1 00:00:37,438 --> 00:00:40,794 ATTENBOROUGH: About 340 million years ago 2 00:00:40,878 --> 00:00:45,508 a brand new family of animals was evolving in the primeval swamps. 3 00:00:50,518 --> 00:00:54,147 They were to go one step further than the amphibians 4 00:00:54,238 --> 00:00:57,275 who had emerged onto dry land before them. 5 00:00:58,958 --> 00:01:03,793 For they would eventually completely cut their ties with water. 6 00:01:05,918 --> 00:01:09,877 They were the ancestors of todays lizards. 7 00:01:14,078 --> 00:01:19,675 They evolved scaly impermeable skins and moved up into the forests. 8 00:01:34,398 --> 00:01:39,153 They diversified into a multitude of different shapes and sizes. 9 00:01:45,758 --> 00:01:50,388 They developed signalling systems to communicate with one another. 10 00:01:56,798 --> 00:02:01,076 And they squabbled as animals do over mates and territory. 11 00:02:03,278 --> 00:02:05,553 For food they hunted insects 12 00:02:07,518 --> 00:02:11,397 that were already well established on the land in great numbers. 13 00:02:17,358 --> 00:02:22,034 And here without returning to water they produced their families. 14 00:02:29,878 --> 00:02:33,029 They powered their bodies not only with food 15 00:02:33,118 --> 00:02:36,428 but with the heat that they drew directly from the sun. 16 00:02:40,038 --> 00:02:45,556 As they diversified so they spread into the harshest of the lands habitats. 17 00:02:45,638 --> 00:02:50,268 The baking waterless deserts which eventually they would come to dominate. 18 00:02:55,638 --> 00:02:59,711 The bigger ones are truly powerful and fearless. 19 00:03:00,358 --> 00:03:03,031 Rearing up theyre well able to defend themselves 20 00:03:03,118 --> 00:03:05,552 with their front legs if theyre threatened. 21 00:03:09,558 --> 00:03:13,597 This is a very intelligent animal. 22 00:03:14,838 --> 00:03:19,514 It is observing me just as I am observing it. 23 00:03:20,838 --> 00:03:27,471 Its a monitor lizard and its king of this country the Australian outback. 24 00:03:28,398 --> 00:03:32,630 It is frightened of pretty well nothing obviously including me 25 00:03:33,878 --> 00:03:39,032 and it will chase and hunt and eat pretty well anything. 26 00:03:40,118 --> 00:03:43,394 There are several thousand lizards round the world 27 00:03:44,038 --> 00:03:48,077 and they are truly the dragons of the dry. 28 00:04:02,638 --> 00:04:07,109 Their eggs on land had to be encased in shells 29 00:04:07,198 --> 00:04:09,473 to prevent them from drying out. 30 00:04:10,438 --> 00:04:13,908 And what better place to lay them could a mother lizard find 31 00:04:13,998 --> 00:04:15,750 than a termites nest? 32 00:04:16,998 --> 00:04:21,355 Worker termites labour unceasingly to keep the temperature and humidity 33 00:04:21,438 --> 00:04:23,998 virtually constant for their own benefit. 34 00:04:24,918 --> 00:04:26,749 But that also makes their mound 35 00:04:26,838 --> 00:04:30,308 a near-perfect incubator for eggs of others. 36 00:04:35,118 --> 00:04:38,155 After 1 0 months theyre beginning to hatch. 37 00:04:57,558 --> 00:05:00,630 These are baby lace monitors. 38 00:05:11,718 --> 00:05:14,186 But they face a major problem. 39 00:05:14,278 --> 00:05:19,306 A termite nests walls can be a foot thick and extremely hard 40 00:05:19,398 --> 00:05:22,470 too hard for the young monitors to break through. 41 00:05:22,558 --> 00:05:25,470 They are imprisoned with no food. 42 00:05:31,918 --> 00:05:33,317 For a week after hatching 43 00:05:33,398 --> 00:05:37,994 theyre sustained by the last of the yolk that remains in their stomachs. 44 00:05:38,078 --> 00:05:41,229 But when that comes to an end they could starve. 45 00:05:49,478 --> 00:05:52,550 An adult lace monitor is nearby. 46 00:06:00,478 --> 00:06:03,595 It may or may not be the babies mother. 47 00:06:03,678 --> 00:06:07,512 If not then it could be a threat for monitors are hunters 48 00:06:07,598 --> 00:06:11,750 and will eat most small animals including baby lizards. 49 00:06:17,758 --> 00:06:21,387 Shes nearing the termite nest within which the young are trapped. 50 00:06:30,718 --> 00:06:34,393 She could be looking for a place to lay her eggs. 51 00:06:34,478 --> 00:06:39,347 Alternatively she might be searching for food such as little lizards. 52 00:07:13,758 --> 00:07:16,716 The babies are released unharmed. 53 00:07:16,798 --> 00:07:18,948 Perhaps she is indeed the babies mother 54 00:07:19,038 --> 00:07:23,031 and not only remembered exactly where she laid her eggs a year ago 55 00:07:23,118 --> 00:07:27,430 but knew that her babies would need her help to escape from the incubator. 56 00:07:32,518 --> 00:07:35,555 The young however are free. 57 00:07:35,638 --> 00:07:38,789 But the outside world is a dangerous place. 58 00:07:44,638 --> 00:07:47,869 They head for safety up into the trees. 59 00:07:52,838 --> 00:07:56,035 In the branches there are other kinds of lizards. 60 00:07:57,558 --> 00:07:59,310 jacky dragons. 61 00:07:59,398 --> 00:08:03,471 Each has its own territory and warns others to keep out. 62 00:08:04,918 --> 00:08:07,751 A wave of the front leg and a bob of the head 63 00:08:07,838 --> 00:08:10,557 is a jacky dragons way of claiming territory. 64 00:08:10,638 --> 00:08:13,357 Here the action is slowed down. 65 00:08:13,438 --> 00:08:17,909 In reality the leg flick is so swift its hard for us to see 66 00:08:17,998 --> 00:08:20,876 but its very plain to another jacky dragon. 67 00:08:25,998 --> 00:08:30,514 But sometimes signals are not enough. Physical violence is needed. 68 00:08:48,838 --> 00:08:54,470 Hes won. The vanquished acknowledges his defeat with a different signal 69 00:08:54,558 --> 00:08:57,470 a slow leg wave with no head bob. 70 00:08:59,958 --> 00:09:05,510 The winner returns to his territory in the branches and announces his victory 71 00:09:07,158 --> 00:09:09,592 which his neighbour acknowledges. 72 00:09:16,598 --> 00:09:20,876 So now both can live alongside one another in peace. 73 00:09:24,998 --> 00:09:27,114 Once jacky dragons stop signalling 74 00:09:27,198 --> 00:09:30,349 it is quite hard to spot them up in the branches. 75 00:09:32,878 --> 00:09:38,271 American anoles are so well camouflaged theyre virtually invisible. 76 00:09:38,358 --> 00:09:41,350 Theres one on this tree right in front of me. 77 00:09:43,278 --> 00:09:47,829 But he too needs to draw attention to himself to warn off rivals 78 00:09:47,918 --> 00:09:50,227 and then to disappear from predators. 79 00:09:51,838 --> 00:09:56,673 This mirror may persuade him to reveal his solution to the problem. 80 00:09:56,758 --> 00:09:58,714 Now then what do you think of that? 81 00:10:01,158 --> 00:10:04,275 Whos that? Yes its a rival. 82 00:10:08,998 --> 00:10:10,272 A tail wag. 83 00:10:11,718 --> 00:10:13,071 Yes. 84 00:10:15,078 --> 00:10:16,636 (LAUGHING) 85 00:10:17,638 --> 00:10:20,027 Youre not going to get rid of me that way. 86 00:10:20,118 --> 00:10:22,348 Show us your signals. 87 00:10:22,438 --> 00:10:27,353 Well press-ups certainly is a keep-away challenge. 88 00:10:30,358 --> 00:10:32,235 And there. Thats it. 89 00:10:34,118 --> 00:10:35,836 The full works. 90 00:10:38,318 --> 00:10:40,195 (LAUGHING) Ah. 91 00:10:40,638 --> 00:10:41,707 Lovely. 92 00:10:42,758 --> 00:10:44,350 Once more. 93 00:10:45,518 --> 00:10:46,587 Thank you. 94 00:10:46,678 --> 00:10:47,713 And again. 95 00:10:47,798 --> 00:10:48,992 (LAUGHING) 96 00:10:49,318 --> 00:10:50,307 Come on. 97 00:10:50,518 --> 00:10:55,194 He obviously thinks that his position is being contested 98 00:10:55,838 --> 00:10:59,877 and he is displaying to show that he is as good as anybody else. 99 00:11:00,798 --> 00:11:03,073 So I guess Ill leave him in peace. 100 00:11:06,958 --> 00:11:11,952 An anoles throat flap appears for only a second or so and then vanishes. 101 00:11:12,438 --> 00:11:14,793 And its owner after sending his message 102 00:11:14,878 --> 00:11:17,836 returns to camouflaged obscurity. 103 00:11:20,598 --> 00:11:23,829 Another family of lizards living in the treetops 104 00:11:23,918 --> 00:11:27,388 has an even more varied repertoire of signals. 105 00:11:27,478 --> 00:11:31,391 They use not only gestures but body colours. 106 00:11:45,078 --> 00:11:46,750 Theyre chameleons. 107 00:11:52,918 --> 00:11:56,274 Their stronghold is the island of Madagascar. 108 00:11:56,358 --> 00:11:59,236 And here there are over 60 different species of them 109 00:11:59,318 --> 00:12:03,027 almost more than in all the rest of the world put together. 110 00:12:04,318 --> 00:12:07,867 This is a panther chameleon. 111 00:12:08,918 --> 00:12:13,912 And its marvellously adapted for life among the branches. 112 00:12:15,438 --> 00:12:20,637 Its toes are divided into two bundles three and two. 113 00:12:20,718 --> 00:12:24,552 And that means that it can use them just like forceps. 114 00:12:27,118 --> 00:12:31,157 Their grasping feet supplemented by their gripping tail 115 00:12:31,238 --> 00:12:35,231 enable them to become remarkable slow-motion acrobats. 116 00:12:45,278 --> 00:12:48,156 I suppose chameleons are best known 117 00:12:48,238 --> 00:12:52,709 for their ability to change colour and that does help in camouflage. 118 00:12:52,798 --> 00:12:55,835 But actually they also use colour change 119 00:12:56,758 --> 00:13:01,434 as a way of communication and expressing their emotions. 120 00:13:07,718 --> 00:13:11,028 When a male panther chameleon spots a rival 121 00:13:11,118 --> 00:13:15,430 he expresses his fury in glorious technicolor. 122 00:13:22,958 --> 00:13:25,313 Malawi in central Africa 123 00:13:25,398 --> 00:13:29,186 may not have as many species of chameleon as Madagascar 124 00:13:29,278 --> 00:13:31,838 but it has one of the largest 125 00:13:31,918 --> 00:13:34,990 Mellers chameleon that can be 60 centimetres 126 00:13:35,078 --> 00:13:37,797 nearly two feet from nose to tail. 127 00:13:47,438 --> 00:13:49,906 Rival males when they do battle 128 00:13:49,998 --> 00:13:53,752 deploy a range of threats that is truly formidable. 129 00:14:48,358 --> 00:14:52,636 If signals dont deter then they start to joust. 130 00:15:21,718 --> 00:15:24,186 Its not only males that fight. 131 00:15:24,278 --> 00:15:27,076 There are also battles between the sexes. 132 00:15:27,158 --> 00:15:29,592 This is the South African dwarf chameleon. 133 00:15:29,678 --> 00:15:31,987 A male in full courtship costume. 134 00:15:37,278 --> 00:15:40,315 This somewhat less colourful is a female. 135 00:15:46,838 --> 00:15:49,910 She is not welcoming his advances. 136 00:15:56,638 --> 00:16:00,313 As her mood darkens so does her skin. 137 00:16:21,678 --> 00:16:24,397 Shes driven him away. But why? 138 00:16:32,078 --> 00:16:33,670 There is a reason. 139 00:16:35,838 --> 00:16:37,635 Shes pregnant. 140 00:16:37,718 --> 00:16:41,631 Her home the South African Cape can get quite cold. 141 00:16:41,718 --> 00:16:46,394 So instead of laying her eggs on the ground as most chameleons do 142 00:16:46,478 --> 00:16:48,673 she retains them within her body 143 00:16:48,758 --> 00:16:52,751 and warms them by seeking out the sunniest places and sunbathing. 144 00:16:54,278 --> 00:16:57,987 Now theyre ready to emerge alive. 145 00:17:06,678 --> 00:17:11,274 Producing babies in the branches might seem to be a risky business 146 00:17:11,358 --> 00:17:15,237 but the membrane enclosing each one will stick to a twig 147 00:17:15,318 --> 00:17:16,546 if it hits one. 148 00:17:19,558 --> 00:17:23,028 And when at last the babies disentangle themselves 149 00:17:23,118 --> 00:17:26,906 they immediately deploy their formidable chameleon grip. 150 00:18:21,678 --> 00:18:24,146 By the time they are properly dried out 151 00:18:24,238 --> 00:18:28,151 the babies are as much at home in the branches as their mother. 