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A forest on the lower slopes of the Andes.
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00:01:28,326 --> 00:01:30,999
A spectacled bear is looking for a snack.
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00:02:00,086 --> 00:02:03,920
0ne of the problems
that faces us and all animals
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00:02:04,086 --> 00:02:06,077
is finding enough to eat.
5
00:02:06,246 --> 00:02:10,603
Being animals and not plants,
we only feed on other living organisms,
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00:02:10,766 --> 00:02:14,759
and, by and large,
other living organisms don't welcome that.
7
00:02:14,926 --> 00:02:17,520
Animals run away or defend themselves,
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00:02:17,686 --> 00:02:23,761
and even plants have surprisingly effective ways
of preventing anyone from stealing their leaves.
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00:02:23,926 --> 00:02:26,963
I'm in the South American rainforest -
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00:02:27,126 --> 00:02:29,924
the richest proliferation of life on Earth -
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00:02:30,086 --> 00:02:34,557
so you might think that here
I'd have no difficulty in finding food,
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00:02:34,726 --> 00:02:37,479
particularly if I was prepared to be vegetarian.
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00:02:37,646 --> 00:02:39,716
But it's not as simple as that.
14
00:02:42,166 --> 00:02:46,364
These woolly spider monkeys
are taking their first meal of the day.
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00:02:46,526 --> 00:02:49,598
It might seem to be a gentle, peaceful scene,
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00:02:49,766 --> 00:02:51,757
but, in fact, it's a battleground.
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00:02:51,926 --> 00:02:55,680
The tree defends itself
by developing poison in its leaves,
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00:02:55,846 --> 00:02:59,043
but when newly-sprouted, they're just edible,
19
00:02:59,206 --> 00:03:02,801
so the monkeys have to select
which they eat with great care.
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00:03:04,446 --> 00:03:08,485
Even with great discrimination,
they will swallow a little poison,
21
00:03:08,646 --> 00:03:11,035
and now they've had
as much as they can tolerate.
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00:03:12,166 --> 00:03:15,363
They move off and find another kind of tree.
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00:03:38,846 --> 00:03:43,522
This too has poison in its leaves,
but it's a slightly different kind,
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00:03:43,686 --> 00:03:46,803
so the monkeys can take
a second course of their meal,
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00:03:46,966 --> 00:03:49,605
providing they continue to be careful.
26
00:03:58,166 --> 00:04:02,444
Another drawback to eating leaves
is that they're not very nutritious,
27
00:04:02,606 --> 00:04:06,201
and the monkey has to eat
great quantities to sustain itself.
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00:04:06,366 --> 00:04:09,358
Huge meals require huge stomachs
to hold them,
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00:04:09,526 --> 00:04:14,475
and that means that the monkeys
are not the most nimble of movers
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00:04:14,646 --> 00:04:16,637
up in the branches.
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After an hour or so of feeding,
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the need to digest their vast meals
demands that they take time off
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and have a siesta.
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00:04:47,686 --> 00:04:50,564
Eating leaves is not easy.
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00:04:59,366 --> 00:05:01,482
The small red panda of the Himalayas
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00:05:01,646 --> 00:05:05,798
is one of the few animals that has beaten
the defences of the bamboo.
37
00:05:06,366 --> 00:05:10,996
Its leaves are not only very fibrous
but armed with tiny blades of silica,
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00:05:11,166 --> 00:05:13,634
so sharp that they can cut flesh.
39
00:05:13,806 --> 00:05:16,923
But the panda's digestion
is able to cope with them
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00:05:17,086 --> 00:05:20,522
and the reward is that it has
all the bamboo it can eat,
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00:05:20,686 --> 00:05:22,961
since so few other animals will touch it.
42
00:05:32,926 --> 00:05:35,440
Bamboo also grows in Madagascar,
43
00:05:35,606 --> 00:05:39,121
and here the rare
golden bamboo lemur feeds on it.
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00:05:39,286 --> 00:05:42,722
It scissors through the coarse
outer leaves on the stem
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00:05:42,886 --> 00:05:46,879
to reach the marginally softer
and more succulent ones within.
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00:05:50,846 --> 00:05:53,724
Its preferred choice is not so much the leaves
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00:05:53,886 --> 00:05:57,401
as the new shoots that come up
through the ground like spears.
48
00:05:57,566 --> 00:06:00,524
They, of course, are particularly
important to the plant
49
00:06:00,686 --> 00:06:02,961
and it loads them with cyanide.
50
00:06:03,126 --> 00:06:06,641
Eating one of these uncooked could kill a man.
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00:06:06,806 --> 00:06:11,118
The bamboo lemur can only eat them
because its stomach produces special juices
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00:06:11,286 --> 00:06:13,277
that neutralise the poison.
53
00:06:13,846 --> 00:06:16,485
But developing this ability has a price -
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00:06:16,646 --> 00:06:19,319
the bamboo lemur now can't eat much else.
55
00:06:19,486 --> 00:06:22,922
So if the bamboo disappears, so does the lemur.
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00:06:27,446 --> 00:06:31,359
The greatest plunderers of leaves,
however, are insects.
57
00:06:31,526 --> 00:06:33,801
They're the most numerous creatures on Earth
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00:06:33,966 --> 00:06:38,642
and a high proportion of them -
as caterpillars or adults - eat leaves.
59
00:06:38,806 --> 00:06:41,115
The evidence is everywhere.
60
00:06:47,766 --> 00:06:50,155
Insects are also fussy feeders.
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00:06:50,326 --> 00:06:54,956
A female lays her eggs on the kind of plant
her caterpillar's digestion can cope with,
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00:06:55,126 --> 00:06:59,517
so when they hatch, they find the food they need
immediately in front of them.
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00:06:59,686 --> 00:07:02,359
They are little more than eating machines -
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00:07:02,526 --> 00:07:05,882
a pair of jaws attached to a bag-like gut.
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00:07:06,046 --> 00:07:08,799
No complications with wings and sex organs.
66
00:07:08,966 --> 00:07:11,560
Those will come later when they turn into adults.
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00:07:11,726 --> 00:07:15,321
Now it's just munch, munch, munch.
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00:07:28,846 --> 00:07:33,362
Plague beetles have a special way
of beating a plant's poison.
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00:07:33,526 --> 00:07:35,084
Since it's costly to produce,
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00:07:35,246 --> 00:07:37,362
many plants only keep small stocks
71
00:07:37,526 --> 00:07:41,485
and deter grazers by rapidly deploying it
to the point of attack.
72
00:07:42,166 --> 00:07:45,283
But plague beetles descend
on a plant in such numbers
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00:07:45,446 --> 00:07:47,960
that its poison must be shared between many,
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00:07:48,126 --> 00:07:52,119
and each beetle only gets
a tiny and tolerable amount.
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00:07:59,446 --> 00:08:02,438
It's true that each one only gets a small meal,
76
00:08:02,606 --> 00:08:05,359
but as soon as they've finished with this plant,
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00:08:05,526 --> 00:08:07,517
they move on to another.
78
00:08:14,846 --> 00:08:18,634
The milkweed invests much more
in its defences.
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00:08:18,806 --> 00:08:22,082
Its abundant and very poisonous sap - latex -
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00:08:22,246 --> 00:08:26,797
is piped along special veins
and is immediately available everywhere.
81
00:08:28,446 --> 00:08:31,563
But this beetle has worked out
how to deal with that.
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00:08:32,686 --> 00:08:35,883
It punctures the pipeline
running along the leaf rib,
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00:08:36,046 --> 00:08:38,844
so that the milky latex leaks out.
84
00:08:47,366 --> 00:08:51,359
As a result, the poison never
reaches the end of the leaf,
85
00:08:51,526 --> 00:08:54,484
and there the beetle can feed in safety.
86
00:08:57,166 --> 00:09:02,684
The latex also seals a plant's wounds,
because it rapidly solidifies in air.
87
00:09:02,846 --> 00:09:04,723
But since it can't reach here,
88
00:09:04,886 --> 00:09:08,322
the beetle doesn't have any problem
with gummed-up jaws.
89
00:09:11,446 --> 00:09:15,439
Marmosets also deliberately wound plants.
90
00:09:15,606 --> 00:09:21,397
They repeatedly gouge grooves in the trunks
of trees that, when damaged, exude resin.
91
00:09:22,166 --> 00:09:26,444
Like the milkweed's latex,
resin seals off the tree's injuries,
92
00:09:26,606 --> 00:09:30,155
preventing loss of sap and the entry of infections.
93
00:09:32,846 --> 00:09:35,758
But unlike latex, it's not poisonous.
94
00:09:35,926 --> 00:09:39,965
0n the contrary, it's full of sugars
and rather good to eat.
95
00:09:43,046 --> 00:09:45,037
And the marmosets love it.
96
00:09:45,206 --> 00:09:51,475
So the tree's measures to defend itself
have actually resulted in encouraging its injury.
97
00:10:13,086 --> 00:10:16,362
Not all plants are so uncooperative.
98
00:10:16,526 --> 00:10:20,280
Some actually encourage animals
to come and feed from them,
99
00:10:20,446 --> 00:10:24,598
and advertise the fact
they've got food with brilliant displays,
100
00:10:24,766 --> 00:10:26,438
as these poppies are doing.
101
00:10:26,606 --> 00:10:31,634
This is not, of course,
generosity on their part, but self-interest.
102
00:10:31,806 --> 00:10:34,923
The food they have to offer is a bribe
103
00:10:35,086 --> 00:10:38,123
to persuade the animals to act as couriers.
104
00:10:39,926 --> 00:10:43,885
They need to have their pollen
ferried across to other flowers.
105
00:10:44,046 --> 00:10:46,560
Pollen in itself is edible.
106
00:10:46,726 --> 00:10:49,365
Bumblebees have a great taste for it.
107
00:10:54,606 --> 00:10:58,758
Bees have a complex arrangement
of cones and brushes on their hind legs
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00:10:58,926 --> 00:11:00,518
with which they gather pollen
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00:11:00,686 --> 00:11:02,961
and pack it into baskets on their thighs.
110
00:11:09,766 --> 00:11:12,041
As they move from flower to flower,
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00:11:12,206 --> 00:11:16,119
the pollen that brushes
onto their bodies on one flower
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00:11:16,286 --> 00:11:20,438
brushes off on another,
and the plant's purpose is accomplished.
113
00:11:27,846 --> 00:11:30,360
Pollen, packed with genetic material,
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00:11:30,526 --> 00:11:32,756
is a complex and expensive commodity,
115
00:11:32,926 --> 00:11:35,520
and many flowers offer a cheaper bribe -
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00:11:35,686 --> 00:11:38,246
nothing more than sweetened water.
117
00:11:39,366 --> 00:11:41,084
Nectar.
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00:11:41,766 --> 00:11:46,203
The plant produces it from nectaries
usually in the heart of the flower,
119
00:11:46,366 --> 00:11:48,755
so that thirsty insects, to reach it,
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00:11:48,926 --> 00:11:53,204
have to brush past the stamens,
collecting a dusting of pollen.
121
00:11:59,366 --> 00:12:02,039
In temperate lands, flowers can only be found
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00:12:02,206 --> 00:12:04,561
in the spring and summer when there's no frost,
123
00:12:04,726 --> 00:12:07,559
so insects that shelter from the winter, in nests,
124
00:12:07,726 --> 00:12:10,240
have to build up stocks as quickly as they can.
125
00:12:10,406 --> 00:12:13,478
They have, in fact, to be as busy as bees.
126
00:12:18,246 --> 00:12:20,077
In the tropics, on the other hand,
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00:12:20,246 --> 00:12:23,283
there are always plants
of one kind or another in bloom,
128
00:12:23,446 --> 00:12:26,404
so it's possible to feed
on nectar throughout the year,
129
00:12:26,566 --> 00:12:28,796
and many animals do.
130
00:12:30,006 --> 00:12:33,521
This vine, combretum, is particularly generous.
131
00:12:33,686 --> 00:12:37,156
Almost any animal that wants nectar
can get it without difficulty
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00:12:37,326 --> 00:12:39,123
when the plant is in flower.
133
00:12:39,286 --> 00:12:43,120
Many birds which feed on fruit,
berries, or even insects,
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00:12:43,286 --> 00:12:45,038
come to drink from it.
135
00:12:51,486 --> 00:12:53,124
And so do monkeys.
136
00:12:53,286 --> 00:12:56,801
The smaller kinds - squirrel monkeys,
tamarins and marmosets -
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00:12:56,966 --> 00:13:00,197
can clamber right out onto the thinner branches.
138
00:13:20,166 --> 00:13:23,158
Even the much bigger hefty capuchins,
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00:13:23,326 --> 00:13:27,205
which feed on fruit, nestling birds,
lizards and even, on occasion,
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00:13:27,366 --> 00:13:30,358
small monkeys, enjoy a sweet drink.
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00:13:49,846 --> 00:13:51,438
As all the monkeys feed,
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00:13:51,606 --> 00:13:54,564
so the stamens brush the fur on their face,
143
00:13:54,726 --> 00:13:57,638
and the pollen is on its way to another flower.
144
00:14:03,366 --> 00:14:05,834
Nectar feeding has its problems.
145
00:14:06,006 --> 00:14:08,042
A heliconia flower, like this one,
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00:14:08,206 --> 00:14:10,959
produces only a little nectar at a time.
147
00:14:11,126 --> 00:14:14,084
So if a hummingbird comes to feed from here,
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00:14:14,246 --> 00:14:16,806
it has to go elsewhere to get more,
149
00:14:16,966 --> 00:14:20,800
so bringing about the heliconia's
purpose of cross-pollination.
150
00:14:20,966 --> 00:14:25,278
And it takes a little time
for the heliconia to produce more nectar,
151
00:14:25,446 --> 00:14:29,485
so if the hummingbird comes back
too soon it's wasted its journey;
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00:14:29,646 --> 00:14:34,003
too late, and another bird
may have stolen the nectar.
153
00:14:34,166 --> 00:14:38,762
As a consequence,
hummingbirds patrol a group of these plants,
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00:14:38,926 --> 00:14:42,362
visiting each flower in strict rotation
155
00:14:42,526 --> 00:14:44,642
to an accurately timed schedule.
156
00:14:52,166 --> 00:14:54,361
And he was right on time.
157
00:15:05,606 --> 00:15:07,915
Hummingbirds are among the few animals
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00:15:08,086 --> 00:15:12,284
that live almost entirely on nectar -
they also eat small insects -
159
00:15:12,446 --> 00:15:15,438
and they've developed special
equipment to collect it.
160
00:15:16,526 --> 00:15:20,565
The wings have joints that enable them
to beat with a whirling motion,
161
00:15:20,726 --> 00:15:23,115
giving perfect control in the air.
162
00:15:24,246 --> 00:15:29,479
So it can hover in front of a flower
and insert its beak with absolute precision.
163
00:15:35,366 --> 00:15:37,834
The tongue is long and thread-like
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00:15:38,006 --> 00:15:40,884
and flicks in and out thirteen times a second.
165
00:15:50,606 --> 00:15:52,358
But this specialisation
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00:15:52,526 --> 00:15:55,324
means that hummingbirds
can feed on almost nothing else,
167
00:15:55,486 --> 00:15:57,875
and that puts them in the plant's power.
168
00:15:58,046 --> 00:16:02,915
It may seem that this hummingbird
is deciding which flower to drink from,
169
00:16:03,086 --> 00:16:07,876
but you could argue that the plant,
by controlling nectar production,
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00:16:08,046 --> 00:16:10,401
is dictating the movements of the hummingbird.
171
00:16:14,086 --> 00:16:17,522
Many hummingbirds have a bill
which, in its length and curvature,
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00:16:17,686 --> 00:16:23,079
exactly matches the shape and dimensions
of the particular flower on which they mostly feed.
173
00:16:23,246 --> 00:16:26,921
The violet sabre-wing's beak
fits into the columnea flower
174
00:16:27,086 --> 00:16:30,601
as accurately as a dagger
slipping into a scabbard.
175
00:16:34,686 --> 00:16:38,759
And the flower has stamens placed
in precisely the position needed
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00:16:38,926 --> 00:16:42,077
to put a dab of pollen on the bird's forehead.
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00:16:46,646 --> 00:16:50,116
So the sabre-wing and columnea
have become partners.
178
00:16:50,286 --> 00:16:53,039
This suits columnea
because its pollen is not taken
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00:16:53,206 --> 00:16:56,915
by hummingbirds feeding
on other kinds of flowers, and so wasted.
180
00:16:57,086 --> 00:16:58,599
And it suits the sabre-wing
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00:16:58,766 --> 00:17:01,838
because, since no other bird
has this shape of bill,
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00:17:02,006 --> 00:17:04,998
it has all the columnea nectar to itself.
183
00:17:11,246 --> 00:17:12,964
But not quite.
184
00:17:13,126 --> 00:17:16,038
The mountain gem hummer has other ideas.
185
00:17:16,206 --> 00:17:19,596
It's waiting for the flower's partner to leave.
186
00:17:25,526 --> 00:17:30,156
Its bill is too short to reach
the nectar as the sabre-wing does.
187
00:17:30,326 --> 00:17:34,285
With a thrust from its wings,
it tries to pierce the flower.
188
00:17:50,006 --> 00:17:53,203
This time, it holds the flower with its feet.
189
00:17:54,526 --> 00:17:58,041
It's broken in. Columnea has been burgled.
190
00:18:02,086 --> 00:18:06,045
Another thief, only too eager
to take advantage of a flower.
191
00:18:08,166 --> 00:18:10,634
Indian langur monkeys.
192
00:18:12,926 --> 00:18:15,565
The flowers of the flame-of-the-forest
193
00:18:15,726 --> 00:18:19,878
are protected from raiders by being placed
at the ends of long, thorny twigs,
194
00:18:20,046 --> 00:18:24,119
so they're reserved
for their particular pollinators, birds.
195
00:18:26,446 --> 00:18:29,916
But langurs find them very tempting.
196
00:18:46,006 --> 00:18:48,884
This of course is disastrous for the tree.
197
00:18:49,046 --> 00:18:53,039
Its complex, subtle mechanisms
for getting its seeds fertilised,
198
00:18:53,206 --> 00:18:57,165
evolved over millions of years,
are being chewed to pieces.
199
00:19:07,246 --> 00:19:09,601
Even the remotest flowers aren't safe,
200
00:19:09,766 --> 00:19:12,155
for the young babies, braving the thorns,
201
00:19:12,326 --> 00:19:16,160
can clamber right out onto the thinnest
branches without them breaking.
202
00:19:17,366 --> 00:19:20,438
In the continuous struggle
between animals and plants,
203
00:19:20,606 --> 00:19:24,315
this round has certainly been lost by the plant.
204
00:19:33,926 --> 00:19:38,204
In the lush forests of the tropics,
where flowers bloom all year,
205
00:19:38,366 --> 00:19:42,644
animals that feed on nectar
can always find a drink somewhere.
206
00:19:42,806 --> 00:19:47,402
But in other parts of the world,
where the winters are bitterly cold,
207
00:19:47,566 --> 00:19:49,841
or here in the deserts of Australia,
208
00:19:50,006 --> 00:19:52,839
where flowers only bloom after brief rains,
209
00:19:53,006 --> 00:19:57,204
animals that rely on nectar
have to have some way of storing it
210
00:19:57,366 --> 00:19:59,926
to last them through the hard times.
211
00:20:00,086 --> 00:20:04,796
These mulga trees produce nectar
on which ants feed,
212
00:20:04,966 --> 00:20:08,481
and they have the most extraordinary larders.
213
00:20:12,846 --> 00:20:18,204
The galleries of their nests lie four feet or so
below the surface of the ground.
214
00:20:24,246 --> 00:20:27,522
These golden globes hanging from the roof
215
00:20:27,686 --> 00:20:30,723
are their storage pots, full of honey.
216
00:20:30,886 --> 00:20:32,444
Each one is alive -
217
00:20:32,606 --> 00:20:36,679
an ant with an abdomen
expanded to the size of a grape.
218
00:20:37,366 --> 00:20:40,244
The small dark flecks are the hard plates
219
00:20:40,406 --> 00:20:43,045
which protect the body of a normal-sized ant.
220
00:20:43,206 --> 00:20:46,198
It's the membrane between them
that has stretched.
221
00:20:48,166 --> 00:20:51,715
These bloated individuals
are almost totally inactive,
222
00:20:51,886 --> 00:20:55,196
so they consume
little of the honey that they hold.
223
00:20:55,366 --> 00:20:57,675
It is drunk by the busy workers
224
00:20:57,846 --> 00:21:00,485
who, when there's little food above ground,
225
00:21:00,646 --> 00:21:04,764
come down here and induce
the honeypots to regurgitate it.
226
00:21:13,366 --> 00:21:16,563
The workers also tend the swollen bodies,
227
00:21:16,726 --> 00:21:19,240
keeping them well-groomed and clean.
228
00:21:22,526 --> 00:21:26,075
During good times, the workers
collect all the nectar they can
229
00:21:26,246 --> 00:21:30,603
and take it down to the larders
to top up the colony's storage jars
230
00:21:30,766 --> 00:21:33,644
by feeding it to them drop by drop.
231
00:21:53,926 --> 00:21:58,841
The people who have roamed these deserts
for millennia - Aborigines -
232
00:21:59,006 --> 00:22:02,715
have always valued these ants
as one of their few sources of sugar,
233
00:22:02,886 --> 00:22:05,798
and they eat them just as they are.
234
00:22:08,366 --> 00:22:10,084
Mmmm.
235
00:22:13,286 --> 00:22:15,197
Mmmm.
236
00:22:15,366 --> 00:22:20,235
It's liquid, warm, and marvellously sweet.
237
00:22:24,166 --> 00:22:25,838
A few weeks after flowering,
238
00:22:26,006 --> 00:22:29,681
many plants tempt animals
with another food - fruit.
239
00:22:29,846 --> 00:22:31,837
They have another problem.
240
00:22:32,006 --> 00:22:34,884
Their seeds are formed
and need to be distributed.
241
00:22:35,046 --> 00:22:37,560
By wrapping them in sweet edible pulp,
242
00:22:37,726 --> 00:22:40,240
they recruit lots of animals to do the job.
243
00:22:48,006 --> 00:22:52,761
The trees dissuade animals from collecting
the fruit before the seeds are fully developed
244
00:22:52,926 --> 00:22:56,316
by not producing the sugars in it
until the last moment.
245
00:22:56,486 --> 00:23:00,559
So unripe fruit tastes bitter
and is really not worth picking.
246
00:23:08,686 --> 00:23:12,395
To indicate when it is,
the fruit often changes colour.
247
00:23:14,326 --> 00:23:17,318
Squirrel monkeys are primarily fruit eaters.
248
00:23:17,486 --> 00:23:20,319
They move about in large groups of 40 or so,
249
00:23:20,486 --> 00:23:25,355
and must wander over a great area
to find all the fruit they need.
250
00:23:27,206 --> 00:23:30,357
Capuchins, on the other hand,
live in small families,
251
00:23:30,526 --> 00:23:33,677
each with its own patch of forest.
252
00:23:33,846 --> 00:23:35,438
They eat all kinds of things,
253
00:23:35,606 --> 00:23:39,201
but if there's fruit in their territory,
they'll know about it.
254
00:23:42,526 --> 00:23:46,041
So although the squirrel monkeys
are frightened of the bigger capuchins,
255
00:23:46,206 --> 00:23:48,800
they still follow them as they forage.
256
00:24:03,766 --> 00:24:08,635
There may be something for the capuchin -
a lizard maybe - but no fruit.
257
00:24:09,926 --> 00:24:13,839
So the squirrel monkey
is not interested and must wait.
258
00:24:20,526 --> 00:24:22,562
The capuchin moves on.
259
00:24:28,686 --> 00:24:31,439
And the squirrel monkeys follow.
260
00:24:36,766 --> 00:24:39,519
As the capuchins get near the fruiting tree,
261
00:24:39,686 --> 00:24:42,996
the squirrel monkeys,
perhaps smelling the fruit, scamper ahead
262
00:24:43,166 --> 00:24:48,843
to try and get to it before the more powerful
capuchins reach it and drive them off.
263
00:25:01,366 --> 00:25:05,359
Now they must grab as much as they can
as quickly as they can.
264
00:25:20,246 --> 00:25:22,043
The capuchins arrive.
265
00:25:45,526 --> 00:25:47,994
It's time for the squirrel monkeys to go.
266
00:25:48,166 --> 00:25:52,000
They take with them,
inside their stomachs, the tree's seeds.
267
00:25:52,166 --> 00:25:56,478
They pass through the monkeys
and then, some distance away,
268
00:25:56,646 --> 00:26:00,116
they're deposited
with a convenient dollop of fertiliser.
269
00:26:03,326 --> 00:26:06,557
Seeds themselves are packed with nourishment,
270
00:26:06,726 --> 00:26:08,717
so plants enclose them in shells
271
00:26:08,886 --> 00:26:11,605
which can be strong enough
to defeat even a mangabey.
272
00:26:12,326 --> 00:26:14,317
Victory to the plant.
273
00:26:15,926 --> 00:26:19,043
But the chimp is so clever, it can crack them.
274
00:26:21,766 --> 00:26:24,041
Victory to the animal.
275
00:26:27,846 --> 00:26:33,045
Sharp teeth enable an agouti
to chisel into the acorn of a tropical oak.
276
00:26:36,166 --> 00:26:38,157
In spite of the acorn's armour,
277
00:26:38,326 --> 00:26:41,602
it seems that the oak has lost this contest.
278
00:26:42,446 --> 00:26:43,925
But not totally.
279
00:26:44,086 --> 00:26:48,045
The oak produces more acorns
than the agouti can eat immediately.
280
00:26:48,206 --> 00:26:52,245
Those that it can't,
it carries away and buries for later.
281
00:27:01,926 --> 00:27:04,759
But an agouti's memory is not infallible.
282
00:27:04,926 --> 00:27:07,599
0ccasionally, it will forget about an acorn,
283
00:27:07,766 --> 00:27:10,644
which may germinate and grow into a new oak.
284
00:27:10,806 --> 00:27:13,320
That will be a victory for the plant.
285
00:27:16,646 --> 00:27:20,400
Perhaps the most extraordinary
of all tools for nut eating
286
00:27:20,566 --> 00:27:25,003
is wielded by a strange
Madagascan lemur, the aye-aye.
287
00:27:32,326 --> 00:27:37,958
First it gnaws a hole, then scoops out
the contents with this long bony probe,
288
00:27:38,126 --> 00:27:42,881
which is, in fact, its finger,
but one quite unlike its others.
289
00:27:46,766 --> 00:27:51,078
This curious digit serves
just as well for eating a grub.
290
00:27:51,246 --> 00:27:54,841
The aye-aye uses it to mash up
the body in its burrow,
291
00:27:55,006 --> 00:27:57,520
and then flicks out the pur�e.
292
00:28:02,846 --> 00:28:05,804
The spiny pocket mouse has a double problem.
293
00:28:05,966 --> 00:28:10,403
The seed it's gnawing is not only
hard-shelled but packed with poison.
294
00:28:10,566 --> 00:28:14,275
The mouse does nothing more
than puncture the shell.
295
00:28:14,446 --> 00:28:18,678
It then tucks it into its cheek
and carries it back to its burrow.
296
00:28:20,086 --> 00:28:23,396
The hole in the shell
stimulates the seed to germinate,
297
00:28:23,566 --> 00:28:26,717
and the tender white shoot
that leaves the protection of the shell
298
00:28:26,886 --> 00:28:28,877
is poison-free.
299
00:28:38,686 --> 00:28:43,396
The macaw has, almost certainly,
the most powerful nutcracker of all.
300
00:28:43,566 --> 00:28:47,161
It can demolish even the most resistant of nuts.
301
00:28:47,326 --> 00:28:51,365
Many of the seeds macaws eat
are also filled with poison,
302
00:28:51,526 --> 00:28:54,199
yet this doesn't seem to upset them.
303
00:28:54,366 --> 00:28:56,357
How do they survive?
304
00:28:59,726 --> 00:29:03,002
Every day, they make long journeys
through the forest
305
00:29:03,166 --> 00:29:06,158
to dose themselves with a special antidote.
306
00:29:15,846 --> 00:29:18,565
Macaws usually fly in pairs.
307
00:29:18,726 --> 00:29:22,685
0nly in such places as this
do they assemble in flocks.
308
00:29:35,246 --> 00:29:38,124
They've come to collect their medicine.
309
00:29:38,286 --> 00:29:42,757
The regular presence of so many birds
attracts eagles and other predators,
310
00:29:42,926 --> 00:29:45,918
so before the macaws come out of the trees,
311
00:29:46,086 --> 00:29:48,441
they want to be sure that it's safe to do so.
312
00:29:48,606 --> 00:29:53,521
They wait for one bird,
braver than the rest, to make the first move.
313
00:29:55,326 --> 00:29:59,080
There it goes. And this is what they're after.
314
00:30:00,126 --> 00:30:01,525
Kaolin.
315
00:30:01,686 --> 00:30:04,041
The soil in this river bank is rich in it.
316
00:30:04,206 --> 00:30:08,961
Several kinds of parrots and macaws
come here every day from miles around
317
00:30:09,126 --> 00:30:11,117
to take the treatment.
318
00:30:18,166 --> 00:30:20,999
Kaolin combats acidity in the stomach,
319
00:30:21,166 --> 00:30:23,760
absorbs and neutralises poisons.
320
00:30:23,926 --> 00:30:27,919
As a bonus, this clay is rich
in calcium and sodium,
321
00:30:28,086 --> 00:30:31,442
which is lacking in diets
that consist of fruit and nuts.
322
00:30:58,166 --> 00:31:02,921
So eating plants poses more problems
than one might think.
323
00:31:03,086 --> 00:31:08,877
But eating other animals, even small
defenceless ones, also has its difficulties.
324
00:31:10,446 --> 00:31:13,040
It's dawn on the east coast of England,
325
00:31:13,206 --> 00:31:17,165
the middle of winter and food is very scarce.
326
00:31:17,326 --> 00:31:22,195
But behind me is a huge
and abundantly stocked larder.
327
00:31:22,366 --> 00:31:25,039
Its doors have been shut
for the past three hours,
328
00:31:25,206 --> 00:31:29,563
but now the tide is on the turn,
and for a horde of hungry animals,
329
00:31:29,726 --> 00:31:31,603
their waiting is almost over.
330
00:31:34,166 --> 00:31:38,159
Tens of thousands of knot and dunlin
have assembled on a lagoon
331
00:31:38,326 --> 00:31:40,601
on the other side of the sand dunes.
332
00:32:04,246 --> 00:32:07,921
They've sensed that the tide
has exposed a mudbank.
333
00:32:08,086 --> 00:32:10,361
Breakfast is served.
334
00:32:20,926 --> 00:32:25,477
Millions of tiny molluscs are buried
just below the surface of this mud
335
00:32:25,646 --> 00:32:29,321
and the birds are feeling for them with their bills.
336
00:32:38,846 --> 00:32:41,155
Abundant though the food is out there,
337
00:32:41,326 --> 00:32:44,159
collecting it is a very dangerous business.
338
00:32:44,326 --> 00:32:46,521
It's very exposed on the mudflats -
339
00:32:46,686 --> 00:32:49,154
there's nowhere to hide,
nothing to dodge behind,
340
00:32:49,326 --> 00:32:54,241
and the birds deal with that problem
by sticking together in tight flocks.
341
00:32:54,406 --> 00:32:59,605
That way, each bird has a thousand eyes
ready to spot danger.
342
00:33:11,526 --> 00:33:16,998
But if that is such a good idea,
why is this redshank out on its own?
343
00:33:20,846 --> 00:33:24,122
It's hunting, not by touch, but by sight,
344
00:33:24,286 --> 00:33:28,677
and it's searching for its favourite food -
small shrimp-like crustaceans.
345
00:33:28,846 --> 00:33:33,362
If they are alarmed by ripples or vibrations
produced by many moving feet,
346
00:33:33,526 --> 00:33:37,155
they will disappear into the mud
where the redshank can't see them,
347
00:33:37,326 --> 00:33:39,317
and so can't find them.
348
00:33:41,766 --> 00:33:45,645
So if a redshank wants to catch
this more swiftly-moving food,
349
00:33:45,806 --> 00:33:49,481
it has to forage by itself, despite the risks.
350
00:33:54,326 --> 00:33:58,877
And if it does become a little alarmed,
it just squats.
351
00:34:02,166 --> 00:34:06,364
Some waters are so rich in food,
there's plenty for everybody.
352
00:34:06,526 --> 00:34:10,678
0n this Indian lagoon,
there are storks, herons and egrets,
353
00:34:10,846 --> 00:34:13,155
openbills and spoonbills.
354
00:34:13,326 --> 00:34:16,159
Each has its own particular beak technique
355
00:34:16,326 --> 00:34:18,476
with which to catch its favoured prey -
356
00:34:18,646 --> 00:34:22,321
probing and sieving, scything and stabbing.
357
00:35:07,246 --> 00:35:10,955
Even parts of the open sea,
like this bay in the West Indies,
358
00:35:11,126 --> 00:35:13,799
at certain times become so thick with fish
359
00:35:13,966 --> 00:35:17,117
that they can support great flocks of fishermen.
360
00:35:32,166 --> 00:35:35,556
Barracuda - among the most
ferocious hunters in the sea.
361
00:35:35,726 --> 00:35:39,958
They regularly drive shoals
of small fish into the bay.
362
00:35:50,566 --> 00:35:52,921
(SCREECHING)
363
00:36:16,766 --> 00:36:18,757
The pelicans can tackle the shoals
364
00:36:18,926 --> 00:36:21,804
even when they're a foot or two
beneath the surface.
365
00:36:41,086 --> 00:36:45,477
But a pelican can only swallow
the fish it's scooped up in its bill
366
00:36:45,646 --> 00:36:47,876
if it lets the water drain out first.
367
00:36:48,046 --> 00:36:51,118
To do that, it must open its beak slightly,
368
00:36:51,286 --> 00:36:54,164
and that is the moment the gulls are waiting for.
369
00:37:20,766 --> 00:37:24,918
Few places on land offer quite
the density and richness of animal food
370
00:37:25,086 --> 00:37:28,044
that can be found
in parts of the sea such as this.
371
00:37:28,206 --> 00:37:31,960
But one kind of land animal
does swarm in vast numbers,
372
00:37:32,126 --> 00:37:36,563
and this little long-eared tenrec
from Madagascar is in search of them.
373
00:37:44,366 --> 00:37:46,243
They can be sniffed for,
374
00:37:46,406 --> 00:37:49,478
but the tenrec's huge ears
also help to locate them,
375
00:37:49,646 --> 00:37:53,924
for they make a faint rustling noise
as they scurry along their pathways.
376
00:38:00,126 --> 00:38:01,445
Termites.
377
00:38:01,606 --> 00:38:05,394
The juicy, soft-bodied workers
are largely defenceless.
378
00:38:06,366 --> 00:38:08,755
But with them come soldiers.
379
00:38:08,926 --> 00:38:13,636
This kind squirt noxious chemical sprays
from nozzles on their heads.
380
00:38:29,766 --> 00:38:32,234
The tenrec, with its sensitive nose,
381
00:38:32,406 --> 00:38:35,000
can tolerate a certain amount of chemical spray,
382
00:38:35,166 --> 00:38:38,078
but after a while it just has to come up for air.
383
00:39:04,366 --> 00:39:07,438
Termites are hugely abundant in the tropics,
384
00:39:07,606 --> 00:39:11,235
and many different kinds of animals
collect them when they get the chance.
385
00:39:18,606 --> 00:39:22,679
A small gecko in the deserts of Australia
eats little else.
386
00:39:22,846 --> 00:39:24,996
The problem is those soldiers.
387
00:39:25,166 --> 00:39:27,521
But it is such a fastidious and accurate feeder,
388
00:39:27,686 --> 00:39:31,998
it can avoid them and pick out
the defenceless workers one by one.
389
00:39:40,606 --> 00:39:43,074
0f all food-collecting devices,
390
00:39:43,246 --> 00:39:47,637
the most ingenious and elegant
must be the webs of orb spiders.
391
00:39:47,806 --> 00:39:50,559
It's nearly always the females who build them.
392
00:39:52,766 --> 00:39:58,159
0ne starts by rigging filaments of silk
across a flyway used by insects.
393
00:40:10,926 --> 00:40:14,157
Around the spokes,
using silk of a different kind,
394
00:40:14,326 --> 00:40:17,079
she sets a spiral mesh.
395
00:40:18,366 --> 00:40:21,676
As she secures each section, she twangs it,
396
00:40:21,846 --> 00:40:23,677
so that the glue with which it's coated
397
00:40:23,846 --> 00:40:26,599
breaks up into a line of sticky beads.
398
00:40:34,006 --> 00:40:38,238
0ne of the biggest of these webs,
which may be two yards across,
399
00:40:38,406 --> 00:40:41,443
is constructed by the nephila spider.
400
00:40:44,526 --> 00:40:46,118
She is huge.
401
00:40:46,286 --> 00:40:50,518
Her legs can span six inches
and she's virtually blind.
402
00:40:52,006 --> 00:40:55,681
A fly blundering into her web is quickly seized.
403
00:40:58,006 --> 00:41:00,281
She rapidly injects it with a venom
404
00:41:00,446 --> 00:41:02,960
that will liquefy the contents of its body.
405
00:41:07,606 --> 00:41:09,801
She then wraps it up in silk
406
00:41:09,966 --> 00:41:13,754
and parks it on the web
to allow the venom to take effect.
407
00:41:33,446 --> 00:41:36,643
But nephila is not alone on her web.
408
00:41:37,606 --> 00:41:41,758
Argyrodes is tiny,
much smaller even than the fly.
409
00:41:41,926 --> 00:41:44,724
She could easily become a meal for nephila.
410
00:41:44,886 --> 00:41:49,721
She too is blind, but she's also
felt the vibrations of the fly.
411
00:41:50,926 --> 00:41:53,838
With what seems like suicidal recklessness,
412
00:41:54,006 --> 00:41:57,442
she approaches nephila,
still feasting on her prey.
413
00:42:04,926 --> 00:42:09,158
And she too begins to eat food
that nephila not only caught,
414
00:42:09,326 --> 00:42:11,886
but has conveniently pre-digested.
415
00:42:14,246 --> 00:42:16,840
Another capture calls nephila away.
416
00:42:24,606 --> 00:42:27,996
0nce again, she stabs the fly, trusses it up
417
00:42:28,166 --> 00:42:30,999
and carries it away
to hang on the side of the web.
418
00:42:31,166 --> 00:42:33,043
She'll eat that later.
419
00:42:38,006 --> 00:42:41,794
Argyrodes seems well aware of what's going on.
420
00:42:51,086 --> 00:42:54,396
As soon as nephila has hung up
her latest catch,
421
00:42:54,566 --> 00:42:58,002
argyrodes starts trying to discover its position
422
00:42:58,166 --> 00:43:00,521
by pulling the web filaments.
423
00:43:15,366 --> 00:43:18,961
Nephila has returned to finish her first meal.
424
00:43:25,166 --> 00:43:29,603
Meanwhile, argyrodes has run a line
from the top of the web to the fly,
425
00:43:29,766 --> 00:43:31,757
which she's now cutting loose.
426
00:43:53,846 --> 00:43:57,839
0nce the fly is free of the web,
she lowers it down.
427
00:44:12,366 --> 00:44:15,915
The stolen fly is now hanging entirely free.
428
00:44:16,086 --> 00:44:18,725
Nephila won't be able to reclaim it now,
429
00:44:18,886 --> 00:44:25,200
but argyrodes must get it to a place
where she can feed on it in safety.
430
00:44:25,606 --> 00:44:28,643
Step by step, she heaves it up.
431
00:44:28,806 --> 00:44:31,479
Her theft is complete.
432
00:44:36,846 --> 00:44:40,805
Tropic birds nest on this cliff
in Tobago in the West Indies.
433
00:44:40,966 --> 00:44:42,763
They're magnificent fliers,
434
00:44:42,926 --> 00:44:47,636
able to exploit all the currents
of the air with spectacular ease.
435
00:44:54,366 --> 00:44:55,958
They fish out at sea,
436
00:44:56,126 --> 00:44:59,835
and every day the hard-working
parents return to their nests
437
00:45:00,006 --> 00:45:02,201
with crops full of food for the family.
438
00:45:16,006 --> 00:45:21,763
18th-century frigates were swift, heavily-armed
warships which plundered merchantmen.
439
00:45:21,926 --> 00:45:23,803
These are frigate birds.
440
00:45:27,006 --> 00:45:29,759
The fishing fleet is returning.
441
00:46:25,606 --> 00:46:28,166
The frigate wasn't trying to kill the tropic bird,
442
00:46:28,326 --> 00:46:31,238
only to make it surrender its cargo of fish.
443
00:46:31,406 --> 00:46:34,478
But it'll have to find a less determined victim.
444
00:46:36,006 --> 00:46:40,238
The usual tactic is to come up
astern of the chosen victim
445
00:46:40,406 --> 00:46:42,442
and grab its leg or tail.
446
00:46:51,846 --> 00:46:53,245
It surrenders.
447
00:46:53,406 --> 00:46:56,842
There goes the disgorged fish,
and the frigate catches it.
448
00:47:44,366 --> 00:47:46,482
The frigates aren't always successful.
449
00:47:46,646 --> 00:47:49,444
Watching them, you can't help wondering
450
00:47:49,606 --> 00:47:52,723
if it wouldn't be easier
to catch the fish themselves,
451
00:47:52,886 --> 00:47:54,763
and indeed they often do.
452
00:47:54,926 --> 00:47:58,555
But they seem positively to enjoy a life of piracy.
453
00:48:00,686 --> 00:48:03,564
As to the tropic birds, most of them escape,
454
00:48:03,726 --> 00:48:06,638
and those that are caught only lose a few fish.
455
00:48:06,806 --> 00:48:11,800
But it's only a short step between
robbing your victim and killing him,
456
00:48:11,966 --> 00:48:15,356
for the pirate to become a hunter.
457
00:48:15,526 --> 00:48:18,324
And that raises
a completely new set of problems.
458
00:48:18,486 --> 00:48:22,081
It's those that we'll be looking at
in the next programme.
40433
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