0:00:15 > 0:00:17SOFT LAUGHTER
0:00:25 > 0:00:29Until recently, few of us had even heard of this animal.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33Then, one YouTube click went viral...
0:00:35 > 0:00:39..and turned it into an internet celebrity.
0:00:43 > 0:00:45Its common name, the loris,
0:00:45 > 0:00:48comes from an old Dutch word meaning clown.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00But its funny face masks a Jekyll and Hyde personality.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12For nearly 20 years, one woman has been under its spell.
0:01:15 > 0:01:18Some people believe that you have your own spirit animal,
0:01:18 > 0:01:22and I feel that I have found mine.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30Glimpse by glimpse, Dr Anna Nekaris has been discovering
0:01:30 > 0:01:34the surprising truth about nature's real-life gremlins.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44What I love about lorises is that they look so cute.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47But behind those big, beautiful eyes,
0:01:47 > 0:01:49they're hiding this really dark secret.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07In the jungles of Indonesia
0:02:07 > 0:02:12lives an animal widely believed to possess supernatural powers.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19It's a distant cousin of monkeys and apes.
0:02:22 > 0:02:24But unlike these more familiar primates,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27the slow loris is a creature of the night.
0:02:33 > 0:02:37That we know so little about it is hardly surprising.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41Few of us care to wander alone in the forest after dark.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48Dr Anna Nekaris, however,
0:02:48 > 0:02:52hopes to unravel the darkest of all the loris's secrets.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58It's something she knows about from painful experience.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03About six years ago I got bitten, and it's something I won't forget
0:03:03 > 0:03:07because it went straight through my finger and through my thumbnail.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10The wound simply wouldn't close. It took weeks to heal,
0:03:10 > 0:03:14as if something was blocking the normal healing process.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18Very different from a monkey bite or a dog bite.
0:03:20 > 0:03:25In fact, the slow loris is the world's only venomous primate.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30We do know that villagers in both Burma and Thailand
0:03:30 > 0:03:33have actually died from loris bites.
0:03:36 > 0:03:41Venom is one of nature's most efficient means of killing.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48Yet, in the case of the loris, our cuddly YouTube celebrity,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51its purpose remains a mystery.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55No biologist has seriously investigated
0:03:55 > 0:04:00why a slow loris would need to be venomous.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08Anna is embarking on an ambitious long-term research project.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13Her destination is the Indonesian island of Java,
0:04:13 > 0:04:17where she hopes to solve the riddle of the slow loris's toxin.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23But, Anna's interest is more than just academic.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30In a world that has less and less room for animals, she needs to know
0:04:30 > 0:04:34that here, at least, her beloved gremlins are still safe.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46Base for the next few weeks is an animal rescue centre
0:04:46 > 0:04:48three hours south of Jakarta.
0:04:51 > 0:04:56This place specialises in looking after slow lorises -
0:04:56 > 0:04:59in total, around 120 of these critically endangered primates.
0:05:02 > 0:05:04Victims of an illegal pet trade,
0:05:04 > 0:05:09most of these rehabs are in need of professional care,
0:05:09 > 0:05:13and are destined to live out their lives in purpose-built enclosures.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20A small handful can be set free,
0:05:20 > 0:05:24yet sadly, and for reasons that remain obscure,
0:05:24 > 0:05:28many of those that return to the jungle die within a few months.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38To get going with her investigation, Anna needs to collect some toxin.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41Bromo is a feisty young male.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Anna hopes he will be in a co-operative mood.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50Hello. It's all right.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54Let's just have a look. You've got good teeth.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Good boy.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58I'm going to take a sample from each gland,
0:05:58 > 0:06:02then we'll follow that up with taking some saliva with a syringe.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07Bromo doesn't look too chuffed.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10You can see he's starting to go into his defensive posture.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13No, no, no, don't do that. Don't bite me.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17He's actually trying to apply poison by doing this.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19But it's actually an advantage for us
0:06:19 > 0:06:21because maybe he will start producing the brachial oil.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Actually, this is really good.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27It is very clear now on the swab.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30This is absolutely gorgeous brachial oil.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34See the really dark brown colour? We are going to get an excellent sample.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38The loris arms itself
0:06:38 > 0:06:42by exuding an oily fluid from a gland near its elbow,
0:06:42 > 0:06:44and then mixing this with saliva.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50It's only when saliva is added that the oil becomes fully toxic.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52Clever boy.
0:06:55 > 0:06:56That's number one.
0:06:59 > 0:07:00So now, I'm collecting the saliva.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04All the way back here... Don't bite it too hard.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12I think we're done now. You're ready to go.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16We've got what we need. You've been a very good boy. Good boy!
0:07:16 > 0:07:18Good boy.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44While others sleep, over 100 gremlins begin to stir.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54They are, without doubt, one of our weirdest relatives.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03Not just the world's only venomous primate,
0:08:03 > 0:08:06a slow loris also has two tongues.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11While the long one laps up nectar,
0:08:11 > 0:08:16its hidden partner may be scraping off pollen.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24Strange-looking hands appear to be missing a finger.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29An arrangement that gives the loris a better grip.
0:08:31 > 0:08:35Its back, meanwhile, has several extra vertebrae,
0:08:35 > 0:08:37enabling it to twist like a snake.
0:08:44 > 0:08:49For 50 million years, these masters of t'ai chi
0:08:49 > 0:08:53have been perfecting the art of going unnoticed.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06It's taken Anna her whole career
0:09:06 > 0:09:09just to uncover the most basic facts about their lives.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16White lights really hurt their eyes.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18They start doing all the behaviours
0:09:18 > 0:09:23that people think are typical of lorises, like being slow.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28But they can't see red lights.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33Once you use red lights, they start to really become true lorises.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38Their behaviour is much more natural. Do you like this?
0:09:38 > 0:09:40There you go.
0:09:43 > 0:09:48For a long time, it was thought that lorises ate mostly plant foods.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54But large forward-facing eyes mark them out as predators.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00Anna has found from her own research
0:10:00 > 0:10:04that they can indeed be highly carnivorous.
0:10:16 > 0:10:22Given the choice to eat something alive, it will take it,
0:10:22 > 0:10:24no matter what that living thing is.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29As well as bugs, animals as big as bats,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32and even birds, are on the menu.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38Maybe the toxin is to take out large prey.
0:10:39 > 0:10:41Stealth is key.
0:10:44 > 0:10:50With its silent approach, the loris is like a deadly ninja.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58In the wild, what a loris would do is get a bird sleeping on a branch
0:10:58 > 0:11:01and slowly creep up to it,
0:11:01 > 0:11:03and just grab it.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14Superb night vision
0:11:14 > 0:11:18and a fast trigger make the loris a formidable assassin.
0:11:19 > 0:11:23They're much crueller than they look, these little lorises.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28But, do they really need venom to kill their prey?
0:11:29 > 0:11:31If it had toxin to kill prey,
0:11:31 > 0:11:35you'd expect maybe that it would be biting it
0:11:35 > 0:11:38and paralysing the prey so that it could eat it slowly.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41But the second a loris catches its victim,
0:11:41 > 0:11:43it tends to just bite its head off.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47It seems that these carnivorous little critters
0:11:47 > 0:11:50must be using their poison for something else.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Wild lorises are crucial for Anna's research.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03The nearest place to look for one
0:12:03 > 0:12:07is on the mountain next to the rescue centre.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13Anna's student, Richard Moore, is making a routine check
0:12:13 > 0:12:15on a loris called Willis.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25He's a rehab that was released back into the forest
0:12:25 > 0:12:27about two months ago.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Because the Javan slow loris
0:12:32 > 0:12:35is one of the world's most critically endangered primates,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39every animal that leaves the centre is closely monitored.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50Willis may be radio tagged,
0:12:50 > 0:12:54but catching up with him isn't going to be a walk in the park.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01Mount Salak rises to over 2,000 metres,
0:13:01 > 0:13:05and is a magnet for every passing storm.
0:13:13 > 0:13:18As night falls, Anna and Richard slog deeper into the forest.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27We've got the signal from this direction.
0:13:27 > 0:13:32According to textbooks, the loris is slow and rather inactive.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39One widely-quoted study has it creeping barely 10 metres a night.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43How big do you think his home range is?
0:13:43 > 0:13:45About 30 hectares.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51The signal is a lot stronger now.
0:13:51 > 0:13:52OK.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56They're homing in,
0:13:56 > 0:14:00but it seems that Willis is just waking up.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04The signal's still coming from up there.
0:14:08 > 0:14:13The so-called slow loris can move at surprising speed.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16Despite the fact they don't jump, doesn't mean they don't move.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19They're still fairly active, even in heavy rain.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23And it can keep moving all night.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27Keep on trekking upwards.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34A free-ranging loris is a completely different animal
0:14:34 > 0:14:36from one in a cage.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Once they've got lots of branches to move on,
0:14:40 > 0:14:45it's this absolutely beautiful smooth locomotion.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49Since being out in the wild, he doesn't stop moving.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51But this is normal.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56They're just going and going and going, sometimes for eight hours.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05Until the point comes when you look at your GPS,
0:15:05 > 0:15:08and you're really shocked to read that, in a straight line,
0:15:08 > 0:15:11the animal has gone eight kilometres or five miles,
0:15:11 > 0:15:17and that doesn't include the fact that it's gone up and down, up and down, up and down.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19And so these animals are going really far,
0:15:19 > 0:15:22and they're going further than macaques, further than gibbons,
0:15:22 > 0:15:24because they're relentlessly moving.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32It's obvious who's in the driving seat here.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36And he's putting his foot down.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42I saw it for a second, and then it flashed off.
0:15:42 > 0:15:47We had one little glimpse, and we could hear him.
0:15:47 > 0:15:48You know what they're like.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52You've got them in sight one minute, and then the next, they disappear.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53Very elusive.
0:15:55 > 0:16:00He clearly can move very quickly and he's running away from us.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04Willis is giving them the run-around,
0:16:04 > 0:16:08and the terrain isn't getting any easier.
0:16:08 > 0:16:10How did you get down there?
0:16:15 > 0:16:16RUSTLING
0:16:16 > 0:16:18SHE LAUGHS
0:16:18 > 0:16:20It's extremely steep, wet, and slippery.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Oh gosh, it's like some sort of jungle assault course!
0:16:27 > 0:16:29I'm going to keep moving.
0:16:37 > 0:16:38I think he's very close.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42After a long chase, Willis finally slows down.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Just enough for Anna to get a decent look.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50He's just moved up behind this foliage.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54You can see the eye shine just through there.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55There he is.
0:16:57 > 0:16:58Yeah - oh, I see.
0:16:58 > 0:17:03It's amazing, since last night, he's travelled this far.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07Out of ten rehabs that the centre has tried to return to the wild,
0:17:07 > 0:17:11half have either died or fallen sick.
0:17:11 > 0:17:18Knowing why could prove vital for helping the species to recover.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21With dawn approaching and the loris getting ready to bed down,
0:17:21 > 0:17:24Anna and Richard decide to call time.
0:17:27 > 0:17:28THUNDER RUMBLES
0:17:38 > 0:17:42Week two, and in a middle class suburb of Jakarta,
0:17:42 > 0:17:44an impromptu rescue mission is under way.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51Anna has put her research on hold
0:17:51 > 0:17:56to help the rescue centre collect an unwanted pet.
0:17:56 > 0:18:01While the vet chats to the owner, Anna takes a closer look.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06He has really good fur condition, he's not dehydrated, not lethargic.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09He's still looking really well.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11This is a Sumatran slow loris and it's a male,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14and we can see a few strange things in the cage.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17You can see some cake, and actually he's taken a few bites of the cake.
0:18:20 > 0:18:25The slow loris was once thought to be a single widespread animal,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27but thanks to Anna's work,
0:18:27 > 0:18:30we now know there are probably 12 different species.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36The demand for lorises as pets is still there.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40The fact that it's more difficult to get them from Java
0:18:40 > 0:18:44means they're sourcing them from Sumatra.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48I suppose when they run out of them from Sumatra, they get them from Borneo.
0:18:50 > 0:18:55The main reason, it seems, to have a loris as a pet is it's cute.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04She says that the loris is cute and then slow, and looks funny.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12The main reason to get rid of it is it really stinks.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15A lot of people, once they get it as a pet,
0:19:15 > 0:19:17they really don't like the smell.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22- So she washes him with water and shampoo?- Mm-hmm.- And he likes it?
0:19:22 > 0:19:24- Does he like it?- Yes.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28- Every Sunday.- Every Sunday?- Mm-hmm.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32- OK, she washes him regularly because he has a bad smell?- Yes.- OK.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36I did know someone who had one as a pet
0:19:36 > 0:19:39and didn't get a date for three years.
0:19:39 > 0:19:44His clothes really stank, and he really stank.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50But obviously they're very gorgeous animals -
0:19:50 > 0:19:52wide-eyed, adorable fluffballs.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56One of the cutest animals in the world for some people.
0:19:56 > 0:20:01Anna's hope that this one can be returned to the wild proves to be short-lived.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04What you see here is the animal sticking its tongue out,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07which is one of the classic signs that its front teeth
0:20:07 > 0:20:09have been cut out by the traders in the market.
0:20:09 > 0:20:12When they do this, they usually use nail clippers or pliers
0:20:12 > 0:20:16and they brutally rip out or cut out the front teeth.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18They leave the roots inside.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20This mess is up to us to fix in the centre,
0:20:20 > 0:20:24for the veterinarian to do a root canal.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26But, because his front teeth are missing,
0:20:26 > 0:20:29he could never be reintroduced into the wild.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Traders cut out the front teeth
0:20:34 > 0:20:39precisely because they fear the animal's venomous bite.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52The teeth are clipped.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56The canines, which are the fangs upper and lower,
0:20:56 > 0:21:01have been clipped as well as all the little teeth on the bottom.
0:21:01 > 0:21:02You can hear this growling sound.
0:21:04 > 0:21:09That's the sound they make when they're feeling threatened.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16You can see the brachial oil is really pouring out here,
0:21:16 > 0:21:19so this is a response to being handled.
0:21:22 > 0:21:26With the loris getting worked up, it's time to head back to the centre.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41Every loris at the rescue centre has a name.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44Anna has christened the new arrival Cepat, or "Speedy".
0:21:48 > 0:21:52He won't be getting any more cake or shampoo rinses.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56But his pristine fur has got Anna thinking
0:21:56 > 0:21:58about the purpose of loris toxin.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04We never see any ticks or lice or fleas on them.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09I think it would be pretty extraordinary
0:22:09 > 0:22:13if lorises were somehow producing their own insect repellent.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26Anna decides to break out her sample of Bromo's toxin,
0:22:26 > 0:22:29and put this idea to the test.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35Tonight's guinea pigs are a dozen blood-sucking leeches.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40Each about 20 times bigger than a mere tick.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47When a leech is being affected by some sort of a toxic compound
0:22:47 > 0:22:50like insect repellent, it normally flails around a bit
0:22:50 > 0:22:53and then curls up in a little ball and it dies.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59To activate the toxin, Anna adds a drop of Bromo's saliva.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05And with a good dose applied to her first leech...
0:23:07 > 0:23:10..she waits to see what happens.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19It's getting very lethargic now.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24It's really slowed down now, it's not moving.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27It's definitely having an effect.
0:23:33 > 0:23:34Ooh! The leech doesn't like that.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38I think he's died.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43To be certain the result is no fluke,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Anna repeats the test several times.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48Eight minutes, dead.
0:23:49 > 0:23:55Whatever its mystery ingredient, loris brachial oil is doing the business.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58Two minutes, eight seconds. This one is definitely dead.
0:24:01 > 0:24:05Its leech-zapping powers are plain to see.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08There they are, dead and shrivelled.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16Remarkably, even a baby loris can produce brachial oil.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23Maybe by coating itself with toxic saliva, a loris is shielding itself
0:24:23 > 0:24:27against a whole range of potential parasites.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33Yet, if the poison is simply a personal insect repellent,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35then why does a loris produce so much of it
0:24:35 > 0:24:38whenever it wants to bite?
0:24:43 > 0:24:46Could the toxin have more than just one purpose?
0:24:54 > 0:25:01Sometimes, scientific discovery lags far behind what local people have known for centuries.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08Ancient knowledge is often enshrined in myths and folklore.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12And in the hope of finding a useful clue,
0:25:12 > 0:25:16Anna is travelling deep into the mountains of West Java.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20In every country where lorises are found,
0:25:20 > 0:25:24they're either revered, or feared, or people want to use them in some way.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32These animals are really mystical creatures.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44The Kasepuhan are one of Java's last forest-dwelling cultures.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49But it seems no-one has ever asked them
0:25:49 > 0:25:53what they know about the slow loris, or kukang.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56SHE CHANTS
0:26:02 > 0:26:04At the end of a hair-raising trek...
0:26:04 > 0:26:05Oh, my God.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08..Anna is about to find out.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25Mr Koko, a village elder,
0:26:25 > 0:26:28is unaware of Anna's special interest in lorises.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30THEY SPEAK IN SUNDANESE
0:26:32 > 0:26:35Does he have any stories about animals in the forest
0:26:35 > 0:26:37that are particularly dangerous?
0:26:39 > 0:26:41HE TRANSLATES
0:26:53 > 0:26:55ROOSTER CROWS
0:27:11 > 0:27:13What causes them more worry?
0:27:13 > 0:27:16If they're bitten by a snake or if they're bitten by a kukang?
0:27:37 > 0:27:42Few animals are so steeped in superstition as the loris.
0:27:42 > 0:27:46Their bones are thought by some to bring bad luck.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51And according to one folktale,
0:27:51 > 0:27:55a wife can control her husband more easily
0:27:55 > 0:27:58if she keeps the skull of a kukang in the water jug.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Some beliefs, however, may contain a germ of truth.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09CHIMES RATTLE
0:28:09 > 0:28:11Later that night,
0:28:11 > 0:28:14the chief of the Kasepuhan told me a story
0:28:14 > 0:28:19that reminded me of my own rather nasty experience of being bitten.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25He told me that before battle,
0:28:25 > 0:28:28it was the custom of his ancestors
0:28:28 > 0:28:31to smear their machetes with the blood of a loris.
0:28:32 > 0:28:37So that any wounds they inflicted on their enemies would fail to heal.
0:28:41 > 0:28:45DRUMBEATS, CHANTING
0:28:45 > 0:28:47Could a loris really possess something
0:28:47 > 0:28:49that stops wounds from healing?
0:28:49 > 0:28:53and where could such a strange poison come from?
0:28:58 > 0:29:04In the forest, lorises hunt for a wide variety of insects and spiders.
0:29:06 > 0:29:08In fact, they have an unusual ability
0:29:08 > 0:29:10to stomach even the nastiest of creepy-crawlies.
0:29:17 > 0:29:21They tend to eat really noxious things,
0:29:21 > 0:29:24things that are stinky and things that spray.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26It doesn't get deterred
0:29:26 > 0:29:30by colourful things that indicate these animals are poisonous.
0:29:34 > 0:29:35Whatever their poison is for,
0:29:35 > 0:29:40it's a fair bet that lorises are getting at least some of it
0:29:40 > 0:29:42from their grisly grub.
0:29:45 > 0:29:49So far, Anna has barely seen a loris outside a cage.
0:29:49 > 0:29:51To understand why they're toxic,
0:29:51 > 0:29:54she needs to spend time with them in the wild.
0:29:58 > 0:30:02Gunung Gede Forest forms part of a national park
0:30:02 > 0:30:04and is a haven for local wildlife.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10One of Indonesia's oldest protected areas,
0:30:10 > 0:30:14it provides a refuge for the rare Silvery Gibbon.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32Long-tailed Macaques also thrive here.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36Alongside Ebony Leaf Monkeys...
0:30:37 > 0:30:40..Giant Tree Squirrels,
0:30:40 > 0:30:42and a host of other animals.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50But it's the nightlife that Anna has come for.
0:30:54 > 0:30:56Gunung Gede is renowned
0:30:56 > 0:31:01as one of the best places in the whole of Java to watch lorises.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10Relatively flat terrain and a good network of trails
0:31:10 > 0:31:12make it easy for Anna to cover a lot of ground.
0:31:16 > 0:31:20What's more, there are plenty of flowering shrubs
0:31:20 > 0:31:23to tempt lorises down from the treetops and into view.
0:31:26 > 0:31:28INSECTS CHIRP
0:31:31 > 0:31:35The night is so much more peaceful.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38It's only you and the animals.
0:31:38 > 0:31:42DISTANT HOOTING
0:31:42 > 0:31:46So many undiscovered possibilities in the jungle at night.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55But at this hour, the jungle belongs to the leopard.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04GROWL
0:32:04 > 0:32:06Something's growling.
0:32:06 > 0:32:08SHE SHUDDERS
0:32:08 > 0:32:11It's a big animal.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27Though she is aware of the danger, Anna decides to press on.
0:32:33 > 0:32:36As well as looking for loris eye shine,
0:32:36 > 0:32:38she's also listening out for its call.
0:32:40 > 0:32:43CHIRPING, CROAKING
0:32:46 > 0:32:49WHIRRING CHATTER
0:32:49 > 0:32:51It's not terribly loud,
0:32:51 > 0:32:53but I know it very well
0:32:53 > 0:32:57and I can still pick it up amidst all the other noise at night.
0:33:01 > 0:33:03They'd have to be here somewhere.
0:33:12 > 0:33:14A pair of eyes glows in the dark.
0:33:14 > 0:33:16It's a prowling civet.
0:33:21 > 0:33:26In past visits here, Anna has seen dozens of lorises,
0:33:26 > 0:33:29sometimes feeding together in small groups.
0:33:31 > 0:33:33But tonight, she's drawing a blank.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43It's one of the best places in Java to see them.
0:33:43 > 0:33:45Everything is right,
0:33:45 > 0:33:48there's flowers everywhere and there's tiny fruits
0:33:48 > 0:33:50and there are animals around.
0:33:50 > 0:33:54I've seen civets and bats,
0:33:54 > 0:33:56but not a single loris, not even a single call.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03You can normally expect to see six or seven in one night.
0:34:04 > 0:34:09And now, searching 12 hours, I haven't seen anything, no lorises
0:34:09 > 0:34:11and I'm just exhausted and frustrated.
0:34:17 > 0:34:20Has Anna just been unlucky
0:34:20 > 0:34:23or are Java's gremlins no longer in the jungle?
0:34:29 > 0:34:32In the daytime, I saw all the other primates.
0:34:35 > 0:34:40But it really felt like a completely dead forest in terms of lorises.
0:34:40 > 0:34:42I don't know where they are.
0:34:44 > 0:34:46DISTANT WHOOPING
0:34:53 > 0:34:57Back at the centre, Cepat is in the clinic for a check-up.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06Around 80% of the lorises that come here
0:35:06 > 0:35:08have had their front teeth crudely cut out.
0:35:13 > 0:35:14It requires an X-ray
0:35:14 > 0:35:19to reveal the full extent of the damage inflicted by the traders.
0:35:26 > 0:35:30We can see here, these are the canines.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33- There's a small hole. - Exactly, this is a hole
0:35:33 > 0:35:37and this is the area where microorganisms and food
0:35:37 > 0:35:40is going to go through and cause infections
0:35:40 > 0:35:43- and these infections can be quite dangerous.- Yes.
0:35:43 > 0:35:47An infection can start in the mouth but can affect the whole system
0:35:47 > 0:35:50and cause septicaemia and even death.
0:35:55 > 0:36:00It looks like poor Cepat is going to need some serious dental surgery.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04He's already waking up.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07For now, he just wants a good rest.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23Anna is back on the hunt for a wild loris.
0:36:25 > 0:36:30Having failed to find any in the forest, she's changed tack.
0:36:32 > 0:36:37Fields and gardens have replaced most of the trees around here
0:36:37 > 0:36:42yet surprisingly, there have been reports of lorises clinging on
0:36:42 > 0:36:44in a few remaining clumps of bamboo.
0:36:46 > 0:36:48Anna's guide, Mr Ade,
0:36:48 > 0:36:52knows exactly where the last gremlins are hiding out.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57SPEAKS IN JAVANESE
0:37:01 > 0:37:04(We just found our first slow loris.
0:37:04 > 0:37:06(He's right in between these two.)
0:37:08 > 0:37:11Scarcely ten minutes' walk from a large village,
0:37:11 > 0:37:15Anna is surrounded by carrots, cabbages and tea bushes.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20This is the last place in Java she expected to see a wild loris.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24DISTANT CHANTING
0:37:24 > 0:37:27There are about three mosques going off in the background
0:37:27 > 0:37:31and it's feeling like a completely
0:37:31 > 0:37:34un-loris-like environment.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37It's crazy. It's really, really weird.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41The next thing I know, there's going to be a loris on the ground,
0:37:41 > 0:37:45using its hands to dig up some carrots.
0:37:48 > 0:37:52While Anna and Ade strain to see which way it went,
0:37:52 > 0:37:54the loris makes an unexpected move.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59According to every textbook,
0:37:59 > 0:38:01this is a tree-dwelling animal.
0:38:05 > 0:38:07But the trees here are far apart.
0:38:10 > 0:38:12Perhaps in this unnatural world,
0:38:12 > 0:38:15a hungry loris has to take more risks to find food.
0:38:40 > 0:38:41(Thought I saw it again.)
0:39:06 > 0:39:09I've just seen a pair of eyes in the tree. It's really close.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12I could see its eye shine.
0:39:16 > 0:39:19With a clear view at last of her cabbage-patch gremlin,
0:39:19 > 0:39:22Anna is in for yet another surprise.
0:39:26 > 0:39:28He's got a very horrible head wound.
0:39:28 > 0:39:32His entire ear is ripped off.
0:39:40 > 0:39:44Life is not just tough for this damaged individual.
0:39:44 > 0:39:49To Anna, it's beginning to look like the whole species
0:39:49 > 0:39:51is struggling to survive.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56The really frightening thing is,
0:39:56 > 0:39:59this isn't a protected area. It's not a national park.
0:39:59 > 0:40:04So they're completely reliant on the people living here to protect them.
0:40:07 > 0:40:10If the people don't want them, then that's it.
0:40:10 > 0:40:12It's always exciting to see them,
0:40:12 > 0:40:14but at the same time,
0:40:14 > 0:40:17if this is the only place they have left,
0:40:17 > 0:40:20I don't know what the end of the story will be.
0:40:33 > 0:40:38Armed with a fresh sample of toxin, Anna returns to her investigation.
0:40:41 > 0:40:45Could the poison be strong enough to repel not merely a leech,
0:40:45 > 0:40:47but a huge predator?
0:40:50 > 0:40:55Sun bears are nocturnal hunters that will eat just about anything.
0:40:55 > 0:41:00Their sharp teeth and raking claws would make short work of a loris.
0:41:01 > 0:41:05A loris would be very vulnerable to one of these.
0:41:05 > 0:41:07They could definitely sniff one out
0:41:07 > 0:41:10and just grab it from a tree with their sharp claws and eat it.
0:41:14 > 0:41:19But toxin can give smaller, more vulnerable animals protection.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26Anna constructs a dummy loris,
0:41:26 > 0:41:29first stuffing in leaves from Cepat's cage
0:41:29 > 0:41:33to make the basket smell enticing,
0:41:33 > 0:41:36then attaching two swabs soaked with loris toxin.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41The question is,
0:41:41 > 0:41:46can this loris smell-a-like see off a hungry sun bear?
0:41:49 > 0:41:51They're going to release the bear.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17If you happen to be venomous, it's worth advertising the fact,
0:42:17 > 0:42:20especially to something that's about to eat you.
0:42:21 > 0:42:23In the dark, and at close range,
0:42:23 > 0:42:26smell is one way to get your message across.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31And when its nose finds the swab...
0:42:31 > 0:42:33Oh.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35..the bear beats a retreat.
0:42:35 > 0:42:36Oh, she doesn't like that.
0:42:36 > 0:42:40Once she hit that cotton swab, she dropped it.
0:42:42 > 0:42:46She got really excited, she thought she was getting something to eat.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48She was sniffing. Then she stuffed her head in
0:42:48 > 0:42:53and the minute she touched the cotton swab, she turned away.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57She's going back now for a second sniff.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05Ooh! Really didn't like that.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07Just had one sniff and walked away.
0:43:11 > 0:43:14Still hungry, the bear comes back a third time.
0:43:14 > 0:43:18She's going to have one more try. See what she does this time.
0:43:31 > 0:43:34So, three times now, she's had a go at the basket.
0:43:34 > 0:43:36Clearly, she really doesn't like it.
0:43:36 > 0:43:39And now she's not going near it.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47Something has put its nose out of joint.
0:43:47 > 0:43:52Clearly, the bear got some sort of warning signal that said,
0:43:52 > 0:43:54"You must avoid this basket."
0:43:56 > 0:43:58I'm really impressed, actually.
0:43:58 > 0:44:03In fact, most animals leave lorises well alone.
0:44:06 > 0:44:09Perhaps the toxin acts as a double shield,
0:44:09 > 0:44:12repelling predators as well as parasites.
0:44:18 > 0:44:21The loris, however, has one other enemy.
0:44:22 > 0:44:25An enemy which, until now, Anna has overlooked.
0:44:28 > 0:44:30Down at the cages tonight,
0:44:30 > 0:44:34the usual peace and quiet is being shattered.
0:44:34 > 0:44:36CHITTERING
0:44:41 > 0:44:45There was actually some fighting in the cage across...
0:44:45 > 0:44:49At the moment, or for the past hour, they've been fighting over there.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54And these little gremlins fight dirty.
0:44:57 > 0:45:02Males compete really furiously for a single female.
0:45:02 > 0:45:07They actually will hurl each other out of the trees to get the female.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18ANGRY CHITTERING
0:45:18 > 0:45:23The staff here have to be careful about who gets put with whom.
0:45:26 > 0:45:31If an animal is severely bitten, it can be a death sentence.
0:45:32 > 0:45:36SCREECHING
0:45:36 > 0:45:39Lorises always just go for the head.
0:45:43 > 0:45:44I often see wounds.
0:45:44 > 0:45:50They almost are always bald patches with no fur whatsoever,
0:45:50 > 0:45:53just a really horrible, horrible scar.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59It's as if one loris took a machete to the other
0:45:59 > 0:46:01and scalped half its head off.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05Tissue death, or necrosis, is a common result.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08The wound just festers
0:46:08 > 0:46:12and it's often a cause of slow flesh-rotting death.
0:46:15 > 0:46:17Maybe the loris has its venom
0:46:17 > 0:46:20to battle against other lorises.
0:46:21 > 0:46:25Maybe males are fighting males and females are fighting females.
0:46:28 > 0:46:32Maybe this venom is to kill another loris, to gain territory.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46ANGRY CHITTERING
0:46:49 > 0:46:52Maybe the very substance
0:46:52 > 0:46:55that stopped Anna's own bite wound from healing,
0:46:55 > 0:46:57and which the Kasepuhan believed
0:46:57 > 0:47:00would stop the wounds of their enemies from healing,
0:47:00 > 0:47:03is a toxin
0:47:03 > 0:47:05that rival lorises inject into each other.
0:47:11 > 0:47:14Remarkably, recent tests have shown
0:47:14 > 0:47:18that loris toxin may in fact contain several chemicals
0:47:18 > 0:47:20with the power to dissolve flesh.
0:47:22 > 0:47:24Some of these chemicals are even known
0:47:24 > 0:47:26to occur in ants and millipedes,
0:47:26 > 0:47:29foods that wild lorises relish
0:47:29 > 0:47:33but which captive animals rarely see.
0:47:34 > 0:47:36It begs the question,
0:47:36 > 0:47:39could a rehab, deprived of its natural diet,
0:47:39 > 0:47:41eventually lose its toxin?
0:47:42 > 0:47:46And could this be why lorises that return to the wild
0:47:46 > 0:47:47so often fail to survive?
0:47:50 > 0:47:55Without toxin, a loris will be vulnerable
0:47:55 > 0:47:57to parasites,
0:47:57 > 0:47:59predators
0:47:59 > 0:48:00and rivals.
0:48:04 > 0:48:06Anna's journey is coming to an end,
0:48:06 > 0:48:09but before she heads home,
0:48:09 > 0:48:12she has some unfinished business.
0:48:20 > 0:48:24While Cepat has the shattered stumps of his front teeth taken out,
0:48:24 > 0:48:29Anna forces herself to confront a bigger and more troubling question.
0:48:34 > 0:48:39If they're not in the jungle, then where have all the gremlins gone?
0:48:43 > 0:48:47Jakarta has several thriving pet markets,
0:48:47 > 0:48:51but these are not places for animal lovers
0:48:51 > 0:48:52or the fainthearted.
0:48:58 > 0:49:01Though there are laws to protect endangered species,
0:49:01 > 0:49:04the word on the street is that many are still for sale.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11I'm in a back alley,
0:49:11 > 0:49:16five minutes from one of Jakarta's most notorious animal markets.
0:49:16 > 0:49:21Given that people with cameras trying to film the illegal trade
0:49:21 > 0:49:23have been seriously beaten up,
0:49:23 > 0:49:25I am a little bit nervous going into this.
0:49:29 > 0:49:32If there are any lorises here, Anna is determined
0:49:32 > 0:49:34to get photographic evidence.
0:49:36 > 0:49:38Rigged with a hidden camera,
0:49:38 > 0:49:41she sets off with another member of the film crew.
0:49:41 > 0:49:44Together, they'll be posing as a tourist couple
0:49:44 > 0:49:47who want to buy an exotic pet.
0:49:47 > 0:49:49'The more ignorant we appear,
0:49:49 > 0:49:52'the more likely they'll show us the illegal animals.
0:49:56 > 0:50:00'I could have bought anything I wanted in this market.
0:50:00 > 0:50:02'I could have bought an inflatable fish.
0:50:05 > 0:50:09'I could have bought a snake - venomous or non-venomous.'
0:50:09 > 0:50:12I can't believe they sell deadly snakes.
0:50:12 > 0:50:15'The minute I didn't want to buy something exotic,
0:50:15 > 0:50:18'I was offered something domestic.
0:50:18 > 0:50:21'The minute I turned my back on something domestic,
0:50:21 > 0:50:24'something exotic was offered again.'
0:50:24 > 0:50:25CHIRPING AND SQUAWKING
0:50:29 > 0:50:33More life in here than in the rainforest.
0:50:33 > 0:50:34COCKEREL CROWS
0:50:36 > 0:50:40'Walking around a market like that, it's very hot...
0:50:41 > 0:50:45'The animals must feel it themselves.
0:50:48 > 0:50:50'It's really overpowering.
0:50:53 > 0:50:56'The way the animals are treated is shocking.
0:50:56 > 0:50:59'Crammed into cages, on top of each other.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06'Most of the monkeys we saw in the cages
0:51:06 > 0:51:09'should have still been with their mothers.'
0:51:15 > 0:51:19The list of endangered species that can be bought here is long.
0:51:24 > 0:51:28And not far from the monkeys, Anna spots her first loris.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39'When I go in, I just go in as an actress.
0:51:39 > 0:51:42'I assume the role of an idiot tourist.'
0:51:42 > 0:51:45I got it. Oh, he's so cute.
0:51:45 > 0:51:49'..who wants to buy animals, who thinks they're cute and cuddly
0:51:49 > 0:51:51'and I'm going to do my best'
0:51:51 > 0:51:52not to cry or show any emotions.
0:51:54 > 0:51:58'That really helps me to shut out the pain and suffering.
0:51:58 > 0:52:02'They were only asking about 25 for the lorises.'
0:52:02 > 0:52:06- He's cute! Uh-oh! Uh-oh!- Uh-oh!
0:52:06 > 0:52:08Uh-oh!
0:52:08 > 0:52:11'If these lorises make it out of Indonesia to places where
0:52:11 > 0:52:13'they're the most popular pets,
0:52:13 > 0:52:17'like Japan or Russia, they go for 2,500.'
0:52:18 > 0:52:21Calling the cops would be futile.
0:52:21 > 0:52:26Around here, there seems to be a blatant disregard for the law.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29But perhaps the evidence Anna is collecting
0:52:29 > 0:52:31will enable her to rattle some other cages.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40'Lorises are now very much protected by Indonesian law.'
0:52:40 > 0:52:45The fact that we saw so many lorises in cages was extremely shocking.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49So the price for this loris is just a little bit over £20?
0:52:49 > 0:52:52I think that's a bit of a discount because she has only one eye.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59'They said they would get new ones in every week,
0:52:59 > 0:53:02'so the turnover is clearly high.
0:53:04 > 0:53:08'In total, we saw 23 lorises from Sumatra, Borneo and Java.
0:53:08 > 0:53:12'God knows how many more they've got behind the scenes.
0:53:16 > 0:53:19'What you see on the street is the tip of the iceberg.'
0:53:23 > 0:53:26CHITTERING
0:53:30 > 0:53:33The sheer scale of cruelty is starting to overwhelm Anna.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39But the worst is yet to come.
0:53:41 > 0:53:43The man took out a box of lorises
0:53:43 > 0:53:47and just so cruelly slamming them down and flipping them over.
0:53:49 > 0:53:52'I had never experienced that before.
0:53:56 > 0:53:58'And these lorises in the box...'
0:53:58 > 0:54:00Three of them always looked at me,
0:54:00 > 0:54:04like, "please help me get out of this box - we're going to die".
0:54:04 > 0:54:05Hello, babies.
0:54:06 > 0:54:09This one looks a bit sad.
0:54:09 > 0:54:11'They look at you, it's like they look into your soul.'
0:54:12 > 0:54:14I want all of them!
0:54:15 > 0:54:19'It was that moment, I just... I knew I was going to blow my cover.
0:54:19 > 0:54:22'I thought, we've got to get out of here.'
0:54:22 > 0:54:24- We need to give it dog food? - Yeah, dog food.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28We could see the suffering in their face.
0:54:28 > 0:54:32And that's the image that's still haunting me.
0:54:55 > 0:55:00Those animals - all four of them - were only holding onto each other
0:55:00 > 0:55:03because they had nothing else in the box to hold onto.
0:55:05 > 0:55:10Then they all four at once just turned and looked at you,
0:55:10 > 0:55:12you know? It's really awful.
0:55:12 > 0:55:16And they kind of looked at you and thought, "oh, God, are you going to save us?"
0:55:16 > 0:55:19And, um... You thought, I COULD save you,
0:55:19 > 0:55:22I could buy you and take you back to the centre,
0:55:22 > 0:55:25and I could maybe release you to the wild,
0:55:26 > 0:55:29And they are so gorgeous, so beautiful, that you think...
0:55:29 > 0:55:32But we can't buy them.
0:55:33 > 0:55:35And anybody that buys them,
0:55:35 > 0:55:38there'll just be four more and then THEY'LL die
0:55:38 > 0:55:40and there's not many left in the wild.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49If there ARE no animals, there is no research.
0:55:49 > 0:55:53If we can't save them, we can't know anything about them.
0:56:14 > 0:56:17The main reason I went out to Java was to find out
0:56:17 > 0:56:22why lorises are venomous and I think I made a really great start.
0:56:25 > 0:56:30Some of what I discovered might even be important for helping
0:56:30 > 0:56:32the lorises to survive in the wild.
0:56:33 > 0:56:38But I've also been really horrified to discover just how bad
0:56:38 > 0:56:41the situation is with the pet trade.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46The pet trade is the number one threat to lorises in Indonesia.
0:56:50 > 0:56:52The local pet trade is bad enough.
0:56:53 > 0:56:57But Java's dwindling gremlins could now be facing a new
0:56:57 > 0:57:00and even greater danger.
0:57:10 > 0:57:13Recently there was a video on YouTube
0:57:13 > 0:57:16where a slow loris was being tickled by its owner.
0:57:22 > 0:57:26This video has generated more than 12 million hits.
0:57:27 > 0:57:30Nearly half of them of people saying, "I want one as a pet".
0:57:30 > 0:57:33"It's the cutest thing I've ever seen, where can I get one?"
0:57:35 > 0:57:37It's going to be a disaster
0:57:37 > 0:57:41if a video like that fuels an illegal international pet trade.
0:57:45 > 0:57:49What I want to do is to convert those millions of people who want one
0:57:49 > 0:57:55as a pet into millions of people who want to save the slow loris.
0:57:55 > 0:57:57Because I'm absolutely determined
0:57:57 > 0:58:01that the slow loris is not going to go extinct.
0:58:25 > 0:58:28Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:28 > 0:58:31E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk