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My name's Steve Backshall. | 0:00:02 | 0:00:04 | |
Whoa! | 0:00:05 | 0:00:07 | |
And I'm on a mission, searching for | 0:00:07 | 0:00:10 | |
deadly places, | 0:00:10 | 0:00:11 | |
deadly adventures | 0:00:11 | 0:00:13 | |
and deadly animals. | 0:00:13 | 0:00:15 | |
And you're coming with me, every step of the way! | 0:00:18 | 0:00:22 | |
Argh! | 0:00:26 | 0:00:27 | |
I've been on the road now for just over a year | 0:00:30 | 0:00:33 | |
and we have one last stop before we reach our final destination | 0:00:33 | 0:00:37 | |
in Antarctica but what a place to stop, this is South Georgia. | 0:00:37 | 0:00:42 | |
This daunting, haunting wilderness is stranded far from any continent. | 0:00:43 | 0:00:48 | |
South Georgia is 10,000 miles from the Arctic, where our journey began. | 0:00:51 | 0:00:56 | |
'The seas can be the roughest on Earth. | 0:00:59 | 0:01:02 | |
'Beneath them, some of the hardiest hyper-powered hunters.' | 0:01:04 | 0:01:08 | |
No way! | 0:01:10 | 0:01:12 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:01:12 | 0:01:14 | |
'We'll meet the heavyweights of the deep... | 0:01:16 | 0:01:18 | |
'..before continuing south to the climax | 0:01:22 | 0:01:25 | |
'of this leviathan expedition, Antarctica...' | 0:01:25 | 0:01:29 | |
Yes! | 0:01:29 | 0:01:31 | |
'..for a meeting with the ultimate frozen world predator | 0:01:31 | 0:01:34 | |
'beneath the polar ice.' | 0:01:34 | 0:01:37 | |
Wow! | 0:01:37 | 0:01:38 | |
I'm not sure I want to get in the water with that. | 0:01:40 | 0:01:42 | |
Our floating home first heads for St Andrews Bay... | 0:01:46 | 0:01:50 | |
..a place festooned with the great icon of the deep freeze. | 0:01:52 | 0:01:56 | |
As you get closer you can see that, | 0:01:58 | 0:02:00 | |
I mean, it looked like the beach was covered in snow, but actually | 0:02:00 | 0:02:03 | |
every single one of those little white dots is a penguin. | 0:02:03 | 0:02:07 | |
Amazing! | 0:02:08 | 0:02:09 | |
These are king penguins. | 0:02:11 | 0:02:13 | |
Second only in size to the emperor penguin | 0:02:13 | 0:02:16 | |
and, to my mind, the most beautiful. | 0:02:16 | 0:02:19 | |
They're gorgeous and glamorous but tough as nails. | 0:02:21 | 0:02:25 | |
Everything about life here is hard, | 0:02:25 | 0:02:27 | |
from the devastating chill of Antarctic storms and winter months... | 0:02:27 | 0:02:31 | |
..to making a living hunting in seas around freezing point. | 0:02:33 | 0:02:36 | |
We're hoping to do something very few people have ever done... | 0:02:41 | 0:02:45 | |
..to join them in their underwater world. | 0:02:46 | 0:02:49 | |
But we begin with a spectacle I will never forget. | 0:02:49 | 0:02:52 | |
As with so much of the wildlife here in South Georgia | 0:02:56 | 0:03:00 | |
they don't see human beings as a threat. | 0:03:00 | 0:03:02 | |
They probably don't see that many people so they're not scared of us. | 0:03:02 | 0:03:06 | |
Sometimes it's completely the opposite. | 0:03:07 | 0:03:10 | |
Hello. | 0:03:12 | 0:03:13 | |
It doesn't take long for their natural curiosity | 0:03:15 | 0:03:18 | |
to get the better of them. | 0:03:18 | 0:03:20 | |
You can see them clocking you from miles away | 0:03:20 | 0:03:22 | |
and you're just waddling through the hordes | 0:03:22 | 0:03:25 | |
until they get really close and then they'll crane out | 0:03:25 | 0:03:30 | |
that extendable neck to get a really good, close look at you. | 0:03:30 | 0:03:34 | |
But this is just a taster of what's ahead. | 0:03:39 | 0:03:43 | |
The main concentration of birds | 0:03:43 | 0:03:45 | |
is where they come together for breeding. | 0:03:45 | 0:03:47 | |
Now, the beach is all very beautiful | 0:03:53 | 0:03:56 | |
but I've been saving myself for my first view of the breeding colony. | 0:03:56 | 0:04:02 | |
It is just over this ridge. | 0:04:02 | 0:04:04 | |
Wow! | 0:04:06 | 0:04:08 | |
That is... absolutely jaw-dropping. | 0:04:12 | 0:04:16 | |
The density and the amount of animals here, | 0:04:18 | 0:04:21 | |
it is just impossible to comprehend. They go on for ever. | 0:04:21 | 0:04:25 | |
Well, I was expecting it to be big, | 0:04:29 | 0:04:32 | |
but that is ridiculous. | 0:04:32 | 0:04:34 | |
This avian assembly is a united effort, | 0:04:38 | 0:04:41 | |
producing the next generation of regal penguins. | 0:04:41 | 0:04:44 | |
They breed probably twice in three years, | 0:04:47 | 0:04:50 | |
lay one egg and that turns into a furry brown chick. | 0:04:50 | 0:04:55 | |
After about six weeks they're old enough | 0:04:56 | 0:04:59 | |
that they can be left in a creche like this, and there's lots of | 0:04:59 | 0:05:02 | |
little brown youngsters and the adults are both off at sea feeding. | 0:05:02 | 0:05:06 | |
After two months they've got to be the same size and weight | 0:05:06 | 0:05:09 | |
as the adult but it is a full year before they've properly fledged | 0:05:09 | 0:05:12 | |
and they can head out to sea to feed themselves. | 0:05:12 | 0:05:15 | |
And it's out there that these penguins will really come into their own. | 0:05:15 | 0:05:18 | |
Our fond hope is that we'll get an opportunity to film them below the waves. | 0:05:20 | 0:05:25 | |
But beach space here is at a premium. | 0:05:25 | 0:05:28 | |
The sands are shared with gargantuan giants. | 0:05:30 | 0:05:33 | |
Guys! | 0:05:37 | 0:05:39 | |
Johnny! | 0:05:39 | 0:05:40 | |
Two southern elephant seals, in the mood for a fight. | 0:05:43 | 0:05:47 | |
SEALS GROWL | 0:05:48 | 0:05:50 | |
This is incredible. | 0:05:53 | 0:05:55 | |
These are probably young males that are just trying out their skills. | 0:05:56 | 0:06:00 | |
Even so, you can see how brutal it can get. | 0:06:00 | 0:06:03 | |
These two massive animals, | 0:06:03 | 0:06:06 | |
laying into each other, stabbing with those big teeth, | 0:06:06 | 0:06:09 | |
and using the layers, the thick layers of blubber to protect themselves. | 0:06:09 | 0:06:14 | |
It's almost like a suit of armour around the neck. | 0:06:14 | 0:06:17 | |
These seals are the largest on the planet, | 0:06:21 | 0:06:24 | |
weighing up to four tonnes, | 0:06:24 | 0:06:26 | |
and when they go into battle the results can be titanic. | 0:06:26 | 0:06:29 | |
The males will launch at each other, | 0:06:32 | 0:06:34 | |
tearing chunks out of their competitor. | 0:06:34 | 0:06:36 | |
Some encounters end with warring and aggressive posturing | 0:06:40 | 0:06:44 | |
but many others will turn into violent, bloody battles. | 0:06:44 | 0:06:48 | |
The sound they make is almost like a classic car or motorbike | 0:06:55 | 0:06:59 | |
revving up and it's always a precursor to conflict. | 0:06:59 | 0:07:04 | |
And the next sound is the sound of two animals | 0:07:06 | 0:07:09 | |
that probably weigh three tonnes, slamming against each other. | 0:07:09 | 0:07:12 | |
It's the largest species of seal on the planet, the champion free diver | 0:07:14 | 0:07:18 | |
of all seals, and in the battles between males, absolutely brutal. | 0:07:18 | 0:07:23 | |
For that reason, the elephant seal is undeniably deadly. | 0:07:23 | 0:07:29 | |
The waters around the penguin colony are usually murky with silt and bird droppings. | 0:07:36 | 0:07:41 | |
We had no right to even hope we could dive with them. | 0:07:43 | 0:07:46 | |
Yet next morning we wake to an unbelievable sight, | 0:07:46 | 0:07:50 | |
clear water and thousands of circling birds. | 0:07:50 | 0:07:53 | |
This means we have the opportunity to do something | 0:07:54 | 0:07:57 | |
very few people have ever done, to dive with king penguins. | 0:07:57 | 0:08:00 | |
No way! | 0:08:17 | 0:08:19 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:08:21 | 0:08:23 | |
Penguins have that wobbling gait, they look so clumsy, | 0:08:27 | 0:08:31 | |
but underwater their grace and elegance is just bewitching. | 0:08:31 | 0:08:37 | |
It's absolutely breathtaking. | 0:08:44 | 0:08:47 | |
When they're travelling, like now, they stay close to the surface, | 0:08:49 | 0:08:54 | |
but when they're hunting it's a whole different story. | 0:08:54 | 0:08:56 | |
Along with their close relative the emperor penguin, | 0:08:59 | 0:09:02 | |
kings hunt underwater, scything through krill, squid and fish. | 0:09:02 | 0:09:07 | |
They've lost the power of flight so can be heavy, | 0:09:07 | 0:09:10 | |
laden with insulating fatty blubber, and their wings have evolved | 0:09:10 | 0:09:14 | |
into flattened paddles, enabling them to fly underwater. | 0:09:14 | 0:09:18 | |
They can generate enough force to propel them clear of the water | 0:09:22 | 0:09:26 | |
and up onto the ice. | 0:09:26 | 0:09:27 | |
Unbelievable! | 0:09:36 | 0:09:38 | |
This is an experience I will never forget. | 0:09:44 | 0:09:47 | |
Their ability to fly underwater, their bright colours, | 0:09:50 | 0:09:54 | |
their simple camouflage, | 0:09:54 | 0:09:57 | |
there's no doubt that these masters of Antarctica are deadly. | 0:09:57 | 0:10:02 | |
We could happily stay in South Georgia for many months more | 0:10:07 | 0:10:10 | |
but our grand journey is reaching its end. | 0:10:10 | 0:10:13 | |
Finally we're bound for the bottom of the world, | 0:10:13 | 0:10:16 | |
Antarctica. | 0:10:16 | 0:10:18 | |
That means we leave dry land behind and head out into the open ocean. | 0:10:18 | 0:10:23 | |
Huge seas, | 0:10:23 | 0:10:24 | |
force 10 storms, | 0:10:24 | 0:10:26 | |
waves that, at times, top our boat, | 0:10:26 | 0:10:29 | |
we even have to be vigilant for icebergs that appear from the darkness. | 0:10:29 | 0:10:33 | |
We didn't see it until we were about 40 or 50 metres away from it. | 0:10:33 | 0:10:36 | |
But after seven days we finally make it. | 0:10:37 | 0:10:40 | |
Over 10,000 miles from where we began, | 0:10:45 | 0:10:48 | |
we've reached the land of extremes, Antarctica. | 0:10:48 | 0:10:51 | |
It's the least inhabited, the most remote, highest, driest, | 0:10:59 | 0:11:03 | |
coldest, windiest and wildest continent on the planet. | 0:11:03 | 0:11:07 | |
The animal we have come here to find | 0:11:15 | 0:11:17 | |
is one of the most brutal predators of this frozen world. | 0:11:17 | 0:11:21 | |
It's an animal that will literally shake a penguin out of its own skin, | 0:11:21 | 0:11:25 | |
the terrifying leopard seal. | 0:11:25 | 0:11:28 | |
These are the most formidable hunters of all the seals. | 0:11:31 | 0:11:35 | |
Feeding not just on krill and squid, | 0:11:35 | 0:11:38 | |
but on warm blooded prey. | 0:11:38 | 0:11:40 | |
They stalk the shallows, lying in wait for penguins | 0:11:40 | 0:11:43 | |
and seals heading in and out from shore. | 0:11:43 | 0:11:45 | |
They can even hurl their bulk out of the sea | 0:11:47 | 0:11:50 | |
to drag prey off the ice flows and down to a brutal end. | 0:11:50 | 0:11:55 | |
With massive skulls and canines bigger than my thumbs, | 0:11:55 | 0:11:58 | |
plus a reputation for being potentially dangerous, | 0:11:58 | 0:12:02 | |
they're not to be taken lightly. | 0:12:02 | 0:12:03 | |
Every leopard seal has a different personality | 0:12:08 | 0:12:11 | |
so if I'm going to get in the water with one we'll need a seal | 0:12:11 | 0:12:14 | |
that's both curious and bold. But even to find one | 0:12:14 | 0:12:18 | |
amongst the bergs and pack ice will be a challenge. | 0:12:18 | 0:12:21 | |
On the flat rocks underneath that big rocky headland | 0:12:21 | 0:12:25 | |
is a gentoo penguin colony. | 0:12:25 | 0:12:27 | |
There's an awful lot of them there and leopard seals tend to hang out | 0:12:27 | 0:12:30 | |
around the outskirts of these colonies in the hope of food, | 0:12:30 | 0:12:33 | |
so we're going to do a bit of a scan around, | 0:12:33 | 0:12:35 | |
through the icebergs up ahead of us - | 0:12:35 | 0:12:37 | |
lots and lots of penguins in the water - | 0:12:37 | 0:12:39 | |
and hope that we catch sight of our powerful polar predator. | 0:12:39 | 0:12:43 | |
The team and I train our binoculars on the water, | 0:12:53 | 0:12:55 | |
hoping to see that telltale sign of a leopard seal | 0:12:55 | 0:12:58 | |
poking its head above the sea. | 0:12:58 | 0:13:01 | |
I think I heard breathing. | 0:13:04 | 0:13:06 | |
Oh! Oh! Oh! | 0:13:11 | 0:13:13 | |
What was that there? Did someone see that? | 0:13:13 | 0:13:15 | |
I saw a breath at the surface. | 0:13:15 | 0:13:16 | |
There, there it is. There! | 0:13:18 | 0:13:19 | |
Straight ahead of us. | 0:13:20 | 0:13:22 | |
Yes! Yes, leopard seal! | 0:13:25 | 0:13:27 | |
Leopard seal! Off the end of that iceberg. Can you see it? | 0:13:27 | 0:13:30 | |
It's huge! | 0:13:32 | 0:13:34 | |
I've never seen a seal taking that position before. | 0:13:34 | 0:13:38 | |
It was almost like the nostrils were more like a crocodile, | 0:13:38 | 0:13:41 | |
just poking up out of the water, sucking in air. | 0:13:41 | 0:13:44 | |
And it's just dropped down below us now. | 0:13:44 | 0:13:46 | |
'We scan around as she could come up anywhere. | 0:13:48 | 0:13:51 | |
'And then she pops up right next to our boat.' | 0:13:52 | 0:13:56 | |
No way! | 0:14:00 | 0:14:02 | |
It's so much bigger than I expected. | 0:14:03 | 0:14:06 | |
She's gone under the boat, gone right underneath the boat. | 0:14:07 | 0:14:10 | |
It's our first leopard seal. | 0:14:11 | 0:14:12 | |
Wow! | 0:14:12 | 0:14:14 | |
Steve, it's right there. Steve, Steve, Steve! | 0:14:17 | 0:14:19 | |
He's right here. Right, right, right here. | 0:14:19 | 0:14:22 | |
'The chill up my spine is due to more than the temperature. | 0:14:34 | 0:14:37 | |
'She's a deeply unsettling animal.' | 0:14:37 | 0:14:39 | |
I'm not sure I want to get in the water with that. | 0:14:41 | 0:14:44 | |
That is a monster. | 0:14:46 | 0:14:48 | |
'But then she dives. | 0:14:54 | 0:14:55 | |
'We watch anxiously for any sign of her.' | 0:14:57 | 0:14:59 | |
HE GASPS | 0:15:05 | 0:15:07 | |
Humpback whales! | 0:15:09 | 0:15:10 | |
Amazing. | 0:15:12 | 0:15:13 | |
'A familiar friend, come to lighten our worried mood.' | 0:15:17 | 0:15:21 | |
In all probability there is a big swarm of krill | 0:15:27 | 0:15:32 | |
or something else below us that they're feeding on. | 0:15:32 | 0:15:34 | |
They are right below the surface, just behind us. | 0:15:35 | 0:15:38 | |
Oh, my goodness! | 0:15:41 | 0:15:43 | |
The sound they make as they come to the surface, | 0:15:45 | 0:15:47 | |
expelling air with their massive lungs. | 0:15:47 | 0:15:51 | |
You can feel the reverberation coming across the water. | 0:15:51 | 0:15:55 | |
It hits you right in your heart. | 0:15:55 | 0:15:56 | |
Humpback whales are, to me, incredibly special. | 0:16:05 | 0:16:08 | |
They are the most social, the most vocal, | 0:16:08 | 0:16:12 | |
the most playful of all of the great whales. | 0:16:12 | 0:16:15 | |
But they're also very special for this Pole To Pole expedition as well. | 0:16:17 | 0:16:20 | |
They've been with us for the entire trip. | 0:16:20 | 0:16:24 | |
We saw them feeding way up in the Arctic at the start | 0:16:24 | 0:16:28 | |
of our expedition, saw them breaching | 0:16:28 | 0:16:31 | |
and playing in Alaska, breeding in Hawaii | 0:16:31 | 0:16:34 | |
and now they are swimming underneath me here in Antarctica. | 0:16:34 | 0:16:39 | |
After a year of journey. | 0:16:39 | 0:16:42 | |
Amazing. | 0:16:43 | 0:16:45 | |
To get into the mind of our leopard seal predator | 0:16:53 | 0:16:56 | |
we first have to understand their prey. | 0:16:56 | 0:16:59 | |
In this case, penguins. | 0:16:59 | 0:17:01 | |
The penguins' whole life is dominated by the possible presence of a leopard seal. | 0:17:02 | 0:17:06 | |
Out at sea they can be slow, on the land they can just stand there, | 0:17:06 | 0:17:10 | |
but when they're coming through this zone here they move at | 0:17:10 | 0:17:13 | |
great pace because there could well be a leopard seal waiting. | 0:17:13 | 0:17:17 | |
Since we've been down south, we've already seen several breeding colonies of penguins, | 0:17:19 | 0:17:24 | |
rockhoppers and most spectacularly king penguins. | 0:17:24 | 0:17:29 | |
Gentoos though are very different. | 0:17:29 | 0:17:31 | |
They don't roost and nest together in big, dense colonies. | 0:17:31 | 0:17:35 | |
Instead they're much more spread out. | 0:17:35 | 0:17:36 | |
They still have that really heavy fat layer beneath the surface | 0:17:36 | 0:17:40 | |
of the skin which keeps them warm, but that's also their downfall | 0:17:40 | 0:17:44 | |
because that's the calories that the leopard seal's looking for. | 0:17:44 | 0:17:47 | |
Looking around us a lot of the snow looks like it's been painted. | 0:17:47 | 0:17:50 | |
That actually has great significance. | 0:17:50 | 0:17:52 | |
Just up there is an area that looks like it's been stained pink. | 0:17:52 | 0:17:55 | |
That's from the droppings of penguins that have been feeding | 0:17:55 | 0:17:58 | |
on krill, which is a shrimplike crustacean. | 0:17:58 | 0:18:01 | |
Down here we've got some high-powered squirts of white | 0:18:01 | 0:18:08 | |
and that's from penguins that have been feeding on fish and squid. | 0:18:08 | 0:18:12 | |
But this here, this is kind of the important bit, | 0:18:12 | 0:18:15 | |
this bright, bright green squirt | 0:18:15 | 0:18:18 | |
is from penguins that have been fasting, | 0:18:18 | 0:18:20 | |
that haven't eaten for at least three days | 0:18:20 | 0:18:22 | |
and all of these feathers are why, they're moulting. | 0:18:22 | 0:18:26 | |
These penguins at the moment can't swim, | 0:18:26 | 0:18:28 | |
they can't go into the water but when they've finally got | 0:18:28 | 0:18:31 | |
their new coat they're going to be desperate, | 0:18:31 | 0:18:33 | |
really, really hungry and it doesn't matter if a leopard seal | 0:18:33 | 0:18:35 | |
is just sitting right out there, | 0:18:35 | 0:18:37 | |
they're going to have to go out to sea to feed. | 0:18:37 | 0:18:39 | |
And just down the beach there are a group of penguins about to | 0:18:40 | 0:18:43 | |
head out on that lethal journey. | 0:18:43 | 0:18:45 | |
It is quite interesting watching the gentoos | 0:18:50 | 0:18:52 | |
as they come in and out of the water. | 0:18:52 | 0:18:54 | |
This little group here is about to try and make | 0:18:54 | 0:18:57 | |
their commitment to go in. They've all clustered together | 0:18:57 | 0:19:00 | |
and they're waiting for the first one to take the plunge. | 0:19:00 | 0:19:03 | |
And, actually, look at that one, | 0:19:05 | 0:19:07 | |
they're sticking their head under the water, | 0:19:07 | 0:19:09 | |
as if they are looking around. Possibly they are, | 0:19:09 | 0:19:12 | |
possibly they're looking for the presence of a leopard seal. | 0:19:12 | 0:19:16 | |
All of them have gone in heads down first. | 0:19:17 | 0:19:19 | |
You don't see penguins with their bodies at the surface | 0:19:19 | 0:19:22 | |
and the head underwater very often. | 0:19:22 | 0:19:23 | |
'And no wonder they're nervous. | 0:19:23 | 0:19:25 | |
'Concealed in the shallows is a familiar menacing form.' | 0:19:27 | 0:19:30 | |
This seal is definitely hunting. | 0:19:34 | 0:19:36 | |
Yes. Yes, yes, yes! | 0:19:37 | 0:19:39 | |
I don't believe it. | 0:19:41 | 0:19:42 | |
We're just witnessing a leopard seal attack. | 0:19:42 | 0:19:45 | |
It's come right into the shallows after the gentoos. | 0:19:47 | 0:19:49 | |
We could not ask for more dramatic evidence | 0:19:53 | 0:19:56 | |
of why life for gentoo penguins is so, so tough. | 0:19:56 | 0:20:00 | |
We've seen an attendant leopard seal just sitting there | 0:20:00 | 0:20:03 | |
in the shallows waiting for one to run the gauntlet back to land. | 0:20:03 | 0:20:07 | |
This time it was unsuccessful but scientists have watched | 0:20:07 | 0:20:11 | |
leopard seals that have been sitting alongside colonies. | 0:20:11 | 0:20:14 | |
They've taken as many as eight penguins a day. | 0:20:14 | 0:20:16 | |
I don't believe we just saw that. | 0:20:16 | 0:20:18 | |
A bustling penguin colony like this could feed several seals, | 0:20:22 | 0:20:26 | |
and we spot what could be another nearby. | 0:20:26 | 0:20:28 | |
There's a low, flat berg just offshore, | 0:20:31 | 0:20:35 | |
and lying on it is a long, thin shape. | 0:20:35 | 0:20:39 | |
I think we should get into the boat and go and have a closer look. | 0:20:39 | 0:20:42 | |
It could well be a leopard seal. | 0:20:42 | 0:20:44 | |
It is a leopard seal, hauled out on the ice. | 0:20:52 | 0:20:54 | |
Very occasionally these animals will come up onto rocky shores, | 0:20:56 | 0:20:59 | |
but they seem to much prefer low-lying icebergs like this. | 0:20:59 | 0:21:02 | |
It looks like it's sleeping. | 0:21:05 | 0:21:06 | |
The eyes are closed, it's almost snoring. | 0:21:08 | 0:21:11 | |
This gives us the perfect opportunity to take a closer look. | 0:21:12 | 0:21:15 | |
You can see where they get the leopard seal name from, | 0:21:17 | 0:21:20 | |
they're covered in spots, all over their body. | 0:21:20 | 0:21:22 | |
But also their method of hunting is very leopard like. | 0:21:22 | 0:21:25 | |
Lying in ambush, waiting for the very last second | 0:21:25 | 0:21:28 | |
and then pouncing with incredible dynamic force and speed. | 0:21:28 | 0:21:31 | |
There's something deeply sinister about leopard seals. | 0:21:33 | 0:21:37 | |
I'm not sure what it is, it's almost a reptilian, | 0:21:37 | 0:21:40 | |
snakelike appearance to their body. | 0:21:40 | 0:21:42 | |
It is not like any other kind of seal I've ever seen. | 0:21:42 | 0:21:45 | |
With at least three leopard seals in this one bay, | 0:21:45 | 0:21:47 | |
we seem to have found our ideal spot. | 0:21:47 | 0:21:50 | |
But we still need to be cautious. | 0:21:50 | 0:21:53 | |
These are unpredictable and potentially dangerous animals. | 0:21:54 | 0:21:57 | |
Everything needs to be right before we consider diving. | 0:21:57 | 0:22:00 | |
I'm so excited! | 0:22:00 | 0:22:02 | |
It looks like it might finally happen. | 0:22:06 | 0:22:08 | |
The adrenaline is absolutely singing around my body. | 0:22:08 | 0:22:12 | |
'The crew are all on edge. | 0:22:12 | 0:22:14 | |
'The tension builds, but we need to be calm and make the right choices. | 0:22:14 | 0:22:17 | |
'This is one of the top predators, not just of Antarctica, | 0:22:17 | 0:22:20 | |
'but all the world's oceans.' | 0:22:20 | 0:22:22 | |
Right there, right there. | 0:22:22 | 0:22:24 | |
Right there, right behind you. | 0:22:27 | 0:22:29 | |
Move forwards, move forwards. | 0:22:37 | 0:22:40 | |
OK, talk to me on the surface, tell me what you see. | 0:22:40 | 0:22:43 | |
Does anyone see anything? | 0:22:44 | 0:22:46 | |
Right behind you with his head up. | 0:22:48 | 0:22:50 | |
If you haven't got visual, he's coming towards you now. | 0:22:53 | 0:22:56 | |
Oh, I see him! | 0:22:59 | 0:23:01 | |
I see him, he's massive. | 0:23:02 | 0:23:04 | |
Look at the size of that. | 0:23:09 | 0:23:11 | |
It seems we've found our perfect curious leopard seal. | 0:23:12 | 0:23:16 | |
And, judging from its size, I think it's a female. | 0:23:17 | 0:23:20 | |
Coming up to the surface to breathe. | 0:23:23 | 0:23:25 | |
That is the most extraordinary sight. | 0:23:29 | 0:23:32 | |
A leopard seal, just showing off her expertise. | 0:23:32 | 0:23:36 | |
Look at that barrel rolling around, pirouetting in front of us. | 0:23:38 | 0:23:41 | |
Something I have waited a lifetime to see. | 0:23:43 | 0:23:47 | |
And she seems relatively playful. | 0:23:50 | 0:23:52 | |
I can't think of an animal that looks more in control, | 0:23:55 | 0:24:00 | |
more utterly at home in its environment than this. | 0:24:00 | 0:24:04 | |
The leopard seal carving alongside an Antarctic iceberg, | 0:24:04 | 0:24:07 | |
it's one of the most chilling and exciting sights of my whole life. | 0:24:07 | 0:24:13 | |
Unbelievable! | 0:24:13 | 0:24:15 | |
'We need to try and keep her in sight at all times | 0:24:17 | 0:24:20 | |
'as her behaviour could change in an instant.' | 0:24:20 | 0:24:22 | |
Where is she? Does anyone see her? Where's she gone? | 0:24:27 | 0:24:30 | |
She is under the boat, under the boat! | 0:24:30 | 0:24:33 | |
Where's she gone? Has anyone got eyes on? | 0:24:35 | 0:24:37 | |
Come up a little bit, Johnny, come up. | 0:24:40 | 0:24:42 | |
Coming up behind them. | 0:24:42 | 0:24:44 | |
Behind you, guys, look lively, look lively. It's behind you. | 0:24:44 | 0:24:47 | |
There she is. | 0:24:48 | 0:24:50 | |
Wow! | 0:24:51 | 0:24:52 | |
She's kind of getting bolder each time she approaches, | 0:24:54 | 0:24:57 | |
each time it's just a little bit closer. | 0:24:57 | 0:25:00 | |
I am not taking my eyes off her for even a second. | 0:25:04 | 0:25:06 | |
A big show of teeth there, look at that. | 0:25:11 | 0:25:13 | |
When an animal shows off its teeth like that and blows bubbles, | 0:25:14 | 0:25:18 | |
it's not yawning, it's showing off what it can do. | 0:25:18 | 0:25:22 | |
'It's an expression of dominance. | 0:25:23 | 0:25:25 | |
'She's working herself up, getting more and more excited.' | 0:25:25 | 0:25:29 | |
There's no doubt this animal could do me an awful lot of damage. | 0:25:30 | 0:25:33 | |
Wow! | 0:25:35 | 0:25:36 | |
I think it's time for us to head to the surface. | 0:25:37 | 0:25:40 | |
Oh, my goodness! | 0:25:40 | 0:25:42 | |
Oh! | 0:25:49 | 0:25:51 | |
That's one of the most exhilarating | 0:25:53 | 0:25:56 | |
and frightening experiences of my entire life. | 0:25:56 | 0:25:58 | |
I mean, penguins here just do not stand a chance. | 0:25:58 | 0:26:02 | |
The animal is bigger than them, | 0:26:02 | 0:26:04 | |
it's faster, it's more agile and the teeth are truly | 0:26:04 | 0:26:08 | |
some of the most extraordinary I have ever seen | 0:26:08 | 0:26:10 | |
in the animal kingdom. | 0:26:10 | 0:26:12 | |
It was coming right up into my camera, just inches away | 0:26:12 | 0:26:16 | |
and showing off those teeth. | 0:26:16 | 0:26:18 | |
There's simply nothing here that can contend with it. | 0:26:20 | 0:26:24 | |
I have to say, I don't often get frightened with animals | 0:26:24 | 0:26:27 | |
but that was terrifying, it was absolutely terrifying. | 0:26:27 | 0:26:30 | |
I've never felt quite so much like I've been in another animal's world, | 0:26:30 | 0:26:34 | |
and that it has totally been the boss of me. | 0:26:34 | 0:26:36 | |
It was one of the greatest experiences I'll ever have. | 0:26:36 | 0:26:39 | |
I'm not sure it can be beaten. | 0:26:39 | 0:26:41 | |
Leopard seals, deadly. | 0:26:42 | 0:26:44 | |
-Happy days. -Amazing. | 0:26:49 | 0:26:50 | |
-Happy days. -Absolutely amazing, well done. | 0:26:50 | 0:26:53 | |
'We've finally reached our journey's end.' | 0:26:57 | 0:27:01 | |
Wow! | 0:27:01 | 0:27:02 | |
No way! | 0:27:06 | 0:27:08 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:27:08 | 0:27:10 | |
'But finished in the most sublime style.' | 0:27:10 | 0:27:13 | |
Amazing! | 0:27:16 | 0:27:17 | |
Humpback whales! | 0:27:19 | 0:27:20 | |
Wow! It's so much bigger than I expected. | 0:27:20 | 0:27:22 | |
'Next time, on our last Deadly On A Mission...' | 0:27:25 | 0:27:28 | |
Argh! | 0:27:28 | 0:27:29 | |
'..we'll recount the whole planet-spanning expedition.' | 0:27:29 | 0:27:33 | |
Look at that! | 0:27:33 | 0:27:35 | |
Whoa! | 0:27:36 | 0:27:39 | |
Holy moly! | 0:27:39 | 0:27:40 | |
'With some of the fun... | 0:27:41 | 0:27:43 | |
HE GABBLES | 0:27:44 | 0:27:46 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:27:46 | 0:27:48 | |
'..the highs... | 0:27:48 | 0:27:51 | |
'and the lows.' | 0:27:51 | 0:27:52 | |
I want to go home. | 0:27:52 | 0:27:54 | |
'From the jaw-dropping...' | 0:27:54 | 0:27:56 | |
Oh, they are stunning! | 0:27:56 | 0:27:59 | |
'..to the utterly breathtaking.' | 0:27:59 | 0:28:01 | |
That's all my dreams coming true at once. | 0:28:01 | 0:28:03 | |
'And, of course, the downright terrifying.' | 0:28:04 | 0:28:07 | |
Johnny, back towards us, Johnny. | 0:28:07 | 0:28:09 |