Original subtitles

ANNOUNCER: WHEN YOU SEE THIS SYMBOL YOU KNOW YOU'RE

WATCHING TELEVISION THAT'S EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL.

THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: I'M DYLAN DREYER.

JOIN ME ON AN ADVENTURE TO AUSTRALIA, THE LAND DOWN

UNDER.

DYLAN: WE'LL EXPLORE THE GREAT STRUGGLE

FOR SURVIVAL IN THE DRY DESERT OUTBACK.

WE'LL DISCOVER THE INCREDIBLE WAYS CLEVER

CREATURES HAVE LEARNED TO SAVE WATER AND COME

FACE-TO-FACE WITH A COLLECTION OF AMAZING

ANIMALS FOUND NOWHERE ELSE ON EARTH, FROM KANGAROOS

TO KOALAS, EVEN THE PLATYPUS.

THESE ARE CREATURES YOU'LL NEVER FORGET.

DYLAN: AUSTRALIA IS THE DRIEST INHABITED CONTINENT ON

EARTH AND ALMOST EQUAL IN SIZE TO THE CONTINENTAL

UNITED STATES.

IT'S SURROUNDED BY THREE OCEANS, MAKING IT THE

WORLD'S LARGEST ISLAND.

MILLIONS OF YEARS OF ISOLATION HAVE PRODUCED

ONE OF THE MOST UNIQUE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE WORLD

AND WILDLIFE YOU NEED TO SEE TO BELIEVE.

DYLAN: AUSTRALIA IS VAST, ANCIENT, AND WEATHERED.

IT HAS BEEN ISOLATED FROM ALL OTHER LAND ON EARTH

FOR 40 MILLION YEARS.

[PLANE ENGINE WHIRRING]

TRAVELING OVER AUSTRALIA'S THREE MILLION

SQUARE MILES IS LIKE CROSSING AN OCEAN OF DRY

LAND.

IT'S A PRIMEVAL LANDSCAPE RICH IN RESOURCEFUL LIFE

FORMS FOUND NOWHERE ELSE.

DYLAN: HERE, SOME OF THE EARTH'S OLDEST ROCKS HOLD FOSSILS

FROM THE DAWN OF LIFE.

IN ITS HEARTLAND ARE MOUNTAIN RANGES THAT ONCE

RIVALED EVEREST AND REMNANTS OF A ONCE VAST

INLAND SEA.

MOST OF AUSTRALIA'S NATIVE ANIMALS ARE UNIQUE.

THEIR JOURNEY ON THIS CONTINENTAL RAFT HAS TAKEN

THEM THROUGH COOL FORESTS AND FIERY DESERTS AND

CHANGED THEM FOREVER.

SOME HAVE CLIMBED UP OUT OF ADVERSITY.

SOME HAVE OUTRUN ALL THEIR PREDATORS.

MOST HAVE ADAPTED TO HARD, FICKLE CONDITIONS.

A FEW ARE UNCHANGED SINCE THE DAYS OF THE DINOSAURS.

IN FACT, OUR STORY STARTS MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO WHEN

PANGEA, THE GREAT SUPER CONTINENT, BEGAN TO BREAK

APART.

DYLAN: BY 50 MILLION YEARS AGO, THE BREAKUP WAS

COMPLETE WHEN AUSTRALIA PARTED FROM ANTARCTICA.

AUSTRALIA PUSHED NORTHWARDS FROM THE

FREEZING LATITUDES AND REMAINED ISOLATED FOR THE

NEXT 30 MILLION YEARS.

SEARING WINDS BEGAN TO DRY THE LAND, AND ITS MOIST

RAINFOREST ALL BUT DISAPPEARED.

DYLAN: IN THE CENTER, THE DESERT WAS TAKING OVER.

NOW THE SYMBOL OF AUSTRALIA'S RED HEART IS

ULURU, THE EARTH'S LARGEST EXPOSED ROCK.

THIS SANDSTONE FORMATION STANDS OVER ONE THOUSAND

FEET HIGH AND HAS A TOTAL CIRCUMFERENCE OF NEARLY

SIX MILES.

DYLAN: AUSTRALIA IS THE EARTH'S FLATTEST CONTINENT.

THE NULLARBOR PLAIN ON ITS SOUTHERN COAST HAS THE

WORLD'S LONGEST UNBROKEN COASTAL CLIFFS.

IF THE DRY OUTBACK IS A LAND OCEAN, THESE PARALLEL

SAND DUNES ARE ITS WAVES.

STRETCHING BEYOND THE HORIZONS, THEY COVER

NEARLY HALF THE CONTINENT.

THE KANGAROO STARTED ITS JOURNEY AS A MARSUPIAL

POSSUM THE SIZE OF A MOUSE.

MARSUPIALS ARE MAMMALS THAT CARRY THEIR

DEVELOPING YOUNG IN A POUCH ON THE OUTSIDE OF

THEIR BODY.

WHEN FOOD IS PLENTIFUL, THE MALES ARE ACTIVE, AND

COURTSHIP DISPUTES ARE TRADITIONALLY SETTLED WITH

A ROUND OR TWO OF KICKBOXING.

MOTHERS AND BABIES SENSIBLY KEEP OUT OF THE

WAY.

ON MOST CONTINENTS, ANIMALS BREED IN RESPONSE

TO THE SEASONS.

IN AUSTRALIA, IT'S THE AVAILABILITY OF FOOD THAT

PROMPTS THE KANGAROO TO REPRODUCE.

TO CAPITALIZE ON GOOD TIMES, THE MOTHER CAN

SUPPORT A PRODUCTION LINE, ONE JOEY IN THE POUCH, ONE

ON FOOT, AND ANOTHER IN THE WOMB AS AN EMBRYO.

DYLAN: ALONG WITH KANGAROOS, THE KOALA IS ANOTHER

ICONIC MARSUPIAL OF AUSTRALIA.

WHEN BABIES ARE BIG ENOUGH TO LEAVE THE POUCH, THEY

RIDE MOTHER'S BACK.

LIKE THE KANGAROO, THE KOALA EVOLVED IN THE MOIST

RAINFOREST.

AS THE FOREST DRIED, IT ADAPTED TO LIVE ON THE

LEAVES OF THE EUCALYPTUS TREE.

EUCALYPTUS LEAVES ARE TOXIC TO MOST OTHER

MAMMALS AND HAVE VERY LITTLE NUTRITIONAL

CONTENT.

THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM OF KOALAS EVOLVED TO EXTRACT

MOISTURE AND NUTRIENTS FROM LEAVES, BUT THIS

PROCESS REQUIRES A LOT OF ENERGY.

WHEN THEY'RE NOT EATING, KOALAS ARE RESTING ABOUT

20 HOURS A DAY.

SOME MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY, HOWEVER, ARE

ACTIVE AT ANY HOUR.

WHEN MOVING FROM TREE TO TREE, THEY NORMALLY

DESCEND BACKWARDS.

CONSEQUENTLY, TREETOP TRAFFIC JAMS CAN SOMETIMES

LEAVE ONE OUT ON A LIMB.

DYLAN: LIKE ALL LIFE IN AUSTRALIA, KOALAS AND

KANGAROOS HAVE ADAPTED TO ONE OF THE MOST EXTREME

ENVIRONMENTS ON EARTH.

SOME 70 PERCENT OF AUSTRALIA IS CLASSIFIED AS

ARID, OR DESERT.

TO SURVIVE HERE, YOU'VE GOT TO BE MADE OF SOME

PRETTY HEARTY STUFF.

COMING UP NEXT, WE'LL EXPLORE THE DRY INTERIOR

OF THIS ISLAND WORLD AND MEET THE CRITTERS FIGHTING

TO STAY ALIVE, AND LATER, WATER FINALLY FLOWS ACROSS

AUSTRALIA, STIRRING UP LIFE WHEREVER IT GOES.

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES RIGHT AFTER THIS.

ANNOUNCER: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

ANNOUNCER: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: FOR YEARS ON END, MUCH OF THE AUSTRALIAN

INLAND RECEIVES LITTLE OR NO RAIN.

MOST OF THIS LAND CAN SUPPORT VEGETATION, AND

THE REST IS A VAST DESERT.

THIS IS THE AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK.

CENTRAL AUSTRALIA RECEIVES LESS THAN FIVE INCHES OF

RAIN A YEAR.

SAND DUNES COVER 40 PERCENT OF THE COUNTRY.

IT LOOKS LIKE A LIFELESS WASTELAND WHERE NOTHING

COULD LIVE, BUT IT'S NOT.

THE CLOSER WE LOOK, THE MORE WE FIND THAT SOME OF

AUSTRALIA'S MOST CLEVER CREATURES HAVE ADAPTED TO

PULL EVERY POSSIBLE DROP OF WATER AND NUTRIENTS

FROM THE GREAT DESERT.

BY DAY, MOST OF THE LIFE IN THIS DRY OCEAN OF SAND

IS HIDDEN BENEATH THE SURFACE.

MANY OF THE DESSERT ANIMALS COME OUT TO FEED

IN THE COOL OF NIGHT.

THESE TINY HOPPING MICE SURVIVE BECAUSE THEY

RARELY NEED TO DRINK.

MOST OF THE WATER THEY REQUIRE IS CONTAINED IN

THE SEEDS THEY EAT.

IN THE HEAT OF THE DAY, THEY HUDDLE TOGETHER IN

DEEP BURROWS, CREATING A HUMID ATMOSPHERE THAT

HELPS TO CONSERVE MOISTURE.

DYLAN: IN THIS ARID REGION, HEARTY MULGA TREES PROVIDE

FOOD FOR ONE OF AUSTRALIA'S FOUR THOUSAND

SPECIES OF ANTS.

DYLAN: SIX FEET BELOW THE SURFACE, HONEY ANTS HANG

LIKE CLUSTERS OF GOLDEN GRAPES IN COOL, HUMID

CHAMBERS.

THESE SPECIALIZED ANTS ARE LIVING HONEYPOTS.

THEY ARE FORCE-FED BY WORKER ANTS ON NECTAR

HARVESTED FROM THE SAP OF MULGA TREES GROWING ABOVE.

THEIR UNDERGROUND STOREHOUSE WILL SEE THE

WHOLE COLONY THROUGH THE WORST DROUGHTS THE DESERT

CAN BRING.

ARID AUSTRALIA IS THE LAND OF THE LIZARDS.

THIS ONE IS CALLED THE THORNY DEVIL.

IT'S A PERFECT NAME.

ALONG WITH A NATURAL SUIT OF ARMOR, THEY ALSO HAVE A

STICKY TONGUE.

OUT HERE, BLACK ANTS ARE ONE FOOD THAT NEVER RUNS

OUT.

THE DEVIL IS PERFECTLY ADAPTED TO THE DESERT.

IT'S PRICKLY SKIN COLLECTS MOISTURE FROM THE AIR, AND

A SYSTEM OF FINE CHANNELS ALONG ITS BODY CARRIES THE

WATER TO ITS MOUTH.

THE BIGGEST AND MOST FEARSOME OF THE DESERT

LIZARDS IS THE PERENTIE, WHICH IS BOTH SCAVENGER

AND PREDATOR.

THIS LIZARD CAN EXCEED SIX FEET IN LENGTH AND OUTRUN

A HUMAN.

IT HUNTS ANYTHING, INCLUDING THE MOST

AGGRESSIVE AND DEADLY OF AUSTRALIA'S MANY SNAKES,

THE KING BROWN.

THE VENOM FROM THIS SNAKE'S BITE WILL KILL A

HUMAN IN MINUTES.

SOMETIMES, THOUGH, THE KING BROWN IS EVEN MORE

THAN THE PERENTIE CAN MANAGE.

DYLAN: WHILE MUCH OF AUSTRALIA'S LIFE WAS ADAPTING TO

THE DRY INLAND, SOME OF ITS PLANTS AND ANIMALS FOUND

MORE ABUNDANT WATER IN THE MOUNTAINS OF THE EAST

COAST.

HERE, MOIST VALLEYS AND COOL PEAKS PROVIDE A HAVEN

FOR AUSTRALIA'S LIVING LINKS WITH THE PAST.

IN SCATTERED POCKETS OF PRIMITIVE RAINFOREST,

DESCENDANTS OF PANGEA'S ORIGINAL PLANTS AND

ANIMALS THRIVE TODAY.

THESE ANTARCTIC BEECH TREES BEGAN GROWING

BETWEEN THREE AND FIVE THOUSAND YEARS AGO.

ONE OF THE MOST REMARKABLE LIVING LINKS WITH THE

ANCIENT WORLD IS FOUND IN THE CREEKS AND FRESHWATER

RIVERS OF THE EAST COAST.

DYLAN: THE PLATYPUS SUCKLES ITS YOUNG LIKE A

MAMMAL, YET LAYS EGGS LIKE A LIZARD.

IT HUNTS UNDERWATER WITH ITS EYES SHUT, USING

ELECTRONIC SENSORS IN ITS BILL.

THE FIRST EUROPEANS TO SEE IT WERE DUMBFOUNDED.

TO THEM, IT WAS A LIVING CONTRADICTION, IF NOT A

PRACTICAL JOKE.

THE PLATYPUS, THOUGH, HAS SURVIVED FOR 120 MILLION

YEARS.

TODAY, IT EXISTS NOWHERE ELSE ON EARTH.

DYLAN: THE NEAREST SURVIVING RELATIVE OF

THE PLATYPUS IS THE ECHIDNA.

WITH ITS TUBULAR SNOUT AND LONG, STICKY TONGUE, IT

LIVES ON ANTS AND TERMITES.

UNLIKE THE PLATYPUS, THE ECHIDNA MOVED OUT OF THE

COOL FOREST AND NOW RANGES ACROSS THE WHOLE

CONTINENT.

WHEN THREATENED, IT DIGS IN RAPIDLY, PRESENTING AN

ARRAY OF SHARP SPINES TO ITS ATTACKER.

COMING UP NEXT, WATER FINALLY COMES TO THE

OUTBACK, FILLING DRY STREAM BEDS FOR THE FIRST

TIME IN YEARS AND BRINGING NEW LIFE TO THE LAND DOWN

UNDER.

DON'T GO AWAY.

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES RIGHT AFTER THIS.

ANNOUNCER: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

ANNOUNCER: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: WELCOME BACK TO "JOURNEY." DROUGHT IN

AUSTRALIA CAN LAST FOR MONTHS OR YEARS AT A TIME.

LONG PERIODS WITHOUT RAIN PUSH LIFE TO THE LIMIT.

ALL WILDLIFE CAN DO IS STRUGGLE THROUGH AND HOPE

THAT THE CLOUDS OVERHEAD WILL EVENTUALLY PROVIDE

SOME RELIEF.

DYLAN: NO MATTER WHO OR WHAT YOU ARE, WHEN WATER

IS SCARCE, LIFE IS HARD.

ON THE OUTBACK, CLEAR SKIES, PARCHED EARTH, AND

SEARING HEAT BECOME THE RULE OF LIFE.

THE YOUNG AND THE OLD ARE FIRST TO FEEL THE EFFECTS.

LIFE HERE BECOMES A TENSE STRUGGLE FOR SURVIVAL

BEFORE THE NEXT RAINS COME.

A MOTHER KANGAROO CALLS ON ANOTHER REMARKABLE

EVOLUTIONARY STRATEGY TO SAVE HER OFFSPRING.

SHE CAN HALT THE GROWTH OF HER DEVELOPING EMBRYO,

KEEPING IT IN A STATE OF SUSPENSION UNTIL

CONDITIONS IMPROVE.

ONLY THEN WILL SHE GIVE BIRTH.

SHE WILL BE ABLE TO FOCUS HER ATTENTION ON THE JOEY

ALREADY BORN, GIVING IT A NEW BROTHER OR SISTER WHEN

THE WATER RETURNS.

SURVIVING KANGAROOS WILL EITHER MOVE TO NEW

TERRITORY IN SEARCH OF FOOD OR BATTEN DOWN NEAR

REMAINING WATER HOLES WHILE AT LEAST SOME GRASS

REMAINS.

THIS FAMILY OF EMUS HAVE A SIMILAR HARD CHOICE TO

MAKE.

WHATEVER THEY DECIDE, IT WILL BE A GAMBLE.

DYLAN: RELIEF FROM DROUGHT IS UNPREDICTABLE AND OFTEN

ARRIVES A LONG WAY FROM WHERE IT'S NEEDED.

EACH YEAR, THE TROPICAL WET SEASON BRINGS STORMS

AND FLOODING TO AUSTRALIA'S FAR NORTH.

AS THE MONSOON UNFURLS CURTAINS OF RAIN, A

TRANSFORMATION BEGINS.

AS THE WETLANDS FILL, CROCODILES EMERGE FROM

SCATTERED WATER HOLES, WHERE THEY'VE BEEN

CONFINED DURING THE DRY SEASON.

FAST NETWORKS OF WETLANDS THAT HAVE BEEN DRY SINCE

LAST SEASON ARE FLOODED AGAIN.

SOMETIMES THIS POWERFUL EVENT CAN ALSO TRANSFORM

AUSTRALIA'S ARID CENTER.

IN YEARS WHEN RAINS ARE HEAVIER AND MORE

WIDESPREAD THAN USUAL, THE WATER FLOWS INLAND TO THE

PARCHED INTERIOR.

SLOWLY HEADING SOUTH, WATER SPREADS ACROSS THE

PLAINS.

IN SIX MONTHS OR MORE, IT MAY REACH THE CENTER OF

THE CONTINENT.

UNDER CLOUDLESS SKIES, THE WATER CREEPS QUIETLY

INLAND, FILLING HUNDREDS OF DRY WATERWAYS.

IN DRY, SANDY CREEK BEDS, MILLIONS OF TINY

DROUGHT-RESISTANT EGGS, LIKE SEEDS, ARE WAITING.

THIS BURROWING FROG WAITS THROUGH THE DRY SEASON

UNDERGROUND.

STIMULATED BY SEEPING WATER, THE BURROWING FROG

AWAKES FROM ITS LONG SLEEP.

LIKE THE FROG, MANY CREATURES ARE PRIMED FOR

THE GOOD TIMES THAT ARE ABOUT TO UNFOLD.

COMING UP NEXT, WE'LL SOAR HIGH WITH THE GREAT FLOCKS

RETURNING TO AUSTRALIA'S INTERIOR IN SEARCH OF

WATER, AND WE'LL MEET A FAMILY OF DINGOS LOOKING

FOR LUNCH.

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES RIGHT AFTER THIS.

ANNOUNCER: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

ANNOUNCER: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: AUSTRALIA IS A LAND ON THE EDGE.

WITH SO LITTLE WATER EVERY YEAR, THIS ISLAND

CONTINENT IS FEELING THE HARSH EFFECTS OF MANMADE

CLIMATE CHANGE.

AN INCREDIBLE 1,700 SPECIES OF PLANTS AND

ANIMALS ARE AT RISK OF EXTINCTION, INCLUDING TEN

PERCENT OF AUSTRALIA'S BIRDS.

THE EASTERN GREAT EGRET HAS A WIDE DISTRIBUTION

THROUGHOUT SOUTH ASIA, INCLUDING AUSTRALIA, BUT

THEY ONLY RARELY COME THROUGH THE CONTINENT'S

DRY INTERIOR.

THE RAIN AND WATER CALLS TO THEM.

FISH HAVE ALREADY STARTED REPRODUCING IN STREAMS

THAT UNTIL A WEEK AGO WERE TRACKS OF DRY SAND.

BRIEFLY, THE DESERT BLOSSOMS IN A COLORFUL

TIDE OF NEW LIFE.

AUSTRALIA'S WILD DOG, THE DINGO ARRIVED FROM NEARBY

ASIA ABOUT FOUR THOUSAND YEARS AGO.

ITS PUPS WILL FEED ON THE PLENTIFUL SUPPLY OF

RODENTS AND REPTILES THAT ARE ALSO MULTIPLYING IN

THE ABUNDANT CONDITIONS.

DYLAN: TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PELICANS ARE DRAWN BY THE

IRRESISTIBLE CALL OF INLAND WATER.

RESPONDING TO REFLECTIONS FAR AWAY IN THE SKY, THE

BIRDS FLY HUNDREDS OF MILES TO GATHER ON THE

SHORES OF NEWLY-FILLED DESERT LAKES.

WITH MORE THAN HALF-A-MILLION NESTING

BIRDS, COLONIES OF THIS SIZE ARE A RARE EVENT.

PELICANS NORMALLY BREED IN SMALL SCATTERED

COMMUNITIES, PRODUCING ONE CHICK A YEAR.

HERE, THEY'LL PRODUCE FIVE OR MORE IN QUICK

SUCCESSION AND GO ON DOING SO AS LONG AS THE FOOD

SUPPLY LASTS.

MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO, PELICANS WERE BREEDING IN

THE VAST LAKE SYSTEM THAT COVERED MUCH OF THE

INTERIOR.

ANCESTRAL KNOWLEDGE SEEMS TO DRAW THEM BACK TO THEIR

PRIMEVAL HOME.

THE WATER ENDS ITS LONG JOURNEY AT THE CENTER OF

THE CONTINENT IN LAKE EYRE.

NEARLY A MILLION SQUARE MILES OF THE CONTINENT

DRAINS INTO THE WORLD'S LARGEST DRY SALT LAKE.

IT FILLS COMPLETELY ONLY ABOUT TWICE A CENTURY.

INEVITABLY, THE FLOW OF WATER STOPS.

THE EARTH AND BLAZING SUN EVAPORATE STAGNANT POOLS,

WHERE NEW LIFE IS ON BORROWED TIME.

MOST LIVING CREATURES WILL DIG IN AND TAKE REFUGE

UNDERGROUND.

SOME WILL FLEE TO THE GENTLER EDGES OF THIS

GREAT LAND, AND THE HEARTY ONES WILL AWAIT A NEW

FLOOD IN SOME FUTURE YEAR.

DYLAN: AUSTRALIA'S WILDLIFE HAS STRUCK A HARD DEAL WITH AN

EXTREME CLIMATE, BUT THE UNIQUE AND AMAZING ANIMALS

LIVING ON THIS ISLAND CONTINENT HAVE NOT ONLY

SURVIVED, THEY HAVE TRIUMPHED.

WITH OUR PROTECTION AND CONSERVATION, LIFE HERE

WILL ALWAYS FIND A WAY.

UNTIL NEXT TIME, SAFE TRAVELS.

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