0:00:02 > 0:00:05My name's Steve Backshall. Wow!
0:00:05 > 0:00:08And this is my mission, to find the Deadly 60.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12That's not just animals that are deadly to me,
0:00:12 > 0:00:16but animals that are deadly in their own world.
0:00:18 > 0:00:20My crew and I are exploring the planet,
0:00:20 > 0:00:23and you're coming with me every step of the way.
0:00:30 > 0:00:32This time on Deadly 60, we're in Canada,
0:00:32 > 0:00:35way over to the west in British Columbia.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37It's four times the size of Britain
0:00:37 > 0:00:41and it's packed with potential contenders for my Deadly 60 list.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45This province has endless amounts of forest and wilderness, but it also
0:00:45 > 0:00:48has plenty of people - and sometimes that suits the animals just fine.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51My first target though, is a marine,
0:00:51 > 0:00:53that is a sea-living predator.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55To see what makes it so fearsome,
0:00:55 > 0:00:58I am going to take a look at the frame this beast is built on.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00So you can tell a tremendous amount
0:01:00 > 0:01:03about animals and what they do by looking at their skulls and,
0:01:03 > 0:01:07perhaps more importantly their teeth, what's called their dentition.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Starting down here, this is the skull of a mink.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15That's in the weasel family and they've got huge canine teeth.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19The same family, much bigger, we have a sea otter skull.
0:01:19 > 0:01:23Next, we've got a cat. This is a bobcat skull.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26That is certainly a predator right at the top of its game.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30Very different here is a dog skull.
0:01:30 > 0:01:31That's from a wolf.
0:01:31 > 0:01:35Here are the two largest land predators
0:01:35 > 0:01:37that you'll find this part of the world.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40We've got a black bear here and a polar bear skull here.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42This vies with the grisly bear
0:01:42 > 0:01:46for the title of the largest land predator in the world.
0:01:46 > 0:01:51So, if that skull belongs to the largest land predator in the world,
0:01:51 > 0:01:54then what do you think this belongs to?
0:01:54 > 0:01:57I mean, this has got to be some kind of dinosaur, right?
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Well, actually, this amazing creature
0:02:01 > 0:02:05is the next animal we're hoping to find on the Deadly 60.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09And it lives here, in the icy waters of British Columbia.
0:02:09 > 0:02:15It's the biggest, baddest sea lion in the world - the Steller sea lion.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18A fully-grown male can weigh as much as a car
0:02:18 > 0:02:22and bite through the biggest fish, like a chainsaw through chocolate.
0:02:22 > 0:02:28To enter their territory is perhaps even edgier than dining with sharks.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31Steller sea lions are almost like two different animals.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34When they're on land, they're better at moving around
0:02:34 > 0:02:37than many kinds of seals, but they're sluggish and slow,
0:02:37 > 0:02:40almost quite comedy in the way they move.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43But once they get into the water, it's a different story.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45They're amazingly agile, very, very fast,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49and they have a bit of a reputation for being inquisitive
0:02:49 > 0:02:52and coming up to divers and having a little nibble on them.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54I'm really hoping that
0:02:54 > 0:02:58that's how they work, because having seen what their jaws look like now,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01I certainly don't want them attacking me in earnest.
0:03:04 > 0:03:09Kit sorted, time to get wet.
0:03:09 > 0:03:15Diving in the Canadian seas is a bit like swimming in pea soup.
0:03:15 > 0:03:21The foggy waters hid the mighty hunters until the very last second.
0:03:24 > 0:03:25Oh!
0:03:28 > 0:03:30He is gigantic!
0:03:30 > 0:03:32This is spectacular!
0:03:32 > 0:03:35Well, I'm going to sit here on the bottom.
0:03:37 > 0:03:38Whoa!
0:03:38 > 0:03:41That's a big male Steller sea lion
0:03:41 > 0:03:44and a very, very frightening encounter
0:03:44 > 0:03:48as soon as we hit the bottom.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53Look at the size of him. He's huge!
0:03:53 > 0:03:55You guys get close together,
0:03:55 > 0:03:59otherwise, we're going to get absolutely mullered here.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03'A fully grown male Steller sea lion weighs ten times more than me
0:04:03 > 0:04:05'and is three metres long.
0:04:05 > 0:04:11'And in his massive wake, hordes of lightning female sea lions.'
