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, I'M DYLAN DREYER, AND

WE'RE ABOUT TO EMBARK ON ANOTHER

"EARTH ODYSSEY".

TODAY, WE HEAD TO EGYPT TO

EXPLORE THE INCREDIBLY DIVERSE

LANDSCAPE THAT CREATES AN EDEN

FOR A WIDE ARRAY OF SPECIES.

WE'LL JOURNEY DOWN THE NILE FOR

A CHANCE TO COME FACE-TO-FACE

WITH ONE OF THE WORLD'S BIGGEST

CROCODILES.

AND LATER, WE'LL CATCH SOME FISH

WITH ONE OF THE BEST HUNTERS ON

WINGS AND IN THE WATER.

PLUS, WHAT IS EGYPT'S DESERT'S

LONGEST-LIVING LOCAL, AND DOES

IT HOLD THE SECRET TO SURVIVING

THE HARSH DESERT LIFE?

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: EARTH'S LONGEST RIVER IS

THE NILE, WHICH FLOWS THROUGH

ELEVEN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES IN

NORTHEAST AFRICA.

BUT OF ALL THE COUNTRIES THAT

THE NILE TOUCHES, EGYPT IS

THOUGHT OF AS ITS HOME.

THE NILE IS ONE OF ONLY SEVERAL

WATER SYSTEMS IN EGYPT, AND

ALTHOUGH IT MIGHT BE MANMADE,

THE RESOURCEFULNESS OF LAKE

NASSER IS SUPERHUMAN.

- ALTHOUGH THE RIVER NILE HAS - OFFERED A LIFELINE TO EGYPT'S

RESIDENTS FOR THOUSANDS OF

YEARS, A MORE RECENT FEATURE HAS

BECOME A HAVEN FOR THE REGION'S

ABUNDANT WILDLIFE.

AT ALMOST 350 MILES LONG AND

MORE THAN 20 MILES WIDE, LAKE

NASSER IS ONE OF THE LARGEST

MANMADE LAKES IN THE WORLD.

AROUND 50 YEARS AGO, THE RIVER

NILE WAS DAMMED TO CREATE THIS

ENORMOUS RESERVOIR.

- THIS BROUGHT AN END TO THE OFTEN - UNPREDICTABLE FLOOD LEVELS

FURTHER DOWNSTREAM.

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS BELIEVED THE

ANNUAL DELUGE OF FAST-FLOWING

WATER WAS A GIFT FROM THE GODS.

THEY HAD NO IDEA ITS ORIGIN LIES

ALMOST 2,000 MILES FARTHER

SOUTH.

APPROXIMATELY 90 PERCENT OF THE

NILE'S WATER ORIGINATES FROM THE

ETHIOPIAN HIGHLANDS, WHICH

RECEIVE ABOUT SIX-AND-A-HALF

FEET OF RAIN EACH YEAR.

IT'S ALONG THESE TINY

TRIBUTARIES THAT FERTILE SOILS

ARE WASHED DOWNSTREAM BEFORE

ENTERING THE LONGEST RIVER ON

THE PLANET.

TODAY, THE DAMMING OF THE NILE

PREVENTS THE SILT-RICH WATER

FROM TRAVELING FARTHER

DOWNSTREAM.

INSTEAD, LAKE NASSER AND ITS

WILDLIFE BENEFIT FROM THE FOUR

MILLION TONS OF SEDIMENT

DEPOSITED HERE EACH YEAR.

ONE CREATURE BENEFITS FROM LAKE

NASSER'S SHORELINE MORE THAN

MOST.

NILE CROCODILES DON'T REACH

MATURITY UNTIL AROUND TEN YEARS

OLD.

THIS FEMALE'S RELATIONSHIP WITH

A MALE TWO MONTHS AGO WAS A

SUCCESS.

THE LAKE'S SANDY SHORE IS

PERFECT FOR EXCAVATING HER NEST.

- AFTER REACHING AROUND A - FOOT-AND-A-HALF DEEP, SHE STARTS

TO LAY.

APPROXIMATELY 50 EGGS ARE

DEPOSITED INTO THE NESTING

CHAMBER.

FINALLY, THEY ARE COVERED WITH

SAND.

IT'LL BE THREE MONTHS UNTIL HER

YOUNGSTERS ARE READY TO HATCH.

UNTIL THEN, SHE'LL REMAIN CLOSE,

FIERCELY GUARDING THE SITE.

- COMING UP, IN THE LAND OF - PHARAOHS, YOU'RE ABOUT TO FIND

OUT WHY THIS FISHER IS CALLED

KING.

