- 8/23/2024
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00:00G'day and welcome to Tasmania. Have a look at this little devil. Aren't they cute? They're
00:08wild little units.
00:22Tasmanian devils, they're the nearest living relative of a much bigger predator, the thylacine
00:28or Tasmanian tiger. Officially, the tiger is presumed extinct, but we're not convinced.
00:35So join us as we search for ourselves and discover the mysteries of wild Tasmania.
00:58Tasmania is an island state at the southern end of Australia. Cut off from the mainland
01:16by rising sea levels, its isolation for thousands of years has allowed a distinctive population
01:22of wildlife to survive and evolve in the coldest part of Australia. This is one of the last
01:30areas the Tassie tiger was ever seen. Understandable, it's a really remote area. You could spend
01:35your whole lifetime down in here and never see a sign. It's a perfect spot to look for
01:41Tasmania's remarkable wildlife and maybe find sign of the tiger. The last time one was seen
01:47for sure was in 1936, the year the last thylacine in captivity died in a Tasmanian zoo.
01:59Copperhead.
02:06What a beauty. Have a look at this. How's this? This is a copperhead. Now they're pretty
02:14common here on Tasmania, and ever since I was a boy, I've been fascinated by copperheads.
02:20They are a spectacular snake species. There's only three snakes in Tasmania, the tigers,
02:27the copperheads, and a little white-lipped snake. This is a beautiful specimen. It's
02:31an adult, full-grown, really good condition. You can see along the side of its head...
02:39Hang on a minute there. Coming your way.
02:49Got him. Wow. Gee, they're quick.
02:52Watch him. He's a bit ballistic.
02:55Wow. It's been a long time since I've seen copperheads. I forgot how fast they were.
03:00They are really, really whippy. Extremely fast. He shot off like I wouldn't believe.
03:07Look at that. Aren't they beautiful animals? Absolutely beautiful. Now if you have a look
03:12at his head, quite often they get a coppery sheen about them. Hence their name, copperhead.
03:17Have a look at his beautiful, shiny scales. Quite a coppery colouration coming back from
03:23underneath his head. It's getting a little bit grumpy. They're a fantastic animal, and
03:29they're very cold-tolerant. They can handle icy conditions. Dark colouration, they warm
03:35up quick. Beautiful animal. Normally found around permanent water. They like to eat lizards,
03:42occasionally frogs, and they're cannibalistic. They'll eat other snakes, including their
03:48own kind. Beautiful.
03:52I'll just let him go. Why don't you just watch out there, sweetheart?
03:56I'm just going to let him go now.
04:00There you go, buddy.
04:02Unless you're trained to handle them, never get this close to a snake. They can be dangerous,
04:07and in Australia, that can mean deadly.
04:17A calm day on the Tasmanian east coast, and we're heading to one of the closest islands,
04:22a place that's home to a flourishing colony of Australian fur seals. The tough, rocky
04:29islands of the east are shaped by the power of savage winds and seas tearing away at the
04:34landscape. Only the toughest stone survives the battering to form steep cliffs that drop
04:40abruptly into deep water, sometimes with caves that are carved deep into the rock.
04:47You can only get a boat into these caves on very calm days, and when we moved in to investigate,
04:52we were surprised to find dozens of massive seals concealed in the darkness.
04:59Even on a calm day, we have to be careful. The ocean swells are lifting our boat at least
05:10a metre up and down. There's an ever-present danger of being caught under one of the many
05:15overhanging ledges.
05:18Outside the cave, hundreds more seals have spotted us, and they head straight for the
05:23water. It's a spectacular show as these amazing mammals slide and splash into the sea. If
05:29we get too close, they'll swamp the boat. By crikey, they're having a good day, and
05:34the biggest males can weigh up to 800 pounds.
05:38These are the most common seals found in Tasmanian waters, and as their name suggests,
05:43Australian fur seals, they were once hunted for their skins, but now they are fully protected.
05:52Woo! Unreal.
05:55The water is where they feel safest, but in this case, it's the sea.
05:59The seal makes up a majority part of their diet, and great whites have a frightening
06:03reputation for attacking and killing scuba divers by mistake. But for Steve, the attraction
06:10of meeting seals like this is a rare sight.
