0:00:02 > 0:00:04My name's Steve Backshall.
0:00:04 > 0:00:06You can call me Steve.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11I'm on a mission to find the Deadly 60.
0:00:11 > 0:00:12Ow!
0:00:12 > 0:00:15That's 60 deadly creatures from around the world.
0:00:15 > 0:00:17TIGER ROARS
0:00:17 > 0:00:19And you're coming with me every step of the way.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Ow!
0:00:31 > 0:00:33We're here, in Louisiana, USA
0:00:33 > 0:00:37looking for the swamp beasts with the biggest bite.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41Louisiana is in the heart of the Deep South.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44It's hot and humid and there's a lot of water about.
0:00:44 > 0:00:49The perfect place for all sorts of cool deadly critters to hang out
0:00:49 > 0:00:51and in particular, reptiles.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55It's what many people call "gator country".
0:00:55 > 0:00:57And what's a gator?
0:00:57 > 0:01:00Well, it's a word you'll be hearing a fair bit in this programme.
0:01:00 > 0:01:02You could say it's my fee.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07This part of the States, the best known top-of-the-line predator
0:01:07 > 0:01:08is the alligator.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11And the first animal we're looking for is, well,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14it's a kind of alligator and this is its skull.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17But believe it or not, it's not a type of crocodile.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19It's not even a reptile.
0:01:19 > 0:01:24In fact, this amazing skull and that face full of teeth
0:01:24 > 0:01:26belong to a fish.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30The first stage for us to find one of these giant fish
0:01:30 > 0:01:33was to get some help from a few locals.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35And then we took to the water.
0:01:37 > 0:01:42This part of Louisiana is an absolute labyrinth of saltwater marshes
0:01:42 > 0:01:44and swamps and waterways.
0:01:44 > 0:01:45They call it the bayou.
0:01:45 > 0:01:49And beneath the surface of this is an incredible amount of life.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Huge quantities of shrimp and crab and fish,
0:01:52 > 0:01:55and that obviously brings in the predators.
0:01:55 > 0:01:59To find our monster fish, there's really only one way...
0:01:59 > 0:02:01and that's to go fishing.
0:02:07 > 0:02:12So what we've got here is a bait fish, a mullet.
0:02:13 > 0:02:15On a hook there.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17It doesn't have a barbed end so it won't hurt the fish.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23And this - soft drinks bottle - is going to act as the buoy
0:02:23 > 0:02:25to float at the surface and tell us where the bait is.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28I'm going to chuck this in, and hopefully tomorrow morning
0:02:28 > 0:02:31we should have our next Deadly 60 contender.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38He's steering the boat while trying to do sound!
0:02:38 > 0:02:40STEVE LAUGHS
0:02:48 > 0:02:51You didn't follow that one, that was a good one!
0:02:51 > 0:02:53That was my first good throw!
0:03:02 > 0:03:04It's just after dawn.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08The sun has just broken up over the horizon, starting to warm us up
0:03:08 > 0:03:10and we're all really excited.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12I know Nick, the sound man's particularly excited.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14STEVE LAUGHS
0:03:14 > 0:03:17Because out there, about 45 minutes away,
0:03:17 > 0:03:20are all of our floats we put out last night
0:03:20 > 0:03:22and we have no idea what's on the end of them.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25But we're really, really hoping that our next Deadly 60 contender
0:03:25 > 0:03:26is waiting for us.
0:03:34 > 0:03:39All along the banks of the bayou are absolutely hundreds
0:03:39 > 0:03:42of herons and egrets. I've never seen so many in my entire life.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44The fact that there are so many of them means these waters
0:03:44 > 0:03:47must be absolutely stuffed with fish.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49They're fantastic hunters.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52You see them standing along the river edge almost motionless
0:03:52 > 0:03:56with their head back like this, and then wham, they strike like a snake.
0:03:56 > 0:03:57Incredible birds.
0:03:57 > 0:03:59Fabulous!
0:03:59 > 0:04:01Such regal birds.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05Shrimp boat!
0:04:05 > 0:04:08This is what Louisiana's really famous for.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11INAUDIBLE
0:04:11 > 0:04:12Johnny? Johnny? We've got one.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16Our first buoy - just there. Look, in front of us.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20- One back there.- See them over there.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35No, nothing on that one.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39Ah!
0:04:41 > 0:04:42Eugh! Ha ha!
0:04:42 > 0:04:44OK.
0:04:46 > 0:04:47No go and a soaking.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57- What do you think of this, Nick? - This is wicked!
0:04:57 > 0:04:59He loves his fishing!
0:04:59 > 0:05:01Oh! We got something!
0:05:07 > 0:05:09When a bottle starts swimming away from you like that
0:05:09 > 0:05:11it's definitely a good sign.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18Ah!
0:05:18 > 0:05:20STEVE LAUGHS
0:05:23 > 0:05:25This is the one. No!
0:05:28 > 0:05:30Look at the speed of that!
0:05:30 > 0:05:33So this...
0:05:34 > 0:05:36..is it.
0:05:36 > 0:05:37Oh!
0:05:39 > 0:05:41It's a drum.
0:05:41 > 0:05:42Wow!
0:05:43 > 0:05:46Right, off you go, big fella.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54Oh! It's swimming away!
0:05:55 > 0:05:56Did you see that? It dived!
0:05:56 > 0:05:58Oh ho-ho-ho!
0:06:00 > 0:06:02STEVE LAUGHS
0:06:02 > 0:06:04We've caught something big.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19STEVE LAUGHS Look at that!
0:06:19 > 0:06:21Well...
0:06:22 > 0:06:24I don't believe it! STEVE LAUGHS
0:06:24 > 0:06:26We've got our Deadly 60 animal.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31What we've got to do is figure out how to get it into the boat
0:06:31 > 0:06:33without losing fingers.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39OK.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45So this...
0:06:45 > 0:06:47is the Alligator Gar.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49Also known as the garpike.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52It's an absolutely magnificent creature.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55Take a look into those jaws.
0:06:55 > 0:06:57Look at those teeth!
0:06:58 > 0:07:00Now we've got a little bit of leeway
0:07:00 > 0:07:02with working with them out of the water.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06They can stay out the water for as much as two hours and still be OK.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11You can certainly see where they get their "alligator" name from.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13If I hold the snout up like that...
0:07:13 > 0:07:16And running down, those amazing scales.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19He certainly looks more like a crocodilian than a fish.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20Wonderful!
0:07:22 > 0:07:25It's reckoned they've been around for as much as 60 million years.
0:07:25 > 0:07:29This actually doesn't just catch fish around here,
0:07:29 > 0:07:33they'll even come to the surface and catch birds, even squirrels.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35And he really is ferocious.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39With a set of gnashers like that,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42the Alligator Gar is definitely going on the Deadly 60.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44Right...
0:07:44 > 0:07:46Oh.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48That's a big fish.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56Off he goes.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00A huge prehistoric armour-plated fish
0:08:00 > 0:08:02with two rows of deadly fangs.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Not what you'd want nibbling on your toes.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08But great for killing with.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18# East bound and down Loaded up and truckin'
0:08:18 > 0:08:21# Are we gonna do what they say can't be done
0:08:21 > 0:08:25# We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there
0:08:25 > 0:08:29# I'm eastbound just watch old Bandit run... #
0:08:32 > 0:08:36It's one down and a drive to the north of the state for, well...
0:08:36 > 0:08:37another swamp.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42This swamp may look pretty grotty
0:08:42 > 0:08:46but if you look at any part of the water for any length of time
0:08:46 > 0:08:48just does seem to be alive.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52There's absolutely hundreds of tadpoles, small shrimp,
0:08:52 > 0:08:56tiny fish, all just playing around in the shallows here.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00And that means there's going to be something here feeding on them.
