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00:04This is The Americas.
00:07An extraordinary journey across Earth's great supercontinent.
00:12The widest variety of life on the planet.
00:17The untold story of our home.
00:26Tonight on The Americas.
00:32The Caribbean.
00:41The tropical paradise at the heart of the supercontinent.
00:50This is a voyage across sparkling deep seas.
00:55Colorful shallows.
01:00And far flung exotic islands.
01:04All revealing hidden natural treasures.
01:11But in paradise, the stakes are high.
01:16In deadly battles.
01:22Temperatures are searingly hot.
01:24And nature's fury is never far away.
01:33How can island castaways unlock the riches of this sun-drenched world?
01:45The Caribbean spans more than a million square miles.
01:51It's fringed to the east by a chain of volcanic islands.
01:58To the north by Cuba and the Bahamas.
02:05And to the west by Central America.
02:09The ocean-drenched Neil's Jahrepeak.
02:11The Pacific.
02:12But our journey begins…
02:16on the high seas.
02:25It's a world of dazzling sapphire blue.
02:35In these crystal clear waters,
02:39life must be on its guard.
02:48A shoal of Spanish sardines feeding on microscopic plankton.
02:56An irresistible opportunity for a sailfish.
03:05A pirate of the Caribbean.
03:11With a streamlined body and a bill like a rapier,
03:19sailfish are perfectly hung for hunting in these open waters.
03:28Time for the sardines to swim for their lives.
03:45Sailfish have speed and endurance.
03:48But the sardines are more nimble.
04:06With the tightly packed shoal moving as one,
04:09it's near impossible to pick out a victor.
04:17When some make a break for the safety of the depths,
04:23the sailfish drive them back to the surface,
04:28into a trap.
04:31Blockers pin them from beneath.
04:37While flankers raise their sails,
04:41cutting off any escape route.
04:58NONE OF THE HUNTERS WANT TO RISK BEING SKUREED.
05:10NONE OF THE HUNTERS WANT TO RISK BEING SKUREED.
05:12The knife is a sign to others to hold back when he charges in.
05:27Eventually, the relentless attack splinters the shoal.
05:35The moment the sailfish have been waiting for.
05:48In the final charge, his bill becomes a weapon, slashing through the shoal, inflicting injury,
06:02or picking out a single victim with lethal precision.
06:21The sailfish may have claimed their prize, but the Caribbean Sea holds fortunes these fish never reach.
06:33Its deepest waters are the hunting ground for the planet's largest predators.
06:41Sperm whales.
06:46Exactly how they hunt has long been one of the great wildlife mysteries.
06:54Until now.
07:05The volcanic island of Dominica lies to the far east of the Caribbean.
07:12It's shrouded in rain forest.
07:18And surrounded by mild, deep seas.
07:25They're the perfect home for one of the world's biggest babies.
07:37A sperm whale calf.
07:42This young male is barely six months old, but he already weighs two tons.
07:59Below, sleeping giants.
08:03Watching a red cow now.
08:14Sleeping giants.
08:16Kids act like corks, keeping them upright.
08:29But mom always keeps half an eye on her calf.
08:42Baby sperm whales need to drink a bathful of milk a day.
08:52But before he can suckle, mom must have a meal herself.
09:00Sperm whales hunt their prey in the great depths of the Caribbean Sea.
09:06But exactly how has long been a mystery?
09:12To investigate, our team spent two years developing a groundbreaking camera system.
09:21The camera is harmlessly attached using suction by scientists.
09:30Now, we can get a whale's eye view as they dive into the abyss.
09:49A calf can't hold its breath for long enough to reach the depths, so it must wait at the surface.
09:59In a world first, the camera follows these adults as they begin their dive together.
10:08And as they descend, it also eavesdrops on their secret conversations.
10:21A thousand feet down, in the twilight zone, the whales separate to hunt alone.
10:37Her destination is the seabed, two and a half thousand feet down, a place no natural light can reach.
10:56She's here to hunt squid, and uses sound to find them in the darkness.
11:08Each click she makes is louder than a gunshot.
11:14It echoes off any prey within half a mile.
11:24She's locked on.
11:30Got it.
11:32A cloud of squid ink is all that's left of her prey.
11:41A sperm whale can devour a hundred pounds of squid on a single dive.
11:55On the surface, her hungry calf has been waiting for nearly an hour.
12:05When you're this young, time can really drive.
12:20Finally, the adults are on their way back to the surface.
12:30A calf can hear his mom's clicks below him.
12:34His calls and tail slaps help her home in.
13:03And now, it's time to suckle.
13:10The milk is cervix.
13:11The sperm whale milk is over 30% fat.
13:15So it doesn't dissolve in water.
13:24Calves feed like this a handful of times a day, blissfully unaware of the lengths and
13:36depths their moms have gone to.
13:45The sperm whale's open ocean world makes up 95% of the Caribbean, but it's in the sunlit
13:53shallows where most life is found, a world of colorful coral cities and secret underwater
14:03nurseries. And this is a destination for a lemon shark, one that's about to face the
14:15most important moment of her life.
14:23The shallow waters of the Caribbean are perhaps the most beautiful. Coral reefs are like a bustling
14:37underwater city. They are home to thousands of species. Though today it's only a handful
14:52of protected reefs that still truly thrive.
15:01Surprisingly, the Caribbean's richest reefs are found alongside a mysterious world.
15:11And it's here that many of the reef's inhabitants begin life. These are the mangrove forests.
15:25A quarter of the Caribbean's mangroves are found on its northern fringes, in the Bahamas.
15:39This female lemon shark is making a special journey back to the very same bay in which she was born.
15:53She's heavily pregnant. And now, as close as possible to the edge of the mangroves, it's time to give birth.
16:29This pup will never see mom again, because where he's going, no adult can follow.
16:44His new home will be deep amongst the mangroves.
16:48His new home will be deep amongst the mangroves.
16:57The mesh of underwater roots keeps larger predators out.
17:08So, it's the safest place in the whole Caribbean for a young lemon shark to grow up.
17:22As he picks his way through this twisted maze, he's heading to a secret lagoon at its heart.
17:40Although it's full of fish, newborn sharks aren't very good at catching them.
17:55You might not think it, but young sharks have to practice.
18:08And practice.
18:16And practice.
18:20He's definitely going to need help.
18:29And for that, lemon shark pups do something remarkable.
18:36They make friends.
18:45Scientists have discovered that a young pup learns quicker by hanging out with more experienced sharks.
19:00It's a kind of shark school, where he can hone his technique as he grows up.
19:09The older sharks have learned its best to hunt amongst the mangrove roots.
19:19And over time, the young pup eventually catches on.
19:31He's got one.
19:36He's graduated.
19:37He's graduated.
19:47There are over 7,000 islands in the Caribbean.
19:54Each a slice of paradise.
20:01And every one different.
20:10Where life plays out in its own way.
20:19Away from the crowds, every island also has its own unique and extraordinary wildlife.
20:32From tiny to giant.
20:40And the Caribbean island with the most spectacular wildlife is Cuba.
20:49800 miles long and 100 wide.
20:56Deep in the forest, life is on the move.
21:04The start of the strangest animal migration anywhere in the Americas.
21:21The lowland forest of Cuba is the land of the red.
21:30Red.
21:32Crab.
21:39For most of the year, these land crabs live underground.
21:45But it's now the mating season.
21:53The females need to find a male, head to the sea, and lay their eggs.
22:03And to do that, they must start an epic six-mile journey.
22:15Around 10 million crabs are on the march.
22:34Only one thing stops them.
22:41The intense heat of the midday sun.
22:46The intense heat of the midday sun can bake a crab to death.
22:53So every traveler needs to find shade fast.
23:04In Cuba, siestas save lives.
23:15But as the day cools off, a female crab's mind turns to more romantic matters.
23:30And here, at the edge of the forest, males have been waiting for this very moment.
23:45In a tight embrace, they mate.
23:56Now, she retreats into his burrow to let her brood develop.
24:1814 days later, she resumes her journey, now with 80,000 eggs cradled under her shell.
24:37She's only a few hundred feet from the sea, but the biggest danger is still to come.
24:52The coastal highway.
24:56Out here, a crab must be on her toes.
25:06Giants.
25:12And nowadays, they're frighteningly quick.
25:20Look out!
25:23A crab can see danger coming.
25:26But for many, that's just not enough.
25:39It takes split second timing.
25:44And a bit of luck.
25:47That was close.
25:53After all that, the warm Caribbean Sea awaits.
26:07It is a little crowded on this beach.
26:18But she's found a good spot.
26:25And with a little shimmy, finally, she releases her precious cargo of eggs into the sea.
26:36And with her job done, now she can return to the safety of her forest home.
26:47But in the Caribbean, safety can never be guaranteed.
26:56At the end of summer, when sea temperatures are at their highest, storm clouds are born.
27:11They feed on warm, moist air from the ocean, growing and growing until they tower six miles into the sky.
27:31The larger the storm cloud, the more powerful the winds.
27:38And as they approach 80 miles an hour, a storm becomes a hurricane.
27:48Up to 500 miles across, these colossal weather systems track west with the trade winds.
27:59The Caribbean's islands are right in the firing line.
28:13Of all the natural forces in the Americas, a hurricane is the most devastating.
28:38200-mile-an-hour winds destroy almost everything in their path.
29:00In some years, the Caribbean's islands are hit by as many as four deadly hurricanes.
29:11The most powerful strip the land bare.
29:23But all is not lost.
29:30Caribbean plants have evolved to bounce back after the destruction.
29:39In a warm, moist climate, new shoots can grow up to seven inches a day.
29:49In just a few months, entire forests start to green up.
30:02But what about the wildlife on these islands?
30:12When Hurricane Maria hit Dominica, three-quarters of all purple-throated carob hummingbirds died.
30:23In the aftermath, their food nectar-rich flowers were scarce.
30:31So the survivors had their work cut out.
30:38This male must patrol an area the size of five football fields, trying to find enough.
30:48a tiring commute until, at last, one miracle plant comes into flower.
31:00The heliconia gives a hungry hummingbird all the nectar he needs.
31:18But there's one thing still missing.
31:22A mate.
31:26Luckily, these blooms are a magnet to female caribs.
31:36The trouble is, it's the same for less welcome visitors.
31:48Nectar thieves.
32:00And even worse, a real heavy weight, an Antillian bullfinch.
32:10To get to the nectar, this vandal rips out the heart of the flower.
32:19And a flower without nectar will never attract him a mate.
32:30So he must fight off these feathered felons with everything he's got.
32:53For a lonely male, finding love on this island might take time.
33:04For a lonely male, finding love on this island might take time.
33:07And there's a very few of his kind left.
33:15Could it be?
33:19Yes, a female.
33:24Inspecting his heliconias.
33:31she likes the flowers
33:35she likes the nectar
33:39but what about him
33:46now he's got to shine
34:00don't blow it big fella
34:07she likes his moves
34:16success
34:22but he's not done yet
34:26to mate with as many females
34:29as possible he's going to have
34:30to defend his flowers day after
34:35day from dawn till dusk
34:45life on caribbean islands isn't
34:48ever straightforward
34:52but on one of the most isolated
34:54tropical islands of the americas
35:00survival relies not so much on hard
35:03work but on extraordinary levels of
35:35ingenuity
35:37and worse there's nowhere to go when it runs out
35:42and yet somehow life still clings on
35:47the
35:54castaways
36:04white-faced capuchins
36:17these two young males spend their days scouring the coast
36:22for anything they can find
36:40on a desert island opportunity can come from unlikely places
36:54a sea
37:02the nut inside is full of delicious fat
37:12but it's protected by a sturdy shell
37:22and getting into it
37:25is frustratingly hard
37:30to solve this puzzle
37:32a young monkey
37:34might need
37:35some inspiration
37:41for that
37:42he must head across the forest
37:45to a crystal clear stream
37:51an occasional hangout
37:54for older
37:55and wiser
37:57capuchins
38:05the adults have worked out that the trees here
38:07are particularly fruitful
38:10beautiful
38:11and the nuts collect
38:12in convenient pools
38:18a unique scenario
38:21that allows a monkey
38:22to do something
38:23ingenious
38:32take one softened nut
38:42the correct sized rock
38:53and a series of well-aimed blows
39:03it was once thought that only humans were smart enough to use stone tools
39:10but these capuchins
39:12have both a hammer
39:16and
39:18an anvil
39:25they're one of only three types of monkey on the planet
39:28to have mastered this complex skill
39:34and it's not as easy as it looks
39:47for an inquisitive youngster
39:50the nuances of nutcracking
39:56are almost hypnotic
39:58hypnotic
40:06he learns
40:07by watching
40:08his elders
40:09technique
40:13and when the anvil is free
40:19trying to copy it
40:28watch your toes
40:30watch your toes
40:39it's a bit pummeled
40:43but
40:44he has cracked it
40:47well
40:47sort of
40:51by learning to use tools
40:54these remarkable monkeys
40:56have given themselves
40:58a break
40:59from the challenges
41:01of island life
41:06for now
41:08at least
41:14living in the tropical islands of the Americas
41:19can be tougher than it looks
41:28but both above
41:30and below the waves
41:36life uses
41:38life uses
41:39every trick
41:39in the book
41:42to make
41:43this wondrous place
41:48paradise
41:49who
41:49and
41:49yes
41:50yes
41:50yes
41:52yes
41:52yes
42:04yes
42:08yes
42:16yes
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