06:15I've never seen a seal like this before.
06:19I've never seen a seal like this before.
06:23I've never seen a seal like this before.
06:26I've never seen a seal like this before.
06:29This face-to-face in their natural element overcomes any thought of danger.
06:38This is where the seal truly belongs.
06:42Awkward and shambling on shore, they hit the water and become graceful creatures of the
06:48sea, able to stay below for up to 20 minutes without taking a breath.
06:54I wish I could do that.
06:57They were shy and wary on land, but underwater, their fear is gone.
07:02Steve's an object of curiosity, something strange but in no way threatening.
07:07They want to see what he is, and they can spot what they think is another seal in the
07:11reflection from his face mask.
07:14The danger time for seals is when they return to the surface for a breath of air.
07:19That's when they're most vulnerable to a shark attack.
07:23Down below, their speed and astonishing manoeuvrability will keep them safe.
07:28The trail of bubbles that make those underwater patterns is escaping air that is trapped in
07:33the fur of the seal every time they surface.
07:38The longer Steve stays below with them, the more playful the seals become.
07:43A lot of marine mammals, such as dolphins, don't seem to like the air bubbles created
07:47by scuba divers.
07:48It scares them off, but not the seals.
07:51Escaping air is part of their underwater behavior, and for a while, they treat Steve
07:56as if he was one of them.
07:58And he's more than happy to go along with the game.
08:12Traveling by boat is the only way to reach some of the more remote parts of Tasmania's
08:16east coast.
08:18Vast areas of complete wilderness and inaccessible shorelines can make travel by land extremely
08:24difficult.
08:25On our way to the Freyshane Peninsula, we pass another rocky island.
08:29This time, it's the birds who have colonized the barren surface.
08:36They're black-faced shags, members of the cormorant family.
08:40This species is found only around the southernmost parts of Australia, especially on the Tasmanian
08:46coast and smaller islands.
08:48This is a breeding colony, where they build low-platform nests on the rocky ground and
08:53care for up to five eggs at a time.
09:07What I see is a fantastic natural landscape, but what Steve sees is something more than
09:12that.
09:13When Steve gets anywhere near a cliff face as spectacular as this, the first thing that
09:18occurs to him is, what's up there, what's the view like, and can I climb it?
09:23There's only one way to find out.
09:30The lower part of the climb doesn't look too bad.
09:33Further up, it gets vertical.
09:35But even from here, we can see plenty of ways up, providing the rock's good and firm.
09:40And about halfway up, we can see a nice flat section that might be worth exploring.
09:49To start with, I can manage the climb with a bit of help from Steve, until we reach the
09:54vertical parts of the cliff face, and I know I can't go any further.
10:02I'm staying here to check out the wildlife, but for Steve, this is where the real challenge
10:07begins, finding a path up a sheer rock wall he's never climbed before.
10:15Believe it or not, for Steve, this is fun, and just the place to polish up his climbing
10:20skills.
10:38Yeah?
10:53Now this is getting close to where I want to be.
10:57While I negotiate my way across the last few outcrops of rock, Terry's got time to search
11:02for a bit of wildlife.
11:05There's nothing like that feeling of achievement.
11:08You literally feel like you're on top of the world.
11:26While Steve's finding his way back down the cliff, I've discovered a well-developed little
11:31ecosystem on a flat section halfway up the slope.
11:35You are a little cutie.
11:38Hello.
11:40Aren't you pretty?
11:42Now this is the smallest of the three species of snake we'll find in Tasmania.
11:47This is the white-lipped snake.
11:49Have a look.
11:50Right around the mouth is really light-colored lips.
11:56Now, the white-lipped snake is actually the most cold-tolerant snake in Tasmania.
12:02Although all snakes have to heat up in order to be able to eat, this guy can handle even
12:06sub-freezing temperatures.
12:08When he gets warm enough to eat, he's going to dine on things like little lizards.
12:13This is a young one.
12:14They get a bit larger than this when they're full-grown.
12:17He's a good boy.
12:18Now, although he looks quite harmless and is being very gentle, he is actually a little
12:25He is actually a front-fanged venomous snake.
