Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:34,267 --> 00:00:36,564
One of nature's masterworks
2
00:00:36,701 --> 00:00:40,465
the ultimate long-distance athlete
3
00:00:42,604 --> 00:00:47,630
At full speed it uses less energy
than any animal its size
4
00:01:01,382 --> 00:01:05,112
The Kangaroo is shaped
by the land in which it lives
5
00:01:05,251 --> 00:01:08,844
one of the most
challenging places on earth
6
00:01:41,738 --> 00:01:45,763
Australia is a vast
ancient weathered land
7
00:01:45,907 --> 00:01:49,774
isolated from all others for
40 million years
8
00:01:49,910 --> 00:01:52,002
It is a place of extremes
9
00:01:52,145 --> 00:01:56,307
more like another planet
than another continent
10
00:02:32,001 --> 00:02:35,366
Travelling over Australia's
3 million square miles
11
00:02:35,503 --> 00:02:39,301
is like crossing an ocean of dry land
12
00:02:48,610 --> 00:02:54,046
Primeval landscapes belie its rich
resourceful life
13
00:03:06,954 --> 00:03:11,945
Australia is almost equal in size
to the continental United States
14
00:03:12,090 --> 00:03:16,889
It is the driest
vegetated continent on Earth
15
00:03:28,466 --> 00:03:33,026
Surrounded by three oceans
it is the world's largest island
16
00:03:33,168 --> 00:03:37,194
It shares no border with any other country
17
00:03:50,312 --> 00:03:56,078
Here some of the Earth's oldest rocks
hold fossils from the dawn of life
18
00:04:00,585 --> 00:04:04,542
In its heartland are mountain ranges
that once rivalled Everest
19
00:04:04,687 --> 00:04:08,121
built up and worn down over time
20
00:04:12,258 --> 00:04:17,023
and remnants of a once vast inland sea
21
00:04:29,367 --> 00:04:33,200
Most of Australia's native animals
are unique
22
00:04:33,337 --> 00:04:35,896
Their journey on this continental raft
23
00:04:36,038 --> 00:04:39,598
has taken them through cool forests
and fiery deserts
24
00:04:39,740 --> 00:04:42,333
and changed them forever
25
00:04:42,475 --> 00:04:47,842
The survivors have been refined by
poverty and uncertainty
26
00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:56,415
Some have climbed up out of adversity
27
00:05:04,187 --> 00:05:08,122
Some have outrun all their predators
28
00:05:15,794 --> 00:05:20,196
Most have adapted to hard
fickle conditions
29
00:05:25,766 --> 00:05:30,167
A few are unchanged
since the days of the dinosaurs
30
00:05:30,536 --> 00:05:33,197
Now sheer diversity of species
31
00:05:33,338 --> 00:05:37,204
spreads the risk
that life is required to bear
32
00:05:43,910 --> 00:05:46,605
The story starts millions of years ago
33
00:05:46,745 --> 00:05:51,510
when Gondwana the great super continent
began to break apart
34
00:05:53,849 --> 00:05:57,443
Africa South America
and India were formed
35
00:05:57,585 --> 00:06:03,714
but Australia and Antarctica
were still joined as one last giant land
36
00:06:03,855 --> 00:06:06,345
forested and lush
37
00:06:16,962 --> 00:06:19,953
By 50 million years ago
the breakup was complete
38
00:06:20,098 --> 00:06:23,725
when Australia parted from Antarctica
39
00:06:24,934 --> 00:06:29,164
A massive ocean current
began to flow around the South Pole
40
00:06:29,303 --> 00:06:34,637
and Antarctica's life perished
under a blanket of ice and snow
41
00:06:37,540 --> 00:06:40,804
Australia pushed northwards
from the freezing latitudes
42
00:06:40,943 --> 00:06:45,503
and remained isolated
for the next 30 million years
43
00:06:46,513 --> 00:06:51,005
It became an ark of survival
for its cargo of ancient life
44
00:06:53,983 --> 00:06:56,644
Searing winds began to dry the land
45
00:06:56,785 --> 00:07:00,913
and its moist rainforest all
