Deadly Top 10s (2009) s01e05 Episode Script

Welcome to my Deadly Top 10 a chance to choose the top 10 fiercest, fastest, most tactical, toxic and well-armed animals on the planet! All deadly in their own world and sometimes deadly to me! Who do you think will be number 1 of my Deadly Top 10? In this countdown, I'm choosing my top 10 fiercest animals.
And believe me, I've met a few! Oh! Crikey! Many animals need to be fierce to survive.
Wild lives really are a battle fought out tooth and claw.
So, who are the fiercest of them all? Let's kick off the Top 10 Fiercest countdown.
I'm going to start at number 10 with the tiger, the biggest of the big cats and the fiercest feline in India if you get on the wrong side of it.
- Tiger! - Tiger! Well, that sounds good.
Just passed some people who said that down here somebody is actually watching a tiger.
So, we've hit the gas to try and get down there as quickly as possible.
I hope it hasn't gone.
Fingers crossed, everyone! There Three cars up ahead.
(SOFTLY) Oh, yes, I see it! There's one just lying in a puddle up ahead of us.
Breathing heavily in the shade.
This would have to be the best wildlife encounter in India.
Just right there in front of us.
Tigers are territorial.
They're solitary hunters who can't stand competition.
If a tiger feels you're intruding, beware! (ROARS) MAN: Move, move, move! Back up! Back up! That just shows how fast things can change with wild animals.
We were all just sat around, congratulating ourselves about what a wonderful sighting of a tiger and drove too close on the left-hand side, and it turned.
And I could see Johnny, the cameraman, nearly jumping out of his skin! And you're sweating a fair bit there, Johnny.
- I thought I was a goner at one point! - Yeah.
I thought it was going to jump into the truck! Honestly, I swear, even though it was, you know, quite a distance away from me, I could feel it come reverberating up through the ground, up through the Jeep, and it gets you right in the pit of the stomach.
You really wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of an animal like that at a bad time.
Tigers need ferocious focus to hunt successfully.
Their deadliest weapon is surprise.
They creep up slowly on their prey.
And then a last-minute lethal sprint, clearing six metres with every stride.
But a cat this size needs something much bigger than a mouse for its tea! And it's monkey on the menu tonight.
But there's one big snag for supersize sprinters - their size and their weight.
A big male can weigh as much as four of me.
So they don't have much stamina.
Tigers need their stripe-enhanced stalking skills along with magnificent muscles, teeth and claws.
If a tiger wasn't fierce, it would starve.
Number 9 has to be fiercer still.
The polar bear.
The largest terrestrial carnivore in the world.
It has to be ferociously tough.
It has to wrestle walruses and whales for food.
As if that's not enough, it must swim through miles of open ocean and hunt out in the frozen sea smashing through sea ice to catch sleepy seals in their lairs.
Their problem is that they never know where their next meal will come from.
And tragically, desperate, hungry bears can even be a danger to people.
He's coming back that way.
Polar bears have to be really fierce and incredibly tough.
It's the only way they can find food in their harsh, cold Arctic home.
They truly are the kings of the icy north.
So, we've had a big cat and the ultimate bear.
Which fierce predator do you think's next? A clue for number 8 is that it's fishy and ferocious.
It's the tiger shark.
This five-metre long battle cruiser of tropical seas has the fin-power to tackle just about anything.
They'll swim for miles to snap up breeding sea birds.
And their serrated teeth mean they can even chew up turtles.
Right, chaps! It's surprisingly tough for tiger sharks.
Although warm seas look beautiful and blue, the water's poor in nutrients, and food can be sparse.
Oh, look! That's a seriously big tiger coming in! A huge female.
She's coming right in! Right up to Simon! She's like a swimming bus! I reckon, in this situation, the sharks are quite used to divers.
You can see they're totally relaxed, so it's safe for me to be here.
I can't believe it! Here we go! Now we're going to see her in action.
Look at that! That is awesome! I hope I don't get any closer than this.
That was unbelievable! There's a choice of two closely related and very badly tempered mammals for number 7 - the honey badger and the wolverine.
It's hard to decide which is fiercest, so let's watch them in action and choose.
I met a young captive honey badger in South Africa called Buster.
(BADGER HISSES) Honey badgers are in the weasel family, which contains some of the meanest animals on Earth.
Weasels, stoats, things like wolverines, they're all animals that are notorious for being capable of taking on other animals that are way bigger than they are and having no fear whatsoever.
Honey badgers hunt grubs, small mammals and honey.
Being small, they have to be fierce enough to defend themselves out on the African plains.
They punch well above their weight.
They'll even see off big cats! Don't mess with these guys, or you'll get mullered.
So with all that attitude, Buster's fierce enough to make me stay well clear of her teeth and claws.
Argh! Phew! I tell you, when she snarls at you Good girl! Whoa! I've never been terrorised by something so small in all my life! Ooh, crikey! When she turns, it's a really frightening sight! I know she's only small, but it's enough to put the wind up you! (LAUGHS) Well, Buster really was fierce, wasn't she? And what about the bigger wolverine? They've been known to fight with bears! What would happen with me? Jasper is a very unusual wolverine.
He was born in captivity here in Alaska.
This is an animal with one of the worst reputations of any creature in the world for being utterly ferocious, utterly fearless, taking on animals many times its own size.
I have to say I'm a little bit nervous, because, you know, this isn't a completely tame animal.
And if it does turn then it could take me apart.
But he's so beautiful, I just want to give him a big hug! Oh Oh, dear! - MAN: Should I let him go? - I think you should.
OK, Steve, let's go! Come on.
Ow! Argh! (WOLVERINE SNARLS) He's going to grab a hold of your leg, Steve, but he won't puncture the skin, I don't think.
Yeah, yeah.
He likes you! That's more than a lovebite! The wolverine can bite with the strength of over a tonne per square inch, which probably doesn't mean a tremendous amount to you - it doesn't mean a tremendous amount to me either - but if I was to say that a small saltwater crocodile has about the same, then Ohhh! it'd probably make more sense.
And if you look at them up close, look at those canine teeth! Just built for ripping through meat.
Oh! So, who to choose? Buster or Jasper? I don't know about you, but I think Buster the honey badger was miles snarlier than Jasper the wolverine.
Bad-tempered Buster got my goat.
Sorry, gets my vote! Argh! At number 6, I've chosen a fearsome sea monster the Humboldt squid.
Jet-powered nocturnal carnivores about the same size as me.
Super-smart and able to hunt together.
They have fearsome weaponry.
A slicing beak, ten grasping tentacles and suckers lined with piranha-styled teeth! Able to change direction in an instant, they pluck fish from their shoals.
Crazy as it seems, these perfect underwater predators are molluscs and distant cousins of snails! But there's nothing sluggish about their fire power.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
To swim with them, you have to take precautions, like wearing metal chain-mail suits! Another potential danger is being dragged down into the deep ocean by a gang of squid.
So, it's best to be attached to the boat with steel safety cables.
MAN: You OK, Steve? STEVE: Yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine! MAN: Purge, please.
Even with armour on, you still feel vulnerable, especially in the deep, dark water at night.
And then we spot one.
And it's a big one, too.
Look at that! Wow! OK, I'm going to very gently just try and take control of the head.
I've got it! Got my first Humboldt squid underwater! Now you can see why they call them "the red devil" or "the red demon".
Oh! It's so strong! Look there, it's got its tentacles around my arm, and I can feel the gripping of those teeth.
Actually, you can feel it even through the chain-mail suit.
And in here, that's where that snapping beak is.
Just there I'm going to take great care not to get my fingers close to it, because I think I'd lose them.
Well, I know I'd lose them.
That's the really ferocious bit of the Humboldt squid.
Ooh, look at the colour change there! Bright red.
Look at the pulsing there! Ooh Oh, crikey, it's got a hold of my hand! It's actually Ah! Dear me, this is Aghh! The strength of the beak! It just actually bit me right through the chain-mail suit! It really pinched my arm.
That really is one of the weirdest, most beautiful creatures I've ever seen.
OK, Scott, I'm just going to release it now.
Amazing.
Absolutely amazing! That really is a sea monster if ever I saw one! So, where are we? Well, we've had a terrifying tiger, a powerful polar bear, titanic tiger shark, a bitey badger and a swarm of slasher squid.
Which fierce animals are still to come as we count down towards number 1? At number 5 is the ultimate insect warrior.
The Japanese giant hornet.
It's the largest species of wasp in the world.
Japanese hornets live in colonies, bloodthirsty insect empires.
Hornets are full-on predators who specialise at hunting other insects.
Their problem is they have a hungry nest full of ravenous larvae.
Demanding babies who shout out for fresh meat.
Not by crying, but by rasping their jaws.
But where to get enough insect flesh for these little monsters? How about a hive of honey bees? When hornets attack bees, it's a fearsome fight! They both have lethal weapons and seem quite similar.
But here's how to tell them apart.
The bees are small and kind of brown.
They're cute and furry.
And they like making honey.
They only sting in defence and there are thousands of them.
But each can only sting once and then it dies.
Hornets? Right, well, quite a different beast.
They are much, much bigger.
They're yellow-headed and they have a big yellow-striped abdomen which houses a bigger sting which can be used again and again.
Back to the battle.
The hornets want all the succulent bee grubs inside but the hive's defences must be breached.
An insect war is under way! The bees desperately try to protect their hive, but their small stings are no match for the jaws of the hornets.
Each hornet can kill 40 bees a minute! After a few hours, 30,000 bees are dead.
The giant hornets invade the helpless hive.
Here, they carve up the bee grubs and take home all the minced flesh.
No-one in the hornet empire will be hungry tonight.
So what, you might ask, could be fiercer than these guys? I mean, come on! Well, for Fierce 4, I've chosen a huge solitary hunter.
The leopard seal.
The big cat of the sea.
OK, OK, I know it's really a seal, but believe me, it's a killer that truly lives up to its name.
Not only is it spotty like a real leopard, it's a fearsome hunter too.
It patrols the ice floes of Antarctica.
Its trick is to lurk under ice shelves waiting to snatch its favourite prey - penguins.
Penguins may look comical, but they're very agile and difficult to catch, so the leopard seal has to be mean, muscly and manoeuvrable.
3.
5 metres long with a menacing manner and a head full of teeth, this is one seal you do not want to get into deep water with! At number 3, it's the true king of the cats.
The lordly lion.
Oh, look, look, look at that! It's hard to believe when you see them yawning in the shade like this that lions are Africa's most impressive, most fearsome carnivore.
Look at this one, just looking straight at us! (GROWLS) And you have to say they have terrifying canine teeth! It's not just their teeth, though, that makes them so fierce.
The killer secret to the lion's success throughout Africa is teamwork.
They live and work together in a hunting pack called a pride.
The real power base of the pride are its hunting queens, the lionesses.
After creeping up as close as possible, it's paws to the floor.
Max power acceleration! Lions have to be fierce enough to tackle serious hooves and horns.
Every hunt risks injury.
Oh, that's got to hurt! But her ferocity pays off.
So, surely no-one can top the king of the beasts? Well, how about my number 2? The saltwater crocodile.
This monster is the world's largest species of reptile weighing up to 1,000 kilos, around six times more than the lion.
They live in rivers, estuaries and the sea and can even hunt down small sharks! They're very patient predators.
With special sensors on theirjaws, they can detect the vibrations of prey at the water's edge.
They know exactly where you are, but you can't see them.
Crocs can't bite off mouthfuls.
Instead, they have to rip off pieces by twisting their bodies.
It's called a death roll.
And it's bye-bye, kangaroo.
So, if a salty starts to hang out too close to people, Australian rangers have to intervene.
Now, keep your arms free.
- Here he comes.
- Give him a tap.
Oh, he's a good size! I joined a Queensland ranger team capturing and relocating one who was thought to be unwell.
- RANGER: He's bigger than I thought! - STEVE: He's starting to roll.
Here he comes! The croc's rolling, and you can feel the power of it.
It's actually lifting the boat up and down.
RANGER: Just watch there with the camera.
STEVE: Do you want to get the snout rope on? Pretty good form there.
OK, Charlie.
Yep.
- Jam it shut.
- Good job.
Push it! That's it.
OK.
Put two on him.
I know this looks hard on the crocodile, but trust me, they're very tough creatures and he's absolutely fine.
Just a little bit cross! (CROCODILE GRUMBLES MENACINGLY) But we can't risk him biting anyone.
So, this is the problem croc we were hoping to find.
They've actually been calling him Mr Stinky because you can smell him.
He's not in amazingly good condition and he has been hanging out in an area where there are quite a lot of people and sort of picking up scraps.
And a croc this size could certainly do an awful lot of damage.
A crocodile that's playing dead takes some shifting.
Right.
So now that he's out of the water, even though he has had his major weapon and his jaws kind of taken out of the equation with that hard sticky tape, you can really appreciate quite what it is that makes this such an incredibly powerful animal.
I mean, look at the size of the tail down there next to Mark the cameraman.
I mean, that is just packed with muscle.
And all the way up here, there's nothing spare, even though this animal really isn't in the best of condition.
You know, it really is a terrifying-looking creature! He's absolutely magnificent, as close to a living dragon as you'll ever get.
So, if the croc isn't number 1, can you guess who is? Time for the Top 10 Fierce countdown.
Tense number 10, the terrorising tiger.
Nerve-racking 9, polar bear.
At edgy 8, the tiger shark's great.
Snarly 7, honey badger heaven.
Slippery number 6, Humboldt squid tricks.
Fearsome 5, giant hornets survive.
Feisty 4, leopard seal's jaw.
On the throne for 3, the kingly lion.
And at terrifying 2, we salute the saltwater croc.
So, at number 1 I said at number 1, it's The great white shark.
The great white shark is the largest predatory fish on Earth.
Twice as heavy as a big saltwater croc.
28 times as heavy as me.
A mighty, magnificent master of the sea.
So of course, I had to try and meet one face-to-face! We lured one in with some bait in South Africa.
Shark! Great white shark! Oh! Look at this! It's an active one as well.
Oh, wow! Good action.
Good action.
Whoa! She is big! Coming right underneath the boat! Right now! Look at this! Oh, my life! She's coming out the other side now! This is absolute chaos! She's come back round.
She's here again.
Oh, look at that! Oh, my life, look at the size of her! Here it comes.
She's going to come up and hit the bait any second! Oh, my goodness! Oh, wow.
She's right up next to me! Look at this! Unbelievable! She's right underneath us again.
Oh, my goodness! She just touched the camera in my hand! And look! She's shredded the rope and the buoy! Look! Just torn to shreds, those teeth! Magnificent! What an extraordinary creature! Despite all the evidence about how little danger sharks actually pose to humans this is still the most feared animal in the world.
But in truth, even a great white is not invincible - despite 300 meat-slicing teeth! Their favourite prey, sea lions, are fierce predators too.
So the shark has to hit them hard or it risks injury.
A sea lion could easily bite out a shark's eye.
So, once targeted it's full throttle to the tail and a shark becomes a rocket! The fiercest fin-power on the planet! Top 10 Fiercest done! Don't forget to join me next time for more Deadly Top 10s! Who's going to be the next Deadly number 1?