07x03 - Mysterious Nocturnal Creatures in the Philippines

[bunniefuu]

[upbeat music]

- [Narrator] Today on "Blue World,"

Jonathan takes his kids
on their first rec dive.

But first, he goes
critter hunting at night

in the Philippines.

[upbeat music]

Meet Jonathan Bird,

one of the world's top underwater
nature cinematographers.

Traveling the world on assignment

for all the major networks,

he is an Emmy Award-winning authority

on the underwater world.

In fresh water or salt,

reefs, wrecks, or caves,

Jonathan documents the
world beneath the waves.

Welcome to the "Blue World."

[soft music]

- I love filming interesting
and unusual marine life.

Some of the most amazing
marine life can be found

on sandy or muddy seafloors.

This environment,

without rocks or reefs for
shelter and protection,

forces animals to develop
creative ways of evading predators

and catching food.

In the diving world,

these habitats are jokingly known as muck,

so this kind of diving
is called muck diving.

And some of the best muck
diving in the world can be found

in the Philippines.

[bright music]

I've come to the Atlantis
Dive Resort in Dumaguete

for some amazing muck diving.

The dive sites are only minutes

from our beautiful beachfront resort.

I've already done a few muck dives

and seen some really interesting animals,

but tonight I'm going to go see

what can be found after dark.

[waves crashing]

Whoo!

Woo-hoo!

[water splashes]

[bubbles burbling]

I grabbed my camera

and sink down to the shallow
seafloor covered in seagrass.

Immediately I spot a
small cuttlefish hiding

behind a fan algae.

[soft music]

Looking like two tufts of poofy algae,

a pair of Ambon scorpionfish
are easily missed

if they don't move.

Luckily for them,

plankton and tiny shrimp are
attracted to my dive lights

like moths to a flame.

As I move in for a shot
of the scorpionfish,

they feast on the shrimp
that I bring to them.

[light music]

Not everyone loves my lights, though.

A crab is trying to get away
from me for some privacy.

[playful music]

It has caught a smaller crab for dinner.

It's a crab-eat-crab world.

Cannibalism is alive and well in the muck.

[bright music]

Nearby, an orange sponge,

and on it a tiny frogfish
no bigger than a thumb.

[soft music]

With a lure the size of a sewing needle,

this little frogfish is hoping
to attract some tiny prey.

[soft music continues]

Missed.

Got one!

Got another one!

On the sandy slope,

I discover a tiny section of coral reef

and, on the coral, a larger frogfish,

on the prowl for a good hunting spot.

[lighthearted music]

Swimming is not the frogfish's forte.

[lighthearted music continues]

Back out on the sand,

I find a bobtail squid,

which is technically a tiny cuttlefish.

[soft music]

She too is preparing to hunt

with a stealthy muck camouflage.

[bright music]

A train of three sea hares,

a type of nudibranch, is crawling along.

I have no idea what's going on here,

but I'm betting it's
related to reproduction.

Nudibranchs are everywhere I look.

Nudibranch means naked gill,

and this is a perfect example.

The tuff of leafy
projections are the gills.

Then I find a Murex snail
cruising across the muck.

While I have seen the shells in museums,

this is the first time I've
ever seen a living specimen.

[soft music]

This predatory snail has spikes
on its shell for protection

while it hunts for clams.

It drills a hole through the clam's shell

and then sucks its guts out.

This is one tough customer.

The Murex's cousin,

the tiger cowrie, is a snail
with a different life strategy.

It extends its mantle
like a skin over its shell

to keep the shell clean

and prevent parasites like
barnacles from hanging on.

Beneath the mantle is
a shiny, smooth shell.

This snail eats algae and sponges.

Nearby, another clam-eater.

The smooth box crab uses
mighty claws to crush its prey.

Then poops it out.

[curious music]

Another crab, another strategy.

This hermit crab

not only has a strong
snail shell for protection

but a crop of powerful
stinging anemones living

on the shell.

[bright music]

It's a lot of baggage to carry around,

but with this defense mechanism,

the crab is afraid of nothing.

One zap from the anemone
tentacles is enough

to scare off a moray eel.

Take that!

But that doesn't mean
that morays are pushovers.

A moray on the hunt is
a formidable predator.

[pensive music]

With a slippery and maneuverable body,

the moray can investigate
every crack in the reef

for a sleeping fish.

Almost no place is safe.

But the octopus is the
master of grabbing fish

from their hiding places.

[light music]

With eight busy arms,

every single crack and
hiding spot will be checked.

[light music continues]

Aha! Got something!

Now to find some dessert.

A blue Linckia sea star is
slowly cruising along the bottom,

munching on algae.

But look closer

and it has a moocher,

a tiny shrimp that lives its
whole life on the sea star,

eating its mucus and droppings.

[soft music]

Because there isn't much reef around,

the fish that live here often have

to sleep right out in the open.

They rely on the cover
of darkness for safety.

[gentle music]

Lots of animals that feed on plankton,

like crinoids and brittle stars,

come out at night because
the plankton comes up

from the depths.

A tube anemone snares plankton
with sticky tentacles,

as does orange cup coral.

[magical music]

As I head back to the boat
at the end of the dive,

I'm visited by a curious sea turtle

who seems to be interested
in the excitement.

[soft music]

But once he figures out

that it's just some
boring guy with a camera,

he swims back into the darkness.

A night dive makes you
work up an appetite.

So it's back to the
resort for some dinner.

Woo-hoo! That was awesome!

My dive buddies,

Marty Snyderman and cameraman
Zach had a great time too.

Muck diving is one of
my favorite activities

because you just never know

what crazy animals you're going to find.

And at night, the action continues

with a different cast of characters,

all going about their business.

Night diving might seem a little spooky,

but it's a fascinating way
to explore the blue world.

[gentle music]

[bright music]

- [Narrator] Don't go away.

Jonathan and the family
go rec diving in Bermuda.

- Bermuda, known around the world

for its gorgeous pink sand
beaches and crystal clear waters.

It's also one of the
premier luxury destinations

for North America,

and it's only a two
hour flight from Boston.

So, for February school vacation,

the Bird family is going on
another diving adventure.

[upbeat music]

Woo-hoo!

I don't even have enough
time to watch a full movie

before we're in Bermuda.

Since Bermuda's so small, they
don't rent cars to tourists.

So we grab a cab to our condo.

[uptempo music]

You think these are gonna fit?

[driver laughs]

Zach, you're on the roof.

It's a five-minute ride from the airport

to the town of St. George's.

[uptempo music continues]

[people chattering]

The next day, we set out
to explore the island,

tourist-style.

Woo-hoo!

Scootering is a Bermuda tradition,

and it's a super fun way to get around

if you don't need to carry too much stuff.

This is better.

[bright music]

The island is only 20 miles long,

but it has a rich history
stretching back to the 1500s

when it was discovered by the Spanish.

Today, Bermuda is a
British overseas territory.

And while many people think of Bermuda

as a Caribbean island,

it's actually 1,000 miles
north of the Caribbean

in the Atlantic.

We head over to Blue Water Divers

and meet up with owner Chris Gauntlett.

Hey, Chris!
- Hey, guys.

- Nice to meet you!
- Nice to meet you.

I'm glad you guys can come.

- Here's the whole family.
- Hi.

- Hi.
- Christine.

- Hello.
- Liam.

- Nice to meet you.
- And Elise.

- Hi.
- Nice to see you.

How are you?

- [Jonathan] Inside the shop,

we sign our waivers while
First Mate Dylan Moulder

fills some tanks and
loads them on the boat.

[crew chattering]

We set up our gear
before we leave the dock.

Next, a quick pre-dive safety briefing.

Then we're off.

Because it's the off-season,
we have the boat to ourselves.

As the morning clouds clear,

it has become a perfect day on the water

for our 20-minute ride to the dive site.

All the dive sites have
permanent mooring lines,

so nobody has to throw
an anchor onto the reef.

Chris gives us

a dive briefing-
- They actually moved

the wreck across the sand hole

and wedged it up into the reef.

- [Jonathan] And then
it's time to suit up.

The water this time of the year

is only 68 degrees Fahrenheit,

which isn't exactly tropical,

but it's a lot warmer than home.

[soft music]
[people chattering]

[person laughing]

[fins slapping]

While this time of the
year has cooler water,

it also has the best visibility.

We are talking crystal clear.

Oh, the vis is good!
- Yeah, it's pretty good.

- All right. You ready?
- Yep.

[water splashes]

- [Jonathan] As we submerge,

we can see the bottom 80 feet down.

Chris leads us over to
the wreck of the Hermes.

This small ship,

originally built for the US
Navy, was abandoned in Bermuda

when she experienced engine trouble.

The government of Bermuda
donated the ship for use

as an artificial reef.

It was sunk intentionally in the mid-1980s

and has become one of the
most popular dives in Bermuda.

[light music]

This is perfect for the
kids' first rec dive.

The deck is only 60 feet deep.

[light music continues]

We dropped down to check
out the cargo hold,

but it's full of water!

We do a good job of silting the place up.

The superstructure is wide
open and safe to explore

so we can swim through.

[light music continues]

Chris has a surprise for everyone:

the engine room.

[curious music]

I am fascinated filming the generator,

but then I realize,

hey, they're leaving without me!

[soft music]

This is a cool shot,

until the lights don't fit.

[light music]

A hurricane pushed the ship
right up against the reef

where it's now pretty solidly stuck.

Swimming over the deck, we see machinery,

but it's hard to tell what it was.

There's a big capstan used
for hauling up the anchor

and a long boom that was
used for loading cargo.

[light music continues]

It must be super smart because
it's covered in brain coral.

[gentle music]

Chris takes us on a tour
around the nearby reef

so we can see some coral.

Because Bermuda is at
the very northern edge

of the tropical zone,

only a few species of coral live here,

but the ones that do seem to be thriving.

Due to the warm influence
of the Gulf Stream,

this is one of the northern
most coral reefs in the world.

After a lap around the reef,
we head back to the wreck.

But as we approach our
no decompression limits,

it's time to head back to a
boat which is still afloat.

On the safety decompression stop,

the kids battle it out
with rock-paper-scissors

to see who goes first.

[bright music]

It's a little bouncy
getting back on the boat.

- All right, why don't you come over,

oh, this side?

- Woo-hoo!

The afternoon winds have calmed

and we have a beautiful
flat ride back to the shop.

[lighthearted music]

The tide has dropped a
few feet since we left,

so it's a good thing
there's steps in the dock.

The wreck of the Hermes
is popular for a reason.

This classic shipwreck is a great dive

for new or experienced divers alike.

It's not too deep, can be
explored easily and safely,

and you can see the whole thing at once

through the crystal clear water.

Diving in Bermuda is a great way

to experience the blue world.

[bright music]

[gentle music]