but disappeared
46
00:07:01,421 --> 00:07:05,378
At the centre
the desert was taking over
47
00:07:05,523 --> 00:07:08,719
Australia's plants
and animals faced a choice
48
00:07:08,859 --> 00:07:12,725
adapt to the drying conditions
or retreat
49
00:07:22,633 --> 00:07:27,034
Now the symbol of
Australia's red heart is Uluru
50
00:07:27,169 --> 00:07:30,433
the Earth's largest exposed rock
51
00:07:30,571 --> 00:07:35,063
It commemorates the relationship
between life and this land
52
00:08:01,789 --> 00:08:05,656
Today Australia is the
Earth's flattest continent
53
00:08:05,792 --> 00:08:10,250
lts mountains were worn to their stumps
millions of years ago
54
00:08:13,395 --> 00:08:16,363
The Nullarbor plain on its southern coast
55
00:08:16,497 --> 00:08:20,261
has the world's
longest unbroken coastal cliffs
56
00:08:20,399 --> 00:08:23,834
Once you could walk to Antarctica
from here
57
00:08:43,180 --> 00:08:49,275
If the dry Outback is a land ocean
these parallel sand dunes are its waves
58
00:08:49,917 --> 00:08:54,852
Stretching beyond the horizons
they cover nearly half of the continent
59
00:09:04,624 --> 00:09:07,524
Millions of years of rain
and drying winds
60
00:09:07,660 --> 00:09:11,856
long ago leached the goodness
from most of its soil
61
00:09:11,995 --> 00:09:18,330
In the red centre there is no regular
predictable pattern of rainfall
62
00:09:18,466 --> 00:09:24,994
Poor soils and a savage climate
now challenge all life in this land
63
00:09:48,383 --> 00:09:51,748
Nature responded to the
changing conditions
64
00:09:51,885 --> 00:09:55,445
The kangaroo started
its journey as a marsupial possum
65
00:09:55,588 --> 00:09:57,714
the size of a mouse
66
00:09:58,789 --> 00:10:03,121
As forests contracted some kangaroos
evolved to live in the trees
67
00:10:03,258 --> 00:10:06,158
and others learned to eat grass
68
00:10:09,795 --> 00:10:13,286
When food is plentiful
the males are active
69
00:10:13,431 --> 00:10:16,263
and courtship disputes are
traditionally settled
70
00:10:16,399 --> 00:10:19,060
with a round or two of kick-boxing
71
00:10:22,169 --> 00:10:26,570
Mothers and babies
sensibly keep out of the way
72
00:10:47,050 --> 00:10:50,848
On most continents animals breed
in response to the seasons
73
00:10:50,986 --> 00:10:54,045
In Australia
it is the availability of food
74
00:10:54,187 --> 00:10:57,314
that prompts the kangaroo to reproduce
75
00:11:01,625 --> 00:11:06,492
To capitalise on good times
the mother can support a production line
76
00:11:06,628 --> 00:11:09,357
one joey in the pouch one at foot
77
00:11:09,496 --> 00:11:12,658
and another in the womb as an embryo
78
00:11:13,165 --> 00:11:14,826
She can even supply her babies
79
00:11:14,966 --> 00:11:18,263
with two different formulas
of milk at the same time
80
00:11:18,401 --> 00:11:21,267
one for each generation of young
81
00:11:46,751 --> 00:11:51,550
The koala evolved from the
same marsupial possum as the kangaroo
82
00:11:51,687 --> 00:11:54,416
When the baby
is big enough to leave the pouch
83
00:11:54,556 --> 00:11:56,989
it rides on its mother's back
84
00:12:05,728 --> 00:12:07,217
Like the kangaroo
85
00:12:07,362 --> 00:12:10,455
the koala evolved
in the moist rainforest
86
00:12:10,598 --> 00:12:16,033
As the forest dried it adapted
to live on the leaves of the gum tree
87
00:12:20,837 --> 00:12:22,702
Now it drinks little water
88
00:12:22,839 --> 00:12:25,328
and its digestive system
can extract moisture
89
00:12:25,472 --> 00:12:29,930
and nutrients from leaves that would
be toxic to most other mammals
90
00:12:33,811 --> 00:12:39,713
Koalas use as little energy as possible
