0:00:15 > 0:00:17APPLAUSE
0:00:17 > 0:00:20Hello, I'm Kate Humble, and welcome to Curious Creatures,
0:00:20 > 0:00:24a brand-new quiz all about the wonders of the animal world.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27From the African Savannah to the Arctic tundra,
0:00:27 > 0:00:31we've scoured the planet to bring you some of the most fascinating
0:00:31 > 0:00:35and, indeed, curious creatures on planet Earth,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37and here are four of them.
0:00:37 > 0:00:38Please welcome, on my left,
0:00:38 > 0:00:41all-round animal guru Chris Packham.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43Who today is joined by Ferne Corrigan,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46zoologist and children's wildlife presenter.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48APPLAUSE
0:00:52 > 0:00:56And on my right, teaming up with zoologist and writer Lucy Cooke
0:00:56 > 0:01:00is self-proclaimed animal geek and former zookeeper
0:01:00 > 0:01:02Niall Strawson.
0:01:02 > 0:01:03APPLAUSE
0:01:06 > 0:01:11Now, every correct answer in today's show wins our teams one part of what
0:01:11 > 0:01:13we're calling a curious creature -
0:01:13 > 0:01:18a strange beast made up of the parts of various different animals.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21Like this little one, from our titles.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24It has the head of a meerkat, the body of a robin,
0:01:24 > 0:01:27the arms of a chimpanzee, the legs of a rhinoceros,
0:01:27 > 0:01:30and the tail of a thorny dragon.
0:01:30 > 0:01:34So, it's a meer-ro-chim-rhin-dragon.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36A very rare and wondrous being indeed.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39Known to all of us as Duncan.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42Each team will be building up their own curious creature during the game
0:01:42 > 0:01:44and the more parts they win,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47the more points they can score at the end of the show.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52Two parts of your curious creatures are up for grabs instantly
0:01:52 > 0:01:54as we go straightaway into our opening round -
0:01:54 > 0:01:56Yay Or Neigh?
0:01:59 > 0:02:01Now, I will read a statement about an animal
0:02:01 > 0:02:06and our teams' job is simply to work out if it's a fabulous furry fact...
0:02:06 > 0:02:07ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:02:07 > 0:02:09..or frankly, a little bit woolly. HORSE WHINNEYS
0:02:09 > 0:02:12So, Chris, we will start with you.
0:02:12 > 0:02:19Owls can rotate their heads through 360 degrees.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23What owls want to do by having such a flexible ability
0:02:23 > 0:02:27is to be able to look for their prey without moving to another spot.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Because, obviously, if they're flying about,
0:02:30 > 0:02:32there's a risk they will disturb the prey
0:02:32 > 0:02:34- which they're attempting to stalk. - Mmm-hmm.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37So the ability to look over their shoulders and behind them
0:02:37 > 0:02:39will minimise that.
0:02:40 > 0:02:44The question is, of course, to be pedantic, as ever...
0:02:44 > 0:02:46Chris, so unlike you!
0:02:46 > 0:02:49I know. But can the skull rotate through 360 degrees
0:02:49 > 0:02:53on top of the neck, or do they achieve the ability
0:02:53 > 0:02:56to turn their head through 360 degrees by rotating
0:02:56 > 0:02:59both the skull and the neck?
0:02:59 > 0:03:01I don't know. An absolute full head turn,
0:03:01 > 0:03:03to spin around and look the other way,
0:03:03 > 0:03:06I feel like it might be a bit pointless, wouldn't it?
0:03:06 > 0:03:07To turn your head the full way...
0:03:07 > 0:03:09Try telling that to a tawny owl on a dark night!
0:03:10 > 0:03:12Like, if it wants to look in that direction,
0:03:12 > 0:03:16why does it need to go all the way around to do it again?
0:03:16 > 0:03:18But can it do that?
0:03:18 > 0:03:20If it's just the skull, I'm going...
0:03:22 > 0:03:24- ..neigh. Are you a neigh? - I do, I completely agree with you.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26- If it's just the skull, we're neighing. - HORSE NEIGHS
0:03:26 > 0:03:28And you would be right to neigh.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30Yes!
0:03:30 > 0:03:32APPLAUSE
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Now, you said, Chris, that they do this because it means
0:03:34 > 0:03:36they don't have to fly around and look for prey,
0:03:36 > 0:03:38they can just stay in one place.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41But there is another reason why they have to do it, do you know why?
