CEBU, Philippines - Why is our planet filled with such a bewildering diversity of mammals, reptiles, fish, birds, insects and plants? This October, MUTANT PLANET reveals why nature allows strange and eccentric animals to flourish through the miracle of natural selection. Prepare to be transported to strange worlds within worlds where it seems as if nature has thrown the rule book out the window and see how the magic of evolution together with the forces of nature have shaped unique animals, eclectic lifestyles and unorthodox patterns of behaviour. New episodes premiere on Animal Planet every Tuesday at 10:00 pm beginning October 4 and encores every Sunday at 3:00 pm and 10:00 pm.
The six-part series traverses the globe, from Brazil’s ancient Cerado grassland to Africa’s Rift Valley Lakes, to present some of nature’s most exotic creatures. It takes a look at the evidence encoded in the behaviour and genetic evolution of each of these bizarre creatures and the unusual relationships that ensure their continued survival within these extreme habitats. See how Australia’s marsupial species have a range of secret weapons which enable them to exploit every habitat, including the most arid deserts in the continent. Then learn how there came to be a hundred species of lemurs on the island of Madagascar.
Celebrate the power of evolution in the following episodes of MUTANT PLANET:
New Zealand
Premieres Tuesday, October 4 at 10:00 pm.
New Zealand is home to misfits and marvels found nowhere else on the planet. Without the influence of land mammals, birds reign supreme, dominating every habitat. The massive mountain fortresses are ruled by alpine parrots, the rugged coastline teems with bizarre seabirds, and the primeval forests are home to birds that no longer fly. Alongside the birds live other evolutionary oddities. An ancient reptile called Tuatara is the last of an order that lived alongside dinosaurs – amazingly, it also has a third eye. A giant carnivorous snail stalks the forest at night in search of prey and a strange bat walks on the ground looking for a flower from hell. Answers are hard to come by, as most of the fossil evidence has been swallowed by the land. However, encoded in the behaviour and genetic evolution of each of the bizarre creatures are clues to the jigsaw puzzle that is ancient New Zealand.
Australia
Premieres Tuesday, October 11 at 10:00 pm.
Millions of years ago, Australia was covered in lush rainforests. Today only a few rainforests are left. But between these extremes, an unlikely group of heroes thrive. Marsupials evolved to cope with the variety of climates. Some perished along the way, but ingenious mutations allowed others to survive. Bizarre, amazing strategies allow each of the different marsupials to dominate Australia, but one habitat has pushed evolution to the limits. Almost half of Australia is desert. Few animals can survive here, but one marsupial calls it home - the iconic Red Kangaroo. This creature is a pinnacle of evolution among marsupials, equipped with an arsenal of adaptations to survive the desert. From its giant hop to its unique reproductive strategy, Australia’s Red Kangaroo demonstrates the power of evolution to drive exceptional adaptations. How did this creature get here? How does it survive in such an extreme, Mars-like environment?
Brazil’s Cerrado
Premieres Tuesday, October 18 at 10:00 pm.
Brazil’s Cerrado is a sea of grass unlike any other on the planet. Dotting the landscape are towering mud pillars. These monoliths are termite mounds which are the key to all life here. Each colony of termites harvests a massive amount of grass every night, retreating to their mud fortresses in daylight hours. The predator is the slow moving Giant Anteater. It evolved strong claws and a super long tongue - ideal for sucking up termites inside their mound. But there’s a mystery here. The anteater only spends a few minutes at each mound, leaving most of the colony behind. Why not feast on them all? It is because theCerrado’s animals are a tight-knit guild of co-dependent survivors. How did these evolutionary alliances come to be? And what keeps the community balance?
African Rift Valley Lakes
Premieres Tuesday, October 25 at 10:00 pm.
Africa’s Rift Valley Lakes are teeming with a group of fish called cichlids, represented by over 1,000 species. Down here, life among the cichlids shows surprising parallels with the highly evolved behaviours of their intelligent chimpanzee neighbours on the shores. In communities of these super-smart fish, there is as much drama and conflict, bullying and back-stabbing as life in any troop of chimpanzees. Among the cichlids there’s an ambush predator that buries itself in the sand to strike. Also, a mimic who looks and acts like a harmless vegetarian, until turning on a passerby. A night assassin lives here, eating its victims in their sleep. Also, a scale eater that picks its victim apart, leaving it alive…for a meal for another day. But amid the chaos and killing are also heroes. The desire to pass on their genes has led to the most amazing parenting strategies on the planet. Female cichlids have evolved a unique form of child care. In the Rift Valley Lakes, every evolutionary strategy is met with a counter strategy. It’s an evolutionary arms race, where each species tries to stay one step ahead of the competition. In this pressure cooker, cichlids are forced to evolve and adapt faster than any other vertebrate on the planet. But how did this situation come to be? How did these bizarre behaviours arise? And where will the arms race end?
Madagascar
Premieres Tuesday, November 1 at 10:00 pm.
Madagascar is an island like no other. Every corner of Madagascar is inhabited by lemurs - a unique primate found nowhere else on the planet. With more than 100 distinct species, Madagascar’s lemurs are more numerous than any other primate group in the world. But how did this come to be? Why did so many species evolve here but nowhere else in the world? In an amazing twist of fate, the answer can be found in the behaviour of the tiny Mouse Lemur. Its ability to hibernate might shed light on the very first lemur species. Against all odds, it seems a forlorn castaway from Africa may have been able to survive on Madagascar millions of years ago, giving rise to all lemurs that exist today. Alongside the strange lemurs are even stranger creatures - ancient insects, astonishing chameleons, and an aquatic mammal. But this paradise was not destined to remain theirs alone...A small carnivore also arrived on Madagascar, and what it became is something out of a nightmare.
Japan
Premieres Tuesday, November 8 at 10:00 pm.
The islands of Japan sit above the intersection of four of the most active tectonic plates on the planet. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are frequent. This geological activity has created one of the most fascinating evolutionary histories on Earth. A troop of macaque monkeys trudge through deep mountain snow. These monkeys are newcomers to Japan, evolving in the tropics. So what are they now doing in the snow? They have changed their diet, shape, size and behaviour in the half million years since they came here…but have they changed sufficiently to be considered a new species? And how did these newcomers get to these isolated islands in the first place? A cast of bizarre ancient species have existed here much longer. A menacing troll, the Giant Salamander, stalks mountain rivers, attacking fish with speed and ferocity. A mother Amami rabbit buries her babies alive, to hide them from a heat-detecting pit viper. An insect, called the Giant Water Bug, snatches a mating frog off an overhanging branch and drags it down to the depths. Here it injects salivary enzymes and sucks up the body ‘soup’. How does this strange collection of old and new animals overcome the extremes of an ice age, earthquake, volcanism, rain and starvation? The islands of Japan are a hothouse of the bizarre.