0:04:13 > 0:04:19They're very lithe and slender. Really built for speed and they
0:04:19 > 0:04:24can twist and turn, chasing even the fastest of fish.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26Ooh! Crikey, that was close!
0:04:29 > 0:04:32'These inquisitive ladies are just giving me the once-over.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36'If I was a fish, though, they'd be nothing like as reserved.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40'In fact, it would be hunting time.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44'Hunting sea lions course through the water like torpedoes,
0:04:44 > 0:04:46'hitting fish at 30mph.'
0:04:50 > 0:04:53There's loads of them!
0:04:53 > 0:04:56I mean, at the moment, the animals do seem
0:04:56 > 0:04:58kind of playful and inquisitive,
0:04:58 > 0:05:05but because they're so very, very big it's a bit unnerving, actually.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10Ooh! Oi! Get off!
0:05:10 > 0:05:11Although they are very beautiful,
0:05:11 > 0:05:17every once in a while you get a flash of those teeth.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20'They have a mouth full of teeth, far more impressive
0:05:20 > 0:05:24'than a wolf or big cat, with canine teeth the length of my thumb.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27'Those lethal daggers are used to spear fish.'
0:05:27 > 0:05:31And it reminds you of quite how fearsome they are
0:05:31 > 0:05:34as a hunter and a predator.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41You've always got to have that in the back of your mind
0:05:41 > 0:05:44because they are potentially very dangerous animals.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50They're ever so bold.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54Mind you, when you're the largest sea lion on the planet... Whoa!
0:05:54 > 0:05:56..that strong, that powerful,
0:05:56 > 0:06:00you can do pretty much whatever you like.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Ooh! Oi, get off!
0:06:07 > 0:06:09She's biting my head!
0:06:14 > 0:06:19Crikey, I hope they don't grab me like... Ow!
0:06:19 > 0:06:20Ah, that hurt!
0:06:23 > 0:06:26They're starting to bite now.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28Getting a little bit too bold.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32I think it's probably time that we should head up.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36'Playful bites just mean bruises, but I'm not sticking around
0:06:36 > 0:06:38'to see what happens when they get really grumpy.'
0:06:38 > 0:06:40But I don't think there's any doubt
0:06:40 > 0:06:44that you've got to put these incredible animals on the Deadly 60.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47They're awesome!
0:06:48 > 0:06:52The largest of all sea lions.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56They're super-streamlined, moving through the water like a torpedo.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59With powerful jaws and spear-like teeth.
0:07:01 > 0:07:06Fish filleting Steller sea lions - definitely deadly.
0:07:13 > 0:07:14Ooh.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20Talk about wild encounters!
0:07:22 > 0:07:25Yeah, they're quite big and scary, actually.
0:07:25 > 0:07:30Beautiful, yes, but they've got very, very big teeth.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32SEA LIONS ROAR
0:07:34 > 0:07:38'It seemed our sea lion encounter was done,
0:07:38 > 0:07:42'but we had a real surprise in store.
0:07:42 > 0:07:47'Sometimes even the most fearsome hunter can become the hunted.'
0:07:49 > 0:07:53There's a pod of orca - of killer whales -
0:07:53 > 0:07:56who have got a hold of a Steller sea lion.
0:07:56 > 0:07:58'Killer whales already have
0:07:58 > 0:08:01'a well-deserved place on my Deadly 60 list.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05'All of a sudden, two Deadly 60 animals were going head to head
0:08:05 > 0:08:07'in a genuine life or death face-off.'
0:08:07 > 0:08:10Despite the enormous size of these animals, it still takes
0:08:10 > 0:08:13an incredible amount of effort to kill something
0:08:13 > 0:08:15as large as a Steller sea lion.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18It is the biggest sea lion in the world. It's a ferocious predator,
0:08:18 > 0:08:21and it's a survivor, as well.
0:08:21 > 0:08:26Oh, double spy hop together! They both came up at the same moment!
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Oh, my goodness!
0:08:28 > 0:08:30It's like some kind of ballet!
0:08:33 > 0:08:36I'm almost certain these whales are coming up above the surface,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40to bring their eye above the surface so they can try and see where he is.
0:08:40 > 0:08:45They just can't quite locate him. He's hidden in amongst the kelp,
0:08:45 > 0:08:46obviously very, very tired.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54As a reminder of what our Steller sea lion is up against,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58have a look at what killer whales are capable of.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22This is a real wildlife drama happening right now.
