Original subtitles

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NARRATOR: WHEN YOU SEE THIS SYMBOL, YOU KNOW YOU'RE

WATCHING TELEVISION THAT IS EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL.

THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: HI, EVERYONE, I'M DYLAN DREYER, AND WE ARE ABOUT TO

EMBARK ON AN EPIC ADVENTURE HERE ON "EARTH ODYSSEY".

TODAY, WE'RE ISLAND-HOPPING ALONG THE CARIBBEAN TO SEE THE

WORLD'S RICHEST BIODIVERSITY UP CLOSE.

UNDER THE COVER OF NIGHT, A TROPICAL TURTLE HAS TRAVELED

THOUSANDS OF MILES FOR THE PERFECT NESTING SPOT.

THIS CRAWLING CATERPILLAR IS ABOUT TO BECOME A

MAGNIFICENT MONARCH.

LATER, WE'LL SEE THE FIRST STEPS OF THESE MARINE MIGRATORS

HEADING FOR THE OPEN OCEAN.

BUT WE BEGIN OUR JOURNEY ON THE ISLAND SHORES, WHERE BUILDING

THE PERFECT NEST IS A DAY AT THE BEACH.

ALL OF THIS AND SO MUCH MORE ON THIS EPISODE OF "EARTH ODYSSEY".

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: THE CARIBBEAN REGION COVERS MORE THAN ONE MILLION

SQUARE MILES OF THE EARTH'S SURFACE, BUT ONLY A TENTH OF

THAT IS LANDMASS.

WITH SUCH LIMITED LIVING SPACE, IT SEEMS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO

HAVE SO MANY DIVERSE AND MAGNIFICENT SPECIES CALLING

THESE ISLANDS HOME, YET THAT LACK OF LAND MEANS EACH ANIMAL

HAS TO GET CREATIVE WITH WHERE THEY DECIDE TO LIVE.

A FEW STEPS AWAY FROM THE SHORE, COLONIES OF LEAST TERNS MAKE

THEIR NESTS.

A SIMPLE DIP IN THE GROUND IS ALL IT TAKES.

THERE'S NO ROOM IN THE CARIBBEAN TO BE PICKY.

THE TERNS' ROMANTIC ETIQUETTE DICTATES THAT A PRESENT IS AN

ESSENTIAL PART OF THE COURTSHIP.

WHAT COULD BE BETTER THAN A FISH?

TERNS FORM THE IDEAL COUPLE.

BOTH PARENTS TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR NESTING AND

RAISING THEIR YOUNG.

OUT OF THE THREE EGGS IN THIS BROOD, ONLY TWO CHICKS WILL

REACH THE FLEDGLING AGE.

NESTING ON THE GROUND BRINGS HAZARDS THAT THE TERNS WILL

CONFRONT AS A COUPLE.

THE COLONY IS AN EFFECTIVE MEANS OF DEFENSE FOR THESE SEABIRDS,

BUT ANOTHER SPECIES THAT NESTS ON THESE TROPICAL ISLANDS USES

QUITE A DIFFERENT TECHNIQUE.

IN NATURE, IT'S ADVISABLE TO BE DISCREET, AND THE ANIMAL ON THE

SCREEN IS A MASTER OF THE ART OF CAMOUFLAGE.

CAN YOU EVEN SEE IT?

TO EVADE ANY PREDATORY EYES, THE ANTILLEAN NIGHTHAWK RELIES NOT

ONLY ON ITS PLUMAGE THAT MIMICS THE LANDSCAPE, BUT ALSO ON ITS

REMARKABLE CAPACITY TO REMAIN ABSOLUTELY STILL IN THE

FACE OF DANGER.

WHEN ON THE GROUND, IT IS VERY HARD TO SPOT.

THIS FEMALE HAS BEEN SITTING ON HER EGGS FOR 20 DAYS.

SUBJECTED TO THE CONSTANT SHIFTS IN CLIMATE, SHE SITS ON HER EGGS

FOR 20 HOURS A DAY, REGARDLESS OF THE TEMPERATURE ON THE GROUND

OR THE WEATHER CONDITION.

SHE PREFERS OPEN GROUND.

IT'S SAFER, AS IT ALLOWS HER A 360-DEGREE FIELD OF VISION.

WHEN IT COMES TO SIGHT, THE NIGHTHAWK IS QUITE A PHENOMENON,

WITH EYES IN THE BACK OF ITS HEAD.

THIS UNUSUAL BIRD SPENDS A LARGE PART OF THE YEAR IN THE FORESTS

OF THE AMAZONIAN PLATEAU MORE THAN 1,500 MILES SOUTH OF HERE.

IT HAS BEEN RETURNING HERE TO BREED AT THE VERY SAME SPOT FOR

SEVERAL YEARS NOW.

OBVIOUSLY, THE FEMALE HAS NOT MADE THE JOURNEY ALONE.

HER LIFETIME COMPANION JOINED THE RIDE.

BUT DURING THE DAY, HE FREQUENTS A DIFFERENT AREA.

COULD IT BE A PRECAUTION TO DIVERT ATTENTION AWAY FROM HER?

POSSIBLY.

THE MALE HAS POSITIONED HIMSELF ABOUT A HALF-MILE AWAY.

HE SPENDS HIS DAYS DOZING, BUT NOT SLEEPING DEEPLY.

A CREATURE OF THE TWILIGHT AND NIGHT, HE WAITS FOR THE SUN TO

SET BEFORE FLYING INTO ACTION.

THE MALE FINALLY TAKES FLIGHT.

ONCE AIRBORNE, THE NIGHTHAWK IS QUITE ANOTHER BIRD, ITS DYNAMIC

DEMEANOR VERY DIFFERENT FROM HOW IT IS ON THE GROUND.

STILL IN THE SAME PLACE, THE FEMALE EMERGES FROM HER TORPOR

AND SEES HER PARTNER ARRIVING.

IT IS AT THIS POINT THAT THE MALE ANNOUNCES HIS ARRIVAL WITH

A SERIES OF HEDGE-HOPPING DIVES.

THE SPEED OF ITS STOOP COMBINES WITH THE ANGLE OF ITS WINGS TO

PRODUCE A CHARACTERISTIC HUMMING SOUND.

[AIR WHOOSHING]

AT LAST, AFTER A DAY SPENT SEPARATED AND ALONE, THE COUPLE

IS BACK TOGETHER AGAIN.

AS NIGHT FALLS, IT'S NEARLY TIME FOR THEM TO TAKE A BREAK AND

THINK ABOUT FOOD.

A RARE AND FRAGILE SPECIES, THE ANTILLEAN NIGHTHAWK DISAPPEARS

INTO THE NIGHT, TAKING A LITTLE OF ITS MYSTERY WITH IT.

[BIRDS SCREECHING]

WHEN WE RETURN, ONE SPECIES' EPIC JOURNEY TO LAY ITS EGGS HAS

BEEN UNDERWAY FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.

AND FOR THIS ICONIC INSECT, BEAUTY TAKES MANY FORMS.

PLUS, THE REPTILIAN RACE IS ON FOR THESE NEWBORNS CHARGING DOWN

THE BEACH.

ALL OF THIS COMING UP ON "EARTH ODYSSEY".

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS, SEA TURTLES LAND UPON THE COAST.

THIS IS NO MISTAKE OR ERROR OF JUDGMENT.

IT'S FOR A VITAL REASON.

AS ADULTS, THESE OCEANGOING CREATURES RETURN TO THE SHORES

WHERE THEY WERE BORN EVERY TWO YEARS OR SO TO BREED.

THIS GREEN SEA TURTLE HAS JUST FINISHED DIGGING ITS NEST.

SHE USES IT TO LAY AROUND A HUNDRED EGGS THAT LOOK LIKE

GLOSSY GOLF BALLS.