12:28The reason he's not biting is, first of all, I'm not hurting him, and second of all, I'm
12:33way too big to eat.
12:36Here you go.
12:45Have a look at these little beauties.
12:48They're Tasmanian paddy melons, and as soon as it starts getting warm, they'll look for
12:53some dense vegetation and find a comfortable spot to sleep all day long.
12:58These delightful little relatives of the kangaroo used to be on the mainland, too, but like
13:03so many species, they've become extinct there since European settlement.
13:07Luckily, they're still thriving here in Tasmania.
13:11The wildlife on the Freysenay Peninsula is not only prolific, but quite approachable.
13:17It's a wildlife hotspot, and these wallabies are jumping around everywhere.
13:21They're so cute.
13:24Paddy melons tend to be solitary animals.
13:27You won't find them in mobs like kangaroos and wallabies, their larger cousins.
13:40Generally, a paddy melon mum and her joey stick to their own little territory.
13:47Paddy melon joeys are typically born in late summer and early autumn.
13:52They spend the winter in the warmth of their mother's pouch, and with the coming of spring,
13:56they start to venture out on their own.
14:00The paddy melon joey will spend about 28 weeks in the pouch and gradually gets used to life
14:06on her own until she's big enough to fend for herself.
14:09And then, when she's in her second year, she'll be ready to have joeys of her own.
14:14When you find wild animals as tame as this wallaby,
14:17it's often a sign that we've interfered too much with their natural behaviour.
14:22Visitors here at Wineglass Bay have virtually trained this fella to eat our food
14:27instead of the native grasses and shrubs that make up his normal diet.
14:34Boy, crikey, these wallabies are tame.
14:36They're approaching people on the beach.
14:38To see a wallaby on the beach is fascinating.
14:40But to approach people and expect food off them is quite amazing.
14:44But there is one bad side effect.
14:46If you have a look on the side of his jaw, that lump there,
14:49that's a chronic problem called lumpy jaw, and it will cause his death.
14:53So feeding them bread and cakes and biscuits, unnatural foods, bad news.
15:02And he's almost demanding food off Terry.
15:06We've got nothing for you.
15:07We don't have anything.
15:21Once these wallabies become reliant on human feeding,
15:24they don't get enough of their natural foods,
15:26and illness is set in when they start suffering nutritional deficiencies.
15:31As we continue our discovery of the mysteries of Tasmania,
15:34we start to head into areas where there have been reported sightings
15:37of the Tasmanian tiger over the years, since it was declared probably extinct.
15:43Well we're just about to head into areas where there have been
15:45reported sightings of the Tasmanian tiger over the years,
15:48since it was declared probably extinct.
15:51Given the abundance of wildlife here, we're going to have road fatalities, really unfortunate.
16:14Another big problem comes in where carnivores like Tassie Devils come in, they start feeding
16:19off the carcass, and they also get hit by cars.
16:24I'll just drag it off the road.
16:35By dragging it right off the road, eagles and devils, they're not going to get hit.
16:42Travelling around the state of Tasmania is quite easy.
16:45Steve, something's been hit.
16:55It was a spotted-tailed quoll, and it was limping.
16:59The quolls are a family of carnivorous marsupials, and if we can find it, we may be able to have
17:04its injuries treated by a vet.
17:11He's really stressed out, I think he's alright.
17:22They're tough little critters, he'll be okay, we'll leave him alone.
17:31That is the best time to look for practically every marsupial, and probably our best chance
17:38of seeing a thylacine.
17:41We can hear an animal moving through the bush, and as we get close, we see it's a Tassie
17:47Devil, and it's feeding on a carcass of a dead wallaby.
17:53Devils are mainly scavengers, and the wallaby that this one's eating is far too large to
17:59have been hunted down by a devil.
18:02Even fully grown, they're not able to pull down an animal that size.
18:07The wallaby was probably a roadkill, and there won't be anything left by the time the devils
18:12are finished.
18:13They eat the lot, meat, fur, and bone.
18:37This newcomer takes top spot at the table.
18:44In devil society, the most dominant animal feeds first, while the others wait their turn.
18:51The sound brings in more competitors, and every new arrival means that shortly there'll
18:56be another fight.