0:09:22 > 0:09:26Just surfacing right behind the sea lion, almost like they're
0:09:26 > 0:09:30playing with him, but I think it's more because he's just in amongst
0:09:30 > 0:09:34kelp - thick seaweed which forms like a forest under the water.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Possible that it's quite shallow here,
0:09:37 > 0:09:39and they can't quite get in at him.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42'No match for an entire pod of killer whales,
0:09:42 > 0:09:46'the brainy, sea lion wisely hides where they can't follow.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49'Hiding in the kelp makes it harder for the killer whales to see him
0:09:49 > 0:09:52'and impossible to actually get at him.'
0:09:54 > 0:09:58Whoa! 'The frustrated killer whales step the hunt up a gear.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01'The jumping, the splashing and the tail slaps are all meant
0:10:01 > 0:10:04'to intimidate the sea lion an drive him out of the kelp.'
0:10:06 > 0:10:09I don't believe what's happening!
0:10:09 > 0:10:13This is the most incredible wildlife drama I think I've ever seen.
0:10:15 > 0:10:20They're trying to freak it out and drive it out from where it's hiding.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Over here we've got one thrashing its tail,
0:10:26 > 0:10:30going absolutely crazy with tail slaps.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33He's heading out, he's heading away.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Our gutsy sea lion hasn't been fooled.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39He's using his superior manoeuvrability to outwit the orca.
0:10:41 > 0:10:45A big burst of bubbles right underneath where the sea lion was.
0:10:45 > 0:10:50'It's a waiting game for both the killer whales and the sea lion.'
0:10:53 > 0:10:55The sea lion's back out again.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01- How did it get all the way over there?- Is there more than one?
0:11:01 > 0:11:04Just remarkable.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07And the sea lion has managed to escape.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11I can't believe the way our drama seems to be finishing.
0:11:11 > 0:11:15The sea lion's headed off in that direction, and our pod of orca
0:11:15 > 0:11:18just seem to have given up and they're heading off that way.
0:11:20 > 0:11:22There they go.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24He got away with it, he escaped!
0:11:24 > 0:11:27That has got to be the gutsiest sea lion on the planet,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30swimming in that direction, right around the shore.
0:11:30 > 0:11:35'I put Steller sea lions on the list as a super-charged fish hunter,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38'but this proves my point for reasons I'd not considered.
0:11:38 > 0:11:39'Outnumbered ten to one,
0:11:39 > 0:11:42'by killer whales many times his size and strength,
0:11:42 > 0:11:45'our Steller sea lion had the guts, the speed,
0:11:45 > 0:11:49'the brains to elude them and survive.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52'Our respect for the Steller sea lion has gone through the roof.'
0:11:55 > 0:11:59'Here in Canada, people and wild animals often live side by side,
0:11:59 > 0:12:03'so we're heading into the city of Vancouver to search for potential
0:12:03 > 0:12:06'contenders for my Deadly 60.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14'The crew and I were heading to our hotel when we came across
0:12:14 > 0:12:16'a nocturnal hunter.'
0:12:19 > 0:12:21How about that?
0:12:29 > 0:12:35We were just heading home when, out of one of the windows, we spied
0:12:35 > 0:12:39one of the residents of the city, which is a wild animal that's doing
0:12:39 > 0:12:41really, really well in here, amongst people.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44It's up here somewhere.
0:12:47 > 0:12:52Oh, my goodness. Ha-ha! How about that?!
0:12:52 > 0:12:56Actually, this is an animal that does have a claim to being deadly.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59They're phenomenal predators, digging in the soil
0:12:59 > 0:13:01looking for insects and worms.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03'This city critter is a skunk.
0:13:03 > 0:13:08'It might look cuddly, but trust me, this is the last animal on earth
0:13:08 > 0:13:10'you'd ever want to hug.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13'Skunks are fearsome bug killers.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16'With curved claws for excavating an insect supper, they'll munch down
0:13:16 > 0:13:20'small mammals with a mouth bristling with sharp teeth.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25'But if a bigger beast makes the mistake of taking on the skunk,
0:13:25 > 0:13:29'then pretty soon they'll wish they hadn't.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33'The skunk is armed with a potent defensive spray,
0:13:33 > 0:13:36'and this chemical weapon can even harm humans.'
0:13:41 > 0:13:43MUSIC PLAYS
0:13:51 > 0:13:53'The skunk sprays when it feels threatened,
0:13:53 > 0:13:58'but the spray is so highly toxic it can cause temporary blindness,
0:13:58 > 0:14:02'and the stench alone will turn the strongest of stomachs.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12'The toxic spray is so effective the military have
0:14:12 > 0:14:17'copied its chemical make-up and use it to disperse angry crowds.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21'So we're tiptoeing around as quiet as can be.'
0:14:21 > 0:14:24There he is, just down there, scampering through the bushes.
0:14:24 > 0:14:29'The black and white colouration warns predators to look elsewhere.'
0:14:29 > 0:14:31It's right in front of me.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33Steve, where is it?
0:14:33 > 0:14:37- Just down here, Johnny.- What happens if a skunk sprays you, Steve?
0:14:37 > 0:14:40If a skunk sprays you, you are in a world of pain.
0:14:40 > 0:14:44I remember being with a dog that got sprayed a few years back,
0:14:44 > 0:14:47and everything it sat on,
0:14:47 > 0:14:50everything it even went close to had to be thrown away. The smell
0:14:50 > 0:14:54was so powerful it made you want to vomit just being close to it.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59Really, it's the incredible stinging, acidic burning
0:14:59 > 0:15:02if it gets into your eyes and onto your skin.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04And that's why it has this vibrant
0:15:04 > 0:15:08bright white and black warning colouration.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13'Mammals this size are often on the menu for all sorts
0:15:13 > 0:15:18'of bigger predators. But one spray from a skunk and they soon learn.
0:15:21 > 0:15:27'This young mountain lion is about to be taught a valuable lesson.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34'The mountain lion is ten times the size of our hero,
0:15:34 > 0:15:39'but Eau de Skunk is nature's most unstomachable stench.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43'Skunk one, lion nil.'
0:15:50 > 0:15:52Look at that.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54I think he's quite a young one, actually.
0:15:56 > 0:16:01Just scampering off into the bushes, and I have to say I'm secretly quite
0:16:01 > 0:16:05glad because you really wouldn't want to get sprayed by a skunk.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08There is nothing funny about it, at all.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22'Unplanned encounters are what make these missions exciting
0:16:22 > 0:16:26'and unpredictable, and you don't get much more unpredictable
0:16:26 > 0:16:31'than an animal the size of a rabbit that can overwhelm a lion.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35'The skunk may be small, but it has a huge attitude,
0:16:35 > 0:16:40'with sharp teeth and digging claws, but it's their stinking acidic spray
0:16:40 > 0:16:42'that gets them on the Deadly 60.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46'The striped or spotty scrabbling stink bomb, the skunk.'
0:16:49 > 0:16:53'While we were in Vancouver we bumped into one animal that's so
0:16:53 > 0:16:57'adaptable and successful in the city, that they're everywhere.'
0:16:57 > 0:16:59Oh, there's one. Look, Johnny.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02'That animal is the raccoon.'
0:17:02 > 0:17:05Look. Look.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11'One racoon let his greediness get the better of him.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15'Deadly 60 crew to raccoon rescue!'
0:17:15 > 0:17:17The raccoon's stuck in the bin.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20This could be interesting.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Yeah, if you could grab me a branch that would be great.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28This is kind of the unfortunate side effect
0:17:28 > 0:17:31of racoons living so close to people.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34They spend an awful lot of time in dustbins because it's full
0:17:34 > 0:17:37of high-calorie, sweet, salty food,
0:17:37 > 0:17:40and this poor little fella's got himself trapped.
0:17:40 > 0:17:44Just sent off my director. He's going to try and get a branch,
0:17:44 > 0:17:46and hopefully we can provide
0:17:46 > 0:17:49just a little ladder that he can use to climb out.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54He's also
0:17:54 > 0:17:57quite bitey. He's snarling at me at the moment.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03'Obviously, raccoons don't spend their whole lives
0:18:03 > 0:18:05'stuck in rubbish bins.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09'I want to show you how good they are at hunting.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14'Down at the seashore, raccoons search for a shellfish supper.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17'They hunt at night and only use touch,
0:18:17 > 0:18:20'despite not having flexible thumbs like we do.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23'To make this demonstration fair,
0:18:23 > 0:18:25'I'm going to have my thumbs tied up.'
