Wild New World (2002): Season 1, Episode 2 - Canyonlands - full transcript

THE SOUTHWEST STATES
OF NORTH AMERICA,

A REGION OF EXTREMES...

FROM THE COLORADO RIVER
AND DESERT CANYONS

TO ARTIFICIAL LANDSCAPES
THAT TEEM WITH LIFE...

INCLUDING ONE OF THE WORLD'S
MOST VIBRANT CITIES.

THIS IS LAS VEGAS--

A MAN-MADE OASIS
DEEP IN THE NEVADA DESERT.

ONLY A CENTURY AGO,

THIS WONDERLAND
WAS SAND AND SCRUB.

TODAY IT'S ONE
OF THE CONTINENT'S
FASTEST-GROWING CITIES.

ALL THIS DEPENDS ON WATER
PUMPED FROM THE COLORADO RIVER



50 MILES AWAY.

WITHOUT THIS IMPORTED WATER,

THERE WOULD BE NO VEGAS.

BUT DURING
THE LAST ICE AGE,

THE LAS VEGAS VALLEY HAD
A PLENTIFUL SUPPLY OF WATER,

AND IT WAS A MAGNET
FOR ALL KINDS OF WILDLIFE.

JUST 13,000 YEARS AGO--

NOT LONG IN THE VAST
TIME-SCALE OF A CONTINENT--

THIS VALLEY OVERFLOWED
WITH LAKES AND PONDS

FRINGED WITH REED BEDS
AND SWAMPS.

ALL KINDS OF CREATURES
WOULD HAVE BEEN DRAWN

TO THIS NATURAL REFUGE.

ONE GROUP OF NEW ARRIVALS
IN THIS LAND OF OPPORTUNITY

WERE PEOPLE.
AS THE ICE AGE ENDED



AND NEW PATHWAYS OPENED UP
ACROSS THE CONTINENT,

THESE HUNTERS
CAUGHT THEIR FIRST GLIMPSE
OF THE CANYON LANDS.

IMAGINE IF WE COULD
TRAVEL BACK IN TIME

TO SEE THIS WILD
NEW WORLD,

AND THE STRANGE
AND TERRIFYING ANIMALS

THAT LIVED HERE
13,000 YEARS AGO.

USING EVIDENCE LEFT BEHIND
BY THESE CREATURES,

WE WILL RECREATE LIFE

IN THE ICE AGE
CANYON LANDS.

IT'S TAKEN MILLIONS
OF YEARS TO CARVE

THE RED ROCK SCULPTURES
OF THE CANYON LANDS.

TODAY THEY SPREAD ACROSS
SEVERAL STATES,

INCLUDING COLORADO,
ARIZONA,

UTAH AND NEVADA.

THESE ISOLATED
HIGH PLATEAU

ARE STILL HOME TO SOME
ANIMALS THAT WERE HERE

AT THE END
OF THE LAST ICE AGE.

TODAY, THE MOUNTAIN LION
IS THE LARGEST PREDATOR

THAT STILL PATROLS
THE CANYONS,

LIVING MUCH AS IT DID
13,000 YEARS AGO.

IT'S A TOUGH EXISTENCE.

FOOD IS HARD TO COME BY,
WATER TOO,

AND THE DESERT CLIMATE SWINGS
FROM BELOW ZERO OVERNIGHT

TO NEARLY 40°
CENTIGRADE BY DAY.

AT LEAST THERE'S
NO SHORTAGE OF SHADE.

A LABYRINTH OF CAVES
CAN OFFER SHELTER

FROM THE HEAT
AND COLD--

AND FROM THE DANGERS
OF THE NIGHT.

THERE WAS A TIME
WHEN EVEN MOUNTAIN LIONS

COULDN'T SLEEP IN SAFETY.

THESE CAVES ARE HAUNTED
BY THE GHOST OF ANOTHER
CARNIVORE

THAT DWARFED
THE MOUNTAIN LION,

PROBABLY THE BEST KNOWN
OF ALL ICE AGE HUNTERS.

IT KILLED WITH FANGS
LIKE THESE,

20 CENTIMETERS LONG.

THE SABER-TOOTHED CAT.

BUT HOW EXACTLY WERE THESE
CHILLING WEAPONS USED?

WITH ITS 300-KILO FRAME
AND SHORT LEGS,

THE SABER-TOOTH
WAS NOT THAT FAST.

IT PROBABLY AMBUSHED PREY,

USING ITS HUGE WEIGHT
TO PIN IT DOWN,

BEFORE DELIVERING A SLASHING
BITE TO THE NECK.

SHOCK AND LOSS OF BLOOD
WOULD QUICKLY KILL ITS VICTIM.

AND YET THESE LETHAL FANGS
MUST HAVE CAUSED PROBLEMS

FOR THEIR OWNER TOO.

HOW DO YOU EAT
WITH TEETH THIS LONG?

EVEN WITH A HUGE GAPE,

ALMOST TWICE THE SPAN
OF ANY OTHER CAT,

THE SABER-TOOTH COULD BARELY
OPEN ITS MOUTH WIDE ENOUGH

TO LIFT THESE MASSIVE CANINES
CLEAR OF ITS LOWER JAW.

THAT WOULD HAVE MADE IT
VERY DIFFICULT TO TAKE A BITE.

BUT IT ALSO HAD
THESE SPECIAL CHEEK TEETH.

THEY SUGGEST IT ATE
THROUGH THE SIDES OF ITS MOUTH,

SLICING OFF MANAGEABLE
STRIPS OF FLESH.

EVEN SO, THE SABER-TOOTH
MUST HAVE BEEN FORCED

TO LEAVE MUCH OF ITS MEAL
FOR SCAVENGERS.

THE MOUNTAIN LION
WITH ITS MORE MODEST CANINES

CAN EAT ALMOST ANYTHING

FROM MOUNTAIN SHEEP
TO BIRDS AND EVEN PLANTS.

BUT TODAY, LIKE EVERY OTHER
DESERT DWELLER,

ITS MAIN PROBLEM
ISN'T FOOD, IT'S WATER.

AWAY FROM THE MAIN RIVERS,
WATERHOLES ARE RARE

AND SOON EVAPORATE
IN THE HEAT,

AND IT MAY BE MONTHS
BEFORE THEY GET REFILLED.

A REAL DOWNPOUR MAY HAPPEN
ONLY ONCE A YEAR,

BUT IT CAN HAVE
A MASSIVE IMPACT.

STORMS DON'T JUST
SUSTAIN LIFE IN THE DESERT,

THEY HAVE HELPED TO SCULPT
THIS SPECTACULAR LANDSCAPE.

RAIN RUNS OFF BARE ROCK
AND GATHERS IN THE CANYONS,

QUICKLY ESCALATING
INTO FLASH FLOODS

THAT CAN CARRY AWAY
HUGE CHUNKS OF ROCK,

CONSTANTLY SHAPING
AND RESHAPING

OVER MILLIONS OF YEARS...

CREATING A DREAMSCAPE
OF SPIRES AND GULLIES.

OVER THESE
MILLIONS OF YEARS,

THE LARGER RIVERS--

THE COLORADO,
GREEN AND SAN JUAN--

HAVE CARVED OUT CANYONS
UP TO ONE MILE DEEP.

WATER HAS SCULPTED
THE CLIFFS AND GOUGED OUT
INNUMERABLE CAVES,

CAVES THAT STORE A WEALTH
OF CLUES FROM THE ICE AGE PAST.

ONE OF THE MOST
REMARKABLE CAVE SITES

WAS DISCOVERED
ON THE ARIZONA-UTAH BORDER.

HERE, THE DRY AIR
PRESERVED PILES OF EVIDENCE.

NOT BONES OR TEETH...

BUT DUNG...

FOOTBALL-SIZED DUNG BALLS,

WHICH DATED RIGHT BACK
TO THE ICE AGE,

CARPETING THE CAVE FLOOR
10 METERS DEEP.

BUT WHAT COLOSSAL BEAST
COULD HAVE DEPOSITED THEM HERE?

IT WAS THE LARGEST
OF ALL ICE AGE ANIMALS--

A 10-TON RELATIVE
OF MODERN ELEPHANTS,

MORE THAN
FOUR METERS TALL--

THE COLUMBIAN MAMMOTH.

SO, WAS THIS CAVE
JUST A LATRINE,

OR WERE THE MAMMOTHS HERE
FOR OTHER REASONS?

TO ESCAPE BAD WEATHER,
OR THE MIDDAY HEAT?

PERHAPS THEY USED IT
AS A NIGHT SHELTER,

OR CAME
TO VISIT SALT LICKS

LIKE SOME ELEPHANTS DO
IN AFRICA TODAY.

NO ONE REALLY KNOWS,

BUT THIS PREHISTORIC
DUNG PILE

OFFERS PLENTY
OF OTHER INFORMATION

ABOUT HOW
COLUMBIA MAMMOTHS LIVED.

IT'S MOSTLY
COMPOSED OF GRASS,

LIKE ELEPHANT
DUNG BALLS TODAY.

TO GET ENOUGH FOOD
TO SUSTAIN THEIR HUGE BODIES,

MAMMOTHS HAD TO GRAZE
FOR UP TO 20 HOURS A DAY,

CONSUMING UP TO
1/4 TON OF GRASS.

WHEN NOT EATING,
THEY WERE ON THE MOVE,

IN SEARCH
OF FRESH SUPPLIES.

THEY PROBABLY MIGRATED
THROUGH THE RIVER VALLEYS

AND THE BIGGER CANYONS,

CAREFUL NOT TO STRAY
TOO FAR FROM WATER.

BUT THE CONTINENT
THESE MAMMOTHS TRAVELED THROUGH

LOOKED VERY DIFFERENT
FROM THE ONE WE KNOW TODAY.

DURING THE ICE AGE,

MUCH OF NORTH AMERICA
WAS BLANKETED

WITH MASSIVE ICE SHEETS
UP TO TWO MILES THICK.

AND WHEN
THE GREAT THAW BEGAN,

THE CHANGES IN THE NORTH
BROUGHT A NEW ERA
TO THE DESERT.

FOR THE FIRST TIME,
PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO MAKE
THE ARDUOUS JOURNEY SOUTH.

TODAY WE CAN STILL
MAP THEIR ROUTE

FROM STONE TOOLS
LEFT BEHIND.

IN JUST
A FEW HUNDRED YEARS,

THEY SPREAD DOWN
FROM THE GREAT PLAINS,

THROUGH THE CANYON LANDS
AND ALL THE WAY TO MEXICO.

THEY EVEN TOOK
THE MIGHTY COLORADO RIVER

AND ITS APPARENTLY
IMPENETRABLE CANYONS
IN THEIR STRIDE...

INCLUDING
THE GRAND CANYON.

CARVED OUT OVER
MILLIONS OF YEARS,

THIS IS EROSION
ON AN EPIC SCALE--

280 MILES LONG,
UP TO 18 WIDE

AND MORE THAN
ONE MILE DEEP.

FOR PEOPLE, CROSSING
THIS FORBIDDING LANDSCAPE

MUST HAVE BEEN
A SUPERHUMAN FEAT.

BUT FOR OTHER ANIMALS,

IT SEEMS TO BE
NO BARRIER TO TRAVEL.

UP HERE ON THE ROOF
OF CANYON LANDS

ARE BIGHORN SHEEP

THAT SEEM TO LIVE
ALMOST OFF THIN AIR,

EKING OUT A LIVING
FROM THE MEAGER VEGETATION.

SPECIALIST DESERT PLANTS
LIKE CACTUS

OFFER LITTLE NUTRITION

AND THEIR DEFENSIVE SPINES
MAKE WHAT GOODNESS
THEY DO CONTAIN

EXTREMELY DIFFICULT
TO REACH.

BUT THE HARDY BIGHORN
HAVE EVOLVED

TO GET ALL THEY NEED
FROM THESE PLANTS,

INCLUDING MOISTURE.

THEY NEED ONLY VISIT
STANDING WATER EVERY FEW DAYS

AND THE FEMALES CAN STILL
PRODUCE ENOUGH MILK
FOR THEIR YOUNG.

BUT 13,000 YEARS AGO,

ANOTHER CLIMBER SCALED
THESE DIZZY HEIGHTS

AND LEFT A CLUE
TO ITS IDENTITY

HIGH IN A CAVE
ON THE GRAND CANYON WALLS.

A SKULL
WITH VEGETARIANS' TEETH

AND SHORT HORNS.

IT BELONGED
TO A MOUNTAIN GOAT,

A COMMON SIGHT
HERE IN THE ICE AGE,

WITH A SHAGGY COAT
TO BEAT THE BITING WINDS.

SCENES LIKE THIS WOULD HAVE
BEEN COMMON BACK THEN.

HERDS TIPTOEING MIRACULOUSLY
ACROSS SUICIDAL SLOPES.

NOW FOUND ONLY IN THE ROCKIES
FURTHER NORTH,

THEY SPEND MOST OF THEIR TIME
HIGH UP ON THE MOUNTAIN SLOPES,

BUT EACH SPRING
THEY MAKE THEIR WAY

DOWN TO THE CANYON BOTTOM

WHERE THE RIVER HAS EXPOSED
FRESH EARTH AND ROCK.

IT'S A CRUCIAL
TIME OF YEAR.

THE GOATS ARE
SHEDDING WINTER COATS

AND LOSING VITAL MINERALS
WITH THEIR FUR.

BY NIBBLING THESE SALT LICKS
THEY CAN TOP UP THEIR SUPPLIES.

EVEN NEWBORN KIDS
MUST MAKE THE PERILOUS DESCENT

TO COLLECT
THESE CRUCIAL SALTS.

OTHER ICE AGE
CREATURES ALSO ROAMED
THESE PRECIPITOUS CLIFFS.

IN THIS GRAND CANYON CAVE,

SCIENTISTS MADE
A REMARKABLE DISCOVERY,

RECREATED HERE--

OVER 200 BONES THAT,
WHEN PUT TOGETHER,

REVEAL A CREATURE THAT'S
BEEN DEAD FOR 13,000 YEARS.

FROM MEASURING THESE BONES

WE KNOW IT WAS ABOUT AS
LARGE AS A BLACK BEAR.

ITS TEETH
HAVE TELLTALE GROOVES

THAT ARE SIMILAR
TO THE TREE SLOTHS

STILL ALIVE TODAY
IN SOUTH AMERICA.

SO WHAT STRANGE BEAST
DIED HERE?

A SHASTA GROUND SLOTH,

ONCE AS COMMON IN THE SOUTHWEST
AS THE BIGHORN ARE TODAY.

LIKE THE MAMMOTHS, IT LEFT
MORE THAN BONES AND TEETH

FOR US TO ANALYZE.

BUT THE GROUND SLOTH'S
DESICCATED DUNG BALLS

TELL A DIFFERENT STORY
TO THE MAMMOTH DUNG.

THEY CONTAIN NOT JUST GRASS,
BUT MANY DIFFERENT PLANTS,

MORE THAN 100 SPECIES,

REPRESENTING ALMOST EVERY PLANT
THAT ONCE GREW NEAR THE CAVE.

THE SHASTA GROUND SLOTH
HAD A VARIED MENU--

PRICKLY PEAR,
SALTBUSH AND YUCCA...

EVEN THE TOUGH LEAVES
OF THE JOSHUA TREE.

THE DUNG ALSO REVEALS
HOW SHASTA GROUND SLOTHS

DINED ON DIFFERENT FOODS
AT DIFFERENT TIMES OF YEAR.

GLOBE MALLOW
AND OTHER DESERT FLOWERS

ONLY BLOOM IN SPRING,

BUT THEY WERE OBVIOUSLY
GORGED ON WHEN AVAILABLE.

WHAT DID THE SLOTHS
USE CAVES FOR?

IT'S BEEN SUGGESTED
THEY WERE BIRTHING DENS,

BUT THEY MAY SIMPLY
HAVE BEEN SLEEPING QUARTERS,

A SHELTER FROM
THE COLD DESERT NIGHT.

ONE RECENT STUDY
OF THE SLOTHS' BONE CHEMISTRY

SUGGESTS THAT THEY WERE VERY
SENSITIVE TO TEMPERATURE.

THEY MAY HAVE COME
INSIDE FOR WARMTH.

BUT A ROOF OVER THEIR HEAD

WAS NO GUARANTEE
OF A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP.

AMONG THE SHASTA
GROUND SLOTH BONES

WAS THIS STRANGE SKULL

RESEMBLING
A MINI SABER-TOOTH.

AND FROM A CREATURE
JUST AS BLOODTHIRSTY--

A VAMPIRE BAT.

VAMPIRES LIKE THIS ONE

ARE NO LONGER FOUND
IN NORTH AMERICA,

BUT ONCE THEY LIVED
IN THESE CAVES,

SLEEPING BY DAY,
FEEDING AT NIGHT

ON ANY WARM BLOOD
THAT THEY COULD FIND.

THE VAMPIRE BAT
USES TINY SABER TEETH

TO NICK
ITS VICTIM'S FLESH,

THEN LAPS THE BLOOD
BY CURLING UP ITS TONGUE

INTO A KIND OF STRAW.

ANTI-CLOTTING AGENTS
IN THE BAT'S SALIVA

KEEP THE BLOOD FLOWING
UNTIL IT'S FULL.

NOT ALL REMINDERS OF
THE HISTORY OF THE CANYON LANDS

ARE TUCKED AWAY IN CAVES.

THE OPEN STRATA
OF THE CLIFFS REVEAL

MILLIONS OF YEARS
OF GEOLOGY.

EACH LAYER REPRESENTS
A CHAPTER IN THE STORY
OF THE PAST,

ALL THE WAY BACK
TO THE AGE OF THE DINOSAURS.

THIS DARK BAND
IS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT.

IT'S NOT ROCK, BUT DEBRIS
FROM MORE RECENT TIMES.

IT'S A RUBBISH DUMP,
OR MIDDEN,

MADE OF LEFTOVERS FROM
THOUSANDS OF SMALL MEALS,

ALL STUFFED INTO THE CREVICE
AND GLUED TOGETHER

WITH URINE AND DROPPINGS.

WHO RECYCLED ALL THIS
DEBRIS, AND WHY?

IT'S THE DESERT PACKRAT,

COMMON ALL OVER
THE CANYON LANDS.

GENERATIONS OF PACKRATS
CONTRIBUTE TO THE SAME MIDDENS

OVER THOUSANDS OF YEARS,

HELPING TO FORM
A TOUGH PROTECTIVE SHIELD

AROUND
THEIR RAMBLING NESTS.

THEY HELP SCIENTISTS
TO LOOK INTO THE PAST.

INGREDIENTS LIKE
PRICKLY PEAR SPINES

AND JUNIPER BERRIES

REVEAL JUST WHAT VEGETATION
GREW ACROSS THE CANYON LANDS,

AND WHEN.

THANKS TO THE PACKRATS,

WE KNOW THAT THE BARE ROCK
OF THE HIGH PLATEAU

WAS ONCE GREEN PARKLAND,

WITH CONIFER TREES
AND LUSH GRASSY MEADOWS.

THERE WERE
FORESTS OF JUNIPER

AND THE BARE CANYON WALLS
WERE COVERED

IN A RICH MOSAIC
OF TREES AND SCRUB.

DOWN ON THE DRIER PLAINS,
JOSHUA TREES FLOURISHED.

BUT THE MOST SYMBOLIC
DESERT PLANT TODAY,

THE NINE-METER-TALL
SAGUARO CACTUS,

WAS RARE
13,000 YEARS AGO.

NOW THERE ARE SPECTACULAR
SAGUARO FORESTS.

BUT BACK THEN
THESE BROAD VALLEYS
WERE CARPETED WITH OAKS,

SAGEBRUSH
AND JUNIPER.

SUCH DRAMATIC CHANGES
TELL US IT WAS ONCE MUCH WETTER

AND MILDER HERE
THAN IT IS TODAY.

PROOF OF THIS DAMPER
CLIMATE CAN BE FOUND,

AND IN PERHAPS THE LAST PLACE
ON EARTH YOU'D EXPECT--

DEATH VALLEY.

100 METERS
BELOW SEA LEVEL,

THIS IS THE LOWEST POINT
IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

IT'S ALSO ONE OF THE HOTTEST,
DRIEST PLACES ON EARTH,

WITH DAYTIME TEMPERATURES
THAT SOAR TO 50° CENTIGRADE.

AND IT MAY NOT RAIN
FOR YEARS AT A TIME.

YET EVEN IN THIS FURNACE,
THERE IS LIFE.

IT EXISTS IN THE MANY
SPRING-FED POOLS

THAT DOT
THE VALLEY FLOOR.

THESE ARE DESERT PUPFISH,

AND THEY MANAGE
TO SURVIVE IN WATER

SEVERAL TIMES MORE SALTY
THAN THE SEA,

SOMETIMES AT TEMPERATURES
OF NEARLY 40°.

MOST POOLS SUPPORT
THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL SPECIES--

AND EACH POOL
IS THEIR ENTIRE WORLD.

THIS IS WHERE
THEY HATCH, FEED,

BREED AND DIE.

BUT HOW DID TINY FISH

END UP LIVING IN THE MIDDLE
OF THE DESERT?

THE ANSWER'S ALL AROUND
IN THE VAST SALT FLATS

THAT SEPARATE
THE PUPFISH POOLS.

THIS IS THE DRY BED
OF A HUGE LAKE

THAT EXISTED HERE
DURING THE ICE AGE.

WHEN THE CLIMATE WARMED,
THE LAKE BEGAN TO DRY OUT,

AND THE PUPFISH
ONLY MANAGED TO SURVIVE

WHERE SPRINGS
CONTINUED TO SUPPLY WATER.

CUT OFF FROM EACH OTHER,
PUPFISH THEN EVOLVED

INTO THE MANY DIFFERENT
SPECIES FOUND TODAY.

THE EXISTENCE
OF THIS PREHISTORIC LAKE

PROVES THAT THE CANYON LANDS
WERE ONCE A WETTER,
GREENER PLACE.

AND THAT EXPLAINS THE DIFFERENT
VEGETATION CHANGES

THAT WE SEE RECORDED
IN THE PACKRAT MIDDENS.

THE LAKE THAT FILLED
DEATH VALLEY WAS HUGE.

ITS WATERWAYS,
MARSHES AND REED BEDS

WOULD HAVE BEEN A MAGNET
FOR ALL KINDS OF WILDLIFE,

AND A PIT STOP
FOR MIGRATING BIRDS.

VAST FLOCKS OF CRANES AND GEESE
FLEW IN TO WINTER HERE.

FOR SEVERAL MONTHS,
THEY'D GATHER STRENGTH

BEFORE EMBARKING
ON THE LONG TRIP
NORTH TO BREED.

IN THIS
RICH HUNTING GROUND,

THE CRANES COULD EAT
THEIR FILL OF FISH,

AMPHIBIANS
AND WATER PLANTS.

THERE WERE LARGER ANIMALS
HERE AS WELL.

THE MILD WET CLIMATE
AND ABUNDANT VEGETATION

MADE THE CANYON LANDS
AN IDEAL HABITAT FOR GRAZERS,

INCLUDING SOME THAT WOULD SEEM
STRANGELY OUT OF PLACE TODAY.

CAMELS WERE VERY COMMON.

AND LIKE COLUMBIA MAMMOTHS
AND SHASTA GROUND SLOTHS

THEY LEFT PLENTY
OF DUNG PELLET CLUES.

DISSECTING THEIR DUNG SHOWS
THEY HAD A VARIED DIET,

FROM FINE DESERT GRASSES

TO THE TOUGHEST SHRUBS
AND TREES.

WE MAY THINK OF BISON
AS BELONGING

TO THE OPEN PRAIRIES
FURTHER NORTH,

BUT BACK THEN
THEY WERE EQUALLY AT HOME

GRAZING THE VALLEYS
OF THE SOUTHWEST.

THEY SPENT THEIR WHOLE LIVES
FOLLOWING THE RAINS

IN SEARCH
OF FRESH GRASS.

THIS PATTERN
OF CONTINUOUS MIGRATION

RULED THE LIVES
OF MANY CREATURES HERE,

INCLUDING HORSES SIMILAR
TO MODERN ZEBRA.

BUT 13,000 YEARS AGO,

A NEW THREAT ARRIVED
IN THE CANYON LANDS.

THESE FIRST HUNTERS
HAD ONE BIG ADVANTAGE,

THEIR PREY HAD LITTLE
OR NO EXPERIENCE OF HUMANS,

AND WAS THEREFORE
EASIER TO APPROACH.

THEY WERE ARMED
WITH FLINT SPEAR POINTS

AND TRIED AND TESTED
HUNTING STRATEGIES.

WORKING AS A TEAM,
THEY WERE A MATCH FOR ANY
DESERT PREY.

THE HUNTERS' SUCCESS
WASN'T BAD NEWS

FOR ALL DESERT CREATURES.

THEIR KILLS MUST HAVE PROVIDED
LEFTOVERS FOR SCAVENGERS

LIKE RAVENS.

RAVENS STILL SCAN
THE CANYON LANDS FOR FOOD,

AND BUILD THEIR NESTS
AMID THE PINNACLES AND TOWERS.

SOME OF THE RAVENS' LEDGES
HAVE BEEN FOUND

TO HOLD UNIQUE CLUES
TO THE DESERT'S PAST--

BONE FRAGMENTS
FROM LARGE ANIMALS
LIKE MOUNTAIN GOATS...

WILD ASSES...

AND CAMELS.

BUT HOW DID THEY GET
ALL THE WAY UP HERE?

ALONGSIDE IS THE ANSWER.

IT'S A HUGE BEAK
FROM A GIANT BIRD.

AN ICE AGE CONDOR.

CONDORS SOARED
ACROSS THE CANYONS

ON THEIR HUGE
THREE-METER WINGSPAN,

SEEKING CARRION BELOW.

CONDORS WEREN'T
THE ONLY SCAVENGERS
13,000 YEARS AGO,

BUT THEY WERE BIG ENOUGH
TO OVERSHADOW MANY RIVALS,

INCLUDING FOXES.

WITH THEIR
IMMENSELY STRONG BEAKS,

CONDORS COULD RIP
THROUGH ALMOST ANY CARCASS,

TEARING THROUGH THE HIDE
TO REACH THE MEAT INSIDE.

SMALLER BIRDS
LIKE CARACARAS

WAITED
FOR DISCARDED SCRAPS.

FOSSILS SHOW THAT MANY OTHER
SCAVENGING BIRDS

CRUISED
THE ICE AGE CANYONS--

VULTURES, STORKS
AND EAGLES.

BUT IF THEY SURVIVED
BY EATING CARRION,

WHO WAS
DOING THE KILLING?

THE FOSSILS ALSO SHOW
THERE WAS A FRONT LINE
OF TOP PREDATORS--

CHEETAH,
THE SPRINTER;

WOLF,
THE PACK HUNTER;

AND LIONS, BIGGER AND MORE
POWERFUL THAN ANY SEEN TODAY.

ALL THESE HUNTERS
GENERATED LEFTOVERS

FOR SCAVENGERS
TO SQUABBLE OVER.

BUT THERE WAS ONE MORE KILLER
WORKING THESE CANYONS,

THE MOST NOTORIOUS OF ALL
ICE AGE ASSASSINS.

MOST OF WHAT WE KNOW
ABOUT THIS HUNTER

COMES NOT FROM CAVES,

BUT FROM A VERY
DIFFERENT SOURCE--

NATURAL TAR PITS.

A SINGLE TAR PIT
HAS BEEN FOUND

WITH OVER
2,000 SKELETONS...

OF SABER-TOOTHED CATS.

BY STUDYING THE SKELETONS
PULLED FROM THESE PITS,

WE CAN PIECE TOGETHER
HOW THE FLESH-AND-BLOOD CATS

LIVED AND DIED.

THESE CATS
WERE HUGELY POWERFUL.

SIMILAR IN SIZE
TO AFRICAN LIONS TODAY,

BUT HEAVIER
AND DENSELY MUSCLED,

WEIGHING 300 KILOS
OR MORE.

ALL THIS AND THEN
THE TERRIFYING CANINE TEETH,

WHICH GAVE THE CATS
THEIR NAME.

A TINY BONE
FOUND IN THE THROAT

SUGGESTS THE SABER-TOOTH
COULD ROAR,

AND SO PERHAPS COMMUNICATE
WITH ITS NEIGHBORS.

( roars )

OTHER BONES
TELL OTHER STORIES.

MANY SHOW
SOME KIND OF INJURY,

INCLUDING BROKEN TEETH...

SMASHED LEGS,

AND DISLOCATED HIPS--

NOTHING UNUSUAL IN ANIMALS
THAT WRESTLED HEAVY PREY.

BUT WHAT IS AMAZING,

IS THAT THESE BONES
OFTEN SHOW SIGNS OF HEALING,

MEANING THE CATS LIVED ON
FOR MONTHS OR YEARS,

EVEN WHEN
PERMANENTLY CRIPPLED.

BUT IF THEY COULDN'T HUNT,

HOW DID THEY STAY ALIVE?

SOME SCIENTISTS BELIEVE
THAT SABER-TOOTHS WERE
SOCIAL ANIMALS,

AND HEALTHY MEMBERS
OF THE GROUP

SUPPORTED
WEAKER RELATIVES.

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND,

THEY MAY HAVE SIMPLY
USED THEIR TERRIFYING LOOKS

TO SCARE SMALLER HUNTERS--

WOLVES, FOR EXAMPLE--

AWAY FROM THEIR KILLS.

( roars )

( whimpers )

AT THE END
OF THE LAST ICE AGE,

MORE SOPHISTICATED HUNTERS
STARTED TO ARRIVE.

THEY WERE ABOUT
TO CHANGE THE HIERARCHY

OF THE CANYON LANDS
FOREVER.

FOLLOWING THE RIVERS,

FEEDING ON WHATEVER BIG GAME
CROSSED THEIR PATH,

THEIR SMALL BANDS
QUICKLY SPREAD ACROSS
THE ENTIRE REGION.

FROM THE MOMENT THESE HUNTERS
SET FOOT HERE,

MANY ICE AGE CREATURES
STARTED TO DECLINE

AND BECAME DESTINED
FOR EXTINCTION.

BUT THEY LEFT A TRAIL
OF HIDDEN CLUES

THROUGHOUT THE CAVES
AND CANYONS OF THE DESERT,

AND EACH ONE HELPS US
BUILD A CLEARER PICTURE
OF THE PAST.

AND IF WE CAN FIT
THESE FRAGMENTS BACK TOGETHER,

WE CAN BRING A LOST WORLD
BACK TO LIFE.

COMBINING
ALL THIS EVIDENCE,

WE CAN NOW GO BACK
13,000 YEARS

AND RECREATE A DAY
IN THE LIFE

OF NORTH AMERICA'S
ICE AGE CANYON LANDS.

THE SUN BREAKS OVER
THE RIM OF THE CANYONS

AND BEGINS TO WARM
THE COOL NIGHT AIR.

AN EARLY RISER LUMBERS
THROUGH THE VALLEY,

AND IN THE MARSHES
ALONG THE RIVER,

ROOSTING CRANES
BEGIN TO STIR.

THE WINTER'S ALMOST OVER.

THEY WILL SOON BE LEAVING
FOR THE LONG FLIGHT NORTH
TO BREED.

OTHERS HAVE ALREADY
STUMBLED UPON BREAKFAST.

IT'S A BISON CARCASS--

BUT NO MEAL COMES EASY.

IT TAKES ALL
THE WOLVES' TEAMWORK

TO EXTRACT IT
FROM THE MUD,

AND EVEN THEN IT'S UNLIKELY
TO FEED THE WHOLE PACK.

HIGH ABOVE, A SOLITARY HUNTER
LEAVES HER CLIFF-TOP DEN.

FROM HERE SHE CAN
SURVEY HER VAST RANGE.

SHE HASN'T EATEN
FOR A FEW DAYS

AND SHE MAY HAVE
MANY MILES TO GO
TO FIND A MEAL.

( yawns )

( mammoth roars )

( birds squawking )

SIGNS OF LIFE,

BUT OUT
OF EVEN HER LEAGUE,

COLUMBIA MAMMOTHS
GRAZE THE HIGH PLATEAU.

OTHER MEMBERS OF THE HERD
ARE STILL EMERGING

FROM THEIR NIGHTTIME SHELTER
IN A LARGE CAVE.

FOR THESE 10-TON GIANTS,
IT'S A STRUGGLE TO SURVIVE.

THIS CANYON
WITH ITS SPARSE VEGETATION

WON'T SUPPORT THEIR
MASSIVE APPETITES FOR LONG.

THEY'LL HAVE TO MOVE ON
IN A FEW DAYS' TIME.

THE SABER-TOOTH STARTS TO MOVE
DOWN THROUGH THE GULLIES

TO THE FLATS
AROUND THE RIVER,

WHERE SHE KNOWS THERE
WILL BE FAR MORE PREY.

ANOTHER BIG CAT HAS
THE SAME THING ON ITS MIND.

SHE TOO SETS OFF
TOWARDS THE RIVER...

BUT HER PATH IS BLOCKED.

EVEN A MOUNTAIN LION
DOESN'T HAVE THE POWER,

OR THE WEAPONS,
TO COMPETE WITH SABER-TOOTHS.

BETTER TO TAKE
THE LONG WAY ROUND.

WITH THE SABER-TOOTH
ON HER WAY DOWN,

THE CLIFF-TOPS
ARE A SAFER PLACE.

BY MANAGING TO SCRAPE
A LIVING UP HERE,

BIGHORN SHEEP
AVOID THE DANGERS
OF THE OPEN VALLEY FLOOR.

BUT EVEN THEY NEED WATER
EVERY NOW AND THEN,

AND HAVE TO SCRAMBLE DOWN
TO REACH THE RIVER.

SOME MEMBERS
OF THE MAMMOTH HERD
COME DOWN TO DRINK

BEFORE THEY START THE DAILY
GRAZING MARATHON.

ONCE IN THE MEADOWS,

THEY MINGLE
WITH HORSES AND WILD ASSES,

CAMELS AND BISON...

ALL DRAWN BY THE SPRING FLUSH
OF NEW GRASSES,

FLOWERING PLANTS
AND SPROUTING BUSHES.

THE SHASTA GROUND SLOTH WAITS
UNTIL THE MORNING CHILL
HAS GONE

BEFORE HE VENTURES OUT.

HE COMES BACK TO HIS CAVE
EACH EVENING,

BUT BY DAY HE WANDERS
MILES AROUND THE CANYON LANDS,

DINING ON ANYTHING
THAT TAKES HIS FANCY.

THE GROUND SLOTH'S LUCKY.

HE CAN TACKLE TOUGHER PLANTS
THAN MAMMOTHS.

IN FACT, HE CAN EAT
ALMOST ANYTHING.

THE SABER-TOOTH'S ALREADY
HOT ON HIS TRAIL,

BUT SO FAR THE SLOTH IS
PREOCCUPIED WITH BREAKFAST.

CAMELS BROWSE
THE TREES AND BUSHES.

LIKE THE SLOTH,

THEY'RE TEMPTING GAME
FOR ANY HUNTER.

AFTER TAKING SHELTER
IN THE CANYON OVERNIGHT,

THE CAMELS TOO
CONVERGE ON THE RIVER...

AND MUST RUN THE RISK
OF CROSSING OPEN GROUND.

THEIR EXPEDITION QUICKLY DRAWS
THE SABER-TOOTH'S ATTENTION.

THEY'RE SOFTER TARGETS
THAN THE FASTER,

MORE ELUSIVE PREY.

ONCE AT THE RIVER'S EDGE,
THE CAMELS ARE AT THEIR MOST
VULNERABLE,

HEMMED IN
BETWEEN THE CLIFFSIDES
AND THE COLORADO RIVER.

IT WILL TAKE THE CAMELS
ONLY MINUTES

TO REFILL
THEIR 100-LITER TANKS,

BUT THEY'VE BEEN
SIDETRACKED BY LUSH BROWSING
ON THE RIVERBANK

JUST LONG ENOUGH
TO LET THE CAT CATCH UP.

THE SABER-TOOTH'S NOT BUILT
FOR LONG PURSUITS,

BUT IF SHE CAN
CREEP CLOSE ENOUGH,

SHE'LL USE A BURST OF SPEED
TO LAUNCH AN AMBUSH.

ONE HIT AND ONE BITE
IS ALL IT TAKES.

THE CAMEL IS
AS GOOD AS DEAD.

THE CAT WITHDRAWS
OUT OF HARM'S WAY,

LEAVING BLOOD LOSS
AND SHOCK TO DO THE REST.

BUT AS THE SABER-TOOTH
MOVES IN TO CLAIM HER KILL,

SHE'S NOT ALONE.

A SECOND CAT EMERGES
FROM THE BUSHES.

THIS ONE HAS
A BADLY DAMAGED LEG--

THE LEGACY OF AMBUSHING
A BISON--

AND SHE COULDN'T POSSIBLY
COMPETE FOR FOOD.

BUT WILL THE HUNTER TOLERATE
ANOTHER CAT AT HER KILL?

THESE TWO ARE NOT RIVALS,
THEY'RE BLOOD RELATIVES.

THE HUNTER SHARES HER FOOD

TO HELP THE INJURED CAT
SURVIVE.

BUT EVEN FOR THE FITTEST
SABER-TOOTHS,

NEW COMPETITION MEANS
LIFE IS ABOUT TO GET
A LOT TOUGHER.

WHILE HUMAN HUNTERS
QUICKLY FIND THEIR FEET

HERE IN THE SOUTHWEST
AND INCREASE THEIR NUMBERS,

SABER-TOOTHS, LIKE MANY OTHER
GIANTS OF THE ICE AGE,

ARE NOW LIVING
ON BORROWED TIME.

( branch crackles )

SOON ONLY THE GHOSTS
OF THESE GREAT CATS

WILL HAUNT THE VALLEYS
AND PLATEAU

OF THE CANYON LANDS.

( theme music playing )