resting about 19 hours a day
91
00:12:44,650 --> 00:12:49,312
Some members of the family however
are active at any hour
92
00:12:49,453 --> 00:12:54,047
When moving from tree to tree
they normally descend backwards
93
00:12:56,724 --> 00:13:02,717
Consequently tree top traffic jams can
sometimes leave one out on a limb
94
00:13:38,381 --> 00:13:43,976
For years on end much of the Australian
inland receives little or no rain
95
00:13:44,252 --> 00:13:48,914
Two thirds is classified arid
and one half is desert
96
00:13:49,420 --> 00:13:54,321
The Outback as it is called
covers most of the continent
97
00:14:00,728 --> 00:14:03,820
By rights nothing should live here
98
00:14:03,962 --> 00:14:06,953
this ought to be a lifeless wasteland
99
00:14:07,098 --> 00:14:09,156
But it is not
100
00:14:10,566 --> 00:14:14,967
The closer we look the more we find that
some of Australia's forest inhabitants
101
00:14:15,102 --> 00:14:19,696
have met the desert's challenge
with subtlety and resource
102
00:14:22,172 --> 00:14:27,403
Now a diverse underworld of ants
rodents marsupials and reptiles
103
00:14:27,542 --> 00:14:31,601
are among the most
successful desert dwellers on Earth
104
00:14:32,913 --> 00:14:38,542
By day most life in this land ocean
is hidden beneath the surface
105
00:14:48,288 --> 00:14:52,950
Many of the desert animals
come out to feed in the cool of night
106
00:14:53,090 --> 00:14:57,491
These tiny hopping mice survive
because they rarely need to drink
107
00:14:57,626 --> 00:15:02,960
Most of the water they require
is contained in the seeds they eat
108
00:15:07,098 --> 00:15:10,533
In the heat of the day
they huddle together in deep burrows
109
00:15:10,668 --> 00:15:15,399
creating a humid atmosphere
that helps to conserve moisture
110
00:15:25,409 --> 00:15:28,343
In this arid region hardy mulga trees
111
00:15:28,477 --> 00:15:33,572
provide food for one of Australia's
four thousand species of ants
112
00:15:43,253 --> 00:15:44,947
Six feet below the surface
113
00:15:45,087 --> 00:15:51,421
honey ants hang like clusters of golden
grapes in cool humid larder chambers
114
00:15:51,757 --> 00:15:56,158
These specialised ants
are living honey pots
115
00:16:02,430 --> 00:16:05,421
They are force fed by worker ants
on nectar
116
00:16:05,565 --> 00:16:09,227
harvested from the sap of mulga trees
growing above
117
00:16:10,435 --> 00:16:11,799
When food is scarce
118
00:16:11,935 --> 00:16:17,667
these honey pots feed the workers
by regurgitating their nectar on demand
119
00:16:21,240 --> 00:16:26,972
Their underground storehouse will see the
whole colony through the toughest of times
120
00:16:42,453 --> 00:16:46,218
Arid Australia
is the land of the lizards
121
00:16:46,356 --> 00:16:50,984
There can be up to forty seven different
varieties in just one area
122
00:16:53,159 --> 00:16:58,094
The Thorny Devil has a sticky tongue
and it's picky about what it eats
123
00:17:01,297 --> 00:17:06,062
Out here black ants are one food
that never runs out
124
00:17:24,877 --> 00:17:27,310
The devil is perfectly adapted
to the desert
125
00:17:27,445 --> 00:17:30,641
lts prickly skin collects moisture
from the air
126
00:17:30,781 --> 00:17:33,214
and a system of fine channels along
its body
127
00:17:33,349 --> 00:17:36,282
carries the water to its mouth
128
00:17:54,294 --> 00:17:58,558
The biggest and most fearsome of the
desert lizards is the perentie
129
00:17:58,697 --> 00:18:01,858
which is both scavenger and predator
130
00:18:02,766 --> 00:18:07,861
This lizard can exceed six feet in length
and outrun a human
131
00:18:09,102 --> 00:18:12,537
It hunts anything
including the most aggressive
132
00:18:12,671 --> 00:18:16,730
and deadly of Australia's many snakes
the King Brown
133
00:18:32,149 --> 00:18:36,914
Sometimes though the King Brown
is more than even a perentie can manage
134
00:18:52,628 --> 00:18:56,756
The venom from this snake's bite
will kill a human in minutes
135
00:18:57,563 --> 00:19:00,622
Luckily for the perentie it is immune
136
00:19:19,443 --> 00:19:23,434
While much of Australia's life
was adapting to the dry inland
137
00:19:23,578 --> 00:19:29,139
some of its plants and animals retreated
to the mountains of the east coast
138
00:19:41,222 --> 00:19:43,451
Here moist valleys and cool peaks
139
00:19:43,590 --> 00:19:48,582
provide a haven for Australia's
living links with the past
140
00:20:00,899 --> 00:20:03,890
In scattered pockets
of primitive rainforest
141
00:20:04,035 --> 00:20:09,027
descendants of Gondwana's
original plants and animals thrive today
142
00:20:18,477 --> 00:20:23,469
These Antarctic Beech trees began
growing between 3 and 5 thousand years ago
143
00:20:23,613 --> 00:20:28,105
but their roots
are in the ancient super continent
144
00:20:48,894 --> 00:20:51,418
Most of Australia's native plants
and animals
145
00:20:51,562 --> 00:20:56,190
began to evolve in wet
cool forests like these
146
00:21:02,301 --> 00:21:06,133
One of the most remarkable living links
with that ancient world
147
00:21:06,270 --> 00:21:11,262
is found in the creeks
and freshwater rivers of the east coast
148
00:21:23,780 --> 00:21:26,975
The Platypus suckles
its young like a mammal
149
00:21:27,115 --> 00:21:29,912
yet lays egg like a lizard
150
00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:35,510
It hunts under water with its eyes shut
151
00:21:35,654 --> 00:21:39,452
using electric sensors in its bill
152
00:21:39,789 --> 00:21:42,586
The first Europeans
to see it were dumbfounded
153
00:21:42,725 --> 00:21:47,887
To them it was a living contradiction
if not a practical joke
154
00:21:48,861 --> 00:21:53,660
The Platypus though has survived
for 120 million years
155
00:21:53,797 --> 00:21:57,492
Today it exists nowhere else on earth
156
00:22:11,041 --> 00:22:13,735
The nearest surviving relative
of the Platypus
157
00:22:13,875 --> 00:22:16,342
is the Echidna
158
00:22:17,545 --> 00:22:20,706
With its tubular snout and long
sticky tongue
159
00:22:20,846 --> 00:22:24,110
it lives on ants and termites
160
00:22:27,716 --> 00:22:31,116
Unlike the Platypus the Echidna moved out
of the cool forests
161
00:22:31,252 --> 00:22:34,708
and now ranges across the whole continent
162
00:22:39,857 --> 00:22:42,086
When threatened it digs in rapidly
163
00:22:42,225 --> 00:22:46,626
presenting an array of sharp spines
to its attacker
164
00:23:07,539 --> 00:23:08,631
Drought
165
00:23:08,774 --> 00:23:11,969
It can last for months
or years at a time
166
00:23:12,442 --> 00:23:16,968
Long periods without
rain push all life to the limit
167
00:23:29,452 --> 00:23:33,250
The young and the old
are first to feel the effects
168
00:23:37,357 --> 00:23:42,917
Clear skies parched earth and searing
heat become the rule of life
169
00:23:44,461 --> 00:23:48,122
Some will perish before the next rains come
170
00:23:56,834 --> 00:23:58,698
Now the kangaroos of the desert
171
00:23:58,835 --> 00:24:02,930
call on another remarkable strategy
for survival
172
00:24:07,574 --> 00:24:11,338
The female can halt the growth
of her developing embryo
173
00:24:11,476 --> 00:24:15,911
keeping it in a state of suspension
until conditions improve
174
00:24:16,145 --> 00:24:19,341
Only then will she give birth
175
00:24:24,717 --> 00:24:29,652
For the joey already born
the future is now uncertain
176
00:24:31,721 --> 00:24:36,554
But the unborn embryo will be ready
when good times return
177
00:24:43,995 --> 00:24:48,692
Surviving kangaroos will either move
to new territory in search of food
178
00:24:48,831 --> 00:24:54,789
or batten down near remaining waterholes
while at least some grass remains
179
00:25:10,176 --> 00:25:13,905
Emu families
have a similar hard choice to make
180
00:25:14,045 --> 00:25:17,810
Whatever they decide it will be a gamble
181
00:25:41,228 --> 00:25:43,593
Relief from drought is unpredictable
182
00:25:43,728 --> 00:25:47,754
and often arrives a long way
from where it is needed
183
00:25:48,398 --> 00:25:50,957
Each year the tropical wet season
brings storms
184
00:25:51,099 --> 00:25:54,499
and flooding to Australia's far north
185
00:25:57,736 --> 00:26:03,798
As the monsoon unfurls curtains of rain
a transformation begins
186
00:26:37,659 --> 00:26:42,356
As the wetlands fill crocodiles emerge
from scattered waterholes
187
00:26:42,495 --> 00:26:46,225
where they've been confined
during the dry season
188
00:26:46,532 --> 00:26:49,090
They will build nests above
the high water level
189
00:26:49,232 --> 00:26:52,098
and lay up to 100 eggs
190
00:27:00,340 --> 00:27:06,207
Vast networks of wetlands that have been
dry since last season are flooded again
191
00:27:25,354 --> 00:27:31,449
Sometimes this powerful event
can also transform Australia's arid centre
192
00:27:35,226 --> 00:27:38,751
In years when rains are heavier
and more widespread than usual
193
00:27:38,894 --> 00:27:43,192
the water flows inland
to the parched interior
194
00:28:04,909 --> 00:28:08,968
Slowly heading south
water spreads across the plains
195
00:28:09,112 --> 00:28:13,911
In six months or more
it may reach the centre of the continent
196
00:28:49,068 --> 00:28:52,968
Under cloudless skies
the water creeps quietly inland
197
00:28:53,103 --> 00:28:56,469
filling hundreds of dry waterways
198
00:29:14,649 --> 00:29:19,346
In dry sandy creek beds
millions of tiny drought resistant eggs
199
00:29:19,485 --> 00:29:22,112
like seeds are waiting
200
00:29:28,824 --> 00:29:33,691
Subterranean life that may have been dormant
for years begins to stir
201
00:29:43,132 --> 00:29:44,928
Stimulated by seeping water
202
00:29:45,066 --> 00:29:49,262
the burrowing frog
awakes from its long sleep
203
00:29:51,570 --> 00:29:55,971
Carefully it parts the membrane that has
kept it moist through the drought
204
00:30:04,211 --> 00:30:07,373
Like the frog many creatures are primed
205
00:30:07,513 --> 00:30:10,571
for the good times
that are about to unfold
206
00:30:13,750 --> 00:30:16,377
Alerted by an ancient program
in their minds
207
00:30:16,518 --> 00:30:19,974
Egrets arrive
and take up feeding positions
208
00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:24,521
Fish have already started reproducing
in streams that until a week ago
209
00:30:24,656 --> 00:30:27,488
were tracks of dry sand
210
00:30:46,969 --> 00:30:51,063
Thousands of waterbirds join in a frenzy
of feeding and breeding
211
00:30:51,205 --> 00:30:54,934
that may happen only once
or twice in a decade
212
00:31:37,064 --> 00:31:42,056
Briefly the desert blossoms
in a colourful tide of new life
213
00:31:55,407 --> 00:32:01,139
One of the few large predators in this
land also participates in the bonanza
214
00:32:04,446 --> 00:32:06,709
Australia's wild dog the dingo
215
00:32:06,847 --> 00:32:11,146
arrived from nearby Asia about
four thousand years ago
216
00:32:16,152 --> 00:32:19,917
lts pups will feed on the plentiful
supply of rodents and reptiles
217
00:32:20,055 --> 00:32:23,989
that are also multiplying
in the abundant conditions
218
00:32:48,405 --> 00:32:49,996
Tens of thousands of pelicans
219
00:32:50,139 --> 00:32:54,437
are drawn by the
irresistible call of inland water
220
00:32:54,942 --> 00:32:58,068
Responding to reflections far away
in the sky
221
00:32:58,210 --> 00:33:04,579
the birds fly hundreds of miles to gather
on the shores of newly filled desert lakes
222
00:33:15,587 --> 00:33:18,282
With more than
half a million nesting birds
223
00:33:18,422 --> 00:33:21,856
colonies of this size are a rare event
224
00:34:05,748 --> 00:34:08,944
Pelicans normally breed in small
scattered communities
225
00:34:09,084 --> 00:34:11,881
producing one chick a year
226
00:34:15,621 --> 00:34:19,215
Here they'll produce five
or more in quick succession
227
00:34:19,357 --> 00:34:24,258
and go on doing so
as long as the food supply lasts
228
00:34:35,199 --> 00:34:36,722
Millions of years ago
229
00:34:36,866 --> 00:34:42,063
pelicans were breeding in the vast lake
system that covered much of the interior
230
00:34:48,640 --> 00:34:54,167
Ancestral knowledge seems to draw them
back to their primeval home range
231
00:35:19,224 --> 00:35:24,319
The water ends its long journey at the
centre of the continent in Lake Eyre
232
00:35:38,435 --> 00:35:40,425
Nearly a million square miles
233
00:35:40,570 --> 00:35:45,028
of the continent drains into the
world's largest dry salt lake
234
00:35:45,172 --> 00:35:49,197
It fills completely only about
twice a century
235
00:36:27,563 --> 00:36:31,019
Inevitably the flow of water stops
236
00:36:37,069 --> 00:36:41,470
The earth and blasting sun suck away
at the stagnant pools where life
237
00:36:41,605 --> 00:36:45,266
newly born there is on borrowed time
238
00:36:54,779 --> 00:36:56,507
Trapped by receding waters
239
00:36:56,646 --> 00:37:01,081
some of these fish will provide a final
feast for the birds
240
00:37:06,485 --> 00:37:09,942
Millions more
will return to the mud of the riverbed
241
00:37:10,088 --> 00:37:13,146
enriching it for the next generation
242
00:37:24,929 --> 00:37:26,725
With their food supply running low
243
00:37:26,863 --> 00:37:30,628
the great flocks of pelicans
become nomads once more
244
00:37:30,766 --> 00:37:35,792
rising to search for that
far flash of water over the horizon
245
00:37:41,305 --> 00:37:45,433
Those who have left their run too late
go back into the earth
246
00:37:59,916 --> 00:38:03,476
The familiar desert
will now reclaim this place
247
00:38:03,618 --> 00:38:07,552
Suns will scorch it
winds will dry it out
248
00:38:15,524 --> 00:38:19,983
Most living creatures will dig in
and take refuge underground
249
00:38:20,128 --> 00:38:24,256
Some will flee to the gentler edges
of this great land
250
00:38:24,397 --> 00:38:29,264
And the hardy ones will await a new flood
in some future year
251
00:38:43,208 --> 00:38:48,370
In Australia life has struck an
unlikely deal with an uncertain climate
252
00:38:54,948 --> 00:38:57,381
The continent has been a ship of refuge
253
00:38:57,515 --> 00:39:00,039
for an alternate order of ancient life
254
00:39:00,183 --> 00:39:02,548
as it crept northward through the eons
255
00:39:02,685 --> 00:39:06,620
its passengers have had to adapt
again and again
256
00:39:21,496 --> 00:39:23,486
In this land beyond time
257
00:39:23,630 --> 00:39:28,895
life has learned to ride out the hard times
and flourish in the good times
258
00:39:29,033 --> 00:39:35,094
Far more than merely surviving
life has triumphed in Australia
23105
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.