THEIR SOFT SHELLS CAN EASILY ABSORB ANY IMPACT AT THE BOTTOM

OF THE NEST.

ONCE HER EGGS ARE LAID, SHE SEALS THE NEST.

THE SAND HAS A VITAL ROLE TO PLAY.

ITS TEMPERATURE OVER THE NEXT EIGHT WEEKS WILL NOT ONLY HAVE

AN INFLUENCE ON THE INCUBATION PERIOD, BUT WILL ALSO BE A

DETERMINING FACTOR IN THE GENDER OF THE HATCHLINGS.

UP TO 80 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, THEY WILL BE MALE.

ANY WARMER THAN THAT, AND THE YOUNG WILL BE MOSTLY FEMALE.

AFTER SPENDING 40 MINUTES SWEEPING THE SAND TO HIDE ANY

TRACE OF HER NEST, THE FEMALE LEAVES HER EGGS TO THEIR FATE

AND RETURNS TO THE OCEAN.

WHILE THIS MIGHT SEEM LIKE A HIGH-RISK STRATEGY, EVIDENCE IS

THAT IT WORKS.

MARINE TURTLES COME FROM A LONG LINEAGE WHICH GOES BACK 200

MILLION YEARS.

NOW, THAT'S SOME IMPRESSIVE FAMILY HISTORY.

UNDER THESE TROPICAL SKIES, THERE'S A NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

WHICH IS NEITHER FULLY LAND NOR SEA.

IT'S A VAST AREA OF FOREST GROWING OUT OF THE WATER ITSELF.

THESE ARE CALLED MANGROVE FORESTS, AND THEY PLAY A

PRIMORDIAL ROLE HERE IN THIS CARIBBEAN ENVIRONMENT.

THEY'RE SPAWNING AREAS FOR MARINE SPECIES AND ACT AS WATER

FILTERS, FORMING BUFFER ZONES WHICH PROTECT THE

SHORES FROM HURRICANES.

AT LOW TIDE, THE MUDDY GROUND BELONGS TO THE CRABS...

...ESPECIALLY FIDDLER CRABS, WHOSE MALES ARE RECOGNIZABLE BY

THEIR SINGLE OVERSIZED, HYPERDEVELOPED CLAW.

THE SMALL PINCER IS USEFUL FOR RUMMAGING IN THE SILT.

ITS SIZE IS ADAPTED TO ITS SMALL MOUTHPARTS.

BUT WHAT IS THE BIGGER ONE FOR?

EACH MALE IS LORD OF ITS OWN TERRITORY, A BURROW THAT HE

BUILDS, MAINTAINS, AND DEFENDS FIERCELY.

THE LARGE CLAW IS IN FACT A WEAPON, BUT IT IS MAINLY A

DETERRENT, AS VIOLENT CONFRONTATION IS RARE.

BUT ITS MAIN ROLE IS AS PART OF ITS DISPLAY, A SHOW DURING WHICH

EACH MALE PERFORMS A SERIES OF MOVEMENTS USING THIS

REMARKABLE APPENDAGE.

THE AIM IS TO ATTRACT THE SMALL-PINCERED FEMALES TO LAY

THEIR EGGS IN HIS NEST.

AND WHO COULD RESIST SUCH GRACEFUL CHOREOGRAPHY?

IN THIS NEW WORLD CRUSTACEAN ORCHESTRA, EACH SPECIES OF

FIDDLER HAS ITS OWN RHYTHM, FREQUENCY,

AND SEQUENCE OF MOVES.

IN THE HEART OF THE MANGROVE FOREST, THESE LITTLE CRABS HAVE

DEVELOPED A SIMPLE, YET EFFECTIVE METHOD OF

COMMUNICATION BY WAY OF BODY LANGUAGE.

IT MAKES EACH OF THEM FLUENT IN THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE.

COMING UP, WE SEE THE EVOLUTION OF ONE OF NATURE'S

MOST REVERED ROYALS.

AND WE GET A RARE GLIMPSE AT SOME ISLAND INFANTS READY FOR

LIFE AT SEA WHEN "EARTH ODYSSEY" RETURNS.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: THE CARIBBEAN MAY BE BEST KNOWN FOR ITS MAGNIFICENT

MENAGERIE OF MAMMALS, REPTILES, AND BIRDS, BUT IT ALSO HAS AN

IMPRESSIVE INSECT POPULATION WITH HUNDREDS OF DIFFERENT

SPECIES THRIVING ACROSS EACH OF THESE TROPICAL ISLANDS.

SOME ARE A CLASSIC NUISANCE, LIKE THE COMMON MOSQUITO, WHILE

OTHERS ARE A RARE FIND, LIKE THE BIZARRE HARLEQUIN BEETLE.

BUT NONE ARE AS FAMOUS OR AS MAJESTIC AS THE

CARIBBEAN'S MOST REGAL BUTTERFLY.

BEHIND THE CARIBBEAN'S MANGROVES AND MARSHY FORESTS, THERE ARE

WATER MEADOWS.

THE FOREST CLEARINGS HAVE BECOME MORE AND MORE POPULATED BY

FLOWERING PLANTS.

ONE OF THESE, THE TROPICAL MILKWEED, PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN

THE LIFE OF A MONARCH BUTTERFLY.

MONARCHS ARE NORMALLY NOMADIC, BUT THEY HAVE DECIDED TO SETTLE

DOWN PERMANENTLY HERE IN THE CARIBBEAN.

FOR MONARCH BUTTERFLIES, THIS IS MATING SEASON.

ONCE FERTILIZED, THE FEMALES ARE READY TO PRODUCE

A NEW GENERATION.

TROPICAL MILKWEED IS THE PERFECT PLACE FOR A MONARCH

TO LAY ITS EGGS.

AFTER JUST A FEW DAYS, TINY CATERPILLARS APPEAR.

THEY WILL GROW VERY QUICKLY.

AFTER TWO WEEKS AND A FEW MOLTING MUTATIONS, THEIR SIZE

WILL INCREASE BY 200 TIMES.

THE MILKWEED THAT THEY FEED ON CONTAINS TOXIC COMPOUNDS TO

WHICH THE CATERPILLARS ARE IMMUNE.

BY CONCENTRATING THE TOXINS WITHIN THEIR BODIES, THE LARVAE

ARE WELL-ARMORED AGAINST ANY PREDATOR.

THE CATERPILLARS HAVE FINISHED GROWING.

THEIR NEXT MOLT WILL BE THEIR LAST.

AROUND TEN DAYS LATER, A BRAND-NEW CREATURE IS

READY TO EMERGE.

THIS CHRYSALIS, THE FRAGILE ENVELOPE WITHIN WHICH THE

CATERPILLAR'S SLOW METAMORPHOSIS HAS TAKEN PLACE, NOW OPENS TO

REVEAL THE NEW CREATURE.

THE YOUNG BUTTERFLY SPREADS ITS WINGS AND PUMPS HEMOLYMPH, OR

BLOOD, THROUGH ITS BODY.

THIS LIQUID WILL IRRIGATE AND STRENGTHEN EACH OF ITS LIMBS.

THEN COMES THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE, THAT OF WARMING ITS

MOTOR MUSCLES ENOUGH TO ENABLE IT TO FLY.

JUST LIKE ITS PREDECESSORS, THE MONARCH WILL CRISSCROSS THE

CARIBBEAN SHORES IN SEARCH OF ITS OWN HOME IN THE WILD.

THESE SMALL MANGROVE ISLANDS SERVE AS RESTING PLACES FOR

BIRDS COMING IN FROM THE OPEN SEA.

ONE OF THEM LEADS QUITE AN UNBELIEVABLE LIFE...

...A BIRD WHOSE LIFE IS INEXTRICABLY LINKED TO THE

OCEAN, THAT HUNTS AND EATS ONLY MARINE PREY.

IT SPENDS ITS LIFE GLIDING ABOVE THE SEA DAY AND NIGHT.

IT SLEEPS WHILE IN THE AIR, CARRIED BY POWERFUL TROPICAL

UPWARD CURRENTS WHICH CAN LIFT IT TO AN ALTITUDE OF ALMOST

10,000 FEET.

ITS FIVE-FOOT WINGSPAN, NARROW WINGS, AND LIGHT BODY ALLOW IT

TO GLIDE WITHOUT EFFORT.

IRONICALLY, ITS PLUMAGE IS NOT WATERPROOF, AND ITS FEATHERS

MUST HAVE NO CONTACT WITH WATER, OR ELSE IT WILL DROWN.

BUT THEY HAVE ADAPTED, ABLE TO LIVE ON THE EDGE OF LIFE AND

DEATH WITH PRACTICED EASE.

THE MAGNIFICENT FRIGATE BIRD IS A LIVING PARADOX AND PROOF THAT

MOTHER NATURE IS ALWAYS UNEXPECTED.

AFTER A LONG WAIT, THESE HARD-SHELL HATCHLINGS ARE READY

TO SHIP OUT TO SEA.

THIS AND MORE WHEN "EARTH ODYSSEY" RETURNS.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: ON THE LOWER COASTS OF THESE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS, THE

SALT MARSHES OFFER SANCTUARY TO MANY SPECIES OF SHOREBIRD.

PERFECTLY SITUATED BETWEEN THE TWO AMERICAS, THE WEST INDIES

ARE A STAGING POST FOR MIGRATORY BIRDS.

SOME STOP HERE TWICE A YEAR ON THEIR WAY TO THEIR BREEDING

GROUNDS IN THE CANADIAN ARCTIC AND ON THEIR WAY BACK TO THEIR

SOUTH AMERICAN WINTER HOMES.

OTHERS HAVE CHOSEN THIS PLACE TO SETTLE AND ENSURE THE ARRIVAL OF

THE NEXT GENERATION, LIKE THIS SNOWY PLOVER GETTING COMFORTABLE

ON THE WATER'S EDGE.

MEANWHILE, AFTER A TWO-MONTH INCUBATION PERIOD, THE YOUNG SEA

TURTLES ARE GETTING READY TO EMERGE FROM THE SAND TO HEAD TO

THE OCEAN.

IT TAKES TRUE PERSEVERANCE FOR THESE TURTLES TO REACH ADULTHOOD

AND BE ABLE TO COME AND LAY THEIR OWN EGGS ON THESE SHORES.

THE ISLANDS OF THE CARIBBEAN ARE ONE OF THE 35 HOTSPOTS OF

GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY.

THEY ARE THE RICHEST, THE MOST FRAGILE, AND THE MOST VULNERABLE

ECOSYSTEMS ON THE PLANET.

THESE TREASURES ARE UNLIKE ANY OTHER AND OFFER US A GLIMPSE

INTO THE INCREDIBLE BEAUTY OF THE WILD.

THE CARIBBEAN IS A WEALTH OF BIODIVERSITY WITH CREATURES AS

UNIQUE AND BEAUTIFUL AS THE LANDSCAPE THEY CALL HOME.

THROUGH THE GENERATIONS, THESE ANIMALS HAVE ADAPTED TO BECOME

CARIBBEAN SPECIALISTS, ABLE TO NAVIGATE THE LIMITED RESOURCES

AND BOUTS OF EXTREME WEATHER WITH EXPERT PRECISION, DOING

EVERYTHING IT TAKES TO THRIVE IN THE WILD.

THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY ON OUR TROPICAL EXCURSION.

I HOPE TO SEE YOU FOR OUR NEXT ADVENTURE ON

"EARTH ODYSSEY".

[MUSIC]