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00:16Over 66 million years ago,
00:23our world was ruled
00:30by dinosaurs.
00:38The largest animals
00:40that have ever walked the earth.
00:49Today, dinosaur experts across the globe
00:54are uncovering the bones they left behind.
01:00Allowing us to imagine how these extraordinary creatures
01:04may have lived.
01:10So that we can tell their stories.
01:16And they can walk again.
01:24They can walk again.
01:51Amongst the jagged mountain peaks, majestic valleys,
02:00and scattered hill towns of central Portugal.
02:06An astonishing discovery has been made.
02:15A find so remarkable,
02:18it's drawn a team of dinosaur hunters from across Europe.
02:27Buried here are the remains of a colossus.
02:32We have a lot of bones in this area.
02:36Yes.
02:36Amazing.
02:38A monumental, long-necked, lucid titan.
02:47These animals are giants of the Jurassic.
02:52Known as Old Grande,
02:55the largest dinosaurs ever to have lived.
03:03And using his bones,
03:05we can begin to imagine this giant's story.
03:27In the late Jurassic,
03:29our planet looks very different.
03:32the world.
03:36Amongst its shifting continents,
03:39a small landmass known as the Iberian Mercator,
03:44that one day will include Portugal,
03:48lies surrounded by ocean.
03:53An island cut off from the rest of the world.
04:01Dense, coniferous forest covers much of the land.
04:11Giving way to windswept beaches on the coast.
04:21Here, if you're in luck, an easy lunch can be found.
04:37For Torvosaurus, the island's top predator, it's an opportunity worth fighting for.
05:02But even these four-ton carnivores are no match for the enormous, looser titan, Old Grande.
05:24At a staggering 40 tons, he is the undisputed king of the island.
05:52But as a herbivore, he isn't on the hunt for food.
06:04He's been drawn to the beach by the allure of a female.
06:29As an ageing male, this may be his last chance to mate.
06:48But female looser titans are only receptive for a few weeks of the year.
06:56So he doesn't have long to make an impression.
07:26150 million years later,
07:30The true scale of old Grande is emerging from deep beneath the ground.
07:41We definitely have a huge specimen.
07:45All the bones of this animal seem to be more or less complete here.
07:52As the most complete Lusititan ever found, his remains allow the team, led by Professor Francisco Ortega and Drs. Elizabeth
08:05Malafaia and Pedro Mocho, to piece together the extraordinary dimensions of this animal.
08:19So, I think we have for this animal probably a leg between three and three and a half meters.
08:27They're starting with how tall he was, which they can estimate using the bones from his gigantic front limb.
08:38So, calculating how tall it is, I would say around ten meters.
08:43Ten meters.
08:44Yes.
08:44Okay.
08:45Ten meters tall is very tall.
08:47It's a big animal.
08:48Mm-hmm.
08:49This animal is the biggest animal in his ecosystem.
08:54At least the tallest one.
08:58Their calculations make old Grande one of the tallest of his species ever discovered.
09:08Which is certainly one way to impress a mate.
09:24Female Lusititans may have been most attracted to the biggest males.
09:35A sign their offspring will be healthy and strong.
09:44So, it should be easy for old Grande to make his mark.
10:06But it's not all about him.
10:16Before they will mate.
10:17Female Lusititans must first wait for the seasonal rains.
10:23Making sure there is enough fresh vegetation for their young.
10:31And this year, the rains are late.
10:41Old Grande has no choice but to wait.
10:56He must guard her closely and hope there is no other suitor close by.
11:07But love rarely runs smoothly.
11:18Three miles from where old Grande was found, the team has made an important discovery.
11:28Can you look at this?
11:30What do you think?
11:32What is this?
11:36We need to clean these area more.
11:38But the bone is here, and continues there.
11:42This is bone also?
11:44OK.
11:46This section seems a rib, a rib fragment.
11:54The fossilised rib is a similar size to old Grandes.
12:01But given its distance from the main dig, it's unlikely to be his.
12:08It's interesting because this bone is so big,
12:14it has to be another Lusititan.
12:17It is interesting that we have here so close two individuals of these species.
12:26Unearthing two Lusititans so close together is unheard of.
12:35So the team is keen to learn more.
12:39Can you put this in place, please?
12:43They cover the sections of rib in a layer of plaster.
12:51So they can be removed safely.
12:55And examined in one piece.
12:58Which is a massive three metres long.
13:06You know, this is a huge rib.
13:09Two Lusititans with such a huge size is definitely impressive.
13:15It's very speculative but this could be another male.
13:21Amazing.
13:24Like elephants and rhinos today, Lusititan bulls were likely solitary.
13:30And very territorial.
13:33If these two big, strong animals live in the same ecosystem at the same time,
13:43there is going to be some kind of competition.
13:48Just like old Grande, this rival male would have been searching for a mate.
13:54creating the potential for a dangerous confrontation.
14:10Although this contender may be younger than old Grande,
14:19he's not afraid to challenge him for the attentions of the female.
14:23Pretty simple.
14:49Old Grande is a seasoned fighter.
14:53And the largest bull on the island.
15:02A stern warning.
15:08Should be enough to make this upstart back off.
15:18But all is fair in love and war.
15:39The surprise attack leaves Old Grande seriously hurt.
15:47His leg badly injured.
16:01Struggling under his colossal weight.
16:08He is unable to right himself.
16:23He can only watch as the rival takes his place at the female side.
16:41For a dinosaur of his size, a badly damaged leg could mean the end of the road.
16:58So could a Lusititan survive this kind of injury?
17:10OK, I'm going down to find the track.
17:12OK.
17:13On the coast, a significant piece of evidence might provide the answer.
17:22But reaching it won't be easy.
17:28Because what was once flat ground during the Jurassic is now a near vertical cliff face.
17:37So Francisco, we are in position.
17:40We can see you so you are ready to go.
17:45So Francisco must descend over a hundred metres.
17:52OK, I'm ready.
17:53I'm going down.
18:12Hi Francisco.
18:13How are you?
18:18Hey Pedro, I'm in the upper part of the track now.
18:25I can see several footprints and this part of the track seem to be very well preserved.
18:34Etched into the cliff face are footprints thought to have been made by a large Lusititan.
18:45And they reveal something surprising.
18:53The length that there is between the footprints is one metre and 97 centimetres.
19:02OK, I got it.
19:09Right stride is two metres and seven centimetres.
19:16We have a clear difference between the right and left stride.
19:23So Francisco, we have a difference of about ten centimetres from the right and left stride.
19:32The foot and the hands are OK, but this animal is not working normally.
19:40Probably because it is limping.
19:48The discovery of a limping Lusititan is important evidence.
19:56It suggests that injuries to their enormous limbs were survivable.
20:16Even so, old Grande is still weak and won't last long on a damaged leg.
20:33But he does have a remarkable way to speed up the healing process.
20:46It's known as osteophagia.
20:57Like modern day giraffes, he supplements his diet by breaking apart and swallowing the skeletons of dead animals.
21:11Like the carcass of this pliosaur, whose bones are rich in the minerals he needs to repair his own body.
21:31But he's still a long way from recovery.
21:35And a limp like his...
21:39...may not have gone unnoticed.
21:49Following the path of the Lusititan footprints, something has caught Francisco's eye.
22:00From my position, I'm pretty sure that there are several other footprints also on the cliff.
22:10Do you think they can approach the position?
22:19OK, I'm going to trade.
22:24The second set of prints is another 85 metres down the sheer cliff face.
22:33No, I can't do it.
22:38It's very difficult to go down and take a look more closely.
22:49Unable to reach the prints by land, the team decides...
22:57...to take to the air.
23:06OK, Francisco, we send the drone up.
23:16The footprints are just to my right.
23:19The footprints are just to my right.
23:22Oh, oh, oh, oh.
23:25I think...
23:28Oh, you see?
23:34It's very clear.
23:36Yeah.
23:38Oh my gosh.
23:38And it is so close to the other trackway.
23:44The second set of prints follows the same path as the Lusititan.
23:51But from their distinctive shape, it's clear they've been made by a different species.
23:57You have the middle finger, it's very large.
24:01Yeah, very different from the other prints that are rounded.
24:04So this could be a potential predator to this Lusititan.
24:11It's a medium.
24:12It's a large-sized theropod, clearly.
24:17Theropods are a group of dinosaurs that includes T-Rex.
24:24But on this island, the prints are likely to come from a predator...
24:31...old Grande would be much more familiar with.
24:40The Torvosaurus.
24:48Ten meters long and over three meters tall, this adult female would normally be no match for a healthy Lusititan.
25:03But the pain in old Grande's leg has become unbearable.
25:10And he must rest until he can recover.
25:15It could mean days without food or water, leaving him exhausted and vulnerable.
25:35An opportunity this big...
25:39...is rare.
25:45But old Grande is too strong to take on now.
25:54So she's prepared to stay close...
25:58...and wait.
26:23As the days pass...
26:25As the days pass...
26:26...old Grande rests...
26:46...and the new ones that have been taken.
26:50The Torvosaurus.
26:53Risks an approach.
26:54Risks an approach.
26:56Or...
26:58Or...
26:58Or...
26:59Or...
26:59Or...
26:59Or...
26:59Or...
27:15A close call.
27:23Old Grande must recover soon.
27:26Because next time, he may not be so lucky.
28:05Old Grande must recover soon.
28:05Old Grande must recover soon.
28:35At long last, old Grande's leg is finally on the mend.
28:54Old Grande must recover soon.
28:55And he has unfinished business, finding the female that left him behind.
29:08But both she and his rival are now miles away.
29:13And the clock is ticking.
29:23He must move as quickly as he can.
29:33150 million years later, the team has made a discovery that could reveal how fast a giant
29:43like Old Grande travel.
29:47It's particularly interesting because it's a fragment of the scapula.
29:52That is part of the shoulder.
29:54We have also the humerus.
29:58We have the yulna.
30:00So we have the arm.
30:03The new find gives the team an almost complete profile of Old Grande's front limb.
30:15So we have here more or less one meter and eight for the humerus and one meter and eight for
30:24this scapula.
30:27Putting these measurements together with their findings from the cliffside footprints.
30:31His stride is two meters and seven centimeters.
30:37They can now calculate his speed.
30:42We can estimate that this animal can walk from four to five miles per hour.
30:50This is really interesting.
30:54It may sound slow, but like modern elephants,
30:58it's thought looser titans could keep up this pace over huge distances.
31:17This is just what Old Grande needs to do as he travels miles across the island looking for the female.
31:38But he's almost out of time.
31:49A distant storm heralds the arrival of the seasonal rains.
32:06The female will finally be ready to mate.
32:10Leaving Old Grande in danger of missing out to his rival.
32:21But he's not just relying on his pace alone.
32:28He's using an extraordinary ability to locate the female.
32:37One he's thought to share with modern day elephants.
32:44His stomps send powerful seismic waves through the ground.
33:02Many miles away, she feels the earth move.
33:08Through specialized nerve endings in her feet.
33:17And she answers her suitor's call.
33:28Detecting her response keeps Grande heading in the right direction.
33:40But he must reach her before he misses his chance.
33:52At the dig site, a new section of Old Grande's bones is emerging from the rock.
34:01So perhaps, this is the first one, sure.
34:06And probably this is the second one.
34:07For the chevron.
34:08Including fossils that belong to his giant tail.
34:11Like that?
34:12Yeah.
34:13I would say this one will be…
34:15That's bigger.
34:17But laying them out from the biggest on the right, to the tip on the left, Pedro has
34:25noticed something unusual.
34:27Everything should belong to the same individual.
34:31If we compare all these tail bones here, this seems to be smaller.
34:37One of the bones doesn't belong in the sequence.
34:41And it's too small to be part of Old Grande.
34:45So I think we have two individuals in this grave.
34:49I would say they have another smaller adult.
34:53Amazing.
34:53Amazing.
34:56It's a significant find.
34:59Because a second adult so close to Old Grande could mean he did find his mate.
35:06So, he will look up there and propose to…
35:23After miles of walking, he's reached the area where the female last responded to his call.
35:38Good-n yol-n-dÃa.
35:41New!
35:46New!
35:48New!
35:52New!
35:57New!
35:57New!
36:00New!
36:00New!
36:09Reunited at last.
36:25But the moment is short-lived.
36:48The rival male has stayed close, and he isn't going to give up without a fight.
37:11Each bull uses his colossal weight as a battering ram.
37:29But these giants are too closely matched.
37:38So changing tactics, they use their teeth to inflict intense pain.
37:54But neither is backing down.
38:07Taking his chance, the rival pins Old Grandy.
38:21Rearing up to the height of a four-story building, he bears down with his enormous weight.
38:41But this time, Old Grandy refuses to go down.
39:04A decisive victory.
39:20But Old Grandy still faces one last challenge.
39:27Persuading the female, he really is the bull for her.
39:45And it could be that Francisco has discovered the key to what made Old Grandy irresistible.
39:53I can recognize that we have this group of bones here that are very close and are one touching the
40:00other.
40:02It's a series of disc-shaped vertebrae that once formed part of his long neck.
40:10It's not complete, but it's particularly well preserved.
40:16Structurally, it's very delicate.
40:19The bones are incredibly fragile.
40:24So the team covers them in a protective membrane.
40:29We need to pull all these small cracks, because if we take out the vertebra, we can lose the bones
40:37completely.
40:40But these neck bones are not delicate simply because of their age.
40:48Each one has a hollow structure, which may have served a vital purpose.
40:58These animals are huge giants of the Jurassic.
41:02They have very long necks, huge tensions and stress.
41:07So one of the probably advantages on having these hollow bones is that this helps the animal
41:14to be lighter and more dynamic in the movement of these huge necks.
41:20Very useful.
41:25This dynamic movement would have allowed old Grande to walk, fight and crucially, display.
41:40It's exactly what he needs to charm the female.
41:47Because he hasn't won her over yet.
42:10Like many birds today, it's thought he would use his long, lightweight neck and flexible tail
42:18in an elaborate courtship display.
42:30With every move he makes carefully assessed by this most discerning of judges.
42:42And she responds.
42:51Staying in sync with each other's moves will be crucial to proving they're compatible.
43:12But just as everything was going so well, old Grande gets a little overexcited.
43:43Fortunately, he has one last trick up his sleeve.
44:01Just like modern birds such as frigates, old Grande has an inflatable sack to attract attention.
44:34It seems to have worked.
44:59And in the hills of central Portugal.
45:01Pedro, Pedro, Elizabeth and Francisco have also completed their mission.
45:10Finishing this year's dig with a treasure trove of fossils.
45:15This is a very good season.
45:18We have a lot of new things this year.
45:24256.
45:25Some of them are really large bones.
45:29Even as they pack up, they're already making plans to return next year.
45:35It's interesting to try to find more bones of both individuals here.
45:41There's more areas to explore.
45:47While they may never know how old Grande met his end,
45:54his bones appear to be entwined with a female lusotitan.
46:08And so, just maybe, with her, he was able to secure his legacy.
46:29A batch of giant eggs.
46:49You have to find me in the middle of the sea or the other.
46:50there's no need to be an environmentalist.
46:50You can learn how old Grande is going to be the next one.
46:51No one is going to be the next one.
46:52There's no need to be the next one.
47:09Buried safely beneath the ground, this next generation of looser titans will soon begin
47:20their own story.
47:50.
47:52.
47:52.
47:53.
47:55.
47:57.
47:57.
47:59.
48:00.
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