huh.

This could also be a swamp-dwelling rodent.

Bennicus ratticus?

That's... that's exactly it. Yeah, I'm gonna name it after myself.

We record the distribution of species since the fires.

Yeah.

And then we use the baseline data to track any gradual changes.

Is there less diversity?

Sometimes there's more.

If you find animals in new places,

it means that they've lost their homes.

And that means that they have to move to other animals' territory.

And these other animals may want to eat them.

I mean, they are coming back.

It's just that the forest is a lot smaller, so they're hungry.

Mm.

An hour after sunset is peak feeding time.

It's like everyone's going to the same restaurant at the same time,

but some of the organisms are going to discover they're on the

specials board.

Oh!

Mm.

Oh!

Oh, yeah.

Excuse you, Goose.

What is it?

Skitchem!

Goose?

Goose?

Goose!

Goose?

Goose, get here!

Goose?

Where are you?

Bloody dog.

Stop here.

Shall we try something else? Yeah.

Okay.

- You ready? - Yep.

Can't believe that worked.

That's a signature owl move.

- That's so good! - Don't make it lame.

All right, let's keep going.

Oh! Wait.

What is it?

Oh!

Aw.

He's just waking up from a little 20-hour nap.

- Really? Twenty hours? - Yeah.

When he grows up, he'll eat for three-and-a-half hours and then, he might

squeeze in half an hour of screaming and grunting

to try and get a girlfriend.

Like you on the weekends.

Ouch.

- Do you want a go? - Yeah!

Oh!

Look, there's something there!

You see it?

Was.

It's gone.

Shh!

Sorry. Sorry.

So...

Put down possible Morepork.

Those owls have been sighted on the mainland.

I'm going to put unidentified.

I had so many animals when I was a kid.

I mostly just bred mice.

It was like a little God-complex thing,

I think that parents force on their children...

to teach them about the world.

- Oh, man. - It's crazy. Um...

To teach them about death. Yeah, pretty much.

- Yeah. - Oh.

When I was a kid,

I went on this school excursion to the zoo

and I kind of wandered away from the group

to check out this really cool gorilla.

I'm, like, looking down, with all these kids and families.

We see this little furry creature about the size of a cat.

I guess somehow it just escaped wherever it lives in the zoo

and it's found its way in with the gorilla.

And all the kids are like, "Oh", like, "Look at that little fluffy thing!"

Then the gorilla looks over,

it takes him, like, one second to catch it and shows it to the crowd.

And then he just starts fucking beating it

against a rock until it died.

Like, the kids are screaming,

like, parents are trying to drag them away.

And then he holds up the little dead animal,

and he starts pounding on his chest.

It was like, he was saying, like,

"Fuck you!" Like, "If you wanna put me in a cage,

then you have to see who I really am."

I was so rattled.

My heart was pounding out of my chest

and I remember the zookeeper guy,

like, walked past me and I grabbed him by his sleeve

and I was, like, "You gotta go in there.

"You gotta do something. This is... This isn't right."

And he just looked at me and he just shrugged his shoulders

and he said,

"I'm not going in there.

That's his territory."

Hey! Hey, Grace.

Grace.

I'm sorry. What's... what's that?

It's just an expressive possum.

Oh, of course.

Okay, cool. Thanks.

Uh, it's a brushtail.

Brush-tail.

Oh, and that's a sugar glider.

Do you wanna sleep in here?

Go on.

Yeah. Oh, okay.

Thanks. Sorry.

It's a southern boobook!

I'm sorry, he's so annoying.

I like him.

He's like a kid who wants to show you all his tricks.

It's none of my business, but how do your partners feel

about you guys going on these trips for work?

My ex was fine with it.

And Ben hasn't had a relationship since...

like, ever.

Really?

Oh.

Hmm.

Sorry.

No, it's okay.

My brother.

Oh.

He's not here any more.

The fires last year.

I'm so sorry.

Thank you.

He would have liked you guys.

And loved what we're doing out here.

What is that?

It's just a koala.

Just a koala?

Goodnight.

Mm.

Uh, did you sleep okay?

No.

Did you hear that koel bird?

Uh, yeah.

Oh!

He was just whistling his little heart out, trying to meet someone.

He sounded like his head was going to explode.

That's exactly what it's like.

Aw.

Are you in need of some short-term pair bonding?

I mean, I am kind of amazing at whistling, so...

Hey.

Hey.

Uh, how was your... your walk?

Oh, it was amazing.

So what's going on today?

Ah, we're retrieving some cameras that were left behind by another team.

That's still happening, isn't it?

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, right. Good, good. I will break down this tent.

Does it tell you the exact spot?

It pinpoints within ten metres.

- Oh. - Yeah.

Okay, should be somewhere around...

Ah, here!

Do you watch it straight away?

We don't have to, but I always want to.

All right, let's find the others and see what we've got.

I'm always desperately hoping that we find

a thriving population of something rare and endangered.

It's a feral cat.

Oh...

I mean, I try not to think of any animals as bad.

I mean, it's not their fault that they prey on native wildlife.

It's our fault for bringing them here.

Ooh, is that a brushtail? Yeah.

One of the least endangered species, unfortunately.

Look at those little beady eyes.

Rabbits and rodents.

Not even endangered rodents.

I got it.

We could probably just move it, no?

He has to use all of his tools every trip or he feels ripped off.

Oh.

Phew!

Ooh. Thank you.

It's a beautiful job.

Ooh.

These old growth forests are getting rarer and rarer.

These trees are so beautiful.

If we don't find something endangered soon, we could lose this whole forest.

A hollow-bearing tree just like this one supports a diverse range of animals.

If the tree is removed,

then it can be the final determinant

in the extinction of a local population.

And the extinction of one species

can affect the survival of, like, a whole lot of other species.

So fairly important, then.

Man, can we sit for a bit?

Hey, can I borrow your shovel?

Do you also need to borrow my toilet paper?

Quaint.

Gold mining was the only way to get rich,

so people came out here and built these little houses and just started digging.

Like, can you even imagine that way of life?

Actually, no.

And now we have to watch out for random holes in the ground.

- Random holes. - Mm-hmm.

Guys, can we get going?

Almost there.

Jesus.

- You should have got that on camera. - Dammit!

Are you all right, mate?

You bleeding?

Uh, yeah. It's a stream. You see? You're next.

GPS signal is getting ropey.

I need a better view.

We should be somewhere around here.

It's so green.

Oh, come on.

Oh, whoa.

Again.

This keeps happening.

Whoa.

- Oh! What the... - Jesus.

Oh, my God.

Looks like somebody's been having a nice dinner.

Wow, look.

This bone's been chewed on.

By what? What do you think's been chewing on it?

It could be feral pigs, wild dogs, dingoes.

The colour's variated.

It could be from more than one animal and they got into a fight.

Or it could be from one animal with camouflage markings.

Looks like these branches have fallen down.

There's been some kind of struggle.

This paw print.

Do you have the plaster?

Did you put it back in my pack?

You know what?

Let's just see if we got it on camera, hey?

And...

It's in still mode.

Looks like it stopped recording three weeks ago.

Can you see anything?

Uh, we got birds.

We got some mice.

Got an echidna.

Ooh! A bush rat.

Look at him go.

- Oh! - Okay.

Oh! Hello.

A yellow-footed rock wallaby.

Are they rare?

Very rare.

Oh!

Aw.

Oh.

What?

- Ah. - What?

- Okay. - No, no, no. Just go...

Yeah, yeah.

No, go back to...

All right, just stop it.

Gimme a sec.

What's happened here?

I don't know.

What is it?

We should call the ranger.

The photos are old. It's probably moved on since the bait ran out.

We're supposed to notify him if we see any evidence of feral animals.

Yeah, well, maybe it's not a feral animal.

I don't know, maybe it was a human.

It's a long way to fall.

Somebody could be out there crawling around with a broken spine.

And if it was you stuck out here with a broken spine,

what would you want us to do?

Oh, mate, I'd be fine. I'd just eat some bugs, drink a bit of urine.

It's a lovely day to be on the course, ladies and gentlemen.

Like a champion.

Oh!

Sliced it.

Oh, well. Look, I'm kind of in the middle of something right now.

Right.

Well, you just sit tight and I'll come and see ya.

Anyone's up to anything dodgy in my jurisdiction,

they'll have some pretty hefty fines to pay.

Oh, did you get yourself into a bit of trouble, did you?

Right.

Yeah, well, that's what they all say.

Yeah, well, I don't mind getting myself into a bit of argy-bargy.

Makes the day fun.

Gotcha.

I'll send you the coordinates.

Righto.

I'll come and find ya.

Yeah, for sure. Uh...

Yeah, uh...

Thanks.

- Bye. - No worries, Ben.

He's probably lonely.

They should make it so everyone gets a partner.

I mean, can you imagine if we had to do this job by ourselves?

What?

Hey, guys.

Come check this out real quick.

Look at these.

Can you see it? Look at these scratches here.

See those?

That's claw marks.

What...

What?

Look at that. Two thumbs.

Some marsupials have them for climbing and hunting.

Have we got any bait left?

No.

It was hunting here because we gave it a handy little food source.

So you want to lure more unsuspecting animals to their deaths?

In the name of science.

You know for a fact Matt will kill it if we can't ID it.

Here we go.

Oh. Yes!

What's all this about?

Hello?

Guys. I think I know what it is.

Carni-what?

It's a large carnivorous marsupial

that's probably nocturnal.

And it's arboreal, which is consistent with the colour variation

of the fur we found.

Whatever scratched up that tree has two thumbs.

Your megafauna carnifex only has one thumb.

Maybe it's a sub-species.

Sure.

The Somali elephant shrew, yeah?

It was thought to be extinct and they found a bunch of them living in the desert.

The elephant shrew wasn't seen for 50 years.

Thylacoleo carnifex hasn't been seen for 50,000 years.

Well, maybe they've been living out in the forest

peacefully killing things for dozens of years.

And then the bushfires completely ravage their ecosystem,

so they're forced to move to new territory, closer to humans.

Look, the history of evolution tells us that... hmm, life finds a way.

Guys!

I have no idea what you're talking about.

It's the thing drop-bears are based on.

Um, I thought that was just a made-up story to scare tourists.

It is.

Yeah, but it's based on a real creature and it's nothing like a bear.

Are we... We're not in...

you know, danger?

Well, I don't know!

I don't know why you're laughing.

Oh, my God.

Settle.

Yeah, good dog.

All right.

- Rolling. - Okay. So...

In ancient Rome,

the public executioner was called the Carnifex

and that literally translates to "the maker of meat".

Then you wind it back a few million years,

to the last days of the dinosaurs,

the ancient ancestors of marsupials

were actually much bigger than they are now,

and T. Carnifexwas one of those animals.

It's highly territorial

so if you stray into its hunting ground, it will kill you.

But it's not just gonna chase you across open ground like a lion.

Oh, no, no, no.

They're an ambush predator, and that means that they will hunt you.

Stalk you.

In the forest, like a tiger,

and then they'll jump you.

Oh, my God.

It bites down through your jugular.

It severs your spinal cord.

Holy shit!

Wait, how did that ever die out?

Well,

the currently accepted science is that it was naturally occurring climate change.

Yeah, right.

So, where's old mate?

Do we know?

Did you check the coordinates?

He might be in the wrong place.

Yeah, I checked.

So call him.

I'll message. Sure, just for you.

What did you say?

Don't worry, didn't tell him about my genius megafauna theory.

I said, we think it's a native species,

so if he sees anything, don't kill it.

Did you hear that?

Huh?

Grace?

There's something moving out there.

What is it?

I don't know. Can't see.

Yeah.

Got the spotlight.

No, no, no, it might run away.

Just hang on.

Oh, Ben!

God's sake.

Never been happier to see a goat in my entire life.

You know, feral goats erode the soil and reduce plant diversity.

Oh, Ben, not now. Jeez.

It's true.

I'm just saying, it's nothing to celebrate.

It kind of is for me, actually.

No, no, I'm not trying to be at you or anything.

I'm just saying, you know...

Okay, sweet.

Did you hear that?

Oh, my God.

Whoa.

Oh.

What the fuck is that?

We have to get closer to ID it.

This is historic. I mean, we're gonna be in biology books.

It's unbelievable.

- Okay. - Oh, my God.

It could be the last of its species.

I bet it's a sub-species.

Whatever it is, we could get this entire forest protected.

Oh, my God.

What's it doing?

Maybe it's eating? Or hiding its food?

Whoo, okay.

It's like a leopard. It stows its prey.

Hey, Bailey! Ready?

We're good to go. Okay.

Okay, coming around.

Okay, bring it in, but slow.

- Yep. - Slowly.

It needs to go higher.

Really don't want to scare it.

Keep going.

Almost there.

Yeah, just tell me if I'm getting too close.

Yep, okay. Yep, yep.

Careful.

You see that? We're getting too close.

Just... Just hover it right next to it.

Ben, we're gonna freak it out.

She's right.

It's moving. Shit.

No. Oh, no!

It's gone.

No, we can't... Shit!

Where... No!

Stay here.

Ben! Wait! Ben!

Ben!

Ben!

Come on.

Grace?

Grace?

Shit!

Fuck!

You okay?

Uh...

No, no, don't move.

I'll come down.

Then we'll both get stuck in here. Just get the rope.

- No, that'll take way too long. - Oh!

Hold on a sec.

Your chariot has arrived.

This isn't you rescuing me.

It's your fault I'm down here.

When we get out of here, we should...

Ben?

Ben?

Ben!

Ben!

Stay away, stay away, stay away, stay away, stay away!

What?

Grace. Grace!

Hello? Hello!

Oh, my God!

Keys, key, key, keys!

Fuck!

Fuck.

Hey. Hey!

Hey, buddy!

Hey, you wanna get in?

Come on. Come on!

Come on!

Come on. Come on, hop up! Hop up! Good girl.

Hey, what's that? Hey?

Hey, buddy.

Hey.

What's your name?

Goose.

Hi, Goose.

Hey.

I'm Bailey.

What do we do now?

Maybe your person will come and find us.

You just stay with me. It's okay.

Oh!

It's okay. It's okay.

Come on.

Shit!

It's okay.

What is it? What is it? What is it?

It's okay, it's okay. Don't worry.

It's okay.

It's okay.

It's okay.

Oh, my God!

Ben... Ben. Ben is out there.

He's out there.

We have to go. We have to go.

Let's go. Let's go!

Here!

It's Ben's!

Run!

Goose!

Where's Goose?

Goose!

We have to get out of its territory.

Here.

You drive. I'll call for help.

Goose!

Goose!

Here, good dog.

Okay.

Now they can find us.

Let's go.

Just keep it steady.

- Okay. - Oh, fuck!

Fuck!

Give it more power.

Come on!

Slow, slow, slow. It's okay.

Goose?

Oh, fuck! Goose!

Jump in. We have to get it moving.

We have to go!

Keep going!

Keep going.

Gently!

Bailey!

Get in!

Get in!

Grace!

No!

No!

Get back.

Goose!

One shot.

It's gone, Grace. It's gone.