0:09:00 > 0:09:01That's what we're hoping to find.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09The snake of the swamps is called the Cottonmouth.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11The name comes from the inside of its mouth
0:09:11 > 0:09:13looking like the locally grown cotton plants.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18This snake is a specialist at hunting fish.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21Their colour makes them almost impossible to see,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24so to find one, we're going to have to get dirty.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Every step and you get this disgusting stench
0:09:34 > 0:09:36coming up from the mud
0:09:36 > 0:09:39of rotting vegetation.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41It's hideous.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05This rather innocuous looking pile of sand here
0:10:05 > 0:10:11is home to not one deadly animal, but tens of thousands.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13Er, they're red fire ants.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15Not supposed to be in this part of the world at all,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19they come from South or Central America, and they've been brought in
0:10:19 > 0:10:20inadvertently by people.
0:10:20 > 0:10:24And if you're wondering why they've got a fierce reputation,
0:10:24 > 0:10:28all you need to do is get too close to this nest and you'll see.
0:10:28 > 0:10:32If I just tap it with my snake stick
0:10:32 > 0:10:34within seconds...
0:10:34 > 0:10:38you'll probably see an absolute volcanic eruption of ants.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43The watery world of the swamp doesn't bother fire ants.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47They can even cross the water by linking legs
0:10:47 > 0:10:49and floating like some sort of prickly life raft.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53Outside swamps, they can live almost anywhere.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56But wherever they do turn up, they cause trouble.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59In particular, their attraction to electricity
0:10:59 > 0:11:03means they often short-circuit important equipment.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06CAR HORNS BEEP
0:11:06 > 0:11:09They get the name fire ants because every single bite and sting
0:11:09 > 0:11:14um, feels like a burning hot needle being plunged into your flesh.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Problem is they don't just bite by the ones or twos,
0:11:17 > 0:11:18they bite in their hundreds.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22They even have an attack signal that makes them attack at the same time.
0:11:22 > 0:11:23And, er...
0:11:23 > 0:11:30this backbone here is from a small mammal that was unlucky enough
0:11:30 > 0:11:31to either die near here
0:11:31 > 0:11:34or to be too close to here and got stung to death
0:11:34 > 0:11:37and it's been cleaned to the bone by these guys.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40Deadly and very cool animals.
0:11:40 > 0:11:45But I'm still holding out hope that I'll find myself a cottonmouth.
0:11:51 > 0:11:52Here!
0:11:53 > 0:11:55Big?
0:11:58 > 0:11:59It is a cottonmouth!
0:12:03 > 0:12:05Got it.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07OK. Come back.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11OK...
0:12:14 > 0:12:16Right...
0:12:18 > 0:12:20Out you come, fella. Oh!
0:12:21 > 0:12:24It made a strike at my snake hook.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26OK, I just want to get you out into the open.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28So you can see him.
0:12:29 > 0:12:30Easy, Steve.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32No, no. I know.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Right...
0:12:35 > 0:12:38I'm hoping if I put him down here...
0:12:38 > 0:12:40Here you go, look at that display!
0:12:40 > 0:12:43Showing off the white inside of the mouth.
0:12:43 > 0:12:44And striking.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49Just hold there a sec. Not going to hurt you.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51Look at the tail.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54Going absolutely crazy back here. Flickering backwards and forwards.
0:12:54 > 0:12:56If Nick brings in his boom,
0:12:56 > 0:12:59we might just hear...
0:12:59 > 0:13:01Look at that tail going crazy!
0:13:01 > 0:13:02RATTLING
0:13:02 > 0:13:05When it hits dry leaves, it makes a sound
0:13:05 > 0:13:07just like a rattlesnake's rattle.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10I must have walked within feet of him and he didn't move at all.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14But then Nick the sound man, I guess stepped almost right on him
0:13:14 > 0:13:15and just screamed out for me.
0:13:15 > 0:13:20It really shows quite how much care they'll take not to be seen.
0:13:20 > 0:13:21Good spot, Nick!
0:13:21 > 0:13:23I'm not sure I screamed.
0:13:23 > 0:13:24STEVE LAUGHS You did!
0:13:27 > 0:13:29Now he's settled in place
0:13:29 > 0:13:32you can really see how effective the camouflage is.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35The dark mottled colours of the ground here
0:13:35 > 0:13:38match absolutely perfectly with the colours running down his back.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41It's only really when he shows off the inside of his mouth -
0:13:41 > 0:13:44that white, cotton-like interior -
0:13:44 > 0:13:46that that's when you see, not only how he gets his name
0:13:46 > 0:13:50but how he creates a threat to scare away other animals.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54What's particularly unusual though about the cottonmouth
0:13:54 > 0:13:56is the way that it chooses to hunt.
0:13:56 > 0:14:01The Latin scientific name for this snake is "piscivorus",
0:14:01 > 0:14:02means "fish eater".
0:14:02 > 0:14:05And this is a snake that, very unusually for the vipers,
0:14:05 > 0:14:08lives an enormous amount of its life in the water.
0:14:08 > 0:14:10It's a truly sub-aquatic snake.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13Which is very, very unusual for vipers.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16And though it will feed on all kinds of different things
0:14:16 > 0:14:17its main diet is fish.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Vipers all over the world specialise in hunting warm-blooded mammals.
0:14:25 > 0:14:31But these snakes like nothing better than a nice cold fish.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39The cottonmouth...
0:14:39 > 0:14:44the master fisherman of southern America...
0:14:44 > 0:14:45RATTLING
0:14:45 > 0:14:48..with an incredible flickering tail threat display
0:14:48 > 0:14:52and a white mouth that's going to scare anything away.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55It's definitely going on the Deadly 60.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Vipers that eat fish are about as common as pants on a parrot.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05And for that reason this fish fancying cottonmouth
0:15:05 > 0:15:07joins the Deadly 60.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16Ok, the snake was sensational.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19It's time to get back to the alligator theme.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23We couldn't come to these swamps without at least trying
0:15:23 > 0:15:25to find an alligator.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28During the daytime, although there's a lot of them around
0:15:28 > 0:15:31really all you tend to see is a fair of nostrils and eyes
0:15:31 > 0:15:34above the surface of the water, if that.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36But at night time, we do have one thing in our favour,
0:15:36 > 0:15:41which is that crocodilian eyes reflect light bright ruby-red
0:15:41 > 0:15:43so I've got a big torch here
0:15:43 > 0:15:45and I'm going to go out, see if I can spot some.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49Alligators are cousins of the crocodiles
0:15:49 > 0:15:52and belong to the same group called crocodilians.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55They're similar looking, but if you look at them side by side
0:15:55 > 0:15:58then it's pretty easy to tell the difference.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02Alligators on the left, have much broader, more rounded snouts.
0:16:04 > 0:16:09They can grow to 4.5 metres and weigh about five times more than me,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12which makes them by far the biggest reptile in the USA
0:16:12 > 0:16:15and top swamp predator.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42A rather magnificent raft spider.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45Just scampering over the surface of the steamy water.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50Very unusual to see them out completely in the water like this.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53Usually they just sit at the edge with their front two legs
0:16:53 > 0:16:56feeling the surface tension for anything coming close.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58Look at that!
0:17:00 > 0:17:02It's big as well.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04About the size of the palm of my hand.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09But he's right now hunting for small fish
0:17:09 > 0:17:11and invertebrates.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Nick, torch!
0:17:37 > 0:17:38Just...just there.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41It's an armadillo!
0:17:41 > 0:17:43I don't believe it!
0:17:44 > 0:17:46OK, I know they're not deadly
0:17:46 > 0:17:48but I really want to see it.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52Whether it wants to be seen by us is another matter.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01It's somewhere in this thicket.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04Oh, no!
0:18:04 > 0:18:06Oh, which way?
0:18:09 > 0:18:10Do you see him?
0:18:10 > 0:18:12INDISTINCT REPLY
0:18:23 > 0:18:25Well, that was all rather embarrassing.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28He got away from me and ran straight between the cameraman's legs!
0:18:28 > 0:18:31STEVE LAUGHS
0:18:33 > 0:18:36Right, shall we go and find ourselves an alligator?
0:18:40 > 0:18:44Luck just wasn't on our side and the wild gators were not letting me
0:18:44 > 0:18:48get close to them. But if you can't win, then, well...cheat.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52I'd heard about some very special alligators in a nearby zoo
0:18:52 > 0:18:54that I just couldn't resist showing you.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Deadly 60's all about animals in the wild.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07But here in the National Audubon Zoo in New Orleans
0:19:07 > 0:19:11they have these impossibly rare white alligators.
0:19:11 > 0:19:16They kind of look like a replica of an alligator
0:19:16 > 0:19:19that's been carved out of soap or porcelain.
0:19:19 > 0:19:21Until they move.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23And then all of a sudden they become very real.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26This is caused by a... Oh!
0:19:26 > 0:19:28You're giving me a big gape!
0:19:29 > 0:19:31See, all of a sudden, as soon as they move...
0:19:31 > 0:19:33turns into a real animal.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38This whiteness is caused by a genetic abnormality,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41which means they don't have the pigments that give them colour.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46He's incredible. He's like a ghost gator.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55This is Black Bayou wetlands.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00All of these cypress trees, turning autumn gold
0:20:00 > 0:20:03reflected perfectly in this glassy smooth water.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06It's about as beautiful as a swamp could ever be.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09But somewhere beneath these dark waters
0:20:09 > 0:20:13is a monster with one of the most powerful scalpel-sharp jaws
0:20:13 > 0:20:16in the whole of the animal kingdom
0:20:16 > 0:20:17and that's what we're hoping to find.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23The monster in question is called an alligator snapping turtle.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25They spend a lot of their time sitting still,
0:20:25 > 0:20:28looking a bit like a log.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31And the clever thing is they get their lunch to come to them.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37On the inside of their open mouth a fleshy growth wiggles invitingly
0:20:37 > 0:20:38to passing fish.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41Any who take the bait find themselves grabbed
0:20:41 > 0:20:44by some of the most powerful jaws in the world.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05To help find one, I've enlisted the help of an expert.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09This is Mitch. He's studying the turtles.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13The Black Bayou is pretty vast.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15And the water is, as you can see, it's pretty murky.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19So our chances of actually just happening across the animal
0:21:19 > 0:21:21we're looking for, are pretty slender.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25We put out these hoop net traps...
0:21:28 > 0:21:29And there's fresh fish bait inside.
0:21:31 > 0:21:32I'm really hoping...
0:21:33 > 0:21:36..that we've caught something special.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41OK, our first trap's empty. We've still got six more to try.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44I'm still confident that we're going to find something.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46I should never, ever say that on camera!
0:21:46 > 0:21:48STEVE LAUGHS
0:22:03 > 0:22:05Next trap's just in front of us here
0:22:05 > 0:22:08and it's a good deal lower in the water than the others.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Which could mean that something heavy inside is keeping it down.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15Oh, wow!
0:22:20 > 0:22:22Yes!
0:22:23 > 0:22:26Oh, my goodness. Look at the size of it!
0:22:26 > 0:22:27Two! There's two in there!
0:22:27 > 0:22:29Oh, my God!
0:22:29 > 0:22:30Look at the size of it!
0:22:30 > 0:22:33STEVE LAUGHS
0:22:33 > 0:22:35Wow!
0:22:36 > 0:22:38Congratulations.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44We actually have three.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47I don't believe it!
0:22:47 > 0:22:50Look at the size of the head on that one!
0:22:52 > 0:22:54Mitch, is this a record for you?
0:22:54 > 0:22:57Three in one trap IS a record.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Steve, you're my good luck charm.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01Look at the size of this one here!
0:23:01 > 0:23:03It's got to be a big male, hasn't it, Mitch?
0:23:03 > 0:23:07When they're that big, they're easy to tell male from female.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14I cannot tell you how heavy this is.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21That is an absolute monster!
0:23:21 > 0:23:23Two enormous males.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25And one smaller turtle.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29I was just starting to feel that, er, the day
0:23:29 > 0:23:31was going to have no results.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34We checked all our traps. This was the last one that was left.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36And, um, well...
0:23:36 > 0:23:38absolutely unreal.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Three giant alligator snapping turtles.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45We're just going to be real careful, real gentle
0:23:45 > 0:23:47try to ease them out.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51Try and get the big male out first.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55You'll notice, as we're moving into the turtle,
0:23:55 > 0:23:59we'll keep our hands a lot further away from the head
0:23:59 > 0:24:01than you would expect.
0:24:01 > 0:24:03That's because it, actually... When it strikes,
0:24:03 > 0:24:07the head really extends forward from the front of the shell...
0:24:07 > 0:24:09a good distance.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13And, where as with the small one here, I guess I'd be in danger
0:24:13 > 0:24:14of losing a finger,
0:24:14 > 0:24:18I think it's pretty safe to say that if my hand or even my arm
0:24:18 > 0:24:22were to get too close to the jaws of this big fella
0:24:22 > 0:24:23then I'd probably lose it.
0:24:25 > 0:24:26Wow!
0:24:33 > 0:24:35Well done, Mitch.
0:24:36 > 0:24:37OK.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39Steve, if you hold what you've got
0:24:39 > 0:24:44- then just do your best to keep your fingers clear.- Yeah.
0:24:44 > 0:24:49Just make sure your right hand doesn't stray from that spot.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51OK.
0:24:51 > 0:24:52Right...
0:24:52 > 0:24:55Good job, man. Good job. You've got him.
0:24:55 > 0:24:56Woo-hoo!
0:24:56 > 0:24:59That is a big turtle.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03Probably the largest freshwater turtle in the world.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07But that isn't really what's so impressive about him.
0:25:07 > 0:25:09Look at the size of that head!
0:25:09 > 0:25:13It's totally out of proportion to the whole of the rest of the body
0:25:13 > 0:25:17and most of that is just pure muscle power
0:25:17 > 0:25:19driving that jaw.
0:25:19 > 0:25:24At the edge of it is, well, it's incredibly sharp.
0:25:24 > 0:25:26It doesn't have teeth cos it doesn't need to have, really.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29It's almost like a great big curved kitchen knife.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31You can see the hooked snout at the end
0:25:31 > 0:25:35and... Actually, I'm not going to be able to hold him like this for long
0:25:35 > 0:25:37cos he's just too heavy.
0:25:37 > 0:25:39They can get to be heavier than I am.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41What do you reckon, Mitch, how heavy is this turtle?
0:25:41 > 0:25:43About 110 pounds, Steve.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47- 110 pounds.- Pound for pound, probably a lot stronger than you or I!
0:25:47 > 0:25:49That's for sure!
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Absolutely sure. I'm having so much difficulty holding him.
0:25:53 > 0:25:54Oh, look at that!
0:25:54 > 0:25:58You can see how I'm really straining to hold him
0:25:58 > 0:26:00but you can see how far the neck extends.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03And that's how he hunts.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06I mean, looking at the shape of the head and the body
0:26:06 > 0:26:09it's very irregular.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13The colour's quite dark and he blends in really, really well
0:26:13 > 0:26:16with all the vegetation at the bottom of the water here.
0:26:16 > 0:26:21And then as soon as a fish gets too close, the head snaps
0:26:21 > 0:26:22out like that.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25The jaws clamp shut incredibly quickly,
0:26:25 > 0:26:27and the fish is history.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32There's a lot of animals in this series that people say to me,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35"What on earth are you doing putting that on the Deadly 60?"
0:26:35 > 0:26:36I don't think anyone's going to say that
0:26:38 > 0:26:40about the alligator snapping turtle.
0:26:40 > 0:26:42He really is a living dinosaur.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46I'm going to put him back cos I just can't hold him any more.
0:26:46 > 0:26:47All right, big fella!
0:26:47 > 0:26:49In you go.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53It's not only going in the Deadly 60
0:26:53 > 0:26:55but also on my personal list
0:26:55 > 0:26:57of creatures that I never
0:26:57 > 0:26:59want to get bitten by.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01Monster-sized, monster-looking
0:27:01 > 0:27:03with monster jaws -
0:27:03 > 0:27:06it's a living monster.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10OK, big fella...
0:27:11 > 0:27:13..in you go.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18Coming up next time on the Deadly 60...
0:27:18 > 0:27:19Oh!
0:27:38 > 0:27:40Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:27:40 > 0:27:43E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk