0:00:03 > 0:00:07My name is Gordon Buchanan. I'm a wildlife cameraman.
0:00:08 > 0:00:10I've filmed some of the most dangerous
0:00:10 > 0:00:13and misunderstood animals on the planet.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Oh, my God!
0:00:15 > 0:00:19But what's it like to actually live alongside terrifying predators?
0:00:23 > 0:00:27And raise your children with neighbours that might just eat you?
0:00:30 > 0:00:34To find out, I'm going to live with three extraordinary tribal families.
0:00:36 > 0:00:37They'll teach me to see
0:00:37 > 0:00:41these creatures from a totally new perspective.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43(Whoa, look, look, look!)
0:00:43 > 0:00:44IN OWN LANGUAGE:
0:00:45 > 0:00:49In the Amazon, I'll discover the secrets of the giant anaconda.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51It is just simply a monster!
0:00:52 > 0:00:56In Africa, I'll learn to stand up to wild lions.
0:00:56 > 0:00:57(My heart is in my mouth!)
0:00:59 > 0:01:03And in Papua New Guinea, I'll enter the mysterious world
0:01:03 > 0:01:04of the crocodile.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06I didn't realise it was that big.
0:01:07 > 0:01:12Spending time with these tribes will be a life-changing experience,
0:01:12 > 0:01:15one that will transform my understanding
0:01:15 > 0:01:18of the animals we fear the most.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36I am travelling to one of the most spectacular
0:01:36 > 0:01:40and challenging wild places on the planet, the Amazon rainforest.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44I'm here to learn from the masters of this environment,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47the last Waorani Indians of Ecuador.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52Back in the 1990s, I spent over two years living and working
0:01:52 > 0:01:56in the Amazon, and in all that time never once did I actually view
0:01:56 > 0:01:59this place through the eyes of the people that know it best,
0:01:59 > 0:02:02the people who are truly part of this world.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06So, for the next two weeks, I'll be living with the Waorani Indians,
0:02:06 > 0:02:09in the hope that I can gain a new understanding
0:02:09 > 0:02:11of the Amazon's iconic animals.
0:02:13 > 0:02:15And there's one animal in particular
0:02:15 > 0:02:19that they have a special relationship with, the biggest snake
0:02:19 > 0:02:23on the planet, the green anaconda.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26I've heard that the Waorani actually catch and then release these giants
0:02:26 > 0:02:28with their bare hands.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31I'm hoping I'll be brave enough to join them.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41The Waorani live in a remote part of Eastern Ecuador
0:02:41 > 0:02:44in one of the most biologically rich jungles on Earth.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50They have an incredible relationship with the wildlife here,
0:02:50 > 0:02:52one that's developed over thousands of years.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57The group I'm meeting came into contact with the outside world
0:02:57 > 0:03:01in the 1980s, but still live traditionally
0:03:01 > 0:03:03and they're fighting for it to remain that way.
0:03:06 > 0:03:07Hello.
0:03:09 > 0:03:10I'm going to fall.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14I'm Gordon, what's your name?
0:03:14 > 0:03:16Penti, good to meet you, Penti.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20Bai, Bai, good to meet you, Bai.
0:03:20 > 0:03:21So you're brothers?
0:03:22 > 0:03:24Ah, OK.
0:03:26 > 0:03:27Tepena. Gordon. OK.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Hello, thank you.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33It's good to be here, thank you.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35Waponi.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40This is great, what a welcome.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43This village is called Bameno.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46It's home to around 150 people.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49Some now have electricity and mobile phones,
0:03:49 > 0:03:52but they still rely on their incredible knowledge
0:03:52 > 0:03:53of the forest to survive.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59I think, when you arrive somewhere new, I always feel a little bit,
0:03:59 > 0:04:01I don't know, a bit nervous,
0:04:01 > 0:04:03but as soon as you see happy smiling faces,
0:04:03 > 0:04:06it doesn't really matter where you are, who you're meeting -
0:04:06 > 0:04:09all you need is a warm welcome and a smile,
0:04:09 > 0:04:10and I certainly got that here.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15Penti, the leader of the village, shows me to his house.
0:04:16 > 0:04:17Ah-hah!
0:04:23 > 0:04:24Thank you.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34It's like a woolly monkey.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38A sloth?
0:04:40 > 0:04:43I was thinking I was more like a strong jaguar, but OK.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50I've come from a long, long way away, far away.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06Do you have beliefs about all of the animals
0:05:06 > 0:05:08that live in the forest?
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Green anacondas are constrictors.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37They can eat wild pigs, caiman and even humans.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43But because the Waorani believe that they're descended from anacondas,
0:05:43 > 0:05:44they don't kill them.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50Instead, they ritually catch and release these giants
0:05:50 > 0:05:55to demonstrate their bravery and acquire spiritual power
0:05:55 > 0:05:58and it's this extraordinary feat that I want to see
0:05:58 > 0:06:00more than anything else.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06But it's not just the anaconda that's important to them.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09Many forest animals live in the village as pets.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15BIRD CHIRPS
0:06:16 > 0:06:18But I wasn't expecting to see
0:06:18 > 0:06:21one of the Amazon's most elusive species here.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27This is the most remarkable thing I have ever seen.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31It's a tapir,
0:06:31 > 0:06:35but it's a wild, completely wild tapir
0:06:35 > 0:06:38that has come out...
0:06:38 > 0:06:39from the forest.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45I'm out of food. It is an extraordinary-looking creature.
0:06:47 > 0:06:52It's kind of distantly related to horses and rhinoceros.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55It is quite horse-like, it's got a little mane like a horse.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01Feet are very different, it's got feet like a hippo.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07Oh, yeah, yeah, you can see that, scratch marks there.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12Now, that is... That's a big, old meal for a jaguar
0:07:12 > 0:07:15and it is lovely, you know, it's lovely to think that no-one
0:07:15 > 0:07:18in the village has said, "Let's eat it,"
0:07:18 > 0:07:21they're quite happy, really like having it around as a pet.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28Oh, right.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34This is great!
0:07:37 > 0:07:40The Waorani are taking me to see their forest -
0:07:40 > 0:07:42maybe we'll even find an anaconda.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48Having lived in these lands for thousands of years,
0:07:48 > 0:07:52they have an intimate knowledge of the rainforest's animals.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55I want to learn all I can from these people.
0:07:55 > 0:07:56What's this place?
0:07:58 > 0:08:00OK, do you want me to go first?
0:08:07 > 0:08:09LOUD BIRD CRY Is that the toucan?
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Ah, OK.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21This forest has more kinds of animal than anywhere else
0:08:21 > 0:08:24in South America, and possibly the world.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28It's home to the powerful jaguar,
0:08:28 > 0:08:31great flocks of macaws,
0:08:31 > 0:08:34herds of peccary
0:08:34 > 0:08:36and at least ten different species of monkey.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43I'm excited to be learning about these animals from
0:08:43 > 0:08:44the true masters of the jungle.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48I've never felt particularly at home in jungles, despite the amount
0:08:48 > 0:08:52of time that I've spent there, whereas actually seeing these men,
0:08:52 > 0:08:55how much at home they are
0:08:55 > 0:08:59and just how proud they are of this place,
0:08:59 > 0:09:02of their world.
0:09:02 > 0:09:04Every single sound,
0:09:04 > 0:09:07every single tree has got a name,
0:09:07 > 0:09:10everyone knows what it is.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12It's like being...
0:09:12 > 0:09:15Yeah, it's just like having the ultimate forest tour guides.
0:09:17 > 0:09:18Yeah.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23Every now and again, I keep seeing movement up in the trees
0:09:23 > 0:09:26and there's squirrel monkeys, they're fairly small.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34The men are taking me to a place
0:09:34 > 0:09:37where a particularly large anaconda is sometimes seen.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41Anacondas spend much of their time underwater,
0:09:41 > 0:09:43holding their breath for up to eight hours.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48They can mate and give birth in the water,
0:09:48 > 0:09:51but they have to come out to warm up in the sun.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58You can see just a little tunnel in there where the anaconda's
0:09:58 > 0:10:01come out of the water and just sloped off through the grass.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06What's that? Oh, wow.
0:10:11 > 0:10:16So that's a single scale from the underside of the snake.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18So it's huge. How big, do you think?
0:10:21 > 0:10:22This size?
0:10:23 > 0:10:24GORDON LAUGHS
0:10:26 > 0:10:27That thick.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29Is that more skin there?
0:10:29 > 0:10:32'The largest published record of a live anaconda is just over
0:10:32 > 0:10:36'five metres - that's 17 feet.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40'This one could be even bigger.'
0:10:40 > 0:10:44It is exciting to know that somewhere close by is going to be
0:10:44 > 0:10:49the owner of this skin, a very, very large anaconda.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57With the wet season still a month away,
0:10:57 > 0:11:01Penti thinks that our presence has brought on this sudden rain shower.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24The thought of a nice storm in the tropics is great, but the thought
0:11:24 > 0:11:28of that being down to an angry anaconda I'm not that sure of,
0:11:28 > 0:11:33I don't think I'd like to even contemplate an enormous angry snake.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40OK, OK.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43For now, the anaconda has eluded us.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45To be honest, I'm relieved.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48Back near the village,
0:11:48 > 0:11:51I've joined the women to help with the washing up and to hear what
0:11:51 > 0:11:55it's like raising your family alongside these monsters.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59Do you not worry, with your children when they're young,
0:11:59 > 0:12:01with animals like anaconda?
0:12:43 > 0:12:46You know, it's interesting, the Waorani live alongside these
0:12:46 > 0:12:49huge snakes and they know that they're a threat,
0:12:49 > 0:12:52but yet they actually don't go out and kill them,
0:12:52 > 0:12:54there's a respect for this animal.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03So Tepena, he's a brave boy.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10I'd love to see an anaconda, really love to see one,
0:13:10 > 0:13:13but to actually approach it
0:13:13 > 0:13:15and try and pick it up,
0:13:15 > 0:13:18no, I don't really fancy that.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24As evening falls, I head to Penti's house.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29I'll be living here with his family for the next two weeks.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32SHE SINGS:
0:13:36 > 0:13:38It is very nice.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41I do feel... I feel ridiculously at home here, despite the fact
0:13:41 > 0:13:44that I haven't even been here for half a day yet.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48Yes, please. Thank you.
0:13:52 > 0:13:53'This drink is called chicha,
0:13:53 > 0:13:56'it's made from a vegetable they grow in the forest.'
0:13:56 > 0:13:57Mmm.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59'It's the staple meal for the Waorani...'
0:13:59 > 0:14:00Very good.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02'..and it's my dinner this evening.'
0:14:09 > 0:14:11I believe you.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15I'm slightly tired, so I think I'm just going to close my eyes
0:14:15 > 0:14:16and dream of giant anacondas.
0:14:19 > 0:14:20Giant angry anacondas.
0:14:29 > 0:14:30ROOSTER CROWS
0:14:32 > 0:14:34I had a very nice sleep, actually,
0:14:34 > 0:14:39but at one point I woke up and hadn't a clue where I was,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43and then sort of I could see a pig skull hanging up above me
0:14:43 > 0:14:46and I was like, "Where the hell is this? Oh, yeah, I remember."
0:14:48 > 0:14:50'It's chicha again for breakfast.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54'It seems that this drink is all we've got,
0:14:54 > 0:14:58'but there are signs that today could be good for hunting.'
0:14:58 > 0:15:01Those birds that fly over at night-time,
0:15:01 > 0:15:02"bo-bo-bo-bo, bo-bo-bo-bo."
0:15:13 > 0:15:14Yeah.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18Penti doesn't want to miss this opportunity to feed his family,
0:15:18 > 0:15:20so our search for the anaconda is put on hold.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29The men have been hunting in this vast forest
0:15:29 > 0:15:31since they were children.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34From here, you could walk for two weeks before hitting a road,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37so getting lost could be fatal.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41Penti wants to explain what to do if we get separated during the hunt.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52REVERBERATING THUMPING Wow.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53- ECHOING:- Ca-oooo!
0:15:59 > 0:16:01LOW THUMPING Hang on, I need to get a better...
0:16:03 > 0:16:05ECHOING: Hooooo!
0:16:05 > 0:16:08Bai, Penti, Tepena,
0:16:08 > 0:16:10I'm lost!
0:16:10 > 0:16:12That is good to know.
0:16:13 > 0:16:14Yeah, let's go.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18'The Waorani are some of the greatest hunters in the Amazon,
0:16:18 > 0:16:21'and it's not long before they pick up a trail.'
0:16:24 > 0:16:28We've just found some fresh tracks of peccaries, wild pigs, off in
0:16:28 > 0:16:31this direction and we're going to try and follow them, so we're
0:16:31 > 0:16:34leaving the blowpipes here and we're going to try and follow the trails.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37You can actually get these wafts and you can smell the peccaries
0:16:37 > 0:16:40and everyone's got quite excited about that.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45The men still hunt peccaries in the traditional way,
0:16:45 > 0:16:47using sharpened sticks as spears.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54I'll need to be on my guard.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57Peccaries live in large groups and can be dangerous.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01They've been known to kill people with their tusks,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04so I've got to stay near to the men to be safe.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14The signs of these wild pigs are everywhere
0:17:14 > 0:17:17and it's all really fresh,
0:17:17 > 0:17:20and it's all very...
0:17:20 > 0:17:25slightly odd, being with a group of men whose sole intention is
0:17:25 > 0:17:30to kill an animal, and I think you kind of...
0:17:30 > 0:17:33you get swept along in that,
0:17:33 > 0:17:36you kind of get signed up to it, I suppose,
0:17:36 > 0:17:41because I do believe that inside every human being,
0:17:41 > 0:17:48every man particularly, the hunter is not that far beneath the surface
0:17:48 > 0:17:51and I think that excitement,
0:17:51 > 0:17:53that thrill,
0:17:53 > 0:17:57that promise of something to eat, is very powerful.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09But these guys are so fast.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13You can see that their whole physical design
0:18:13 > 0:18:17of the Waorani is perfect for this environment.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23They're small, they're strong, they can just duck under branches
0:18:23 > 0:18:27that I have to climb over and they can move quick and silently.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32I can't say that about myself.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41'I'm struggling to keep up and I've lost all sense
0:18:41 > 0:18:43'of where we are.'
0:18:43 > 0:18:44We're just kind of walking,
0:18:44 > 0:18:48I'm not sure if we've doubled backed on ourselves, whether we're going
0:18:48 > 0:18:52in a straight line, whether this is the same swamp as the last one.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55Oh, God, I'm sinking deeper.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01Oh, man.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07(OK, I've been told to be quiet.)
0:19:07 > 0:19:09(We might have some pigs up ahead.)
0:19:09 > 0:19:12LOW GRUNTING
0:19:16 > 0:19:18LOUD SQUEALING
0:19:18 > 0:19:19(Listen to that!)
0:19:23 > 0:19:25MEN YELL
0:19:42 > 0:19:44SILENCE
0:19:49 > 0:19:51I have lost everyone else.
0:19:51 > 0:19:53Everyone else sprinted off.
0:19:55 > 0:19:56ANIMAL SCREECHES IN DISTANCE
0:19:59 > 0:20:01Right...
0:20:01 > 0:20:03I am completely alone.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07I can hear voices over there.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09Ah, jeez, this isn't good.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14DISTANT YELLING:
0:20:14 > 0:20:18I'm only by myself for a moment, but it's enough to scare me.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21I don't know what the shouting is about.
0:20:23 > 0:20:24I wonder if they've got one.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Soon I have my answer.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41An injured peccary will be very dangerous.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43The pig's run off with the spear still in it,
0:20:43 > 0:20:46so we've got to spread out, see if we can find it.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54HE YELLS IN OWN LANGUAGE
0:21:18 > 0:21:20OTHER HUNTERS SHOUT
0:21:20 > 0:21:23OK, he's got it, he's got it, he's got it.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33The hunt it over.
0:21:33 > 0:21:34I can't think of any
0:21:34 > 0:21:39proper way to describe that, other than just, er...
0:21:41 > 0:21:42..a thing of...
0:21:44 > 0:21:46..a thing of wonder and a thing of...
0:21:46 > 0:21:48I think a thing of beauty as well,
0:21:48 > 0:21:52which is strange, considering it's ended in the, you know,
0:21:52 > 0:21:56death of a wild animal, but to see the men working together in a place
0:21:56 > 0:22:01that is just incredibly challenging, just, I mean, beyond belief.
0:22:01 > 0:22:06And I think these men make it look really beautiful, in a way,
0:22:06 > 0:22:11through their ability to survive here.
0:22:11 > 0:22:16And part of that survival, you know, is about killing,
0:22:16 > 0:22:20killing things, killing things to eat, to survive.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29There is something vividly primal about this,
0:22:29 > 0:22:34just following a man with a dead pig strapped to his back
0:22:34 > 0:22:40through a swamp that looks like it could be from another time.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44It's all very quite peculiar but sort of, in some ways,
0:22:44 > 0:22:45almost familiar.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49Maybe these primal instincts,
0:22:49 > 0:22:54instincts that just mean that you can survive in some of the most
0:22:54 > 0:22:57inhospitable places on Earth,
0:22:57 > 0:23:01are not as hidden as we think.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06After half an hour, it's my turn to carry the peccary.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16I've come here to learn about wildlife
0:23:16 > 0:23:18from the Waorani's point of view.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22They've taught me about animals they revere and animals they eat,
0:23:22 > 0:23:24both critical for survival.
0:23:26 > 0:23:27I'm good with ducking.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33Ah, I'm stuck.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35I'm literally like a stuck pig.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Come on. Oh!
0:23:39 > 0:23:41There you go.
0:23:44 > 0:23:45Upriver.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48It's heavy.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52Penti carried it, then Penti got tired and then I carried it.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57We're just burning the hair off it,
0:23:57 > 0:24:00but the smell of burning hair is...
0:24:00 > 0:24:03pretty acrid.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08I do think that if everyone that likes to eat meat
0:24:08 > 0:24:12had to do this, I think there would be a lot more
0:24:12 > 0:24:15vegetarians in the world.
0:24:15 > 0:24:19We are all eagerly awaiting dinner.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23The Waorani eat meat when they catch it, once a week if they're lucky.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27This pig will be shared amongst Penti's extended family
0:24:27 > 0:24:32and neighbours, about 20 people, so it'll only last a day.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41Very good.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52It feels like a real honour to be sitting with the hunters
0:24:52 > 0:24:55and to be eating the kind of choice cuts, cuts that are reserved
0:24:55 > 0:24:57for the hunters and I think for me, at this stage,
0:24:57 > 0:25:01it's an important thing, I think it's a bonding thing.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06The balls. That's testicle.
0:25:11 > 0:25:12Yeah.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47With full bellies, we can continue our search for the anaconda.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52The Waorani now have several motorised canoes,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55thanks to government grants.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58It means that they can travel easily around their territory.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03It's early morning, the sun's not yet properly up
0:26:03 > 0:26:05and the men are taking me down the river
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and what we're going to do is just scan the banks and then kind of
0:26:08 > 0:26:13look into this dark stuff and hope that I can an anaconda.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16And there's every chance, you know,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19every chance that we could see something.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23'It's not long before Tepena spots an animal that they all love.'
0:26:23 > 0:26:25HE SPEAKS IN OWN LANGUAGE
0:26:25 > 0:26:28Oh, a dolphin.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30'Pink river dolphins...'
0:26:30 > 0:26:32Oh, coming straight towards us.
0:26:32 > 0:26:38'..thriving here 3,000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean.'
0:26:38 > 0:26:40Oh, wow!
0:26:40 > 0:26:45Quite possibly the most mysterious animal in the Amazon.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, there we go.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51Yeah, wow.
0:26:55 > 0:26:57Oh, three, there's three of them.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04These Amazonian dolphins are just very unlike any dolphin
0:27:04 > 0:27:06you'd find in the ocean.
0:27:06 > 0:27:08ENGINE STARTS
0:27:10 > 0:27:13The Waorani know every bend in this river
0:27:13 > 0:27:15and the best spots to see animals...
0:27:17 > 0:27:20..but sometimes even they're surprised.
0:27:21 > 0:27:26Hey, fella. You're lovely, I've never seen that before.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28A tapir swimming across the river.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37Oh, it's a good size.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41It's a caiman, it's a South American alligator.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43Ah, you beauty, look at you.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48So, one of the main food sources for anacondas.
0:27:48 > 0:27:52So an anaconda would just grab a caiman like that
0:27:52 > 0:27:55and instantly coil around it and that would be game over for
0:27:55 > 0:27:59the caiman, just squeeze the life out of it and then consume it.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Oops, in he goes.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Two hours later,
0:28:08 > 0:28:11Penti stops at a place they've seen a huge anaconda before.
0:28:15 > 0:28:16Oh, yeah, yeah!
0:28:16 > 0:28:20There's a trail here that comes from the lagoon
0:28:20 > 0:28:24out of the water through all this thick vegetation and off through
0:28:24 > 0:28:27the grass, literally snaking off through the grass.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34There's a massive big hole down in here.
0:28:34 > 0:28:36Look at that.
0:28:36 > 0:28:42This place is every bit like the secret lair of some giant monster.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47This is slightly sinister, it's dark, it's mysterious,
0:28:47 > 0:28:49just like the animal itself.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54You can actually see this entire trunk,
0:28:54 > 0:28:57all the moss has been worn off it.
0:28:57 > 0:29:02That's because some enormous snake has been sunning itself in here.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05It's one of the few clearings above me,
0:29:05 > 0:29:08so, on a sunny day, this huge serpent comes out
0:29:08 > 0:29:10and stretches along...
0:29:12 > 0:29:15..this branch, warming up in the sun.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23Not by myself!
0:29:23 > 0:29:25With you, yes, maybe...
0:29:25 > 0:29:27One, two, three, four...
0:29:27 > 0:29:29Four of us,
0:29:29 > 0:29:32but by myself, no way, no, no, no.
0:29:47 > 0:29:49Yeah, it does make sense.
0:29:49 > 0:29:52I suppose the Waorani, they have to have an outlet
0:29:52 > 0:29:56to demonstrate that they are still fearless warriors,
0:29:56 > 0:29:59that they're prepared to do the things that others wouldn't.
0:30:00 > 0:30:02Brave man.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06ROOSTER CROWS I've been here for over a week
0:30:06 > 0:30:09and the family haven't had any meat since the peccary,
0:30:09 > 0:30:13so the men are keen to go hunting again.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16Before we head out, Daboto wants me to see her manioc
0:30:16 > 0:30:19and plantain garden, on the edge of the forest.
0:30:21 > 0:30:23With pleasure! Ah-ya!
0:30:26 > 0:30:29It's the women who grow these staple crops
0:30:29 > 0:30:31and, in this tropical climate,
0:30:31 > 0:30:34they grow all year round, so it's a full-time job.
0:30:35 > 0:30:40Planting the plantains, the manioc, is as important as the hunting,
0:30:40 > 0:30:43because hunts aren't always successful,
0:30:43 > 0:30:46so this work is as essential as anything that the men do
0:30:46 > 0:30:49and, to be honest, it feels actually a lot harder.
0:30:51 > 0:30:55I leave the ladies to their work and join the hunting party.
0:30:55 > 0:31:00For this hunt, they're armed with blowpipes and poison-tip darts.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03We're heading to a clay lick,
0:31:03 > 0:31:07a place where animals gather to find essential minerals in the mud.
0:31:17 > 0:31:20Jaguar? Wow, look, yeah, yeah, look at that.
0:31:25 > 0:31:28Gosh, that is very, very rare that you actually find
0:31:28 > 0:31:31evidence of these big cats in the forest.
0:31:31 > 0:31:33You know that they're around,
0:31:33 > 0:31:37but you never hear them and you very rarely see them
0:31:37 > 0:31:40and every once in a while you come across these scratch marks.
0:31:40 > 0:31:45So this is just a jaguar marking its territory,
0:31:45 > 0:31:46sharpening its claws.
0:31:49 > 0:31:51When do you think this was?
0:31:57 > 0:31:58OK, let's go.
0:31:58 > 0:32:01I want to bump into this jaguar, that would be great.
0:32:06 > 0:32:10A few hundred metres back from the clay lick, we hear signs of life.
0:32:13 > 0:32:14LOUD CAWING
0:32:16 > 0:32:18Oh, gosh, maybe 20 macaws!
0:32:27 > 0:32:30The macaws are absolutely stunning.
0:32:30 > 0:32:32So are the flocks of parakeets.
0:32:32 > 0:32:35But, as we're all looking up,
0:32:35 > 0:32:38Bai spots something just a few metres to the side.
0:32:40 > 0:32:41What did you see?
0:32:49 > 0:32:52Oh, God, I'd love to have seen that with my own eyes.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56A jaguar 20, less, 15 metres away.
0:32:58 > 0:33:02It's amazing the way these men can just melt into the forest,
0:33:02 > 0:33:06but a jaguar takes that to a new level.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09They are practically invisible.
0:33:13 > 0:33:15Good eyes, good eyes, Bai.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22'As we reach the clay lick, any animals that may have
0:33:22 > 0:33:25'been here have scattered.'
0:33:25 > 0:33:26Oh, there you go, look.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32Penti and his family have shown me so much about this forest,
0:33:32 > 0:33:35now I'd like to see if I can show them something new.
0:33:35 > 0:33:36OK.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39What I'm going to do is set up a camera trap,
0:33:39 > 0:33:42cos what I'd like to show the men is lots of different animals,
0:33:42 > 0:33:44I think they would love to see that.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48OK, we will put this here.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00With no animals to hunt at the clay lick, we start to head home,
0:34:00 > 0:34:04but then we hear the call of an animal the Waorani love to eat.
0:34:04 > 0:34:06SCREECHING
0:34:06 > 0:34:08Spider monkeys.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38Before I know it, we're on a monkey hunt.
0:34:42 > 0:34:43That's the weirdest thing.
0:34:45 > 0:34:47I feel quite ashamed to say that I'm not...
0:34:47 > 0:34:50It's not that I'm not opposed to it, it's, er...
0:34:51 > 0:34:55I don't know, this is just their way of life, this is how they survive
0:34:55 > 0:34:58and who am I to come in and tell them that it's wrong?
0:34:58 > 0:35:00Because it's not wrong, it really isn't.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06Yeah, I suppose... How I live my life, there's so many wrong things
0:35:06 > 0:35:10about that that these people could point the finger at, you know.
0:35:10 > 0:35:14For me, they live a very simple existence, they live, you know,
0:35:14 > 0:35:16an existence just taking what they need from the forest.
0:35:16 > 0:35:20It just happens that monkeys are one of those things that they take.
0:35:29 > 0:35:34With the monkeys moving fast, lining up a clear shot seems impossible.
0:35:42 > 0:35:45Hunting these monkeys 30 metres up in the tree tops
0:35:45 > 0:35:48requires formidable fire power.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51The Waorani use three-metre long blowpipes,
0:35:51 > 0:35:53a design honed over thousands of years.
0:36:00 > 0:36:02The darts are tipped with poison,
0:36:02 > 0:36:05which will first paralyse and then kill the monkey.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09Getting a dart in is proving difficult.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17I think what they're trying to do is scare the monkeys,
0:36:17 > 0:36:19make them panic, kind of isolate them, get them out
0:36:19 > 0:36:22onto the open branches and they can get a clear shot of them.
0:36:48 > 0:36:50They definitely do have a dart in the monkey,
0:36:50 > 0:36:53I just saw it move and that little white bit of cotton moving.
0:36:56 > 0:36:59Almost immediately, that poison's going to start working.
0:36:59 > 0:37:03Its muscles become paralysed, it'll freeze, maybe drop from the tree.
0:37:14 > 0:37:18It's on quite a broad branch, and if it dies up there,
0:37:18 > 0:37:21I don't think we're going to get it, it's not going to fall out.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38Bai's climbing up the tree, but I can't believe he's going to
0:37:38 > 0:37:40climb all the way up there, it's over 100 feet.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47I just thought that that was it
0:37:47 > 0:37:48and then Bai starts climbing up,
0:37:48 > 0:37:51just hand over hand, he's got a vine wrapped round his feet,
0:37:51 > 0:37:53just to give him a bit of extra grip.
0:37:56 > 0:37:58You know, you think...
0:37:58 > 0:38:02If we want to eat something, you go to a shop,
0:38:02 > 0:38:05you hand over a piece of plastic and off you go, you take your food home.
0:38:05 > 0:38:11He is literally risking his life for the sake of a meal for his family.
0:38:14 > 0:38:16It is unbelievably impressive,
0:38:16 > 0:38:18just the skill and...
0:38:19 > 0:38:21..the bravery of these men.
0:38:23 > 0:38:27It is the most incredible thing I've ever, ever seen, it really is.
0:38:29 > 0:38:30OK.
0:38:32 > 0:38:34OK, he's got it, he's got it, Bai has got it.
0:38:34 > 0:38:37Oh, here it comes. LOUD CRASHING
0:38:37 > 0:38:38Holy moley.
0:38:50 > 0:38:51Poor fella.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54OK.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57It's not even a big meal, I'm sure the four of us could
0:38:57 > 0:39:01finish this monkey in one sitting, but I suppose that is survival
0:39:01 > 0:39:05in the rainforest - everything you eat is hard-won.
0:39:10 > 0:39:15That's skill, bravery bordering on madness. Hey!
0:39:20 > 0:39:21Well done.
0:39:27 > 0:39:30That was good, that was very good.
0:39:32 > 0:39:34By the way, Bai is...
0:39:34 > 0:39:37I think he's, like, a year, two years older than me.
0:39:39 > 0:39:40No way! No way.
0:39:40 > 0:39:43I'd get maybe three metres off the ground, run out of energy
0:39:43 > 0:39:46and then I'd get scared and then slide back down.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55Something has really changed in me out here.
0:39:56 > 0:40:00The men have taught me not only how to feel comfortable in the forest,
0:40:00 > 0:40:03but how life here depends on sharing what the rainforest
0:40:03 > 0:40:05has to offer with respect.
0:40:11 > 0:40:15Not far from here is a growing threat to the Waorani's way of life.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19Oil companies are drilling in the area
0:40:19 > 0:40:23and the Waorani are deeply concerned about the impact on their world.
0:40:46 > 0:40:50Already they've lost two thirds of their ancestral land.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53They're determined to fight to protect what's left.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59These huge snakes could help them in this struggle.
0:40:59 > 0:41:01The Waorani and the anaconda
0:41:01 > 0:41:05would both be at risk from any oil pollutants,
0:41:05 > 0:41:09so Penti and his family are working with a scientist
0:41:09 > 0:41:11to tag and monitor these snakes.
0:41:13 > 0:41:15Skin samples are taken to find out
0:41:15 > 0:41:17the impact of the oil on these animals.
0:41:17 > 0:41:21What affects the anaconda may also affect these people.
0:41:45 > 0:41:48It might seem quite a peculiar partnership,
0:41:48 > 0:41:50tribal people working with researchers,
0:41:50 > 0:41:53but it's perfect, you're using all of this knowledge and expertise
0:41:53 > 0:41:58to find out what is happening in these rivers, what is happening
0:41:58 > 0:42:01to this ecosystem and I think it's not just for themselves,
0:42:01 > 0:42:04it's not just for the species that live in the forest,
0:42:04 > 0:42:05the protection of the Amazon
0:42:05 > 0:42:10is for the betterment of all of mankind, I really believe that.
0:42:13 > 0:42:15ROOSTER CROWS
0:42:15 > 0:42:19The next morning, I have a treat for the tribe.
0:42:25 > 0:42:29This is the one opportunity that I have to show the Waorani something,
0:42:29 > 0:42:31rather than them showing me.
0:42:31 > 0:42:35It's all of the footage from the camera traps that have been out
0:42:35 > 0:42:38in the forest and it is very exciting because I haven't
0:42:38 > 0:42:43seen a single one and I don't know which animals are on there.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45Right, are we all ready?
0:42:46 > 0:42:49OK, here goes.
0:42:49 > 0:42:50Oh, look at that!
0:42:52 > 0:42:54My goodness, how many are there?
0:42:59 > 0:43:02That's breakfast, lunch and dinner right there.
0:43:06 > 0:43:07Ooh, there.
0:43:10 > 0:43:12It must be amazing actually to...
0:43:12 > 0:43:15I suppose, whenever they see pigs, they see maybe just a glimpse
0:43:15 > 0:43:18through the forest or when they're hunting them.
0:43:19 > 0:43:20So many of them.
0:43:22 > 0:43:23Ah, fabulous.
0:43:28 > 0:43:30I'd love to have been there sitting quietly
0:43:30 > 0:43:33and actually seen that with my own eyes.
0:43:33 > 0:43:35OK, next one.
0:43:35 > 0:43:36Oh-ho.
0:43:39 > 0:43:40What do you call it?
0:43:42 > 0:43:44Sunbittern.
0:43:44 > 0:43:45Off he goes.
0:43:45 > 0:43:46OK, next.
0:43:50 > 0:43:52Did you know the spider monkeys come down to the salt lick?
0:44:01 > 0:44:04It looks like the salt lick's the place to be.
0:44:04 > 0:44:07It's amazing the congregation of animal at this one site,
0:44:07 > 0:44:10you can't help but wonder, where are the predators?
0:44:10 > 0:44:14Every image that I see, I expect to see everything just scatter
0:44:14 > 0:44:16and for a cat to walk through.
0:44:16 > 0:44:18There we go, look, oh, wow!
0:44:20 > 0:44:22Ocelots. Fabulous. Wow.
0:44:24 > 0:44:27These are solitary...solitary cats.
0:44:27 > 0:44:32Wow, that is a really rare glimpse of an incredibly elusive creature.
0:44:35 > 0:44:38OK, show's over.
0:44:38 > 0:44:40Ah, it's very nice to be able to show them
0:44:40 > 0:44:43some of the animals that live in the forest.
0:44:43 > 0:44:46I suppose, for the younger kids, maybe someone this size,
0:44:46 > 0:44:50has never been into the forest and actually seen a pig,
0:44:50 > 0:44:52has never seen a macaw up close.
0:44:53 > 0:44:55It's great.
0:44:57 > 0:45:00It's not just the wildlife here that's remarkable,
0:45:00 > 0:45:02but also the Waorani themselves.
0:45:04 > 0:45:08Hearing about the encroaching oil companies worries me greatly.
0:45:10 > 0:45:12This way of life...
0:45:12 > 0:45:15I think the simplicity of it is really something to be envied
0:45:15 > 0:45:18and, you know, I do wonder and I worry what these kids
0:45:18 > 0:45:20are going to be doing.
0:45:20 > 0:45:24When they reach the age of Penti, are they going to be living
0:45:24 > 0:45:27in this way, in this village, are they going to be hunting
0:45:27 > 0:45:30with spears and blowpipes?
0:45:30 > 0:45:34I would love to think that they would be, that enough of that
0:45:34 > 0:45:37sort of importance of their heritage, their tradition,
0:45:37 > 0:45:40their way of life, the Waorani way of life, is passed on to them
0:45:40 > 0:45:43and they want to hold on to the things that make them different,
0:45:43 > 0:45:47the things that make these kids unique, and they are unique.
0:45:47 > 0:45:48They're Waorani.
0:45:52 > 0:45:53GORDON CHUCKLES
0:46:04 > 0:46:07I've experienced so much with Penti and his family,
0:46:07 > 0:46:10but there's still one thing I'd love to see.
0:46:13 > 0:46:16How do these men capture huge snakes?
0:46:20 > 0:46:21Time is running out...
0:46:23 > 0:46:25..but perhaps today I'll get my chance.
0:46:36 > 0:46:37Sounds like a plan.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40It's the one thing that's missing for me, I think, you know,
0:46:40 > 0:46:43coming to this forest and to hear the stories
0:46:43 > 0:46:48and the beliefs about these huge snakes and I think I really do
0:46:48 > 0:46:50need to see one, and I think I really do
0:46:50 > 0:46:52need to sort of, you know...
0:46:54 > 0:46:57..stay part of this group and do what these men are doing,
0:46:57 > 0:47:01even if it is catching the biggest snake that I've ever seen.
0:47:04 > 0:47:06Yeah, I'm ready.
0:47:08 > 0:47:11The anaconda that lives in the lagoon has just been spotted.
0:47:13 > 0:47:15We're hoping it'll still be there.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41Yeah, we can do it together, the four of us.
0:47:43 > 0:47:45I'm scared.
0:47:52 > 0:47:55We can do it, we can do it.
0:48:19 > 0:48:25I keep on looking out across this lagoon expecting to see
0:48:25 > 0:48:28something that will resemble the Loch Ness Monster.
0:48:28 > 0:48:32It feels very, very much like the right place
0:48:32 > 0:48:35to look for a huge snake.
0:48:46 > 0:48:51Tepena has just spotted some signs of
0:48:51 > 0:48:54an anaconda having moved through the side of the lagoon.
0:48:57 > 0:49:01(Tepena, the snake?)
0:49:01 > 0:49:03(OK, the snake's there.)
0:49:29 > 0:49:32(OK, I can see it, just its head,
0:49:32 > 0:49:35(it is absolutely enormous.)
0:49:39 > 0:49:42It is without a doubt the biggest snake I have ever seen.
0:49:42 > 0:49:46I don't think there's any way that we can try and catch this safely.
0:49:55 > 0:49:57MEN YELL
0:50:12 > 0:50:15I've got no idea what's going on, I just see hands, the snake,
0:50:15 > 0:50:18they're trying to get it out, but...
0:50:18 > 0:50:21'It's important for these men that they don't harm the snake
0:50:21 > 0:50:22'when they catch it.'
0:50:30 > 0:50:32What an absolute monster.
0:50:32 > 0:50:34Ah, OK, I think it's coming.
0:50:45 > 0:50:50OK, we've got it disentangled from the roots
0:50:50 > 0:50:54and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger,
0:50:54 > 0:50:56it is just simply a monster,
0:50:56 > 0:50:59a beautiful monster.
0:51:05 > 0:51:07OK, one more, you got it, you got it?
0:51:11 > 0:51:14It's almost hard to tell how big it is,
0:51:14 > 0:51:16but, you know, it must be pushing five metres.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19The head is absolutely enormous.
0:51:19 > 0:51:22The girth of it is incredible.
0:51:22 > 0:51:26Looking at it you could think, "Oh, I could easily fit inside that,
0:51:26 > 0:51:28"any one of us could."
0:51:28 > 0:51:31Underneath the bulk of its weight,
0:51:31 > 0:51:35you can just feel just rippling muscle, rippling power.
0:51:35 > 0:51:37It is incredible.
0:51:49 > 0:51:51OK.
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Overcoming all sorts of things here.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55LOW HISS
0:51:55 > 0:51:58Oh, gosh, you are a beauty.
0:51:58 > 0:52:04Its size just is beyond belief, it really is.
0:52:04 > 0:52:08If catching a snake of this size is about proving that you are brave
0:52:08 > 0:52:13and that you're fearless, OK, I get it, you are.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15I suppose it's all about kind of trying to match
0:52:15 > 0:52:18the power of this snake with their own power...
0:52:20 > 0:52:23..and they've done it.
0:52:23 > 0:52:26I don't know, I haven't done it without fear.
0:52:26 > 0:52:31You know, even now, holding its head in my hands, I'm just worried
0:52:31 > 0:52:35it's going to get out of my grip, it's going to grab a hold of me
0:52:35 > 0:52:38and take me with it back into its lagoon.
0:52:40 > 0:52:44'Catching the snake is spiritually important to the men,
0:52:44 > 0:52:48'but now science is, too, and they take a small skin sample
0:52:48 > 0:52:51'to test for toxins caused by oil pollution.'
0:52:58 > 0:53:01The Amazon needs to be protected
0:53:01 > 0:53:04and these are the people that actually are doing it,
0:53:04 > 0:53:07they're right there at the sharp edge, at the coal face.
0:53:38 > 0:53:42OK, I'm going to let it slide down, OK, I'm letting my end go.
0:53:42 > 0:53:47'This snake is bigger than any live anaconda ever recorded
0:53:47 > 0:53:48'in scientific journals.'
0:53:51 > 0:53:54Beauty and power.
0:53:54 > 0:53:58Despite the differences between giant anaconda and the Waorani,
0:53:58 > 0:54:04their fates are linked and maybe the future for them all,
0:54:04 > 0:54:09the future for this forest lies in the hands of these people.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12Good luck, snake. What a beauty.
0:54:20 > 0:54:23Daboto, the heroes return!
0:54:31 > 0:54:33Look at this.
0:54:45 > 0:54:47Huge, absolutely huge.
0:55:27 > 0:55:29I'm sure this design on my arm or design of the anaconda
0:55:29 > 0:55:33is going to fade over the next couple of weeks,
0:55:33 > 0:55:36but my memory of this place,
0:55:36 > 0:55:39the times that I've shared with these people...
0:55:39 > 0:55:43Yeah, it's going to remain with me for the rest of my life.
0:55:50 > 0:55:53MEN CHANT AND SING
0:56:36 > 0:56:42It's been an amazing, incredible experience spending time
0:56:42 > 0:56:48with the Waorani and I've met lots of people around the world
0:56:48 > 0:56:54and you have inspired me more than any, so for that I thank you.
0:57:15 > 0:57:16Keep up the fight.
0:57:16 > 0:57:18Daboto.
0:57:27 > 0:57:29Waponi. Thank you.
0:57:33 > 0:57:34Good luck.
0:57:40 > 0:57:43I arrived and they're smiling, I'm leaving and they're smiling.
0:57:43 > 0:57:45They are a happy, happy people
0:57:45 > 0:57:49and just long may that continue, whatever the future holds for them.
0:57:49 > 0:57:50OK. Waponi.
0:57:58 > 0:58:00ENGINE STARTS