Original subtitles

.

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, EVERYBODY, I'M DYLAN - DREYER.

WELCOME TO "EARTH ODYSSEY".

TODAY, WE'LL TRAVEL AROUND THE

WORLD, BUT BELOW THE SURFACE AS

WE EXPLORE THE MOST FASCINATING

CREATURES ON EARTH THAT LOVE THE

WATER, LIKE THE HUMPBACK WHALE,

THE MAMMAL THAT IS A MAMMOTH

AMONG FISH.

AND THEN, WE'LL DISCOVER WHY

THIS SLUGGISH SLOTH TURNS ITS

JETS ON WHEN IT'S TAKING A

RELAXING DIP.

AND LATER, WHAT MAKES THIS

LEGENDARY LIZARD THE ONLY

SPECIES OF ITS KIND THAT THRIVES

UNDERWATER?

PLUS, HOW THIS SPECIES OF WHALE

IS THE GLUE THAT HOLDS THE

COMMUNITY TOGETHER IN THE WATER.

[MUSIC]

- DYLAN: FOR MORE THAN THREE - BILLION YEARS, LIFE UNDERWATER

HAS GROWN AND DEVELOPED INTO THE

FANTASTIC CREATURES WE SEE

TODAY.

IT ALL BEGAN WITH MICROSCOPIC

BACTERIA THAT SURVIVED ON

MOLECULES OF WATER ALONE, AND AS

THE CIRCLE OF LIFE GOES, ONE OF

OUR OCEAN'S BIGGEST ANIMALS NOW

FEASTS ON TINY BACTERIA JUST

LIKE THE ONES THAT GAVE IT LIFE

BILLIONS OF YEARS AGO.

VANCOUVER ISLAND IS HOME TO ONE

OF THE WORLD'S MOST DIVERSE

ECOSYSTEMS...

...GLACIER-CAPPED MOUNTAINS,

ANCIENT FORESTS, NUTRIENT-RICH

OCEANS, AND A NETWORK OF RIVERS

AND CREEKS THAT SUPPORT A

WILDERNESS LIKE NO OTHER.

BUT ONE CREATURE STANDS OUT

ABOVE ALL THE REST,

THE PACIFIC SALMON.

VIRTUALLY ALL LIFE HERE RELIES

ON ITS EXISTENCE...

...LIKE THIS GENTLE GIANT.

HUMPBACK WHALES CAN

WEIGH UP TO 36 TONS,

AND REACH 52 FEET IN LENGTH.

THAT'S A LONG AS A CITY BUS.

AND SALMON AREN'T ON THEIR MENU.

- THE HUMPBACKS' ENORMOUS FRAMES - ARE FUELED BY SMALL SCHOOLING

FISH LIKE HERRING AND SWARMS OF

TINY SHRIMP-LIKE CRUSTACEANS

KNOWN AS KRILL.

THESE TOOTHLESS WHALES USE A

MASS OF BRISTLES CALLED BALEEN

- PLATES TO FILTER FOOD FROM THE - WATER.

THE HUMPBACKS ARE ABOUT TO

EMBARK ON A MAMMOTH JOURNEY.

- THEY SPEND EACH WINTER IN THE - WARMER SOUTHERN WATERS OFF

MEXICO AND HAWAII, MORE THAN

THREE THOUSAND MILES AWAY.

- THIS IS WHERE THEY'LL BREED - BEFORE RETURNING TO VANCOUVER

ISLAND'S FOOD-RICH WATERS WITH

THEIR CALVES IN TOW.

BUT ONE WHALE NEVER LEAVES THE

REGION, AND THIS PREDATOR CAN

HAVE A TASTE FOR SALMON.

KILLER WHALES WEIGH UP TO NINE

TONS AND ROAM THE ISLAND'S COAST

IN PODS OF UP TO 30 INDIVIDUALS.

- UNLIKE HUMPBACKS, THEY HAVE MORE - THAN 20 PAIRS OF POINTED,

INTERLOCKING TEETH.

ALSO KNOWN AS ORCAS, NAMED AFTER

THE ROMAN GOD OF THE UNDERWORLD,

THEY HUNT IN PACKS AND ARE OFTEN

REFERRED TO AS THE WOLVES OF THE

SEA.

BUT THIS PARTICULAR POD POSES NO

THREAT TO THE SALMON.

THESE KILLER WHALES HUNT

MAMMALS.

- WHILE THE RESIDENT PODS OF ORCAS - EAT ONLY FISH, THIS VISITING

GROUP GOES FOR MUCH LARGER PREY,

SUCH AS SEA LIONS.

