1 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:05,800 BARRY HUMPHRIES: As the dawn breaks across Australia, 2 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:10,040 the marsupials go to bed. 3 00:00:12,280 --> 00:00:14,400 Except for the ones that don't, 4 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:16,920 because there are exceptions 5 00:00:17,040 --> 00:00:20,480 to every rule in this land of wonders. 6 00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:23,520 And magic does not have rules. 7 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:26,320 It has dragons... 8 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:31,240 saltwater monsters... 9 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:36,840 and miniature dancers. 10 00:00:38,560 --> 00:00:42,320 What are the extraordinary tricks these animals have 11 00:00:42,400 --> 00:00:44,880 in response to their world? 12 00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:50,240 To endure Australia's frozen peaks... 13 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:55,240 and thrive on its harsh savannas. 14 00:00:56,520 --> 00:00:59,280 To compete in its tropical rainforests. 15 00:01:16,680 --> 00:01:18,720 Travelling into their worlds 16 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:23,680 we begin to understand how truly unique life is 17 00:01:24,120 --> 00:01:27,640 in the Magical Land of Oz. 18 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:42,920 On Australia's highest peaks, the Snowy Mountains, 19 00:01:43,000 --> 00:01:46,360 winter temperatures reach well below zero. 20 00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:53,560 This true alpine wilderness 21 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:58,040 can spend half the year beneath a blanket of snow. 22 00:01:59,960 --> 00:02:04,480 Very few creatures can withstand a winter on Australia's peaks, 23 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:06,640 where food is scarce. 24 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:09,320 But some tough it out. 25 00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:24,840 This echidna has hibernated on and off 26 00:02:24,920 --> 00:02:26,960 during the coldest months, 27 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:31,240 emerging, at the tail end of winter, very hungry. 28 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:34,240 An insect eater, 29 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:38,880 it's slim pickings while the snow encases his food source. 30 00:02:40,120 --> 00:02:44,560 But as one of the most energy efficient mammals on the planet - 31 00:02:44,640 --> 00:02:49,040 with a body temperature that can drop below 5 degrees Celsius - 32 00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:54,240 this echidna can survive long periods in the bitter cold. 33 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:59,520 His shovel-like claws work like snowshoes. 34 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:06,400 It's a lonely march on an empty stomach. 35 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:12,200 As the days get longer and warmer, 36 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:18,200 high-country rivers carry the now liquid winter down the mountain. 37 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:30,880 Spring's arrival also means at last the echidna can feast 38 00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:33,640 after months of winter's famine. 39 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:38,760 But one obstacle still stands in the way of a full belly - 40 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:41,400 a fast-flowing one. 41 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:06,560 Using his long beak as a snorkel and large feet as paddles, 42 00:04:06,640 --> 00:04:10,480 he's perfectly capable of a river crossing. 43 00:04:37,720 --> 00:04:41,280 He may not look like an all-terrain vehicle, 44 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,840 but the echidna inhabits more Australian landscapes 45 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:47,560 than any other native animal. 46 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:55,320 He will now spend 18 hours a day foraging for insects, 47 00:04:55,400 --> 00:05:00,040 turning over soil and gardening the forests. 48 00:05:03,400 --> 00:05:07,920 The echidna is named after the Greek goddess Echidna, 49 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:10,960 who was half woman and half reptile. 50 00:05:12,280 --> 00:05:17,080 Its closest relative, the world's only other monotreme, 51 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:20,880 also has a curious blend of characteristics. 52 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:28,880 With splayed limbs, on land, the platypus shuffles like a lizard. 53 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:40,240 But in the water, she glides like an otter. 54 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:47,520 Egg-laying and beaked like a duck, 55 00:05:47,880 --> 00:05:50,000 she's the ultimate mash-up. 56 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:57,200 But the combination works. 57 00:05:57,280 --> 00:06:00,760 The platypus has remained unchanged in Australia 58 00:06:00,840 --> 00:06:03,640 for 25 million years. 59 00:06:05,040 --> 00:06:08,040 These elegant underwater hunters 60 00:06:08,120 --> 00:06:12,480 are the oldest lineage of mammals alive on earth today, 61 00:06:12,560 --> 00:06:18,200 living only here on the rivers of Eastern Australia. 62 00:06:25,960 --> 00:06:28,720 Later on the evolutionary tree, 63 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,600 but in the same surrounding grasslands and forests 64 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:33,360 of modern Australia, 65 00:06:33,440 --> 00:06:35,640 are the marsupials. 66 00:06:40,360 --> 00:06:46,280 And the most familiar of them all is the eastern grey kangaroo. 67 00:06:48,120 --> 00:06:52,360 The weight of an adult human, but head and shoulders taller, 68 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:56,480 this male is demonstrating his potency to the mob. 69 00:07:06,640 --> 00:07:10,880 A thick sticky secretion from glands on his chest, 70 00:07:11,400 --> 00:07:14,240 in a cocktail of fresh urine, 71 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:17,680 says, "This is my patch." 72 00:07:22,840 --> 00:07:25,880 Just in case anyone doubts his authority. 73 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:46,600 He has a harem of nine breeding females 74 00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:50,000 all with at least one joey. 75 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:57,920 Despite the male's posturing, 76 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:02,680 he's not the powerhouse of this extraordinarily successful species. 77 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:06,520 It's the female with her magic pouch. 78 00:08:12,400 --> 00:08:14,920 So while this 10-month-old joey 79 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:18,000 is starting to explore the outside world, 80 00:08:18,080 --> 00:08:23,720 another tiny baby is already developing in the pouch. 81 00:08:25,280 --> 00:08:27,440 It's only the size of a jellybean. 82 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:37,039 The older joey is now being forced 83 00:08:37,120 --> 00:08:40,360 to spend more hours outside the pouch 84 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:43,880 to give his mum and new sibling a break. 85 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:49,600 Like all young ones, 86 00:08:49,680 --> 00:08:52,760 he knows to keep pestering, until she gives in. 87 00:08:58,360 --> 00:09:00,640 With only two joeys on the go, 88 00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:03,960 she is now ready to fall pregnant again... 89 00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:09,000 ..a fact not lost on the dominant male. 90 00:09:31,760 --> 00:09:34,920 He will pursue her for days. 91 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:41,360 But rival males are a constant threat. 92 00:10:25,520 --> 00:10:30,320 Maintaining his status as top roo is so taxing 93 00:10:30,400 --> 00:10:35,520 that he may only keep the dominant male crown for a year 94 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:37,440 before he is toppled. 95 00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:44,160 Being a kangaroo is much more complicated than it appears. 96 00:10:46,920 --> 00:10:50,880 But the energy expended on reproduction is working for them. 97 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:54,720 Exploiting the farmlands, which have spread across the continent, 98 00:10:54,800 --> 00:10:59,760 there are millions of eastern grey kangaroos in Australia today. 99 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:04,720 Large kangaroos are amongst the very few native animals 100 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:07,600 to benefit from land clearing 101 00:11:07,680 --> 00:11:10,920 and the decline of Australia's apex predators. 102 00:11:14,080 --> 00:11:16,800 So many species are gone now. 103 00:11:18,560 --> 00:11:22,960 The continent's top carnivore, the Tasmanian tiger, 104 00:11:23,040 --> 00:11:26,600 was hunted into extinction by the 1930s. 105 00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:32,720 And the grand hunter from the skies, 106 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:35,160 Australia's own eagle, 107 00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:39,000 has come perilously close to being lost. 108 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:45,720 This country's wedge-tailed eagle is one of the world's largest. 109 00:11:47,480 --> 00:11:50,680 For years, it was mercilessly shot, 110 00:11:50,760 --> 00:11:54,560 mistakenly portrayed as a prolific killer of lambs. 111 00:11:56,520 --> 00:12:00,120 In the mid 1900s, there was a bounty on its head, 112 00:12:00,200 --> 00:12:04,360 with up to 30,000 eagles killed in a single year, 113 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:08,400 their great bodies strung up on fences. 114 00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:13,040 Eagles are now protected 115 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:17,800 and most farmers accept that they are no threat to their livestock. 116 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:24,000 Now affectionately known as "wedgies", 117 00:12:24,080 --> 00:12:28,560 their calls again echo across the farmland. 118 00:12:30,240 --> 00:12:33,880 Australia's biggest bird of prey has a chance of a comeback, 119 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:38,720 thanks, in part, to another mistake of European settlers. 120 00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:44,760 Fluffy eagle fodder, 121 00:12:44,840 --> 00:12:47,520 brought here over 200 years ago, 122 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:50,200 now in plague proportions. 123 00:12:56,560 --> 00:12:59,720 The wedge-tail is a stunning avian predator. 124 00:12:59,800 --> 00:13:02,080 For such a large bird, 125 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:04,800 her movements are deft and light. 126 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:12,760 With a 2.5-metre wingspan, 127 00:13:12,840 --> 00:13:15,480 her precision, at speed, is breathtaking. 128 00:13:19,920 --> 00:13:23,000 She can soar up to 2,000 metres high 129 00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:28,080 and carry half her own body weight in her huge talons. 130 00:13:34,400 --> 00:13:36,880 But as she surveys the landscape, 131 00:13:36,960 --> 00:13:42,840 those eagle eyes pick up something curious and worth investigating. 132 00:13:46,040 --> 00:13:49,440 An eastern long-necked tortoise. 133 00:13:52,240 --> 00:13:55,840 Although the tortoise has an almost impenetrable shell, 134 00:13:55,920 --> 00:13:58,320 he's not taking his chances. 135 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:00,320 Time to retreat. 136 00:14:11,960 --> 00:14:15,200 She's sure that rock was moving. 137 00:14:18,320 --> 00:14:19,960 Baffling really. 138 00:14:24,640 --> 00:14:27,080 It's an old trick but a good one. 139 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:33,880 The eagle resumes her search for an easier target. 140 00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:45,000 This time, it's more familiar. 141 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:04,800 In some parts of the country, 142 00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:08,080 rabbits make up 90% of the eagle's diet. 143 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:14,240 The tortoise, zero. 144 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:18,720 Yet again, the tortoise beats the hare. 145 00:15:25,640 --> 00:15:29,000 And eagles now are the farmer's friend, 146 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:32,320 helping to keep the rabbit population down. 147 00:15:40,360 --> 00:15:43,160 Before rabbits were introduced to Australia 148 00:15:43,240 --> 00:15:45,880 and so much native bushland was removed, 149 00:15:45,960 --> 00:15:49,600 it was the small native animals which had the run of the land. 150 00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:10,400 In the south-west of the country lie the Dryandra Woodlands. 151 00:16:15,680 --> 00:16:18,520 This stand of wandoo eucalypts 152 00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:21,760 is one of the last strongholds for a native mammal 153 00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:25,200 which once roamed the entire continent. 154 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:40,880 As the sun hits the carpet of wildflowers 155 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:44,840 and insects begin massing on the forest floor, 156 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:49,640 a small marsupial is making its first move. 157 00:16:54,440 --> 00:16:56,280 The numbat... 158 00:16:57,640 --> 00:17:02,560 ..closest living relative to the extinct thylacine, 159 00:17:02,640 --> 00:17:05,040 or Tasmanian tiger, 160 00:17:05,119 --> 00:17:07,719 is on a termite hunt. 161 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:12,640 It will take 20,000 termites to fill her belly. 162 00:17:19,800 --> 00:17:25,000 Back in her den are four rapidly growing numbat pups, 163 00:17:25,079 --> 00:17:28,039 which she has fed through the night. 164 00:17:31,680 --> 00:17:34,000 The young are eight months old 165 00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:37,760 and only just getting curious about life beyond the burrow. 166 00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:43,960 One of them, the smallest and boldest, is the leader. 167 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:50,080 She's begun to explore the tree stump fortress 168 00:17:50,160 --> 00:17:51,880 protecting the burrow exit. 169 00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:02,440 Her siblings follow, trembling as the air hits their fur. 170 00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:12,600 Each day our leader has inched closer to the fortress walls. 171 00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:17,960 From here she gets a first glimpse at the world beyond. 172 00:18:24,200 --> 00:18:26,840 But with every sound a warning, 173 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:30,240 the pups retreat, more than advance. 174 00:18:38,080 --> 00:18:40,200 They'll do well to be cautious. 175 00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:45,760 Hundreds of thousands of numbats once ranged across Australia. 176 00:18:45,840 --> 00:18:47,520 Today, there are less of them 177 00:18:47,600 --> 00:18:52,000 than the more famously endangered snow leopard or giant panda. 178 00:18:55,040 --> 00:18:59,440 Just like the panda, numbats are specialist feeders, 179 00:18:59,520 --> 00:19:02,360 needing something that's now in very short supply, 180 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:06,600 undisturbed woodland with logs for termites. 181 00:19:06,680 --> 00:19:10,040 This female can smell a termite's gallery 182 00:19:10,120 --> 00:19:14,520 and even feels their tiny vibrations beneath her feet. 183 00:19:19,120 --> 00:19:21,840 Using her worm-like tongue, 184 00:19:21,920 --> 00:19:25,160 she extracts them from tricky crevices. 185 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:30,640 Each day she swallows 10% of her own body weight. 186 00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:43,000 Her young are getting braver and revelling in the sun. 187 00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,400 The rounded snouts which have suited milk feeding 188 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:51,480 are getting more elongated by the day. 189 00:19:51,560 --> 00:19:56,600 Within a month, they too will be reliant on termites. 