South Africa 2 Deadly 60

My name's Steve Backshall.

And this is my search

for the Deadly 60.

That's not just animals that are deadly to me.

But animals that are deadly in their own world.

'My crew and I are travelling the planet.'

Are you coming with me?

'Every step of the way.'

'This time on Deadly 60,

'we're in South Africa.

'Dripping with diversity. A multitude of habitats,

'each with their own special animal inhabitants.

'South Africa's a nation at the bottom of the Dark Continent.

'Alive with brilliant beasts.

'First we head to an animal rescue centre,

'for a tantalising meeting with the natural world's

'speed demon.'

We've been filming Deadly 60 for over three years now,

and somehow we've managed to avoid doing

the fastest land predator on earth.

Inside this cage

is something really very special.

Come on in.

'We'll be in search of cheetah in the wild later.

'But first, an encounter with two young orphans.

'These two were rescued as cubs, when their mother died of disease,

'but are doing really well in captivity.'

Well haven't got very well acquainted yet,

so I'll feel my way through this. I don't want to get too close.

Because one lash from those feet

could give me quite a nasty wound.

But the feet themselves

are quite remarkable.

They have non-retractable claws,

so you can see those there.

On most cats, they'll draw them into the pads to protect them,

to keep them sharp.

But on a cheetah, they're always at least partially extended.

That helps with grip. It helps them for running.

They also can use those claws,

almost like he's doing now,

just to bat at the legs of prey.

So if you have a small antelope, a gazelle,

that's in full flow,

and it gets its back leg hit by one of those,

it'll just take it down,

and allow the cheetah to come in

and finish it off.

Absolutely beautiful.

This one's about a year old.

Still got a little bit of growing to do.

But they still have that remarkable cheetah pace.

And the best way I've got of showing you that,

is using this.

Right. Let's play a bit of cheetah football.

Huh! Ooh, crumbs.

I'm not going to have this in my hand, then.

HE LAUGHS

'The cheetah barely needs an introduction.

'It's a living Lamborghini.

'The Sultan of Speed.

'No other predator has a frame

'so well adapted to sprinting supremacy.

'Their long limbs and flexible spine give them stride length.

'Their small head and thin profile cut down on wind resistance.'

Top speed, three strides.

Pretty impressive, isn't it?

'The claws are always extended,

'curved and sharp enough to tear through fur and skin.

'Certainly not a good idea to get too close.'

Got it!

Huh! Ooh-hoo-hoo-hoo!

Nearly took my ankle out!

I think I'm going to let him have the football.

HE LAUGHS

'Both in the wild and in captivity, young predators love to play.

'But these games are training for life

'as a high-octane hunter.

'Accelerating faster than a sports car,

'they reach nearly 60 miles per hour

'in under three seconds.

'Each stride is a massive leap,

'covering seven metres at a time.

'Flat out, they spend more than half of their time

'totally airborne.

'But their speed comes at a price.'

In an all-out chase, they can only run for a few hundred metres

before they absolutely have to stop.

Then they might spend half an hour losing all of that excess body heat.

CHEETAH PANTS

Listen to that. Just a couple of short sprints.

We're about to have a brother/sister tussle

over a football.

Look at that. They're having a tug-of-war!

I'm pretty sure that our game of deadly football is over.

But' luckily, I have a way we can try and see these animals

in the wild.

'So we hit the road, and headed out into the bush,

'in the hope that we might get to see them.'

This reserve offers us a fabulous opportunity

to see cheetahs in the wild.

There are two adult males here that have radio collars on.

We can track them using this radio telemetry device.

This will allow us to zone in on where those animals are.

Then we can sit with them and try to see them at work.

'After a few hours of tracking and searching,

'we found our fabled felines.'

Such a beautiful animal.

Glorious amber eyes.

And when you get a big yawn,

they show off those fearsome canine teeth.

How wonderful.

They're just walking in our direction at the moment.

You can really see why a spotted, or rosetted coat

is so common amongst the cats.

Because, a slight comes down through these trees,

it creates little pools of dark and of light,

and it merges perfectly with their coat.

Look at that.

This is just purely inquisitive.

Wandering out

to come and have a look at us.

CHEETAH YELPS

Those little calls, almost kitten-like.

Her communication between the two. To come and have a look at us.

Letting each other know where they are.

-CHEETAH YELPS

-Hear that?

An incredibly cute sound from such a sublime predator.

Now they're coming together.

The way they move is almost lazy.

It's kind of keeping energy in reserve.

Just padding along,

so that when they need to use that incredible speed,

they still have plenty energy in store.

'Cheetahs have an unusually wide field of vision.

'But they can also spot prey from over a kilometre away.

'The cheetah needs to be close before risking a chase.

'Usually approaching to less than 30 metres,

'before exploding into action.

'With their curved dew claw hooking into tendons,

'just one swipe of a paw can knock a prey animal off balance.

'Then a final bite to the throat finishes the job.

'They're one of the most accomplished hunters

'of all the big cats.'

Looking straight at us.

Very attentive, alert animals.

One's just stopped by a very prominent tree,

and is scent-marking, blasting urine against that tree.

This is essentially telling other cheetahs that this their patch,

and they should stay out.

But I think there's something more here at the moment.

These two animals have quite a lot of purpose about how they're moving.

They look, to me, quite lean and hungry.

'Cheetah often goes several days without hunting.

'So we could be in for quite a wait.

'It's getting to the hottest part of the day,

'and looks like they've made themselves comfortable in the shade,

'for now.

'The location isn't ideal for a cheetah hunt.

'They tend to prefer much more open terrain,

'where they can get up speed.

'But if something wanders close,

'they may well take their opportunity.'

'After several hours, something got their attention.'

(I can just make out, through the trees behind us,

(aepyceros impala. Antelope.)

(They've come into the range of the cheetah,

(and all of a sudden just focused their attention in that direction.)

OK.

The cheetahs have just spotted the impala moving this way,

and they've gone into hunt mode.

For the first time in about three hours, they've moved.

You can just see the impala off in the distance, that way.

Unfortunately,

they've been spooked,

and the cheetah won't take up a hunt

if they know there's no chance of success.

While the impala are alert,

there's simply no way they'll be able to run them down.

We've been sat out here all day long in the burning African sunshine,

and in total silence.

But we have been in the company of two extraordinarily beautiful cats.

We haven't got to see them hunt,

but there's no doubt that the fastest land mammal on earth,

for its pace and its grace, has to go on the Deadly 60.

'Reaching speeds of 70 miles an hour,

'they're the fastest animal on land.

'They twist and turn as they sprint,

'then swipe their prey to the ground.

'Their camouflage, stealth, and super senses

'make them extraordinary hunters.

-'Cheetahs are...'

-'Deadly.'

The next animal I want to find is fierce, imposing,

and will have monkeys in the treetops diving for cover.

It's probably the most powerful raptor in Africa -

the majestic crowned eagle.

Monkeys like these vervets have to keep their wits about them

and watch the sky.

The crowned eagle will sometimes hunt cooperatively with their mate,

and are a formidable force.

They swoop in on their quarry, snatching it from safety.

So, now we've seen what this massively powerful eagle

is capable of eating, we have a wonderful opportunity to actually

see this bird in the wild, because just down below me here is a nest.

And if we hang out at the cliff edge, we might,

just might, see these birds coming in.

This pair haven't laid their eggs yet,

so they're not always on the nest.

But, hopefully, they'll be back soon.

We want to minimise our silhouette so we're not so visible to the bird.

So we'll be just on the edge here, but down low.

And we have got a fantastic view.

Both birds have just come in and landed near the nest.

Quite often... Oh, they're mating, they're mating!

A crowned eagle pair often use the same nest for many years,

so this might not be the first time they've bred here.

Up close to crowned eagles in the wild

and the first thing you see is mating. That is just extraordinary.

Such a dramatic bird silhouetted there on that branch

against the mountains in the background.

It's just flown down to the nest.

This is a really vital time for these birds.

They put so much investment into their eggs and their chicks.

So this nest has to be just right.

Ah! One's just flown.

It looks like the male who's flown off,

so I'm hoping he's gone hunting and left the female at the nest.

The female followed soon after,

but not without demonstrating her elegant soaring skills.

Real advantage of this location that we're in now is that it can help

these heavy birds get airborne.

So, wind is going to come rushing down this valley

and then be driven upwards in updrafts against this cliff wall,

and also, rising warm air, known as thermals,

both of those things are going to be sending air upwards.

The birds can use those to generate lift to get themselves high

without having to expend any energy.

She's just...

drifting down...

..into that valley over there.

We waited around for the rest of the day,

but it didn't look like they were coming back.

Well, we've had a glimpse of a crowned eagle in this environment

where they truly are king, but the next stage

is to get really close to one, and I know just the place.

So, this is a crowned eagle up close.

This is Karma, and tragically, she was shot in the wing,

probably by a farmer who was worried for his livestock,

and so now is kept in this centre here, in very, very good hands.

And the first thing that I can tell you about her is that she has

one of the most extraordinary grip strengths I've ever felt on a bird

or actually on any animal at all.

If I didn't have this thick leather gauntlet on,

I think she'd be crushing every bone in my hand.

