03x02 - The Cow Show

[bunniefuu]

Howdy, partners.

Today on kratts' creatures,

We're going to be talking
about cows--

Watching cows,
roaming with cows,

Living and breathing
nothing but cows.

Woo!

I reckon that
these here heifers

Are the pertiest darn cows
I ever did see!

What in tarnation?

Martin, this cow show
isn't about land cows.

It's about sea cows.

Well, what are we
doing here?

We got to get ourselves
in some water.

Let's go!

Iarriba!
Iandale, andale!

[Harmonica playing]

[Chris]
♪ home, home on the range

♪ Where the deer
and the antelope play-eeee... ♪

Oh, wow.

There's something
wrong with chris
and martin.

It sounds
like they're dying.

[Chris]
♪ and the skies
are not cloudy... ♪

Accessing
kratts' visuals.

Guys, are you o.k.?

[Chris]
♪ home, home on the range... ♪

Where are you guys?
It looks like--

Well,
you won't believe
what it looks like.

It looks like we're canoeing
through prairie grass

In the wild west.

Yeah. We arecanoeing
through grass,

But this is saw grass,

And we're in the everglades
of florida.

Under this grass flows
a huge, shallow river.

In the water, you can find
all sorts of creatures.

[Chris]
above water, the everglades
is an amazing creature habitat.

It's hopping and popping
with all kinds of life.

[Martin]
one of the wildest things
about the glades

Is that somewhere
swimming in all this water

Are cows--sea cows.

Did he say
"sea cows,"

Like moo dairy cows,
in the sea?

That's crazy.
Cows on farms,
maybe,

Cows pulling
wagons, maybe,

But cows do not live
in the sea.

"Sea cows--
look under manatee."

So what's a manatee?

[Ttark]
muddled misnamings!

You humans confuse me.

I don't know how you
keep these names straight--

Sea cows, sea horses,
sea lions.

You know,
you're right.

We humans
do give creatures

Some pretty weird
names.

We get pretty
confused about it,
too.

[Allison]
take the koala bear.

It isn't a bear,

And it's not related
to the bear family at all.

[Chris]
the koala's closest relative
is really a wombat,

And the wombat is not related
to a bat at all.

[Martin]
how about river wolves?

They're really giant otters and
have nothing to do with wolves.

[Allison]
parrotfish?

Their mouth may look a little
like a parrot's beak,

And they are colorful
like a parrot,

But these guys are
definitely not birds.

And it's not just creatures
we give odd names to.

For example,
I'm on a hammock.

And I'mon a hammock!

And now I'm confused.

Man, the everglades
is a really weird place.

Two types of hammocks?

I know it might sound
a little weird,

But this clump of land
jutting up out of the water

Is called a hammock...

And it's unique
to the everglades.

Hammocks
make perfect homes

For all kinds of
swamp creatures...

Like these tree snails,

Which have
a really neat pattern--

White with thin
brown lines...

[Martin]
unless you're
on another hammock,

Where the snails' shells
are a different color.

Because they're separated
by water,

Different hammocks have snails
with different color shells.

And they're all part
of the secret society

Of everglades' creatures.

I buy that the everglades
are an amazing creature habitat,

But what about
the so-called sea cows?

I can't find anything
about them,

Although trying to imagine
what they'd look like

Is kind of fun.

The only problem is,
where do we find them?

Doesn't sound
too easy to me.

[Chris]
it's not going to be easy,
but they're out there

Somewhere amongst
all this wildlife.

[Martin]
here in the everglades,

You'll see birds
from all over north america.

Humans aren't the only ones
to head to florida for winter.

When it starts to get cold
in the north,

Some birds hightail it
to the south.

[Chris]
and other birds
live here all year round.

[Allison]
hold it.

I've never seen so many birds
in my life.

Why are there so many of them
in the everglades?

[Chris]
that's because
there's so much food.

The shallow water provides
great breeding grounds

For fish and insects,
which attract wading birds,

Like herons...

[Martin]
purple gallinules,
and all kinds of egrets.

Egrets are only one variety

Of the 64 types
of herons.

There's one--
the green heron.

[Chris]
tricolored heron.

[Martin]
hey, that's a great egret.

[Chris]
I really like
the red egret.

[Martin]
there's the big daddy--
the great blue heron.

[Chris]
I've always wondered
how so many similar creatures

Can all live in one place.

[Martin]
it's because they eat different
foods at different times,

And they all have
different hunting styles.

[Chris]
but one thing
these herons have in common

Is that they all use
their long necks and sharp beaks

To catch fish.

[Martin]
o.k. We can learn
a few things from herons.

Let's check out their moves
in creature replay.

[Chris]
there's the neck-bobbing
heron hop...

[Martin]
the sudden fake out...

[Chris]
the heron dive b*mb!

[Martin]
hey, chris. I know we want
to get to sea cows,

But we can't pass this up--
a heron family!

Heron families are cool.

Mom and dad take turns
collecting sticks

To build a nest.

[Chris]
and they also take turns
raising the chicks.

[Martin]
raising chicks
can be demanding,

Especially
when they're hungry.

I get the picture.

Florida's wetlands aren't home
to just a few local birds.

It's a place for birds
from all over the world.

[Ttark]
when word gets out
a new wetland's opened up,

Who doesn't want to flock in
and check out the delicacies?

Hey, I remember going to florida
with my family

When I was knee-high
to an eohippus.

We had a ball!

And now, one animal who
doesn't just have a ball,

He becomesa ball--

The nine-banded armadillo.

Armadillo
is a spanish name.

It means
"little armored one."

[Martin]
he really does look tough,

Like he's wearing
a suit of armor.

[Chris]
but have you ever wondered
what his armor is made of?

Skin! It's a special type
of skin,

But it's still skin.

[Martin]
on top, an armadillo
is well-protected by armor.

Underneath, its belly
is soft and vulnerable.

So when a predator att*cks,

It either rolls
into a ball,

Digs into the ground,
or runs away.

You might be wondering
how an armor-plated animal

Gets by in the wetlands.

I mean,
can an armadillo swim?

Sure, it can!

[Chris]
it might seem impossible
with all that armor,

But armadillos fill themselves
full of air

And then just float
through the water.

This is driving me nuts!

Isn't there a picture of
a sea cow or manatee anywhere?

Everything else
is there but--

What was that?

Wood storks!

[Allison]
wow! There's something
I never expected to see.

Wood storks
are really rare.

There's only
about 600 left.

That puts them high up
on the endangered species list.

[Martin]
check this out.

The wood stork
sticks her beak in the water

And then stamps her feet.

[Chris]
that stirs up
nearby fish.

That's when the wood stork
uses her amazing powers

Of tacto-location.

[Martin]
what is tacto-location?

This water is so murky,
you can never see a fish in it,

So the wood stork
uses touch.

When she feels a fish
with her sensitive beak,

She'll snap
her beak shut fast,

And I mean fast.

This is awesome.

That wood stork grabbed dinner
in 25 milliseconds.

I got to replay this.

Here it comes again.

Amazing!


That's 1/40 of a second.

I didn't see it move.
I wonder how they do that.

To match a wood stork's
fish-catching speed

Of 1/40 of a second,

You have to be fast, loose,
and in good shape.

Ready.

[Martin]
let's go!

Hey, chris,
try the wood stork beak snap.

Way too slow
to catch a fish.

As far as wood stork
imitations go,

That was pathetic.

Oh, come on.
I almost
had him b*at.

[Allison]
but, guys,
what about those sea cows?

Have you found any signs?

Hmm. I think we're
getting closer.

Hey, look.
There's something
in the water.

It's either
a sea cow or...

A water moccasin!

[Martin]
one of the ways
you can i.d. A water moccasin

Is by the way
it floats on the surface.

[Chris]
other water snakes sink,

And you can only see
their heads above water.

Water moccasins are also
called cottonmouths.

They're one
of the most feared creatures

In the glades.

[Martin]
maybe because they're one of
the most poisonous snakes here.

[Chris]
hey, I think he's going
for that baby gator.

[Martin]
but the gator's out of here.

Hey, chris.
Check it out--needlefish!

Maybe he's
after those now.

There are all kinds of snakes
in the everglades.

Some, like this yellow
rat snake, are not poisonous

And are safe to handle.

Yellow rat snakes
don't need venom to catch prey

Because
they're constrictors.

That means
they squeeze their prey.

[Martin]
they're also
master tree climbers.

They slither up trees
to slurp up birds and eggs.

Check out
this climbing action.

[Chris]
around the glades,

There are snaggles
of slithering snakes.

[Martin]
of course, there's all kinds
of snakes in the glades

Because there's
tons of food to eat.

[Chris]
these snakes
may look scary,

But they're
not all venomous.

Others, like this eastern
diamondback rattlesnake,

Are venomous.

They can be extremely dangerous,
and you know what that means.

That means
it's time for...

Stupid things
not to do with animals.

[Gulp]

[Martin]
you should never use
a poisonous snake as a necktie.

Don't use the tip of his tail
to pick your teeth.

[Chris]
oh, and whatever you do,

Don't try to charm it
with a harmonica.

And when it comes
to rattlers,

The stupidest thing to do
is to get them rattled.

[Martin]
o.k., But wait a second.

Poisonous snakes
are not dangerous

If you give them
their space.

If you leave them alone,
they won't bother you,

But if you want
a closer look,

You have to be careful
and know what you're doing.

I'm wearing snake guards,
using a snake hook,

And have been trained
to handle venomous snakes.

You'd be crazy without those
to pick up a rattlesnake.

Hey, martin.

I hear something.

What? I'm busy.

Sea cows.
Come on.

Sea cows.

I don't hear anything.

Listen.

[Harp plays]

Oh, yeah.
You're right.

You found them?

You really found
the mysterious sea cows?

Either that or...

[In unison]
mermaids.

Did they say mermaids?

Did you know
there is a connection

Between sea cows
and mermaids?

I can't believe
the mermaids thing is real.

Some folks in the old days
were really sunstroked.

We know mermaids
are mythical women

Who are half fish
and half human.

Well, according to this,

Ancient greek myths
tell of sailors

Who were traveling
near treacherous waters

When they heard
a beautiful song.

Listen,
my greek brother.

Do you hear
that beautiful song?

Yes. Let's follow it.

[Allison]
they followed the beautiful song
until they saw

What they thought
was a beautiful woman,

But not really a woman.

She was half fish.
In other words, a mermaid!

Is it really
a mermaid, brother?

I don't know.

Perhaps we've been
out at sea too long.

That would explain
the other thing.

What other thing?

The screen's getting
all wavy again.


Remembered those myths

And thought the sea cows
were mermaids.

[Chris]
that's because they have
armlike flippers

And their body shape
looks kind of like a human's.

How do you know
so much about them?

[Martin]
because we just found them!

Manatees!

We're finally going
to see sea cows?

They don't look
very human to me.

[Chris]
ah, more needlefish.

[Allison]
there they are.

[Martin]
wow! Manatees
are funny-looking.

I'm going to get
a closer look.

[Chris]
these guys are so mellow--

Just floating around

Like they don't have
a care in the world.

[Martin]
they sort of look like

A strange combo
of different creatures,

Like one part whale

And two parts walrus
minus the tusks,

But they're not related
to either of them.

[Chris]
as long as I remain calm
and move slowly,

I can get close.

Whoa!
I'm in a manatee sandwich!

[Martin]
all right!

Let's do the manatee
inverted flipper spin!

[Chris]
no question about it,

Manatees are up there as being
the most easygoing creatures

We've ever hung with.

Manatees love getting scratched
on the belly...

[Martin]
or under the chin.

They jiggle
when you scratch them.

You know what?

I don't think they have anything
to do with cows.

They look more like--
I'm right!

One of the closest relatives
of the manatee

Is one
of the largest land animals--

The elephant.

[Trumpeting]

There's got to be
similarities, right?

[Chris]
there must be some evidence of
their taxonomical relationship.

[Martin]
there's got to be
some clues.

Let's cross-check
the manatee...

[Chris]
and the elephant.

[Martin]
manatees use their flippers

To walk along
the bottom of the river,

And everybody knows elephants
use their legs to walk.

[Chris]
the tip
of the manatees' flippers

Have four toenails.

The elephants
have four, too.

[Martin]
o.k. There are
some big similarities,

But now let's take a look
at the differences.

The manatee
uses his wide, powerful tail

To sh**t
through the water...

While the elephant uses his tail
to shoo away flies.

[Chris]
the manatee has eyes

Specially designed
for use underwater,

With a special membrane
to protect his eyeballs.

The elephant doesn't,

But their eyes
do look really similar.

[Martin]
the manatee has
special nostril covers,

While an elephant

Has his famous trunk
to get at food and water.

The manatee's nostril covers
help him do something crucial--

Hold his breath.

[Chris]
manatees can really
hold their breath.

They usually breathe
every two to three minutes,

But if they want to,

They can stay under
for 20 minutes.

[Submarine horn]

Humans can only last...




Come on.

That thing
must be broken.

That's a good question--

What animal can hold
their breath the longest?

[Martin]
the sea turtle can hold
his breath for two hours.

[Chris]
the sea lion can hold it
for 30 minutes.

[Martin]
the platypus
can go for three minutes.

Not bad for a monotreme.

[Chris]
the dolphin can hack it
for seven minutes.

[Martin]
I guess being mellow
must help the sea cow.


Not bad.

[Chris]
this is unbelievable.

This manatee is holding
her breath while she sleeps.

When she needs more air,
all she does is lift her head.

[Martin]
this is why we're seeing
so many manatees--

Hot springs.

Manatees love
to spend the cold winter

In warm water.

[Chris]
with so many manatees around,

Food becomes
a little harder to find...

So they get a little less picky
about the plants they eat.

That looks just like--
just like a cow grazing.

Maybe that's how they
got their name sea cow.

I mean, these guys eat
heavy-duty amounts of plants--

A couple hundred pounds
a day.

Over 100 pounds
of vegetation a day?

Wow!

Look what I found!

Ugh! I'll give this
to a manatee.

A manatee fart!

[Chris]
talk about
an underwater power pump.

[Allison]
hey, what's he doing--

Chewing, tugging,
or flossing?

Manatees like
to floss their teeth

On ropes
that hang off the boats.

Well, he's not
exactly flossing.

Nobody really knows
what he's doing.

[Chris]
a lot of people think sea cows
eat the algae off ships' ropes.

I just think
they like to chew on things.

[Martin]
hey, check out
his weird upper lip.

He uses it like two hands
to grab onto food.

Now, that's pretty cool.

The manatees of the everglades
are incredible.

[Ttark]
the manatees of the everglades?

That's just one side
of the family.

What about
the steller's sea cow?

That was one
big, buoyant bovine!

A couple hundred years ago,
he was all over the place.

Man! He wasthe place!

[Allison]
they even lived

In the freezing waters
of the bering sea.

They were tons bigger
than the everglades manatees.

They were 26 feet long
and up to 4 tons in weight.

That's a lot of sea cow.

[Chris]
steller's sea cows
were hunted to extinction,

But fortunately,

Manatees are protected.

In florida,
it's illegal to hunt manatees.

Whoa!

Boats like that

Are one of the biggest dangers
to manatees.

And they've
got scars
to prove it.

[Allison]
are those scars there?

[Martin]
no, but the young manatees
have it.

[Chris]
manatee zits?

[Martin]
I don't know.

[Chris]
this is algae, which grows
on the manatee's skin.

It may sound bizarre,

But that algae
actually provides food

For all kinds of fish...

And even food
for other manatees!

Now, these are scars
made by boat propellers.

The problem
is that sea cows

Swim close to the surface,

And they swim slowly.

[Martin]
they can't get out of the way
of a fast-moving boat...

[Chris]
and a lot of manatees get hurt
or k*lled by speedboats.

[Martin]
look at this guy.

He lost half his tail
to a boat propeller.

[Chris]
look out!

He's coming
straight towards us!

[Martin]
dive!

All right! You got the manatees
out of the way!

[Chris]
yeah. We got lucky here,

But people
have to help these creatures.

[Martin]
yeah. We've got
to do something more.

[Allison]
what about this--

Something called
crystal river refuge?

Guys, what could
crystal river refuge be?

[Chris]
we're way ahead of you.

I love it
when that happens!

This is
crystal river refuge.

It has warm-water springs,

Which make it
a perfect winter home

For manatees
on florida's west coast.

So we made it
to the wild west!

Let's check out
the herd. Yee-ha!

You know what, ttark?

Sometimes humans
are weird about creatures,

Like naming animals sea cow--
it doesn't always make sense.

[Martin]
one thing that makes sense
is that the world

Is a much cooler place
with sea cows floating around.