0:00:02 > 0:00:05Australia, home of the possum, surfer dudes, strange lingo,
0:00:05 > 0:00:08lots of sunshine and the bonza barrier reef!
0:00:08 > 0:00:12It's the biggest, most spectacular coral reef in the world.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15What's more, every creature is linked to another.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18Just imagine one, huge family tree dating back 18 million years.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21From the miniscule to the mammoth, to the miraculous.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24They're all connected, in Barney's Barrier Reef!
0:00:44 > 0:00:50Imagine living in one great, big food hall, where food...
0:00:50 > 0:00:51is around every corner.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53Thank you.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55Where you can eat out all day, every day.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Thank you.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01The reef feeds on itself 24 hours a day. From veggies...
0:01:04 > 0:01:07..To meat-eaters.
0:01:07 > 0:01:08Solitary diners...
0:01:10 > 0:01:12..To pack hunters.
0:01:12 > 0:01:16All sea creatures hungrily line-up for this ocean banquet.
0:01:16 > 0:01:21It's one noshtastic place. Lovely.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24Food, glorious food.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26Nice, in Barney's Barrier Reef!
0:01:40 > 0:01:43These are corals, the big daddys of the reef,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45trying to feed their sun addiction.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47Yes, corals are strange.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52They're animals, but they feed mainly using the sun, like plants.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56- They're helped out by their little friend, zooxanthellae.- The what now?
0:01:57 > 0:01:59OK, here's the science bit.
0:01:59 > 0:02:00Listen and learn.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03Zooxanthellae are tiny plants.
0:02:03 > 0:02:05Ah, OK. How tiny, Dr Barnacles?
0:02:05 > 0:02:10Very tiny. In fact, there are one million zooxanthellae
0:02:10 > 0:02:12per square centimetre of coral tissue.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14That's about the size of your finger nail.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17Wow! That's ridiculously tiny.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19Zooxanthellae take in energy from the sun
0:02:19 > 0:02:23and convert the sunlight into sugars which the corals absorb.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26So that's why these big boy corals stretch out like
0:02:26 > 0:02:28tourists on an overcrowded beach.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31Wow! That's some monster coral.
0:02:31 > 0:02:35That one's table coral. Corals are surprisingly competitive -
0:02:35 > 0:02:38pushing each other out of the way, trying to get the best sun spot.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41- Oh, these white ones are weird. - Yeah, these poor corals are ill.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44They're suffering from coral bleaching,
0:02:44 > 0:02:47because the water got too warm for the zooxanthellae
0:02:47 > 0:02:49to stay inside the coral tissue.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53They need the zooxanthellae to grow and be healthy.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Hang on, if they need sunlight to eat, then what do they do at night?
0:02:57 > 0:03:00At night, the corals turn into meat eaters. They use their tentacles
0:03:00 > 0:03:04- to sting tiny passing animals before gobbling them up.- Weird!
0:03:04 > 0:03:08So they're like meat-eaters at night and sun-aterians during the day!
0:03:11 > 0:03:13So who's our next ocean nosher?
0:03:18 > 0:03:23Wow, now that's a clam. A bit bigger than the ones you see in Brighton.
0:03:23 > 0:03:24That's because they're giant clams.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28Giant clams!
0:03:28 > 0:03:29You could disappear in that big boy.
0:03:29 > 0:03:34Well, almost. They can weigh up to 227 kilogrammes.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36Wow, that's like 2.5 Barney's and a Gemma!
0:03:40 > 0:03:43Clams also feed using those zooxan-whatsits.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47- It's called zooxanthellae. - OK, I'm gonna call them zoes.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50They're also competing to get the best spot in the sun
0:03:50 > 0:03:53so their zoes can feed them through their skin.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57But just in case they miss out on any nosh, they also feed on small animals
0:03:57 > 0:03:59and plants known as plankton.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03- Like little ocean snacks?- Yeah, and they do this by passing water through
0:04:03 > 0:04:06one hole and out through another.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09So they eat through their skin and also through a separate hole.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11That's well greedy.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13I guess it is but that's why they're GIANT clams!
0:04:13 > 0:04:15And why they live for over 70 years.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21Maybe the secret to a long life is sunlight and plankton.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24So coral should live for ages too, then.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28Yeah, because they both eat lots through sunlight and zooxanthellae.
0:04:33 > 0:04:38- That's a giant bat fish. - They may look like bats swimming
0:04:38 > 0:04:42- through the water, but they're called manta rays.- Good morning.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44They swim quite gracefully.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47They're one of the biggest animals in the ocean.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50They can grow up to 7.5 metres!
0:04:50 > 0:04:57That's four and a bit Barneys! 1, 2, 3, 4, bit.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02- My, Manta, what a big mouth you have.- All the better to eat and eat!
0:05:02 > 0:05:05In fact, they're constantly eating.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08Their wide mouth filters as much water as possible.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12We can't see them eating anything. Those fish got away lightly.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16Well, this is weird - they're the biggest of all the ray family
0:05:16 > 0:05:19and one of the biggest animals in the ocean.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21But, they eat the smallest animals.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24- What?- They eat plankton, which is...
0:05:24 > 0:05:28about a billion times smaller than the average manta ray!
0:05:28 > 0:05:33A billion, that's weird. That's like me eating sesame seeds to survive!
0:05:40 > 0:05:43- How come they're so big? - Well, they eat loads and loads.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46Those flaps are designed to funnel the water into the mouth
0:05:46 > 0:05:48so they can filter the plankton out.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52They make look amazing, but they're just eating machines.
0:05:52 > 0:05:58Nice life, eh? Clams and manta rays have a huge appetite for plankton,
0:05:58 > 0:06:00those tiny ocean nibbles.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03And weirdly, they both grow massive and live a long life.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06So plankton connects the clam and manta ray.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13- A spotty whale! - The appearance of said mammal
0:06:13 > 0:06:19may suggest whale, but I'd like to introduce the whale shark.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21Is it a whale or a shark?
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Please enlighten me, Dr Barnacles.
0:06:24 > 0:06:29It's a shark that has been named a whale shark, cos although it looks
0:06:29 > 0:06:32like a whale, it's actually a shark. And rather confusingly,
0:06:32 > 0:06:37despite being a shark, it has the personality of a whale.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39The personality of a whale?
0:06:39 > 0:06:42- What's that?- I'll take over now, Dr Barnacles.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45Whale sharks are pretty chilled animals.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48They're quite shy and rarely come to the surface.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50When they do, it's to eat.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52What do they eat? Turtles? Fish?
0:06:52 > 0:06:54Humans?
0:06:54 > 0:06:58No, no. These guys are gentle giants. They eat plankton.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00This plankton stuff must be really good.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03If you thought the manta eating plankton was weird,
0:07:03 > 0:07:05this is triply weird.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07Whale sharks are huge.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11They can grow up to 20 metres long and weigh 34 tonnes.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13They even have bigger mouths than the manta ray.
0:07:16 > 0:07:1834 tonnes!
0:07:18 > 0:07:23That's as big as a massive truck, and they eat something microscopic!
0:07:23 > 0:07:27Their spots are unique to each animal. A bit like fingerprints.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31If you have an ocean line up, each one could be identified separately.
0:07:31 > 0:07:36Manta rays and whale sharks are the biggest eaters in their class.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38The manta eats the most in the ray family,
0:07:38 > 0:07:40the whale shark in the shark family.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44They're connected because they're both gigantic plankton gobblers.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50From the biggest gobs... to the smallest tooters.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53Butterflyfish may look colourful and cute but
0:07:53 > 0:07:55they're more than just pretty.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58They're up there with the greediest gobs.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02Their little pipe mouth allows them to suck up the tastiest snack in the
0:08:02 > 0:08:05- reef, the coral polyps.- They're like the caviar of the reef.
0:08:05 > 0:08:10Even if they do look a little... strange. Like an upsidedown jellyfish
0:08:10 > 0:08:14living in a tea cup with its mouth at the top, surrounded by tentacles.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18And the butterflyfish pretty much have the polyps all to themselves,
0:08:18 > 0:08:22as other fish with bigger mouths can't get into them.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26Their bristly teeth allow them to get into the juicy bits.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30They also eat parasites - nasty, bloodsucker things
0:08:30 > 0:08:32that cause fish to be ill.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36So they have a taste for caviar and parasites. Lucky for the fish, eh?
0:08:36 > 0:08:38Not so lucky for the caviar polyps.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42It's no wonder some butterflyfish live to be 35 years old.
0:08:42 > 0:08:49Wow, 35 - that's long in fish years. Like us living to 400 years old!
0:08:49 > 0:08:52They're called butterflyfish because they flutter round the coral
0:08:52 > 0:08:56looking for juicy polyps. A bit like butterflies fluttering around
0:08:56 > 0:08:59- flowers feeding on tasty nectar. - They may have the smallest chops
0:08:59 > 0:09:03in the ocean, but they're just as greedy as whale sharks.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07Who's our next ocean nosher?
0:09:17 > 0:09:20It's the amazing swimming fish display.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22"And to the left and to the right."
0:09:22 > 0:09:24These are called plankton-eating tuna.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27They're putting on a delightful display.
0:09:27 > 0:09:31It's a bit like line dancing, or those airplane displays.
0:09:31 > 0:09:32Their talents don't stop there.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35# Ahhhh-h-h-h... #
0:09:35 > 0:09:40If only Simon Cowell could see them he'd sign them on the spot.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42# Eee-ee-ee-ee-eee... #
0:09:42 > 0:09:45Actually they may look like they're putting on a talent show,
0:09:45 > 0:09:48but they're opening their mouths wide to eat as much as possible.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50So we have another greedy guzzler!
0:09:50 > 0:09:54- Yep. They catch their plankton using formation dancing.- Plankton again -
0:09:54 > 0:09:56I feel like I'm missing out!
0:09:56 > 0:10:01It's their way of driving plankton into their rather large gobs.
0:10:01 > 0:10:02Crafty!
0:10:02 > 0:10:06So the whale shark and plankton-eating tuna must be linked
0:10:06 > 0:10:10- by their big appetite.- They're connected by their big gobs.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17There's plenty of tasty stuff to eat in the ocean. If you like plankton.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20From the Zoo-thingummyjigs to performing tuna,
0:10:20 > 0:10:22let's run through our connections.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29First, the crowding coral used the zooxanthellae to
0:10:29 > 0:10:31convert the sun's energy into sugar.
0:10:31 > 0:10:33That's good.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36It gives them their daily food fix.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Like the giant carnivorous clams, who use the zoes as well,
0:10:40 > 0:10:42but also have a taste for plankton.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46The tasty plankton also feeds the massive mouths of the manta
0:10:46 > 0:10:48and the strange-but-true whale shark.
0:10:48 > 0:10:52From the largest mouths to the smallest, with the butterflyfish.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56# Like the singing and dancing plankton-eating tuna... #
0:10:56 > 0:10:59who make a meal out of getting their dose of dinner.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04Who's our next ocean chomper?
0:11:08 > 0:11:10Meet the fairy basslets.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13It's like a reef aquarium!
0:11:13 > 0:11:16The fairy basslets are like the goldfish of the reef.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20Very common but also very pretty, and they come in lots of colours.
0:11:20 > 0:11:25- Not to mention there are loads of them.- They hang out in schools.
0:11:25 > 0:11:26Most of them are female.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30All basslets are born female and turn into male later on in life.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33- They get the best of both worlds! - Hmm, if you say so!
0:11:33 > 0:11:36The males are purple and the females are orange.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39They don't look greedy - they're tiny!
0:11:39 > 0:11:42These gals are team feeders.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46They form a wall so they can gulp the plankton as it passes.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50You're kidding. They eat plankton? I'd never have guessed(!)
0:11:50 > 0:11:54It's amazing how so many species rely on food that's microscopic.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56The plankton-eating tuna and
0:11:56 > 0:12:00fairy basslet fish both eat the apparently delicious ocean plankton.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09Look, it's like a fish lightsabre!
0:12:10 > 0:12:12Now it's raining fish.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14This is a silverside baitfish ball.
0:12:14 > 0:12:19Lots of little fish that move in synch, making flashes of light.
0:12:19 > 0:12:21They get together to nosh on plankton.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24All that, caused by fish half the length of a pencil!
0:12:24 > 0:12:27Their silver colour and fast swimming create these
0:12:27 > 0:12:30amazing silver flashes and patterns,
0:12:30 > 0:12:33and more importantly, help to confuse their predators.
0:12:33 > 0:12:37- Who are...?- The mackerel mob. - They'll never catch the baitfish -
0:12:37 > 0:12:41they look like they can swim faster than the speed of light.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45Mackerel are some of the fastest fish in the ocean. They can swim
0:12:45 > 0:12:49between five and 18 body lengths per second in short bursts.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53That's like a person swimming 100 metres in 5.5 seconds -
0:12:53 > 0:12:57eight times faster than the Olympic record.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00- That's superpower.- Mackerel need this swimming skill
0:13:00 > 0:13:03to catch their food and escape their predators.
0:13:03 > 0:13:08Their silvery bodies and super speed help prevent them becoming
0:13:08 > 0:13:10dinner for hungry whales or sharks.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14The plankton is being eaten by the baitfish. The baitfish is eaten by
0:13:14 > 0:13:18the mackerel and the mackerel has to keep an eye out for a shark.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20All in the same part of the ocean!
0:13:20 > 0:13:23It's like they dine at the same restaurant but off different menus.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26One eats the food and the other eats...the other diners.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29The connection between fairy basslet and mackerel
0:13:29 > 0:13:33is that a wall of mouths is their favourite place to dine.
0:13:33 > 0:13:37Who else is linked to the fairy basslet?
0:13:40 > 0:13:43Try to guess the name of this next fish.
0:13:43 > 0:13:47Pink wobble fish? Rocking pink fish?
0:13:47 > 0:13:49I'll give you a clue. "Rooa-a-a-ar!"
0:13:49 > 0:13:51Rhinoceros fish!
0:13:51 > 0:13:54Close. These are rhinopias fish.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56I can see the resemblance.
0:13:56 > 0:14:00Although, I have never seen a pink rhino.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03He might be wondering what those blue/green fish taste like.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06You'll have to move fast to catch one!
0:14:08 > 0:14:09How did he do that?!
0:14:10 > 0:14:13- His rocking was just a ploy? - Kind of.
0:14:13 > 0:14:19His jaw is hinged. It folds in nicely when his mouth is closed, but can be
0:14:19 > 0:14:23thrown a long way from his body, allowing them to suck up the fish.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27His eyes are bigger than his belly!
0:14:27 > 0:14:28He might have a fish in his throat!
0:14:28 > 0:14:31Like a frog, but it's a fish!
0:14:31 > 0:14:32Definitely time to move on.
0:14:32 > 0:14:37So the rhinopias is a suction sucker. They use their jaws to suck in their
0:14:37 > 0:14:39food, like the fairy basslets.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41Even if they can't fit their meal in their mouth.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43Suction links the fairy basslets
0:14:43 > 0:14:45and rhinopias fish.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Ah, two little cardinal fish playing in the reef.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55Er, one little fish wondering how to escape.
0:14:55 > 0:14:59Let me introduce the stupendous swallowing stonefish.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02He is not the best looking or the fastest in the reef, but he has
0:15:02 > 0:15:05one specialist skill.
0:15:05 > 0:15:11He is crafty. He lies in wait and gobbles up unsuspecting fish.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13He settles down next to a rock...
0:15:13 > 0:15:15Or stone - he is a stonefish.
0:15:19 > 0:15:23- Even his eyes are camouflaged.- He has telescope eyes on top of his head.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26He can bury himself in the sand.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30He is so quick, they haven't got a chance.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33When it comes to eating, Stoney is super-fast, but hardly
0:15:33 > 0:15:38moves the rest of the time. When he does, he is not exactly streamlined.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40So how do they move so fast at lunchtime?
0:15:40 > 0:15:44They have amazing suction power.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47Their chances of missing are pretty slim.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51He gets to eat what he wants, when he wants, thanks to his stone-like looks
0:15:51 > 0:15:53and super suction mouth.
0:15:53 > 0:15:57He is a stealthy hunter who does not have to move far to eat,
0:15:57 > 0:16:00a bit like the rhinopias, who can dine on whoever he wants.
0:16:00 > 0:16:01So our rhinopias is
0:16:01 > 0:16:05linked to our stonefish because they both have expandable jaws.
0:16:05 > 0:16:06Cool, who's next?
0:16:10 > 0:16:13My, Grandma, what wonderful, deadly, venomous locks you have.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16All the better to sting you with!
0:16:16 > 0:16:20Sharks, crocs, sea snakes, I can handle those guys,
0:16:20 > 0:16:22but this geezer I cannot.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!
0:16:24 > 0:16:27Yep - the box jelly fish.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31It would only take one of his 5 billion stinging cells to lay you
0:16:31 > 0:16:35out. Imagine if you got wrapped in those tentacles!
0:16:35 > 0:16:38What kind of animal lets everyone see what he's eating?
0:16:38 > 0:16:42It's not that he wants us to see him eating breakfast, but a
0:16:42 > 0:16:46box jelly fish is see-through because that's the best way of sneaking up
0:16:46 > 0:16:48on food without being noticed.
0:16:48 > 0:16:54The fish goes into its mouth, then to the stomach where it is processed.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56What do you mean, "processed"?
0:16:56 > 0:16:59It breaks down the food into a kind of half-eaten broth
0:16:59 > 0:17:03which it then sends down to its tentacles and finishes digesting.
0:17:03 > 0:17:09Ew! Most animals, including us, use their stomach to digest. Not him.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13No wonder he has such long, flowing tentacle locks.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16The stonefish and box jelly are linked because they both stealthily
0:17:16 > 0:17:18hunt down their favourite foods.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30These are some of the best lookers in the ocean - bright, colourful
0:17:30 > 0:17:32and graceful, like pretty flowers.
0:17:32 > 0:17:38But they are called anemones, living animals who set up camp on coral
0:17:38 > 0:17:39and rock.
0:17:44 > 0:17:49They may look pretty at first, but this character is an extreme anemone.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52You would not want to sniff this pretty flower!
0:17:52 > 0:17:54Its tentacles are filled with deadly venom.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57As this fish is about to find out!
0:17:57 > 0:17:59These gluttons hardly move.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01They don't have to.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05They stop passing fish with their pretty but deadly tentacles.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08The fish get swallowed whole!
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Now you see it, now you don't.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16What's more, and anemone's mouth doubles up as a bottom!
0:18:17 > 0:18:19They eat prey whole through their hole!
0:18:19 > 0:18:21Hee-hee! Whole through their hole!
0:18:21 > 0:18:24They are real greedy bloaters.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27They sit all day and gobble up whatever floats past.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31If they fancy a light snack they nibble on plankton and tiddlers.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34So anemones are not fussy eaters.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37They will demolish anything through their bottom.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40It's another case of venomous tentacles.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43The box jelly and anemone are connected because they bring home
0:18:43 > 0:18:46fish for tea thanks to their tentacles.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49Food, glorious food! Time for a Reef Cap.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55The wall-feeding, plankton-chomping fairy basslets
0:18:55 > 0:18:59are linked to the rhinopias, as both of them use suction to suck up food.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02Mackerel are also linked to fairy basslets because they
0:19:02 > 0:19:05all eat in the same ocean diner, but on different menus.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09The rhinopias and stonefish both have expandable jaws.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13Stonefish are linked to the box jelly through their sly hunting style.
0:19:13 > 0:19:19The box jelly and anemone both like to fish fish with their tentacles.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28Look at this little shrimp, how cute?!
0:19:28 > 0:19:30He is the harlequin shrimp,
0:19:30 > 0:19:34but I call him Jeff, the court jester shrimp.
0:19:34 > 0:19:39- with his funny outfit. - He's playing with a starfish!
0:19:39 > 0:19:43I don't think so. He's actually eating the starfish!
0:19:43 > 0:19:46Don't be ridiculous! A shrimp can't eat a starfish.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48Look how big it is!
0:19:48 > 0:19:51Now it is your turn to learn not to judge by appearances.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55Mr cutie-pie shrimp is a starfish killer.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58Hasn't he bitten off more than he can chew?
0:19:58 > 0:20:02No, he can handle this, even though it is three times his size.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06His legs are like sharp scissors or needles designed to unpick
0:20:06 > 0:20:09the starfish - a bit like unpicking thread.
0:20:09 > 0:20:14Look at him go - he really has that down to a fine art.
0:20:14 > 0:20:16I'm beginning to feel sorry for the starfish.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20To be eaten is bad enough, but to be eaten by something three times
0:20:20 > 0:20:22smaller than you is humiliating!
0:20:22 > 0:20:26It would be like me eating a small cow on my own!
0:20:29 > 0:20:32He obviously can't eat the starfish all at once
0:20:32 > 0:20:37so has a trick up his sleeve to help his lunch stay fresh for longer.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40He does not kill it, he just nibbles
0:20:40 > 0:20:43at it so it stays alive, sometimes for weeks.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47He's eating him while the dude is alive! That is super-duper gross!
0:20:47 > 0:20:50Although the starfish doesn't seem too bothered by
0:20:50 > 0:20:53the fact the shrimp is picking him to bits.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Nothing like a fresh seafood meal - for weeks on end.
0:20:56 > 0:21:01The harlequin shrimp eats something three times his size
0:21:01 > 0:21:05and the anemone eats fish and anything else he can gobble up.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09So the link between shrimp and anemone is monster appetite.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15It's an ocean hedgehog, but not as exciting!
0:21:15 > 0:21:18You always think slow means dull.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22- Not necessarily true.- Yes, true! Slow, dull. Fast, fun.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28Exterminate, exterminate! It's a Dalek! I love that kind of stuff.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35As ever, there is a lot more to this spiky creature than meets the eye.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38He might look like a ball of spikes but each one has a purpose.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41Other than being pointy and sharp?
0:21:41 > 0:21:46The long, pointy ones are sometimes toxic and for self-defence.
0:21:46 > 0:21:51The shorter spines help the urchin walk and protect itself.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55Then there are the pincer ones with a claw at the end, which the urchin
0:21:55 > 0:21:59uses for removing things from its body, like this green algae.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02That's all very interesting, but what
0:22:02 > 0:22:04does this have to do with eating?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07- Look at this.- Are those teeth?
0:22:07 > 0:22:10- Yep.- And where are they?
0:22:10 > 0:22:14Underneath the urchin in this strange mouth, in the centre of its body.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18- It has five teeth.- They're like human teeth on a sea urchin!
0:22:18 > 0:22:22They allow the urchin to scrape algae off rocks as they are moving.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26They nosh on the move - no wonder they move so slowly!
0:22:27 > 0:22:31Their weird, human-like teeth are sharp tools to help them nosh
0:22:31 > 0:22:33on algae to their heart's content,
0:22:33 > 0:22:36just like the harlequin shrimp uses its sharp legs.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40The harlequin shrimp and sea urchin both use sharp implements to cut,
0:22:40 > 0:22:44- scrape and gobble up food.- Like having in-built knives and forks.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50What is this, the fish with human mouth show?
0:22:50 > 0:22:52He has a mouth like a person!
0:22:54 > 0:22:57He has a human mouth, but needs a good check-up.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00Although, those bottom gnashers look super sharp.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04- All the better to...eat sand with? - This is the titan triggerfish.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08He looks like he's eating sand,
0:23:08 > 0:23:13but look again. He is flapping his fins to fluff away the sand.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16He's on the search for tasty worms or morsels hiding away.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19And now he's eating rock?
0:23:19 > 0:23:22That's coral rubble - he's not eating it, although he might
0:23:22 > 0:23:23accidentally swallow a bit.
0:23:23 > 0:23:28He is moving bits of rubble to look for food.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31No wonder Jaws had so many fishy friends!
0:23:31 > 0:23:34They're looking for any crumbs he might leave behind.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38After a hard day's work, it's nice for the toothy triggerfish to curl
0:23:38 > 0:23:42up next to the cleaner shrimp, who might clean his pearly whites!
0:23:42 > 0:23:47So our toothy triggerfish is linked to our toothy sea urchin as they
0:23:47 > 0:23:50both have weird, human-like mouths and teeth.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Teeth connect the urchin and titan triggerfish.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56Who else is linked to the urchin?
0:24:00 > 0:24:02Yeah, nice, chilled music.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04Perfect for this island vibe.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07But these guys are a little too chilled!
0:24:07 > 0:24:14- They look like balls of weed. - Smack! You are looking at a smack!
0:24:14 > 0:24:18- You might want to elaborate.- These guys are upside-down jellyfish,
0:24:18 > 0:24:21known together as a smack of jellyfish.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25Jellyfish? They look like sea plants or anemones.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28Not all jellyfish are deadly killers like the box jelly fish.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32But these guys do have a trick up their tentacles - they can
0:24:32 > 0:24:37release stinging cells into the water and sting you without touching you!
0:24:37 > 0:24:39Like their own stinging ray gun!
0:24:39 > 0:24:43They're not deadly like the box jelly, but they are as greedy.
0:24:43 > 0:24:46And they're sun worshippers, like the coral.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49I bet the zooxanthellae is hiding somewhere!
0:24:49 > 0:24:51They have zoes in their tentacles.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56They help to transform sunlight into sugar through the syn's rays.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59This is why they live upside-down and in shallow water,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02to get the maximum sun time.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05So they just bask in the sun and eat at the same time?
0:25:05 > 0:25:08They don't even have to move. What a nice life!
0:25:08 > 0:25:12Smack - quite an aggressive name for such chilled animals.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15So the sea urchin and upside-down jellyfish
0:25:15 > 0:25:18both get energy from algae through the zoes.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22And the upside-down jellyfish also connects back to the
0:25:22 > 0:25:25coral through their mutual friend, the zooxanthellae.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27What a banquet!
0:25:30 > 0:25:33Let's go for one final Reef Cap of our ocean noshers.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39We started with the sun-loving corals and their friends, the zooxanthellae.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44- At last!- I knew it all along it, I was saving it!
0:25:44 > 0:25:46The corals link to giant clams, with their
0:25:46 > 0:25:50big appetite, as they filter plankton with the zooxanthellae.
0:25:50 > 0:25:56- Plankton is our plat du jour, dish of the day.- I don't want it!
0:25:56 > 0:25:59The mantas also munch on it, despite their huge mouths,
0:25:59 > 0:26:02just like the gargantuan whale shark.
0:26:02 > 0:26:06From the largest mouths to the smallest, with the coral guzzling
0:26:06 > 0:26:11butterfly fish, and plankton is on the menu for plankton-eating tuna.
0:26:11 > 0:26:16- They eat in schools like the fairy basslets.- Supreme suction power!
0:26:16 > 0:26:20But for best in show, it has to be the mackerel and bait ball gang,
0:26:20 > 0:26:23all dining at the same restaurant using their wall of mouths,
0:26:23 > 0:26:26- like the fairy basslets... - Who are also linked to the rhinopias.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29- Looks like a rhino, sucks like a vacuum cleaner.- .
0:26:29 > 0:26:33Talking about suction, what about the stealthy stonefish?
0:26:33 > 0:26:35One gulp, and his dinner has disappeared.
0:26:35 > 0:26:39At least it is a quick death for the fish, unlike this fellow who has been
0:26:39 > 0:26:42sucked up by the sly box jelly fish.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46Could be worse - imagine being eaten by a bottom mouth!
0:26:46 > 0:26:49The pretty anemone seems to have a bottomless gut.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51For pure greed, no one beats
0:26:51 > 0:26:56the harlequin shrimp - pretty in pink but he can eat for Australia.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59And no one can beat the creepy central mouth of the sea urchin.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02Which has teeth like a human and the
0:27:02 > 0:27:06toothy titan triggerfish. Chomping on the rocks to nosh algae is no problem
0:27:06 > 0:27:08for this geezer.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12The upside-down jellyfish also likes algae, but basks in the sun and
0:27:12 > 0:27:16waits for the zooxanthellae to turn sunlight into something more tasty.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21That links to our first greedy guts, the coral.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23What a feast!
0:27:23 > 0:27:25Ocean chompers know how to dine in style.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29Which reminds me, it's your turn to wash up!
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