152 00:18:52,438 --> 00:18:56,351 But for the most extraordinary chameleons of all 153 00:18:56,998 --> 00:19:01,196 you have to look not up in the trees but down here on the leaf litter. 154 00:19:07,478 --> 00:19:11,312 A whole range of species live on the ground 155 00:19:11,398 --> 00:19:14,549 many of which have only recently been discovered. 156 00:19:19,078 --> 00:19:23,993 This is surely the most extraordinary of all chameleons. 157 00:19:24,878 --> 00:19:29,315 Its the pygmy leaf chameleon. 158 00:19:29,798 --> 00:19:34,667 This is a male and hes fully grown believe it or not. 159 00:19:34,758 --> 00:19:37,750 And yet within this tiny little body 160 00:19:37,838 --> 00:19:42,116 are all the anatomical details of a normal-sized chameleon. 161 00:19:43,158 --> 00:19:45,956 What an extraordinary creature. 162 00:19:51,478 --> 00:19:55,630 Like all chameleons it catches its food with its tongue. 163 00:19:55,718 --> 00:19:56,707 (FLY BUZZING) 164 00:19:57,958 --> 00:20:00,267 It eats tiny flies. 165 00:20:04,878 --> 00:20:10,111 Grasshoppers are popular with normal-sized chameleons. 166 00:20:30,438 --> 00:20:35,068 The tongue contains a tapered rod encircled by muscle. 167 00:20:36,798 --> 00:20:40,916 As the muscle contracts the tongue shoots forward off the rod. 168 00:20:42,278 --> 00:20:45,236 The tip physically grasps the prey. 169 00:20:46,078 --> 00:20:50,993 And then longitudinal muscles contract to pull the tongue back onto its rod 170 00:20:51,078 --> 00:20:52,716 bringing the prey with it 171 00:20:52,798 --> 00:20:56,154 which may weigh half as much as the chameleon itself. 172 00:21:06,438 --> 00:21:11,034 The whole action in reality is completed in a second or so. 173 00:21:23,198 --> 00:21:26,668 The canopy of a tropical forest is full of food 174 00:21:26,758 --> 00:21:30,831 and lizards clamber around looking for it in many ways. 175 00:21:30,918 --> 00:21:33,796 Chameleons use their toes to grip the twigs 176 00:21:33,878 --> 00:21:36,790 and geckos use theirs to stick to leaves 177 00:21:36,878 --> 00:21:40,109 for their toes have adhesive pads on the ends. 178 00:21:42,318 --> 00:21:47,187 Most geckos feed on insects but some take nectar from flowers. 179 00:21:47,278 --> 00:21:51,112 And a few collect liquid from insects in much the same way 180 00:21:51,198 --> 00:21:53,666 as we take milk from cows. 181 00:21:56,958 --> 00:22:01,713 The insect a treehopper is sitting head-down drinking sap from the tree. 182 00:22:01,798 --> 00:22:05,108 It would be invisible were it not vibrating its abdomen. 183 00:22:06,878 --> 00:22:10,268 And that is what the gecko wants from it a drop of honeydew. 184 00:22:11,798 --> 00:22:15,029 Honeydew is what remains of tree sap after the hopper 185 00:22:15,118 --> 00:22:17,268 has extracted the protein from it. 186 00:22:17,358 --> 00:22:20,156 Its very sweet and the gecko plainly loves it. 187 00:22:21,158 --> 00:22:25,197 Other less colourful species of gecko also drink honeydew 188 00:22:25,278 --> 00:22:29,396 and some order it from the hopper by vibrating their heads. 189 00:22:41,638 --> 00:22:46,393 The hopper tells the gecko that a drink is on the way by waggling its abdomen. 190 00:22:58,798 --> 00:23:02,677 How the hopper benefits from this arrangement is not clear. 191 00:23:02,758 --> 00:23:06,353 Perhaps the gecko keeps predatory insects away 192 00:23:06,438 --> 00:23:09,032 and the honeydew is protection money. 193 00:23:11,278 --> 00:23:15,874 Most geckos are much less conspicuous and are very difficult to see. 194 00:23:24,238 --> 00:23:27,947 Its the Madagascan leaf-tailed gecko. 195 00:23:28,558 --> 00:23:32,631 And its tail has wide flanges on either side 196 00:23:32,718 --> 00:23:35,516 so that it has become leaf-shaped. 197 00:23:35,598 --> 00:23:37,509 But these arent the only flanges. 198 00:23:37,598 --> 00:23:43,230 It has also got them all round its toes its legs and down its flank. 199 00:23:43,318 --> 00:23:48,312 And the consequence is that if it presses itself close to the bark 200 00:23:48,398 --> 00:23:53,472 and spreads those frills it sheds no shadow at all. 201 00:23:54,918 --> 00:24:00,629 The irises of its eye are also part of this amazing camouflage. 202 00:24:00,718 --> 00:24:04,028 They have a kind of mottled pale surface 203 00:24:04,118 --> 00:24:08,509 which makes them look exactly like one of these little blotches of lichen 204 00:24:08,598 --> 00:24:09,667 on the bark. 205 00:24:10,758 --> 00:24:14,228 All in all its a most extraordinary disguise. 206 00:24:17,198 --> 00:24:22,591 It and indeed the majority of geckos only really become active at night. 207 00:24:31,038 --> 00:24:34,553 Here in Bangkok as in cities throughout the tropics 208 00:24:34,638 --> 00:24:37,436 geckos have discovered that mankinds lights 209 00:24:37,558 --> 00:24:39,867 attract a great banquet of insects. 210 00:24:45,958 --> 00:24:51,078 As a result almost every building has its own resident gecko population. 211 00:24:51,598 --> 00:24:53,907 (PEOPLE CHATTERING) 212 00:25:06,838 --> 00:25:11,832 Lizards for the most part are not known for being caring parents 213 00:25:11,918 --> 00:25:14,352 but there are exceptions. 214 00:25:14,438 --> 00:25:17,316 Its spring in the woodlands of North America. 215 00:25:17,398 --> 00:25:19,514 An American robin is nesting 216 00:25:19,598 --> 00:25:23,352 warming her eggs with the heat generated by her own body. 217 00:25:24,798 --> 00:25:27,073 And below on the forest floor 218 00:25:27,158 --> 00:25:31,709 a five-lined skink is warming her cold-blooded body 219 00:25:31,798 --> 00:25:35,473 by basking in the sunshine so that she can do the same thing. 220 00:25:44,678 --> 00:25:47,272 She has a nest below the log. 221 00:25:52,638 --> 00:25:55,027 It can get quite chilly in these woodlands 222 00:25:55,118 --> 00:25:58,793 and she warms her eggs by transferring to them the heat 223 00:25:58,878 --> 00:26:01,108 that she has collected from the sun. 224 00:26:14,518 --> 00:26:18,909 She takes just as much care of her eggs as the robin does. 225 00:26:27,638 --> 00:26:30,789 A month later and her eggs are hatching. 226 00:26:44,318 --> 00:26:46,752 The robins eggs have hatched too. 227 00:26:46,838 --> 00:26:50,751 Her nestlings are helpless and need constant feeding. 228 00:26:51,878 --> 00:26:56,508 The young skinks however are already capable of finding food for themselves. 229 00:27:05,998 --> 00:27:08,796 Within a day or so theyve left their mother 230 00:27:08,878 --> 00:27:12,837 and are independently exploring the woodland floor for themselves. 231 00:27:20,118 --> 00:27:24,794 But there are other skinks whose family life lasts rather longer. 232 00:27:26,198 --> 00:27:28,666 These fields in South Australia 233 00:27:28,758 --> 00:27:31,670 are home to a little lizard that is so rare 234 00:27:31,758 --> 00:27:35,637 that it had been thought to be extinct for over 30 years 235 00:27:35,718 --> 00:27:38,790 until it was rediscovered in 1 992. 236 00:27:39,438 --> 00:27:42,157 And the equipment you need to find it is 237 00:27:42,238 --> 00:27:45,435 believe it or not a fishing rod. 238 00:27:45,558 --> 00:27:48,197 Now lets see if I can tempt him out with this. 239 00:27:50,318 --> 00:27:52,707 (LAUGHING) Oh. Thats got... 240 00:27:52,798 --> 00:27:54,151 Gosh. 241 00:27:54,238 --> 00:27:59,028 Now come up a little farther so we can see what you look like. 242 00:27:59,158 --> 00:28:02,309 That is a very rare little creature. 243 00:28:02,398 --> 00:28:07,074 Its a pygmy blue-tongued skink. 244 00:28:07,638 --> 00:28:13,588 And it lives in the holes that are made by trapdoor spiders. 245 00:28:13,678 --> 00:28:16,795 And this one is clearly very hungry. 246 00:28:17,358 --> 00:28:20,316 Come on come on. Wont you come out a little more? Come on. 247 00:28:20,598 --> 00:28:21,667 just show us. 248 00:28:21,758 --> 00:28:23,669 (EXCLAIMS) 249 00:28:24,118 --> 00:28:26,427 (LAUGHING) It won. 250 00:28:28,398 --> 00:28:30,036 Lets have a closer look. 251 00:28:30,118 --> 00:28:36,591 I can do that with this optical probe with its viewing screen on the end. 252 00:28:37,558 --> 00:28:39,355 Its quite a long way down. 253 00:28:39,438 --> 00:28:44,387 There he is all safe and snug. 254 00:28:44,478 --> 00:28:46,787 And he really is safe down here. 255 00:28:46,878 --> 00:28:50,951 Even a bush fire sweeping by wouldnt harm him. 256 00:28:51,038 --> 00:28:52,551 And of course this explains 257 00:28:52,638 --> 00:28:57,507 why no one has seen these little lizards for so long. 258 00:28:57,598 --> 00:28:59,828 Theyre very difficult to find. 259 00:29:01,958 --> 00:29:07,794 But whats really special about this little lizard is its family life. 260 00:29:07,878 --> 00:29:11,587 just look at these shots that we got with that optical probe. 261 00:29:12,158 --> 00:29:15,514 That is a close-up of an adults head. 262 00:29:15,598 --> 00:29:21,787 And there just beside her head is a tiny little head of a baby. 263 00:29:22,878 --> 00:29:23,867 Thats one. 264 00:29:23,958 --> 00:29:25,596 And if we push past her 265 00:29:25,678 --> 00:29:29,466 theres the baleful look of Mum who doesnt appreciate this. 266 00:29:30,438 --> 00:29:32,235 And beyond two. 267 00:29:33,998 --> 00:29:40,107 Two more babies. So thats three. Quite a crowded little home. 268 00:29:41,558 --> 00:29:45,346 So there they are a nice little lizard family. 269 00:29:45,438 --> 00:29:50,990 And the babies will stay in that crowded hole for three weeks or so 270 00:29:51,078 --> 00:29:55,117 before theyre ready to be able to go out into the outside world 271 00:29:55,198 --> 00:29:58,190 and look for a spiders burrow for themselves. 272 00:30:02,758 --> 00:30:04,350 Theres another skink here 273 00:30:04,438 --> 00:30:08,351 whose family relationships last for decades. 274 00:30:10,838 --> 00:30:13,796 This is a shingleback 275 00:30:13,878 --> 00:30:18,747 or as its called here in its home in Australia a sleepy lizard. 276 00:30:19,358 --> 00:30:21,110 And its really quite a baffling creature 277 00:30:21,198 --> 00:30:24,634 because its head and its tail look very similar. 278 00:30:24,718 --> 00:30:27,312 Maybe that confuses a predator. 279 00:30:27,398 --> 00:30:28,831 But if you get closer 280 00:30:28,918 --> 00:30:32,706 it quickly shows which end is which 281 00:30:32,798 --> 00:30:35,949 by threatening with this gape display. 282 00:30:36,118 --> 00:30:37,517 (LAUGHING) 283 00:30:37,598 --> 00:30:40,954 Oh. Youre very perky. 284 00:30:41,038 --> 00:30:43,996 And I have to be reasonably careful 285 00:30:44,078 --> 00:30:47,866 because it can bite. 286 00:30:48,878 --> 00:30:51,711 But at this time of the year in the spring 287 00:30:51,798 --> 00:30:56,314 it also has another rather more gentle side to its character. 288 00:30:57,158 --> 00:30:59,626 There. Ill let you get on with it. 289 00:31:03,638 --> 00:31:06,710 A female catches the eye of a male. 290 00:31:18,758 --> 00:31:21,636 He starts to follow her wherever she goes. 291 00:31:29,678 --> 00:31:33,466 Couples stay side by side for up to two months. 292 00:31:48,158 --> 00:31:51,992 He courts her by gently nudging and licking her. 293 00:32:12,998 --> 00:32:14,954 Six months pass. 294 00:32:15,038 --> 00:32:17,313 And then eventually 295 00:32:17,398 --> 00:32:21,630 the results of this prolonged courtship begin to arrive. 296 00:32:25,278 --> 00:32:29,874 Its a long and strenuous business for a mother shingleback. 297 00:32:46,758 --> 00:32:49,556 She produces not a small egg 298 00:32:49,638 --> 00:32:54,109 like the five-lined skink but a live baby. 299 00:33:06,998 --> 00:33:08,670 Its a whopper. 300 00:33:33,318 --> 00:33:35,912 And theres another one to come. 301 00:33:35,998 --> 00:33:39,832 Together the two weigh as much as a third of her body weight 302 00:33:39,918 --> 00:33:44,867 the equivalent in human beings of carrying a 3-year-old child. 303 00:33:51,078 --> 00:33:53,592 Like the Cape chameleon in South Africa 304 00:33:53,678 --> 00:33:57,068 the female has been acting as a mobile incubator 305 00:33:57,558 --> 00:34:01,676 seeking out the warmest spots she can find in order to bask. 306 00:34:03,398 --> 00:34:05,912 Producing such well-developed young 307 00:34:05,998 --> 00:34:08,307 is the shinglebacks response to the fact 308 00:34:08,398 --> 00:34:11,390 that it can get quite cold in South Australia. 309 00:34:17,918 --> 00:34:21,513 Her young are so advanced that they soon leave her. 310 00:34:28,038 --> 00:34:31,872 But when spring returns the same male and female 311 00:34:31,958 --> 00:34:36,395 will once again seek one another out and mate again. 312 00:34:36,478 --> 00:34:39,868 In fact a pair will remain faithful to one another 313 00:34:39,958 --> 00:34:42,756 for as long as 20 years or more. 314 00:34:49,758 --> 00:34:53,546 The bond between them may even endure after death. 315 00:34:56,198 --> 00:34:57,790 Theyre slow-moving creatures 316 00:34:57,878 --> 00:35:00,756 and only too often when crossing a road 317 00:35:00,838 --> 00:35:04,274 theyre unable to get out of the way of a passing car. 318 00:35:07,398 --> 00:35:09,628 If one of the pair is run over 319 00:35:09,718 --> 00:35:12,790 the other will often remain at its side for days 320 00:35:12,878 --> 00:35:14,755 tenderly nudging it. 321 00:35:14,838 --> 00:35:17,671 You might even say that it was grieving. 322 00:35:23,718 --> 00:35:25,276 On the other side of the world 323 00:35:25,358 --> 00:35:29,067 there are lizards with a very different lifestyle. 324 00:35:29,158 --> 00:35:30,830 They gather together in groups 325 00:35:30,918 --> 00:35:34,672 with densities higher than you can find anywhere else. 326 00:35:34,758 --> 00:35:36,953 And the reason they are able to do so 327 00:35:37,038 --> 00:35:39,950 you can see alongside the waters of this 328 00:35:40,038 --> 00:35:42,598 the Orange River in South Africa. 329 00:36:05,638 --> 00:36:11,190 The river is the breeding ground for vast swarms of black flies. 330 00:36:11,278 --> 00:36:14,554 Excellent food for a lizard if it can catch them. 331 00:36:30,758 --> 00:36:34,637 In the early morning the Augrabies flat lizards 332 00:36:34,718 --> 00:36:39,473 emerge from the cracks in the rocks where they spent the night 333 00:36:39,558 --> 00:36:42,277 and bask in the sun to warm up. 334 00:36:46,238 --> 00:36:49,116 The males are the brightly coloured ones 335 00:36:49,198 --> 00:36:52,907 as you can see from his marvellous blue head. 336 00:36:53,998 --> 00:36:58,276 But its not his head that impresses his rivals so much. 337 00:36:58,358 --> 00:37:03,068 Its the underside which if he is a high-status male 338 00:37:03,158 --> 00:37:05,752 will be bright orange and yellow. 339 00:37:05,838 --> 00:37:07,874 And if another one turns up 340 00:37:07,958 --> 00:37:12,110 he will try and impress his rival by exposing that. 341 00:37:14,638 --> 00:37:16,594 These awkward-looking postures 342 00:37:16,678 --> 00:37:20,068 reveal why these creatures are called flat lizards. 343 00:37:22,718 --> 00:37:25,437 By regularly displaying their vivid badges 344 00:37:25,518 --> 00:37:29,033 the males repeatedly confirm their place in the pecking order 345 00:37:29,118 --> 00:37:31,109 and so keep fighting to a minimum. 346 00:37:35,918 --> 00:37:38,830 As a female moves from one territory to another 347 00:37:38,918 --> 00:37:41,910 so each male courts her in turn. 348 00:37:53,118 --> 00:37:56,588 And now theyre really warmed up and active 349 00:37:56,678 --> 00:38:01,035 and whole groups of them are beginning to travel down across the rocks 350 00:38:01,118 --> 00:38:03,586 towards the river where theyll find their food. 351 00:38:09,838 --> 00:38:13,877 But down here where the flies swarm its a free-for-all. 352 00:38:13,958 --> 00:38:16,267 And that causes a lot of trouble. 353 00:38:18,438 --> 00:38:22,477 Catching flies is necessarily an acrobatic business. 354 00:38:31,558 --> 00:38:35,915 But you cant leap for flies and still keep properly spaced out. 355 00:38:36,598 --> 00:38:39,988 So there are inevitably quarrels between rival males. 356 00:38:48,438 --> 00:38:49,871 Females on the other hand 357 00:38:49,958 --> 00:38:52,552 are only interested in getting a good meal. 358 00:38:54,958 --> 00:38:58,155 Fired-up males however have other ideas. 359 00:38:59,318 --> 00:39:02,116 For them there is more to life than just dinner. 360 00:39:13,998 --> 00:39:16,717 And some wont take no for an answer. 361 00:39:29,918 --> 00:39:31,670 The females want food. 362 00:39:38,478 --> 00:39:43,074 They need a square meal to nourish the eggs that are developing within them. 363 00:39:49,598 --> 00:39:53,068 But they wont get any peace until they leave the restaurant 364 00:39:53,158 --> 00:39:56,070 and get back home where life is better regulated. 365 00:39:58,638 --> 00:40:01,550 The high-octane social life of the flat lizards 366 00:40:01,638 --> 00:40:05,711 with its constant squabbling seems to be very stressful 367 00:40:05,798 --> 00:40:09,347 but for other lizards fighting is less frequent 368 00:40:09,438 --> 00:40:11,747 but altogether more impressive. 369 00:40:33,118 --> 00:40:35,313 A Mexican beaded lizard. 370 00:40:36,438 --> 00:40:40,351 One of the few lizards in the world with a poisonous bite. 371 00:40:40,438 --> 00:40:42,588 And a very virulent one it is too. 372 00:40:44,158 --> 00:40:45,227 In the spring 373 00:40:45,318 --> 00:40:50,153 rival males fight according to a very specific set of rules. 374 00:40:57,358 --> 00:41:00,191 They use neither their sharp powerful claws 375 00:41:00,278 --> 00:41:02,838 nor their poisonous bite in their battles. 376 00:41:21,878 --> 00:41:27,236 At first they grapple rather warily to assess each others strength. 377 00:41:35,478 --> 00:41:38,356 Then they begin to wrestle in earnest 378 00:41:38,438 --> 00:41:41,555 each trying to pin down the other on the ground. 379 00:41:55,318 --> 00:41:59,709 These two are evenly matched. Neither can get the crucial throw. 380 00:41:59,798 --> 00:42:02,437 Its rather like an arm-wrestling contest 381 00:42:02,518 --> 00:42:05,715 and the bout can continue for several hours. 382 00:42:42,878 --> 00:42:47,747 The eventual winner is the one who ends up on top most frequently. 383 00:42:47,838 --> 00:42:53,196 Its a controlled test of strength in which despite their lethal weaponry 384 00:42:53,278 --> 00:42:55,348 no one gets seriously hurt. 385 00:42:59,078 --> 00:43:02,957 Other lizards defend themselves not with physical strength 386 00:43:03,038 --> 00:43:04,357 but by deceit. 387 00:43:06,318 --> 00:43:08,309 The South African desert. 388 00:43:09,358 --> 00:43:11,030 A bushveld lizard. 389 00:43:15,438 --> 00:43:16,996 This is another. 390 00:43:17,078 --> 00:43:21,310 It looks very different but that is because its a baby. 391 00:43:22,798 --> 00:43:25,358 It not only has different coloration 392 00:43:25,438 --> 00:43:29,272 it also walks in a very different and quite extraordinary way. 393 00:43:39,478 --> 00:43:43,869 It appears to be imitating one of the local beetles - that one. 394 00:43:43,958 --> 00:43:48,873 And to discover why Im going to take defensive measures with these goggles. 395 00:43:51,958 --> 00:43:56,907 This beetle is known as an oogpister an eye-spitter. 396 00:43:56,998 --> 00:44:00,195 Thats because its squirting formic acid at me. 397 00:44:00,478 --> 00:44:03,436 Oh yeah and if any of that got into my eye 398 00:44:03,518 --> 00:44:05,793 it would be extremely painful. 399 00:44:05,878 --> 00:44:10,076 Its a defensive system and the lizards are benefiting 400 00:44:10,158 --> 00:44:13,355 by imitating a beetle with that kind of armoury. 401 00:44:16,278 --> 00:44:18,997 A young lizard closely matches the beetle 402 00:44:19,078 --> 00:44:21,751 both in its appearance and its walk 403 00:44:21,838 --> 00:44:23,794 so birds that prey on lizards 404 00:44:23,878 --> 00:44:27,507 assume it has a nasty spray and leave it alone. 405 00:44:36,678 --> 00:44:40,193 Lizards can cope with dry hot conditions so well 406 00:44:40,278 --> 00:44:44,157 that they dominate the fauna in tropical deserts around the world 407 00:44:44,238 --> 00:44:46,877 including those in central Australia. 408 00:44:51,478 --> 00:44:55,835 Their tough scaly skins prevent their bodies from losing moisture 409 00:44:55,918 --> 00:44:59,308 so that they can flourish in these arid baking-hot lands 410 00:44:59,398 --> 00:45:01,673 that other animals find so testing. 411 00:45:10,598 --> 00:45:14,113 Some wear the most elaborate suits of armour. 412 00:45:23,198 --> 00:45:28,397 This is surely the most enchanting of lizards. 413 00:45:28,918 --> 00:45:33,594 It is called the thorny devil or Moloch 414 00:45:34,718 --> 00:45:38,552 after Moloch the god in the Bible who ate little children. 415 00:45:38,638 --> 00:45:43,314 Both names surely are a slander on such an engaging little animal. 416 00:45:44,118 --> 00:45:47,633 It feeds entirely on ants 417 00:45:47,718 --> 00:45:50,949 and as you can see theres not much of a meal 418 00:45:51,038 --> 00:45:52,391 in any one of them. 419 00:45:52,478 --> 00:45:56,790 But the good thing about ants as far as Moloch is concerned 420 00:45:57,478 --> 00:46:00,231 is that theres always some around. 421 00:46:00,318 --> 00:46:04,789 And this little creature will sit by an ant trail patiently 422 00:46:07,398 --> 00:46:12,233 for hours on end simply picking off one ant at a time. 423 00:46:15,398 --> 00:46:18,037 The Australian desert is also home 424 00:46:18,118 --> 00:46:20,791 to one of the most powerful of the family. 425 00:46:22,438 --> 00:46:25,714 Monitors are the kings of lizards. 426 00:46:26,518 --> 00:46:29,157 And this is the perentie 427 00:46:29,878 --> 00:46:33,268 the biggest species of monitor in Australia. 428 00:46:34,718 --> 00:46:39,508 It can grow up to two metres long six feet 429 00:46:39,598 --> 00:46:42,271 and its a highly intelligent animal. 430 00:46:43,198 --> 00:46:48,636 It has got very acute senses of sight and hearing and taste and smell. 431 00:46:48,718 --> 00:46:51,676 And like all monitors it can do something 432 00:46:51,758 --> 00:46:54,352 no other kind of lizard can do. 433 00:46:54,438 --> 00:46:58,351 It can run continuously for a very long time 434 00:46:58,438 --> 00:47:02,477 and that enables it to become an endurance hunter 435 00:47:02,558 --> 00:47:04,355 chasing down its prey. 436 00:47:10,318 --> 00:47:13,754 Most lizards inflate their lungs using the same muscles 437 00:47:13,838 --> 00:47:15,271 as they use for walking 438 00:47:15,358 --> 00:47:19,271 so they cant run and breathe effectively at the same time. 439 00:47:25,478 --> 00:47:28,595 But monitors have big muscular throats 440 00:47:28,678 --> 00:47:32,751 which they use like bellows to pump air into their lungs 441 00:47:32,958 --> 00:47:36,030 and they can do that even when theyre running. 442 00:47:42,438 --> 00:47:44,554 This special way of breathing 443 00:47:44,638 --> 00:47:48,267 enables them to reach speeds of over 20 miles an hour. 444 00:47:48,358 --> 00:47:52,397 Over distance they are one of the fastest of all reptiles. 445 00:47:54,598 --> 00:47:59,388 The cold-blooded perentie can even outrun a warm-blooded rabbit. 446 00:48:03,398 --> 00:48:06,196 So the lizards have colonised the world 447 00:48:06,278 --> 00:48:10,191 from swamps to rainforests from woodland to desert. 448 00:48:10,278 --> 00:48:11,677 And in doing so 449 00:48:11,758 --> 00:48:15,512 theyve revealed such a variety of form and behaviour 450 00:48:15,598 --> 00:48:19,591 that they truly can be called the dragons of the dry. 451 00:48:31,038 --> 00:48:35,077 Much of our filming for this programme was done in Australia. 452 00:48:35,358 --> 00:48:38,236 There there are lizards everywhere. 453 00:48:38,318 --> 00:48:41,071 just walk around in the bush and youll see them. 454 00:48:41,598 --> 00:48:44,954 But usually you wont get much more than a brief glimpse. 455 00:48:48,958 --> 00:48:53,429 To film their intimate behaviour we needed help from experts. 456 00:48:57,318 --> 00:49:01,436 We had travelled to Australia to meet an expert called Mike Bull. 457 00:49:01,518 --> 00:49:04,555 He knows Australian lizards as well as anyone. 458 00:49:06,118 --> 00:49:10,589 He and his team study many species in one small area north of Adelaide 459 00:49:10,678 --> 00:49:13,476 using all manner of gadgets and gizmos 460 00:49:13,558 --> 00:49:15,947 to investigate every part of their lives. 461 00:49:17,958 --> 00:49:19,596 (BEEPING) 462 00:49:23,478 --> 00:49:25,946 We were particularly interested in the lizards 463 00:49:26,038 --> 00:49:28,233 that Mike understands best of all 464 00:49:28,318 --> 00:49:30,627 the shingleback or sleepy lizard. 465 00:49:30,998 --> 00:49:34,149 He knows 1 0000 of them individually. 466 00:49:38,078 --> 00:49:42,071 On the face of it the sleepy lizard doesnt seem to do a lot. 467 00:49:42,158 --> 00:49:44,114 But Mike knows so much about them 468 00:49:44,198 --> 00:49:47,474 that we were able to make them one of the stars of our film. 469 00:49:47,558 --> 00:49:50,994 Hes discovered that theyre the only lizards in the world 470 00:49:51,078 --> 00:49:54,866 that remain faithful to one partner for all their lives. 471 00:49:54,958 --> 00:49:57,950 But that wasnt the reason that he began to study them. 472 00:49:58,038 --> 00:50:01,872 Tell me first how you first saw sleepy lizards 473 00:50:01,958 --> 00:50:03,630 and what attracted you to them. 474 00:50:03,718 --> 00:50:05,276 I first started because I was interested in 475 00:50:05,358 --> 00:50:07,076 parasites that live on the lizard. 476 00:50:07,158 --> 00:50:09,592 To find the parasites I actually had to look at the lizards as well 477 00:50:09,678 --> 00:50:10,997 and I discovered they were doing things 478 00:50:11,078 --> 00:50:13,308 that were more interesting than the parasites. 479 00:50:13,398 --> 00:50:15,628 And for me I think theyre one of the most handsome animals 480 00:50:15,718 --> 00:50:16,787 that youll ever find. 481 00:50:16,878 --> 00:50:19,073 The other thing is that its probably the only animal 482 00:50:19,158 --> 00:50:21,592 that you know if youre driving along in a car 483 00:50:21,678 --> 00:50:24,476 and you see one 1 00 metres down the road you know youve caught it. 484 00:50:24,558 --> 00:50:27,630 And its also one that I think Im going to be 485 00:50:27,718 --> 00:50:30,755 sufficiently agile to keep on catching until Im well past 80. 486 00:50:30,838 --> 00:50:31,987 (BOTH LAUGHING) 487 00:50:32,638 --> 00:50:36,631 I might have to... Even I I think could scrag a sleepy lizard. 488 00:50:36,718 --> 00:50:38,754 Ill see whether I can manage it. 489 00:50:39,278 --> 00:50:42,156 Sleepy lizards like to bask on warm roads 490 00:50:42,238 --> 00:50:43,637 so theyre easy to find 491 00:50:43,718 --> 00:50:46,232 and they move so slowly theyre easy to pick up. 492 00:50:46,318 --> 00:50:50,311 So the team were able to weigh and measure a whole population 493 00:50:50,438 --> 00:50:52,872 and thus discovered that pairs remain together 494 00:50:52,958 --> 00:50:57,156 in a way that was previously known only in birds and mammals. 495 00:50:57,758 --> 00:50:59,589 But that was just the start. 496 00:50:59,678 --> 00:51:01,873 Next they turned to technology 497 00:51:01,958 --> 00:51:06,270 some of it advanced some a little bizarre. 498 00:51:07,838 --> 00:51:11,467 They used remotely controlled rubber sleepy lizards 499 00:51:11,558 --> 00:51:15,073 to test how lizards reacted to one another. 500 00:51:15,158 --> 00:51:17,547 In this case not very much. 501 00:51:21,758 --> 00:51:25,068 Mikes team suspected theres another lizard in the area. 502 00:51:25,158 --> 00:51:29,117 The gidgee skink had an even more complex social life. 503 00:51:29,238 --> 00:51:32,355 But this was difficult to prove because when approached 504 00:51:32,438 --> 00:51:34,747 the skinks wedged themselves in cracks in the rocks 505 00:51:34,838 --> 00:51:37,910 making it impossible to identify whos who. 506 00:51:39,558 --> 00:51:42,834 The solution was to microchip each lizard 507 00:51:42,918 --> 00:51:46,593 so it could then be scanned just like your supermarket shopping 508 00:51:46,678 --> 00:51:49,476 with a barcode reader on the end of a pole. 509 00:51:49,558 --> 00:51:50,547 (BEEPS) 510 00:51:52,998 --> 00:51:54,989 This clever use of technology 511 00:51:55,078 --> 00:51:58,593 revealed what looked like a jumble of lizards on a pile of rocks 512 00:51:58,678 --> 00:52:01,112 to be actually a little lizard family 513 00:52:01,198 --> 00:52:03,758 with young that stay with their parents for life. 514 00:52:06,438 --> 00:52:10,067 Im sure that there are going to be many other 515 00:52:10,158 --> 00:52:12,752 complex social organisations that will be uncovered 516 00:52:12,838 --> 00:52:15,989 in those species if we just simply take the time to look at them. 517 00:52:16,078 --> 00:52:19,673 But its just the time and the patience to watch them. 518 00:52:19,758 --> 00:52:22,955 And watching a lizard is very unrewarding 519 00:52:23,038 --> 00:52:28,590 because they will come out and bask and sit by a bush. 520 00:52:29,478 --> 00:52:30,706 And if they see youre there 521 00:52:30,798 --> 00:52:34,711 then theyll decide theyre not going to do very much for the rest of the day. 522 00:52:34,798 --> 00:52:37,028 ATTENBOROUGH: To find out just what sleepy lizards get up to 523 00:52:37,118 --> 00:52:38,676 when no ones around 524 00:52:38,758 --> 00:52:43,878 Mikes team use a rather bizarre device they call a waddleometer. 525 00:52:43,958 --> 00:52:45,277 It may look a little odd 526 00:52:45,358 --> 00:52:48,350 but it records the lizards GPS coordinates 527 00:52:48,438 --> 00:52:51,828 counts its steps and even notes whether its in sun or shade 528 00:52:51,958 --> 00:52:55,314 all without troubling the lizard and without anyone having to be there. 529 00:52:56,438 --> 00:52:59,635 So you think theres probably the secret world of the lizard 530 00:52:59,718 --> 00:53:02,152 which no human being has ever seen 531 00:53:02,238 --> 00:53:06,516 because if a human being is there the lizard wont behave that way? 532 00:53:06,598 --> 00:53:09,476 Im sure thats part of it. Its the uncertainty principle. 533 00:53:09,558 --> 00:53:13,676 The closer you get to watch something the less normally its behaving. 534 00:53:13,758 --> 00:53:17,831 And so its only by getting these remote and new technologies 535 00:53:17,918 --> 00:53:21,433 that allow us to really get into the secret world of the lizards 536 00:53:21,518 --> 00:53:23,793 that we can find these really amazing things that theyre doing. 537 00:53:23,878 --> 00:53:25,106 How extraordinary. 538 00:53:26,878 --> 00:53:30,109 One of their latest techniques uses miniature cameras 539 00:53:30,198 --> 00:53:33,156 which they use to study a very special lizard 540 00:53:33,238 --> 00:53:35,354 that we were also particularly keen to film. 541 00:53:41,038 --> 00:53:44,872 Its so rare that it was thought to be extinct for over 30 years 542 00:53:44,998 --> 00:53:47,432 until it was thrust back into the public eye 543 00:53:47,518 --> 00:53:51,272 when it was discovered in some very unusual circumstances. 544 00:53:52,798 --> 00:53:56,677 There was a group of biologists who were doing a standard biological survey. 545 00:53:56,758 --> 00:53:59,352 They were just coming back to town to pick up supplies 546 00:53:59,438 --> 00:54:02,271 and just on the road they saw a dead brown snake. 547 00:54:02,358 --> 00:54:04,474 Now most people just wouldnt even look at it 548 00:54:04,558 --> 00:54:08,028 because theyre so common around here but these were dedicated biologists. 549 00:54:08,118 --> 00:54:09,551 They stopped and had a look at it. 550 00:54:09,638 --> 00:54:11,151 They noticed there was a bulge in it. 551 00:54:11,238 --> 00:54:13,354 So they thought Lets see what its been eating. 552 00:54:13,438 --> 00:54:16,077 Opened it up and there was this lizard that 553 00:54:16,158 --> 00:54:18,797 no one had seen for 30 years 554 00:54:18,878 --> 00:54:21,187 -a pygmy blue-tongued lizard. -How lovely. 555 00:54:21,278 --> 00:54:24,953 Though I dare say it wasnt all that lovely when they actually saw it. 556 00:54:25,678 --> 00:54:28,192 Miniature cameras have produced images 557 00:54:28,278 --> 00:54:31,987 that are slowly helping to build up a comprehensive picture of the life 558 00:54:32,078 --> 00:54:33,989 of these rare little creatures. 559 00:54:37,318 --> 00:54:39,786 Their burrows are more than just homes. 560 00:54:39,878 --> 00:54:42,551 Theyre also hiding places where they can wait in ambush 561 00:54:42,638 --> 00:54:44,515 for spiders and crickets. 562 00:54:44,598 --> 00:54:48,193 But they dont seem too keen on ants. 563 00:54:48,638 --> 00:54:51,675 They also serve as bolt holes when danger approaches. 564 00:54:58,278 --> 00:55:03,193 Despite all this work Mikes team had never recorded their life underground. 565 00:55:03,278 --> 00:55:06,748 So we were able to help with a little of our own technology 566 00:55:06,838 --> 00:55:10,990 and record the first ever pictures of a pygmy blue-tongued family. 567 00:55:11,078 --> 00:55:14,991 Three babies alongside their mother in their little hole. 568 00:55:20,558 --> 00:55:23,675 But all this technology ingenious though it is 569 00:55:23,758 --> 00:55:27,592 is no substitute for years of dedicated observation. 570 00:55:27,678 --> 00:55:31,830 Mikes approach of simply driving for miles across the Australian outback 571 00:55:31,918 --> 00:55:33,192 is very fruitful. 572 00:55:33,278 --> 00:55:36,270 And you see lots of other things as well as lizards. 573 00:55:36,678 --> 00:55:39,146 Up here is just a wonderful place for lizards... 574 00:55:39,238 --> 00:55:41,308 -Oh boy. -Yeah kangaroos. 575 00:55:42,078 --> 00:55:44,831 -Eastern grey. Beautiful wasnt it? -Yeah. 576 00:55:44,918 --> 00:55:46,636 Now you wont catch a lizard doing that. 577 00:55:46,718 --> 00:55:48,436 (BOTH CHUCKLING) 578 00:55:55,678 --> 00:55:57,748 BULL: Oh look theres a pair just down there. 579 00:56:05,318 --> 00:56:09,470 It turned out that Mike had spotted two old friends. 580 00:56:13,478 --> 00:56:17,073 This is the male and the female. 581 00:56:17,158 --> 00:56:20,833 This is 1 1 72 and 3342. 582 00:56:20,918 --> 00:56:23,557 I think theyve been together for about 1 0 years this pair. 583 00:56:23,638 --> 00:56:24,991 -Really? -Weve got some other pairs 584 00:56:25,078 --> 00:56:27,273 that have been together for over 20 years. 585 00:56:27,398 --> 00:56:29,309 They stay together during the springtime 586 00:56:29,398 --> 00:56:32,629 and they mate towards the end of the spring and then they separate. 587 00:56:32,718 --> 00:56:35,516 But the next year the same two lizards well find them back together again 588 00:56:35,598 --> 00:56:38,112 usually in the same place along this road too. 589 00:56:39,278 --> 00:56:40,757 ATTENBOROUGH: Arent they terrific? 590 00:56:41,758 --> 00:56:44,636 They use their tongues to pick up chemical signals 591 00:56:44,718 --> 00:56:47,869 and you can see theyre actually sensing each other at the moment. 592 00:56:48,398 --> 00:56:51,390 I think thats really very touching. 593 00:56:53,238 --> 00:56:54,990 (CHUCKLING) I say thats a risky business. 594 00:56:56,478 --> 00:57:00,790 With obsessive dedication and ever-advancing technology 595 00:57:00,878 --> 00:57:03,631 who knows what Mike and his team will uncover 596 00:57:03,718 --> 00:57:06,835 about the secret lives of sleepy lizards?