190 00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:06,360 So, the job of working out what is food and what is not 191 00:20:06,440 --> 00:20:08,440 is the lesson of the day. 192 00:20:09,680 --> 00:20:12,720 Except for one of them. 193 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:16,480 Our little explorer is determined to experience 194 00:20:16,560 --> 00:20:18,920 what lies beyond the wall... 195 00:20:21,720 --> 00:20:26,360 ..while her siblings stay cautiously close to the burrow. 196 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:32,120 She takes off. 197 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:54,760 She will keep wandering further from the burrow 198 00:20:54,840 --> 00:21:00,680 until one day she leaves her mother's territory and finds her own... 199 00:21:03,160 --> 00:21:05,480 ..crossing paths with other young numbats 200 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:08,840 also emerging from hollows in this forest. 201 00:21:17,120 --> 00:21:20,560 Each one of them will need to venture and breed 202 00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:23,800 in order to keep this species viable. 203 00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:34,880 Over the past two centuries, 204 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:38,960 almost all of the numbat's habitat has been destroyed... 205 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:46,040 ..apart from these last stands of wandoo forest. 206 00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:53,320 And less than 1,000 tiny numbats are left surviving in the wild. 207 00:21:56,280 --> 00:22:01,520 Where Australia's ecosystems are left intact, animals thrive. 208 00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:06,080 It's as simple as that. 209 00:22:08,680 --> 00:22:10,520 In far northern Queensland, 210 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:12,520 the rainforests of the wet tropics 211 00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:16,520 appear as a thin ribbon of green along the coast. 212 00:22:20,440 --> 00:22:23,480 These rainforests have been around longer 213 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:25,440 than any other on the planet... 214 00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:33,160 ..an estimated 180 million years, 215 00:22:33,280 --> 00:22:36,760 far outdating the Amazon. 216 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:43,520 Australia's most secretive and unique creatures 217 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:46,040 have made the forests their home. 218 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:52,120 And everyone here is competing for spoils. 219 00:22:56,440 --> 00:22:59,120 Even on the forest floor. 220 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:19,200 Thousands of species of fungi battle to dominate the leaf litter. 221 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:25,080 Despite their myriad forms, 222 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:30,240 the fungi are all engaged in similar mycological magic. 223 00:23:33,120 --> 00:23:35,960 They break down wood and leaf litter 224 00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:38,960 and return their nutrients to the soil... 225 00:23:42,120 --> 00:23:45,440 ..while slime moulds hunt down the fungi 226 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:47,680 and turn them into nutrients too. 227 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:55,600 Things live fast and die young 228 00:23:55,680 --> 00:23:57,960 on this forest floor. 229 00:24:04,480 --> 00:24:08,120 The pioneers of recycling, you might say, 230 00:24:08,200 --> 00:24:11,440 assuming every imaginable shape. 231 00:24:17,480 --> 00:24:19,600 They feed the hungry forest, 232 00:24:19,680 --> 00:24:23,920 turning it into one of the earth's evolutionary hotspots. 233 00:24:28,520 --> 00:24:33,720 For it was here, in the cradle of the Gondwana Rainforests, 234 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:37,040 that Australia's mammals first emerged. 235 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,480 As the land became more arid, 236 00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:46,160 many moved out to the grasslands. 237 00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:57,760 But there is one kangaroo 238 00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:00,920 which has never left its rainforest home. 239 00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:11,160 A shy creature rarely seen on the forest floor. 240 00:25:15,360 --> 00:25:19,400 That's because its home is in the trees. 241 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:37,640 This young male tree kangaroo has evolved for a life in the canopy, 242 00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:40,840 with large strong arms, big curved claws 243 00:25:40,920 --> 00:25:43,160 and a pendulous tail. 244 00:26:00,320 --> 00:26:06,400 But even 20 metres up, he's still clearly a kangaroo. 245 00:26:13,360 --> 00:26:16,840 The monkey of the kangaroo world, 246 00:26:16,920 --> 00:26:20,600 just a little less sure footed. 247 00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:24,200 At almost two years old, 248 00:26:24,280 --> 00:26:27,800 he has only recently left his mum to find his own territory. 249 00:26:30,480 --> 00:26:33,000 Unlike his relatives at ground level, 250 00:26:33,080 --> 00:26:35,560 he will live a solitary life, 251 00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:38,720 only seeking out a female when it's time to mate. 252 00:26:38,800 --> 00:26:42,280 But he's having trouble cutting the umbilical cord. 253 00:26:43,840 --> 00:26:48,080 He can hear his mum in one of her favourite trees 254 00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:51,520 and he crosses the canopy roof to reach her. 255 00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:55,040 But it's not a tender welcome. 256 00:26:57,960 --> 00:27:00,800 His mother doesn't want him near her. 257 00:27:04,120 --> 00:27:06,760 They move to opposite ends of the tree. 258 00:27:06,840 --> 00:27:11,200 Her tough love suddenly makes sense. 259 00:27:13,040 --> 00:27:17,760 At eight months, the newest joey has begun leaving the pouch 260 00:27:17,840 --> 00:27:20,560 and exploring her high-wire world. 261 00:27:26,520 --> 00:27:28,280 Though she's wobbly enough, 262 00:27:28,360 --> 00:27:31,840 a teenage sibling might topple her altogether. 263 00:27:43,600 --> 00:27:44,800 For her brother, 264 00:27:44,880 --> 00:27:48,680 being solitary requires its own process of evolution. 265 00:27:50,160 --> 00:27:52,640 At least up in this rainforest, 266 00:27:52,720 --> 00:27:55,080 he's never really lonely. 267 00:28:00,280 --> 00:28:02,280 Above and below him, 268 00:28:02,360 --> 00:28:05,000 over half of Australia's bird species 269 00:28:05,080 --> 00:28:09,800 are in a springtime nest-building frenzy. 270 00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:19,160 The sunbird uses bark and seeds to build its hanging nest. 271 00:28:21,000 --> 00:28:26,440 And the fawn-breasted bowerbird makes final artistic touches 272 00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:28,760 to its elaborate construction. 273 00:28:31,360 --> 00:28:34,920 Most cockatoos and parrots rely on hollows. 274 00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:39,400 It would seem an easier option than DIY. 275 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:45,600 But relying on hollows has left the parrot world out on a limb. 276 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:53,280 This female eclectus parrot has guarded her hollow 277 00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:55,480 well before she was ready to lay. 278 00:28:57,640 --> 00:29:00,920 Her green mate delivers food to her 279 00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:03,680 so she can stay on sentry duty. 280 00:29:05,480 --> 00:29:08,520 Hollows form slowly in old trees 281 00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:10,960 so there's never enough to go around. 282 00:29:12,880 --> 00:29:15,280 Unlike so many in this forest, 283 00:29:15,360 --> 00:29:18,400 this one is too high to flood 284 00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:20,760 and it's safe from predators. 285 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:28,000 It should be a textbook incubation. 286 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:31,880 [COCKATOOS SQUAWK] 287 00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:36,560 But the neighbours nobody wants 288 00:29:36,640 --> 00:29:40,560 are looking to move into this leafy suburb. 289 00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:43,560 It's the sulphur-crested cockatoo. 290 00:29:45,640 --> 00:29:47,000 [SQUAWKS] 291 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:55,160 Famously loud, assertive and ready to lay, 292 00:29:55,240 --> 00:29:58,520 this pair want the hollow for themselves. 293 00:30:01,840 --> 00:30:04,320 They begin a game of intimidation. 294 00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:12,240 Unlike the cockatoos, who can breed three times a year, 295 00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:17,200 the eclectus parrot is doing well to raise one chick annually. 296 00:30:24,080 --> 00:30:25,480 [SQUAWKS] 297 00:30:29,520 --> 00:30:31,440 But as the day heats up, 298 00:30:31,520 --> 00:30:36,520 temperatures inside the nest hit over 30 degrees Celsius. 299 00:30:43,960 --> 00:30:48,160 Her own body heat is raising temperatures even further. 300 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:52,880 Her eggs will cook in this oven. 301 00:30:59,040 --> 00:31:02,280 With the coast clear of sulphur-crested cockatoos, 302 00:31:02,360 --> 00:31:06,520 she leaves to let the nest cool down. 303 00:31:06,600 --> 00:31:09,440 But they see an opportunity too. 304 00:31:12,120 --> 00:31:16,480 If the cockatoos get inside, they will smash the eggs. 305 00:31:25,160 --> 00:31:28,800 The cockatoos get more confident with every passing moment. 306 00:31:35,720 --> 00:31:37,920 [PARROT SQUAWKS] 307 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:41,600 The female will fight to the death to protect her eggs. 308 00:31:43,440 --> 00:31:47,640 Her siren colour is enough to ward off these intruders. 309 00:32:03,360 --> 00:32:06,560 But colour is only one of the many ways 310 00:32:07,040 --> 00:32:09,360 birds in this forest communicate. 311 00:32:12,040 --> 00:32:16,480 It's only recently been discovered that 24 million years ago, 312 00:32:16,560 --> 00:32:19,720 birdsong evolved in this forest. 313 00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:24,360 It is the home of nature's great vocalists. 314 00:32:24,440 --> 00:32:26,040 [TRILLS] 315 00:32:26,120 --> 00:32:27,600 [SQUAWKS] 316 00:32:28,800 --> 00:32:31,000 [HONKS] 317 00:32:31,080 --> 00:32:34,000 [TWEETS] 318 00:32:36,120 --> 00:32:41,800 It's also where one cockatoo has developed a sound so unique, 319 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:45,120 it wasn't thought possible for a bird. 320 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:54,800 The continent's largest cockatoo, 321 00:32:54,880 --> 00:32:57,960 the palm cockatoo or "palmy". 322 00:33:00,280 --> 00:33:02,400 It's the most intelligent of Australia's, 323 00:33:02,480 --> 00:33:04,920 and possibly the world's, bird species. 324 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:10,000 Its brain is comparable, in brain-to-body ratio, 325 00:33:10,080 --> 00:33:12,960 to that of a dolphin or great ape. 326 00:33:13,040 --> 00:33:15,520 But it's also a parrot, 327 00:33:15,600 --> 00:33:17,440 and like its relatives, 328 00:33:17,520 --> 00:33:19,960 the palmy nests in tree hollows. 329 00:33:24,440 --> 00:33:28,480 This proud pair have secured a beautiful bough. 330 00:33:30,040 --> 00:33:33,160 And for their entire lifespans, around 60 years, 331 00:33:33,240 --> 00:33:35,320 they will share the parenting. 332 00:33:39,720 --> 00:33:42,800 They pass the baton with a kiss... 333 00:33:46,960 --> 00:33:50,320 ..before taking turns to forage. 334 00:33:56,840 --> 00:34:01,520 These birds and this forest have evolved together. 335 00:34:02,680 --> 00:34:05,040 With one of the world's largest beaks, 336 00:34:05,120 --> 00:34:09,080 they are amongst the few creatures able to break into the hard fruits 337 00:34:09,159 --> 00:34:11,879 of the native nonda plum. 338 00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:34,120 As the female returns to the nest, she offers a distinct knock... 339 00:34:34,199 --> 00:34:35,799 [KNOCKS] 340 00:34:37,560 --> 00:34:40,080 ..to say, "Yoo-hoo! It's me." 341 00:34:44,679 --> 00:34:49,319 But it is her mate who works harder still to message his partner... 342 00:34:52,520 --> 00:34:58,840 ..communicating in a way no bird - indeed, no other animal on earth - 343 00:34:58,920 --> 00:34:59,960 has accomplished. 344 00:35:11,880 --> 00:35:18,000 This male palmy has a talent long thought exclusively a human skill. 345 00:35:23,000 --> 00:35:26,120 He fashions a drumstick 346 00:35:26,200 --> 00:35:29,960 and very deliberately makes music! 347 00:35:37,160 --> 00:35:41,880 Each male produces regular beats to his own particular rhythm. 348 00:35:43,280 --> 00:35:44,320 [SQUAWKS] 349 00:35:44,400 --> 00:35:47,680 Why he does this is still unclear. 350 00:35:47,760 --> 00:35:50,520 Is it a show of strength to ward off competitors? 351 00:35:50,600 --> 00:35:51,800 [SQUAWKS] 352 00:35:51,880 --> 00:35:56,280 Or a message to his partner that she needs to look no further? 353 00:35:56,360 --> 00:35:59,600 He and his nest are best. 354 00:36:04,160 --> 00:36:08,800 A feature of Australia's tropical rainforests is their stability. 355 00:36:12,240 --> 00:36:17,240 But the monsoon region to the west is volatile and unpredictable. 356 00:36:17,320 --> 00:36:22,280 Here, the land seesaws between two extremes - 357 00:36:22,360 --> 00:36:27,120 the floods of the summer's wet season... 358 00:36:29,400 --> 00:36:32,360 ..and the raging fires which can take hold, 359 00:36:32,440 --> 00:36:36,720 burning for months through the region's parched winters. 360 00:36:40,280 --> 00:36:42,440 But it's these extremes 361 00:36:42,520 --> 00:36:47,600 which have helped sculpt some of the world's most dramatic landscapes. 362 00:36:51,920 --> 00:36:54,200 One of the largest savannas on earth, 363 00:36:54,280 --> 00:36:58,360 sweeping across one quarter of the continent, 364 00:36:58,440 --> 00:37:02,880 intersected by permanent tidal rivers. 365 00:37:08,000 --> 00:37:11,000 [BIRDS AND INSECTS CALL AND CHIRRUP] 366 00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:31,880 The hunting ground of the saltwater croc. 367 00:37:37,040 --> 00:37:42,000 This male, known to the river guides as Casanova, 368 00:37:42,080 --> 00:37:45,680 has been top croc on this river for decades, 369 00:37:45,760 --> 00:37:50,640 with over 60 pointed teeth. 370 00:38:00,320 --> 00:38:05,880 And while now in his late 50s he might be considered an old croc, 371 00:38:05,960 --> 00:38:08,760 he has learnt a new trick. 372 00:38:12,960 --> 00:38:19,240 Casanova has adapted to the presence of humans in an unexpected way. 373 00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:25,040 He associates the rumble of a boat crammed with tourists 374 00:38:25,120 --> 00:38:27,320 with dinner. 375 00:38:29,840 --> 00:38:31,360 MAN: Life jackets. 376 00:38:31,440 --> 00:38:32,960 They're situated just up there. 377 00:38:33,360 --> 00:38:35,120 I'm not even going to show you how to put one on. 378 00:38:35,200 --> 00:38:36,680 Does anyone know why? 379 00:38:39,680 --> 00:38:42,080 Crocodiles are attracted to bright colours, OK? 380 00:38:42,160 --> 00:38:43,240 And splashing. 381 00:38:43,320 --> 00:38:46,200 So, um... And there's about 5,000 crocodiles in this river. 382 00:38:46,280 --> 00:38:49,000 If you end up in the water, you won't have time to drown anyway. 383 00:38:49,080 --> 00:38:52,080 Yeah? So, number one, avoid going in the water. 384 00:38:52,160 --> 00:38:54,840 But, um, if we do, life jackets are useless. 385 00:38:58,600 --> 00:39:00,920 When not chasing the female crocs, 386 00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:05,200 Casanova puts his natural abilities to good use 387 00:39:05,280 --> 00:39:07,760 and thrills the tourists. 388 00:39:14,080 --> 00:39:19,720 A wavelike thrust created by hundreds of muscles working in tandem 389 00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:23,080 propels two thirds of his body clear from the surface... 390 00:39:32,280 --> 00:39:35,040 ..finishing the leap with a bite - 391 00:39:35,120 --> 00:39:38,360 the strongest down force of any animal. 392 00:39:47,240 --> 00:39:49,160 Although it looks unnatural, 393 00:39:49,240 --> 00:39:53,040 crocs will leap for animals on overhanging trees. 394 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:55,680 He's ready to go now. Look at this. 395 00:39:55,760 --> 00:39:57,120 No mucking around. 396 00:39:58,160 --> 00:40:00,440 Here we go. Here we go. Oh! 397 00:40:00,520 --> 00:40:01,880 Alright. 398 00:40:06,240 --> 00:40:08,360 (TOURISTS GASP) There we go. 399 00:40:08,720 --> 00:40:14,600 Only here in Australia have Casanova and his saltie rivermates 400 00:40:14,680 --> 00:40:18,680 learned to jump for rewards offered up by humans. 401 00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:21,040 To avoid a crocodile attack is very easy. 402 00:40:21,120 --> 00:40:23,000 You stay back six metres from the water's edge 403 00:40:23,080 --> 00:40:24,360 and you never enter the water. 404 00:40:24,440 --> 00:40:27,560 Those two simple things - never get attacked by a crocodile. 405 00:40:28,840 --> 00:40:32,680 Although that is a very complex thing to comprehend for some people. 406 00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:46,800 On this river, human and reptile have found a way to coexist. 407 00:40:46,880 --> 00:40:51,880 Not that life is now easy for the continent's apex predator. 408 00:40:56,320 --> 00:40:58,840 He is relentlessly hunted... 409 00:40:58,920 --> 00:41:02,280 ..by the march fly. 410 00:41:09,600 --> 00:41:11,960 Not just here to hitchhike... 411 00:41:13,080 --> 00:41:18,240 ..the fly seeks out divots in the croc's armour plating. 412 00:41:24,240 --> 00:41:27,040 Weakness found. 413 00:41:27,120 --> 00:41:32,600 It bores its drill-like proboscis into the soft area of skin below. 414 00:41:40,920 --> 00:41:45,600 A modified form of saliva prevents the croc's blood from clotting. 415 00:41:49,760 --> 00:41:56,400 And then the fly mops up the blood with its fleshy mouthparts, 416 00:41:56,480 --> 00:42:01,640 filling to bursting point on its victim's rich, cold blood. 417 00:42:07,640 --> 00:42:09,920 The delicate three-layered eyelid 418 00:42:10,000 --> 00:42:12,680 is particularly susceptible to attack. 419 00:42:19,240 --> 00:42:21,440 Nostrils are targeted too. 420 00:42:24,800 --> 00:42:28,360 And from this perspective, the menacing croc 421 00:42:28,440 --> 00:42:32,800 is reduced to no more than an involuntary blood donor. 422 00:42:36,720 --> 00:42:42,480 Although he does have one pest control strategy - mud. 423 00:42:44,560 --> 00:42:48,400 Australia's all-natural fly repellent. 424 00:42:55,000 --> 00:43:01,240 Not only a barrier to flies but also a salve to soothe irritating bites. 425 00:43:06,240 --> 00:43:08,440 At least for a moment. 426 00:43:10,720 --> 00:43:13,920 It's not fatal, but it feels like torture. 427 00:43:17,240 --> 00:43:20,520 And despite its ancient evolutionary line, 428 00:43:20,600 --> 00:43:25,560 the croc still has a distinct design fault - 429 00:43:25,640 --> 00:43:30,760 legs so short that there's an itch that can't be scratched. 430 00:43:40,080 --> 00:43:42,320 While the croc is at war with its flies, 431 00:43:42,400 --> 00:43:44,320 the rest of the creatures 432 00:43:44,400 --> 00:43:48,040 who call Australia's northern monsoon region home 433 00:43:48,120 --> 00:43:52,200 battle the extreme variations in climate. 434 00:43:54,840 --> 00:43:56,120 Birds migrate 435 00:43:56,200 --> 00:43:59,720 to cope with the dramatic pulses of the wet and the dry. 436 00:44:03,120 --> 00:44:06,520 Other creatures do not have this luxury. 437 00:44:06,600 --> 00:44:12,000 Unable to move with the seasons, they must stay and face the elements. 438 00:44:17,240 --> 00:44:21,440 On these floodplains in the far north of Arnhem Land, 439 00:44:21,520 --> 00:44:25,040 a creature has evolved a unique coping mechanism 440 00:44:25,120 --> 00:44:27,720 to survive this seasonal change. 441 00:44:30,520 --> 00:44:32,360 The children of Maningrida, 442 00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:36,360 whose playground spans these northern floodplains, 443 00:44:36,440 --> 00:44:41,480 have discovered an extraordinary web of life beneath their feet. 444 00:44:48,000 --> 00:44:52,400 In this one small area, they have helped scientists identify 445 00:44:52,480 --> 00:44:58,000 an astonishing new species of tarantula, or Kidjikarrabba. 446 00:45:04,080 --> 00:45:08,120 Like most spiders, they have eight eyes and eight legs 447 00:45:08,200 --> 00:45:13,600 but what sets these tarantulas apart is their dashing red coat. 448 00:45:17,480 --> 00:45:21,840 And fangs long enough to dig deep into flesh. 449 00:45:26,960 --> 00:45:31,520 The floodplain is pockmarked by thousands of spider burrows - 450 00:45:31,600 --> 00:45:35,640 a megacluster of ambush hunters. 451 00:45:49,320 --> 00:45:53,200 The female will spend hours waiting motionless 452 00:45:53,280 --> 00:45:56,320 for the perfect dinner guest. 453 00:46:00,640 --> 00:46:04,680 She has laid silk out around her burrow entrance. 454 00:46:04,760 --> 00:46:07,680 It's a carpet of trip wires. 455 00:46:45,480 --> 00:46:51,440 Once in the tarantula's vicelike grip, there's no hope of escape. 456 00:46:53,800 --> 00:46:59,880 She deals a final blow, injecting it with toxic venom. 457 00:47:01,040 --> 00:47:04,040 The grasshopper is paralysed. 458 00:47:06,640 --> 00:47:08,960 Her last catch for the dry season. 459 00:47:09,040 --> 00:47:10,080 [THUNDER RUMBLES] 460 00:47:10,160 --> 00:47:15,720 Rumbles outside suggest her world is about to be inundated. 461 00:47:18,240 --> 00:47:21,440 The monsoon has arrived. 462 00:47:23,600 --> 00:47:27,040 Thunderheads reach over 12,000 metres high. 463 00:47:29,600 --> 00:47:33,120 Electric charges begin to spark and fire. 464 00:47:35,720 --> 00:47:39,640 A thunderstorm producing the equivalent energy of an atomic bomb. 465 00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:42,600 [THUNDER CRASHES] 466 00:47:55,640 --> 00:47:59,240 A flood makes its way towards the plain. 467 00:48:06,120 --> 00:48:08,320 For a creature that lives underground, 468 00:48:08,400 --> 00:48:11,120 this can only spell danger. 469 00:48:24,560 --> 00:48:27,760 But she is no ordinary tarantula. 470 00:48:30,840 --> 00:48:34,480 She won't flee her burrow as the watertable rises. 471 00:48:38,240 --> 00:48:42,560 She has her own silvery life support system. 472 00:48:42,640 --> 00:48:46,680 Her hairy coat traps air bubbles. 473 00:48:49,680 --> 00:48:51,520 Keeping movement to a minimum, 474 00:48:51,600 --> 00:48:55,800 she can survive on these tiny air pockets. 475 00:49:03,080 --> 00:49:08,240 Like an astronaut in space, she has created her own atmosphere. 476 00:49:10,920 --> 00:49:15,600 Known only as the diving tarantula, their discovery is so recent, 477 00:49:15,680 --> 00:49:19,160 they are yet to be officially named by science. 478 00:49:25,520 --> 00:49:27,600 By the peak of the wet season, 479 00:49:27,680 --> 00:49:32,200 this area will be under half a metre of water 480 00:49:32,280 --> 00:49:33,880 and, with nowhere to go, 481 00:49:33,960 --> 00:49:38,680 it's assumed she'll remain submerged for the next four months. 482 00:49:40,080 --> 00:49:45,000 Scientists estimate there are 25,000 diving tarantulas 483 00:49:45,080 --> 00:49:47,120 on this floodplain - 484 00:49:47,200 --> 00:49:51,080 the highest concentration of tarantulas anywhere in the world. 485 00:49:52,560 --> 00:49:57,440 Most certainly this is no place for an arachnophobe, 486 00:49:57,520 --> 00:50:00,480 or even a family holiday. 487 00:50:03,800 --> 00:50:06,720 As the wet season departs the Top End, 488 00:50:06,800 --> 00:50:12,080 it leaves behind a vivid savanna, plumped by the rain. 489 00:50:12,160 --> 00:50:16,960 Now it will be the dry season's turn to repaint the landscape. 490 00:50:18,920 --> 00:50:24,280 But before the greens turn brown, they will be dressed in black. 491 00:50:33,000 --> 00:50:36,600 200km south of Maningrida, 492 00:50:36,680 --> 00:50:40,000 the Indigenous rangers of Central Arnhem Land 493 00:50:40,080 --> 00:50:43,320 are setting the ground alight. 494 00:50:51,360 --> 00:50:52,640 They burn now 495 00:50:52,720 --> 00:50:56,680 to prevent uncontrollable wildfires later in the season. 496 00:51:04,640 --> 00:51:07,400 The crisp grass ignites quickly. 497 00:51:07,480 --> 00:51:10,960 The flames move on, leaving the trees intact. 498 00:51:20,080 --> 00:51:24,880 And as the smoke builds, the rangers know to look skyward. 499 00:51:29,240 --> 00:51:33,880 They will almost always see a black kite overhead. 500 00:51:41,520 --> 00:51:43,280 As the grass burns, 501 00:51:43,360 --> 00:51:47,600 a mass exodus of creatures is forced to flee the heat. 502 00:51:59,440 --> 00:52:03,600 So the black kite, precision instrument that she is, 503 00:52:03,680 --> 00:52:08,040 can swoop on parbaked bugs. 504 00:52:23,440 --> 00:52:26,960 But the kite doesn't feast alone for long. 505 00:52:29,680 --> 00:52:36,720 As the smoke builds, so do the kites, arriving from kilometres around - 506 00:52:36,800 --> 00:52:38,600 hundreds of them. 507 00:52:57,880 --> 00:53:00,720 All are competing now for the spoils. 508 00:53:03,120 --> 00:53:06,440 Squabbles break out. Talons clash. 509 00:53:10,120 --> 00:53:14,240 The traditional owners know what this bird might do next. 510 00:53:18,480 --> 00:53:22,560 For thousands of years, Dreaming stories have been told 511 00:53:22,640 --> 00:53:25,840 of a bird that makes its own fires. 512 00:53:29,680 --> 00:53:33,120 The clever Firebird, or Karrkkanj. 513 00:53:36,400 --> 00:53:38,880 The only creature other than humans 514 00:53:38,960 --> 00:53:43,280 known to harness fire for personal gain. 515 00:54:42,240 --> 00:54:48,200 The kite has been witnessed building new fires to flush out more insects, 516 00:54:48,280 --> 00:54:51,240 creating new hunting opportunities. 517 00:55:09,200 --> 00:55:13,520 And despite being the world's most common raptor, 518 00:55:13,600 --> 00:55:17,480 it is only Australia's kites which do this. 519 00:55:24,200 --> 00:55:26,920 Rangers are left to deal with extra fires 520 00:55:27,000 --> 00:55:31,680 while those guilty of fueling the flames fly free 521 00:55:31,760 --> 00:55:35,240 and are very likely to reoffend. 522 00:55:40,400 --> 00:55:43,160 For tens of thousands of years, 523 00:55:43,240 --> 00:55:46,240 Indigenous people have been telling the stories 524 00:55:46,320 --> 00:55:49,680 of this ancient land and its creatures... 525 00:55:52,160 --> 00:55:56,400 ..and yet there is so much about Australia's wildlife 526 00:55:56,480 --> 00:55:59,280 that remains unknown to the world beyond. 527 00:56:01,560 --> 00:56:03,320 About the intelligence... 528 00:56:06,240 --> 00:56:07,920 ..the resilience... 529 00:56:13,200 --> 00:56:17,920 ..and the perseverance of these unique and irreplaceable creatures. 530 00:56:20,280 --> 00:56:22,000 Some are thriving... 531 00:56:28,760 --> 00:56:30,760 ..while others are on the edge. 532 00:56:36,680 --> 00:56:39,600 Australia may be an ancient land 533 00:56:39,680 --> 00:56:42,880 whose creatures have grown over millennia 534 00:56:43,360 --> 00:56:46,680 from her rock, soil and flora... 535 00:56:49,920 --> 00:56:53,200 ..but human change is shifting everything. 536 00:56:54,520 --> 00:56:58,400 What this means for the future of Australia's animals 537 00:56:58,480 --> 00:57:00,960 is another story again.