18:58They have to decide who eats first, second, third, and so on.
19:04While we watched, eight or nine devils were attracted to the feeding.
19:11Most of them left the scene to wait their turn.
19:29This show of aggression is mainly to assert dominance.
19:32Only do they make contact.
19:38And just as well, or they tear each other apart.
19:51If there are thylacines around, they might also be attracted by the sounds and smells
19:55of the feeding frenzy.
19:58Instead, we catch sight of the distinctive spots of an eastern quoll, another hunter
20:03of the night in the Tasmanian wilderness.
20:07A little further on, we spot another one.
20:14And another.
20:15Normally, they hunt alone, but this is the mating season, and we're probably looking
20:21at a breeding pair.
20:23Hunters carry five or six babies in their pouch, and when they're too big to carry,
20:27they'll raise them in a nest until they're about 20 weeks old.
20:31Like many other Australian animals, the eastern quoll has disappeared from the mainland and
20:36survives only in Tasmania.
20:39One of the reasons these carnivorous marsupials have survived so well here is that Tasmania
20:44still has large areas of undisturbed bush linked together by wildlife corridors.
20:52When we spotlight them clearly on open ground, we can see the movements that prompted settlers
20:57to nickname them native cats.
21:00Now, this guy better watch out.
21:03It's an eastern barred bandicoot, and he's a perfect size to be hunted down by the quolls
21:08that share his territory.
21:10Fortunately, they're fast breeders and fairly common over much of Tasmania, but getting
21:16very rare on the mainland of Australia.
21:19In the wilderness, we're heading underground.
21:23This magnificent formation is King Solomon's Cave, and it's a limestone cave which was
21:28created by an underwater stream.
21:31It's truly magnificent.
21:32The color from these stalactites and stalagmites, truly one of the most awesome things I've
21:39seen.
21:40And the reason for these magnificent colors and formations is the limestone coming from
21:44the roof of the cave, forming these stalactites and stalagmites.
21:49This particular cave was first discovered in 1908 when two men were out on a hunting
21:54expedition.
21:55They came back and passed ropes all the way down the length of the cave and explored it
21:58completely.
21:59In 1983, National Parks and Wildlife Service came in and renovated the whole cave with
22:04steps and lights, and made it spectacular so that visitors can come from all over the
22:09world and enjoy the fabulous formations.
22:13There are more than 200 caves in this area, all of them shaped and decorated by the slow
22:18dripping of water loaded up with dissolved minerals and limestone.
22:23Every drop of water leaves a tiny deposit of limestone, colored by the dissolved minerals.
22:29It takes thousands of years to build up enough substance to form the shapes that fill the
22:34caves.
22:36Nature has finished its work in some, while others are still being built, one tiny drop
22:41at a time.
22:42Some of these limestone caves are dry and some of them are wet.
22:43Marrakoopa Cave, the one we're in right now, is a wet limestone cave.
22:44This is a fresh water stream.
22:45Mmm, beautiful water.
22:46Even in the total darkness of these caves, we have discovered some life forms.
23:05Long spindly legs are a pretty common feature among creatures that never see the light of
23:10day.
23:11And this one's the Tasmanian cave spider, and it's found nowhere else in the world.
23:17Many cave dwellers that remain in total darkness for their entire lives have evolved with no
23:22eyes.
23:23The predators among them catch their prey with those long legs.
23:28Deep in this cave, we found a really weird and wonderful little creature.
23:33Now, the glow worm actually glows green in the dark.
23:38The glow worm then drops little silk threads, anywhere from about 6 to 20 threads per worm.
23:45The green glow attracts little mosquitoes and sand flies, which get caught up in the
23:50threads, and then the worm simply reels them in and eats them down.
23:55Of course, in the light, we can't see the glowing anymore, but for some reason, little
24:00mosquitoes and so forth are attracted to it.
24:04Scientists are continuing their study of this spectacular underground complex and their
24:09mysterious inhabitants.
24:11They've found several unique forms of life, and the limestone deposits have revealed secrets
24:16of climate changes over a quarter of a million years.
24:20This is considered the best underground scenery in Australia.
24:32Cradle Mountain is frequented every year by tourists who come to see this spectacular
24:37scenery, and we're hoping to follow up on our search for the thylacine because several
24:41sightings have been made here in the past.
24:44Now, this cooler mountain climate means that animals have had to adjust to a different
24:49lifestyle from that of their cousins on the mainland.
24:53The platypus and the quolls also call this area home, and Cradle Mountain is renowned
24:58as being the place for the wandering wombat.
25:02And unfortunately, that wandering sometimes takes them on the road.
25:08Dead bodies don't last long in Tasmania.
25:10The devils clean them up on a daily basis, and if it's on the road, that's where they
25:15feed.
25:16We don't want them hit as well, so we move the bodies.
25:20Is this the most beautiful face you've ever seen?
25:24This is a Tasmanian wombat, and his closest relative is actually the koala.
25:29Now, the females have a little pouch, like all marsupials do, only their pouch is backwards.
25:36The reason why is this is the largest tunneling marsupial.
25:39You're giving me a bit of a bite.
25:41You're always chewing.
25:43They tunnel down in the ground, and if they had a pouch that faced forwards, it would
25:46fill up with dirt.
25:48So they've got the backwards pouch, and they tunnel constantly.
25:51They have these wonderful claws, and they use their little claws for digging up dirt.
25:57Don't bite me again, or I'll kiss you.
25:59When they dig up all the dirt, they then push it aside with their bodies, and they
26:02make these tunnels throughout their range.
26:05Now, they do have a few predators.
26:07The Tasmanian devils, maybe an eagle would get a young one, and certainly a Tasmanian
26:12tiger would make a meal of a wombat.
26:15So his best line of defense is this wonderful square bottom.
26:19He uses his little bottom to actually form a door in his burrow, so nothing can come
26:25in.
26:26But if something does manage to come in, he pushes up with his back, and he'll squash
26:30it flat.
26:36Everywhere we travelled, we were never far from the local wildlife.
26:40These wallabies were grazing in broad daylight, only a few metres from the edge of the road,
26:45on our way through the Tasmanian central plateau.
26:49On the mainland, they shelter from the sun for almost the whole day, but here in Tasmania,
26:55the cooler weather seems to draw them out, right out into the open.
27:04The area we're heading to around Cradle Mountain is one of the wildest, most untouched parts
27:09of Tasmania, and if the Tasmanian tiger still survives, it's another good place to be ready
27:15for a sighting.
27:18As we gain altitude, the weather turns colder and wetter, which is okay for us in the four-wheel
27:23drive, but I wonder how the wildlife copes.
27:30The lodge is virtually the only centre of civilisation in just about the entire Cradle
27:35Mountain area, and a good base to explore the highlands.
27:43The highlands region is one of the most untouched parts of wilderness in the whole of Tasmania.
27:49It's a haven for many species that are declining in other parts of Australia.
27:55Have a look at this, the spotted-tailed quoll, the largest member of the quoll family.
28:00One of the theories about the survival of the Tasmanian tiger, the thylacine, is that
28:06remnant populations may still be concealed in this rugged area.
28:15The tiger certainly shared much of the same diet as the quolls and other carnivorous marsupials.
28:21This quoll's brought down a rabbit, one of Australia's introduced pests. He'd been watching
28:26us warily ever since we'd arrived in his territory, but eventually decided we were no threat and
28:32ignored us to finish his meal.
28:46These are Tasmanian paddy melons.
28:49The paddy melons spend most of their daytime hours in the dense vegetation. They actually
28:53make little runways or almost burrows back in the vegetation that at night they start
28:58coming out to eat the tender shoots and leaves that they find throughout the open paddocks.
29:03And of course, back when the Tasmanian tiger was abundant in Tasmania, these would have
29:08been a food source. And the Tassie tiger would get on the scent or the trail and he'd chase
29:13them and run them until they reach exhaustion and then go in for the kill.
29:22While we were in one of Australia's great wildlife refuges, we thought it was worth trying
29:27some night spotlighting. At night, you get to see another side of the wilderness. Animals
29:34that were hidden or lethargic through the day are full of energy after dark. They get
29:39a little dazzled and confused by the lights and stand still long enough for us to have
29:44a good look at them.
29:45Now these characters definitely don't come out in the daylight unless it's an absolute
29:50emergency. They spend all day curled up in a nice snug hole in a tree. They're brushtail
29:56possums and this is one species that's doing well both on the mainland and here in Tasmania.
30:03The Tasmanian subspecies is slightly different from the mainland variety. They've got a better
30:08overall coat of fur and the tail's a lot more bushy. I guess it makes sense to have
30:13a warmer coat in a colder climate.
30:21Brushtail possums are fast, agile climbers. It's one species that has proven to be quiet
30:26at home living alongside humans. The common brushtail even lives in densely populated
30:32cities and they're really easy to make friends with. But just the same, you should be careful
30:37with any wild animal.
30:44Ouch!
30:47That possum just bit me on the nose.
30:49Definitely a wild animal.
30:52The Tasmanian wilderness is an environment so rich in wildlife that we've almost come
30:57to expect a new sight around every corner. But what came next surprised both of us.
31:05Reptiles are Steve's specialty, but even Steve's never seen anything like this.
31:13Check out that! Tiger!
31:17This guy's huge!
31:20You be careful.
31:22Oh man! What a beauty!
31:26That's the biggest tiger snake I've ever seen.
31:28He's incredible. Now this is more classic why they'd be called a tiger snake because
31:33you can see they've got those wonderful stripes all the way down. Now you stay here for a
31:37minute buddy. You stay right here. We just want to have a look at you. The tiger snakes
31:42of Tasmania can be this classic beautiful stripe color or they can actually be a darker
31:49color like almost solid black and they can even be a golden color which is just beautiful.
31:56Now this isn't something you want to do when you're in Tasmania. Just walk up to a tiger
32:02and grab him by the tail. But I'm going to let him go on his way and just appreciate
32:06how gorgeous he is.
32:07I reckon he's been down here having a drink.
32:09I think so.
32:10Yeah.
32:11He's enormous. I tell you I'm a little bit intimidated.
32:16Isn't he great?
32:17Beautiful.
32:19Wow.
32:32I tell you what that is the biggest tiger snake I've ever seen and the stripes. You
32:37can see why they call them tigers.
32:39What an honor to share space with him. He's awesome.
32:43The tiger is one of the world's most venomous snakes and he seems to realize that. He's
32:49so big and strong that he feels totally in control. Puffing himself up emphasizes his
32:55size to warn us off. The snake understands his own power and the deadly force held in
33:01those fangs. There's enough venom there to kill over a hundred adult humans.
33:06There was another surprise waiting for us in a slow flowing section of the creek.
33:18Platypus.
33:19The platypus is one of Australia's most amazing animals. It was such an oddity when
33:24it was discovered by the western world. Scientists in Britain thought the first specimen was
33:30a manufactured fake.
33:32It has a body and tail like a beaver, a flexible snout that looks like a duck, webbed feet
33:38with long claws, water repellent fur and reproduces like a bird or reptile. And here's the weirdest
33:45part of all. It lays eggs and hatches them in a burrow and it's a warm-blooded mammal
33:51nursing its young after they hatch.
33:55The platypus forages for food on the bottom of streams and lakes. Its incredibly sensitive
34:00snout can detect electrical currents and minute vibrations to locate insects, crustaceans
34:06and worms.
34:08They have terrible eyesight but this beauty probably knew we were there through its other
34:12senses. On most of the mainland they feed in the evening and night but in cold winter
34:19climates like Tasmania, they'll often come out during the day.
34:28This is about as big as they get and it's probably a male. The male platypus is territorial
34:34and he'll defend his patch of water with large poisonous spurs on the hind legs. They swim
34:40with their eyes shut.
34:42They're a strange looking animal, alright. And one of their favourite foods is the yabby,
34:47a freshwater crayfish which they grind with their bottom jaw.
34:52We're now heading to the west coast of Australia's island state, a shore that's been shaped by
34:57the massive power of the Royal Caribbean.
35:02It's a beautiful day and we're on our way to meet up with the Queen of the Caribbean.
35:08We're going to meet a lovely lady who lives on the other side of the island.
