Episode 30 Roar

Today on Roar... Harriet the barn owl is an OAP,

but she's coming out of retirement and going back to flying school.

Are you never to old to learn? Or will training go horribly wrong?

Welcome to another episode of your favourite animal programme, Roar.

I'm Johny and Rani, what are you doing?

Johny, just keeping my foot warm. It's what the Chilean flamingos do.

-They just stand on one leg.

-Very good, Rani.

You do that, I'll get on with the rest of the show.

Ohhh!

Coming up - It glows in the dark...

Its skeleton is on the outside of its body...

And to grow it has to burst out of its skin...

Meet the emperor scorpion!

We've got some more tall stories when this lot quiz keeper, Andy,

on his giraffe knowledge.

It's the most ridiculous question ever!

And ferrets are cute, cuddly

and adapted to squeeze through small holes.

But how small can they go?

We'll be finding out!

But first...

down in Animal Adventure an old age pensioner

is coming out of retirement and is about to go back to flying school.

Harriet the barn owl is 13 years old now, which makes her an old lady.

In the wild most barn owls survive for barely two years.

Head keeper Darren Bearsley hand reared Harriet from a young chick

and she's always been a favourite.

From a tiny little fluffy ball, a tiny little chick,

I fed her and I fed her little bits of mince.

Minced up mouse is pretty horrid, pretty gruesome stuff.

Hand fed her, and reared her up. She moulted all her baby feathers out.

She got to know us and I used to walk around and got her used

to everything, all the noises and the goings-on.

Harriet spent many years doing flying displays at the park,

but two years ago Darren decided it was time for her to retire.

So I thought come on, what we'll do is get her a boyfriend

and then hopefully, they can make little baby barn owls

or lay eggs and things.

And that's the way it went for a few years.

Then all of a sudden I thought, hang on, am I wasting this?

She's such a lovely animal and everybody asks me, where's Harriet?

So, I decided really, the time's right. So,

bring her out of retirement and hopefully see what she can do.

Keeper Graeme Dick is going to be her flying instructor.

Harriet may be old, but she's still a ruthless predator

with weapons to match.

Owls are really the top killing machine, they're designed purely for

their nocturnal flight, these guys especially.

First thing is to look at her eyes,

she has pitch black eyes. That shows that she hunts at night.

This heart-shaped face round the front

acts a bit like a satellite dish.

That takes any sound off the mice, it directs into the front of her face

and then out towards her ears which are located at the side of her head.

The feet are the killing machines. Her beak doesn't have much power,

it's like the knife and fork, just to rip bits to swallow.

But she will actually swallow mice whole.

She has a big enough mouth for that.

But after so long away from flying school, is Harriet too fat to fly?

She's 318 grams, bang on her flying weight. She's ready to go today.

For her first lesson, she'll be attached to Graeme by a safety line.

This is called a Cranes Line,

it's just a fancy word for a bit of string.

The line is a bit of security for me

so that she doesn't go off and land in a tree.

Fingers crossed on our training session today, she'll do quite well.

Really it's a case of putting her on the perch

and just trying to jump her to me, and increasing the distance as we go.

If owls are to be seen flying for the visitors again,

Harriet must pass her training.

She's all excited and she's ready to go already. Let's give it a go, then.

HE WHISTLES

Will she remember her training from years ago?

The future of owl flying at the park rests on her feathered shoulders.

HE WHISTLES

HE WHISTLES AGAIN

Shall we try and get her to jump first?

HE WHISTLES

-Harriet, come on.

-It's not going well.

Has Harriet forgotten everything she learned?

She's being a bit reluctant to do any work at the moment.

I doubt she's going to do it, to be honest.

I think that's...that's your limit.

Harriet, look.

Bribe her.

Graeme isn't going to give up easily.

Right, come on. We could be here all night. We will do it.

Finally the lure of food does the job.

It's a small hop for Harriet, but a big step for Graeme.

After a shaky start, Harriet's flying career is taking off!

That was a fantastic training session we had there,

I was very, very pleased with that.

I think actually she's probably on the verge of ready to go free now.

HE WHISTLES

To really earn her wings, Harriet must to be able to fly free

without flying off.

It's her next challenge.

But what will happen when Graeme removes the safety line?

Will she just fly away?

Don't YOU go away!

There are 12 ferrets at Animal Adventure

and they are some of the most agile creatures here.

Ferrets have been domesticated by humans for over 2,500 years

and have often been used to catch wild rabbits down their burrows.

With their thin, bendy bodies they

are perfectly adapted for this, so today, keeper Jo and I want to see

just how small a hole they can fit through!

Right, what we've got over here is we have this brilliant box.

Lots of different holes. Now, ferrets are renowned

-for being able to squeeze through the tiniest holes.

-Really?

-Yeah.

And that's what is this egg's for?

No way, Jo! Have you seen the size of these holes?

I know! I wouldn't like to say about that one.

-Their bottoms might not fit that end one.

-But even these?

-They will those.

-No way. I don't believe you.

-Well, we'll try.

-OK, put it to the test.

-So, I put the egg in this one?

-Yeah, the last one.

Presumably they're going to go through the biggest hole first.

-But look at that one.

-We've got some cat biscuit.

-Cat biscuit, OK.

-Will we put in that one...

-You want me to put it in both?

-Could do.

-Tell you what, I'll put the bowl in there

and a couple, to entice them, in there.

Right, Johny. Becky's on standby with our two ferrets here.

-Lovely. Who is this?

-Hercules.

-Shall I hold Hercules?

I've got Barney. And we'll see who's going to do the challenge.

-I'm hedging my bets on Barney.

-I think Hercules is.

-You reckon?

-OK.

I'm not sure any of them can get through some of these holes.

-So, Hercules first?

-Go for it.

-OK. Hercules, go on then.

Squeezing through that first one easily.

Bit of cat biscuit? Oh, the egg. Once he smells the egg...

So why did they need to get through holes like this?

They spend most of their time...

they're renowned rabbiters, so going down kind of rabbit holes.

-There we go. He's going through.

-Is he going to fit through?

-I reckon he will.

-If he fits through that, that is amazing.

He's just got to suss that there is something much more interesting.

-He's never going to get through that one.

-Here we go.

Now this is the test.

This hole is a little smaller.

Wow! Yeah!

And Hercules has made it to the egg.

I tell you what, that was absolutely amazing.

With the egg, he's not actually eating it.

Is that because he's just curious about what's around there?

He's thinking, is there be something else?

-He's never getting through that last one.

-No.

-Shall we give Barney a go?

-Yes.

-Now, they're not going to start arguing or fighting?

-No, not at all.

They live together, so they're cool together.

So they're quite communal animals?

They cuddle and snuggle up together, so, yeah.

Oh, nice. It looks so easy.

Have they got any special adaptations to get them through?

They're just particularly agile.

They can touch their toes to their nose.

They've got to be able to go round corners and bends.

So they're essentially sort of like nature's gymnasts?

Yeah, exactly. Definitely.

It's been incredible to see how agile these ferrets are.

-Would I fit through, Jo?

-You can have a go...

Not going to happen, is it?

It's time now for Ask The Keeper and Andy,

we have a tall order for you today!

We're going to be asking you questions

on the Rothschild giraffes.

So, do you know anything about them?

-A little bit.

-Just a little bit?

-Just a little bit!

Well, you are the perfect candidate then for Ask The Keeper.

Who wants to kick off with a question?

How tall are baby giraffes when they're born?

A baby giraffe is probably about that high.

Andy, how high is "that high"? Give us some numbers.

That high is about 1.8 metres.

The way between 70 and 100 kilograms when they're born, so quite big.

How many bones in a giraffe's neck?

A giraffe has the same amount of bones in its neck as you do.

All mammals have seven bones in their neck,

from a giraffe, down to a mouse.

Why are giraffes' tongues blue and really long?

Giraffes' tongues are long and they're what we call prehensile.

What they can do is wrap around things.

When a giraffe is actually browsing

and eating leaves out of a tree, it can wrap its tongue around leaves

and it can pull them off into its mouth.

A giraffe's tongue is probably from the back of its throat,

right when it's really stuck out in a big, big giraffe,

probably almost 50 centimetres long.

People think that a giraffe's tongue is dark

because in Africa it's very hot

and they've always got their tongues stuck out,

so their tongue doesn't get sunburnt.

Because it wouldn't really be nice having a sunburnt tongue, would it?

I'd like to know, Andy, why are they so quiet?

They're so big but they're silent.

Do they ever make any sounds?

We've a couple of grumpy females

and when they're getting a little bit grumpy with the others,

they will make a growling gruff noise in the back of their throat.

-I'm not going to do it for you.

-Oh, please! Everyone say please!

Please! Please!

-Way harder than that!

-Please!

-I'm afraid not.

-Please! Please!

No.

Right then, Andy, we're going to come up with a killer question.

All right, then.

Let's catch him out.

He won't growl for us!

THEY WHISPER AND GIGGLE

Come on, then. Right then, guys.

-Are we ready to ask the killer question?

-Yes!

-Do we think Andy's going to get it right?

-No!

All right, then, Andy.

It's your chance to prove this lot wrong. Here is your killer question.

The Eiffel Tower stands at 324 metres.

How many full-grown average male giraffes

standing on top of each other, would it take to be level?

That is the most ridiculous question ever!

320 metres... Oh, I don't know. Um...

50.

Is that your final answer?

That is my only answer!

All right, well we are working it out that the average male giraffe

is 5.3 metres - do you agree with that?

-Yes.

-You agree with that.

OK, well that means it takes 61 male giraffes, standing on top of

-each other, to be level with the Eiffel Tower.

-That was close.

You were close, Andy, but you were still wrong.

It was close. I'm sticking with it was close.

All right, thumbs up or thumbs down for Andy?

Yeah!

Thumbs up all round. Well done.

Thank you very much.

That was a stitch-up question, that last one!

-Knock, knock?

-Who's there?

-Iguana.

-Iguana who?

-I-guana hug!

What you get if you cross a polar bear with a vampire?

Frostbite.

What do you call a woodpecker with no beak?

A head-banger.

Out in the paddock, keeper Graeme is retraining Harriet the barn owl

to fly for the visitors.

So far she's done well,

but that was with a safety line to stop her flying away.

Now it's about to come off.

There isn't anything really to stop her flying off

during this part of the training.

She will come back because of the food.

The other side, she is hand-reared as well.

She does see me a bit like Daddy.

She will come back because she wants to be with me as well.

So, fingers crossed.

She has to be trusted if she's to fly with the public.

But will Harriet get it right first time?

Excuse me!

Oh, she's keen...

Too keen.

But luckily she's got no plans to fly off.

It's a shaky start. Can she redeem herself?

Thankfully it doesn't take long for her to perfect her performance.

Good girl! That session went really, really well.

I'm happy with that and hope she's happy with that as well.

I always like to end things on a good note.

She's ready to be let loose on the public now.

So far Harriet has done well, but the big test is still to come.

Her final challenge is to perform in front of a stranger.

If she's to get her flying licence back she must succeed...

Otherwise it's back to the old people's perch!

Don't go away!

Although they are commonly kept as pets,

the emperor scorpion comes from West Africa.

Like all spiders, insects and crabs,

its skeleton is not inside its body like us,

but outside, like a suit of armour.

This means that to grow, or shed, as its called, it literally

has to burst out of its skin and grow a new one!

The production team seem to think it's funny...

..to keep making me hold a loads of different creepy-crawlies.

From snakes to spiders, I've held them all

and I'm not scared any more - in your face, production team!

I'll just pop her down. Good girl, there you go.

I'm here with keeper Kim.

Hiya, Kim. You OK? You've got something else scary.

-I have.

-What have you got?

It's an animal that nobody seems to like. It's a relative of the spider.

-OK.

-And it's actually a scorpion.

-Now, that's just dangerous.

-No, no!

-I can do scary creepy-crawlies,

but when they're dangerous and they've got a big sting on them...

Well, these ones, their sting is very, very little and obviously,

these guys are quite small still, so they're still babies really.

So Kim, you're going to make the pick this scorpion up, aren't you?

-Yeah.

-OK, so is there a way that I need to pick her up?

-I don't want to get stung.

-No, don't worry.

I can pick her up and pass it to you, if that makes you feel better.

Definitely.

OK. Well, this one's actually not far off going to shed,

so she's still a bit slow, so that's why she looks quite fat as well.

We'll pop her down on your hands. Feels much the same as a spider.

There we go.

Right, OK. She's got this amazing skeleton that we can see there.

-What's that for?

-It's basically her exoskeleton.

A skeleton on the outside of her body, so it's protection.

But, I've got a really cool way for us to see it.

Someone turn the lights off for me, please? There we go.

-There we go, check that out!

-Wow, that is amazing.

That looks so surreal.

The UV light picks up all the different little bits on her body.

So that's what that is, it's like a UV light?

It's one of the more bizarre things I've seen.

She looks like a disco scorpion.

Why is her exoskeleton glowing like that?

We think it's to do with a chemical in the skin.

So when they've just shed, they don't glow

and as babies they don't glow.

It's obviously something with the skin hardening

and maybe sunshine as well. No-one knows why.

Will she shed that skin like a snake? How does it work?

What she does is this top bit up here, that bit sort of pops open

and she just pulls her way through the top.

That is incredible, and an amazing way to see such a great animal.

-Thank you so much, Kim.

-That's all right.

-I'm going to put her down now.

Can we turn the lights back on, please?

Brilliant. And I'd like to say to everyone at home,

and the production staff, I held a scorpion!

OK, all you gamers, it's cheat code time.

Today's secret code is:

Type that in and see what you get.

If you are playing the Roar game on the CBBC website, then give it a go.

It's easy to get started and is great fun. Happy gaming1

There are 11 Ankole cattle here in the safari park.

These massive beasts have some of the longest horns in the world.

They can reach two metres across.

It made them a favourite with some African chieftains,

and they were often called the cattle of kings.

But it's a young prince I've come to see today.

Two weeks ago, the Ankole had a new arrival to their herd.

Well, I've come up with keeper Kev to catch up with the little one -

or not so little one, because he's just lying down.

He does look very tiny there. I mean, this is

very typical for an Ankole baby.

They will spend a lot of time laying down asleep within the herd.

I wouldn't want to approach one of these Ankole cows,

because their horns are massive and they look quite scary.

The horns are very sharp at the tips,

and they will use them in defence and aggression,

but the weird thing is that these horns are actually hollow.

There's a blood vessel going halfway up, then it's all hollow.

-Right.

-You tap it, it sounds like a hollow log,

but it makes the horns light,

otherwise they'd be very heavy and their heads would drop down a lot.

Now, little man, have you named him yet?

-We have. We've called him Kenny.

-Kenny!

-Kenny the Ankole!

-Kenny the Ankole, yeah.

So Kenny, will he learn from Dad?

Will Dad actually take part in becoming a good father,

or will he just leave Mum to do all the hard work?

It's pretty much all down to Mum now.

I mean, Buster, the dad, he'll look after

the herd as a group any way,

but it is much down to Mum to protect the calf more than anybody else.

Kenny's ears are definitely coming along, but what about the horns?

When will we see horns on him?

He's actually got very small tiny little horns now, but they're

just under the skin.

So probably in the next month or two they'll actually come out

of the skin, and grow very, very gradually at the time.

And he'll sort of be fully grown, horns,

probably about two or three years old.

Wow! Does it ever get lonesome for the little one?

Does he have playmates or any on the way?

Hopefully in the next few weeks - another cow is due to give birth.

So that will be quite exciting then.

And they would play together. They will play together quite a lot.

Bounce around and then sit close to each other,

and the herd will protect them all as one.

And they can cause mayhem and get the adults running round after them.

They do. One little sound and the adults come running.

Well Kev, it would be great to see the new little one,

and watch them play together, but for now,

I think we should get out of here.

Down at Animal Adventure, it's the big day for Harriet the barn owl.

In her training, she's done really well

flying free and coming back to keeper Graeme.

Now her final test is to see

if she will behave herself in front of a stranger.

I'm a little bit nervous. She is very reliable.

She's done very well in her training. I've not had any problems so far,

but as with everything, you know, she could get spooked,

the wind could distract her - so we have to be careful,

but she's ready. She's excited. She's preening herself

at the moment, but she's good. I think she should do well today.

-Hi there, I'm Graeme. I'm one of the keepers. What's your name?

-Willow.

One of the young visitors has agreed to help.

Wearing a protective glove,

and with experienced owl keeper Graeme by her side,

Willow is perfectly safe.

There we go.

And she gets a little bit of food as a reward.

It's a brilliant performance from Harrier.

-Did you enjoy that?

-Yes, it was great fun.

-What did she feel like when she landed on your hand?

-Really heavy.

Really heavy.

Her training has gone really well and she is now ready to fly free,

fly into the public,

which is what she enjoys and what the public love as well.

It couldn't have gone better.

Harrier, the elderly barn owl, has once again

been awarded her flying licence and can fly for the visitors.

We're almost at the end of another action-packed episode of Roar

but before we go we'll meet our prickly friend,

Bruce the bearded dragon, and give him some treats.

Hi, Sarah. We are spoiling him today with three types of treats,

so what's the plan?

Basically, we are going to see which one is his favourite.

OK. None of them look appetising. What have we got?

That's a cricket, a wax worm and a mealworm.

That wax worm looks nice and juicy.

He's definitely going to eat that one first.

You think? I don't know because that cricket looks too scary to eat

so I think he will never go for that one.

That one isn't moving. What do you think, Sarah? I think he's going to go for that one first.

-He's going for the wax one first.

-No, because that one isn't moving.

-It's easy, easy prey.

-Sarah, you've got the cricket, OK?

-OK.

-OK.

-Let's make this interesting.

If you think he'll go for the mealworm?

-Yes.

-Whichever one he goes for last has to clean out his enclosure.

I'm very confident with my choice.

-Never! Are you up for that as well?

-Yeah.

What's the best way to do this?

Maybe if we held them in our hands.

RANI SQUEALS

-OK.

-I'll hold the worms.

I'll hold this fellow here.

-I'll hold my wax worm. Ugh!

-I'll hold both worms.

-Seriously.

-OK.

-You can hold the cricket. Tip it out into my hand.

-There's the worms.

-And you want me to hold the cricket, yeah?

My goodness! OK. My worm is wriggling off now.

-Get your hands out of the way.

-No, he's going to go for the wax worm.

-Go for this one.

-SHE CHUCKLES

You cheated!

Try this one. Come on, Bruce. Try this, it's a cricket.

Come on!

-That's not fair. You absolutely cheated.

-I did not cheat!

I've got to say, Sarah, he's not interested.

Look at that! Not interested!

Johny, who chose that one?!

Rani, you are a big cheat, that's why you wanted to hold them.

While I clean out Bruce's enclosure,

check out what's coming up on the next episode.

You better not have made a mess in there!

Well done, Bruce.

Next time on Roar:

We've been following the hand-reared baby otters

ever since they were born,

but when they are reunited with their parents,

will Mum and dad remember them?

It's all change with new arrivals at the safari park.

If you think baby otters

are cute, wait till you meet the new baby rhino.

It's the first time we have seen these animals on Roar.

They're called mara and they have just had babies. Don't miss it.

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