Episode 7 Deadly Mission Madagascar

This is Madagascar.

It's a vast island in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa,

and it's home to some of the most unique

and rare creatures on the planet.

Incredibly, 80% of the wildlife here exists nowhere else on Earth.

HOWLING

But it's a paradise under threat.

So I've sent eight ordinary kids from the UK

to have the deadly adventure of their lives.

They'll face the toughest challenges,

and discover for themselves how to save this lost world

before it's too late.

Last time, our group's challenge was to track down fossa in the wild.

Perfect.

And they saw for themselves how plant and animal invaders...

-Oh.

-He's got the meat. He's taken the meat.

-Oh.

..can affect the wildlife that lives here.

For their next set of challenges, they're going to

a location off the northwest coast of Madagascar...

..to Ile Sainte-Marie,

a small island known for pirate legends,

tropical beaches and its biggest tourist attraction, humpback whales.

The gang are going to check out their tropical paradise.

It's like a paradise beach.

-Is it cold?

-It's not cold, actually.

-It's nice.

-It's all right.

And compared to, like, cos we've been camping for so long

-and we've come here, it's really nice.

-ALL: Yeah.

I think it's like gone from rough area to absolutely luxury area.

And if you think of it, this place

is like the island of the actual movie Madagascar,

like, there's just like sea and loads and loads of trees...

-You see, like, a giraffe and...

-Yeah, giraffe and hippo.

Thousands of people come here a year to see the whales.

Raina has strong views about the negative impact tourists

can have on a place.

I personally think that this island is much better without tourism.

Because I think the tourists ruin a lot of the natural

beauty of this island, cos if there was a lot of big attractions and

things crowding this island, I don't think people would want to come.

And it's finding out about this impact that's

the new challenge for our deadly explorers.

Can they find out how tourism could actually help

protect the wildlife here?

The best place to start is to do just what all the tourists

come here to do - to go whale watching.

Whale watching is a huge industry globally

and Ile Sainte-Marie is one of the best places in the world to do it.

So our team are in for a real treat.

And one of the party is particularly excited.

They're one of my favourite animals.

Whoa! I'm flying!

The journey there's quite bumpy.

-Are you all right?

-I think there's some over there.

And they don't have to go very far

before they get their first encounter.

Oh, my!

-Look at it!

-Wow, that's quite close.

Oh, wow.

Oh, my!

-Oh, wow!

-Oh, that was cool!

I can't believe it.

Cool.

Whoa! That's close.

That was very close.

Whilst Jamie's pretty vocal about her experience...

This is the best day of the trip for me, definitely.

..there's another member of the team that's almost speechless.

Eilidh's greatest passion is for the marine environment.

I've always been completely obsessed with the ocean.

I would see people with the scuba tanks on their back,

going diving, and I'll think, "That's what I want to do when I'm older."

That's when I decided that I want to be a marine biologist.

So I love diving, reading and writing

and, basically, anything to do with the sea.

Back on the water, she's still on a high.

When I saw the whales I was like, I was crying. I was.

The best moments of my life have either been by the water,

on the water or in the water.

So this is one of the best moments of my life.

But what makes this place so special?

Every summer, humpback whales migrate here from the Antarctic.

Their destination is the narrow channel between

Ile Sainte-Marie and the mainland.

These calm, warm waters are ideal for humpback whales

to give birth.

So this place is a massive nursery for these ocean giants.

And around the shores of Madagascar, the numbers of whales that

migrate here is in their thousands.

So they're not passing by, but staying here to look after

their newborn calves, and this in turn attracts the big males

who want to come and show off to the new mothers -

all making for some really exciting encounters.

It seems like one of the humpback whales is just on its back,

kicking its tailfin around.

Wow, it makes quite a loud smack.

That's a way of possibly calling. Such a loud noise through the water.

Tail-slapping is one of the ways that the males warn

other males of their presence.

The sound travels for over five miles underwater.

But it's not the only way that humpbacks communicate.

They're also very vocal animals.

But you need some specialist kit to hear that.

What we're doing is we're putting an underwater microphone

under the water to see if we can hear the whales singing.

It'll be the males who are searching for females.

WHALES SING

I can hear the whales singing.

It's the males, they want to attract the females.

I've never heard a whale singing before.

It's actually quite emotional, cos I've never actually heard one

and their song is actually really beautiful.

It's like, "Lal-lal eee-ooo."

It's no wonder that whale watching is so popular with tourists.

'On the way back, they begin to think about how whales can

'benefit the local people.'

Humpback whales can't be found everywhere and they're a very

important animal, so tourists want to come and see them.

If you look around the town, there's just signs everywhere

advertising the whales, and I think the whales mean a lot

to the people of Sainte-Marie,

maybe because it brings them in money and business.

'But Oak spots a real problem.'

Too many tourists can wreck and destroy the whole

point that the tourists are there. So, by regulating it

and protecting it, you can prolong your tourist industry for longer but

you've also helped save the thing that your tourists are coming for.

Whale watching is well regulated here.

And by bringing tourists in, it can benefit the whole island.

On shore, there are other projects that generate an income from whales.

Some of the gang are going to find out about one that benefits

the whales, tourists and the local people.

'They meet Maria, a marine biologist.

'She works for CetaMada, a local conservation organisation.

'Passionate about whales, she's keen to show them

'how their project works.'

Are you ready? OK. Let's go. So the boys come in this room

and the girls will stay with our artisans on the back, OK?

Charlie and Yoran's task is to help make whale cushions

that will be sold in the shop to tourists.

-Where are the artisans? Nadine.

-Bonjour.

-Bonjour.

So are you ready to stuff some whales and to make it?

-Yep. Definitely.

-Good.

We're just stuffing some broken up foam into the whale

to make it into a pillow.

She makes five of these big ones in one day

and I reckon I could make about five of these little ones, maybe.

-No, you couldn't.

-That one, actually, no.

I could make about two of these little ones in one day, I reckon,

if I knew how to sew...properly.

-Can you sew, like?

-I can do that!

In, out, in, out. Can't start it, can't finish it.

Just outside the centre, Gwen and Eilidh are getting on well.

Their task is to make jewellery out of dried coconut.

And we've got to sand down these tails

but I'm afraid that I'll do something wrong.

These tails are made out of coconut shell, which is really good, cos

it's sustainable cos you don't have to chop down any trees, you can just

pick up a coconut off the ground, cut it open and use the shell.

If we had to do the whole thing, we could probably

make about four together, couldn't we?

Maybe not even that, cos this sanding's taking quite a while.

It's great that they can make these products and they're sustainable

and help the environment and they earn money at the same time.

Having stuffed their cushions,

Charlie and Yoran are getting to know a project worker called Sophia.

How long have you worked here?

TRANSLATOR SPEAKS FRENCH

SOPHIA ANSWERS IN FRENCH

-Three years.

-Right.

-She likes to teach,

she likes people to learn, like she's teaching you.

-Good teacher.

-Merci.

-Thank you.

Maria's keen to share how this project helps the whales.

So our idea in the future is that people like these artisans

care more about the whales after working with us,

so they will see that tourists buy these kind of things because

whales exist, so they will care about the whales existing and coming to

Madagascar, and this is the link that we do between economy and, of course,

the conservation of marine mammals, the conservation of the whales.

Good? Cool.

Yeah, this is the first thing out of fabric that I've made and obviously,

I didn't even make, I just stuffed it and then sewed up the hole.

So hopefully, it will sell.

The girls are finishing up, too.

I had no idea that you could make jewellery out of so much stuff.

Everything's handmade, you know, there's no tools or anything

involved, so I reckon they do make quite a good profit from this.

We're done...just about.

Well, for a first go, I don't think we did half bad.

Whale tail.

Charlie can see how tourism can help local people.

All the products get sold here for souvenirs,

like when people come in from having their boat trip.

It's giving the people that make them a job.

Obviously, any money that's being made selling these

helps save the whales, so I just think it's a great cause

and it was really good fun just to be part of it.

It seems generating an income from wildlife is one

way that helps protect it.

But tourists brought here for whale watching

don't just buy whale souvenirs.

Some of the gang are going to find out another way

that tourists provide an income to the island community.

We're going to an area where they produce vanilla

and we're going to see the process of how they make it,

from picking it from the trees or the bushes or wherever

it comes from, to putting it into packs and selling it on the streets.

80% of the world's vanilla comes from Madagascar.

It's an ingredient found in ice cream, yoghurt and chocolate.

It can only be grown in tropical environments, and here

in Ile Sainte-Marie, it can be a huge part of this family's income.

To pick them, you have to break the branch that they're on cos

it's more better than taking each one off.

I've got four pods of vanilla.

But these are quite large to the finished product

and, obviously, a different colour.

Jamie and Okechukwu find out a bit about the process.

Yeah, they boil it, I was right.

So we've just picked off some vanilla pods from the nearby trees

and now she's been boiling some water,

so I think that we're going to put the vanilla pods in the water.

You have to boil the vanilla at 40 degrees

and then you wrap it in a blanket for two days, and then every day

then you dry it out in the sun for an hour for two months.

In its rawest form, they look like green beans, but after

time in the sun, they intensify in flavour and look very different.

The gang begin to see how vanilla is another

opportunity to make money from tourists.

I think it would sell because people here want to buy

-something that's like...

-Significant to Madagascar.

-..Endemic.

Yeah, sort of endemic to Madagascar, so that they have the vibe that,

"Yes, I bought something from Madagascar that you can only

"get in Madagascar." It'll make you feel more special by buying it.

And buying vanilla might make you feel special,

but selling it to tourists is a different matter entirely.

The team's challenge is to head in to the local town

and to find out for themselves what it's like to try

and sell vanilla to tourists.

-I need something to support it.

-I'm going to spread it out.

-20,000.

After setting up their stall, they're ready to make sales.

It's not the rush they were hoping for.

I don't understand how local people manage to sell them

to tourists when no-one wants to buy any.

I could always walk around and, like, ask.

I'm trying to look for any oncoming tourists

or people who might want to buy.

You've just got to say, "Please, this is 15,000 ariary,

"would you like to buy some?"

Excuse me, could I interest you in any vanilla?

I am sorry, but I have already my...

You already bought some? I tried. Can't do it.

They take to the streets to try and make a sale.

-Bonjour.

-Buongiorno.

OK, that was a quick "No."

We need to sell something.

Grr!

Bonjour. Would you be interested in buying vanilla?

SPEAKS FRENCH

Nobody's going to buy any, cos nobody's a tourist.

-Oh, there's tourists! Would you like any vanilla?

-No, merci.

And after an hour, Jamie starts to feel the pressure.

Buy some! Please!

I need to find more people! Grr!

No, thank you.

No. 10,000 ariary. Vanille!

Meanwhile, on their stall, Raina and Okechukwu

get a grilling about their product.

-How much is it then, the vanilla?

-So this is 25,000 for a large.

The big one and, then we're selling the little ones for 20,000.

OK, so you helped them to pick it?

Not this one in particular but we did,

we learnt all about the process and everything.

-Oh, well done, anyway. Have you sold any yet?

-No.

They get their sale.

-Are we there?

-Yep.

-Great, OK. Well done. Well done, guys.

-Thank you very much.

And Raina begins to see that making

and selling vanilla is not a get-rich-quick scheme.

We've only been doing this like an hour or so

and we've got only one customer. And there's people who have to do

this every single day and that's what they rely on, so if that day

they don't get any customers, they can't buy the things that they need.

So it must be really frustrating for them.

Jamie finally gets a sale, too.

Merci. Merci beaucoup.

I think we've done well, actually.

-It's been good, well done.

-Yeah, I think so.

-Woo, yeah!

And Oak also begins to see how crucial tourists are.

Personally, I've learnt how hard it is to be in this business

and have to sell your own produce to make a living,

and tourism is their only way forward.

And I thought, being kind of a tourist ourselves, it'd be easier

but it obviously wasn't.

-Hey, guys.

-Oh, hi.

-Packing up?

So what do you think you've kind of taken from this experience?

-That it's hard.

-It's really hard.

Like, they don't want to buy stuff. They just go, "No."

We're stubborn, tourists.

Well done, you guys. High five.

I think the woman would be happy. You guys?

That night, the whole team get a chance to relax

and then think about their time here.

The best day of my life, we went whale watching,

humpback whale watching, they're my favourite animals now.

Watching those whales breach and watching them being so close,

oh, it was amazing!

Today, we went and stuffed animals for cushions and that,

and one of the women said, I asked her, "How long have you been

"working here?" and she was like, "Three years,"

and she said it's not to do with the money,

it's to do with the fact that I'm now helping whales and making money.

I realised how hard it was to actually sell vanilla because you

think a lot of the tourists will just go,

"Oh, yeah, vanilla, Madagascar, buy some,

"cos it's obviously the best quality." But nowadays, tourists

don't really want to be bothered so it's much harder than I expected.

Shone out everywhere we've been, that obviously, you can't

do conservation without getting the local people involved.

The group see that both people

and wildlife need to benefit from tourism.

But tourists don't just bring in money,

they can actually help with science, too.

The team meet back up with Maria,

who has the perfect solution for tourists wanting to see whales.

Today, it's a special trip with you.

OK, you are going to be looking for scientific data.

'She gets the tourists to help her monitor the whale population.

'She can then try and identify which animals are returning each year.'

And my friend is going to be the observer, so you need to

relate everything that you see and she's going to write it.

Yeah, we've just all been given our roles

and I'm on the camera. Yoran's got the GPS, Gwen's got to tell Raina

everything she sees, so, the whale's actions,

and Raina's got to record it. So we've all got our jobs.

And hopefully, we'll find some to do it with.

Heading out to sea, their job is to get a visual identification

of whales in the area.

And the best way of doing that is to take a picture of their tale,

known as the flukes.

Whoa!

But they don't have to go very far.

There!

We've just found two of the whales.

Getting a photo of a whale fluke is like taking

somebody's fingerprint.

There, there, there.

It's important to get in the right position, as Charlie

only has a couple of seconds to get the shots.

There, there, there! Oh, my God, there.

Woo! Oh, yes! Look at that!

Quickly, quickly, Charlie.

-Great!

-Did you get him, Charlie?

I think you did. You was like, "Click, click, click, click, click."

Look, look! Look, look! Woo!

Just when you asked for it, you have it.

That was wicked.

Because we thought there was only one when we started following it.

Obviously, when we got closer, then we realised it was a mother and calf

and then we realised there was an escort too, so there was three.

But for Raina, it's not quite as exciting.

-Raina, how you feeling?

-Sick.

-Fair enough.

To complete their challenge,

they get back to shore and add their photos to the CetaMada database.

Somebody is going to tell me what is here?

-Are these the ones that Charlie took?

-Yes.

-Pretty good.

-So. Cool pictures, huh?

So here, for example, we have the left dorsal of the mother, OK?

We have the fluke of the mother, that's a good picture.

We can see the characteristics, the pattern, the different colour parts.

So we have a quite good photo ID in that.

Charlie's pictures will help future research

and also be a part of tonight's game.

As the sun sets, all our deadly adventurers regroup

to play this game with Maria.

It's whale bingo.

Each player is given a booklet of different whale flukes that

have been taken over the years.

If they can match one from their book to Charlie's photo onscreen,

then they know that the whale is one that's been here before.

Is it easy?

Been going through for so long.

Gwen is as keen as ever to win.

I've been all the way through the book, it's not there. Oh, wait.

But not the spot just in the middle, close to the notch.

Right here, a black one. And it's a very big notch.

There's so many pictures, how are you supposed to get through

a book like that with one picture? You just flick through them.

-Bingo!

-Where?

-I think. Possibly, maybe.

-Possible.

-Maybe.

-Maybe.

-The line.

-Oh, yes.

-This line here. It's got that spot.

-That spot?

-The bit in the middle.

I want you to come in front and to tell us that, please.

OK. Show yours here on the light...

..and tell us the line that you saw.

-The line's there and then.

-There is no line over there.

Then look, there's little dash there. That little dash there.

Then some of these barnacle prints are the same, as well.

And it's got, like, you see these there, they're in there.

They are still there. We don't use them to identify.

It's also the same one, so he deserves a big clap.

APPLAUSE

And of course...

Grr!

..to remember that you win the bingo fluke, huh? A big clap.

Very, very, very good eyes. OK. You are not playing.

I think I might call it Charlie, cos Charlie did take that picture.

The team's photos will contribute to Maria's future research.

And it seems tourists are great for wildlife, as they not only

help monitor the animals, they also bring in money for local people.

And with tourism well managed here, more whales are returning to

this island and the outlook for them is looking good.

Next time, our deadly adventurers are going to find out

why the precious coral reefs around the island are under threat.

It was all sort of dull and that's really, really sad.

And there's tension among the group as they realise how

this affects the people that live here.

But you don't have to, it's just a suggestion.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd