04x10 - Wings!

[bunniefuu]

[Martin]
on this episode of
kratts' creatures...

[Chris]
prepare for takeoff!

[Martin]
because we're diving
into the world of birds,

Answering one of the oldest
creature questions--

[Chris]
how do birds fly?

[Martin]
we'll even find out

What it feels like to fly.

[Chris]
how are we going to do that?

Simple.
Catch the air, and soar!

[Chris]
so hold on for blastoff

Because martin and I will go
to any lengths--and heights--

To discover the secret
of flight.

[Martin]
we'll even go back in time

To relive man's greatest
avian achievements.

There must be some way
we can fly like a bird.

Iarriba!

Iarriba!

Iandale! Iandale!

From the dawn of time,

Humans have been fascinated
and curious

About the world
in which they found themselves.

One aspect which fascinated
them more than any other was...

Stuff that flies!

And no wonder.

Flight is one
of the amazing developments

In the creature world.

What's even more amazing
is how many creatures can do it.

We've got 977 species of bats,


And hundreds of thousands
of flying insect species.

The world of flight
is even bigger than I thought.

There's another part
to the flight story--

Humans' obsession with it.

To tell that part,
we've got to go back in time--

Way back.

[Chris]
and now a special presentation--

The magic of birds.

[Allison]
from the moment he first
saw birds soaring in the sky,

Man was in awe
of the magic of flight.

He found himself limited
by his own grounded existence.

He felt the burning need
to articulate his fascination.

[Martin]
what a pretty bird.

How pretty bird
stay up in sky?

Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.

Ugh. Ugh.

Confronted
by the mystery of flight,

Earliest man endeavored
to capture the magical majesty

Of the birds in his art.

Pretty bird.

Pretty bird.

Of course, some captured it
better than others,

But nonetheless,

This fascination
with flight has continued,

Especially
in the kratt family.

Enter the original kratt
brothers, orville and wilbur--

Aviation pioneers, zoologists,

And general all-around
inventing-type guys

Of the 19th century.

This isn't
going to work,

My 19th-century
brother,

But...
I've got a plan.

Of the two brothers,

Younger orville was clearly
the clever one.

But then again,

Wilbur wasn't
a total fool, either.

Listen,
my 19th-century brother,

I think I got
a better idea.

And so orville
and wilbur kratt,

With the help of ken

The 19th-century
hippo test dummy,

Dove headlong
into aviation history...

Sort of.

There must be some way
we can fly like a bird.

The kratt family's
fascination with birds

Has been carried on
with martin and chris,

Who'll stop at nothing
to learn the secret of flight.

You ready?

Aah!

Of course, sometimes
it's gone a little too far,

But, hey, that's the guys--

Creature adventurers
boldly going

Where no creature adventurers
have gone before.

[Crash]

Martin, you o.k.?

I think so.
What's next?

Introduce the show.

Oh. We're here
in north america

Where we're trying
to fly like a bird.

If you want to learn
how to fly,

The best thing to do

Is take some tips
from the experts--

Birds.

[Martin]
you can find birds
all over the world,

On every continent
and on every ocean.

[Chris]
they come in an almost
unbelievable variety

Of sizes, colors, and shapes.

[Martin]
some live solitary lives...

[Chris]
and some live in the biggest

Creature groups on earth.

And the way a bird flies
tells you a lot

About the kind
of life it leads.

So prepare for takeoff...

[Martin]
as we explore how birds fly

And why humans can't.

[Ttark]
hold it!

What's all this
feather-brained
flying foolishness?

The reason humans
can't fly like a bird

Is they just don't
have what it takes.

Like feathers.

You don't just
need feathers,

You need
strong feathers.

Believe me, these things
take a real flapping,

So they've
got to be strong.

See how it works?

These barbs hook together
really solid.

Then you overlap
all these veins,

And they keep
the air resistance down.

Once you've got that set up,
you just wing it.

Get it? Wing it.

Ha ha! I k*ll myself.

Wait a second, ttark.
Birds aren't the only
creatures that can fly.

How about the nocturnal
master of flight,

The bat?

Except maybe I shouldn't
call bats masters of flight.

Some species are capable
of long-distance flying,

But some go just as far
as their next meal.

[Martin]
but you know, al,

Bats aremasters of flight.

They're quick.
They're agile.

They just have
a different style.

They don't have feathers.

Instead, they fly with skin
that's stretched out

Over their long hands.

[Chris]
so there's no rule

That says you need
feathered wings to catch air.

Check out the flying squirrels
and sugar gliders.

[Martin]
they don't truly fly,

But they use
a stretch of skin

To glide as far as 150 feet
between trees.

What about the other creatures
who can fly, like insects?

You might think flying insects
are oogey,

But you got
to respect them

Because prehistoric insects
were the first creatures

Who could fly.

They were
the original aviators.

[Chris]
and as flyers go,
insects are topnotch.

[Martin]
exactly. Butterflies and moths

Can fly continuously
for hundreds of miles.

Wow!

[Chris]
and some dragonflies

Can b*mb around
at 60 miles per hour--

Faster than an owl.

[Martin]
so when it comes to insects,

Flying isn't just
for the birds.

And while some animals
who aren't birds fly,

Some birds can't fly at all.

[Grunting]

Say what?

[Martin]
when you think birds,
you think flight. Right?

But the ostrich, penguin,
cassowary, and emu don't fly.

So, what, are they still birds?

[Chris]
definitely.

They're just flightless birds.

[Martin]
in the case of the ostrich,

Who needs to catch air when you
can run 43 miles an hour. Right?

[Chris]
right.

If all birds don't need
to fly to survive,

Why do they need to fly at all?

Great question, al.
Why dobirds fly?

One advantage to flight
is it's a quick way

To get from point a to point b.

[Martin]
what about food?

[Chris]
I'm getting to it.

Another advantage is they can
build nests high away

From predators.

[Martin]
then there's food.

[Chris]
I got it covered.

The reason birds started to
fly--this is for you, martin--

Is to catch dinner.

[Martin]
exactly.

A pair of wings comes in real
handy when chow time comes...

If you're a hummingbird,
a skimmer, or a, uh...

A pelican.

[Chris]
with a pair of wings,

There's virtually nowhere
a bird can't go.

But fliers need
not only wings to get to food.

They also need their beaks.

[Martin]
beaks! Of course!

[Chris]
check out the heron.

Herons have an excellent
hunting style.

They're slow,
stalking hunters.

When they see
something they want,

They make a grab
for it.

Gosh! There's got
to be a trick.

There is,

If you call having
a long muscular neck

And a powerful beak
a trick.

If you think
of it that way,

There are so many tricks
birds use to get food.

[Martin]
absolutely.

The pelican's dive b*mb
is a great trick

For nabbing fish.

[Chris]
the duck's submarine dunk
works great, too.

[Martin]
don't forget beaks.

Beaks are one of the main
things that make a bird a bird.

[Chris]
birds' beaks come

In all shapes and sizes.

They're all
perfectly designed

For nabbing
their favorite grub.

[Martin]
a lot of birds specialize

In catching a certain
type of food.

[Chris]
some specialties
are a little unusual.

[Martin]
that oxpecker's picking bugs

Out of the rhino's ear.

[Chris]
yeah. What a great trick

For nabbing bugs.

And the rhino doesn't mind

Because the bird is cleaning
his ears of annoying pests.

[Martin]
would you want an oxpecker

In yourear?

[Chris]
I'm not a rhino.

Guys, you're missing this.

Check out the way
these herons fly.

It looks almost prehistoric,

Just like the pterosaurs.

Pterosaurs
were flying creatures

Who existed
about 200 million years ago.

And as cool
as pterosaurs were,

They weren't
the fliers birds are.

They weren't very fast fliers.

In fact, they usually
just glided around

On thermal currents of wind.

Their wing was only reinforced
along the top

By the arm
and one long finger.

[Chris]
did you know some scientists

Think birds
come from pterosaurs?

Good idea, but it's wrong.
Not only that...

Some scientists
believe they evolved

From crocodile-like
creatures

Of the lower
jurassic period

Around


[Chris]
believe it or not,

Birds have
a lot in common with crocs.

Both lay eggs,
and both have scaly feet.

But there are
still more theories

About who birds descended from.

[Martin]
other scientists argue

That birds descended
from archosaurs,

The ancestors of dinosaurs,
crocs, and pterosaurs.

[Allison]
but still others

Say they come from--wow!--

The possible missing link
between dinosaurs and birds,

And maybe the earliest
bird of them all,

Somewhere between a bird
and a reptile--

The archaeopteryx.

He existed


And had primitive feathers
and wings with claws,

A wishbone, bird feet,

A long, lizard-like tail
covered with feathers,

And little reptile teeth.

He sure wasn't
much like the birds of today.

Have you ever noticed
how humans have tried to imitate

The way creatures fly?

[Martin]
yeah. Once you look at it,

It's obvious.

In fact, humans were observing
birds for centuries

Before we finally learned
how to catch air and fly.

[Chris]
but even then,

Humans can't top
the original fliers.

Take migratory birds.

For long-distance travel,

These birds can't be b*at.

[Martin]
exactly.

Planes have to stop
and refuel, repair, rebuild--

Migratory birds only stop
to rest and eat.

[Chris]
hey, check this out.

Canada geese are a great
example of migratory birds.

[Martin]
absolutely. They'll travel

Thousands of miles a year.

Hey, but when you're talking
great northern fliers,

You can't forget tundra swans.

[Chris]
canada geese and tundra swans

Spend the summers
in northern lakes and rivers

Where there's plenty of food.

Then winter comes,

And the lakes
and rivers freeze over.

That's when they take wing

And travel thousands of miles
down south.

[Martin]
there they feed
on plants and grain

Until the days get long.

[Chris]
then it's time to
head back north and nest.

They have to raise
their families right away

So chicks will be old enough to
handle next winter's migration.

[Martin]
it's a long journey
for those young birds,

But they won't be
traveling alone.

Migratory birds
sometimes fly
in formation.

There are three
patterns--

The w, the straight
line, and the v.

[Martin]
these formations
work aerodynamically,

And that's why planes
use them, too.

Plus, they afford a clear view
to all the fliers,

Not just the ones up front.

[Chris]
flying in formation

Lets the younger birds
learn how to do it, but...

Geese aren't the only birds
that migrate.

There's also white pelicans,

Sparrows,

Cormorants,

Loons,

Great blue herons,

And the australian emu.

[Martin]
the australian emu migrates?

[Chris]
absolutely. He migrates on foot,

But all this
leads to the question,

Why do birds migrate at all?

Birds migrate
to find warmer climates,

Nesting grounds, and food.

[Chris]
and some birds migrate

With other birds,
so they can eat them.

Who are we
talking about?

Meet raptors...

The birds of prey.

[Allison]
raptors are different

Than any bird
we've seen so far.

What are raptors?

Raptors are fierce,
tenacious birds of prey

With claws specially designed

For snatching
and clutching their food.

And we're not talking about
a few isolated birds.

These incredible hunters
can be found

Dining in spots
all over the globe.

[Martin]
that's right.

Check out australia's
wedge-tailed eagle.

This raptor is a hunter
anda crafty scavenger.

[Chris]
this guy's got
a kangaroo carcass.

[Martin]
in africa,

You can always find
a martial eagle or two

On the hunt for small critters
like a mongoose.

[Chris]
the golden eagle's no slacker.

If he's really hungry,
he may go after a wolf,

But smaller catches like
rabbits are more his style.

[Martin]
now, it's true that when
you're talking about eagles,

You're generally talking
about solitary hunters.

[Chris]
however, there are raptors

Like the harris' hawk
who do hunt in packs.

But both styles
have their advantages.

[Martin]
the falcon hunts
in pairs or alone.

[Chris]
but alone or in pairs,

The falcon dives at speeds
of 180 miles per hour.

Hey, I just
noticed something.

The golden eagle
is the biggest,

The peregrine falcon
is the smallest,

And the harris' hawk
is in the middle.

Is that the only
difference between them?

Subject heading--"raptors.

"In motion pictures,
professional sports..."

Here we go--
"birds of prey."

Falcons are designed
for high-speed flying.

They have long,
pointed wings,

Small heads and short,
powerful beaks

Curved down to the base.

Eagles are the biggest
of the three.

They have straight beaks
that curve only at the very tip.

The legs of true eagles
are feathered

Right down to the toes,

While the goshawk
has a small head,

Short, rounded wings,

And a long tail
for quick, speedy moves.

[Martin]
hey, al, check this out.

[Allison]
what's up?

[Chris]
we're getting ready
to check out raptors

Up close and personal.

[Martin]
that's right.

If you want
to have a look

At one of
the most tenacious

And fearless
raptors around,

Check out
the goshawk.

There's
a goshawk nest

In that tree
right over there.

What we're
going to do

Is climb up
this tree

To get as high
as we can

So we can have
a bird's eye view
of the nest

And see what's
going on over there.

But we have
to be careful

Because goshawks
have great eyesight

And they're
very protective.

If the mother
or father see us,

They might att*ck.

[Allison]
guys, you sure about this?

Goshawks can be
pretty dangerous.

[Martin]
come on, al.

We're trained
creature adventurers.

Besides, this equipment
cost us a fortune.

[Chris]
martin, I see the nest...

And the chicks.

They must be
less than 10 weeks old

Because they can't fly yet.

[Martin]
it looks like we came
at feeding time.

The mom's tearing up chunks
of some bird for them.

When chicks are older,

She'll just drop
a whole prey in the nest

For them to fight over.

[Allison]
now they're dependent
on their parents for food,

But once the little guys
leave the nest,

They soon become fast,
powerful,

And one of the most
intimidating predators around.

How could anything
with blood-red eyes

Not be intimidating?

And when its prey takes cover,
it will go after it on foot.

What a bird!

You're telling me,
martin!

Wait a minute.

You know how defensive
mom goshawks are

Of their nest?

[Martin]
sure. She's got to defend

Her chicks
against potential threats.

[Chris]
I think this mom may find us

Potentially threatening.

[Allison]
guys, incoming goshawk!

Aah!

Martin,
are you all right?

Ohh...

Oh.

I guess something
went wrong with his rigging.

Just because you're a raptor

Doesn't mean
you don't get hassled.

Just ask an owl
about hawks and falcons.

Hawks and owls
are both fierce predators

With one big difference
between them.

Owls hunt by night,
hawks by day.

[Martin]
most of the time,

They don't run into each other,
but when they do,

Chances are they'll do more
than hassle each other.

[Chris]
one of them may wind up
the other's prey.

It's getting dark,

So the owls must be preparing
themselves for the hunt.

Here are some of the owl's
favorite delicacies.

These creatures are all
good catches for the owl,

And unless they want
to be dinner,

They've got to be careful
when night falls.

There's not much
you can do

If you're in an owl's sight
after dark.

In fact, you won't even
hear it coming.

They're silent,
phantom fliers.

Hey, martin.
I think we hit pay dirt.

All right!

Owl castings.

Owls eat
small animals whole.

They just swallow
the entire creature.

And the stuff that
they can't digest,

Like fur and bones,
is coughed up

As these
compressed pellets

Called owl castings.

Check out what
this owl's been eating.

This pellet is almost
entirely fur.

Look at this.

Here's a bone
in this one.

Just a teeny,
little bone.

Maybe some small bird
or a little mammal.

Hey...

If there are
owl pellets here...

Then an owl roost
must be.

[Clacking beak]

It's a great horned owl.

Oh, my gosh!

[Martin]
this master hunter can see well

In the moonlight,

But to pinpoint his prey,
he uses sound.

[Chris]
from the treetops,

An owl can hear a mouse
chewing on grain.

With hearing that powerful,

Most sounds would be
pretty intense to an owl.

Here's what a bell ringing
at 20 feet

Sounds like
to the human ear.

[Soft ringing]

And here's how an owl
might hear it...

[Loud ringing]

Which leads to the question,

If everything's louder
for owls,

How come owls
don't get headaches?

I don't know.

But owls are
tough customers.

Tough,
silent customers.

[Hoo hoo]

But probably the weirdest
creature is the turkey--

The turkey?

You mean like
a turkey on a farm,

The ones that go
gobble-gobble?

You didn't
let me finish, al.

I wasn't
talking about
the wild turkey.

I was talking about
the turkey vulture.

[Martin]
these amazing scavengers
eat carrion--

Animals who are already dead.

[Chris]
if there's something
dead, rotting, rancid,

Squirming with disease,

Crawling with maggots,
and picked apart by vermin,

You can bet the turkey vulture's
going to find it...

[Martin]
and eat it.

He's not the only one.

Vultures live
all over the world.

[Chris]
how can they eat that stuff?

[Martin]
we'd get sick and die

If we ate
that rotten carcass,

But it's not a problem
for these guys.

This carcass
is thanksgiving dinner,

Turkey vulture style.

We're just
scraping the surface

When it comes to how odd
this guy is.

Oh, gross!
Know how it defends itself?

Projectile vomiting.

[Allison]
even more disgusting

Is how the turkey vulture

Keeps cool
when it gets hot.

Oh, man!

It poops
on its legs.

And we're not
making this up.

It may seem
kind of gross,

But it really
makes a lot of sense,

Because there's
moisture in their poop,

And when the moisture
evaporates,

It takes heat
away from the vulture's body,

Cooling the vulture off.

It's a vulture's way
of sweating.

By the way,
this is mud,
not vulture poop.

But it has
the same effect.

But there's something
really cool

That the turkey vulture does
that isn't disgusting at all.

It has to do
with how it flies.

Hang check.

Raptors like vultures, condors,

And some eagles and hawks,
are great soarers.

Vultures wait for the day
to heat up.

Bubbles of warm air
called thermal updrafts

Are created and...

They find the updrafts,
catch the air,

And soar!

All right!

Aw, man! Martin's
really catching air.

Yeah!

Whoo hoo!

Whoo hoo hoo!

Ya-hoo!

All right!
Great flight!

But if you want to really
move through the air,

Check out the fastest
creature in the world!

[Martin]
the peregrine falcon--

The stealth bomber
of the creature world.

[Chris]
and if you're wondering

How we're actually able
to clock a falcon's time...

[Martin]
the answer is...falconry.

Can we fly
this bird today?

We'll give it a try.

All right!

[Screeching]

This is ulrick,
and he's a falconer.

He trains falcons
so he can learn about them

And help protect wild falcons.

[Chris]
what he's doing
is swinging a rope

With a lure
tied on the end,

Training the falcon
to dive for the lure.

[Martin]
that's how wild
peregrine falcons

Catch their prey,

By diving down on it

At speeds of up to


[Chris]
making peregrine falcons

The fastest creature on earth.

[Screeching]

[Martin]
there it goes.

[Martin]
here he comes.

[Chris]
bam! Nailed it.

Even with
a closed fist.

So how do
they att*ck--

With a closed fist
all the time?

No, no. Sometimes
with open fist,

Sometimes with just
stirring them.

Just depending.

[Martin]
and for peregrines

To achieve speeds that fast,

They need two things
on their side...

Guts and gravity.

They just
tuck in their wings

And drop like a rock.

What a flight!

Yeah! But you know,
I think it's time to admit

Humans just weren't made
to fly like birds.

Maybe we should try
swimming like fish.

Yeah.

No wonder people have always
been hooked on flight.

[Martin]
no wonder is right.

If we had wings,

Getting off this rock
wouldn't be a problem.

Sometimes we forget
how amazing it is to fly.

Even more amazing
is birds have been doing it

Long before we were around--

Eons before we were around.

[Ttark]
what's so
amazing about that?

Listen, most of us were here
before humans.

We've had time to evolve
and gain those extra advantages.

Come on, guys. Let's fly!

Then again, some of us still
need a little more evolving.