0:00:17 > 0:00:21Hello. I'm Kate Humble and this is Curious Creatures -
0:00:21 > 0:00:25a quiz containing more fascinating animals than Noah's Ark itself.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29And just like on the Ark, our players come in two-by-two.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33So please welcome on my left, Chris Packham -
0:00:33 > 0:00:34is there anything he doesn't "Noah"?
0:00:34 > 0:00:36Who today is joined by
0:00:36 > 0:00:40conservationist and countryside ranger Ajay Tegala.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47And on my right, bringing her own flood of animal facts,
0:00:47 > 0:00:51Lucy Kirk, who is joined by the presenter with the deadly knowledge,
0:00:51 > 0:00:52Steve Backshall.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59Let's sail on to our opening round, Yay or Neigh?
0:01:02 > 0:01:06I'll read each team a statement about the animal kingdom.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09Their job is simply to decide whether it's true...
0:01:09 > 0:01:11ELEPHANT TRUMPETING
0:01:11 > 0:01:13..that's a Yay. Or false...
0:01:13 > 0:01:15HORSE NEIGHS
0:01:15 > 0:01:18That's a neigh. And Chris, we'll start with you.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20Your statement is,
0:01:20 > 0:01:25the American white pelican can hold about 24 pints of water in its bill.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Well, I must take umbrage with the pint...
0:01:28 > 0:01:30- Do you want to go litres? - Yes, I'm a child of the '70s.
0:01:30 > 0:01:31But it's an American pelican.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33And the Americans like to do things in pints.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35But if we want to do litres, 13 litres.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37- Will that do you?- It's 13, is it?
0:01:37 > 0:01:39- About 13 litres, yeah.- Excellent, thank you very much.
0:01:39 > 0:01:4013 litres.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42Ooh, he looks like a thirsty chap, doesn't he?
0:01:42 > 0:01:44A 30, rather than 13.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49Ajay, have you ever had a pelican pass you by in Norfolk?
0:01:49 > 0:01:51I've never seen a pelican in Norfolk, no.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55We had a couple of Chilean flamingos that escaped from a zoo and flew past.
0:01:55 > 0:01:56- Oh, right.- That was quite unusual.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59- Yes.- But never a pelican. - OK.- Still waiting for that.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01So what do we think?
0:02:01 > 0:02:05Well, what pelicans do when they are fishing is that rather like the baleen whales,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08they scoop their heads beneath the surface of the water,
0:02:08 > 0:02:13and they use what is essentially a very large scoop to
0:02:13 > 0:02:16catch fish, but in the process of catching fish,
0:02:16 > 0:02:18they take in a large body of water.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21So that flesh that you can see beneath there - the beak,
0:02:21 > 0:02:23is just like the baleen whales,
0:02:23 > 0:02:26it's extremely flexible and stretchable material,
0:02:26 > 0:02:27so if you see a pelican beneath the water,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30or even just lifting its head up, as it's all pouring out,
0:02:30 > 0:02:33it's got this huge sac of water which it's filled,
0:02:33 > 0:02:36and its job of course is to expel the water
0:02:36 > 0:02:38and retain the fish which it's captured in it.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42So what we're thinking about here is the volume of what we might call
0:02:42 > 0:02:44the gular sac, the throat sack.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47I mean, it's got to be close to the limit, I imagine.
0:02:47 > 0:02:49Yeah, if it's close to the limit, maybe that is the limit.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51Maybe it could be that much.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53I'm leaning that way. We are going to go a Yay for that.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55ELEPHANT TRUMPETING
0:02:55 > 0:02:57Good call. You're absolutely right.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01APPLAUSE
0:03:01 > 0:03:02It can hold three gallons,
0:03:02 > 0:03:0424 pints or around 13 litres,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08which is roughly three times the amount of blood in a human body.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11- Wow!- And its pouch can hold more than its belly can.
0:03:11 > 0:03:13It's a remarkable beast, the pelican.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16- Its beak can hold more than its belly can.- And...?
0:03:16 > 0:03:19I can't remember the rest of it. That's as good as it gets.
0:03:20 > 0:03:21Very well done.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24Yes, you have won yourselves a part of a curious creature.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27Have a look at this.
0:03:27 > 0:03:28- Right.- All right.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31OK. And now, Lucy.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33Your fabulous fact is
0:03:33 > 0:03:38a swarm of desert locusts can consume the equivalent
0:03:38 > 0:03:43weight of over 400 jumbo jets in a single day.
0:03:43 > 0:03:44Wowsers!
0:03:44 > 0:03:48OK, so that's a hungry swarm of locusts.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50That's a phenomenal number, isn't it?
0:03:50 > 0:03:53But they are prodigious eaters, aren't they?
0:03:53 > 0:03:58They are. So the remarkable thing about these beasts is that actually,
0:03:58 > 0:04:00they just... They move around like
0:04:00 > 0:04:02other normal grasshoppers and crickets
0:04:02 > 0:04:06until, on some perhaps pheromone cue,
0:04:06 > 0:04:10they change their behaviour and they turn into this swarming beast,
0:04:10 > 0:04:12which decimates huge, huge areas of farmland.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14They've been seen flying in swarms
0:04:14 > 0:04:17that have been continuous for three or four days,
0:04:17 > 0:04:21just completely blanking out the sky and in some places,
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Madagascar, for example,
0:04:23 > 0:04:26they can cause absolute blights that decimate the landscape.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28I think it's possible.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31We can, I think, only really guess on this one, can't we?
0:04:31 > 0:04:34I mean, it's going to be very, very hard, so we have to take a punt.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38- So we're going to go a Yay. - You're going to go a Yay?
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Let's have a look at locusts in action
0:04:40 > 0:04:43before I tell you whether you are right or not.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48So as you said, Steve, a locust swarm can be truly huge.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52It can be 1,200 square kilometres in size
0:04:52 > 0:04:55and pack between 40 and 80 million locusts
0:04:55 > 0:04:58into one square kilometre.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03A locust can eat its own weight in plants every day, 2g,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05so a swarm of 80 million
0:05:05 > 0:05:08would consume 192 million kilogrammes
0:05:08 > 0:05:11of plants in a single day. Are you doing the maths?
0:05:11 > 0:05:14- Yeah.- I am.- We are 192,000 tonnes.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17- You're absolutely right. It's a Yay.- Yes!
0:05:17 > 0:05:19Well done, Steve.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23So you have won your first part of your curious creature.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Let's have a look and see what it is. Ooh! There we go.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28One of your best friends, I believe, Steve.
0:05:28 > 0:05:29It is, very much so, yes.
0:05:29 > 0:05:34Ajay, here is your fantastic fact -
0:05:34 > 0:05:37but how fantastic is it?
0:05:37 > 0:05:40Female dragonflies will fake death
0:05:40 > 0:05:44to avoid unwanted male attention.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46- We've all been there!- Well...
0:05:46 > 0:05:47Just saying.
0:05:47 > 0:05:49Yes!
0:05:49 > 0:05:52I can imagine if it was for humans, that would...
0:05:52 > 0:05:54I would definitely sympathise with that.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Yeah, OK.
0:05:56 > 0:05:57So...
0:05:58 > 0:06:00What do you think, Chris?
0:06:00 > 0:06:02They do get an enormous amount of attention.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06Some species will actually not even go near the water until they're
0:06:06 > 0:06:08absolutely ready to mate and lay...
0:06:08 > 0:06:11What is it that is so exhausting
0:06:11 > 0:06:13about being courted by a male dragonfly?
0:06:13 > 0:06:15It's not the one male dragonfly.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18It's all the male dragonflies.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20Do they fake their own death?
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Well, one of the ways that they could do that
0:06:22 > 0:06:25is just dropping out of the air into the water.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28Then, of course, they would risk being eaten by anything that lived in the water, like a fish.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30What's your gut feeling?
0:06:30 > 0:06:32My gut feeling is that although it's almost believable,
0:06:32 > 0:06:34it's not quite believable.
0:06:34 > 0:06:35Yeah. I'm with you on that.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Yeah. I think it's going to be a Neigh,
0:06:37 > 0:06:40You're going to Neigh it, are you?
0:06:40 > 0:06:42I'm afraid you're wrong.
0:06:42 > 0:06:44A scientist called Rassim Khelifa
0:06:44 > 0:06:47witnessed the behaviour for the first time in the
0:06:47 > 0:06:49moorland or common hawker dragonfly
0:06:49 > 0:06:52while collecting their larvae in the Swiss Alps.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56He observed, this scientist, 27 out of 31 females,
0:06:56 > 0:07:00plummeting and playing dead to avoid males,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03with 21 of these ploys being successful. So there you are.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07- What about that? Even you've learned something new.- I love to learn new things.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10I'm afraid you don't add to your curious creature.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13Steve, let's see if you can to yours.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16Tell me whether you think this is a Yay or a Neigh.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21A male giraffe's coat gets whiter as it gets older.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24So, it's actually one of the ways that you tell the difference between
0:07:24 > 0:07:26male and female giraffes
0:07:26 > 0:07:28and particularly from their maturity,
0:07:28 > 0:07:31one of the things is the ossicones - the horns on top of their head -
0:07:31 > 0:07:34on males tend to be bald, because they use them for combat,
0:07:34 > 0:07:35and on females, they're not.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39Generally speaking, the older and more mature giraffes
0:07:39 > 0:07:42have darker blotches as they get older.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45- So...- I'm going Neigh on that one.
0:07:45 > 0:07:46You're going Neigh.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48You're right.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50Very good, well done.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53And we can prove it with this picture.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57There we are, there's a youngster, much paler than the adult.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01A 33-year study has shown that the brown markings on male giraffe coats
0:08:01 > 0:08:05actually, as you said, turn darker with age.
0:08:05 > 0:08:06- There you go.- So very well done.
0:08:06 > 0:08:10You have now added another part to your curious creature,
0:08:10 > 0:08:13so along with the head, you get this.
0:08:13 > 0:08:14Ooh!
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Curiouser and curiouser indeed.
0:08:22 > 0:08:27So as Lucy and Steve's curious creature begins to shape up and,
0:08:27 > 0:08:32well, Chris and Ajay's has a little way to go, we move on to round two,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34which today is called Who's the Daddy?
0:08:39 > 0:08:41Each team will see a darling little baby animal -
0:08:41 > 0:08:43but what species could it be?
0:08:43 > 0:08:46Who is the daddy and indeed, the mummy?
0:08:46 > 0:08:49Chris and Ajay, I'm going to start with you.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51Have a look at these little cuties.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53What do you think, Ajay?
0:08:53 > 0:08:55We can safely say they're mammals.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57- Yeah.- We can say that much. - And they're in a den.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00So they look to me like they've been born underground and they've got
0:09:00 > 0:09:04a very canine-looking face, I would say, yeah.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09But when I look at their tails, I see that they're banded.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13And I'm gravitating towards an African animal.
0:09:13 > 0:09:14- Yes.- What are you thinking?
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Yeah, I think, yeah, I think I'm along the same line of thought.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22- Are you thinking a scavenging animal?- Yes, I am.
0:09:22 > 0:09:23Yeah. I'm thinking hyena.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25But could they be raccoons?
0:09:25 > 0:09:27- You know...- What were you thinking, Ajay?
0:09:27 > 0:09:29Well, I was thinking raccoon when you said...
0:09:29 > 0:09:31- Were you? OK.- ..when you said the stripy tail.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33- Yeah.- But then, obviously, you justified hyena quite well.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36But one of the things that drew me to that was that they were fluffy
0:09:36 > 0:09:39and I once saw some very young hyenas that had just come out of the den.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42They were terribly cute. They really, really were.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45That's not a word usually associated with hyenas, either, is it?
0:09:45 > 0:09:47No, but at that age, honestly, they're divine.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51They've got these little crests that come up, big eyes, nice big noses.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54But they normally have larger litters, I've got to say, hyenas.
0:09:54 > 0:09:55You get fives, sixes and sevens.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58I tell you what, let's be a little bit cleverer here.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01Look at that foot. Look at the pink foot there.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04- That's not the paw of a hyena, is it?- No, that's not.- No.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07And they've got a raccoon-y nose.
0:10:07 > 0:10:08Their ears are a little bit big.
0:10:08 > 0:10:12But as they grow, things will get more in proportion, potentially.
0:10:12 > 0:10:13Indeed. Indeed, OK.
0:10:13 > 0:10:14So we're going to go...raccoon.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16Let's see if you're right.
0:10:16 > 0:10:17- Yeah.- You are.
0:10:21 > 0:10:25And so, you do get another part of your curious creature.
0:10:28 > 0:10:29Splendid.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34Lucy and Steve, here is your little beauty.
0:10:35 > 0:10:40- Ah!- What do we think that might be?
0:10:40 > 0:10:43- A bird?- No points for a bird, Lucy Cooke!
0:10:43 > 0:10:45OK, tell me what you're thinking.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47I'm thinking Cassowary.
0:10:47 > 0:10:48You're thinking Cassowary? Why?
0:10:48 > 0:10:52Well, Cassowaries' youngsters have dark striped heads with just
0:10:52 > 0:10:54those colours, that kind of russet and dark,
0:10:54 > 0:10:56and then they have this forest of quills,
0:10:56 > 0:10:59black quills towards the back of the animal,
0:10:59 > 0:11:02and they have that very raptorial foot
0:11:02 > 0:11:05that you can see they're coiled round towards the head of the bird.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07I looked at it and I thought emu.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11But putting them side by side, an emu chick and a cassowary chick...
0:11:11 > 0:11:13- I'll go emu.- No, no, no, no.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15Because your first instinct was cassowary.
0:11:15 > 0:11:17OK, cassowary.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20Well, I have a little bit of film to show you
0:11:20 > 0:11:21which will reveal the answer.
0:11:23 > 0:11:29- No!- Oh, they're emu chicks.- Oh, no! I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry.
0:11:29 > 0:11:30They're not emus.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Oh, they're ostrich!
0:11:32 > 0:11:34They're ostrich chicks.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37They would have been much stripier if it had been a cassowary,
0:11:37 > 0:11:41and the egg would have been slightly greener if it had been an emu,
0:11:41 > 0:11:43so I'm very sorry.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45- I'm sorry for talking us out of it. - It's OK, don't worry.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47It's all part of the process.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50No part to add to your curious creature.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52Now, it is the moment in the show
0:11:52 > 0:11:55where we ask the time-honoured question,
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Is it Bigger than a Chicken?
0:12:02 > 0:12:04Yes, this is where we take an in-depth look
0:12:04 > 0:12:07at one particular animal, but first of all,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10our teams have to try and work out what it is.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12They take turns to ask me questions about it,
0:12:12 > 0:12:16to which I must be able to answer only yes, or no.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18Each time they get a yes,
0:12:18 > 0:12:22a small part of our mystery animal is revealed on the screen behind me.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24Now, at that point, teams,
0:12:24 > 0:12:29you are allowed to guess what that animal might be, but remember,
0:12:29 > 0:12:33if you get it wrong, you are out of the game.
0:12:33 > 0:12:39The first question that must be asked of me, is, audience...
0:12:39 > 0:12:41- AUDIENCE:- Is it bigger than a chicken?
0:12:41 > 0:12:42Thank you very much indeed.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44So, Ajay.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46What question would you like to ask me?
0:12:46 > 0:12:51Well, I think the question I might ask is,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53is it bigger than a chicken?
0:12:54 > 0:12:58Well, it is about the same size as a chicken,
0:12:58 > 0:13:01but let's say that it's a very small chicken,
0:13:01 > 0:13:02in which case it is bigger,
0:13:02 > 0:13:05and so I am going to give you your first clue.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10There you are. How generous am I?
0:13:10 > 0:13:14- Incredibly.- What question would you like to ask me, Steve?
0:13:14 > 0:13:16Is it a mammal?
0:13:16 > 0:13:17Yes.
0:13:19 > 0:13:20- Ooh!- Ah!
0:13:20 > 0:13:24That's quite a distinctive ear, isn't it, so...
0:13:24 > 0:13:28Does that not look like that's in a pond behind it?
0:13:28 > 0:13:30So it would be an aquatic mammal.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32If that is water, Steve Backshall,
0:13:32 > 0:13:36and that is an aquatic mammal, what could it be?
0:13:36 > 0:13:38Platypus is kind of around about that size
0:13:38 > 0:13:43and has quite densely packed fur of that kind of hue.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46- Yeah.- Obviously, there are things like water voles,
0:13:46 > 0:13:50which can be a similar sort of weight, at least.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52- Too many animals to take a punt at this stage. - Too many animals, OK.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55- So you're going to wait at that?- We will.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59- OK. So, Chris. - Is this animal herbivorous?
0:13:59 > 0:14:00No.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06- Lucy.- Your guess that it was a platypus would be correct, then,
0:14:06 > 0:14:08because it would not be herbivorous.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11So we're getting rid of things like beaver,
0:14:11 > 0:14:13and coypu and muskrat and water vole,
0:14:13 > 0:14:16all of which do feed on plant material?
0:14:16 > 0:14:19- Yeah.- But shall we try and solidify whether it is in the water,
0:14:19 > 0:14:22because all I'm looking at is a tiny little section that looks like it's
0:14:22 > 0:14:24- got a bubble in it. - OK, so let's ask that.
0:14:24 > 0:14:29- Let's do that as a question, then, shall we?- OK.- Is it, Kate, aquatic?
0:14:29 > 0:14:30It can be, yes.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33So you get another part of this mystery beast.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35Here it is.
0:14:36 > 0:14:37Ah!
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Perfect.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42So we'll shrink that back.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44You're looking a little bit smug.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46That's a duckbilled platypus foot, isn't it?
0:14:46 > 0:14:48Yeah, yeah. Because they're just such fantastic...
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Cos I think that's the first time a duckbilled platypus
0:14:51 > 0:14:56was seen by the Natural History Museum, I think it was.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58They thought that it was several different animals
0:14:58 > 0:15:00that had been stitched together as a joke...
0:15:00 > 0:15:02Like a sort of Doctor Doolittle animal.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05Exactly, like one of our curious creatures, in fact, that had been...
0:15:05 > 0:15:07Cos they thought that they had the feet of a duck -
0:15:07 > 0:15:09- was it the feet of a duck? - The bill of a duck.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12The bill of a duck. And then the feet of something else.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14- And the tail of a beaver. - Yes.- And yeah, it was...
0:15:14 > 0:15:17- Just like it was a simulacrum of lots and lots of different animals. - Yeah.- Yes, OK,
0:15:17 > 0:15:20but you're making quite a big assumption here that you are absolutely right.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22Shall we find out whether you are?
0:15:22 > 0:15:24ELEPHANT TRUMPETING
0:15:24 > 0:15:28- Yay!- Very, very well done.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31You win another part of your curious creature.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34Let's have a look and see what it is.
0:15:34 > 0:15:35Ooh, that's tricky.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Be much easier if we got a platypus tail.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41So, Chris and Ajay,
0:15:41 > 0:15:44you don't lose out entirely, because if you can answer this question,
0:15:44 > 0:15:48you too can add another part to your curious creature.
0:15:48 > 0:15:53And the question is, which sex of duckbilled platypus is venomous?
0:15:53 > 0:15:57The males are equipped with a spur, a venomous spur.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59Whereabouts is that spur?
0:15:59 > 0:16:05On their feet. And they will use this to envenomate other mammals.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08I'm not sure how toxic it is, but...
0:16:08 > 0:16:11I only know one person who's seen a platypus and he's still alive.
0:16:11 > 0:16:16He did wrestle with it and so, I presume it's not that toxic.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19We interviewed a Vietnam War vet in Australia who had been...
0:16:19 > 0:16:23He'd been fishing for crayfish and he caught a platypus and got stung on his arm.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26The pain didn't go away for six months,
0:16:26 > 0:16:28and he said it was way worse than being shot.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32- And he lost all use of his arm completely for six months.- Really?
0:16:32 > 0:16:34Yeah, the venom is extremely painful
0:16:34 > 0:16:37and not even morphine will take away that pain.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40Chris, Ajay, it is the male platypus that is venomous
0:16:40 > 0:16:44and you get another part of your curious creature. Well done.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48Ooh, yes.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51And just to celebrate your joint success,
0:16:51 > 0:16:54shall we have a little look at a duckbilled platypus...
0:16:54 > 0:16:55- Oh, please.- ..in action?- Yes, yes.
0:16:55 > 0:16:57- Cos they're so magnificent. - Here it is.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00The really shocking thing about a platypus is, they always...
0:17:00 > 0:17:03when I first saw one in real life, is that they're tiny.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05Well, they're about the same size as a chicken.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07- So, well done, everybody.- Yes.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11We are now all doyens of the duckbilled platypus.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18Now we move swiftly on to round four,
0:17:18 > 0:17:21which today is called Pecking Order.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28As the name suggests, your tasks, teams,
0:17:28 > 0:17:32is to rank three animals in a particular order and Chris and Ajay,
0:17:32 > 0:17:33I'm going to start with you.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37Your animals are the Asian grass lizard,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41the long-eared jerboa
0:17:41 > 0:17:42and the stoat.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46And I want you to rank them in order
0:17:46 > 0:17:49of the maximum length of their tails.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52Starting with the shortest.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55Well, jerboas are a jumping animal,
0:17:55 > 0:17:57and like many other jumping animals,
0:17:57 > 0:17:59they need, relative to their body size,
0:17:59 > 0:18:02a long tail to balance whilst they're jumping.
0:18:02 > 0:18:06So they have, relative to their body size, quite long tails.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08The stoat...
0:18:08 > 0:18:10doesn't do a lot of bounding around....
0:18:10 > 0:18:13- Jumping, no.- ..like a jerboa, to be honest with you.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17And they are famed for having, amongst those British mustelids,
0:18:17 > 0:18:20you know, weasel, stoat, pine marten, otter,
0:18:20 > 0:18:23the latter two have much longer tails, so weasels and stoats,
0:18:23 > 0:18:26relative to their body again, have quite short tails.
0:18:26 > 0:18:28So, stoat is... This is stoat.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32- Yeah.- Jerboa, I reckon it's going to be longer.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34- Oh, absolutely. Yeah.- Yes. Are you happy with that?- Yeah.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36OK, so at the moment we've got stoat,
0:18:36 > 0:18:38jerboa - where do we put the lizard?
0:18:38 > 0:18:40Is there another clue in the picture?
0:18:40 > 0:18:42Can you see in the background there?
0:18:42 > 0:18:44- There's quite a...- Long tail.- A lot of tail in the background there.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47Yeah. There is. It seems to be reaching all the way around, doesn't it?
0:18:47 > 0:18:51I'm tempted to go stoat, jerboa, lizard.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55- What do you think?- I think definitely stoat at the bottom, yes.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57I think we'll go with that, shall we?
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Let's see if you're right.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02You are absolutely right.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06APPLAUSE
0:19:06 > 0:19:11A stoat's tail can grow between 12 and 14 centimetres.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15The jerboa has a tail length of about 16 centimetres,
0:19:15 > 0:19:18which is twice the length of its body.
0:19:18 > 0:19:24The Asian grass lizard's tail is over 25 centimetres.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27Three times the length of its body.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31So, very well done. You get another part of your curious creature.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34I just hope it's not the tail of some grass lizard from,
0:19:34 > 0:19:37you know, Outer Mongolia.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39There it is.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44So, Lucy and Steve, your turn,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48and your three are the sea otter,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51the Arctic fox
0:19:51 > 0:19:53and the musk ox.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57And I want to you rank them in terms of
0:19:57 > 0:20:00the number of hairs per square centimetre,
0:20:00 > 0:20:03with the least furry first.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06So I can tell you that the sea otter is the densest fur of any animal,
0:20:06 > 0:20:09with 100,000 per square centimetre.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13The Arctic fox is famous for not even starting to shiver
0:20:13 > 0:20:16before minus 50 degrees below,
0:20:16 > 0:20:19and they have unbelievably dense fur,
0:20:19 > 0:20:20whereas the musk oxen,
0:20:20 > 0:20:24it's like a carpet that's thrown over its back.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26They're very, very long hairs, huge guard hairs,
0:20:26 > 0:20:29and I wouldn't think the density of the fur
0:20:29 > 0:20:31is anything like the other two.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35I have actually had a musk oxen fur around my shoulders in the Arctic
0:20:35 > 0:20:39and slept on one, and it's unbelievably heavy.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42The animal itself, musk oxen, when you get to them, are tiny.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45They stand up to about your lower chest height.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48- Really?- But because they have this enormous fur coat,
0:20:48 > 0:20:50they seem so much bigger.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54So I think we're heading towards the musk ox
0:20:54 > 0:20:56having the least dense fur,
0:20:56 > 0:20:57then go Arctic fox,
0:20:57 > 0:21:01- and then go for the sea otter as the densest.- I agree with that.
0:21:01 > 0:21:02Let's see if you're right.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06You are absolutely right.
0:21:11 > 0:21:17The musk ox has just 420 hairs per square centimetre,
0:21:17 > 0:21:22the Arctic fox, 20,000 hairs per square centimetre,
0:21:22 > 0:21:27and the sea otter around 120,000 to 125,000 hairs
0:21:27 > 0:21:30per square centimetre, possibly more,
0:21:30 > 0:21:34but I don't know about, you, I'm not going to count them to find out!
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Well done, you have won another part of your curious creature.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47So, both teams have four parts of their curious creatures
0:21:47 > 0:21:49and we're nearly at the end of the show,
0:21:49 > 0:21:53which means it's time to see how many bits of their curious creatures
0:21:53 > 0:21:55our teams can identify.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02So, Chris and Ajay we'll start with you,
0:22:02 > 0:22:06and we'll start with that handsome head.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08It's a baboon. Do you need any more than baboon?
0:22:08 > 0:22:11- No, baboon will do and it will give you two points.- Excellent.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17What about those rather splendid ears?
0:22:17 > 0:22:18It can only be an elephant.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20It can only be an elephant. I'll give you two points,
0:22:20 > 0:22:23but you can get a gold star if you can tell me which elephant.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26I don't think it's an Asian, so, African elephant?
0:22:26 > 0:22:28You're absolutely right. Well done.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32APPLAUSE
0:22:32 > 0:22:35Now then, what about this rather splendid body?
0:22:35 > 0:22:38It's lovely isn't it? This is the rounded opisthosoma,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41the rear part of the body of a spider,
0:22:41 > 0:22:46marked characteristically with the hourglass pattern, which is - Ajay?
0:22:46 > 0:22:48Well, it's a black widow.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50You are really, really close.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54It is a widow spider, but it's not a black widow spider.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56It's a redback spider.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58So I am going to give you a point.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01APPLAUSE
0:23:03 > 0:23:09Now then, what about this rather lovely little tail?
0:23:09 > 0:23:11- Short, isn't it? - Yeah, it's short and fluffy.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13I'm sure it's a rabbit's tail, isn't it?
0:23:13 > 0:23:16The only rabbit that I know that has a name
0:23:16 > 0:23:18specifically after its tail
0:23:18 > 0:23:20is the cottontail rabbit,
0:23:20 > 0:23:22the North American cottontail rabbit,
0:23:22 > 0:23:24so on that account, if I was to hazard a guess
0:23:24 > 0:23:27at any old rabbit's tail in the world that looked white
0:23:27 > 0:23:30and was fluffy, I'd go cottontail.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33That's exactly what I want to hear. It gives you two points,
0:23:33 > 0:23:36and that now brings your total up to seven points.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Now, if you'd like a chance to make it eight,
0:23:43 > 0:23:47see if you can identify this final part of your curious creature.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52It's clearly the underbelly of a mammal of some kind.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56It seems to have a fringe running down its flanks.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Why would it be up in the air like that?
0:23:59 > 0:24:02Meerkats stand up in the air like that.
0:24:02 > 0:24:07Definitely, yeah. Upright, in sort of meerkat fashion.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09Well, that might suggest meerkat, then.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11You're right. So you get one point,
0:24:11 > 0:24:14and you finish the game on eight points.
0:24:18 > 0:24:19We're in with a chance.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23So, Lucy and Steve, you've got it all to play for.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27Let's see how you do with your head.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29That's the easy bit, isn't it, Steve?
0:24:29 > 0:24:33- That's actually one of your best friends, isn't it? - You could say that, yes.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35I have had the great privilege with diving with several
0:24:35 > 0:24:37different species of hammerhead shark in the past.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39- Unmistakable.- Unmistakable, yes.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42Hammerhead shark. You're absolutely right.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44Two points.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47APPLAUSE
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Now, what about this body?
0:24:50 > 0:24:52Now, that's much trickier, isn't it?
0:24:52 > 0:24:54Well, first of all, we've got no sense of scale.
0:24:54 > 0:24:57I mean goodness me, it's a grey, furry animal!
0:25:00 > 0:25:04But both of us instinctively thought it was an agouti.
0:25:04 > 0:25:05We could be so wrong.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08It was what both of us at the same time said we thought it was.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10You are wrong, I am afraid.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11It's a wombat.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13Oh, is it?
0:25:13 > 0:25:17Ah, we should have known, because wombats have got the most amazing bums!
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- Yeah.- I can't believe I got that wrong,
0:25:20 > 0:25:23because they have a bony plate in their bottom,
0:25:23 > 0:25:27and when they are under attack from a dingo or another predator,
0:25:27 > 0:25:30the males will run and ram their heads in the burrows and
0:25:30 > 0:25:34protect all their family inside, and leave their bottom sticking outside,
0:25:34 > 0:25:36and then if a dingo comes along,
0:25:36 > 0:25:39they can actually crush a dingo's skull
0:25:39 > 0:25:44with that bum, with that bony plate in their bum.
0:25:44 > 0:25:45Death by bum, my friends.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47That's what the wombat is capable of,
0:25:47 > 0:25:50and I'm very sad to have got that wrong.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53So, no points for the body.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56Can you claw anything back and identify the tail?
0:25:56 > 0:26:00Well, now, this is also... It could be a lot of things.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03- It could be a monkey tail. - It could.- Maybe.- It could,
0:26:03 > 0:26:06but to have it in that almost erectile position like that...
0:26:06 > 0:26:09Although potentially, actually,
0:26:09 > 0:26:12- a moving monkey on a branch could have that held above it.- Yeah. Yeah.
0:26:12 > 0:26:17Although it's quite bushy for a monkey tail though, isn't it?
0:26:17 > 0:26:19- Shall I give you a clue? - Yes, please.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23I can give them a clue because I'm afraid you can't win at this stage.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26The clue is, jam sandwiches.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28Jam sandwiches?
0:26:28 > 0:26:30- You know what I'm talking about. - I do, yeah.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32Jam sandwiches?
0:26:32 > 0:26:34LAUGHTER
0:26:34 > 0:26:37If you wanted to film one of these creatures,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40and you had a jam sandwich in your pocket,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and you were in Scotland, you might be successful.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45- Oh, a pine marten.- Yes.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47Am I allowed to give them two points?
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Shall I give them two points?
0:26:49 > 0:26:51No. No.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53- I was about to say... - You're going to get no points.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56A pine marten loves a jam sandwich.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59It's just about all they eat most of the time, I think.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02They're up there in Scotland just chowing down on jam sandwiches?
0:27:02 > 0:27:04- Strawberry is the favourite.- Really?
0:27:04 > 0:27:05Apricot, not so keen on.
0:27:05 > 0:27:10- Interesting.- Let's move on and see if you can identify these
0:27:10 > 0:27:12very splendid wings.
0:27:12 > 0:27:17So, my first thought was that this looks very much like the position
0:27:17 > 0:27:21that the wings would be in in the courtship display of a crane.
0:27:21 > 0:27:26When two cranes come together, they throw their heads back.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29They have a bugling call and throw their wings forward.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32You felt quite convinced about the crane.
0:27:32 > 0:27:33So let's go with that.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36- A crane.- A crane? Chris?
0:27:36 > 0:27:38Well, I was thinking Andean condor.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41- Were you?- Mm...- You see, you would have got two points,
0:27:41 > 0:27:43and you don't get any at all!
0:27:43 > 0:27:48Let's just, for fun, because you know, finishing a show on two points
0:27:48 > 0:27:49would be a little bit pathetic.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51Shall we see if we can make it three?
0:27:51 > 0:27:54When you see this beautiful set of legs....
0:27:54 > 0:27:57- Okapi.- Yes. It is.
0:27:57 > 0:27:59Relative of the giraffe, the okapi.
0:27:59 > 0:28:04Absolutely, you a point and so, you finish on three points.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06Thank you.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Well done.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12Which means that Chris and Ajay have blown away the competition
0:28:12 > 0:28:14and are today's winners.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21So, thank you to all four of you
0:28:21 > 0:28:24glorious, curious creatures for playing,
0:28:24 > 0:28:27and thank you, you beautiful beings at home for watching.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29We'll see you next time. Goodbye.