AND LATER, WE'LL EXPLORE WHAT

LIES BELOW THE SURFACE OF

EGYPT'S RED SEA.

PLUS, WHAT HAS THE MOST

EXPERIENCE SURVIVING THE HARSH

ECOSYSTEM OF EGYPT'S DIVERSE

DESERTS?

[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.

- DYLAN: BIRDS HAVE ALSO - CAPITALIZED ON LAKE NASSER'S

VAST ECOSYSTEM.

AROUND 100 SEPARATE SPECIES HAVE

BEEN RECORDED LIVING ALONG THESE

SHORES.

HERONS SPECIALIZE IN HUNTING

FISH AND ARE MASTERS OF

EFFORTLESS FLIGHT.

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS ASSOCIATED

THESE MAGIC BIRDS WITH THE

RISING SUN.

THEY NAMED IT BENU, THE

ASCENDING ONE.

THE HERON IS SAID TO BE THE

ORIGINAL PHOENIX BORN OUT OF THE

MUCH LATER GREEK MYTH.

IT WAS FIRST THOUGHT THIS

DELTA-WINGED POSE FACING THE SUN

WAS PURELY A WAY OF DRYING OR

WARMING THEIR WINGS, EXCEPT THE

RAPID PANTING ACTUALLY POINTS TO

THE HERON TRYING TO COOL DOWN.

- IT NOW APPEARS THIS INDIVIDUAL - IS CREATING A HOSTILE

TEMPERATURE FOR PARASITES TRYING

TO TAKE REFUGE UNDERNEATH ITS

WINGS.

AT AROUND A FOOT LONG, THE PIED

KINGFISHER IS A MEDIUM-SIZED

BIRD WITHIN ITS FISH-HUNTING

FAMILY.

IT IS, HOWEVER, THE LARGEST BIRD

IN THE WORLD CAPABLE OF

SUSTAINING HOVERING WITHOUT A

HEADWIND.

THIS TECHNIQUE ENABLES IT TO

PINPOINT FISH IN DEEPER WATER

AWAY FROM THE SHORE.

KINGFISHERS CAN JUDGE BOTH THE

SIZE AND DEPTH OF FISH SWIMMING

BELOW.

THIS IS CRUCIAL, AS UPON HITTING

THE WATER, SPECIAL MEMBRANES

COVER THEIR EYES, IN EFFECT,

MAKING THEM BLIND.

[WATER SPLASHING]

LESS THAN HALF OF ALL DIVES

PROVE SUCCESSFUL, BUT THIS TIME,

THE MISSION PAYS OFF.

THE KINGFISHER BEATS ITS CATCH

AGAINST THE BRANCH.

- NOT ONLY DOES THIS ENSURE THE - FISH IS DEAD, IT ALSO HELPS

BREAK THE BONES, MAKING IT

EASIER TO DIGEST.

LAKE NASSER DIDN'T EXIST IN

ANCIENT TIMES, BUT ANOTHER BODY

- OF WATER DID PLAY A CRUCIAL ROLE - IN SUPPORTING LIFE IN THE

REGION.

EGYPT'S RED SEA WAS CREATED

AROUND 30 MILLION YEARS AGO WHEN

THE ARABIAN TECTONIC PLATE BROKE

AWAY FROM THE AFRICAN CONTINENT.

WITH NO NATURAL RIVERS FEEDING

IN FRESH WATER, THE RED SEA IS

ONE OF THE MOST SALINE BODIES OF

WATER IN THE WORLD.

THE AQUATIC CREATURES AND CORAL

REEFS LIVING HERE HAVE ADAPTED

TO LIFE IN SALTY WATER.

- AROUND TEN PERCENT OF FISH - SPECIES FOUND IN THE RED SEA

DON'T EXIST ANYWHERE ELSE.

ONE PARTICULAR SEA SERPENT WAS

HELD IN HIGH REGARD IN ANCIENT

TIMES.

COMING UP, THERE ARE GIANTS DEEP

IN THE WATERS OF EGYPT'S RED

SEA, BUT THE SHALLOW END ISN'T

SAFE EITHER.

WE'LL DIVE IN TO GET A FEEL FOR

WHAT LIFE IS LIKE FOR A GIANT

MORAY EEL.

PLUS, THE TREE OF LIFE THAT

HOLDS EGYPT'S ANCIENT DESERTS

TOGETHER.

[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.

- DYLAN: ALTHOUGH KNOWN FOR THE - WONDERS IN ITS DESERT, EGYPT'S

UNDERWATER ECOSYSTEMS ARE

WONDERFUL IN THEIR OWN RIGHTS,

LIKE THE NILE CROCODILE, A

REPTILE SO RESPECTED BY ANCIENT

EGYPTIANS, THAT IT WAS RENOWNED

AS GODLIKE, AND IT'S NOT THE

- ONLY WATER-DWELLING ANIMAL THAT - WAS CONNECTED TO THE ANCIENT

GODS, AND WE'RE ABOUT TO SEE WHY

SOME EGYPTIANS WOULD KNEEL TO

THIS PREHISTORIC EEL.

EGYPTIANS OFFERED EELS TO ATUM,

THE CREATOR GOD.

THEIR MUMMIFIED REMAINS WERE

THEN BURIED IN BRONZE BOXES.

GIANT MORAY EELS CAN GROW TO

ABOUT NINE FEET LONG.

THIS OPENING AND CLOSING OF THE

MOUTH ENSURES A STEADY FLOW OF

WATER ACROSS ITS GILLS.

MORAYS USUALLY HUNT AT NIGHT,

USING THEIR EXCELLENT SENSE OF

- SMELL TO TRACK DOWN AND AMBUSH - PREY.

GARDEN EELS LIVE IN COLONIES OF

UP TO A THOUSAND INDIVIDUALS.

- GROWING UP TO MORE THAN A FOOT - LONG, THEY FEED ON PLANKTON AND

- ANY SMALL FISH THAT HAPPEN TO - PASS BY.

USING THEIR TAILS, THEY BURROW

INTO THE SEABED.

THIS BECOMES THE PERMANENT HOME

WHICH THEY NEVER LEAVE.

- AS WELL AS PROVIDING A SOLID - ANCHOR, THESE HOLES PROVIDE THE

PERFECT RETREAT FROM PREDATORS.

THIS GIANT ACTUALLY POSES NO

THREAT TO GARDEN EELS.

WHALE SHARKS ARE THE LARGEST

FISH IN THE WORLD.

GROWING MORE THAN 60 FEET LONG

AND WEIGHING UP TO 34 TONS,

REMARKABLY, THEY SURVIVE ON A

DIET OF TINY PLANKTON.

TRAVELING AT JUST THREE MILES

PER HOUR, THEY CAN SIFT MORE

- THAN 25 GALLONS OF WATER EVERY - MINUTE.

FIVE FILTERS, ALSO KNOWN AS GILL

RAKERS, TRAP ANYTHING EDIBLE

OVER A MILLIMETER WIDE.

- CLOSER TO LAND, A WASH OF GREEN - LINES THE SHORE.

MANGROVES HAVE EVOLVED TO

FLOURISH WHERE PLANTS ARE UNABLE

TO SURVIVE.

THEIR SPECIALIZED ROOTS FILTER

OUT THE SALT FROM THE SEAWATER,

WHICH WOULD HAVE OTHERWISE

KILLED OFF MOST PLANTS.

ANY SALT THAT IS TAKEN UP IS

EXCRETED THROUGH THE LEAVES.

ALL PLANT ROOTS REQUIRE OXYGEN,

BUT IN WATER-SATURATED SOIL,

- THERE IS VIRTUALLY NO AIR - AVAILABLE.

MANGROVES HAVE DEVELOPED A

UNIQUE WAY OF COPING.

SPECIALIZED BREATHING ROOTS

PROTRUDE ABOVE THE GROUND TO

ABSORB OXYGEN AT LOW TIDE.

THIS DENSE NETWORK OF ROOTS NOT

ONLY HELPS STABILIZE THE FRAGILE

COASTAL SANDS, IT ALSO PROVIDES

A SAFE HAVEN FOR MANY

SHORE-DWELLING CREATURES.

MALE FIDDLER CRABS HAVE AN

OVERSIZED CLAW.

THIS VIOLIN-PLAYING MOTION OF

THE SMALL CLAW MOVING OVER THE

LARGE WHEN FEEDING HAS GIVEN

RISE TO THEIR COMMON NAME.

FEMALE FIDDLER CRABS ARE MORE

EQUALLY BALANCED THAN MALES.

THEY CAN FEED TWICE AS FAST,

SPITTING OUT PELLETS OF SAND

ONCE ANY ORGANIC MATERIAL HAS

BEEN SIFTED OUT.

THIS FRANTIC WAVING IS ALL ABOUT

ATTRACTING A MATE.

FEMALES PREFER MALES WITH LARGER

CLAWS AND A HIGHER WAVE RATE.

- THE FASTER THE RHYTHM, THE - GREATER CHANCE OF OUTDOING THE

COMPETITION.

THESE GIANT CLAWS ARE ALSO USED

IN DISPLAYS OF DOMINANCE AND

FIGHTING PROWESS.

STEALING A SMALLER MALE'S BURROW

IS A DAILY ACTIVITY IN FIDDLER

SOCIETY.

COMING UP, THERE IS ONE TREE

THAT KNOWS HOW TO SURVIVE IN THE

EGYPTIAN DESERTS BETTER THAN

ANYTHING, AND WE HAVE THEIR

SECRET COMING UP NEXT ON "EARTH

ODYSSEY".

[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.

- DYLAN: EGYPT CONTAINS A MAJOR - PART OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST

FOSSIL WATER RESERVE, THE NUBIAN

AQUIFER.

FIFTY THOUSAND YEARS AGO, THE

CLIMATE HERE WAS MUCH MILDER.

WHEN TEMPERATURES INCREASED, THE

LAND TURNED TO DUST.

HOWEVER, RAINWATER TRAPPED

WITHIN THE SANDSTONE BEDROCK

REMAINED.

TODAY, MANY LAKES AND SPRINGS

LIE DOTTED ACROSS THE PARCHED

LANDSCAPE, AND ONE PARTICULAR

TREE ACTS AS A FLAG TO THESE

LIFE-RICH ZONES.

THE ACACIA IS POSSIBLY THE

TOUGHEST TREE ON THE PLANET.

IT ENDURES DRY DESERT

TEMPERATURES MORE THAN 120

DEGREES AS WELL AS FROST.

- ALTHOUGH THE RIVERBEDS IN THIS - REGION HAVE LONG SINCE DRIED UP,

THE ACACIA OBTAINS ITS WATER

NEEDS ANOTHER WAY.

ITS ROOTS CAN EXTEND UP TO A

HALF-A-MILE BELOW GROUND IN

ORDER TO ACCESS THE AQUIFER.

- IT'S LITTLE WONDER THE ANCIENT - EGYPTIANS LABELED THIS SPECIES

THE TREE OF LIFE.

SAP-SUCKING THORN BUGS BLEND

INTO THE ACACIA'S SPINY

BRANCHES...

- ...WHILE PAINTED LADY - BUTTERFLIES ALSO MOVE IN TO

FEED.

THIS OFFERING OF NECTAR IS

CRUCIAL TO THE TREE'S SURVIVAL,

AS IT DEPENDS HEAVILY ON INSECTS

FOR POLLINATION.

HAVING STOOD GUARD FOR MORE THAN

12 WEEKS, THIS FEMALE NILE

CROCODILE RECEIVES HER CUE.

HIGH-PITCHED CHIRPS FROM DEEP

WITHIN THE NEST INDICATE HER

YOUNGSTERS ARE READY TO HATCH.

[CROCODILES CHIRPING]

SHE DECIDES TO LEND A HAND.

A MOUTH DESIGNED FOR CRUSHING

BONE AND TEARING FLESH SUDDENLY

BECOMES A GENTLE CRADLE.

HER MATERNAL INSTINCTS ARE SO

STRONG, SHE GENTLY CARRIES HER

BABIES TO THE WATER.

WITH UP TO 50 HATCHLINGS, THIS

SHUTTLE SERVICE OFTEN INVOLVES

SEVERAL TRIPS.

- NILE CROCODILES ARE AROUND A - FOOT LONG WHEN FIRST HATCHED AND

- WILL DOUBLE IN SIZE THE FIRST - YEAR.

- ALTHOUGH THEY CAN HUNT FOR - THEMSELVES, FOR THE NEXT TWO

YEARS, THEIR MOTHER WILL

CONTINUE TO PROTECT THEM.

- BY THEN, THEY'LL BE MORE THAN - THREE FEET LONG AND BE BIG

ENOUGH TO STAND UP FOR

THEMSELVES.

[CROCODILES CHIRPING]

EGYPT IS A LAND OF LEGACY,

SACRED TOMBS, ANCIENT DUNES, AND

ABOVE ALL, LIFE.

- FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, - CREATURES HAVE DOMINATED THESE

DESERT SANDS, RULING THE

SURROUNDING WATERS, EVEN

SCULPTING THE BELIEFS OF MAN.

EGYPT'S DESERT DYNASTY OF ANIMAL

KINGS AND QUEENS CONTINUES TO

LIVE ON.

- THANK YOU FOR JOINING US ON THIS - JOURNEY TO EGYPT'S DIVERSE

ECOSYSTEMS.

ALTHOUGH KNOWN FOR ITS DESERTS,

THERE IS STILL PLENTY OF HISTORY

TO EXPLORE ON ITS RIVERBANKS.

JOIN US NEXT TIME ON ANOTHER

"EARTH ODYSSEY".

[MUSIC]