05x02 - Australia: Land of Mystery and Intrigue

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[Martin]
welcome, creature fans,
to the land down under.

[Chris]
australia!

And it's
an amazing continent.

[Martin]
amazing and completely
different.

You know, I wonder what
the first european settlers

Thought of australia.

[British accent]
I say, old boy,

Australia looks like
a keen place to set up shop.

Quite.

[Chris]
but they didn't really know

What to make of
australian creatures.

They were like nothing
they had ever seen before.

[British accent]
oh, I say,
christopher,

Look over there.

I see a big-footed
rabbit...

And a duck-faced
otter!

And a winged fox!

Well, that's what
theythought, anyway.

In this episode
of kratts' creatures,

We'll check out them
and other creatures

And see how
they arrived down under.

Iarriba!
Iandale! Iandale!

[Barking]

Australia has animals

That can't be found
anywhere else in the world,

Like the red kangaroo

That can grow as tall
as 6 feet

And the tasmanian devil

And the little
blue fairy penguin.

But not all australian animals
originated here.

Some arrived as visitors
and stayed.

We're going to
take a look at

The animals that
ruled australia

Before people arrived

And take a look at
those animals

That don't quite fit in.

[Awoo]

[Allison]
hold it.

If we're going to tell the story
of australian animals,

Then we've got to tell
the story of australia,

Which wasn't always
australia.

Check this out...

Because it's
going to be cool.

This is how the earth
looks today,

And this is how it looked
millions of years ago.

Antarctica, africa, india,
south america, and australia

Were one giant,
colossal mega-continent

Called gondwanaland,

And you'll never believe
who the first creatures were.

Gondwanaland dates back
about 190 million years,

And that was a time
when most earth creatures

Lived in the sea,

And these guys
you're seeing here

Are their relatives.

Believe it or not,
if you got in a time machine

And went back


You'd find sharks cruising off
the shores of gondwanaland.

Gondwanaland?
We just called it home.

And believe me, you really
knew your neighbors then.

But...look out!

Sea levels changing,
the earth moving,

Then cr*ck--australia
headed out on its own.

It's sad when a continent
has to leave the nest.

But that's what makes australia
so different,

Isn't it?

I mean, the creatures
were out there all alone

And undisturbed by anything.

[Ttark]
undisturbed?

What could be
more disturbing

Than your home
constantly on the move?

I used to be able
to visit friends

In south america
and antarctica

On the way to australia.

Next thing you know,
I'm swimming in from new guinea.

Al! Al! Al!
Are you listening to me?

Yeah, ttark. I'm just
trying to find something

That would have been
around then,

Like...a goanna 25 feet long

That weighed over a ton?

That's a big goanna.

[Ttark]
hey, the guy wasn't
just big.

He was the biggest.

We used to call him
the big ripper,

And it wasn't just
about size, al.

This guy took his job
very seriously.

He used to be the number-one
predator in all of australia.

Now, here's what goannas
look like today--

Only about 4 feet long
and clocking around 4 pounds.

As you can see, the rip's
lost a little weight

Since the pleistocene era,

But, uh, hey,

A lot of us have slimmed down
since those days.

I remember proctoptodon,
king of the kangaroos.

He could eat the leaves right
off of the top of the trees.

Oh, and diprotodon--
bigger than the rhino.

Then, of course,
the monotremes!

[Allison]
you mean the monotremes
were around back then?

They're that old?

Hey, you're only
as old as you feel.

We're looking for
the great-granddaddy

Of all
australian mammals--

The monotreme called
the duck-billed platypus.

[Chris]
so what is a monotreme anyway?

[Martin]
we know what mammals are.

They're creatures
like deer, red foxes...

Sea lions, or horses.

These are creatures

Who have hair
and give milk to their young.

Their young are born
as complete little animals,

Like this baby horse.

[Chris]
he looks pretty
out of it now,

But he'll be up
and running with his mom

Before you know it.

So all mammals give birth
to live young, right?

[Chris]
nope.

Monotremes are mammals,
but they lay eggs,

Like birds.

Check out these wild turkeys.

They lay a clutch of eggs
in the grass.

[Martin]
hey, chris,
and how about sea turtles?

They come up on the beach

And lay a hundred eggs
in the sand,

And then the babies
dig themselves out...

[Chris]
and head for the ocean.

And then you
have sea gulls.

They lay an egg or two
on the ground,

Just like turkeys.

[Martin]
sharks.

Can you believe
that in this egg case,

There's a baby shark?

[Chris]
how about frogs,

Who lay their eggs
in a jellylike glob?

[Chris]
so now back
to the monotremes--

Mammals that lay eggs.

But if you're trying
to find one,

You got to know
where they hang out.

He hangs out
in burrows
and riverbanks

Most of the day,

But he's really
hard to find.

Some of the burrows
can be 100 feet deep.

[Chris]
maybe you should
check it out

And see if
he's home.

O.k.

See anything?

[Garbled]

Hey, there he goes!

[Chris]
look at the way he swims.

He uses his front feet
to paddle

And his back feet
to steer.

Uh!

[Chris]
and now the creature
question of the day.

[Martin]
no!

There's one more.

Presenting...the echidna!

An echidna has spines
like a porcupine,

But an echidna's spines
don't come out,

Although they do
provide protection.

[Chris]
hey, look at this echidna.

It's nosing around for ants.

Ages ago, mammals that
laid eggs, like monotremes,

Were actually pretty common,

But they had to deal with
some serious predators,

And I mean serious,
like, say,

The dinosaurs.

[Creature growls]

[Chris]
of course,
the dinosaurs d*ed out.

But the monotremes?

They survived.

It must have been
great back then

For monotremes like
the platypus and the echidna

Having this whole
continent to themselves...

Kind of like it was
before chris was born,

And I had my room
all to myself.

[Chris]
of course, they weren't
really alone.

Just like martin had to share
his room when I came along,

The monotremes had to
share australia

With another
group of creatures--

The marsupials.

[Martin]
marsupials are mammals
that carry their young around

In a pouch until they're ready
for the outside world.

[Chris]
we're talking about
kangaroos

And their relatives,
the wallabies,

Who look a lot
like kangaroos.

Then there's
that eucalyptus-eating
little tree hugger--

The koala.

And don't forget
that famous scavenger--

The tasmanian devil.

So marsupials invaded
the monotremes' territory.

The monotremes must have
been in shock.

You bet. But do you know
where kangaroos started?

Sure, in...

[Ttark]
here's a clue.



Marsupials made their first
appearance in north america,

Which, as you can see,

Is more than just a quick hop
to australia.

So how did they get there?

Well, they worked their way
through europe and asia

And south america
and across antarctica

To australia.

[Chris]
then the continents
separated even more,

And australia became
surrounded by water,

But even then,
other creatures kept on coming.

[Allison]
but you know what
I don't get?

Where did they come from?

I mean,
australia's a country

Floating out
in the middle of the ocean.

So how did all
the creatures arrive?

It's a pretty big trip,
if you ask me.

[Martin]
no kidding.

We know how we humans
travel around.

But how did animals
make it here?

[Chris]
some placentals came
to australia by flying in...

Like the flying fox.

Some swam in,
like sea lions.

[Barking]

And some just hitched a ride

On whatever happened
to be passing by.

When you think about it,
creatures have to travel

From one continent
to another somehow...

And they'll use just about
anything for transportation.

[Martin]
now, blue fairy penguins,
they made it on their own.

They came to australia
from new zealand

A long, long time ago.

[Chris]
sea lions also arrived
in australia a long time ago,

And since then, they've evolved
into their own species

That is completely unique
to this continent.

[Sea lions barking]

[Martin]
hey, and with beaches like this,
who'd want to leave?

[Chris]
bats probably made
the journey to australia

About 15 million years ago,

And now there's about


[Martin]
there's the grey-headed
flying fox.

[Chris]
and martin's checking out
a black flying fox.

[Martin]
these two species like
to hang out together.

The flying foxes--

At least they moved to
australia quietly.

The next creature to arrive
sure made a big noise

About the fact
that he'd set up camp.

Let me guess.
You're talking
about humans, right?

[Ttark]
absotively.

[Martin]
they got here
around 40,000 years ago

By canoe or raft,

And they probably came
from southeast asia.

The aborigines have a lot of
respect for this country.

They believe that
every rock, every tree,

And every animal

Contains the spirit
of their ancestors.

But you know, they had
a pretty big impact

On the land
and the wildlife.

[Martin]
and so did something else.

Some people think...

It came to australia
with the aborigines,

And its name was dog.

[Dog barks]

Hey, wait a minute.

That's the first dog
to come to australia?

I don't think so.

I think the dog
we're really talking about

Is the dingo,

And that's a whole
other story in itself.

[Chris]
when dingoes arrived,

They found a whole bunch
of new prey.

[Awoo]

[Dingoes barking]

Wow! When humans
brought dingoes to australia,

They really tore
the place apart.

It must have been a mega-shock
for the other creatures.

[Chris]
exactly.

The dingo was
a new predator,

And it caught a lot
of native animals by surprise.

We're not going to say
that dingoes are evil predators.

Just take a look at it
from their perspective.

This was a land
crawling with prey

That was simple to catch.

The dingoes
took full advantage of it,

And they spread
all over australia.

"The dingo is
a feral animal."

Feral?

"A domesticated creature
that became wild."

Cool.
But wait a sec.

How does a domestic animal
become wild?

I mean, do they just
wake up one morning

And decide to run away?

[Ttark]
not exactly, al.

There's another way
to look at it.

What do you mean?

Most of the feral animals
in australia

Were purposely
put into the wild by humans.

Sorry, ttark,
but it isn't all man's fault.

It says here that when
europeans arrived in australia,

There were creatures
like mice and rats

Who just happened to
hitch a ride on their ships.

You can't blame men
for that.

[Ttark]
you're not getting out
of this one, al.

Humans were sloppy.

I mean, water buffalo,
foxes, and rabbits

Were brought over for fun.

So what's wrong
with a few rabbits?

[Ttark]
a few rabbits?

Sure, that's how
it started,

But then you know
what happened.

[Chris]
they're wild, they're mean,
they're hungry...

[Martin]
and they're multiplying!

[Chris]
they're the k*ller bunnies!

[Martin]
can they be stopped?

Rabbits were brought
to australia from england

Mainly for amusement.

People liked hunting them
with g*ns and greyhounds.

One settler released 23 rabbits
on his land.

Next thing you know,
there were 20,000.

[Martin]
what he probably didn't know

Is that a female rabbit
can become pregnant

When she's only


And can have as many
as 25 babies in a single year.

That's a lot of rabbits.

They ate so much grass
that little native creatures,

Similar to this guy,
just couldn't get enough to eat,

And they disappeared.

Ttark wasn't kidding
about rabbits,

But there were
other feral animals

Who were eating
the native creatures

Out of house and home,

Not just the bunnies.

Like cane toads.

Humans brought them in
to get rid of beetles,

But it didn't work.

They still have beetles
and now lots of cane toads.

And the rat,
which came as a stowaway.

And goats, which were
later set free.

[Goats bleating]

And the fox,
which was brought as sport.

[Foxes barking]

This fox mother
has five kits to feed,

And that isn't easy
with so much competition.

Well, that settles it.

I'm convinced. If you ask me,
of all the continents,

Australia's had it
the roughest.

[Ttark]
but, al, north america
also had newcomers.

What happened
in north america?

What, you never
heard of the horse?

Actually, ttark's right.

I thought horses were
always in north america,

But they weren't.

They started here but d*ed out


And like
some australian animals,

North american horses
are feral.

The spanish brought them here
in the 1500s.

The horses eventually
went wild and ran away,

Which was bad news
for native animals,

Like pronghorn antelope,

Bison...

And deer...

Because they had to share
all the grazing land.

But north america
isn't the only place

They've had problems
with horses.

In australia, they've got...

Brumbies!

[Martin]
it might be a little weird
to think of horses running wild

Because we know them so well
as domesticated animals.

[Chris]
but they're out here,

And they're living
without any help from people.

Wild horses eat
the same vegetation

That native australian animals
need to survive.

[Ttark]
wait a minute.
There it is again--

All this negativity
about feral animals.

They're not all bad.

I don't get it.

You and the guys say that,
but according to this,

They ate all
the native animals' food.

I mean, look at the dingo.

He's wiped out all sorts
of creatures.

Sure, but he chows down
on nice, juicy rabbits.

Mmm.

And that helps keep
the rabbit population down,

Which leaves food
for some native animals.

So one animal keeps
another animal in check

By making him his dinner,

And that in turn frees up
some food for other animals.

That's kind of neat.

[Ttark]
it's just nature
doing its own balancing act,

Adjusting to correct
human mistakes.

So, just like dingoes
aren't all bad,

Sometimes humans
aren't all bad, either.

Name one example.

Camels.

[Chris]
there are only about 25,000
wild one-humped camels

Left in the world,

And they all live here
in australia.

These camels
are the descendants of camels

Brought to australia
by humans

Between 1840 and 1907.

Camels were used to
get around in the outback,

But then in the 1920s,
cars showed up,

And they were a lot easier
to get around with
than camels,

So people just
let their camels loose

To live in the wild.

Up. Up.

Get on, camel.

[Chris]
why are one-humped camels
so good at surviving

In hot climates
like the australian desert?

[Martin]
because they're
designed for it.

They're masters
at conserving water.

[Chris]
they don't sweat
until their body temperatures

Hit 104 degrees fahrenheit.

[Martin]
camels can go a mega-long time
without drinking.

[Chris]
up to two months.

And the hump is filled with fat
that when broken down

Gives the camel
both food and water.

[Martin]
you know, another cool thing
about camels

Is that they don't mate
during a food shortage.

[Chris]
but when they do mate,

A single calf
is born a year later.

Their populations became strong
here in australia,

While everywhere else
in the world,

They went extinct.

[Martin]
there are domesticated camels
elsewhere,

But thanks to people,

Australia is the only place
with wild ones.

Well,
let's go this way.

[Laughs]

He saw a nice piece
of grass he liked.

Come on. Get up.

[Allison]
so, you see?

People were crucial
to the survival

Of one-humped camels.

Can't blame us
for everything, ttark.

O.k. Maybe it's just that I miss
the old gondwanaland days,

You know,
before the family split up.

Which reminds me--
it's time for me to split.

Hee hee. Uh, sorry.
Almost forgot myself.

You know, he's weird.

O.k., Guys, what are we
going to check out next?

Hey, what's going on?

O.k., We've got
our creature packs.

[Chris]
we have all our
camping gear.

Map's right here.

Now all we need is
a good, strong tailwind,

And we're out of here.

What? You're
leaving australia?

Sure, australia's
a great place to visit,

But the last thing
it needs

Is two more strange
creatures moving in.

I suppose you're right.

Maybe it's time to give
the great southland a break

And let the creatures
do what they need to do.

After all, isn't that part of
what makes australia

As cool as it is--
creatures?

[Awoo]

[Allison]
"the creature world
in australia

"Has gone through
a lot of changes.

"What humans should
learn is that

"When we move into
a place and cause changes,

"It can have a serious impact

On the local wildlife
and community."

In other words,
we have to be more careful

With the creature world.

I think we should go
to central america.

No way! Africa!

We've got to
do africa.

Hey, wait a minute.
How did he get here?

We've got a stowaway!

We got to go back.

The last thing
we want to do

Is start
a wombat invasion
in africa.

Turn around.