THESE SEA LIONS WERE LUCKY TO

GET AWAY.

COMING UP, WE HEAD TO THE RIVERS

OF THE AMAZON, BUT ONE MAMMAL

ISN'T AFRAID TO TAKE A LEISURELY

DIP, BUT IT SHOULD BE.

- AND LATER, WE HEAD TO THE - GALAPAGOS, WHERE YOU WON'T WANT

TO MISS WHAT SPECIES IS SWIMMING

AROUND WITH THE FISH.

PLUS, THE LARGEST MAMMAL IN

THESE WATERS ALSO HAS THE

LARGEST ROLE IN ITS UNDERWATER

COMMUNITY.

[BREAK]

- NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO - THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE

MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

- DYLAN: WELCOME BACK TO "EARTH - ODYSSEY", WHERE ONE FISH IN

THESE AMAZON RIVERS HAS A

RAVENOUS APPETITE.

NONE HAS A MORE FEARSOME

REPUTATION THAN A PIRANHA.

BLOOD IN THE WATER WILL WHIP

THEM INTO A FEEDING FRENZY.

THESE RED-BELLIED PIRANHAS ARE

EFFICIENT WORKERS.

JAWS FILLED WITH RAZOR-SHARP

TEETH ARE DESIGNED TO MAKE QUICK

WORK OF THEIR MEAL.

AS THE WATERS CONTINUE TO RISE,

MANY ANIMALS WILL BECOME CUT

OFF.

A THREE-TOED SLOTH IS FORCED TO

BRAVE THE TREACHEROUS WATERS IN

SEARCH OF A NEW HOME.

DESPITE THE DANGERS, IT HAS NO

CHOICE.

BUILT FOR LIFE IN THE TREETOPS,

SLOTHS ARE SURPRISINGLY GOOD

SWIMMERS.

THEY PADDLE EFFICIENTLY WITH

THEIR LONG ARMS AND ARE ABLE TO

- MOVE MUCH FASTER THAN THEY DO ON - LAND.

BUT NOT QUICKLY ENOUGH TO GO

UNNOTICED.

GREEN ANACONDA ARE ALWAYS ON THE

LOOKOUT FOR AN EASY MEAL.

- THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TOO GOOD - TO BE MISSED FOR ONE OF THE

FOREST'S DEADLIEST PREDATORS.

CHEMORECEPTORS ON THE SNAKE'S

TONGUE HELP IT TRACK ITS PREYS

MOVEMENTS THROUGH THE WATER.

FINALLY, THE SLOTH MAKES IT TO A

SUITABLE TREE, BUT IT'S A LONG

WAY TO THE TOP, AND TIME IS

AGAINST IT.

- BUT THIS SLOTH IS LUCKY TO GET - AWAY.

COMING UP, IN THE GALAPAGOS,

YOU'LL FIND SPECIES OF ANIMALS

THAT YOU WON'T FIND ANYWHERE

ELSE ON EARTH.

JUST ASK THESE UNDERWATER

WONDERS.

PLUS, YOU'LL BE AMAZED HOW MANY

SPECIES RELY ON THIS ONE MASSIVE

MAMMAL.

[BREAK]

- NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO - THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE

MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

- DYLAN: JUST WHEN SCIENTISTS - THINK THEY'VE FIGURED OUT THE

ANIMAL KINGDOM, EVOLUTION THROWS

THEM A CURVE BALL, OR IN THIS

CASE, A SINKER.

THE CORMORANT IS A FASCINATING

SPECIES OF BIRD THAT LIVES ON

THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS.

IT CAN'T FLY, BUT IT CAN SWIM,

HOLDING ITS BREATH AND PIERCING

- THE WATER'S SURFACE TO HUNT FOR - FISH.

THE EVOLUTION OF THESE ISLANDS

IS AS PUZZLING AS THE CORMORANTS

THEMSELVES, AND TO UNDERSTAND

HOW THE GALAPAGOS BECAME THE

HOME OF THESE AVIAN CREATURES,

WE MUST START AT THE BEGINNING

OF TIME.

THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS ARE

LOCATED HUNDREDS OF MILES OFF

THE COAST OF ECUADOR IN SOUTH

AMERICA.

THERE ARE 13 PRIMARY ISLANDS AND

AT LEAST A HUNDRED ROCKY REEFS

THAT JUT OUT THE SEA, EACH LAND

MASS CREATED FROM VOLCANIC

ACTIVITY...

...LAVA EXPLODING TO THE EARTH'S

SURFACE, SLOWLY COOLING, FORMING

NEW ISLANDS.

ISABELLA IS THE LARGEST VOLCANIC

ISLAND IN THE GALAPAGOS.

IT HAS SIX VOLCANOES THAT

OVERLAP, SEVERAL OF WHICH ARE

STILL SIMMERING BENEATH THE

EARTH'S SURFACE.

IT'S ALSO HOME TO A KEY PLAYER

IN THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION.

THIS BIRD IS CALLED A CORMORANT.

- THEY'RE FOUND ALL OVER THE - WORLD, BUT HERE ON THE

GALAPAGOS, THE CORMORANT HAS

LOST ITS ABILITY TO FLY.

THE BIRD'S WINGS ARE TOO SMALL

FOR ITS BODY, YET ITS LEGS ARE

STRONGER THAN OTHER TYPES OF

CORMORANTS.

IT ALSO HAS ENLARGED FEET,

TRAITS THAT GIVE IT A DEFINITIVE

ADVANTAGE AS IT DIVES FOR ITS

DINNER.

THE CORMORANT FEEDS ON THE

OCEAN'S BOUNTY, NEVER SWIMMING

FARTHER THAN A FOOTBALL FIELD

AWAY FROM THE SHORELINE.

THESE BIRDS PREFER TO FEAST ON

OCTOPUS AND BITE-SIZED FISH.

- IT'S BELIEVED THAT THIS - PARTICULAR CORMORANT MUST HAVE

FLOWN TO THE ISLANDS AT SOME

POINT MANY YEARS AGO.

ONCE HERE, IT WAS MAROONED FROM

ITS WINGED COUSINS, BUT THE

GALAPAGOS OFFERED THESE BIRDS

PLENTY TO EAT, SO THEY STUCK

AROUND, EVENTUALLY BECOMING THE

LARGEST CORMORANT SPECIES IN THE

WORLD DESPITE THEIR DIMINUTIVE

WINGS.

- CORMORANTS MAKE THEIR NESTS WITH - SEAWEED ON TOP OF THE LAVA

ROCKS.

- EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE MOSTLY - DECORATIVE AT THIS POINT, THE

GALAPAGOS CORMORANTS WILL HOLD

THEIR WINGS OUT TO DRY, THOUGHT

TO BE A CARRYOVER FROM AN AGE

OLD HABIT.

- THERE'S ANOTHER CHARACTER WHO - PREFERS THE ROCKY SHORES OF THE

GALAPAGOS.

THE MARINE IGUANAS CAN LIVE

VIRTUALLY ANYWHERE ON THE

ISLANDS.

THERE ARE 250,000 THAT CALL THE

GALAPAGOS HOME.

THIS GIANT SWIMMING DRAGON IS

THE WORLD'S ONLY SPECIES OF

MARINE LIZARD.

IT'S THOUGHT THAT A GROUP OF

SOUTH AMERICAN LAND IGUANAS

DRIFTED OUT TO SEA ON A PIECE OF

DEBRIS, FINDING THEIR WAY TO THE

GALAPAGOS.

BUT ONCE THERE, FOOD WAS SCARCE

ON LAND, SO THEY DIVED STRAIGHT

IN TO FIND A WAY TO SURVIVE.

- THE MARINE IGUANAS ARE - VEGETARIANS, SCRAPING AWAY AT

THE RED AND GREEN ALGAE GROWING

UNDERWATER ON DEEP SEA ROCKS.

WHATEVER IT TAKES, NATURE FINDS

A WAY TO EVOLVE AND ADAPT.

COMING UP, THE TALE OF THIS

WHALE WILL ASTOUND YOU WITHOUT

FAIL.

[BREAK]

- NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO - THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE

MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: STRETCHING SOUTH FROM

THE RIO COLORADO, PATAGONIA

COVERS MORE THAN 300,000 SQUARE

MILES OF ARGENTINA AND CHILE.

IT'S A PLACE OF EXTREMES, HOME

TO ONE OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST

DESERTS, AND YET BILLIONS OF

GALLONS OF FRESH WATER ARE

LOCKED INTO THE ICE OF ITS VAST

GLACIER FIELDS.

IT'S A LAND OF THE UNEXPECTED,

WHERE UNUSUAL ANIMALS LIVE IN

UNUSUAL PLACES.

PENGUINS NEST UNDER DESERT

PLANTS.

RELATIVES OF THE CAMEL SIT OUT

WINTER SNOWS, AND PARROTS LIVE

BY THE SEA.

GRIPPED BY WINTER FOR NEARLY

HALF THE YEAR, PATAGONIA IS A

TOUGH PLACE TO SURVIVE.

SPRING AND SUMMER ARE ALL TOO

BRIEF, AND WILDLIFE MUST RUSH TO

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF A SHORT

OPPORTUNITY TO PREPARE FOR THE

WINTER.

- ON THE NORTHEAST COAST, THE - OCEAN COLLIDES WITH A REMOTE

PENINSULA.

JUST OFFSHORE OF PATAGONIA ARE

SOME OF THE LARGEST ANIMALS IN

THE OCEAN.

SOUTHERN RIGHT WHALES CAN GROW

UP TO 60 FEET LONG AND WEIGH AS

MUCH AS 80 TONS.

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

ABOUT 1,500 OF THESE OCEAN

GIANTS SPEND THE SUMMER AROUND

PENINSULA VALDEZ.

MANY HAVE COME TO GIVE BIRTH.

- AWAY FROM THE FIERCE SEAS, THESE - PROTECTED BAYS AND THEIR

RELATIVELY WARM WATERS ARE THE

IDEAL NURSERY FOR YOUNG WHALES.

NEWBORNS WEIGH OVER A TON.

CALVES DRINK MORE THAN 40

GALLONS OF MILK AND PUT ON MORE

THAN 200 POUNDS EVERY DAY, AND

THEY'LL DO THIS FOR A YEAR

BEFORE THEY ARE WEANED.

EVEN THESE TITANS WOULD BE AT

RISK IN THE OPEN OCEAN.

- GREAT WHITE SHARKS PATROL - OFFSHORE, WHERE THEY COULD

EASILY MAKE A MEAL OF A BABY

WHALE.

GREAT WHITES NEED DEEP WATER TO

LAUNCH AN ATTACK AND RARELY

VENTURE INTO SHELTERED BAYS, SO

WHALE MOTHERS KNOW TO HUG THE

COASTLINE TO KEEP THEIR YOUNG

OUT OF DANGER.

BUT CLOSER TO LAND, THERE'S

ANOTHER THREAT.

- KELP GULLS HAVE LEARNED THAT THE - LOUNGING WHALES ARE THE SOURCE

OF A GOOD MEAL.

WHALE SKIN IS SURPRISINGLY SOFT,

AND THE GULLS' BEAKS ARE SHARP.

DWARFED BY THE HUGE WHALES, THE

GULLS PICK AT THEIR BLUBBER.

- DESPITE THE SIZE DIFFERENCE, THE - WHALES ARE CLEARLY

UNCOMFORTABLE.

AS WELL AS CAUSING PAINFUL CUTS,

HARASSMENT FROM THE GULLS MEANS

WHALES DIVE MORE FREQUENTLY,

WHICH CAN MAKE LIFE VERY HARD

FOR THEIR CALVES.

- YOUNGSTERS CAN'T HOLD THEIR - BREATH FOR AS LONG AS ADULTS AND

NEED TO LEAN ON THEIR MOTHERS

WHILE THEY REST AT THE SURFACE.

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

- IN JUST A FEW WEEKS, THE CALVES - WILL NEED TO BE STRONG ENOUGH TO

LEAVE THESE BAYS AND MIGRATE

SOUTH WITH THEIR MOTHERS TO

THEIR FEEDING GROUNDS IN

ANTARCTICA.

WHILE MOST OF THE FEMALE RIGHT

WHALES HAVE COME HERE TO GIVE

BIRTH, OTHERS HAVE COME TO MATE.

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

[WHALE BLOWING WATER]

- THEY ONLY DO THIS ONCE EVERY - THREE OR FOUR YEARS, SO WHEN

- THEY DO, THEY ATTRACT QUITE A - CROWD.

AS MANY AS 20 MALES ENGAGE IN AN

ELEGANT DANCE WITH EACH FEMALE.

[WHALES BLOWING WATER]

SURPRISINGLY, THERE'S NO

ANIMOSITY BETWEEN THE SUITORS.

[WHALE GROANING]

THANK YOU FOR JOINING US ON OUR

ADVENTURE UNDERWATER, WHERE

CREATURES FROM BIRDS TO MAMMALS

AND ALL TYPES OF SPECIES LIVE IN

AN ENVIRONMENT THAT'S WET, WILD,

AND WONDERFUL.

WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME ON

ANOTHER "EARTH ODYSSEY".

[MUSIC]