0:00:02 > 0:00:04My name's Steve Backshall!
0:00:06 > 0:00:09And this is my search for the Deadly 60.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12Amazing!
0:00:12 > 0:00:14That's not just animals that are deadly to me,
0:00:14 > 0:00:17but that are deadly in their own world.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19My crew and I are travelling the planet,
0:00:19 > 0:00:22and you're coming with me every step of the way!
0:00:26 > 0:00:27Argh!
0:00:32 > 0:00:35'Travelling around the world making Deadly 60,
0:00:35 > 0:00:39'there have been things we've filmed but not had time to show you.'
0:00:39 > 0:00:43This very special edition is about all of those incredible things
0:00:43 > 0:00:46that didn't make it into the original programmes.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49This is Deadly 60 Unseen.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54Our journey begins in southern Africa,
0:00:54 > 0:00:57in the deserts and savannahs of Namibia.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06Namibia is home to a bewildering array of deadly animals,
0:01:06 > 0:01:10armed with tearing teeth, piercing talons...
0:01:11 > 0:01:14..and fiercely toxic venom.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17MUSIC: "I Like The Way You Move" by Bodyrockers
0:01:17 > 0:01:21'In the desert dunes, every living thing has to struggle to get about
0:01:21 > 0:01:23'in the shifting sands - and I'm no exception.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27'We were in search of a tiny terror -
0:01:27 > 0:01:29'the spoor spider.'
0:01:29 > 0:01:33The spoor spider has a truly remarkable hunting method.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36First it makes a web on the ground, then hides underneath it
0:01:36 > 0:01:41like a little sandy blanket, before leaping out and trapping its prey,
0:01:41 > 0:01:44which it cooks alive on the roasting-hot sand.
0:01:44 > 0:01:46'But while filming this minute killer,
0:01:46 > 0:01:50'we found another desert spider we didn't have time to show to you.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53'But here she is in all her glory.'
0:01:55 > 0:02:01On the surface of the sand here, there's lots of little scamper marks
0:02:01 > 0:02:04which have been made by a particularly big spider.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07'So to find her, we trace our steps
0:02:07 > 0:02:11'back to what we hope is the entrance to a hidden lair.'
0:02:11 > 0:02:13Ah, right!
0:02:13 > 0:02:15I think...
0:02:15 > 0:02:21that almost imperceptible circle there
0:02:21 > 0:02:23is the entrance to her trapdoor.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26I'm just going to lift the flap up.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32That there...
0:02:32 > 0:02:35is the silken lid
0:02:35 > 0:02:37of the trapdoor,
0:02:37 > 0:02:39camouflaged in sand.
0:02:41 > 0:02:43And she's down inside there.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48OK.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51'With our mystery spider in the cool of her burrow,
0:02:51 > 0:02:56'I'm going to have to gently shift some sand to get a closer look.'
0:02:58 > 0:03:02There she is! She's beautiful!
0:03:03 > 0:03:05Look at that!
0:03:07 > 0:03:10This is the white lady spider.
0:03:10 > 0:03:14'When handling large spiders, it's always advisable
0:03:14 > 0:03:16'to take great care.'
0:03:18 > 0:03:21OK. Oh, crikey, she's gone up my arm!
0:03:21 > 0:03:23OK.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25There you go.
0:03:28 > 0:03:32So the white lady spider is a trapdoor spider,
0:03:32 > 0:03:36and when insects like dune crickets wander too close,
0:03:36 > 0:03:40it'll flip back the trapdoor lid, spring out,
0:03:40 > 0:03:42grab them, whack them full of venom,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45and drag them back inside the burrow to eat them.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49She is an absolutely menacing predator.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53But not menacing enough to beat the ant-munching spoor spider
0:03:53 > 0:03:55onto the list.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00Spoor spider is on the Deadly 60.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06'Just around the corner, we came across another desert specialist.'
0:04:07 > 0:04:09Oh, beauty!
0:04:09 > 0:04:12'And this one was armoured to the armpits.'
0:04:12 > 0:04:14Ow!
0:04:14 > 0:04:18'The things I do to show you weird and wonderful animals!'
0:04:18 > 0:04:19Ow!
0:04:19 > 0:04:21'No pain, no gain.'
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Oh, well...
0:04:23 > 0:04:26It was worth... Ooh, look at that!
0:04:26 > 0:04:31Did you see that? Squirting fluid from back here.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34That's its first method of defence,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37and that would taste absolutely foul.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39If it got into the eyes of something,
0:04:39 > 0:04:41it would do them no good whatsoever.