And those talons really are totally remarkable.

It's all because this animal specialises in feeding on mammals.

So you've got an incredibly powerful grip strength,

very, very broad, thick talons,

which are really good for hanging on to fur.

Imagine this is an animal that's catching monkeys in the treetops.

It also has this.

Aw-w-w! Ow-w!

Just that little bit of a shift, and she clenches onto the hand.

And you can really sense the incredible strength

and power of this animal.

That talon there can be used in an attack...

thrown forward like this,

and then used to stab into the body of the animals it's feeding on.

Although this is a really sizable and quite weighty eagle,

if I just show you the wings...

Actually, the wingspan, really, is not massive.

And the reason for that is that this is an animal that's really adapted

to flying inside the forest.

It's all about dodging in and out of trees and branches,

and not getting those long, thin wings caught on branches and leaves.

So, being as we have this unique opportunity

of having a bird like this up close, I'd really like to see it in action.

Hopefully, using a lure will get her to swoop in for the kill,

and I'll be ready with a camera to try and get a prey's-eye view.

-Oh!

-HE LAUGHS

I totally wasn't running(!)

-CAMERAMAN: I was!

-You were?

-Yeah.

-Oh, OK.

That's why I'm the presenter and not the cameraman.

Take two.

-Wa-a-a-ah!

-HE LAUGHS

Well, I think I might have got it. Maybe.

-HE SPEAKS WARILY

-Take three.

We are good...to...go.

There she goes.

Oh-h-h! Superb!

As she comes in, she drops down,

allowing gravity to bring her towards the ground.

Lift is generated under her wings, so she doesn't need to flap

when coming in on the lure.

And the talons come out...

Pow! Precision accuracy.

Look at that! This is called mantling.

What it's doing is just making sure that nothing else can see its food.

And there it's going to go in and get stuck in.

You can see the crown of feathers is fully extended,

making her look bigger and more threatening.

This is the most powerful eagle in Africa, and it is a crested wonder.

You've got to say the crowned eagle

has definitely got to go on the Deadly 60.

With enormous dagger-like talons that stab through their prey,

agile aerial-expertise allowing them to dodge in and out of trees...

..enabling them to take on prey more than twice their weight.

'Deadly.'

In the African bush,

every spare minute is spent in search of wildlife.

It's the most exciting way to spend a day.

Oh, that's cool!

Now, this is a female ravine spider.

OK, let's see if I can just lift the palps.

Those fangs are long, curved, sharp, downward-pointing,

so this spider can drive those down into prey and then tear it apart,

using those fangs almost like a set of knife and fork.

She is...beautiful.

There's wildlife everywhere.

I'm being watched.

When searching for the smaller stuff,

it's best to try under branches and rocks.

Yes!

Quite often, chunks of old millipede like this

are a sign that there are scorpions around.

Look at that.

This is a flat rock scorpion.

They're actually not massively venomous.

Very thin, spindly tail,

BUT, this is a species that will feast on other kinds of scorpions,

including some of the most venomous found in the whole world.

And something else that's special about this little beauty

is that the abdomen here is really thick and full.

It's almost like a half-squashed grape,

and that's because inside there are loads of tiny little eggs

with baby scorpions just waiting to emerge.

It's a mummy scorpion.

Being as she's an expectant mum, we'll put her back very carefully.

We've had a lot of snakes on the Deadly 60, but this time,

we want to try something a little bit different.

To most people around the world, a snake is just a snake.

But trust me, that couldn't be further from the truth.

There's around about 2,700 different species,

and they come in a massive variety of shapes, sizes and colours.

Even amongst the venomous snakes, there are some very distinct types.

So, Donald here is an old friend of Deadly 60.

He runs a local reptile park, and inside here we have a whole bunch

of snakes rescued locally that will be released back into the wild

after we've finished showing you what they can do.

This here is called a Photron camera.

It shoots in slow motion, so we're going to be able to see these snakes

at their absolute best, frame-by-frame.

And it's all going to be recorded here on this laptop.

We're hoping, obviously, that nothing's going to go wrong,

but if it does, we've also got the local ambulance here, just in case.

So this is a colubrid, or typical snake.

They're long, they're slender,

they're usually very good climbers, and if they do have venom,

then they'll have a fang or two fangs in the upper jaw,

but quite backward-set towards the rear of the mouth.

This is a viper.

It has an arrow-shaped head, fantastic camouflage,

and they tend to be quite lazy snakes that sit still

and wait for their prey to come to them.

The fangs are at the front of the upper jaw, and they're hinged,

so they can swing forward and stab into their prey.

And this, obviously, is a cobra.

This group of snakes has the most venomous snakes on the planet.

Many of them have the ability to hood like this

-in defensive posture.

-SNAKE HISSES

They have short, fixed, immovable fangs at the front

of the upper jaw, and they stab downwards towards their prey

with a neurotoxic venom that affects the nervous system.

So, three fascinating, very different kinds of snakes.

What I want to do is show you some unique aspects of their behaviour.

So, I'm taking three African serpents,

one from each group of venomous snakes...

..the colubrids, the cobras, and the vipers.

And our next step is to reveal their remarkable skills.

OK, the first snake I'm going to show you, hopefully,

even if you are someone who hates snakes, this will change your mind.

Because I believe this is one of the most beautiful snakes in the world.

This...is a boomslang.

Boomslangs are unusual amongst the colubrids in being highly venomous.

They're tree-dwelling snakes, so are fantastic climbers.

And they make meals of chameleons, lizards, frogs,

birds and small mammals.

The boomslang is all about senses.

Its eyes are absolutely enormous.

Certainly, for its size, the largest of any snake on the planet.

Now, most snakes, sight is based on movement,

so they're looking for prey that's moving around them.

But the boomslang hunts in the treetops for very well camouflaged

animals that are standing perfectly still.

But, with those enormous eyes, which are slightly egg-shaped,

they have phenomenal depth perception.

That means they can still see animals even when they're not moving

at all, and they're exactly the same colour as their environment.

The other super-sense they have for tracking their prey is their tongue,

and that's what I'm hoping to show you in slow motion.

There it goes, there it goes!

Right, I'm really hoping Johnny managed to get that,

because when you see it slow down, actually, it is extraordinary

what that tongue is really doing.

So, the tongue comes out, it waves up and down,

you can see both sides of that forked tongue actually trailing

into the air and then dropping down onto the branch itself...

and just trailing along the edge of the branch.

What that's doing is it's actually working almost like a sponge -

picking up bits of scent, bits of invisible scent,

that are down on the wood itself,

and then drawing them back into the mouth where they can be processed.

What this snake's doing is tasting its world.

Now, if any lizard, a chameleon, perhaps,

has been wandering along this log, it will have left an invisible trail

behind it, and that's what the snake is trying to find.

For our next serpent superstar,

we're going to need a little bit of extra safety precautions.

You'll notice Johnny the cameraman and Nick the soundman

have both got these special goggles on.

That's for very good reason, because under this little teepee here,

is a Mozambique spitting cobra.

And it's its spitting defence that I really want to show you.

We're exposing the snake.

(Here.)

The important thing to realise is that this is totally about defence.

The cobra will kill its prey exactly the same way as other snakes -

by injecting venom.

But that...is like a hosepipe!

And you can see how accurate it is.

The fangs themselves have a slight twist to them on the inside.

It's almost like rifling in a gun,

which means that the spray is incredibly accurate.

And it's actually just headed straight towards my eyes.

You can see him there, bringing his head back, focusing,

and it's just peppering the whole of the front of my glasses here.

Much more chance that it's going to land into an eyeball.

This is a puff adder.

It's one of the most feared snakes in Africa,

but I think they are utterly fascinating.

It's the classic viper shape,

and it has the classic viper hunting method.

And the most interesting thing, perhaps, is that its strike

can be over and done with in as much as a fifth of a second.

Now, I'm hoping to show you that by getting it to strike at...

this water balloon.

We're using the balloon to simulate a small mammal.

Hopefully, it will strike it in the same way.

Oh-h-h!

That was glorious.

You can see the tongue flickering on the air.

It's drawing back into that classic S-shape which gives it

the possibility to extend to strike.

It's focused on the balloon.

Oh, wo-o-ow!

That is absolutely unbelievable.

It's a very, very short strike, but you could see as the mouth opened,

the sheath that covered the fangs being exposed.

They're very, very long those fangs,

and really act like tiny stiletto daggers.

And they have just knifed into the balloon,

and for a fraction of a second, the water is hanging there in one place.

If that was mammal prey, it would've carried it on pumping the venom

into its body, and then it retreats. It lets it go.

This is really important to the puff adder, because what it's doing is

it's making sure that it's prey can't do it any damage.

It's now retreated, it's back to its original position,

and it's just going to wait for its prey to succumb to its venom.

Well, we've seen three rather wonderful snakes,

but for my money, the gloriously camouflaged, split-second striking

puff adder has got it, and is definitely going on the Deadly 60.

..with remarkable camouflage making them superior ambush predators,

and a lightning fast strike that's over in a fifth of a second...

The puff adder is pure deadliness.

'Deadly.'

Just crazy!

Join me next time as I continue my search for the Deadly 60.

Oh-h-h!

Look at that!

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd