All language subtitles for A.Real.Bugs.Life.S01E04.Braving.the.Backyard.1080p.WEB-DL.x264.6CH-Pahe.ink

The smaller you are,

the more unpredictable life is.

Only the size
of your little fingernail,

a two-week-old unicorn mantis
has very slim chances

of surviving to adulthood.

There's no knowing
where life will take her.

Because her happily ever after
is in human hands.

Whoa!

Looks like she just moved home

and ended up in a neglected
backyard in South Texas.

To her,

it's the wild, wild west.

Full of lawless locals

and new frontiers.

Needs a bit of TLC for sure.

So, there's gonna be some
big changes around here.

Lil' mantis isn't the only one
who'll have to adapt.

A whole host of backyard bugs
face an uncertain future.

As the human settlers
begin a major makeover,

will there still be a home
for little lives, too?

In towns and cities
across the world,

our backyards are some
of the only green spaces left,

so what we do in them has a
huge impact on tiny creatures.

Springtime is
backyard clearing time.

It's not just weeds
that have taken over.

This place has been invaded

by one of the most unwanted
bugs in Texas.

The fire ant.

She not only stings,

she also has a habit
of taking over our spaces.

Her "ant-cestors" are
from South America,

but they were accidentally
introduced to the US

around 100 years ago.

Since then, they've spread
across every southern state,

one backyard at a time.

We may not like them,

but they love us.

Well, our food at least.

With five times more scent
receptors than most insects,

she's good at sniffing it out.

But feeding her family
means braving us giants.

Go, go, go!

Score!

Enough to feed
a family of 10,000.

Gonna need some help
hauling it, though.

Better get home to tell them
the good news.

Her colony has set up camp
in this disused water feature.

It hasn't been easy
to keep everyone fed.

But now the humans
have moved in,

looks like their fortunes
may change.

For better or for worse.

Backyard maintenance is keeping
the new homeowners busy.

Lil' mantis has
her work cut out, too.

With only four months
to reach adulthood

and have babies of her own,

she has a lot of growing to do.

So, it's time to start hunting.

Watch your back, lil' mantis!

A jumping spider.

Twice her size

and very hungry.

She has excellent vision,

but not as good as his.

With four middle eyes that work
like telephoto lenses,

he pinpoints his target.

There's no easy escape.

Jumping spiders are
pursuit predators,

and with motion-detecting
side eyes,

he follows her every move.

Luckily, staying
very, very still

comes naturally to a mantis.

Phew!

With each danger avoided,

her chances of reaching
adulthood increase.

But she still has a way to go.

Another insect has already come
a long way just to get here.

This monarch butterfly
is on the first leg

of a 3,000-mile migration
from Mexico to Canada.

Now she needs
to rest and refuel.

And our backyard has
just what she's looking for.

Ah, sweet nectar.

This plant is a lifeline
for the monarchs.

But for many of us, it's just
a weed that needs to go.

But look closer,
and you'll see that milkweed

has an important place
in our backyard.

And now that it's getting rarer
in the wild,

millions of monarchs are
more dependent on gardens

where it still grows.

As spring progresses, the
monarch migration hits pause.

And their minds
turn to other things.

It's not long before...

Well, you get the idea.

Oh, yeah!

But making more monarchs
takes a lot of energy.

Looks like she may be resting
here a while longer.

The industrious little fire ant
is working hard

to help her colony settle in.

She's caring for the kids,

keeping the place clean,

and her family is growing fast.

Meanwhile,
this lakeside location

has become totally bougie.

Time to top it off
and turn on that water feature.

Uh-oh.

Quick! All hands on deck!

Grab a baby!

Get them to higher ground!

But soon, this whole place
will be submerged.

Their only chance
is to stick together.

These are instinctive
survival skills

from their natural
rain forest home.

They're forming
a living life raft.

Every day, many dramas
are unfolding in bug world.

And they totally pass us by.

Incredibly,
they're still together.

Kept afloat with air bubbles

trapped by their waxy,
waterproof bodies.

But inevitably
some get separated,

cast adrift in a vast ocean.

Now the ants need
to get ashore,

but there's no land for miles.

Well, ant miles at least.

Hey! Not so heavy
with the hands!

Actually, that could be
just the steer they needed.

But that Elvis hair is getting
a little top-heavy.

Oh, no!

Our girl's gone overboard.

Swim, swim for your life!

Just a little closer.

Phew!

Okay, ant raft reassemble.

All paddle
in the same direction.

Stay united for the final push.

Land ahoy!

Finally, safe and dry.

By putting the lives of others
before their own,

the colony has survived.

Time for these
little "anty" heroes

to do what they do best:

embrace change
and go find a new home.

Spring is turning into summer.

And the backyard
is coming along nicely.

Lil' mantis has been
doing some changing, too.

In the six weeks
since arriving here,

she's grown a whole inch.

But if she's
to reach adulthood,

she needs to up
her hunting game.

Luckily, she can spot activity
60 feet away.

The vegetable garden.

Might not seem like the best
option for a strict carnivore,

but where there's salad,

there's bound to be
a main dish.

Using her incredible eyes,

she can see in 3D

and triangulate moving targets.

Ah-ha.

A fidgeting stink bug.

That'll do nicely.

Just calculate
its position, and...

Whoa!

Watch out, lady!

Oh, wait.

Guess it helps to be a cute bug
around here.

Landed on her feet.

This is gonna be like
shooting fish in a barrel.

Only aphids, not a plant.

She's quick on the draw, too.

Twice as fast as you can blink.

And those leg spikes mean

she's always got
the next one on deck.

And she's not just
helping herself.

By taking care of pest control,

she helps keep
the plants healthy, too.

Oh, no!

Not you again.

There's no getting away
from this super smart spider.

He can work out
where she's going,

plan ahead...

...and take a shortcut.

Lil' mantis just walked
straight into his trap.

Ah-ha!

See ya later, loser.

This unpredictable human world
can be brutal to bugs.

But for lil' mantis,
it's working out just fine.

The future is not so bright
for the monarch.

Her migration all the way
from Mexico has taken its toll.

This is the end of the road.

But the journey isn't over.

The baton has been passed
to the next generation.

Once ready to fly,

they'll continue
the marathon monarch relay.

So this baby
better get growing.

And she's hatched
in the perfect place.

The milkweed
that kept mom going

is the only thing she eats.

In just two weeks...

...she's 2,000 times bigger.

Milkweed is poisonous to most.

But she can use the toxins
to make herself taste bad,

and her bright colors
warn predators

that she's not so appetizing.

Keeping her alive long enough

to prepare for an amazing
transformation.

After a major growth spurt,

lil' mantis is also ready
for a costume change.

This exoskeleton
is so last season.

She needs to be quick;

she can't breathe
while she's molting.

Ahh! That's better.

Throughout her life,
she molts eight times.

And to keep her hopes
of becoming a mom alive,

she needs to eat
as often as she can.

But that's not so easy.

When night falls,

she doesn't see so well.

Ah, that's better.

Now that the hard work is over,

the homeowners are
ready to entertain.

There's guests, drinks,

and party food.

As long as the lights are on,
the bug buffet is open.

Time to deploy her superpower.

Whoa! Dramatic head turn.

No big deal to us,

but a lot of other insects
can only keep it dead ahead.

It gives her
a hunting advantage.

Suddenly, chances of reaching
adulthood seem much brighter.

She's not the only one
attracted to our electricity.

The fire ant colony has set up
closer to home, too.

It seems a safe place.

But now, the little worker is
picking up distress signals.

Ant down.

An SOS she can't ignore.

She shares crucial intelligence
with other workers,

and they rush to the rescue.

But it's too late.

Killed by an invisible enemy,

hidden within the wires.

No one knows why fire ants
are drawn to electricity.

But all too often,

it leads to a dead end.

As more ants
come to the rescue,

more ants get shocked
and release more pheromones.

And so,

the vicious cycle
of death continues.

Soon, there are so many bugs
in the system,

it short circuits.

For homeowners,
it can be annoying.

But for our little
workers colony,

it could be lights out.

Living alongside humans
takes some getting used to.

But come midsummer, most of the
bugs are right at home here.

Lil' mantis stuck
to her growth targets.

A new molt every two weeks.

And now, she's made that leap
into adulthood.

Lookin' good!

And ready to go find that guy.

No, not him.

Seriously?

He's looking meaner than ever.

But now she's five times
bigger than him.

It's payback time.

You just got owned.

Okay. Back to that
"looking for love" situation.

Offers aren't exactly
flooding in.

But she has ways of making
herself more attractive.

Feminine pheromones.

Someone's on the pickup
already.

A male with long,
thick antennae.

Her scent is alluring for sure.

But tread carefully.

Female mantises have a thing
for biting off heads.

I'm sure they'll work it out.

At least most of the backyard
bugs are still standing.

Even our little fire ant
made it through.

Not gonna lie, the first few
months here have been tough.

But as always,
this antsy little survivor

will pick herself up again

and keep trying
to make a home here.

For others,
it's time to move on.

The transformation is complete

for the last
of the backyard butterflies.

A little migrating marvel,

picking up where mom left off.

It takes two more generations
to go the distance.

So, the legacy of the monarchs
who first arrived

in this backyard
will continue into Canada,

carried by their
great grandchildren.

And as long as the milkweed
is left to grow,

they'll be back here next year.

As we take over more
of the natural world,

creating a little space
for nature

becomes more important
than ever.

Add all the backyards
in the US together,

and they cover an area
almost as big as Florida.

The small things
we do and don't do

can have a huge impact
on little lives.

And there's no better sign
of a healthy home

than a backyard
buzzin' with bugs.

Lil' mantis may only have
weeks left to live,

but her life is complete.

She's become a mom
to a new generation

of tiny unicorns.

So, one way or another,
this will be her forever home.