02x04 - Termites vs. Tongues

[bunniefuu]

♪ Wild Kratts ♪

CHRIS:
We're here in eastern Africa,
on the Savannah grasslands.

Hey, it's us,
the Kratt Brothers. I'm Chris.

I'm Martin.

The African Savannah is full of
creatures: predator and prey,

predators who eat
other creatures--

And prey, who get eaten
if they don't defend themselves,

like impala: prey.

Lions: predator.

Warthog: prey.

Leopards: predator.

Termites: prey.

Look! Termites!

This is a termite mound,
home of the termite.

And believe it or not,
the mound you're seeing

is really just
the tip of the termite nest.

Most of it is underground

where there's a massive system
of chambers and tunnels,

and millions and millions
of termites.

Over here!

A predator bust into
this part of the mound

and exposed some termites.
See them?

Now they're coming out to
investigate what happened.

Yeah, termites are
a favorite prey

for lots of creatures out here:

bat-eared foxes, aardvarks,

aardwolves, frogs and more.

But termites have some pretty
cool defenses to deal with them.

Hello in there!

Wow, look at all these termites.

How many are in this mound?

Check it out.

Those are the soldiers,

with the huge heads
and massive biting jaws.

They protect the colony
from intruders.

Oh, oh, oh, he's a tough guy.

These are the workers
with the small heads.

They build the fortress,
collect the food

and take care of the young.

Imagine if we had termite power
and could join the colony.

To experience
the predator-prey relationship

of termites and tongues.

BOTH:
What if?

♪

♪ On adventure with
the coolest creatures ♪

♪ From the oceans
to the trees ♪

♪ The Brothers Kratt are going
places you never get to see ♪

♪ Hanging with
their creature friends ♪

♪ Get ready, it's the hour ♪

♪ We're gonna save
some animals today with ♪

♪ Creature Power ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, wild,
Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, wild, wild ♪

♪ Cheetah speed
and lizard glide ♪

♪ Falcon flight
and lion pride ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, wild,
Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Gonna go wild, wild,
Wild Kratts ♪

♪ Go wild, wild, Wild Kratts ♪

Woo-hoo!

Wa-hoo!

Oh yeah, we've got six,

and building fast.

Going in for number seven.

(Grunting)

Nervilia flower!

♪

Whoa, got it!

Woo! Warthog hair!

That's number eight.

Acacia fruit, number nine.

(Beeping)

Huh?

Chris!

Uh oh.

Whoa!

(Grunting)

Oh, hi.

Why does she always call us

right in the middle
of an epic stunt?

Oops. Sorry.

But you guys are supposed to
be collecting smells,

not doing stunts.

We're doing both.
We've got nine new smells.

Even warthog musk!

But Aviva, don't you have
enough smells by now?

No, we don't.

Well, we do have
smells already,

including grass, honey badger
musk and butterfly pheromone.

It's a start.

But if I'm going to make
a Smell-Detect-orama,

I need to get a sample of
as many smells as possible.

Bring the ones you have
back here,

then you can go look for more.

Right away!

At your service.

Show-offs.

Koki, can you give me a hand
rearranging these canisters.

We'll move the
grass smell solution

over with the other plants.

Ugh, why'd you make
so much of this?

Whoa!
Whoa!

(Grunting)

Oops.

(Sniffing)
Now we smell like
savannah grass.

Oh, great, grass perfume.

Well, at least we don't
smell like warthog musk.

The Miniaturizer!

Oops. Did I say that already?

Ugh, we just can't
get a break today.

Ah!
Ah!

What is it?

A termite, I think.

He's kind of cute.

Hey, wait, put me down!

Oh, no, you don't!
You'll have to get past me!

Wha!

Hey, that's not fair.

Look, there must be
some kind of mistake.

We're getting carried off
by termites.

I'd say there's a mistake,
all right.

Hey, easy on the jaw grip there,
termite.

I know karate.

Hi-ya!

Ow. Termite jaws are tough,
and strong.

Koki, they're collecting grass!

And we smell like grass.

So, they think we're just
another blade of grass.

Of course they do.

Wait, don't they eat grass?

It's Jimmy!

Jimmy!
Jimmy!

I think he hears us!

His music's too loud!

Jimmy!

We're down here!
We're down here!

With King Kong termites!

Help!
Help!

(Sniffing)

Oh yeah,
more smells in the house.

Koki?

Aviva?

Anyone?

They're gone!

Hey!
Ah!

All right!

(Grunting)

Whoa!

Sorry JZ.

They're gone!

Huh? Aviva and Koki?
Are you sure?

They always tell me
when they're leaving.

They know I panic.

Look at this!

Someone spilled something.

(Sniffing)

Savannah grass.

Aww.

The whole canister
got knocked over.

Which knocked down
the Miniaturizer.

And judging by
the angle it's on,

the beam was pointing
right to... the puddle.

Footprints: Koki and Aviva.

It gets worse! Look!

Termite prints.

What?

A-ha!

Termites. Mystery solved.

What? What? What's solved?

Don't you see, JZ?

They dropped the grass scent
on themselves--

Accidentally got miniaturized--

And termites carried them off.

Voila!

Yeah, I knew that.

What?

We got to find them.

But there are
millions of termites

all over the African savannah,

more than
all the mammals combined!

And lots of creatures
eat termites.

Now, they're with
the armies of termites,

heading right into the middle of
a predator-prey battle zone.

Oh, we got to find them fast!

We'll need some creature power
help for this creature rescue.

Let's split up!

I'll use the power
of the termites

to infiltrate the colonies
and search for them there.

And I'll use the powers
of termite predators

to hunt down
as many termites as I can.

And I'll just freak out.

(Sighing)

Wait!

Termites.

Activate Termite Power!

♪

Termites, here I come! Woo-hoo!

Hey, guys. Ready for
another worker in the colony?

Okay, I get it.

There are already
millions of you.

But have you seen two girls

that smell strangely
like savannah grass?

Hmm.

Guess not.

Did Aviva add a new feature
to this suit?

Whoa. My antenna are picking up
a termite pheromone.

Ah, there it is,
a pathway of chemical pheromones

that shows all the termites
the way back to the nest.

Okay, termite pals,

let's ride this pheromone
highway straight to your nest.

And hopefully,
Aviva and Koki are there.

Oh yeah,
this is the way to do it,

stick with one of the best
termite finders on the planet.

Lead me to 'em, aardwolf.

Imagine that, being able
to hear termites chewing.

The ears...

Oh, if only I could hear
termites cutting grass

like she can.

Jackpot!

You just can't hide from the
hearing power of the aardwolf.

Ooh, then the tongue comes out,
that fat, sticky tongue.

It's the aardwolf's
built-in termite collector.

Oh, hey, wait a second,
not so fast!

One of those might be
my friends!

Slow down.
You're like a machine.

I know you can eat thousands
in one sitting,

but I can't keep up!

Aviva! Koki!

Aviva! Koki!

If you see a couple
that look like little people,

just don't eat 'em, okay?

Termite overload!

Are we there yet?

All right, already, you don't
have to be so rough about it.

Koki, look!

What are they doing?

I read about this during the
Food Web Challenge that we did.

They grow a special fungus
on the grass.

That fungus helps
break down the plant

so that when the termites
eat it, they get more energy.

Whoa, so this is like a kitchen

where they make the food
for the whole colony.

Ew. No. I told you
I'm not a piece of grass!

Looks kind of pretty.

Yeah, thanks.

Okay, we have no idea where we
are, no way to call for help.

So, there's only
one thing to do.

Make fungus hats?

Hmm? No, we've got to
find a way out of here.

First, let's get this
grass smell off of us

so we don't get carried right
back to the grass kitchens.

Come on!

I hope those creature bros
are looking for us,

because I'm no termite expert.

Who knows what's
down these tunnels?

My antenna are picking up
another pheromone.

Hmmm, what's this
new smell signal?

(Grunting)

What's going on?

Termite stampede!

Soldier termites,
with giant heads and giant jaws!

That danger pheromone
called them in. But why?

Oh, that's why.

The soldiers are using
their jaw defense

to protect their
fellow termites.

All for one and one for all!

Back off!

(Grunting)

Whoa!

Whoa!

Aviva? Koki?

Martin! It's me!

Oh, I thought I heard
a girlish scream.

Real funny.

Hey, aardwolf,
don't eat this termite here.

He's my brother and--

Ah! What's that?

Ah!

Talk about a girlish scream.

Ew!

Bad tasting terpenes
that no predator likes to eat.

(Groaning)

As soon as there are more
yucky soldier termites around

than the tastier
worker termites,

the aardwolf's out of here to
find a fresh batch of termites.

Yes, we did it! Ha-ha!
Great job, guys.

Oh yeah.

The aardwolf has great
termite finding powers.

And the termites have an answer:
tough defenses.

Whoa, got to go.

These guys are on their way
back to the nest,

safely underground where
aardwolves can't dig to.

And I've got to get some termite
hunting powers that I can use.

Aviva and Koki
are out there somewhere.

And we're not going to
stop till we find them.

♪

(Crunching)

Yes!

I knew it would work!

Make the sound of
a termite cutting grass

and attract a bat-eared fox.

Oh, those ears are incredible,

times better at hearing
than a human's ears.

This is my
second termite predator.

A little closer and he'll be
in touching range.

Huh?

Where'd he go?

I didn't fool you, did I?

You heard me talking to myself,
didn't you?

Yeah, thought so.

Activate bat-eared fox power!

♪

Yes!

Now, I have some of the greatest

termite-hunting powers
in the world.

No termite can hide from me now.

What's that?

A-ha!

That was easy.

Aviva? Koki? You there?

Hmm, nothing.

Aviva? Koki?

Aviva? Koki?

Aviva? Koki?

Yes, the harvester termite nest!

Not much on the outside,

but down there is the
underground home to millions.

Basic nest plan ready.

Let's see:

tunnels, food storage,
nursery for the baby termites.

I'm going in!

There are so many tunnels.

We'll never find our way
out of this maze.

Somehow, we will. We have to.

I just wish I was back in
the Tortuga, inventing stuff.

(Gasping)

What? I'm serious.

I know the guys love
this adventure stuff.

But I'd rather make
cool inventions.

Oh! Oh! Whoa!

Why are you so surprised?

I'm... I'm not surprised.
I'm freaked out!

What is that thing?

Ah!

Gross. Gross. Don't move.
It looks hungry.

She tastes way better than me.

Hmm?

Sorry.

Ah!
Ah!

Aviva? Koki?

Hmm?

I hear termites.

I'm lucky I found you,
because unlike the aardwolf,

you bat-eared foxes
have the digging power

to get into
these underground nests.

(Grunting)

Help me!

Tiny voices! We're close!

Aviva! Koki! We're on our way!

Yes! Fox Martin to the rescue!

Will you stop finding me!

Oh, I thought you were them!

I thought I found
Koki and Aviva.

Nope. It's me.
And time is running out now.

The longer it takes
to find them--

The longer they're out there
in the middle of this w*r

between the termites
and the tongues.

We've got to step it up, dude.

Check this out: wings!

Some termites have them to
disperse and start new colonies.

And it's time for me to search
a different species:

one whose nests you can't
bust into, even with fox paws.

And I'll keep searching
the ground nests.

Hey, I'm on a roll.
I found you, right?

Yeah, twice.

Oh, you again. Hey, warty.

Here it is: home of
the macrotermes termites.

Now, this is a true fortress.

It's hard as concrete and
built with pure termite power,

right, workers?

Built with sand and termite
spit, one grain at a time.

If we humans built a building
this much bigger than us,

it'd be seven times taller

than the tallest building
in the world:

another amazing termite defense

against the digging
termite eaters.

Aviva's shoe?

Where? How? Oh no!
I hope I'm not too late.

Aviva! Koki!

Martin! Come in!

Go, Chris.

I think I found them,
but I just hope they're okay.

Huh?

Hmm.

KOKI:
Get out of here!

Oh no!

Call you back.

AVIVA:
Help me!

Huh?

No! I'm too late!

Too late for what?

Huh? You're okay!

We're fine.

But you were yelling
"Help me!" and stuff.

Yeah, "Help me
count these eggs."

There are thousands of them.

That's because you found
the queen termite,

the mother of every
single termite in the colony!

Big Momma T! She's harmless.

Every single termite?

Yeah, she lays about , eggs

every single day
for her entire lifetime,

years of egg laying.

Get out of here!

That's million eggs,
million!

The queen termite is the key

to the termites'
greatest power of all,

their best defense
against predators too:

the power of numbers.

Hey, my shoe. Thanks.

These termites
keep taking everything.

Yeah, like taking these eggs to
the nursery where they hatch.

They can do such amazing things

because they're all
working together,

like build this fortress!

And battle the termite eaters.

Now that's teamwork!

Hey, speaking of teamwork,
I got to call Martin.

(Gasping)

Oh no. I'm picking up
a pheromone.

It's saying...

"Someone's trying to
break into the mound!"

(Gasping)

(Rumbling)

Martin! Come in!

Is that you up there?

Up where? Where are you?

I found Aviva and Koki!
We're all safe inside a colony.

Ah! You call this safe?

But we're being att*cked.

Huh?

Whoa!

Now that's a crazy tongue!

Attack of the tongue!

Chris! Chris!

You're breaking up.

In a fortress mound,
att*cked by a tongue.

Who's tongue?
Which termite eater?

Hmm?

An aardwolf?

No, skinnier than that!

A bat-eared fox?

(Gasping)

No, much longer than that!

Ah!

A honey badger?

Longer.

Stickier.

it's the tongue of all tongues!

Look, I'll just send you
the coordinates!

Uh-oh!

Chris? Chris?

Oh no, not good.

Okay, let's see, super long
tongue, super sticky,

and with digging powers that can
bust into a termite fortress?

(Gasping)

That can only be one creature:

the granddaddy
of termite predators,

the aardvark!

Got to find that aardvark!

(Gasping)

Stand back, we're using our jaw
and chemical spray defense.

He won't like the taste of this!

(Grunting)

It's safety in numbers.

Every termite lives and dies for
the safety of the whole colony.

Yeah, great,
but I'm not a termite.

I'd rather not get slurped up
by a giant tongue.

Ah!

Whoa!

Koki!

Ah!

(Grunting)

Ah!

(Groaning)

Nice save, Aviva.

Yeah, thanks, Aviva.

No problem.

Ooh.
Ooh.

Problem.

The tongue strikes again.

Whoa!
Whoa!

Jaw defense!

Well, it was nice
knowing you guys.

I never thought I'd end up food
of a termite eater!

Chemical defense!

Take that!

Jaw defense!

Chemical defense!

Jaw defense!

Goodbye, Koki.

Goodbye, Aviva.

Whoa!

Huh?

Martin?

How's that for
a creature rescue?

Ow! Ah!

Easy on the termite defense ,
bro.

(Coughing)

Yuck.

Oh, sorry 'bout that, bro!

Sure am glad
it was you this time.

I got here just in time!

Our friends Slurpy and Slurpy's
mom were in the middle of lunch.

They're the ones
that found you first

with those amazing
termite finding ears,

that termite-sniffing nose,

those termite-digging claws.

By the way, get us off!

I'm ready to be
human-sized again!

Yes! I'm me again!

You guys can have
your adventures.

It's back
inventing for me.

My turn!

At least now I have
some new smell samples

for our collection:

termite fungus
and aardvark breath.

It really is amazing how smell
is so important to creatures.

Yup, they help predators
find their prey.

And help
other creatures communicate

and defend themselves.

Yeah, the battle for survival

between the termites and
the tongues is serious stuff.

Hey, and even though it's a
battle, the prey-- the termite--

have the defenses
they need to survive.

And the predators--

the aardvarks, aardwolves,
bat-eared foxes--

have the powers they need
to find food and survive.

KOKI:
Ah!

I don't know if I have
what I need to survive

if you guys don't hurry up
and hit that button now!

(Laughing)

Zap it!

So, predators and prey
often find a balance

between a predator's ability
to catch prey--

And the prey's ability

to defend and protect itself
from attack.

In the case of the termite,

the best time
to see them in action

is at night
when they're most active.

And now,
in the middle of the night,

the termite colony
is bustling with activity.

The workers are busy building up
the colony and adding to it.

And the soldiers
are standing guard

to make sure
they're well protected.

Termites are master builders.

This is the top of the mound.

And all of these termites
are building it even higher.

If you look closely,
you can see these wet patches.

That's where the termites
are building up the wall

by mixing termite spit
with sand and dirt--

To create those
little termite bricks

that they add one by one
to the mound.

And then,
when the sun comes out,

the new patches of construction
dry, bake, and harden

to become part of
the fortress-like mound.

Oh, check it out: a spider.

Whoa.

Termite predators come in
all different sizes.

This spider waits
to ambush workers.

Hey, a gecko.

These geckos specialize
in eating termites.

They crawl around the mound,
living inside the tunnels,

and eating termites
whenever they feel hungry.

These termites, it seems like
everybody's after them.

It's not only the aardwolves
and the aardvarks.

It's also smaller predators,
like the spiders.

And even ants attack termites.

And even though
all these predators

are eating so many termites,

it's not really making a dent
in the termite colony

because the termites have
power in numbers.

There are millions and millions
of termites

in this mound and underground.

In fact, if you put
all the termites

that live here and beneath me
into one form,

they would be as large
as an elephant.

All right,
the sun is rising

and the termites' work
for the night is done.

They're all returning
to the darkness

of their underground world.

Termites are awesome, the prey
of so many creatures out here,

yet having the defenses
to take care of themselves

and survive in the wild.

We'll see you on
the creature trail.

Keep on creature adventuring.

♪

To find out more
about cool animals...

BOTH:
We'll see you there!