0:03:41 > 0:03:44Their eyes are placed on the front of their head like ours.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46They essentially have a beak where we have a nose
0:03:46 > 0:03:48and therefore they have a rather humanlike face.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50So if their eyes are forward-facing,
0:03:50 > 0:03:53in order to see what's behind them, they have to turn their head.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Absolutely right, they can't actually
0:03:55 > 0:03:57turn their eyes in their sockets.
0:03:57 > 0:03:59Would you like to see an owl with its head
0:03:59 > 0:04:00almost entirely turned round?
0:04:00 > 0:04:03After all this, I'd love to see anything.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05So would I! Let's have a look at it.
0:04:05 > 0:04:06There we are, there's a barn owl.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09So, you have won the very first part of your curious creature.
0:04:09 > 0:04:10Let's have a look at it.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16- Oh, goodness me.- That's going to be a hard one to identify later.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18Unless you want its personal name,
0:04:18 > 0:04:20that's not going to be tricky, is it?
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Lucy, your fabulous fact is,
0:04:23 > 0:04:27all species of penguin live in Antarctica.
0:04:27 > 0:04:32Well, this is a common misconception, isn't it?
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Penguins don't just live in the Antarctic, do they?
0:04:34 > 0:04:36You find them in all sorts of places.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38I've seen them in Australia, little blue penguins.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Yeah, little blue penguins in Australia,
0:04:40 > 0:04:41you get them in the Galapagos.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43I think a lot of them, in hotter countries,
0:04:43 > 0:04:45- live in burrows to keep cool. - They do.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48What penguins don't like is, they don't like heating up,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51basically, because they're meant to live in the cold and the water.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53So they do live outside of Antarctica,
0:04:53 > 0:04:56but they do struggle with staying cool.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58So, you are going...?
0:04:58 > 0:05:00- Neigh. - HORSE NEIGHS
0:05:00 > 0:05:01It is a neigh.
0:05:01 > 0:05:02APPLAUSE
0:05:02 > 0:05:06Very well done. Let's have a look at these glorious creatures.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08They're like ballerinas under the water.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11Well, they fly underwater. That's what they've evolved to do,
0:05:11 > 0:05:14they no longer use their wings for conventional bird flying,
0:05:14 > 0:05:16but they use them to literally fly underwater.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19I think they might have the densest feathers of any bird,
0:05:19 > 0:05:21to form their little sort of wet suit.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23No, you're absolutely right.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26They have more feathers per square centimetre than any other birds,
0:05:26 > 0:05:27and several types of feather,
0:05:27 > 0:05:30in terms of insulating themselves as well.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32We can say that you were absolutely correct.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36Penguins do not just live in Antarctica, and that means
0:05:36 > 0:05:40that you have won yourselves your first curious creature part.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42And there it is.
0:05:42 > 0:05:43Ooh!
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Ferne, this one is for you.
0:05:48 > 0:05:55A female prairie dog can only conceive on one day each year.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59I'm just imagining them to be kind of similar, in a way,
0:05:59 > 0:06:03to mole rats and stuff, if they have their little communities and
0:06:03 > 0:06:05things that they live with.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08They love a bit of breeding, they do, yeah.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11I don't know, I could be completely wrong and I feel like...
0:06:13 > 0:06:17Are you feeling sort of disapproval emanating from the Packham?
0:06:17 > 0:06:18- No, not at all.- No?
0:06:20 > 0:06:22No, no, I'm not!
0:06:22 > 0:06:26So, you're saying that you think that they do conceive
0:06:26 > 0:06:28on more than one day a year?
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Yes, that would have been my first answer,
0:06:30 > 0:06:32but when it comes to these kinds of things,
0:06:32 > 0:06:35you always start second-guessing yourself, don't you?
0:06:35 > 0:06:38Every form has a function in the natural world.
0:06:38 > 0:06:39Every adaptation has a purpose,
0:06:39 > 0:06:43so there would have to be a good reason to only be able to
0:06:43 > 0:06:45conceive on one day a year.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47Can you think of a good reason?
0:06:47 > 0:06:50Surely not, but then again, this sort of question...
0:06:50 > 0:06:54- It does, it makes you second-guess, doesn't it?- Yes, it does.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57But I'm going to leave it to you, Ferne, having deliberated.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00It's your question and on your head may it rest.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06I'm going to stick with my initial answer and say neigh to that.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08HORSE NEIGHS
0:07:08 > 0:07:10- You're wrong.- What?!
0:07:10 > 0:07:14They do only conceive on one day a year.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18It appears to be true of nearly all species of prairie dogs.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22Females go into heat, or oestrous, for a single day during the winter,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26so mating season only happens once a year.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29Any idea how long pregnancy might last?
0:07:29 > 0:07:32- What, to birth?- Mmm.- 35 days.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35Not bad, 34-38 days.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38Despite their name, prairie dogs,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41they are actually rodents and members of the squirrel family.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43So, sadly, Ferne,
0:07:43 > 0:07:47I'm afraid you don't get another part of your curious creature.
0:07:47 > 0:07:49Now I'm getting the vibes!
0:07:49 > 0:07:52No, it's all right, I was supporting you.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55Niall, here is your fact.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58Dolphins can sleep with one eye open.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02I used to work as a dolphin trainer, doing enrichment stuff with them,
0:08:02 > 0:08:04making sure they're entertained.
0:08:04 > 0:08:05One of them was pregnant, actually,
0:08:05 > 0:08:08- so I had to do morning and night shifts to watch for the birth.- Yeah?
0:08:08 > 0:08:12So, I think I know this, because I saw them doing it.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15- OK.- Ooh!- And what did they do?
0:08:15 > 0:08:18They do, in fact, sleep with one eye closed.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20I'm not entirely sure what the theory is,
0:08:20 > 0:08:22but I think part of it's predatory awareness.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25So, if you're swimming. And also, because they have to breathe.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28So, in captivity, you might see dolphins just sleeping
0:08:28 > 0:08:29at the surface with their blowhole open.
0:08:29 > 0:08:31But, of course, in the wild, if they stopped,
0:08:31 > 0:08:35they'd get nailed by something with big teeth.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38So, you are going with a yay for this fact?
0:08:38 > 0:08:40- I am, in fact, going for a yay. - ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:08:40 > 0:08:42And you would be absolutely right to do so.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44APPLAUSE
0:08:44 > 0:08:45Thank goodness.
0:08:45 > 0:08:50And you have won yourself a second part of your curious creature.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Let's have a look at it. There we go.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55- Hmm.- OK.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58And see how it fits onto the head.
0:08:58 > 0:09:00There we go. Just by the by,
0:09:00 > 0:09:03where you there when the pregnant dolphin gave birth?
0:09:03 > 0:09:04I was actually. The baby...
0:09:04 > 0:09:07It's so brilliant, it's about this big.
0:09:07 > 0:09:09It's very, very cute.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11But, of course, dolphins have a dorsal fin, right?
0:09:11 > 0:09:13So how do you give birth to something with a fin?
0:09:13 > 0:09:16- I hate to think. Ouch!- Yes, well.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20So actually, a baby dolphin, when it's born, has a little, floppy fin.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23And then maybe 20 minutes after it's born, it goes stiff.
0:09:23 > 0:09:24It's really lovely.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28So, well done, you're currently racing ahead of Chris and Ferne,
0:09:28 > 0:09:33and now we move on to round two, which today is, What On Earth?
0:09:37 > 0:09:41Now, we are going to start with you, Chris and Ferne.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45I would like you to tell me, what on Earth is going on here?
0:09:49 > 0:09:50There we are.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52Any initial thoughts?
0:09:52 > 0:09:55- It's a flamingo slick.- Mmm-hmm?
0:09:55 > 0:09:57And these might well be lesser flamingos
0:09:57 > 0:10:01that have come together in one of Africa's Rift Valley lakes.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06They come together in enormous numbers, millions of birds.
0:10:06 > 0:10:07I once had the great good fortune
0:10:07 > 0:10:10to be at a place called Lake Bogoria one morning.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13And we thought there was somewhere in the region of 500,000 birds
0:10:13 > 0:10:16on the lake at that point. They were spread out.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19Why do they all come together and gather in these lakes?
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Well, they go through this extraordinary behaviour of marching.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24And they march in these long lines,
0:10:24 > 0:10:26performing these extraordinary displays.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29They march one way, then they twist and march back the other way.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32It's all part of their nuptial display, of course.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34And their heads turn as well, don't they, in unison?
0:10:34 > 0:10:37Yeah, they do all of this.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40And they do it in this incredibly caustic water.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43The lakes are extremely alkaline,
0:10:43 > 0:10:46you can't walk in them without it stripping the skin from your feet.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50That morning, at Bogoria... They fly overnight, when it's cool.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53They'll often fly hundreds of miles from one lake to another
0:10:53 > 0:10:56when the feeding density in one drops to a certain level.
0:10:56 > 0:10:57And just as it got light,
0:10:57 > 0:11:01the best part of 2 million flamingos flew in and landed on the lake.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03I sort of thought,
0:11:03 > 0:11:05getting a pizza and a video on a Friday night
0:11:05 > 0:11:08is not going to really match up to that, really.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10I call it my moon-landing moment.
0:11:10 > 0:11:12Because I often wonder what Neil Armstrong did
0:11:12 > 0:11:14the week after he got back from the moon.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17I mean, what do you do when you've been to the moon?
0:11:17 > 0:11:19For me, that was such an incredible thing.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21I just sat there in a deck chair,
0:11:21 > 0:11:24and millions of flamingos came and landed in front of me.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27That was extraordinarily fortunate.
0:11:27 > 0:11:28I felt like a lucky bloke.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30Well, you are absolutely right.
0:11:30 > 0:11:35For those of you who weren't, or haven't, sat in a deck chair
0:11:35 > 0:11:38at Lake Bogoria, let's show you this little bit of video
0:11:38 > 0:11:41so you too can share in its wonder.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46- So, is this what you are seeing, Chris?- Yeah, this is it.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48They're drinking there, in some of these shots.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51They come to the freshwater springs at the edge of the lake.
0:11:51 > 0:11:52Once they've sated their thirst,
0:11:52 > 0:11:54they go out and they perform this marching display,
0:11:54 > 0:11:58where they hunch their necks and twist and turn.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01They go backwards and forwards along the shoreline.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Sometimes they do that in their hundreds, if not thousands.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07It is one of nature's greatest spectacles,
0:12:07 > 0:12:08there's no doubt about that.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12Well, you can add another part to your curious creature.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15Let's have a look and see what it is.
0:12:15 > 0:12:16- Ah, there we are.- Mmm.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20LAUGHTER
0:12:20 > 0:12:22Lucy and Niall.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26What on Earth is extraordinary
0:12:26 > 0:12:29about this roaring rodent?
0:12:32 > 0:12:35SIREN-LIKE HOWL
0:12:37 > 0:12:40- Wow.- Have either of you ever seen that before?
0:12:40 > 0:12:41No, I've never seen it. Have you?
0:12:41 > 0:12:43I don't know what that is.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45You've no idea?
0:12:45 > 0:12:48- Well...- I mean, what would incite an animal
0:12:48 > 0:12:52to stand on a rock and howl like that, do you think?
0:12:52 > 0:12:53- Romance.- Yeah.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56- Really?- Looking for love. - Is that how you do it?- Yeah.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59Doesn't everybody?
0:13:00 > 0:13:03Mr Packham, do you have an answer for us?
0:13:03 > 0:13:06I don't know what species that is.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08Mice are largely herbivorous anyway,
0:13:08 > 0:13:12so I don't think it's luring prey, in that sense.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15No, you're all just fabulously off the mark.
0:13:15 > 0:13:20I am going to show you what is extraordinary about this rodent.
0:13:20 > 0:13:21Have a look at this.
0:13:30 > 0:13:31Incredibly brave.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36And then it eats the scorpion.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38HOWLS
0:13:38 > 0:13:40Well, there's a triumph howl.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45- Really?- So, what you were watching
0:13:45 > 0:13:50was a grasshopper mouse that fights and eats scorpions,
0:13:50 > 0:13:53and it is completely immune to the venom.
0:13:53 > 0:13:55When it fights its prey,
0:13:55 > 0:13:58the grasshopper mouse howls a high-pitched, sustained whistle
0:13:58 > 0:14:02that, relative to its size, is the equivalent of a roar.
0:14:02 > 0:14:03So, there you are.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07You don't get any more parts of your curious creature.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12Now it's time to play Is It Bigger Than A Chicken?
0:14:16 > 0:14:19In this round, the teams ask me questions
0:14:19 > 0:14:22to help them identify a mystery animal.
0:14:22 > 0:14:27They must be questions to which I can answer only yes or no.
0:14:27 > 0:14:28Each time they get a yes,
0:14:28 > 0:14:32a small part of the animal is revealed on the screen behind me.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35If you wish, you can then guess what the animal is.
0:14:35 > 0:14:41But be careful, because if you guess wrong, you will be out of the round.
0:14:41 > 0:14:47OK? The first question that must be asked is, audience?
0:14:47 > 0:14:49- AUDIENCE:- Is it bigger than a chicken?
0:14:49 > 0:14:53Thank you very much. So, Niall, I think we'll start with you.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55What question would you like to ask me?
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Hmm...
0:14:58 > 0:15:01Do you know what? I'm going to go with...is it bigger than a chicken?
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Excellent first question.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06You will be delighted to know that the answer is yes.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11Which gives you your very first little bit of the jigsaw.
0:15:15 > 0:15:16Why, thank you.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20There we are. Let's whisk that away.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22Any thoughts, while you're looking at that?
0:15:22 > 0:15:26My first thought that came to mind was, fishy, maybe?
0:15:26 > 0:15:27But now, looking at it, I don't know.
0:15:27 > 0:15:29It's definitely not furry, is it?
0:15:29 > 0:15:33- Could be scaly.- Could be furry... - Could be skinny.- Could be anything.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36So, we're not going to hazard a guess at this point?
0:15:36 > 0:15:37- It's pink.- Yeah.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Fine. So, Ferne, let's go to you now. What would you like to ask?
0:15:41 > 0:15:44Is it a mammal?
0:15:44 > 0:15:45Yes, it is.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49So, you get another little bit of our animal jigsaw.
0:15:49 > 0:15:50Let's have a look.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53I know what it is.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55You know the definite species, though?
0:15:55 > 0:15:58I believe that this is a scaly mammal.
0:15:58 > 0:15:59- Yes.- OK.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02I'm just trying to think what continent it's from.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04Well, they come from both Africa and Asia.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06Two in Africa and six in Asia, as far as I recall.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12- But you go for it, it's your bag. Name it. It begins with P.- Yeah.
0:16:12 > 0:16:13It's a pangolin.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16And you would be absolutely right.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18Well done.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20APPLAUSE
0:16:22 > 0:16:23Yeah, I wouldn't.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Have either of you actually seen a pangolin in the wild?
0:16:27 > 0:16:29- Oh, yes.- Have you?
0:16:29 > 0:16:31Have you seen a pangolin in the wild?
0:16:31 > 0:16:33I've had one stick its tongue in my ear, actually.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36Which I can tell you, you haven't actually lived until you've had a
0:16:36 > 0:16:38pangolin stick its tongue in your ear.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40- How did that happen?- Well...
0:16:40 > 0:16:45Well, I was holding it and they're ant-eaters, or termite-eaters.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48So their tongues are very long and very sticky.
0:16:49 > 0:16:54They like to rootle around in crevices, looking for bugs.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57Chris, you are right. There are eight species of pangolin,
0:16:57 > 0:17:01but there are actually four in Africa and four in Asia.
0:17:01 > 0:17:02OK. Stand corrected.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06That piece of deduction wins you both another part
0:17:06 > 0:17:08of your curious creature.
0:17:10 > 0:17:11There it is.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15Now, given how precocious these two were
0:17:15 > 0:17:19at identifying the mystery animal today,
0:17:19 > 0:17:21I'm going to give you the chance of also winning a part
0:17:21 > 0:17:26of your curious creature by offering you a bonus question, which is,
0:17:26 > 0:17:31what is unusual about the way some species of pangolin walk?
0:17:31 > 0:17:34They tend to walk around on their back legs, don't they?
0:17:34 > 0:17:38- Do they?- Yeah.- Why?- Because then they look like little scaly humans.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42Lucy, you're right.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44Let's have a look at a pangolin
0:17:44 > 0:17:47looking like a little scaly human.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49- Here it is.- Aw, look at them!
0:17:49 > 0:17:51They are the sweet...
0:17:51 > 0:17:54I mean, look at his dear little eyes and his little hands.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56- Look at that!- Very well done.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00- You have won a new part of your curious creature.- Yes!
0:18:00 > 0:18:01Let's have a look.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05- And there it is.- Ooh!
0:18:05 > 0:18:06It's magnificent.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08It is magnificent.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11Anyone know how many insects a pangolin might eat in a year?
0:18:11 > 0:18:14- I'd say... In a year?- Yeah.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17Let's say a million. No, more than that.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19- Go big or go home. - FERNE: I'd say tens of millions.
0:18:19 > 0:18:21- Tens of millions? - If not hundreds of millions?
0:18:21 > 0:18:24- 5 million? 10 million. 10 million!- You're going 10 million?
0:18:24 > 0:18:26We see your five and we'll go to ten.
0:18:26 > 0:18:2770 million.
0:18:27 > 0:18:28Well done, everybody.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32We're now professors of all things pangolin.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35APPLAUSE
0:18:35 > 0:18:36Now onto round four.
0:18:36 > 0:18:41Today, it's a personal favourite of mine, it's called Whose Poo?
0:18:44 > 0:18:50Yes, we have a sample of animal poo for each team to try and identify.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53These samples have been kindly provided by our friends
0:18:53 > 0:18:57from the National Poo Museum on the Isle of Wight.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01A quick health-and-safety message - please don't try this at home.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05All animal poo is potentially harmful and our expert teams -
0:19:05 > 0:19:07that's you - are examining their samples
0:19:07 > 0:19:10under strictly controlled conditions.
0:19:10 > 0:19:15So, Chris and Ferne, I'm going to start with you.
0:19:15 > 0:19:16There we are.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18For your delight and delectation.
0:19:18 > 0:19:19Shall I do this with a bit of a flourish?
0:19:19 > 0:19:22I think a little bit of a flourish would be good. Silver service.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25- Excellent.- We can firstly pick it up and have a sniff.
0:19:25 > 0:19:26- SNIFFS - Oh, yeah.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28Quite a sweet smell to it.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30- A bouquet.- It's not a bitter smell.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Or, indeed, in any way unpleasant.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36I mean, I wouldn't rub it all over me, but, you know,
0:19:36 > 0:19:37it's not bad.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40What sort of clue does a sweet smell give you as opposed to a bitter one?
0:19:40 > 0:19:45Well, typically, carnivore poo can pack a pong.
0:19:45 > 0:19:49So this smells like vegetarian poo.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51I just kind of want to know what shape it was.
0:19:51 > 0:19:52Well, look at this one here.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55This one looks like the shape of a blood cell,
0:19:55 > 0:19:57in the sense that it's circular,
0:19:57 > 0:20:00but it's got an indentation on both sides.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02So that's quite a characteristic shape, isn't it?
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Would you like a little poo clue?
0:20:04 > 0:20:05Well, to be honest with you,
0:20:05 > 0:20:08there are any number of animals that produce poo in this form.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11So I think a poo clue, I think, might be required.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14OK, this is an animal that doesn't poo very frequently.
0:20:14 > 0:20:18I would say perhaps, on average, once a week.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22- Sloths.- Sloths, they don't poo very often.- No.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25They come down once a week, they store it all up.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27- And it's very, very... - Yeah. And, I think, you know...
0:20:27 > 0:20:30- ..well-digested, as well.- Yeah.
0:20:30 > 0:20:32I've only ever seen sloth poo once,
0:20:32 > 0:20:35and it wasn't exactly like that, I've got to say - it was darker.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38But that would depend on its diet, and colour's not that important.
0:20:38 > 0:20:39But, yeah.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Shall we go for sloth or "slowth", depending on what she'd say.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45You certainly seemed to think that was what it was, Ferne?
0:20:45 > 0:20:47Famous last words, yeah.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49- Go on, then.- Stick with your convictions, because you're right.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51Yay!
0:20:51 > 0:20:53APPLAUSE
0:20:55 > 0:20:59And you win another part of your curious creature.
0:20:59 > 0:21:00Let's have a look.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04- OK.- Good legs.- Very good legs.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06Lovely pair of legs.
0:21:07 > 0:21:11As we have discovered, sloths - or "slowths" -
0:21:11 > 0:21:14only poo about once a week.
0:21:14 > 0:21:20Any idea how much they can poo in one evacuation?
0:21:20 > 0:21:21What, dry weight?
0:21:22 > 0:21:24Let's say in terms of its body weight.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26- Oh, in terms of its body weight? - Yeah.
0:21:26 > 0:21:27OK, let's hazard a guess.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30What do you think? 10, 15%?
0:21:30 > 0:21:32Yeah, something like that.
0:21:32 > 0:21:37Lucy, as the main appreciator of sloths throughout the world,
0:21:37 > 0:21:39can you disabuse them of this fact, or are they right?
0:21:39 > 0:21:41I think it's more than that.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43I think it's 30%.
0:21:43 > 0:21:44- 30%?- Wow.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48It is about a third of their body weight with each evacuation.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50No wonder they come down from the trees.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Now, there is something else extraordinary about the sloth.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57Have a look at this little bit of film to see a strange relationship
0:21:57 > 0:22:00between sloth and another creature.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02So, what's going on here, Lucy?
0:22:02 > 0:22:03That is a moth.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07It's a sloth moth, that actually has one of the most unappealing jobs
0:22:07 > 0:22:08in the animal kingdom.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11It spends its adult life living on the body of a sloth,
0:22:11 > 0:22:16and then it breeds and lays its eggs in the dung of a sloth.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Absolutely. Congratulations to Chris and Ferne.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20You were absolutely right.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22Lucy and Niall, now, this involves...
0:22:22 > 0:22:24SHE STRUGGLES
0:22:24 > 0:22:26- Oh, my God! - ..a little bit of heavy lifting.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29Would you like to reveal it?
0:22:29 > 0:22:31OK. Three, two, one.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37I so wasn't expecting that!
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Well, I think...
0:22:42 > 0:22:45- It does have an odour, doesn't it? - Yeah.- It's...
0:22:45 > 0:22:48It's... It's...
0:22:48 > 0:22:49It's sort of, erm...
0:22:49 > 0:22:50Pooey?
0:22:50 > 0:22:52LAUGHTER
0:22:52 > 0:22:54That's very diagnostic.
0:22:54 > 0:22:55A poo that smells of poo, excellent.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59No, but it's like your classic kind of manure-y smell, isn't it?
0:22:59 > 0:23:01- I think you'd call it grassy, probably.- Yeah, grassy.
0:23:01 > 0:23:03So it's a herbivore, isn't it?
0:23:03 > 0:23:07It's a herbivore with, I would hazard a guess, a very large...
0:23:08 > 0:23:10- ..bum.- Yes.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13- I think you're probably thinking elephant, aren't you?- Yeah.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16Niall, I reckon, has had a more intimate relationship with...
0:23:16 > 0:23:19- With large poos. - With large poos, being a zoo man.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21I'm sort of tempted to go with you.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23But then, in the back of my mind is, could it be a rhino?
0:23:23 > 0:23:26No, Niall. I've seen rhino poo, it doesn't look like that.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28Chris is looking really smug,
0:23:28 > 0:23:30he wants us to come off the rhino track and go for the...
0:23:30 > 0:23:32Oh, really?
0:23:32 > 0:23:34Well, you're misreading.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37- Really?- I just always look smug.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41So maybe this is a trick and they want us to say elephant
0:23:41 > 0:23:43because it's so massive, and...
0:23:43 > 0:23:48I think, let's go for elephant, just because it's so grotesquely big.
0:23:48 > 0:23:50And you'd be right.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52APPLAUSE
0:23:54 > 0:23:58And that wins you another part of your curious creature.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00And there it is.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02- Ooh!- Hmm.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04Now, we're nearly at the end of the show,
0:24:04 > 0:24:09which means it's time to see how many bits of their curious creatures
0:24:09 > 0:24:11our teams can identify.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18So, Chris and Ferne, we'll start with your four.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21Let's go straight in with possibly the trickiest one you've got there,
0:24:21 > 0:24:24the head. Any guesses, any wild guesses?
0:24:24 > 0:24:25- Oh...- Hmm.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27I think it comes from Africa.
0:24:27 > 0:24:28Lion.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30Two points. Very well done.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32APPLAUSE
0:24:34 > 0:24:38What about this next little body part?
0:24:38 > 0:24:41- I wish I had one of those. - Do you? Why would you like one?
0:24:41 > 0:24:44Not stuck on my face, but in my collection.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47It's the spatulate bill of a spoonbill.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49It is a spoonbill. I'll give you two points.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51Let's go for the body.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53Ferne, you're happy with this, aren't you?
0:24:53 > 0:24:56Yes. We were looking at the colouration and stuff,
0:24:56 > 0:24:57just below where its head would be.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00And we were thinking that it could be an emperor penguin.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03And you'd be thinking absolutely right. Two points.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06The final body part that you managed to collect,
0:25:06 > 0:25:08this lovely pair of pins.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10Yeah, giraffe.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12Yes, just giraffe will do.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15So, you have eight points.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17APPLAUSE
0:25:22 > 0:25:26However, you can gain an extra point by identifying the part that you
0:25:26 > 0:25:29didn't manage to collect, and it is this.
0:25:30 > 0:25:32Oh, yeah.
0:25:32 > 0:25:37- OK.- I would have thought maybe some form of salamander-style thing,
0:25:37 > 0:25:38newt-style thing.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40So, what are you thinking, then, Chris and Ferne?
0:25:42 > 0:25:44I'm thinking it's the tail of a newt.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46A male newt in breeding finery.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48- Ferne, do you agree? - I completely agree, yeah.
0:25:48 > 0:25:50And you would be absolutely right.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52So there's one point there.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54APPLAUSE
0:25:56 > 0:26:00So, Lucy and Niall, you have got nine points to beat.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02You can get nine points,
0:26:02 > 0:26:06but you do need to answer every single question right
0:26:06 > 0:26:09- for it to be a draw.- No pressure. - Really, it's fine, yeah.
0:26:09 > 0:26:12So let's start with this rather magnificent head.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14Any wild guesses?
0:26:14 > 0:26:15- It's a hippo.- It is a hippo.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17So, two points for that.
0:26:17 > 0:26:18Well done.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23Now, the little frilly bits adorning our hippo.
0:26:23 > 0:26:24What do we think that might be?
0:26:24 > 0:26:28I think it might be an axolotl, which I can never properly say.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32It might be an axolotl. I think that looks more like axolotl head shape
0:26:32 > 0:26:34that's been chopped out of the middle.
0:26:35 > 0:26:36Shall we go with axolotl?
0:26:36 > 0:26:38We're going to go with axolotl.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41That's a very good decision, because it gets you two points.
0:26:41 > 0:26:43APPLAUSE
0:26:45 > 0:26:49Now, how about, then, this lovely, rosy chest?
0:26:49 > 0:26:52Now, this, I think this is magnificent.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55I think it belongs on the chest of a bird.
0:26:55 > 0:27:00- Am I correct?- And it gets inflated in order to attract the ladies.
0:27:01 > 0:27:03- Is it a frigatebird?- A frigatebird.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05Or magnificent frigatebird, perhaps.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07Frigatebird would do.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Thank you very much indeed. Yes, two points.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12APPLAUSE
0:27:12 > 0:27:16So, at the moment, it's six points playing nine points.
0:27:17 > 0:27:21Now then, whose lovely legs are these?
0:27:21 > 0:27:23- It's primate-y.- Mmm, yeah.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26- So let's go for a generalist lemur.- OK.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28- We're going to go lemur.- OK.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31You would be absolutely right, it is a lemur.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34- To be exact, it is a ring-tailed lemur.- Oh!
0:27:34 > 0:27:36So you have eight points.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38Chris and Ferne have nine points.
0:27:38 > 0:27:42If you get this next one right, it will be a draw.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Now, obviously, you didn't win this one,
0:27:44 > 0:27:47but we will show it to you so you can just get one point for this.
0:27:47 > 0:27:48And here it is.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51Well, it looks rather foxy.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53It does look quite foxy to me.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57In which case, we can go for fox. Shall we just go for fox?
0:27:57 > 0:27:58Let's make it foxy.
0:27:59 > 0:28:01We're going to go with fox.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Well done. One point.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05APPLAUSE
0:28:07 > 0:28:11So, we end up with Chris and Ferne on nine points
0:28:11 > 0:28:15and Niall and Lucy also on nine points. It's a draw!
0:28:15 > 0:28:17APPLAUSE
0:28:22 > 0:28:25Thank you to all four of you glorious, curious creatures
0:28:25 > 0:28:27for taking part, and thank you
0:28:27 > 0:28:31to you beauteous beasts at home for watching.
0:28:31 > 0:28:32See you next time. Goodbye.
0:28:32 > 0:28:34APPLAUSE