0:00:02 > 0:00:03# W-w-wormy fish-killers
0:00:03 > 0:00:06# Cold-water caterpillars Super-clever brainless slime
0:00:06 > 0:00:07# Yeuch!
0:00:07 > 0:00:10# Bunny rabbit swarms, raging storms and pigs that swim at dinner time!
0:00:10 > 0:00:12# Tornadoes of fire
0:00:12 > 0:00:13# Starfish going haywire
0:00:13 > 0:00:15# Algae balls from space!
0:00:15 > 0:00:16# What?!
0:00:16 > 0:00:17# Prairie dogs that chat
0:00:17 > 0:00:19# Birds going splat and fish slapping in your face!
0:00:19 > 0:00:21# They're wild and weird Wild and weird
0:00:21 > 0:00:24# Really really wild and really really weird
0:00:24 > 0:00:26# They're wild and weird Wild and weird
0:00:26 > 0:00:30# Really really wild and really really wild and weird. #
0:00:30 > 0:00:34Coming up on today's show, some aquatic oddballs.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37A slippery slick with a life of its own.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39A sea monster in the shallows.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41Look at the size of the thing!
0:00:41 > 0:00:44And the underwater world that's halfway up a mountain.
0:00:57 > 0:01:02- Morning. What's up?- Not much. Just chilling, reading the newspaper.
0:01:02 > 0:01:07Going to have some toast. Oh, by the way, I've changed the treehouse
0:01:07 > 0:01:09- into a submarine.- What?!- Yeah.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11Cool, huh? I thought it'd be
0:01:11 > 0:01:15an amazing way to see some weird underwater wildlife.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17Well, why didn't you just watch some on the telly?
0:01:20 > 0:01:23Yeah, in retrospect, that would have been a lot easier, wouldn't it?
0:01:23 > 0:01:24Shall I show you a strange sea tale
0:01:24 > 0:01:27- from California then? - Oh, yeah.- Yeah.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29MUSIC: Theme from Jaws
0:01:29 > 0:01:30GULPING SOUND
0:01:32 > 0:01:35- What was that?- Ah, nothing. I wouldn't worry about it.
0:01:35 > 0:01:36I'm sure it's fine.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43So, it was stereotypical sunny, San Diego type of day.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47The sun was out, water was clear, tourists everywhere
0:01:47 > 0:01:50enjoying the beautiful weather we normally have.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53'But local resident Erika began to notice
0:01:53 > 0:01:55'not everything was perfect in paradise.'
0:01:55 > 0:01:58There was just something really unusual going on
0:01:58 > 0:02:02as we looked out and just saw this black blob in the water.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06What do you make of that then, Tim? Tim?
0:02:06 > 0:02:10- What are you doing? - I was just getting you breakfast.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Don't worry. Nothing ever happens in the first minute of the story.
0:02:13 > 0:02:17It's not like California's been invaded by a big alien blob, is it?
0:02:18 > 0:02:22- Oh, California's been invaded by a big alien blob, hasn't it?- Yep.
0:02:24 > 0:02:25The huge black mass
0:02:25 > 0:02:29stretched for hundreds of metres along the shoreline.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Erika immediately feared a passing tanker had sprung a leak,
0:02:32 > 0:02:37- spilling out its precious cargo of...- Blackberry jam?
0:02:37 > 0:02:41- No, oil, Tim, oil.- No, I was just asking if you wanted blackberry jam
0:02:41 > 0:02:44- on your toast?- Oh, yes, please.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46There we go. It's the good stuff.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52But, if it was an oil slick, it was behaving rather oddly.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54We didn't see any oil residue on the sand
0:02:54 > 0:02:57which we definitely should have seen.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00Erika headed to the pier to get a better look
0:03:00 > 0:03:03and immediately noticed something fishy.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06- What was that, then? - It was fishy.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11- I know that. I'm asking, why was it fishy?- Because it was made of fish.
0:03:11 > 0:03:13Oh.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16Once we were able to look down, we realised, oh, my gosh, this is just
0:03:16 > 0:03:18the huge school of fish.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22- Don't be silly. Fish don't go to school.- No, that's the collective
0:03:22 > 0:03:25noun for a group of fish. Didn't you learn anything at school?
0:03:25 > 0:03:29Don't be silly. Why would I learn anything at a massive group of fish?
0:03:31 > 0:03:35From below the waves, it was clear to see the giant black blob was
0:03:35 > 0:03:39actually made up of millions upon millions of sleek, silvery fish.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42- Anchovies?- No, I'll just stick to blackberry jam,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45- thanks.- No, those fish are anchovies.- Oh.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51Marine biologist Dave Checkley was also on the beach that day.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54It was quite phenomenal. I've seen pictures of schools like this
0:03:54 > 0:03:58but I've never gotten in the water with them. It was like diving
0:03:58 > 0:04:01into a large dark blob and having it separate
0:04:01 > 0:04:03as you went inside of it and create a cavity.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06It had a life of its own, you might say.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09For a shoal of this size to be so close to shore was
0:04:09 > 0:04:12truly strange because anchovies are part of a
0:04:12 > 0:04:15group of fish called obligate shoalers.
0:04:15 > 0:04:20- HE MUMBLES:- Obligate shoalers? That's a bit of a mouthful.- Pardon.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26Obligate shoalers. That is a bit of a mouthful.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33Obligate shoalers usually live in deep waters far out to sea.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37But it wasn't just the anchovies making an unexpected appearance.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39A little further up the coast,
0:04:39 > 0:04:42another beach had been invaded by a swarm of red tuna crabs.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48The whole beach is covered with them!
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Talk about an all you can eat seafood buffet.
0:04:51 > 0:04:56So, what was driving all these deep sea residents inshore?
0:04:56 > 0:04:58Something really weird is happening
0:04:58 > 0:04:59off the coast of California at the moment.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03Scientist Helen Scales thinks she knows why.
0:05:03 > 0:05:05So, we've detected this anomaly out in the ocean.
0:05:05 > 0:05:09It's water that's about four degrees warmer than it should be.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13It's enormous. It's thousands of miles across.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17It began off the coast of California and it's moved inland.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20It's invaded the beaches all along the coast.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Whoa, warm water. Fantastic!
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Yeah, but what about all the animals that are
0:05:24 > 0:05:27super sensitive to changes in ocean temperatures?
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Well, it's like I said. Warm water.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35Fantastically distressing for all those animals and stuff.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42By changing the temperature of the water beyond what it should be
0:05:42 > 0:05:46at this time of year, it's shifting the whole food web in the oceans.
0:05:46 > 0:05:47And it's this shift that
0:05:47 > 0:05:50forced the anchovies and the tuna crabs inshore.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53It's still a big mystery as to why we've got this
0:05:53 > 0:05:57huge area of warm water off the coast and scientists
0:05:57 > 0:05:58are trying to figure it out.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02And while the mystery remains unsolved, it's a safe
0:06:02 > 0:06:04bet that the residents of California can expect
0:06:04 > 0:06:07to see more weirdness in the waves sometime soon.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11- Hey, do you know what's weird? - What?
0:06:11 > 0:06:13I've got another story of an unexpected animal that
0:06:13 > 0:06:16- washed up on the coast of California.- No way?
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Way. And this one is a real-life sea monster.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22It's a sea serpent, it's a monster that you dream
0:06:22 > 0:06:24of as a little kid.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26My God, look at the size of the thing!
0:06:26 > 0:06:30- That is enormous.- It's so big!
0:06:30 > 0:06:32Nobody is wanting to really touch it, so...
0:06:32 > 0:06:34No, nobody has any idea what it is.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36I've been in the water for 15 years,
0:06:36 > 0:06:38I've never seen anything close to this.
0:06:38 > 0:06:43- That is unbelievable.- I know. A real-life sea serpent.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46No, he's been in the water for almost 15 years.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48What is he, a Merman?
0:06:49 > 0:06:53Close. He's one of a team of marine biologists
0:06:53 > 0:06:56working at the Catalina Island Marine Institute.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00And when the body of one of these legendary sea serpents just happened
0:07:00 > 0:07:05to wash up right on their doorstep, it caused a lot of excitement.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06One of our female staff members
0:07:06 > 0:07:09saw it on the bottom and she kind of dragged it into the beach.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12We all ran over there to help her lift it out of the water.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15It had a slender body, very narrow.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18This plume that came back, almost like what you see
0:07:18 > 0:07:19- on a rooster. - It looked huge.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21I mean, it had to have been 18 feet long.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24We couldn't believe we were so lucky that it happened here.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27What a better place for it to have washed up at a
0:07:27 > 0:07:29marine scientist institute full of fish nerds.
0:07:31 > 0:07:32Did she say fish?
0:07:32 > 0:07:35Ah, you're thinking because she used the term fish in her description
0:07:35 > 0:07:38that that is in fact a clue to the
0:07:38 > 0:07:40identity of the mysterious monster.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Actually, I was thinking I could really eat some fish and chips.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50Well, it turns out this colossal creature was indeed a fish,
0:07:50 > 0:07:55an oarfish to be precise. They're the world's largest bony fish and
0:07:55 > 0:07:58you'll be very lucky if you ever catch a glimpse of one.
0:07:58 > 0:08:03You and I have very different definitions of the word lucky.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06These giant fish rarely venture anywhere near land,
0:08:06 > 0:08:10which is why they are so unfamiliar and create such commotion.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14This is huge. Even the locals don't even know what this is.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18That is the craziest looking fish I have ever seen.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21In shallow water, they appear clumsy and ungainly,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24but in the deep ocean, their natural habitat,
0:08:24 > 0:08:28they are transformed into something beautiful.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32You and I have very different definitions of the word beautiful.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34It is a very weird fish.
0:08:34 > 0:08:35Who's that?
0:08:35 > 0:08:39Rick Feeney from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles county.
0:08:39 > 0:08:40Is he a fish nerd too?
0:08:40 > 0:08:43Oh, yeah. He's an uber fish nerd.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45- Oh.- He's like the king of fish nerds.- Is he?- Yeah.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48Rick knows more about oarfish than pretty much anyone else.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51We don't know why they do the things they do, we don't know
0:08:51 > 0:08:54about their behaviour, why they even exist.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Which, as it turns out, isn't a whole lot.
0:08:58 > 0:09:00- So what do we know? - Well, this.
0:09:02 > 0:09:04We know that in the deep ocean,
0:09:04 > 0:09:06these giant fish tend to swim upright,
0:09:06 > 0:09:10which might explain why they seem so awkward in the shallows.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13But why do they come inshore?
0:09:13 > 0:09:15Rick has some theories.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18We used to think that storms drove them in or they were chased in by
0:09:18 > 0:09:20sharks, but that's probably not the case.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23They could be sick, they could be starving.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25Did he say starving?
0:09:25 > 0:09:28Are you thinking about fish and chips again?
0:09:28 > 0:09:32The truth is that no-one really knows for sure what
0:09:32 > 0:09:35drives the oarfish to the shore but their appearance does at least
0:09:35 > 0:09:37answer one question.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41As they come into shore, they start swimming like a snake.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44They have this red crest that breaks the surface, so it sort of
0:09:44 > 0:09:47looks like a serpent swimming on the surface of the water.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50It appears the mythical sea serpents of ancient law
0:09:50 > 0:09:55are probably nothing more than an elongated deep-sea fish.
0:09:55 > 0:09:56There you go. Oh.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58Naomi?
0:09:58 > 0:10:00Sorry, I popped to the chippy.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02Got myself oarfish and chips.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11Oh, that was good!
0:10:11 > 0:10:14How about an underwater tale now that doesn't involve
0:10:14 > 0:10:16the California coast?
0:10:16 > 0:10:19OK. I've got one set in the Austrian Alps.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Ooh, hang on, hang on. How can you have an underwater tale
0:10:22 > 0:10:24- up a mountain?- Like this.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26YODELLING
0:10:26 > 0:10:29The Alps - home of epic mountains,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32quaint villages, flowery meadows...
0:10:32 > 0:10:34MOO!
0:10:34 > 0:10:35Whoa, what's that?
0:10:35 > 0:10:37- It's a cow.- Oh.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40And home also to the Emerald Lake -
0:10:40 > 0:10:42a very weird bit of water.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44Looks pretty normal to me.
0:10:44 > 0:10:46It does from up here.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49But if you plunge beneath the surface, things start to look a
0:10:49 > 0:10:51little bit strange.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54Here's diver Mark Hanauer.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57HE SPEAKS FRENCH
0:10:59 > 0:11:02Ah, he's speaking French.
0:11:02 > 0:11:03Do you want me to translate?
0:11:03 > 0:11:05- Oh, yeah, can you?- Yeah, OK.
0:11:05 > 0:11:06He said...
0:11:06 > 0:11:09SHE SPEAKS GERMAN
0:11:09 > 0:11:11Ah, was that German?
0:11:13 > 0:11:16Yeah, sorry, I can only translate French into German.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18- Oh.- Shall we just get someone to dub over him in
0:11:18 > 0:11:20- an outrageous French accent? - Good idea.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25- EXAGGERATED FRENCH ACCENT:- I have dived in a multitude of places in
0:11:25 > 0:11:29ze world but Emerald Lake is ze most wonderful place
0:11:29 > 0:11:31I have ever come across.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33And the reason it's so special?
0:11:33 > 0:11:35Grass.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Bridges.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40Flowers.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Benches and paths.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45These are all things you would normally expect to see above
0:11:45 > 0:11:47the water line.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50It's always surprising to see a massive trout
0:11:50 > 0:11:53going through the branches of a tree.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56- Ooh, did he say trout?- You can't possibly be hungry again already?!
0:11:56 > 0:11:58What? I like fish!
0:12:01 > 0:12:04But how can such a place exist, a place where fish skip through
0:12:04 > 0:12:07the meadows and flowers bloom underwater?
0:12:08 > 0:12:12- Oh! Is it the lost city of Atlantis?- In the Alps?
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Well, that's probably why it's lost. I mean, who would look there?
0:12:18 > 0:12:22It's not Atlantis but this lake is rather elusive because for much
0:12:22 > 0:12:26of the year, the valley where it's found lies covered in deep snow.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32Then, come spring, the snow melts, revealing a familiar bench
0:12:32 > 0:12:34- and bridge.- Hang on.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38- Weren't both the bench and bridge from earlier on underwater?- Yep.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40- And now they're not?- Yes.
0:12:40 > 0:12:42- I'm confused. - Do you want me to explain?
0:12:42 > 0:12:45I meant I'm generally confused, but OK.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52In early spring, the Emerald Lake is just one metre deep.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55- More like an Emerald pond, then? - Exactly.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59But, as all the meltwater from the mountain soaks into the ground,
0:12:59 > 0:13:04it raises the water table, so much so, that the valley begins
0:13:04 > 0:13:06to fill up with water.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08And little red divers, by the looks of it.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13Then, for two very surreal weeks of the year, the spring growth
0:13:13 > 0:13:16finds itself submerged, ten metres deep.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21It is so translucent that you can see the underwater
0:13:21 > 0:13:24scenery as far as the eye can see.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27It is just extraordinary.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31An underwater wonderland halfway up a mountain.
0:13:31 > 0:13:36It just goes to show what a weird world we live in.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39Ah, the world's not that weird, is it? I mean, it's not like you
0:13:39 > 0:13:41can suddenly change into a giant fish.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43HE LAUGHS
0:13:45 > 0:13:48I've changed into a giant fish, haven't I?
0:13:48 > 0:13:50Why are you looking at me like that?
0:13:50 > 0:13:53What's that frying pan for? Naomi. Naomi!
0:13:53 > 0:13:56# We're wild and weird, wild and weird
0:13:56 > 0:13:58# Really, really wild and really, really weird
0:13:58 > 0:14:00# They're wild and weird, wild and weird
0:14:00 > 0:14:05# And really, really wild and really, really wild and weird. #
0:14:07 > 0:14:09Wild and weird!