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00:13There's a story unfolding on the west coast of Costa Rica.
00:18A story both ancient and new.
00:22A tale of two creatures from opposite worlds,
00:25each on a comeback from their own devastating declines.
00:31One is a sea turtle, a global ocean traveler.
00:40The other, a magnificent cat, the top predator in Central America.
00:49The return of an endangered forest will bring them together
00:53in an uncommon clash of land and sea.
00:56A surprising encounter of a rare predator
01:00and a most unusual prey.
01:06How will their fates play out when they finally meet
01:09on one special crescent of sand called Jaguar Beach?
01:23The show of Central America.
01:28A game the Red Dead
01:30A game the Red Dead
01:31It's Emergency, in the Star Trek.
01:35The East Region
01:37The East Region
01:40Off the shore of Central America.
01:42In the shallows of the Pacific.
01:44An ancient ritual is underway.
01:49In the Shown of the Pacific.
01:49Oh, no, no.
01:52Let's go.
01:54After more than a decade at sea, an olive-ridley sea turtle nears the end of her long migration.
02:04Guided by the Earth's magnetic field, she has navigated thousands of miles, seeking out the very beach where she was
02:12born.
02:28This secluded crescent of sand has long provided a refuge for one of the world's most beloved creatures, and is
02:37home to a wild coastal community.
02:46Shorebirds flock to its shallows to feed, under the pterodactyl silhouettes of magnificent frigatebirds.
02:59American crocodiles slip out of their swampy lagoons for an occasional saltwater splash.
03:09Rising up from the beach is one of the last habitats of its kind on Earth.
03:15A tropical forest that's dry for half the year.
03:23Restored as a national park after it had been clear-cut for agriculture,
03:28its tangled woodlands sprawl nearly 200 square miles across Costa Rica's mountainous west.
03:38The forest stretches all the way to the ocean's edge, where its mangrove tendrils filter fresh water from salt.
03:57The hardy trees provide a home for over 250 species of birds.
04:11Yellow-naped parrots nest in the heights.
04:16Orange-fronted parrots feast on its floral buffet.
04:27They share the canopy with gymnastic spider monkeys.
04:32And howlers.
04:38And in the understory, lumbering baird's tapirs forage for fallen fruit.
04:48The unusual forest opens onto a pristine strip of sand.
04:52One of only a few in the world where olive-ridley sea turtles nest en masse.
05:00For nearly two decades, biologist Luis Fonseca has been trekking to this remote alcove to monitor nesting sea turtles.
05:10But after five years on the beach, he arrived one morning to a shock.
05:16Signs in the sand that he and the turtles were not alone.
05:27The first tracks were no aberration.
05:30He soon saw more evidence that one of the most formidable predators in the Americas was making a comeback in
05:37the dry forest.
05:39The population of jaguares has increased almost exponentially in the last decade.
05:46We can say that we have almost zero jaguares in the first years to have almost 40 individuals in the
05:55last year of investigation.
05:59The return of an apex predator was bound to send ripples through the ecosystem.
06:09So Luis decided to expand his research to include the jaguars.
06:15Hoping to learn what impact they would have on the turtles,
06:18he set up hundreds of camera traps to capture their movements and behavior.
06:31And then he waited for the turtles to emerge from the ocean.
06:45For years at a time, olive-ridley sea turtles live a solitary, nomadic life at sea.
06:56Their world is one of mighty behemoths and lively schools of dolphins.
07:08Then, every year or two, a primeval instinct draws them home to these shores.
07:16Male turtles, identifiable by their longer tails, rarely return to land after hatching.
07:28But during nesting season, these ancient mariners patrol the shallows looking for mates.
07:48Seduction begins with a tender but clunky embrace.
07:54The male uses long claws on his front flippers to hook onto the female's shell.
08:03The courtship is quick, but the coupling can last for several hours.
08:18The female does most of the work, constantly pushing to the surface, so they both can breathe.
08:35For these two ocean wanderers and their species, it's a fleeting but critical connection.
09:06WEEKS LATER
09:08WEEKS LATER
09:08WEEKS LATER
09:19With her hundred-pound frame and short flippers, she's far more graceful at sea than ashore.
09:28But she's determined to find a good spot for her nest.
09:38Then she starts to carve out a deep, protective cavity.
09:51As she digs, another mother-to-be emerges from the surf,
09:56carrying her own precious cargo.
10:01In a few months, this sliver of beach will draw thousands of sea turtles
10:06for a mass-nesting event.
10:09But for now, she and the other female seem to have it all to themselves.
10:32Within the forest, the area's dominant male jaguar, named Alonso by Luis,
10:38sets off on a midnight hunt.
10:57On the beach, the first female turtle puts the final touches on her nest.
11:06Her eggs are now hidden, but she is still very much exposed.
11:37No stalking. No pouncing.
11:42Just a quick and easy bite to the back of the head.
12:04Back in the mangroves, Alonso settles down to his meal.
12:17His powerful jaws make quick work of the turtle's hard shell.
12:21The jaguar has the most powerful bite of any big cat.
12:25His jaws work just as well on the shell as they do on other animals' skulls.
12:45His tongue isn't just for tasting.
12:48It's lined with back-facing barbs that may aid with stripping flesh from bone.
12:57With Alonso otherwise occupied, the other nesting female is still hard at work.
13:18Around 100 eggs tumble into the nest.
13:22Soft, leathery shells cushion their fall.
13:33In her final maternal act, she carefully conceals them.
13:46Then, she returns to her ocean world.
13:50Never to know what becomes of her clutch.
13:56Her eggs must now survive the next 45 days.
13:59Hidden in the sand, on a beach where everyone is looking for their next meal.
14:14Back in the mangroves, the turtle will feed Alonso for two days.
14:19For now, he has eaten his fill.
14:23But he's not the only one dining tonight.
14:34As he takes a break, hungry scavengers move in from the shadows.
14:46The scent penetrates the forest.
14:49The scent penetrates the forest.
14:58A resourceful opossum is in luck.
15:01He's so taken by his windfall, he fails to notice that someone has come back for seconds.
15:30The jaguar's leftovers will nourish a whole forest community.
15:38But Luis is concerned for the turtles.
15:41Because olive ridleys are in decline around the world.
15:46How will the growing jaguar population affect the vulnerable turtles staging their own comeback here on this critical beach?
15:59Luis hopes his camera traps can offer some clues.
16:04We know that the jaguars, possibly in the night, can walk around here.
16:09And even sit, rest, and wait for a turtle to get out.
16:14That's why we know that this is a good place to put a trap camera.
16:41The cameras reveal a secret no one expected.
16:45Constant traffic of jaguars.
16:48Moving between the dry forest and the beach.
16:52What was once a sanctuary for Luis's nesting sea turtles has become a favorite hunting ground for a forest predator.
17:06It's an amazing comeback story for the big cats.
17:18During the 1950s and 60s, Costa Rica's northwestern coast was stripped of its trees, replaced by a patchwork of cattle
17:27ranches.
17:30Jaguars and other forest animals all but disappeared.
17:37Then, in 1971, Costa Rica created Santa Rosa National Park and let nature rebuild the forest.
18:01New growth stretched across the province, eventually connecting the coast to an inland jaguar habitat.
18:14One by one, the cats followed the lure of the resurrected forest.
18:21They found their way deeper into the park, expanding their territory, all the way to the beach.
18:35To monitor the effects of this surge of predators, Luis assembled a small team with a passion for jaguars.
18:41And the patience and fortitude to work in extreme isolation.
19:02When you're a child, everyone asks you what you want to do as a major job.
19:12You want to be an astronaut, you want to be a dancer, you want to be a dancer.
19:16I wanted to work with animals.
19:20Being biologist and working in the field is what allows you to live with animals and learn a lot of
19:29them,
19:29without having to be behind a screen or reading in a book, because it's much more different.
19:40In addition, here we are in a place where we can study one of the most elusive animals that exist.
19:47These elusive animals are what drew Carolina Perez from her home in Italy to this rugged coastal outpost.
19:55Several hours' drive and a mountain hike from the nearest town.
20:01With only a flashlight and a bag of batteries, she monitors the project's cameras.
20:10They have captured some fascinating consequences of the jaguar's return.
20:15The jaguar is eating a tortoise, and when it's full, she leaves the tortoise or the carcasa.
20:25And this carcasa is available for a large number of species that normally do not act like scavengers.
20:45Even pumas, top predators themselves, have altered their behavior.
20:50They've become more active during the day to avoid the new rulers of the night.
20:56And they're not above jaguar leftovers if it means a free meal.
21:00What we're seeing, thanks to the camera's work, is the importance of the jaguar in the ecosystem.
21:22The team's cameras are offering other revelations as well.
21:27Normally, a single male jaguar needs 50 square miles of territory to himself.
21:38Here, an abundance of turtles keeps competition for food low.
21:43And these intensely solitary cats live in much closer proximity.
21:48This gives Luis's cameras an unprecedented view into their social lives.
22:02Luis has recorded jaguars mating, wrestling, and even carting off an ill-fated dolphin.
22:23The project identifies the individual cats by their rosettes, the spots on their fur.
22:30Each jaguar's pattern is as unique as a human fingerprint.
22:42In the last 10 years, Luis's team has documented and named around 40 individual jaguars.
22:49And they're capturing not just behaviors, but personalities.
22:55Alonso, the 12-year-old dominant male, asserts his right to any female or food on the beach.
23:04Amanda, highly territorial.
23:07She seems to be the dominant female.
23:15And Jorge, a young tough on the cusp of adulthood.
23:20He's been gravitating towards the females in heat.
23:36Tonight, Jorge is on the prowl, heading to the beach in search of an easy meal.
23:45And he's well-equipped to spot one.
23:48His eyes are backed with a mirror-like tissue that reflects light into his retinas,
23:53and gives all cats their famous night vision.
24:04Tonight, he finds no turtles, but something for other appetites.
24:10It's Amanda, enjoying her own turtle catch.
24:15Jorge is eager to put his adolescent prowess to the test.
24:36In this rare peak into Jaguar courtship,
24:40Jorge and Amanda take playful breaks between couplings.
24:58But the interlude is cut short when Alonso arrives.
25:18Jorge beats a hasty retreat.
25:24Still outranked by Alonso, he'll have to settle for a fleeting tryst.
25:35For now, he heads back to the forest to wait out the heat.
25:44Early April.
25:45At the peak of dry season, the sun bakes the canopy.
25:52As streams dry up, tensions rise.
26:03A trip to one of the few remaining watering holes now means risking a run-in with a thirsty predator.
26:16A family of white-faced capuchin monkeys shelters high in the canopy.
26:23But the heat is unrelenting, and while mum naps, a young capuchin takes his brother on a daring mission.
26:32To drink from a small seep in the ground.
26:43Bees have beaten them to it.
26:53He endures the thirsty swarm for a few precious drops.
27:05His brother isn't quite convinced it's worth it.
27:13The sun beats down across the park.
27:17From the forest to the beach, life slows to a crawl.
27:25Even offshore, the coastal breeze offers little relief to a colony of magnificent frigate birds.
27:37A young mum-to-be languishes in the heat, shielding her single egg from the relentless sun.
27:51She'll remain on the nest for the next eight weeks, leaving only for brief spells to find food and water.
28:20Inside the forest, Amanda is also looking for water.
28:30But Luis's cameras catch someone else on the hunt.
28:46Jorge is more interested in a private moment than a drink.
28:50.
29:07Amanda puts on a half-hearted show of resistance.
29:11.
29:16.
29:20The coupling takes less than a minute.
29:23Fast work.
29:24But jaguars can make dozens of times a day.
29:28.
29:36.
29:37.
29:37.
29:44In between mating, the couple takes a stroll.
29:50.
29:59Using scent glands in his cheeks, Jorge lays his claim to this swath of forest.
30:05.
30:16It seems the young upstart has stepped out of Alonso's shadow.
30:22.
30:24.
30:25.
30:31Late May.
30:34The beginning of the wet season in the dry forest.
30:40.
30:45More than three feet of rain falls in just the first three weeks.
30:49.
30:54The forest springs to life.
30:58.
31:09In the next five months, over 90% of the year's rain will fall.
31:14.
31:18Long dry river beds begin to flow.
31:21.
31:22A wave of relief for the parched forest.
31:27.
31:27.
31:36A slow greening spreads across the hills, transforming Santa Rosa into a coastal oasis.
31:45.
32:00Capuchins feast on nuts and ripe berries.
32:04.
32:05.
32:06.
32:06.
32:13.
32:14.
32:14.
32:17A woodpecker chick gets her food delivered right to the nest.
32:21.
32:26And as the forest begins to stir, the promise of new life also arrives by sea.
32:40Late summer.
32:43August winds bring an air of anticipation beyond the break female olive Ridley sea turtles begin
33:10to assemble they're one of only two turtle species that gather in a synchronized mass nesting
33:16event an Arribada Spanish for a rival
33:30the first few females converge offshore soon hundreds arrive
33:49the shallows fill with a constellation of turtles
33:54they're all waiting for a mysterious signal humans have yet to decipher
34:06a cue that the time is right to head ashore
34:37over the next few months
34:39thousands will pour forth from the ocean an armada of mothers bringing the next generation
35:04to the sand
35:05it's one of the natural world's timeless and spectacular sites a ritual of renewal that may date back to the
35:14age of the dinosaurs
35:32the beach becomes a sea of churning sand
35:52in a single season this small crescent less than a mile long will be filled with up to seven million
36:00eggs
36:09but on jaguar beach a successful hatch is far from guaranteed
36:19as the Arribada subsides Carolina gets to work
36:25all the time
36:26all the night we do patrulling nocturns with the objective of marcar tortugas marinas
36:32with the objective of marcar tortugas marinas
36:32hello pequeña
36:37what we have in the project are some metal plates that have a number to identify the tortugas
36:45if they come back on this same beach or on other beaches
36:53what we are doing at the moment is to mark a nest at night
36:57then during the Arribada we have to mark, if possible, 200 nests
37:02and then we have to wait for 45 days
37:11these 45 days mark a dangerous period for the baby turtles
37:18as they incubate in the sand relentless predators stalk them from above
37:35on most nesting beaches wild dogs foxes and coyotes so-called mesopredators plunder nests for the protein packed eggs
37:55using the tools of shoestring science
37:58Carolina is trying to track how many of these nests will be raided
38:24the bottles make it easy to see if a nest has been disturbed
38:32during recent Arribadas the bottles have helped them document an encouraging trend
38:37that they believe is tied to the return of the jaguars
38:43what we think is happening is that the presence of a great predator like the jaguar
38:49will regulate the number of coyotes and other individuals who go to the beach to bury the nests
38:56it seems the jaguars are keeping smaller predators off the beach
39:01inadvertently protecting the turtle's eggs
39:06as carolina works she's constantly aware of the jaguars presence in the dark
39:12at the beginning
39:13at the beginning I'm afraid
39:14because I'm surrounded by things that I can eat
39:20every day
39:21you walk on the beach
39:25and you know that they're there
39:26you know that they're watching
39:28you know that they're watching
39:31you know that they're watching
39:32you know that they're watching
39:36you know that they're watching
39:37I think
39:41you know that you can see
39:42up here
39:42you know that you know
39:43you know that you have a good smartphone
39:44the way
39:45you know that they're missing
39:57you know that you know
39:58I think
40:00I think
40:00it's an dick
40:00everything
40:00compared
40:01to
40:01It's
40:14Carolina isn't the only one patrolling the night.
40:18Amanda has caught wind of a late-night snack.
40:37It's easy pickings on Jaguar Beach.
41:17And from the size of her belly, it looks like Amanda is eating for two.
41:25But Amanda won't be the only mom whose success is tied to the turtles.
41:35A half-mile offshore, the frigate bird colony is noisier than usual.
41:45Across their island outpost, hundreds of downy hatchlings begin to stir.
42:00The first time mother awakens to her hungry and persistent chick.
42:10For their first five months, frigate bird chicks depend entirely on their mothers for food.
42:28Chicks that don't get fed don't last long.
42:44Mom has to hunt and fast, but she knows exactly where to go.
43:01The last month and a half have been quiet on the beach, since the end of the Arribada.
43:12But today, something is different.
43:24The sand begins to shift.
43:39The beach erupts with new life.
44:09So, we Yinglick Hano et alense in the
44:19For the hatchlings, digging their way to the surface is just the beginning.
44:45It's a long way to the water, and there's a gauntlet to be run.
44:57For a creature only two inches long, almost everything is an obstacle.
45:18A fallen branch blocks the path.
45:29At last, she's on the open beach.
45:34But here, the dangers multiply.
45:48The young frigatebird mother swoops in right on time.
46:04One by one, hatchlings are carried off into the sky.
46:14A spiny-tailed iguana launches an aggressive ground attack.
46:33Even the crustaceans close in.
46:37Ghost crabs are surprisingly strong.
46:49Another hatchling looks destined for a similar fate.
46:58With a survivor's determination, she fends off the attack.
47:08She races for the ocean.
47:18One final close call.
47:25And then, the finish line.
47:42She plunges into a salty marine world where she'll spend years before returning to this beach.
47:58She'll swim out past the rocky retreat, where the frigatebird mom can now feed her chick a magnificent meal.
48:11Only one in a thousand of these baby turtles will survive to adulthood.
48:19But Luis believes these hatchlings got some surprising help from the forest predator that takes their mothers but safeguards their
48:28nests.
48:31During several years, there was a vacuum of neonatuses born in the beach.
48:39In this moment, with the presence of the jaguar in the beach,
48:43the neonatuses are able to live, are coming to the water.
48:47And with great luck, in the future, there will be new individuals who will come to the beach to eat
48:53their eggs.
48:55What allows me to conclude is that, in reality, the presence of the jaguar is positive in this moment for
49:02the marine tortoise.
49:06Luis's team has found that jaguars kill less than 1% of the beaches' nesting mothers.
49:11And by warding off threats to the eggs, the predator has become the protector.
49:30On the island, the frigatebird chicks continue to gorge on the hatchling bounty.
49:45And in the forest, Amanda is caught on camera, doing something strange.
49:55She tears off bite-sized portions from her latest turtle catch.
50:15A few days later, Luis's cameras provide an adorable explanation.
50:32Amanda, with her curious new cubs.
50:45For the next two years, Amanda will teach her cubs how to survive.
50:55And guide them through the dry forest that helped bring her species back to this special beach.
51:09The rebirth of Santa Rosa's forest, and the resurrection of its magnificent top predator, has restored an ancient relationship.
51:30The renewed partnership has healed the connection between vastly different worlds.
51:42From the forest, to the air, to the deep ocean.
51:53To the beach, where the lives of all their inhabitants intertwine.
51:56To the beach, where the lives of all their inhabitants intertwine.
52:02Where two creatures reunite as they were for thousands of years.
52:08Predator.
52:09Prey.
52:12Unlikely allies in each other's survival.
52:17goals of the magic.
52:17Mino.
52:19I was.
52:40First place.
52:40Just a little haha.
52:46First place.
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