0:18:28 > 0:18:33Let's have a bit of an idea of what life is like as raccoon.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37'And this is their ideal hunting ground, with plenty of shellfish.'
0:18:40 > 0:18:44First, what the raccoon would do is they have very, very fine hairs
0:18:44 > 0:18:46around the end of each finger,
0:18:46 > 0:18:49and they use those to touch around,
0:18:49 > 0:18:54like this, almost not using their sight and their smell.
0:18:54 > 0:18:59Raccoons use their incredible sense of touch to build up a 3D mental map
0:18:59 > 0:19:01of their surroundings.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05It's as complex as human sight, and it's as though they're seeing
0:19:05 > 0:19:07with their hands.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11I've got myself some mussels here.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16Right. Let's see how I go with opening these
0:19:16 > 0:19:19without using my thumbs.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23- You used your thumbs there as well. - I didn't use my thumbs!- I saw you
0:19:23 > 0:19:26use your thumbs. Yeah, we saw you.
0:19:26 > 0:19:27'OK, my crew were right.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31'I cheated, and I don't come close to having the skill of a raccoon,
0:19:31 > 0:19:37'or the strength to break into shellfish without thumbs.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40So there's no doubt with their brains, their resourcefulness,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43their ability to adapt to their environment,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45raccoons have got to go on the Deadly 60.
0:19:46 > 0:19:51Sensitive hands help it effectively see what it touches.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55So perceptive, they can hunt in pitch black,
0:19:55 > 0:20:00can break into the toughest of shells - without any thumbs.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04Raccoons - masked bandits and deadly.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11'The skunk and the raccoon both make best use of what we leave behind.
0:20:11 > 0:20:16'But this next animal is far less welcome in our cities.
0:20:16 > 0:20:21'Ten times stronger than a man and capable of dealing destruction
0:20:21 > 0:20:24'with its massive paws, this is a black bear.
0:20:27 > 0:20:28'So far on Deadly 60,
0:20:28 > 0:20:33'we've met two kinds of bears - the seal-eating polar bear...'
0:20:33 > 0:20:39Out there, about a mile off in the distance, is our first polar bear.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42He's just, sort of,
0:20:42 > 0:20:45ambling about at the moment.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48'And the salmon-slicing grizzly bear.'
0:20:48 > 0:20:50There!
0:20:50 > 0:20:53Look at that, just wandering along the shoreline!
0:20:56 > 0:21:01'Those bears were really hard to find, but that's not the case here.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04'Black bears are everywhere.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07'Many of the towns in Canada have been built
0:21:07 > 0:21:09'on the edge of black bear territories.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11'Bears have the most potent sense of smell
0:21:11 > 0:21:13'in the animal kingdom.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16'Our rubbish draws them in from miles away.
0:21:16 > 0:21:21'Keeping bears away from people is a constant battle.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24'Seeing skunks and raccoons in your garden is one thing,
0:21:24 > 0:21:28'but finding a bear is a whole other story.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32'This footage shows bears in someone's front garden.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34'Imagine waking up to that in the morning!
0:21:37 > 0:21:41'I've come to Whistler to find out more about these insatiable eaters,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44'and it wasn't long before we bumped into one.'
0:21:46 > 0:21:48I don't believe it!
0:21:51 > 0:21:54'Be under no illusion - these bears may look cute and cuddly,
0:21:54 > 0:21:56'but appearances can be deceiving.'
0:21:58 > 0:22:02Wandering across the road in front of us is a bear.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Look at this, it's just walking
0:22:07 > 0:22:09right down the footpath.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11This is the kind of situation
0:22:11 > 0:22:15the people in Whistler deal with every day.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18They may feed mainly on plants,
0:22:18 > 0:22:23but this is still a bear with all the bear superpowers.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26They're huge, heavy beasts with strength
0:22:26 > 0:22:28that is almost unparalleled.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33They can run as fast as a racehorse and are equipped with fearsome claws
0:22:33 > 0:22:34and massive jaws.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38The situation with black bears coming into towns has arisen
0:22:38 > 0:22:42because people have been irresponsible with their rubbish.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45With a sense of smell 100,000 times more sensitive than ours,
0:22:45 > 0:22:50black bears can smell an easy meal from miles away.
0:22:51 > 0:22:56Black bears don't seek humans as food, but if they feel frightened,
0:22:56 > 0:23:00cornered or are protecting cubs, they can lash out.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04The way you get rid of rubbish is really important around bears.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08With their sense of smell, they can pick up the scent of rubbish
0:23:08 > 0:23:10from miles around. And they can also get into
0:23:10 > 0:23:14a conventional rubbish bin really easily, so special bear bins
0:23:14 > 0:23:17like this, that they can't get their paws into,
0:23:17 > 0:23:19are absolutely essential.
0:23:22 > 0:23:27It seems tragic that this wondrous beast can be seen as a pest,
0:23:27 > 0:23:31with that magnificent muzzle buried in our junk.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34I want to see them where they're at home, rather than
0:23:34 > 0:23:36really in our home.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43It's crazy, crazy early in the morning,
0:23:43 > 0:23:48not long after dawn, and the entire crew have crammed into
0:23:48 > 0:23:53the back of this car because we're heading uphill, looking for bears.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02'The black bear's natural diet is mostly made up of berries,
0:24:02 > 0:24:05'but in the wild they can occasionally be predators,
0:24:05 > 0:24:07'sometimes devouring colonies of ants
0:24:07 > 0:24:11'and, like their grizzly bear cousins, catching salmon.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16'Black bears are the least choosy of the bears in what they eat.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20'They prefer the easy life and eat whatever's readily available.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24'Most of the time, that's plants.'
0:24:31 > 0:24:32Here, Johnny...
0:24:32 > 0:24:35Oh, no, no. He's right alongside the road.
0:24:35 > 0:24:36Got our first bear in front of us,
0:24:36 > 0:24:41just shambling away, up the road.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44He's gone now.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49'This time of year, natural food is plentiful
0:24:49 > 0:24:52'and berry-guzzling bears are everywhere.'
0:24:57 > 0:24:59There.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02They're just heading up. Lovely.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10During the winter, Whistler is one of the best-known ski areas
0:25:10 > 0:25:14in the world, and it's quite weird actually seeing these bears
0:25:14 > 0:25:18wandering across the slopes here, with the silent ski lifts behind us.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20You can just hear the whir of the ski lift over there.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25We've got our mother,
0:25:25 > 0:25:30just crossing the slopes now, and one of her cubs halfway up a tree.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34Beautiful.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36It's a pretty good start to the day.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41'In the mountains, where they don't feel cornered,
0:25:41 > 0:25:43'the bears pretty much ignore us.'
0:25:45 > 0:25:47Nice and quiet, everyone.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50This is actually quite an unusual experience - totally surrounded
0:25:50 > 0:25:53on all sides by black bears.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55There's one just about 15, 20m in front of me,
0:25:55 > 0:25:57just shambling down the slopes.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03And another four around us, here.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05I think this is to do with the fact that there is
0:26:05 > 0:26:07so much food here, so many berries,
0:26:07 > 0:26:10and they're so involved with eating them,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14that they're not fussed about our presence.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16They have boundless personality
0:26:16 > 0:26:19and are definitely one of Canada's wild wonders.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23They don't want conflict with people,
0:26:23 > 0:26:27but black bears can occasionally turn to being scavengers.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29And in the city, we produce so much rubbish,
0:26:29 > 0:26:33black bears find it irresistible, and this is where people and bears
0:26:33 > 0:26:35come into close contact.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38If we were responsible with our rubbish,
0:26:38 > 0:26:41bears would have no reason to come into cities.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46Well, black bears are a bit of a weird one for the Deadly 60, really.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49There's no doubt that it's an animal with great strength,
0:26:49 > 0:26:53deceptive speed, amazing senses and a great ability to climb.
0:26:53 > 0:26:57I mean, it has the potential to be very dangerous indeed.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00But the truth of the matter is that for the vast majority of the year,
0:27:00 > 0:27:04all they eat is plant matter and really they're no danger to humans
0:27:04 > 0:27:08whatsoever, unless people are really, really stupid.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10So, cool as they are,
0:27:10 > 0:27:13I don't think I'll put black bears onto the Deadly 60.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20'And on our next electrifying edition of the Deadly 60...'
0:27:33 > 0:27:37I have never been this close to a tapir before.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:27:50 > 0:27:53E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk