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An ancient tale foretells
that our planet
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and its future rest on a
turtle's back.
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If we lose the turtle,
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there would be no earth,
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No US.
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Today, the story of a sea turtle's
life is just as profound.
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On Australia's Great
Barrier Reef,
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there's a tropical beach
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where one tiny turtle's
big adventure
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is about to begin.
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This is Bun“.
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She's a green sea turtle
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and today is her birthday.
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Out of the hundred eggs she
shared a nest with,
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She's the very last
hatchling to emerge.
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It will take Bunji a few days to
make it above ground,
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and join the other newborns
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making their way to the water.
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And when Bunji
finally breaks free,
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she too has to make a
run for the ocean
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Up where she comes from,
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Bunji is an indigenous
Australian word for friend.
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And she needs one,
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because the first thing a
baby turtle sees
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is something that
wants to eat it.
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Bunji's parents are
roaming the ocean,
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meaning she'll have to
fend for herself.
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The odds are against her.
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And as if the birds
weren't enough,
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ghost crabs haunt the
water's edge.
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Bunji's going to need all the
luck she can get.
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But it's not much safer
in the water.
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Just one in every
thousand hatchlings
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will survive to maturity.
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It will take all of Bunji's
turtle instincts
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to make it through,
in one piece.
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Sea turtles have an
amazing ability to...
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Oh. Mm.
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Phew. And all that in just
the first five minutes.
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If Bunji makes it to adulthood,
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she could live to be over
100 years old.
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And in that lifetime,
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she will swim many
thousands of miles,
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meet incredible creatures,
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and have some really
wild encounters.
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Welcome to Turtle Odyssey.
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It's Bunji's first night in
the vast ocean.
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She is small and all alone.
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It's all a bit spooky.
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She must learn where
danger lurks.
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Unlike this cuttlefish,
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Bunji isn't as easily
camouflaged.
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She must discover who's friend,
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who's foe,
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and who's just passing through.
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Let's hope she gets it right.
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Bunji is following her instincts
to swim out to open water,
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just like marine turtles have
for millions of years.
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Sea turtle highways
criss cross the oceans.
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Tracking the seven
different species reveals
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it's a turtle planet.
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In their lifetime, some turtles,
like the leatherback,
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will travel over half a
million miles,
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that's like swimming to
the moon and back.
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Little Bunji is now 300 miles
off the east coast of Australia,
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a long way from where
she was born.
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For years,
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no one knew where
baby turtles went
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or how they travelled across
the great oceans
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until now.
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It turns out they were hitching
rides on rafts of seaweed
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and Bunji's found one.
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Below, reef sharks and other
large fish prowl.
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All hungry for a tasty
turtle treat.
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But Bunji is happy in her
floating fortress.
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It's safe and warm,
and if she's hungry,
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she can even take a bite.
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Bunji will catch many of
these free rides.
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As the years go by,
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she'll be carried along by
the ocean currents.
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She'll get bigger,
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and bigger,
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and bigger.
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Until she's so big,
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she's large enough
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to leave her seaweed sanctuary
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and continue her journey
swimming out across the open sea.
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Bunji is now a teenager,
with attitude.
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Because of her bigger size,
and hard shell,
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she's tough enough to head
back to the shallows.
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Bunji is now over
600 miles south
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from where she was born
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and has found a pacific
island paradise.
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This is the remote
Lord Howe island.
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Here, the rich East
Australian Current
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lifts cool waters from
the sea floor
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packed with nutrients.
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They mix and collect
in the lagoon,
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it's teeming with life.
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Coral reefs support
millions of species.
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This is one of the most
bio-diverse ecosystems
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on the planet.
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The perfect place for Bunji to
take a bit of a break.
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And have a snack.
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Although she has no teeth,
her beak is perfect
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for pecking tiny algae
off the coral.
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Keeping the coral clean
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makes turtles a keystone species
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as countless other species
depend on healthy coral
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for their survival.
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She also eats sea grass,
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lots of it.
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Unlike some teenagers,
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Bunji loves her greens.
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She's got a big appetite.
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Luckily, all this
turtle trimming
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allows fresh shoots to grow.
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It's just another way she
keeps the ocean healthy
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and creates a perfect pasture
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for one of the ocean's most
mysterious creatures.
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The lives of dugongs and turtles
are intimately linked,
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part of a much larger ecosystem
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where one species
depends on another.
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These dugongs, or sea cows,
are fortunate.
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They love eating the
roots exposed
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by the turtle trimming.
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As the years pass,
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Bunji loves to munch on
something else
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in this pacific island lagoon.