35:13We're going to meet a lovely lady who lives on the other side of the island.
35:17This is the west coast of Australia's island state, a shore that's been shaped by the massive
35:22power of the Roaring Forties.
35:28These winds have broken down parts of the coast to form sandy beaches and a system of
35:33dunes above the high tide mark.
35:40A quick check to test the hardness of the sand and we're heading away from the beaten
35:46beachfront environment.
35:51Our four wheel drive enables us to get to really remote areas.
35:56I wish I could see as good as this sea eagle.
36:04These dunes above the high tide mark conceal animals of all different shapes and sizes.
36:16Got it.
36:18I'll just check out his temperament first mate.
36:31Come here mate.
36:34Look at this, black tiger.
36:37It's a Tasmanian tiger alright, not the one we're looking for.
36:40This is a tiger snake.
36:42Very dark colouration down here in Tasmania and they're quite common along the coast.
36:47Very common.
36:48In fact they'll go down the mutton bird holes and feast on young mutton bird chicks.
36:54Now they are common here on Tasmania but they're also very common out in the Bass Strait islands,
37:00the smaller islands between Tasmania and the mainland and there's actually a giant form
37:05that grow out there.
37:08See how he's flattening out his neck.
37:10Very cobra like.
37:12He's getting a little bit grumpy.
37:14And this particular snake would be an average size.
37:18He's had a hard time.
37:20See down along his back there?
37:22That's scar tissue.
37:24He's been damaged at some stage but it's repaired and he's in good condition.
37:30They'll cruise around these coastal areas, eat frogs, skinks, other species.
37:37Skinks, other snakes and any small mammals and of course birds.
37:41Mutton birds being one of their favourite food sources.
37:44Beautiful animal, dark colouration because that means they can heat up quicker.
37:50Black colour when the sun beats down or even in these cloudy conditions they'll heat up.
37:57Just got to be a little careful.
37:59They're able to heat up a lot quicker.
38:02Oh, don't bite yourself.
38:06What I might do is I might just let him on his way.
38:08Here's a good snake.
38:10What a good snake.
38:14I've been handling and rescuing snakes all my life.
38:17And I guess I make it look easy.
38:19It's not.
38:21Snakes and other potentially dangerous animals should only be handled by professionals.
38:27This is my job.
38:37This was the sunrise we'll never forget.
38:40My birthday I'll always remember.
38:45This is devastating.
38:47Absolutely devastating.
38:49This makes over a hundred sperm whales.
38:52Terry and I are fighting back the tears.
38:54It's just heart wrenching stuff.
38:56What can we do?
38:58Why are they doing it?
39:00We're helpless.
39:02We've got machinery.
39:04There's men.
39:06And there's not a thing we can do.
39:08Nothing.
39:10Nothing.
39:12Nothing at all.
39:14Have a look at it.
39:16There's just nothing we can do.
39:18Nothing.
39:21Have a look at it.
39:22They're just laying here, dying.
39:24We're helpless.
39:33We were called in to join the rescue just before dawn.
39:37And from the very start, everything was against us.
39:41The wind and seas were against us.
39:43There wasn't much anyone could have done.
39:51It seems all we can do now is comfort them
39:55in the most dismal part of their entire life.
39:59The majority are dead.
40:01The rest are dying.
40:03We're just going to stay with them
40:05and try and be as comforting as we possibly can.
40:08It appears that a couple were beat.
40:11They sent out distress calls.
40:13And so the whole pod came in dying on the beach.
40:19Why they do it is a mystery.
40:22The researchers and scientists are working
40:24on what they can do once it's happened.
40:27But no one's any closer to knowing
40:29how to stop them coming ashore in the first place.
40:32We move up and down the stranded pod,
40:35looking for where we can be most helpful.
40:38Not that there's much we can do to move them off the beach.
40:41But we feel we have to do something
40:44to help relieve their distress and pain.
40:49They're such powerful animals,
40:51but all their strength and size is useless
40:53when they're this far out of the water.
40:56All their energy is going into just making the effort
40:59to keep breathing.
41:02We don't really know if they understand
41:04that we're trying to help.
41:06All we can do is hope that just being here somehow comforts them.
41:19As you can see, this one's still alive.
41:24And there's no hope.
41:26Absolutely no hope.
41:29Nothing can compete against the natural weather conditions.
41:34It's hideous.
41:36We're in the roaring 40s in the great Southern Ocean.
41:39The power of the waves is immense.
41:43Nothing can compete with that.
41:45It's hopeless.
41:49The end for a whale on the beach like this
41:52is long and probably painful.
41:55Their massive bulk is too great to support upright.
41:58They roll over on their sides.
42:00Their blowhole becomes submerged,
42:02and they drown in water
42:04that doesn't even half cover their bodies.
42:13As one whale finally loses its fight for life,
42:16we move on to the next group
42:18and look for another way we may be able to help.
42:22It seems clear that these whales don't want to die.
42:26They move as much as they can
42:28and make the effort to keep upright and keep breathing.
42:31It certainly doesn't look like some sort of mass suicide.
42:39It's obvious we can't keep this up for too much longer.
42:42The seas are getting worse.
42:46Big whale, big ol' whale.
42:50Immense.
42:52He was quite possibly the first one to meet.
42:57He's around about 39, nearly 40 feet in length.
43:05About four and a half, five feet thick.
43:12Big.
43:15Big.
43:23The other thing that's ripping our hearts out
43:26is the majority of the females are pregnant.
43:37Have a look at his teeth.
43:39Really big teeth.
43:41Very unique.
43:44This is the beauty of the sperm whale.
43:47That long, narrow bottom jaw designed for catching squid.
43:53Look at the size of him. Massive animal.
44:07We've got to get out of here.
44:08There's some big surf coming, high tides coming in on it.
44:14This group is probably a nursing pod,
44:17mainly heavily pregnant females and calves,
44:20travelling with a single large male.
44:23There's a theory that if we could silence the male,
44:27the rest wouldn't come ashore to their death.
44:34This one's just a baby.
44:36You can see he doesn't have his teeth yet, he's just getting buds.
44:40He may have even been still nursing.
44:43He's got his little eyes shut.
44:45He's followed his mother in
44:47and beached himself along with all the others.
44:50They just stay together
44:52and they won't leave each other no matter what.
44:59Have a look at him.
45:01Have a look.
45:03The beach is littered with him.
45:05Absolutely littered with him.
45:08Sadly, it's the end of the struggle for the calf.
45:12All we can do is try again with another one that's still alive.
45:19What little machinery we have
45:22is being used to hold the whales upright,
45:25trying to keep their blowholes out of the water.
45:29Maybe between us all we can just save one of them.
45:34This seems to be one of the last ones that's still struggling
45:37and everybody's doing everything they can to help her.
45:40But unfortunately, all the people here working together
45:44wouldn't be strong enough to help her out to sea.
45:47The machinery is trying, but it keeps sinking in the surf.
45:51It's a really frustrating situation for this baby.
45:56Some say we should just let nature take its course
46:00and we shouldn't interfere.
46:02But whales have been interfered with by humans
46:06in the wrong ways for too long.
46:10Humans have hunted them, turned them into pet food,
46:14and now they're eating them alive.
46:17They're eating them alive.
46:19They're eating them alive.
46:21They're eating them alive.
46:23Turned them into pet food,
46:25we've poisoned their bodies with pollution,
46:28depleted their food sources in the oceans.
46:32The least we can do is try to give back
46:35some of the life we've taken away.
46:53♪♪
47:03♪♪
47:13♪♪
47:23♪♪
47:37We may not have seen any sign of the thylacine,
47:40the now mythical Tasmanian tiger,
47:43but we did experience unique Australian wildlife
47:46in some remarkable wilderness.
47:50Our discovery of Tasmania revealed a living museum
47:54with a collection of some of the world's strangest creatures.
47:59And we saw how species that are endangered in other places
48:02can thrive if we leave enough wild places free
48:06from human development.
48:09Even though we never saw any tigers,
48:12I'd like to think they still exist.
48:15The wildlife here has been absolutely prolific.
48:19And boy crikey, if there's any chance they do exist,
48:22it's right here in this rugged Tasmanian wilderness.
48:26♪♪
48:36♪♪
48:46♪♪
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