- 2 days ago
Madagascar, the oldest island on earth. Over time, it has given rise to more unique plants and animals, from its lemurs to chameleons, than any other island.
Category
🐳
AnimalsTranscript
00:08Far away, cut off by vast oceans, lie Earth's tropical islands, home to remarkable animal
00:26castaways that have evolved in isolation.
00:36And human cultures that have adapted in extraordinary ways, from the jungles of Borneo with their staggering
00:48wild diversity.
00:56To Hawaii, the most remote island chain, colonized by only the hardiest pioneers.
01:07And Madagascar, the oldest island of all.
01:13Where time has given rise to thousands of unique species.
01:25These tropical islands have developed into astonishing and unique worlds, cradling precious
01:36life, found nowhere else on Earth.
02:03In the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean lies the oldest island on Earth.
02:17Madagascar.
02:21Isolated for longer than any other island, life has had time to evolve in the most surprising
02:30ways.
02:36With over 15,000 species found nowhere else, Madagascar boasts more unique plants and animals
02:47than any other island on the planet.
02:55Madagascar was formed nearly 90 million years ago.
03:09Madagascar.
03:11Madagascar.
03:12Madagascar.
03:12Madagascar.
03:13Madagascar.
03:15Madagascar.
03:17Madagascar.
03:18Madagascar.
03:19Madagascar.
03:20Madagascar.
03:21Madagascar.
03:21Madagascar.
03:22Madagascar.
03:25Madagascar.
03:28Madagascar.
03:31and home to an astonishing array of ancient habitats.
03:40At its heart lie the highlands,
03:45an immense mountainous spine that determines the island's climate.
03:52Warm, wet air blows in off the Indian Ocean,
03:57drenching the east of Madagascar with rain.
04:02But the mountains block this rain from reaching the west,
04:06creating a great expanse of desert.
04:18This arid landscape stretches halfway up the west coast.
04:27It was here around 55 million years ago
04:31that a few animal castaways washed ashore.
04:39Having somehow survived the 300-mile crossing from Africa.
04:51One of the very first mammals to arrive
04:54was an ancient species of primate.
05:00And their direct descendants still live here in the desert today.
05:14Ring-tailed lemurs.
05:24It's dawn.
05:27And a family of nine soak up the warmth of the early morning sun,
05:33preserving vital energy for the day ahead.
05:47This young lemur
05:50is just six months old.
05:56And born into the harshest habitat
06:00on the island.
06:10Known as their spiny forest.
06:24Known as the spiny forest.
06:32Tiny, leathery leaves provide little nourishment.
06:46The troop spends up to eight hours a day scouring the desert for food, tackling even the most hostile vegetation.
07:07The sticky sap that oozes out of euphorbia plants can be caustic and burn human flesh.
07:26Yet ringtails are resistant to their corrosive powers.
07:41Euphorbia sap is also rich in fats, much-needed fuel that will help this young lemur survive this inhospitable desert.
08:18Ringtails are just one of the many species of lemur.
08:24These primates are found only on Madagascar.
08:35Their ancient ancestors gradually spread east across the island, adapting to each of Madagascar's varied habitats.
09:04They now number more than a hundred different species.
09:09The Dawn of Madagascar
09:11The Dawn of Madagascar
09:24The Dawn of Madagascar
09:37Humans are thought to have arrived on this island just a few thousand years ago.
09:51First from Asia, and then from Africa, they settled on the coast.
10:05Pushing inland, those in the west faced the hostile desert.
10:14Just 20 miles from the coastline lies the village of Amputak.
10:23It's the dry season. Temperatures often reach 40 degrees Celsius.
10:31It hasn't rained for 10 months now.
10:41With their nearest water supply over 40 miles away, life is a daily struggle.
10:47The remains of this year's melon harvest provide just enough water to cook with.
11:00At 62, Adolphe has lived through the driest of years.
11:21Today, Adolphe is joined by his son, Leris, to visit the secret to their survival.
11:37The Baobab, known as the Tree of Life.
11:48They can live for over a thousand years.
11:54Growing up to 30 meters high, Baobabs can hold vast quantities of water in their immense trunks.
12:05And can survive for years without a single drop of rain.
12:18For Adolphe, this Baobab provides a lifeline.
12:29The Baobab.
12:36The new limelight is found, the Baobab.
12:46So it seemed like it was a long-termier living to go to the river.
12:47If you're a battle, cause you're a loner.
12:50Then you'll make a battle you want.
12:51If you're a boat, you're one of the way.
12:52There's an island's days long after the river to the river to the river to the river.
12:52The city is Hussanus.
12:52And we're at a train of 14-year- siege and it's a day where you're a boat.
12:53The land's gar Coordinating, the lake is about a 14-year-old.
12:54By hollowing out the soft trunk, they created a tank which they could fill with water during
13:01the brief rainy season.
13:11This living reservoir can store thousands of liters of water.
13:17But this dry season has lasted so long that the tree is already empty.
13:28Still it's an important opportunity to trim back the growing bark, maintaining the tank's
13:34size, ready for the rain they hope will come soon.
13:43This tank may have run dry, but Adolphe inherited seven of these wells from his father.
14:00Only one still holds any water.
14:23With only enough water to last a few more weeks, it's a worrying time for Adolphe and his family.
14:33Survival in this desert depends on the arrival of the rains.
14:42On the forest floor, there are signs that the weather is changing.
14:56Tiny Laborde's chameleons, only three centimeters long, begin to hatch.
15:16They live for only four months, the shortest lifespan of any land vertebrate.
15:30For this young male, it's a race against time.
15:48In the dry season, there is little food.
15:54But his hatching is perfectly timed.
16:09It's the start of the rainy season.
16:29The parched landscape is transformed into a flush of green.
16:38Just what this growing chameleon needs.
16:52As his eyes can move independently, he can spot a meal in any direction.
17:01And, by locking both eyes onto a target, judge distance.
17:09With deadly accuracy.
17:34With so much food on offer, the male Laborde's chameleon can grow five times his size in just two months.
17:42And the male Laborde's chameleon can grow five times his size in just two months.
17:46Transforming into an adult male with an eye-catching horn.
18:01A female approaches.
18:09The male Laborde's chameleon can grow five times his size.
18:09But the male has a rival.
18:14With such short lives, there's fierce competition for a chance to mate.
18:46Where is this place?
18:48The male Laborde?
18:48For the male Lab�� Darwin, it's taken by the foose.
18:49With his rival out of the way, he hasn't got long to take this opportunity.
19:26After just four months, this male has succeeded in securing the next generation.
19:34The female will lay her fertilized eggs underground before she dies.
19:46And as the dry season returns, not a single adult Laborde chameleon will be left alive.
20:09Arid regions cover more than half of western Madagascar, including one of its most extreme
20:18habitats. The Grand Singi.
20:34More than 500 square miles of sharp limestone pinnacles.
20:43Eroded by rainfall over millions of years.
20:56It's deep, shaded ravines retain moisture, allowing small pockets of forest to grow.
21:08And providing an oasis for an extraordinary lemur.
21:26Deccan Shifaka.
21:38Deccan Shifaka.
21:48Deccan Shifaka.
22:03Deccan Shifaka.
22:09Deccan Shippaka.
22:12Deccan Shifaka.
22:27Deccan Shifaka.
22:29stand more than a hundred meters tall
22:35and are sharp enough to shred human skin.
22:58But Shifakas have thick, rubbery foot pads and spring-like legs that can leap nine meters
23:06in a single bound.
23:10These lemurs have evolved into Blade Runners.
23:36Blade Runners
23:37Blade Runners
24:04Blade Runners
24:06they need to survive.
24:22Over millions of years of evolution,
24:25the Deccan Shifaka has overcome the extreme conditions
24:29of the Grand Singhi.
24:34But as Madagascar's lemurs continue to spread east
24:38across the island,
24:40they eventually encountered an immense barrier.
24:47Over a hundred miles inland, the Highlands.
25:05It's these towering peaks that divide Madagascar's climate.
25:12Rising over 2,000 meters,
25:14they capture the full force of the seasonal rain
25:17blowing in from the east.
25:29Millions of years of rainfall
25:31have carved out fertile valleys,
25:35perfect for growing rice,
25:38the staple food of Madagascar's people.
25:44Just a few thousand years ago,
25:47settlers from Asia brought the skills
25:49to turn even the steepest mountains
25:51into terraced rice paddies.
25:58Today, subsistence farmers produce
26:01more than a million tons of rice here
26:04every year.
26:15Maravello owns four paddy fields,
26:20providing just enough rice for her family at 10.
26:45It's January, the height of the rainy season,
26:50and the most important time
26:52for any rice farmer.
26:58Maravello needs more than 2,000 liters of water to grow.
27:05With rainwater flooding the rice paddies,
27:09Maravello must prepare them for planting.
27:15But instead of using a plow,
27:18she uses her most prized possession.
27:21she uses her most prized possession.
27:22Maravello must prepare them for planting.
27:23she uses her many long tutors,
27:26at the Great Blue Partnership of Submission.
27:27Originally from Asia,
27:29these are zebu cattle.
27:37The stampeding hooves me
27:38churn up the soil.
27:40the stampeding hooves
27:48churn up the soil.
28:05It may be dangerous work, but it's an ancient practice, unique to Madagascar.
28:21And brings the whole community together.
28:53With the soil prepared, it's time to get planting.
29:02To make the most of the peak rains, Maravello and her daughters need to work fast.
29:24They're precision planters.
29:28Every blade is 20 centimeters apart, ensuring maximum yield.
29:35.
29:40.
29:51.
30:06In three months' time, the rice crop should be ready for harvest, providing Maravello and
30:13her family with plenty of food for the year ahead.
30:19Unless the crop is struck by one of the most destructive creatures on the planet, locusts.
30:39They're normally solitary insects.
30:43But when there's an abundance of crops, their numbers can reach plague proportions.
30:55These flightless hoppers can form armies over half a mile long.
31:07But they have only just begun on their path of destruction.
31:21At five weeks old, they morph into fully fledged adults and can take to the air in their billions.
31:49A swarm this size may only appear once in a decade in Madagascar.
32:07Traveling over 50 miles a day, they can devour 40,000 tons of vegetation, including the farmer's
32:20precious rice crops.
32:37On reaching the highlands, a plague is finally stopped by the heavy mountain rains.
32:46Wet wings prevent the locusts from flying until eventually the swarm runs out of food and dies.
33:09To the east of the highlands lies a completely different world.
33:19With warm, humid air blowing in off the Indian Ocean, it receives ten times the rainfall of the west, creating
33:29lush rainforests.
33:33To the east of the east of the south.
33:37To the north.
33:57When Madagascar's ancient castaways eventually reached these eastern forests, they flourished.
34:18Over time, creatures evolved in extraordinary ways, colonizing every corner of the jungle.
34:31Today, two-thirds of the island's plants and animals are found here.
34:48The forest floor is home to another ancient castaway, originally from Africa.
35:02It may look like a hedgehog, but this is a tenrec found only on Madagascar.
35:18They give birth to more babies than any other mammal, as many as 32 in a single litter.
35:37Like lemurs, they've evolved into a wide variety of species, each adapting in remarkable ways to their forest home.
35:53At just four weeks old, these street tenrecs are almost fully grown.
36:03Eagerly sniffing out a meal with their flexible snouts.
36:08To fuel their high metabolism, they can eat over 30 worms a day.
36:16And they quickly disperse.
36:42A deadly Madagascan ground boa.
37:01The mother tenrec senses danger and quickly sounds the alarm.
37:10By rubbing together modified spines on her back.
37:18The high-pitched sounds cut through the clamor of the forest, and the youngsters scurry back to her.
37:37This is a unique form of communication used by no other mammal on the planet.
37:43A bizarre adaptation to survive in these crowded forests.
37:59At night, an even stranger cast of creatures emerges.
38:14The aptly named Pelican Spider.
38:20No larger than a grain of rice, he has a formidable set of jaws.
38:27This male is on the hunt for his next meal.
38:35Using his extra-long front legs, he searches for signs of life.
38:44A silk thread is the perfect lead.
38:56A female orb-web spider.
39:06But she's protected by her sticky web.
39:18What to do?
39:23Fortunately, the pelican spider has had millions of years to fine-tune its technique.
39:33Mimicking the movements of a fly caught in her web, he lures her towards him.
40:08The
40:09with his own powerful venom
40:13before tucking in.
40:22The intense competition for food
40:25in Madagascar's crowded rainforest
40:27has pushed its inhabitants to evolve
40:30in the most extreme ways.
40:35And the lemurs are no exception.
40:45This is an Ai-Ai, filmed in a special enclosure.
41:00Her favorite food is insect larvae,
41:04which can only be found deep inside the branches of trees.
41:12But the Ai-Ai has perfected a truly remarkable way
41:16of getting to them.
41:19It's a technique that's thought to take four years to master.
41:26Using her 9-centimeter-long middle finger,
41:30she taps to hear where the branch is hollow.
41:36Then she gnaws away at the protected bark,
41:50before deploying her supersized finger
41:54to fish out any juicy grubs.
42:12Madagascar's unique wildlife has had millions of years
42:16to slowly evolve.
42:22But in the last few thousand years,
42:25the pace of life has increased rapidly,
42:29with deadly consequences.
42:36As revealed by a recent discovery in Madagascar's most remote desert.
42:46This pool is a portal to a previously unexplored world.
43:04In 2015, divers first ventured into this network of flooded passages.
43:3750 meters below the surface,
43:40they entered a truly new place.
43:42a magical underworld.
43:45Discovering more than 11 kilometers of connected tunnels.
43:52And some of the largest underwater chambers in the world.
44:19But what they found inside these caves was even more remarkable.
44:27A vast graveyard.
44:30The preserved remains of mysterious creatures.
44:42Four-meter-long, horned crocodiles.
44:55Puma-like predators.
44:58And ancient pygmy hippos.
45:04But perhaps most impressive of all,
45:08the skulls of giant lemurs that grew to the size of a gorilla.
45:24All long gone.
45:29Their extinction coincided with the most disruptive change in Madagascar's long history.
45:37The arrival of people.
45:50And today, our impact on the island is greater than ever before.
45:58Madagascar's forests are disappearing faster than any other tropical country.
46:04Cleared largely for subsistence farming.
46:12As little as 20% of the island's original forest remains.
46:26And the impact on Madagascar's unique wildlife has been devastating.
46:3895% of lemurs are now threatened with extinction.
46:48Making them the most vulnerable group of mammals in the world.
47:09One of the most endangered is found in the east of the island.
47:17The greater bamboo lemur.
47:23Like all lemurs, they're highly specialized.
47:37Bamboo makes up nearly 95% of their diet.
47:42Despite being packed with deadly cyanide.
47:49Every day, a single lemur can eat enough poison to kill five humans.
47:57They have evolved to withstand its toxic effects.
48:03Keeping these thickets all to themselves.
48:13But now, their unique adaptation has left them trapped here.
48:22Unable to live anywhere else.
48:29As their bamboo forests are cleared for agriculture, these lemurs are left with nowhere to live.
48:38And little to eat.
48:42The greater bamboo lemur was once thought to have gone extinct.
48:50But thanks to a recent, concerted effort to protect them, there is now a glimmer of hope.
49:09In the last year, this group had a record number of babies.
49:16Adding 72 to their total population of 400.
49:33The island of Madagascar has reached a critical point.
49:41And only with intensive conservation efforts will its remarkable and unique wildlife survive.
49:52Into the future.
50:11Filming the critically endangered greater bamboo lemur.
50:14Took the crew to one of the most remote regions of eastern Madagascar.
50:20Only accessible by a challenging two-day drive.
50:27The road is deteriorating.
50:29The wooden bridges are getting narrower.
50:33The roads are a lot worse than everyone expected.
50:36We appear to have already got one of our vehicles stuck.
50:41Finally, they reach Vohiterive, a village close to one of the last known refuges of this rare lemur.
50:50Over the next two weeks, the crew will be led by primatologist Delphine Roulet, who came here ten years ago
50:57on an urgent mission to save the bamboo lemurs.
51:00When I came to Madagascar, the species was at the edge of extinction.
51:06Less than 100 animals in Madagascar.
51:10With the help of her organization, around 400 lemurs now live in these pockets of bamboo forest.
51:17But they're spread over a vast area.
51:24Hopefully we're nearly there.
51:26I can stop climbing up the hills.
51:35To help narrow their search, they head into the bush to meet local lemur researcher, Noray.
51:43Ahead of the shoot, he sets up camera traps to hopefully establish the lemur's whereabouts.
51:56It's a good sign.
51:58A troop of bamboo lemurs were in the area just a few days ago.
52:02Just here?
52:03Yeah, completely dark.
52:07But the lemurs can travel through these thickets with ease.
52:11So it will take all of Noray and Delphine's skills to track them down.
52:19I think Noray can see them.
52:23I can't see them.
52:24You can see a dark spot.
52:26Just three.
52:30They may have spotted them in the distance.
52:32But the lemurs are leading the crew into even thicker vegetation.
52:38I'm getting entangled in sticky grass.
52:42And it's dense here.
52:44No way this is going to work.
52:51After nearly a week of tracking, cameraman Justin is finally getting closer.
52:58But getting a clear shot of them remains a significant challenge.
53:04Right now there's a tomb just below us, but we can't film it.
53:09There's too much vegetation.
53:10Yeah.
53:13Their wild lemur chase eventually takes them to the edge of the bamboo forest and into the farmland beyond.
53:21Noray and the crew check in with the locals to get the latest information on any lemur sightings.
53:32Only to stumble upon lemurs right in front of them.
53:40So we've just turned up to find them crossing this section of rice paddy between one part of bamboo forest
53:47and another.
53:50With much of their bamboo forest cleared for agriculture, the lemurs are forced to venture into the open.
53:57Sort of surprising to find them here because they really don't like dogs.
54:01And the villagers keep dogs, but so far they seem relaxed.
54:05Although bamboo is their preferred diet, the lemurs will sometimes resort to raiding rice crops.
54:12In the past, this has led to conflict with the locals.
54:16But Delphine's project has changed all that.
54:22Villagers like Noray are trained as lemur guardians.
54:29They help study the troops and marshal them off farming land before any damage is caused.
54:39Justin is still trying to get his shot.
54:46When conditions take a turn for the worse.
54:57Rain makes filming quite difficult.
55:00And it makes it really hard to keep everything and everybody dry and not muddy.
55:05So at the moment, the lemurs are keeping their heads down.
55:08So we're doing the same.
55:15The lemurs may be close by.
55:18But the rain continues for four whole days.
55:25We're just having to sit it out and hope they start moving somewhere we can see them.
55:30The frustration of having what you want but not being able to see it.
55:34But all this rain brings about a surprising change to their fortunes.
55:40The rain triggers a flush of growth in the bamboo shoots, the lemurs favourite food.
55:46And draws them out into the open.
55:52So it's been raining non-stop for five days now and I feel pretty wet from top to bottom.
56:03We can see six of them stuffing their faces with bamboo, which is a lovely sight to see.
56:11I'm really happy to be here.
56:13Despite the rain, it's amazing.
56:17And there is an added bonus.
56:22The mother bamboo lemurs have timed their births to coincide with the arrival of fresh bamboo.
56:28And the crew can film one of the first newborns of the season.
56:34Oh, it's so good to see the babies. Cute!
56:39It took a long time to get to this point of actually having them in front of us.
56:42So it's just great to have moments like this.
56:48These rare and intimate portraits of baby lemurs is the start of a record breeding year.
56:56Over the following two months, 72 babies are born.
57:02It's a huge boost to this endangered population.
57:08But their future rests in the hands of the next generation of lemur guardians.
57:16A vital part of Noray and Delphine's work is sharing their knowledge with those living side by side with the
57:23lemurs.
57:26We can still change things and find a place for everybody.
57:31For the animals, for the plants, for the humans.
57:35We have just to...
57:39Just do it, in fact.
57:41Thanks to Delphine, Noray, and their dedicated team,
57:46one of Madagascar's rarest lemurs is now back from the brink of extinction.
57:59Next time, Borneo.
58:04Home to a staggering variety of habitats.
58:08From its bustling coral reefs
58:11and ancient rainforests
58:15and ancient rainforests
58:15to its mountainous heart
58:18Borneo holds possibly the greatest diversity of life
58:23of any island.
58:34Yes, we carry on with this escapism tomorrow night at nine
58:37when we visit Earth's tropical islands of Borneo.
58:40Lush.
58:41Now, he's funny, fast-talking and cheeky,
58:44but he always manages to be the voice of reason.
58:46Who else could it be but Dara O'Breen, and he's here next.
58:5035
58:5036
58:5037
58:5138
58:5641
58:5741
58:5734
Comments