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It's a sea salp.
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Sea salps look like
blobs of jellyfish,
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but they're not.
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They're one of the oldest
creatures in the sea,
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one of the first to develop a
central nervous system.
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They're an ancient
ancestor of almost
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all complex life on the earth,
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including us,
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and Bunji finds them
rather tasty.
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Bunji has been feeding up
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for her long journey ahead.
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Now an adult,
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she's feeling the call to leave
her island paradise
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and head toward the mainland
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across the vast open sea.
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It's an incredible journey
of over 500 miles.
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The ocean covers over 70%
of our planet.
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It's the world's
richest environment,
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yet in places seems
completely devoid of life.
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Bunji will swim through these
watery deserts alone.
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When she does meet
other creatures,
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they'll be travelling in groups.
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It's a smart evolutionary
survival strategy.
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After all, there's
safety in numbers.
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Traveling the ocean solo
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Is a risk she'll have to take.
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An ancient instinct is
calling Bunji.
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There's still a long way to go,
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but she is exquisitely evolved
for undersea travel.
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Her buoyancy is so fine-tuned,
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she moves with the absolute
minimum effort.
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Perfectly balanced, she is
weightless in her water world.
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Sea turtles cruised the
ancient oceans
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over 100 million years ago.
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Since then, they have remained
anatomically unchanged.
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Bunji is prehistoric perfection,
on a mission.
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Strangely, for such an
ancient creature,
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the biggest threat to
her survival
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is a relative newcomer.
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Humans.
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From traditional fishermen
catching them with their hands,
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to commercial fishing vessels
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often catching them
as unintended
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bycatch in their thousands,
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a quick getaway speed is
her only defense.
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There's still much
work to be done
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to protect turtles from humans.
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In the last four decades,
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the number of turtles injured by
boats has tripled.
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And one new threat is
looming ever larger.
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In the stomachs of half of
all sea turtles
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is plastic waste, and it's
really hurting them.
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Turtles have a problem
telling the difference
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between plastic and one of their
major food sources,
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jellyfish.
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Don't eat it, Bunji.
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If no action is taken,
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soon there will more plastic in
the ocean than fish.
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Thankfully, some people have
dedicated their lives
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to protecting sea turtles.
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Dr. Ian Bell is a turtle hero.
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He leads a special task force
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for the Queensland government.
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It's called the
Threatened Species Unit
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and today, they're catching
and tagging turtles
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to find out more about them.
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Combining data from government
agencies and thousands
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of volunteers from
around the world,
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they've discovered a
staggering fact.
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There are now only half as
many sea turtles
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in the ocean as there
were 100 years ago.
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This small tag will
be a big help,
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providing data to
scientists and volunteers
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trying to save her species.
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00:20:13,087 --> 00:20:16,757
Dr. Bell has discovered
that as earth warms,
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it's changing the
temperatures of the beaches
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where turtles nest, and that
has him concerned.
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00:20:24,390 --> 00:20:27,935
Because if turtle eggs are laid
in extra warm sand,
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00:20:28,102 --> 00:20:30,938
all the hatchlings
will be girls.
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00:20:34,817 --> 00:20:40,156
Less male partners puts the
entire turtle species at risk.
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Bunji's ocean home is where
complex life began,
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and on which most life
still depends.
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00:21:07,099 --> 00:21:10,936
Now fully grown, this
truly is her world.
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A world we have barely explored.
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Filled with wild creatures
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00:21:24,700 --> 00:21:26,410
that are both weird
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00:21:28,621 --> 00:21:30,581
and wonderful.
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00:21:34,502 --> 00:21:37,421
Whose complex
relationships to each other
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we're only beginning
to understand.
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00:21:42,551 --> 00:21:45,387
We know more about the
surface of Mars
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00:21:45,554 --> 00:21:48,808
than what's hiding out
on our ocean floors.
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00:21:53,187 --> 00:21:55,356
Who knows what
biological wonders
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00:21:55,523 --> 00:21:57,233
are yet to be discovered?
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The ocean is our
greatest treasure
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00:22:07,243 --> 00:22:09,161
and our greatest responsibility.
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And the remarkable recovery
of one species
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00:22:13,082 --> 00:22:17,461
provides hope for the continued
survival of the turtle.
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00:22:22,633 --> 00:22:26,345
From the deep, a
behemoth arises.
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Migrating south, this humpback
whale mother and calf
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00:23:07,177 --> 00:23:09,346
cross Bunji's path.
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00:23:11,140 --> 00:23:14,643
They're heading to the rich
feeding grounds of the Antarctic.
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00:23:36,081 --> 00:23:41,253
This big baby weighs in at
over 3,000 pounds,
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00:23:41,795 --> 00:23:45,257
so Bunji would be wise to
keep her distance.
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00:23:48,052 --> 00:23:50,679
These whales were once
critically endangered,
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00:23:50,846 --> 00:23:53,265
hunted almost to extinction.
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00:23:53,641 --> 00:23:56,560
But then humans heard
their cry for help.
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00:24:00,397 --> 00:24:02,566
Along the east coast
of Australia,
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humpback whale populations have
made a full recovery.
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If we did it for these whales,
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00:24:17,957 --> 00:24:21,418
maybe we can still do it for
the sea turtles.
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Let's hope so,
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00:24:25,506 --> 00:24:29,301
because entire ecosystems rest
on a turtle's back,
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and that means an ocean
without turtles
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00:24:32,972 --> 00:24:35,516
would be a very empty place.
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As the whales travel south,
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00:24:47,528 --> 00:24:49,405
other animals like Bunji
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00:24:49,571 --> 00:24:51,949
are heading north to
warmer waters.
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00:24:54,660 --> 00:24:57,204
Dolphins, whales and turtles
have been travelling
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00:24:57,371 --> 00:24:59,039
these water highways
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00:24:59,790 --> 00:25:02,501
long before humans
walked the earth.
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00:25:20,894 --> 00:25:22,730
Catching her breath
at the surface
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00:25:22,938 --> 00:25:25,482
is where Bunji is in
most danger.
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00:25:34,283 --> 00:25:35,826
From below,
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00:25:36,076 --> 00:25:37,828
she stands out
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00:25:38,203 --> 00:25:40,372
like a turtle target.
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00:25:45,794 --> 00:25:49,548
This could be a bad
day for Bunji.
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00:25:51,258 --> 00:25:53,135
Sharks eat turtles.
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00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:07,483
This great white shark is
over 16 feet long
258
00:26:08,108 --> 00:26:10,069
and could easily make a meal
259
00:26:10,235 --> 00:26:12,154
out of a fully grown turtle.
260
00:26:27,127 --> 00:26:29,421
Bunji is in real danger
261
00:26:29,588 --> 00:26:31,507
but she has a plan.
262
00:26:36,345 --> 00:26:38,138
She takes evasive action,
263
00:26:38,305 --> 00:26:41,016
turning her tough shell
towards her attacker,
264
00:26:45,104 --> 00:26:47,356
diving deep to the sea bed.
265
00:26:49,274 --> 00:26:53,320
Down here, she's camouflaged
against the coral.
266
00:26:55,823 --> 00:26:58,117
To limit their time
at the surface,
267
00:26:58,283 --> 00:27:00,327
turtles have evolved the ability
268
00:27:00,494 --> 00:27:03,288
to reduce the amount of
oxygen they need.
269
00:27:06,375 --> 00:27:09,086
They do this by slowing
their heartbeat down
270
00:27:09,253 --> 00:27:12,172
to one beat every minute.
271
00:27:26,061 --> 00:27:28,188
And that means a
green sea turtle
272
00:27:28,355 --> 00:27:31,608
can stay underwater for
over six hours.
273
00:27:57,676 --> 00:28:00,095
But Bunji can't stay
here forever.
274
00:28:01,180 --> 00:28:03,056
As a cold-blooded reptile,
275
00:28:03,223 --> 00:28:08,437
she needs to return to the
surface and warmer waters.
276
00:28:22,159 --> 00:28:25,829
It's time to catch some
early morning rays.
277
00:28:32,836 --> 00:28:37,090
Some turtles even leave the
water for a spot of sunbathing.
278
00:28:38,550 --> 00:28:42,429
It's often the larger males that
are the sun loungers.
279
00:28:44,014 --> 00:28:47,684
This beach boy will catch
rays all daylong.
280
00:28:51,021 --> 00:28:53,273
He's not aware that
soon he'll play
281
00:28:53,440 --> 00:28:56,735
an important part in
Bunji's epic odyssey.
282
00:29:03,825 --> 00:29:06,787
As for Bunji, time is ticking.
283
00:29:06,954 --> 00:29:09,581
She must get ready
for her big day,
284
00:29:09,873 --> 00:29:13,085
but first she has to
make a quick stop.
285
00:29:14,711 --> 00:29:17,589
Over 100 different
species can be found
286
00:29:17,756 --> 00:29:20,300
living on green sea turtles.
287
00:29:21,551 --> 00:29:24,554
The parasites help keep
her camouflaged
288
00:29:24,721 --> 00:29:28,850
but they also slow her down and
can be quite itchy.
289
00:29:29,768 --> 00:29:31,979
It's time to get some off,
290
00:29:32,145 --> 00:29:36,066
but how do you do that with
flippers for fingers?
291
00:29:39,486 --> 00:29:41,738
She's looking for
something special.
292
00:29:42,155 --> 00:29:45,284
The right spot with the
right sort of fish.
293
00:29:46,702 --> 00:29:48,745
These parrotfish are too big,
294
00:29:49,788 --> 00:29:52,916
and these chromis fish
are too small.
295
00:29:54,751 --> 00:29:59,423
Ah, but these tangs
are just right.
296
00:30:00,716 --> 00:30:03,927
Bunji has found a
cleaning station.
297
00:30:04,970 --> 00:30:08,015
It's a place where smaller fish
feed off the creatures
298
00:30:08,181 --> 00:30:10,684
living on larger animals.
299
00:30:11,476 --> 00:30:15,188
This is known as a
symbiotic relationship.
300
00:30:16,398 --> 00:30:18,025
It's win-win.
301
00:30:19,151 --> 00:30:21,236
The little fish get fed,
302
00:30:21,403 --> 00:30:24,114
and the larger animals like
Bunji get cleaned.
303
00:30:24,281 --> 00:30:26,116
Everybody's happy.
304
00:30:26,867 --> 00:30:30,704
And with a shell as sensitive as
a human fingertip,
305
00:30:30,871 --> 00:30:33,373
she also likes a good scratch,
306
00:30:33,999 --> 00:30:35,876
and a scratch,
307
00:30:37,544 --> 00:30:39,046
and a scratch.
308
00:30:43,842 --> 00:30:47,512
But Bunji's not the only one who
likes a good scrub.
309
00:30:48,597 --> 00:30:52,267
A squadron of rays is about
to hit the station.
310
00:30:56,563 --> 00:30:59,691
These bad boys can
have a wingspan
311
00:30:59,858 --> 00:31:00,901
of over twenty feet,
312
00:31:01,068 --> 00:31:04,529
and weigh up to 3,000 pounds.
313
00:31:04,696 --> 00:31:08,700
That's the same as an
average family car.
314
00:31:11,787 --> 00:31:13,622
So when these guys arrive,
315
00:31:13,789 --> 00:31:16,458
they go right to
the front of the line.
316
00:31:18,460 --> 00:31:22,214
And that means smaller fish,
like this batfish,
317
00:31:22,631 --> 00:31:24,174
get bumped to the back.
318
00:31:26,510 --> 00:31:28,011
Because in nature,
319
00:31:28,178 --> 00:31:31,223
size really does matter.
320
00:31:38,480 --> 00:31:41,441
But Bunji doesn't have
time to wait.
321
00:31:42,401 --> 00:31:44,069
As the currents pick up,
322
00:31:44,236 --> 00:31:47,280
she's being called to her
final destination.
323
00:31:48,907 --> 00:31:52,202
But forces of nature are
rising against her.
324
00:32:11,012 --> 00:32:12,556
Bunji struggles.
325
00:32:15,642 --> 00:32:20,063
Even below the waves, the
currents swirl around her.
326
00:32:20,772 --> 00:32:22,149
With low visibility,
327
00:32:22,315 --> 00:32:24,609
Bunji is using an
invisible force
328
00:32:24,776 --> 00:32:27,279
to guide her to a very
special place.
329
00:32:37,456 --> 00:32:40,125
Bunji's brain can
actually detect
330
00:32:40,292 --> 00:32:43,128
the magnetic fields
of the earth.
331
00:32:46,631 --> 00:32:51,803
Every place on the globe has a
unique magnetic fingerprint.
332
00:32:52,637 --> 00:32:56,349
Bunji uses this
information like a map.
333
00:32:56,850 --> 00:33:00,145
As she gets close, her
map matches that
334
00:33:00,312 --> 00:33:02,647
of her current location.
335
00:33:03,148 --> 00:33:04,649
At last,
336
00:33:05,567 --> 00:33:07,777
she's reached her destination.
337
00:33:16,328 --> 00:33:17,913
She's home.
338
00:33:21,500 --> 00:33:23,752
After 25 years at sea,
339
00:33:23,919 --> 00:33:27,297
she's come back to the very
beach she was born on.
340
00:33:45,649 --> 00:33:47,526
And she's not alone.
341
00:33:58,620 --> 00:34:00,497
The Great Barrier Reef is
host to the biggest
342
00:34:00,664 --> 00:34:04,167
green sea turtle
rookery in the world.
343
00:34:14,302 --> 00:34:17,222
Bunji's big adventure
is one shared
344
00:34:17,389 --> 00:34:19,307
by thousands of other turtles.
345
00:34:21,017 --> 00:34:22,477
All around the world,
346
00:34:22,644 --> 00:34:26,189
green sea turtles are making
similar great migrations
347
00:34:26,356 --> 00:34:28,775
to the beaches where
they were born.
348
00:34:32,028 --> 00:34:34,906
So, this family of turtles
349
00:34:35,073 --> 00:34:37,325
may have been coming back to
this very beach,
350
00:34:37,492 --> 00:34:39,244
generation after generation,
351
00:34:39,369 --> 00:34:41,621
for thousands of years.
352
00:34:44,332 --> 00:34:48,878
It's one of nature's most
astonishing family reunions.
353
00:34:50,005 --> 00:34:52,799
Now it's Bunji's turn
to play her part
354
00:34:52,966 --> 00:34:55,552
in that larger turtle story.
355
00:34:56,928 --> 00:35:00,390
It's time for Bunji
to find a boyfriend.
356
00:35:32,839 --> 00:35:34,674
Once Bunji has mated,
357
00:35:34,841 --> 00:35:38,386
she will remain close to shore
for over a month.
358
00:35:43,850 --> 00:35:46,144
Then, when the time is right,
359
00:35:46,311 --> 00:35:48,938
she'll undertake her most
important task.
360
00:35:51,900 --> 00:35:55,737
It's time for Bunji to leave
her water world.
361
00:36:00,700 --> 00:36:03,453
It will be her toughest
turtle trial.
362
00:36:04,704 --> 00:36:07,624
After a lifetime of
weightlessness in the ocean,
363
00:36:07,832 --> 00:36:10,418
gravity really sucks.
364
00:36:13,046 --> 00:36:15,632
Weighing in at 250 pounds,
365
00:36:15,799 --> 00:36:17,926
Bunji has to
struggle up the same
366
00:36:18,093 --> 00:36:20,261
strip of beach that,
decades before,
367
00:36:20,428 --> 00:36:22,347
she scurried down.
368
00:36:28,603 --> 00:36:30,438
She'll spend the next few hours
369
00:36:30,605 --> 00:36:32,315
digging herself into the sand,
370
00:36:32,482 --> 00:36:34,776
and scooping out a
chamber for her eggs.
371
00:36:35,610 --> 00:36:38,279
It's exhausting work for this
soon-to-be-mother,
372
00:36:38,446 --> 00:36:42,367
but her instinct is unflagging.
373
00:36:55,213 --> 00:36:57,799
She'll bury her eggs in
the same sand
374
00:36:57,966 --> 00:37:01,302
her mother did over
25 years ago.
375
00:37:12,105 --> 00:37:14,065
The warm sand will
keep them safe
376
00:37:14,232 --> 00:37:16,192
for the next two
or three months.
377
00:37:25,285 --> 00:37:29,122
Finally, she covers her nest
with the gentle care
378
00:37:29,289 --> 00:37:31,249
that only a mother can give.
379
00:37:39,048 --> 00:37:42,510
Laying five or so clutches
every few years,
380
00:37:45,764 --> 00:37:50,852
she will produce thousands of
offspring in her lifetime.
381
00:38:16,002 --> 00:38:17,420
After along night,
382
00:38:17,712 --> 00:38:20,215
she'll return to the
comfort of the sea.
383
00:38:24,677 --> 00:38:25,970
She'll be back,
384
00:38:26,137 --> 00:38:27,305
but for now,
385
00:38:29,682 --> 00:38:32,936
her odyssey is complete.
386
00:38:47,408 --> 00:38:49,869
Three months later,
another chapter
387
00:38:50,036 --> 00:38:52,789
in the turtle tale begins.
388
00:39:01,673 --> 00:39:06,094
A new generation of tiny turtle
toddlers are popping up.
389
00:39:10,932 --> 00:39:13,309
It's time for Bunji's
little babies
390
00:39:13,476 --> 00:39:16,980
to take on the challenges of
the turtle odyssey.
391
00:39:17,522 --> 00:39:20,483
♪ I'm walking on sunshine ♪
392
00:39:21,860 --> 00:39:25,029
♪ I'm walking on sunshine ♪
393
00:39:26,114 --> 00:39:29,367
♪ I'm walking on sunshine ♪
394
00:39:30,743 --> 00:39:32,412
♪ And don't it feel good ♪
395
00:39:35,039 --> 00:39:37,500
♪ And don't it feel good ♪