Nature's Strangest Mysteries: Solved (2019–…): Season 1, Episode 4 - Aflocalypse Now - full transcript

Narrator: For some,
it's natural to hang around upside down,

But for this skunk, logic
has been turned on its head.

So the question is,
what is it doing?

Narrator: In arkansas,
thousands of birds turn up dead

For no apparent reason.

Bradley: Something
absolutely catastrophic

Happened to them
either in the air

Or when they plummeted
to the earth.

Narrator: And why
is this frog flashing?

It's like a christmas frog.

Narrator:
Nature is awe-inspiring,



But sometimes, it just
doesn't make sense.

Man: I have never, ever
seen anything like this.

Strange animal behavior,

Unexpected events
captured on camera.

[ Screeching ]

The truth behind them
is astonishing.

Woman: My god!

Nature's greatest
mysteries solved.

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

It's January 1, 2011,
and in one town,

The new year has begun like
something out of a horror movie.

[ Telephone rings ]

♪

♪



I'll never forget the incident
in beebe, because it happened

Just after I had relocated
to the united states.

Narrator: Beebe is a small town
in arkansas.

It had woken up to find around
5,000 dead birds

Scattered over an area
of about 2 square miles.

Bradley: It was quite horrific.

This incident came to be known
as the aflockalypse.

Narrator: There were
so many dead birds,

It took 2 days
to clear away the carcasses.

Bradley: Obviously, something
absolutely catastrophic

Happened to them
either in the air

Or when they plummeted
to the earth.

Narrator: Who, or what,
had killed these birds?

And if it was something
airborne,

Could local residents
also be at risk?

In terms of pollution,
if it were strong enough

To kill a flock of 5,000 birds,

That's gonna affect
people on the ground,

It's gonna affect
living things nearby.

Narrator: Residents were worried
that whatever had killed the birds

Might harm them, too,
so officials had to act fast.

They first studied those most
affected...

Red-winged blackbirds.

[ Chirps ]

These songbirds have a variety
of tunes...

[ chirping continues ]

...And get their name from the
males' red-feathered shoulders.

Bradley: The red-winged blackbird
is a very striking bird.

There are glossy black plumage
on the males

And then these stunning
red and gold epaulettes.

When the males are trying to
attract a female's attention,

They fly very slow

And tilt these epaulettes up
to show them off,

Not unlike the way an airplane
would turn its flaps up

For landing.

Narrator:
Very dashing, guys.

If you've got it, flaunt it.

[ Chirps ]

So, what could have wiped out
so many of these

Striking songbirds in one night?

Bradley: Perhaps the most
ghastly probability

Is the idea
of an airborne toxic event.

Narrator: Worryingly,
there had already been some mysterious

Animal deaths 3 days
before the blackbirds died

Just a drive away from beebe.

Bradley: An incredibly
disturbing precursor

Was the death of 120,000
drum fish in a nearby river,

Giving rise to the possibility
that poison was involved,

Perhaps some sort of toxic gas

That had poisoned
both the air and the water.

Narrator: It was possible that
the birds and fish had been killed

By the same toxin.

Some gaseous chemicals
can dissolve in water vapor

In the air.

This can condense into clouds,
fall as acid rain or snow,

And run into rivers
or the water table.

As a precaution, officials
in beebe wore protective suits

As they cleared away
the dead birds.

Top experts were consulted,

Including wildlife veterinarian
jonathan sleeman.

Because of the high level of
concern regarding this event,

We wanted to make sure we
weren't gonna miss anything,

Any potential disease that
could be transmitted to humans.

We ran all these diagnostic
tests looking for poisons,

Looking for parasites,

Looking for
viruses and bacteria,

And everything came back
consistently negative.

Narrator: The birds weren't killed
by disease or something toxic...

A huge relief
for everyone in beebe.

Studies showed that when
a dam opened upstream,

It churned up the water,

Adding extra oxygen to the river
and killing the fish.

But for the aflockalypse,
the autopsy results

Were about to reveal
something mysterious.

They found a number of birds
that had broken bones.

A number of birds
had hemorrhages or bleeding

Within internal organs.

They had bruises in their lungs
and their liver

And in their cranium.

So all these findings
are very consistent

With what we call
blunt force trauma.

Narrator: But how could
around 5,000 birds

All simultaneously sustain
such similar serious injuries?

Clues could lie in one feature
of the birds' behavior...

They fly in flocks.

Bradley: Red-winged blackbirds
are a very powerful flier.

Flocks of up to 1 million birds

Can be seen in the skies
of north america.

Narrator: They're one of the bird
species that produce captivating,

Synchronized movements
known as murmurations.

Just like schools of fish,
whole groups operate

As if with one mind.

Dagmar: A lot of birds in flocks
have an ability to communicate

With each other through means
we don't yet fully understand.

Like, a flock of starlings will
travel left, will travel right,

And the whole flock...
Thousands and thousands

And sometimes tens of thousands
of birds... moves in unison,

And how they communicate
with one another

Is still a bit of a mystery,

But if that communication method
is disturbed,

Well, all bets are off.

Narrator: So what could disrupt
communication in a whole flock?

One possible theory could
be meteorological events.

[ Thunder rumbles ]

Storms could kill birds
very quickly.

[ Thunder crashes ]

Arkansas is kind of right
in the middle of tornado alley.

So they're a hot spot
for severe weather.

[ Thunder crashes ]

Bradley:
One thing's for certain...

They could not withstand
a bolt of lightning...

Not a direct hit
and not even a proxmial hit.

So any birds within 30 yards

Are probably going to evaporate
into a puff of feathers.

Narrator: The birds' bodies were
found spread out over a 2-mile area,

Suggesting that a whole flock
had been hit.

But could lightning really
be powerful enough

To affect thousands
of birds in flight?

Generally, where the lightning
strikes,

Lightning can emanate out

20, 30, 40, 50 meters
from the strike.

So it could affect birds
roosting in a tree,

But it would be highly unlikely
that it would affect

A flock of birds in flight.

Narrator:
If it wasn't lightning,

Could it have been
a storm of a different kind?

It could be hail.

A hailstorm could have
a devastating effect

On any flock of birds.

When you think of a heavy
hailstorm,

What you need to imagine is
the sky full of falling hammers,

I mean, potentially fatal
for virtually any species,

Even larger birds.

Narrator: In 2018,
a duck and a vulture were killed

By hail in a colorado zoo.

Man: I have never been
in weather like this before.

This was the damage done
to cars in the parking lot.

Dagmar: The world's record
for the largest hailstone

Was 8 inches in diameter,

So that's big enough to kill
a cow, never mind a blackbird.

Narrator: Although the
national weather service

Did record a storm in arkansas
on new year's day,

It was already
well east of beebe

By the time
the birds started falling.

So what else could have caused
this mass carnage?

Narrator:
New year's day, 2011.

The residents of
beebe, arkansas,

Have woken up
to find the town covered

In around 5,000 dead birds.

With storms, disease,
and toxins ruled out,

What caused the aflockalypse?

When you examine this
incident closely,

The date and the time of these
deaths is particularly telling.

The fatalities happened
on new year's eve.

Narrator: New year's eve...
a prime time for celebrating

That's probably not quite
as much fun for animals.

Bradley: Amid all
the new year's festivities,

There were numerous
fireworks displays.

And fireworks have been known
to cause panic

Amongst animals of all sizes,

From domestic pets
through to wildlife,

And especially birds.

Dagmar: They fly. They look
for an escape from the noise,

From the danger,
from the sound, from the light.

And in doing so,
they can run into danger

Or possibly run into themselves.

[ Fireworks crackling ]

Narrator: But there were
fireworks all across the country,

So why did they
only affect birds in beebe?

Weeks later, meteorologists
discover something interesting.

Dagmar: Radar was showing something
called a temperature inversion.

Normally, at night, the
atmosphere cools with height.

So you get the warmer layer
at the surface,

And with height,
the atmosphere cools.

Narrator: On rare occasions,
this inverts,

And the air becomes warmer
the higher you go.

Dagmar: So you have cooler air
at the surface,

And you have warmer air up high.

Narrator: Temperature inversion
was very important,

As it can actually alter sound.

Sound travels differently
through cool air

Than it does through warm air.

So when it hits that warmer air,
it tends to speed up

And bounce back
towards the ground.

Bradley: In essence,
the temperature inversion

Created a colossal loudspeaker

As large as the heavens
themselves.

It amplified the sounds of
the fireworks to such a degree

That it panicked
the birds from their nests,

Caused them to fly
at full speed,

Blindly, in the dark,

Until they collided
with each other,

Causing catastrophic
trauma injuries.

[ Fireworks crackling ]

Narrator: The following year,
new year's eve fireworks

Were banned by the police chief
in the beebe area,

And it's hoped that the chances

Of another aflockalypse
now are low.

[ Insects chirping ]

Tuscon, arizona, June 2015.

Some wildlife cameras have been
set up in a national park,

And one is about
to capture a display

That's as weird as it
is amazing.

On first glance, this looks
like an animal

At a desert festival
wearing a headdress.

You can see that it's furry
and stripy,

And it looks like it's got
an enormous, great big hairdo.

Narrator: But that's a rear end
in the air, proudly on display.

Gillian: This is incredible.

This is a skunk
doing a handstand,

Legs splayed
and tail in the air.

I mean, when I saw this,
I just thought,

"wow. It's so impressive.
I mean, what a stunt."

Narrator: This western spotted skunk
does a handstand for over 10 seconds.

So the question is, why?
What is it doing?

[ Insects chirping ]

[ Insects chirping ]

Narrator: Tuscon, arizona,
and a skunk has been caught on camera

Doing a bizarre handstand
for over 10 seconds.

Unless it's been employed
by the local circus,

It's not clear why it's learned
this acrobatic feat.

Gillian: My first thought was,

"surely it's trying to impress
something or someone."

Lucy: Could it be
to attract a female?

Well, all sorts of animals
have extraordinary displays

In order to attract
the opposite sex.

Gillian: Famously,
the birds of paradise,

They are elaborate in their
colors and their plumage.

But also, they have these
incredibly elaborate dances

To impress the females.

And adélie penguins will
provide females with pebbles

In order to attract them.

Narrator: Maybe their
girlfriends asked for a ring

With a massive rock on it...?

And there are these
hooded seals...

They have these huge
inflatable noses.

Narrator:
Knock 'em dead, fellas.

[ Snorts ]

Gillian: And this one is possibly
quite a strange one here.

This is a male giraffe
drinking the female's urine.

Narrator: Well, that's something
you don't see every day.

So is this some strange
courtship ritual?

Narrator: It could be like
an old-fashioned love story.

Or maybe not.

Lucy: The seduction technique
of the skunk

Is relatively straightforward.

Just run in and grab a female
you like by the neck,

And that's it.

No prizes for romance.

[ laughing ] I'm sorry.

[ Romantic music playing ]

Narrator: If this isn't about mating,
could it be an odd skunk ritual

Of trying to scent-mark
in an upside-down fashion?

Lucy: Scent is extremely
important for lots of animals.

Narrator: Spraying scent
is a way

Of communicating an animal's
presence to others.

Now, doing a handstand
at the same time

Isn't as unusual
as you might think.

Gillian: We're very familiar
with dogs urinating

And scent-marking on things,
but incredibly,

Dogs will also go up
on their front paws

To try and pee and urinate
as high up as possible.

Narrator: Scent can
reveal information

About the sprayer's
health and size.

So the higher up the spray is,

The larger an animal
might seem to others.

Visitors at edinburgh zoo
in scotland

Were about to get
a front-row seat

To witness this behavior.

Incredibly, pandas will
actually invert, do a handstand,

And urinate up against trees,
as well...

Again, to make them appear
bigger than they are.

[ laughter ]

Woman: Oh!

However, what we do know
about skunks

Is that they won't spray
to advertise their size.

Narrator: So they probably don't
do handstands to scent-mark.

Now, skunks are famous
for smelling unpleasant,

But this odor comes
from a special liquid

They occasionally spray.

Gillian: In this footage,
the skunk is possibly

Doing what skunks
are most famous for,

Which is spraying
its very pungent urine.

Narrator: Technically,
it's a scent produced in the anal glands.

Gillian: Skunk spray
isn't smelly by accident.

It's packed full of sulfurous
elements,

Sulfurous chemicals in it.

So they do use
the spray like a weapon.

[ Barking ]

Narrator: It was hard to see
the skunk spray,

So let's watch it again
in slow motion.

Gillian: They're very accurate.

They can aim from
about 10 feet away.

They go for the face,
and if it gets in your eyes,

It can cause irritation, nausea,
and even temporary blindness.

[ Sneezing ]

Narrator: Skunks only produce
enough for around six sprays

Every 10 days.

So they will only release their
precious supply if they have to.

Perhaps the dance
is a cheaper alternative.

What this skunk is likely to be
doing here is a threat,

But a threat
of a different kind.

Lucy: He's noticed the camera.

He thinks it's a threat, and so
he's doing this warning dance,

And if that doesn't work,

Then he will take
on his last resort,

Which is squirting his
unpleasant scent at the camera.

[ Whimpering ]

Narrator: A number of animals
give a warning

Before bringing out
the big guns.

Having a fight or using weapons
like toxic venom can be costly.

So many animals prefer
to threaten first,

In the hope
the predator will back down.

So if you ever find yourself
standing face-to-tail

With a skunk like this,
you've received your warning.

Make your escape from the spray
while you still can.

[ Insects chirping ]

Dan: July 2018,
tallahassee, florida.

There's a frog sticking
to the window of a house,

And for whatever reason,
the frog is flashing light.

So, why on earth
is this frog flashing?

It's like a christmas frog.

[ Insects chirping ]

[ Insects chirping ]

Narrator: July 2018,
tallahassee, florida.

This electric-looking amphibian
is discovered on a window.

What is making it flash?

Frogs are amphibians and
can live on land and in water.

Some are found in the deepest
of rainforests,

Others in people's backyards.

There are lots of different
kinds of frogs in the world.

There are, like,
5,000 different kinds.

Lucy: There are frogs
that can fly.

There are frogs
that can freeze solid.

There are frogs that live
in deserts

And can live underground
for months on end.

Narrator: So far, we know of no
species that flashes like this one.

Could it be a new type that we
just haven't seen before?

People are finding new ones
all the time.

Just in 2016, there was a new
species called mahony's toadlet

That was found in australia.

Narrator: It was one of
dozens of new frog species

Discovered in the last few years

And is recognizable by
these orange marks on its legs.

But could a brand-new
flashing species really turn up

On a residential window?

This is tallahassee, florida.

This is a place that's pretty
well surveyed for animals,

And if there were one
that glows in the dark,

I think we'd have
seen it by now.

Narrator: In that case,

Could another idea
illuminate us?

So, has this frog actually
swallowed something

That flashes...

Something that we've made,
like a torch or a kid's toy?

It looks a little bit like a
christmas light inside the frog,

But it's probably
not electronics.

Narrator: Frogs aren't going to be
tempted by a piece of random plastic.

They go for much more
appetizing snacks,

Like this delicious-looking...
Worm thing.

It probably ate something
natural that lights up,

Like a firefly.

Lucy: Fireflies aren't flies.
They are insects.

They're part of the enormous
order of beetles.

So fireflies produce this light
by combining a chemical

Which we call luciferin
with oxygen

In specially evolved organs.

Narrator: So,
if the firefly is inside this frog,

How is it we can
still see its light?

Dan: Frog skin
is incredibly thin.

In fact, frogs can even breathe
through their skin.

So the fact that the light
shines right through it,

That's not surprising at all.

Lucy: So, the question is,

How is the fly still flashing
once it's been eaten?

Dan: I think this firefly
is still alive.

I mean, a frog doesn't even chew
its food, right?

It just swallows it.

Narrator: There have been other
sightings across america

Of flashing frogs,

But fireflies are a big mistake
for dinner.

Most in north america are toxic

And have enough poison
to kill a lizard.

In fact, their light
probably developed as a warning.

Perhaps this frog didn't get
the memo.

[ Insects chirping ]