0:04:41 > 0:04:47This fiercely impressive insect is an armoured ground cricket -
0:04:47 > 0:04:50possibly the most obvious name you'll ever hear.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53It's a cricket, it lives on the ground,
0:04:53 > 0:04:55and it's armoured.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59That carapace there, that's sticking into my fingers,
0:04:59 > 0:05:02is rock-hard, and it needs to be really,
0:05:02 > 0:05:04because an animal like this,
0:05:04 > 0:05:08that really is just a great big lump of protein,
0:05:08 > 0:05:11is very valuable food for all sorts of predators around here.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15Pretty ugly, isn't it?
0:05:15 > 0:05:17Ugly but awesome.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Our next unseen animal is the African hunting dog.
0:05:32 > 0:05:35They're desperately rare, and we searched for them for days
0:05:35 > 0:05:38without so much as a sign.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40We've covered an enormous area,
0:05:40 > 0:05:42and no sign whatsoever of the dogs.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47I'm starting to get a little bit disheartened, really.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51This is so typical! The last time I came out to Africa
0:05:51 > 0:05:56specifically to film wild dogs, I spent a week searching
0:05:56 > 0:05:58and never saw a sign.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02And here's a pack of them just sat at the side of the road!
0:06:05 > 0:06:08Kind of mangy looking, but very, very efficient predators
0:06:08 > 0:06:12who run their prey down using endurance
0:06:12 > 0:06:16and just a tenacity and a desire never to give up.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22African wild dogs hunt in cooperative packs,
0:06:22 > 0:06:26chasing down antelope and even larger prey.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31The wild dog combines tactics, endurance and lightning reactions
0:06:31 > 0:06:35to be a successful predator, and certainly deserved its place
0:06:35 > 0:06:37on the Deadly 60.
0:06:43 > 0:06:47'We had some superb daytime animal encounters in Namibia,
0:06:47 > 0:06:50'but night-time brings out a whole host of new animals -
0:06:50 > 0:06:53'so many, in fact, that only now do we have a chance
0:06:53 > 0:06:55'to show them to you.'
0:06:55 > 0:06:57Good Lord!
0:07:01 > 0:07:05I tell you what - I've seen some millipedes in my time.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09I've even kept a fair few as pets.
0:07:09 > 0:07:11But that...
0:07:11 > 0:07:13is about as big as I've ever seen.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18He's a monster! I've seen snakes smaller than that.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Millipedes are pretty harmless.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25They mostly feed on rotting leaf litter
0:07:25 > 0:07:27and bits of fruit and stuff.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30But they do have certain means of taking care of themselves.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34First of all they've got this hard exoskeleton,
0:07:34 > 0:07:39which functions like armour, and there's also tiny little pores
0:07:39 > 0:07:43running down close to the legs, and they can secrete a nasty chemical
0:07:43 > 0:07:48which is kind of like cyanide. It'll stain your fingers bright purple.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52It's like a great big wriggling armoured tank!
0:08:01 > 0:08:04'Well, the millipede was a pretty cool critter.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07'But there's one creepy-crawly
0:08:07 > 0:08:10'that my crew and I have a knack of finding -
0:08:10 > 0:08:12'scorpions.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15'This one, though, is rather special.'
0:08:17 > 0:08:21This is what night-time out in the desert is all about.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23Rich, our sound man,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26was just sat round by the fire
0:08:26 > 0:08:31when this rather lovely little lady just crawled out
0:08:31 > 0:08:33from under his leg.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38I say "little".
0:08:38 > 0:08:41Actually she's huge.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44This is a pregnant female...
0:08:45 > 0:08:48..and she's massively swollen
0:08:48 > 0:08:51with all the tiny scorpions inside her.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54Scorpions are wonderful, wonderful mothers.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58After they give birth, all the minute little babies
0:08:58 > 0:09:01scamper up onto their mother's back, and she'll carry them around
0:09:01 > 0:09:04keeping them safe until their first moult -
0:09:04 > 0:09:08that is, the first time they shed their skin and start growing.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10She's fabulous,
0:09:10 > 0:09:15and actually far more in danger from one of us stepping on her
0:09:15 > 0:09:18than we are from her.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22'This scorpion's sting is almost harmless,
0:09:22 > 0:09:25'but that doesn't stop Rich the sound man,
0:09:25 > 0:09:28'like so many other people, being scared stiff.
0:09:28 > 0:09:30'So now seemed the perfect opportunity
0:09:30 > 0:09:33'for Rich to overcome those fears.'
0:09:35 > 0:09:37Want to try?
0:09:37 > 0:09:39Oh, this is a big step!
0:09:48 > 0:09:51How do you feel about scorpions, Rich?
0:09:51 > 0:09:52Oops!
0:09:52 > 0:09:55RICH GASPS IN FRIGHT
0:09:55 > 0:09:57STEVE LAUGHS
0:10:01 > 0:10:05'OK, so he's still a bit twitchy, but let's just hope
0:10:05 > 0:10:08'that's gone some way to easing Rich's fears.'
0:10:15 > 0:10:18Whilst in Africa, we were lucky enough to encounter
0:10:18 > 0:10:21some fearsome animals...
0:10:21 > 0:10:23LION GROWLS
0:10:23 > 0:10:25..predators of the seas,
0:10:25 > 0:10:28trees,
0:10:28 > 0:10:30and the sky.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34We're sharing the air with Rod the black eagle!
0:10:34 > 0:10:36How good is that?
0:10:37 > 0:10:40'2,000 miles north of Namibia lies Uganda,
0:10:40 > 0:10:44'where we met some of our closest cousins.
0:10:47 > 0:10:51'That was a territorial male gorilla letting me know who was boss.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54'Don't worry - this is normal behaviour and no-one was hurt.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59'We were also surrounded by chimpanzees,
0:10:59 > 0:11:03'bombarding us with fruit and descending down from the trees
0:11:03 > 0:11:05'all around us.'
0:11:05 > 0:11:08- CHIMPANZEES SHRIEK - Here he comes!
0:11:10 > 0:11:13But with all that action, what we didn't have time to show you
0:11:13 > 0:11:16is another one of our relatives - a real cheeky monkey,
0:11:16 > 0:11:18the vervet.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25Master climbers and jumpers, they're true survivors.
0:11:27 > 0:11:31They're much more common than chimps or gorillas,
0:11:31 > 0:11:33even turning up in city parks.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37'But they just don't seem to understand me.'
0:11:38 > 0:11:41Monkeys come in all shapes and sizes,
0:11:41 > 0:11:45but I guess if you were going to have one run-of-the-mill,
0:11:45 > 0:11:49bog-standard monkey, it'd be this one, the vervet monkey.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52They're sort of average sized.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55You find them just about everywhere in Africa.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58- RUSTLING - They'll eat almost anything.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01I mean, they really are the monkey for all seasons.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06Here in this park, they seem to be hanging from almost every tree,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10making good use of the fact that there are lots of people around,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12and lots of people means lots of food.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16'Although I was surrounded by vervets,
0:12:16 > 0:12:19'there was one that was truly remarkable.'
0:12:24 > 0:12:26She's got no feet!
0:12:26 > 0:12:28I don't believe it!
0:12:28 > 0:12:30I do not believe it.
0:12:40 > 0:12:45Well, if that isn't testament to how incredible monkeys are...
0:12:45 > 0:12:48I've never seen anything like that before.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52That mother had lost both her feet, and is getting around
0:12:52 > 0:12:55by walking in a handstand with her baby clasped to her underside!
0:12:57 > 0:13:00- Any of you ever seen anything like that before?- No way!
0:13:00 > 0:13:02- There she goes. Look!- Amazing.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05What amazing creatures!
0:13:06 > 0:13:11'It just goes to show how tough animals really can be,
0:13:11 > 0:13:14'able to survive against all the odds.'
0:13:17 > 0:13:20The next stop on our Unseen special
0:13:20 > 0:13:22is the Philippines in Southeast Asia,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25to find another primate - the tarsier.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29Humans are also primates, so related to the tarsier.
0:13:29 > 0:13:34'If only we could leap after our lunch like the tarsier can!'
0:13:34 > 0:13:35Yes!
0:13:35 > 0:13:38Oh!
0:13:39 > 0:13:43'While searching the muddy mangrove forests of the Philippines,
0:13:43 > 0:13:46'we came across another predator of Southeast Asia -
0:13:46 > 0:13:49'the stork-billed kingfisher.'
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Like most kingfishers, the stork-bill waits on a perch
0:13:53 > 0:13:56and then plunges into the water like a guided missile...
0:13:58 > 0:14:00..grabbing the fish, then taking it back to the perch
0:14:00 > 0:14:03to knock it out before gulping it down in one.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09We cooked up a Deadly 60 experiment
0:14:09 > 0:14:12to show you how the fast, streamlined kingfisher
0:14:12 > 0:14:17is a master fisherman, and much better at catching fish than I am.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20OK, so this is our Deadly 60 experiment.
0:14:20 > 0:14:24This is going to play the part of our fish.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27I've got a bit of an advantage because it won't be swimming.
0:14:30 > 0:14:35OK - now all I have to do is hit it in a kingfisher style.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Well, that was kind of close!
0:14:47 > 0:14:49Take two!
0:14:50 > 0:14:54Yeah - it's not going very well, is it?
0:14:54 > 0:14:57- Nowhere near! - HE LAUGHS
0:14:57 > 0:15:00'Right. Third time lucky...'
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Or not.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11I cannot believe how hard that is!
0:15:11 > 0:15:16Outmanoeuvred and outgunned by a bird!
0:15:16 > 0:15:19Typical. I think we have our winner.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25Our aim was to see the kingfisher hunting,
0:15:25 > 0:15:28but we waited for hours and it never happened.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32Until we do, the kingfisher is unfinished business.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36- HE SINGS DRAMATIC FANFARE - Da-da-DAH!
0:15:37 > 0:15:39The Philippines is undersea heaven,
0:15:39 > 0:15:43and to see the creatures that call the sea their home,
0:15:43 > 0:15:47you need to go diving. Whilst tracking this thresher shark,
0:15:47 > 0:15:50we had an unexpected encounter with a devil ray
0:15:50 > 0:15:53which nearly knocked over Simon, our cameraman,
0:15:53 > 0:15:57before demonstrating his incredible turn of speed.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02'Now to show you some of the unseen underwater beasties
0:16:02 > 0:16:04'we found while diving at night.'
0:16:04 > 0:16:07How about that?
0:16:07 > 0:16:11That's one of the most impressive hermit crabs I've ever seen!
0:16:11 > 0:16:14He's absolutely massive!
0:16:16 > 0:16:20Talk about carrying your house around with you wherever you go!
0:16:22 > 0:16:24And at the moment, like most crabs,
0:16:24 > 0:16:28he's probably looking for a meal of decaying meat
0:16:28 > 0:16:31or any dead fish that's lying on the bottom.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36And he looks absolutely crazy, scuttling along like this!
0:16:36 > 0:16:38I'll tell you what -
0:16:38 > 0:16:42with those claws, he could probably take off one of my fingers,
0:16:42 > 0:16:45so I'm not going to get too close.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49What a weird-looking crab!
0:16:49 > 0:16:52'If you thought the creatures round here
0:16:52 > 0:16:55'couldn't get any stranger looking, you'd be wrong.'
0:16:56 > 0:16:59Oh, wow!
0:16:59 > 0:17:03That is without doubt the weirdest crab I've seen in my life!
0:17:04 > 0:17:07Look at that! That is just bizarre.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14There's two of them, look - sat right next to each other.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21It just looks like a running Cornish pasty!
0:17:23 > 0:17:24Weird!
0:17:26 > 0:17:31'This bizarre-looking creature is in fact called a shamefaced crab.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33'Great name!
0:17:33 > 0:17:36'This wasn't the only night-time marine encounter we had
0:17:36 > 0:17:38'on Deadly 60.'
0:17:39 > 0:17:42Travelling from the Philippines across the Pacific Ocean to Baja,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45I got very close - perhaps too close for comfort -
0:17:45 > 0:17:48with a giant Humboldt squid.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52Oh, crikey! It's got a hold of my hand!
0:17:53 > 0:17:55It's actually... Argh!
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Oh, dear me! This is - Agh!
0:17:58 > 0:18:01The strength of the beak! It has actually bitten me
0:18:01 > 0:18:04right through the chainmail suit!
0:18:05 > 0:18:09'That was a lucky escape. I could easily have lost a finger
0:18:09 > 0:18:12'to that vicious beak.'
0:18:12 > 0:18:14I don't think anyone's going to doubt
0:18:14 > 0:18:17that the Humboldt squid has got to go on the Deadly 60!
0:18:18 > 0:18:21Back on dry land, the camp we were staying in
0:18:21 > 0:18:25was crawling with critters. I couldn't even take a wash
0:18:25 > 0:18:28without falling over something deadly!
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Just taking a bath, and already got our first snake.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37The place was so jam-packed with wildlife,
0:18:37 > 0:18:41we weren't able to show you all the incredible animals we encountered -
0:18:41 > 0:18:43until now.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48This is a velvet ant.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50They may look cuddly,
0:18:50 > 0:18:54but they've got a sting that could make a grown man cry.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57- Not me, though, obviously. - CREWMEMBERS LAUGH
0:18:57 > 0:19:00'We were so spoilt for deadly animals in Baja!
0:19:00 > 0:19:03'As well as the giant squid, we saw three different species
0:19:03 > 0:19:08'of rattlesnakes, and a tarantula hawk moth.'
0:19:08 > 0:19:10Look at the size of these jaws here!
0:19:10 > 0:19:13'That's why the next animal I want to show you
0:19:13 > 0:19:16'was only a runner-up for the Deadly 60 list.'
0:19:19 > 0:19:21Oh, there it is.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23Whoa!
0:19:23 > 0:19:27Oh, that is a proper centipede!
0:19:28 > 0:19:31- Look at that! - Be very careful, Steve.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33Yeah, yeah. I am doing.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37You can see how much wildlife is living
0:19:37 > 0:19:39around the ranch where we're staying.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43And quite a lot of it is stuff that could do us harm.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47We certainly have to be very careful wandering around here at night.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51This...is a scolopendra centipede.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54And, um, at this size,
0:19:54 > 0:19:57it wouldn't just be eating other invertebrates,
0:19:57 > 0:20:01but even small mammals like shrews and mice.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04And I'm not putting it in my hand,
0:20:04 > 0:20:08because these have an absolutely ferocious bite.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Very, very venomous.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15Incredibly painful.
0:20:15 > 0:20:17Isn't that great? Off he goes!
0:20:18 > 0:20:20Ooh!
0:20:24 > 0:20:25HE CHUCKLES NERVOUSLY
0:20:25 > 0:20:28May seem like I'm being a bit of a wimp here,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31but you really don't want to get bitten by one of these.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35They're mean-looking creatures, aren't they?
0:20:39 > 0:20:40There.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43Really exciting to see...
0:20:43 > 0:20:45quite what we're sharing our home with.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50Some seriously deadly critters!
0:20:54 > 0:20:58'A centipede that can eat mice is definitely a formidable predator.
0:20:58 > 0:21:02'But they get to be at least double the size of this one.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05'If I find one of those true monsters,
0:21:05 > 0:21:07'it'll definitely go on the list.'
0:21:11 > 0:21:14Further down Central America, in the rainforests of Costa Rica
0:21:14 > 0:21:17and Panama, we were on the trail of the elusive jaguar,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20South America's biggest cat.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27'And after getting half-strangled by a huge boa constrictor,
0:21:27 > 0:21:30'we found some other awesome deadly animals...
0:21:31 > 0:21:33'..the eyelash pit viper...
0:21:35 > 0:21:37'..the poison-dart frog,
0:21:37 > 0:21:40'the gigantic American crocodile...
0:21:42 > 0:21:46'..and the blood-sucking vampire bat.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51'No-one can doubt the vampire bat deserved its place on the Deadly 60,
0:21:51 > 0:21:55'but what we didn't show you was another bat species we found,
0:21:55 > 0:21:58'and this one feeds on something very different.'
0:21:59 > 0:22:01All this thrashing in the water around me
0:22:01 > 0:22:04is caused by tiny little fish like sardines.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08They're being hunted from below by crocodiles, bigger fish,
0:22:08 > 0:22:12even small sharks - but they're also being hunted from above.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16That animal is a fishing bat.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19This is one of the only places in the world you find them,
0:22:19 > 0:22:22and they actually swoop down low across the surface of the water
0:22:22 > 0:22:26and snatch fish from the surface,
0:22:26 > 0:22:28which is pretty incredible for a bat.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33Oh, that's great! One coming in from your right.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38'The fishing bat uses echolocation to detect the ripples
0:22:38 > 0:22:41'made by fish just below the surface of the water.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45'They're equipped with feet like grappling hooks,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49'tipped with curved claws - perfect for grabbing a meal on the wing.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55'The fishing bat is an incredible hunter,
0:22:55 > 0:22:59'but there was only room on our list for one bat in Central America.'
0:22:59 > 0:23:02- BAT SQUEAKS - Vampire bats...
0:23:02 > 0:23:04They're worth a place on the Deadly 60.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08'There's just too much to choose from
0:23:08 > 0:23:11'in these packed forest wonderlands.
0:23:12 > 0:23:17'Unlike our bats, our next unseen animal isn't very deadly,
0:23:17 > 0:23:19'but it is a monster in its own right,
0:23:19 > 0:23:21'so I just have to show it to you.'
0:23:23 > 0:23:27This...is absolutely extraordinary.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29This is certainly a land of giants.
0:23:29 > 0:23:34That is the biggest earthworm I've ever seen.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36I know it looks like a snake,
0:23:36 > 0:23:40but this is actually pretty much the same in body plan
0:23:40 > 0:23:42as the earthworms in your back garden -
0:23:42 > 0:23:44just an awful lot bigger.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47And although it's kind of slimy on top,
0:23:47 > 0:23:51the most amazing thing about it is that it's very coarse-feeling
0:23:51 > 0:23:55on the underneath, and you can feel that in between all these segments
0:23:55 > 0:23:59are very, very fine bristles and hairs
0:23:59 > 0:24:02that it used to drag itself through the mud.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05Earthworms are just amazing
0:24:05 > 0:24:08at turning all of this mulch that we see around us now
0:24:08 > 0:24:13into a kind of compost, and this is a very, very good reason
0:24:13 > 0:24:15why there's so much life round here.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21'Just before we put him back on the floor, Nick, our sound man
0:24:21 > 0:24:24'had a top tip he wanted to share with us.'
0:24:24 > 0:24:27It's quite difficult to tell which end's the head
0:24:27 > 0:24:31- and which end's the tail. - I know how to tell easily, man.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34- How do you do that?- Just tickle it and see which end smiles.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37THEY LAUGH
0:24:39 > 0:24:41'Yeah. Don't give up the day job, Nick.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47'This forest floor is thick with wildlife.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50'Whilst trekking through the jungle, we found a strange trail
0:24:50 > 0:24:53'and decided to follow it to see where it led.'
0:24:55 > 0:24:59It looks as if someone's come through here with a vacuum cleaner,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02cleaning up all the leaves off the forest floor.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05But actually this is an insect motorway.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08It's been created by leafcutter ants.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10They've actually cleared it away to make it easier
0:25:10 > 0:25:13for the workers to move up and down carrying bits of leaf.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17It's not very active at the moment because of the rains last night,
0:25:17 > 0:25:20but just here, this is the nest.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23Under here there are millions of leafcutter ants.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26But there's something very interesting here.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31There is one particular kind of leafcutter ant
0:25:31 > 0:25:34whose only job is to protect this nest.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37They look very different from all the other ants,
0:25:37 > 0:25:39and with a little bit...
0:25:41 > 0:25:43..of agitation,
0:25:43 > 0:25:46we should get to see some.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50There they go.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57So, almost instantly,
0:25:57 > 0:26:00out comes a huge soldier.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04They've got enormous heads, massive jaws,
0:26:04 > 0:26:08and their sole reason for being is to protect all their mates
0:26:08 > 0:26:10inside the colony.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15The local people have known about the strength of these soldier ants
0:26:15 > 0:26:19for many years, and they even use them as a kind of natural surgery.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22Let's say I've got a big cut on my arm here.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25They'll take the ant, with its jaws wide open like that,
0:26:25 > 0:26:28and... Ow!
0:26:29 > 0:26:34The jaws clench together, holding the cut closed.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38It's so strong... that it works easily as well
0:26:38 > 0:26:41as a modern, sewn-up stitch.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44- HE LAUGHS - And actually it really hurts,
0:26:44 > 0:26:47considering it's just a little ant.
0:26:47 > 0:26:48That's amazing.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52Local people would actually rip the body off the ant,
0:26:52 > 0:26:55just leaving the head there, so it keeps the wound closed.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59I don't want to kill the ant, so I'm just going to... Ow!
0:26:59 > 0:27:01Look at that!
0:27:01 > 0:27:04Hold him there for a close.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08- What do you mean, "Hold him there for a close"?- Take it like a man.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11That really hurts!
0:27:11 > 0:27:12Ow!
0:27:12 > 0:27:14Ow!
0:27:14 > 0:27:16HE MOANS
0:27:18 > 0:27:19Oh!
0:27:19 > 0:27:23'These ants are small but mighty, with a vicious bite.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27'The crew and I certainly didn't want to hang round for too long.'
0:27:27 > 0:27:30Look! It made me bleed!
0:27:32 > 0:27:36'That's all we have time for on this Unseen special.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39'Join me next time for more deadly encounters.'
0:27:40 > 0:27:41Crikey!
0:27:45 > 0:27:49Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:27:49 > 0:27:53E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk
0:27:53 > 0:27:53.