They are home to the beautiful and the bizarre. (BIRD CALLS) (ETHEREAL MUSIC) This is a world where birds hatch from active volcanos, where pigs box,... (PIGS GRUNT) ...and kangaroos climb trees. A profusion of life shaped by nature's most violent force ` the power of the earth. (ETHEREAL MUSIC CONTINUES) Captions by Julie Taylor. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2020 (LAVA HISSES, SPITS) Over tens of millions of years, volcanos have forged a realm like no other ` a place where, to survive, life must adapt. (BOOM!) (DISTANT EXPLOSION) (BOOM!) Volcano birds lead one of the most extreme lives in the natural world. (BOOM!) (BOOM!) Each day, dozens of adults gather in an act of apparent madness. (VOLCANO RUMBLES LOUDLY) (ROCKS CLINK) This is a deadly realm of bellowing ash and toxic gas. But volcano birds are uniquely adapted to turn the devastation into an opportunity. Temperatures just below the surface reach over 1000 degrees Celsius. Yet, surprisingly, it's warmth they're after. (VOLCANO RUMBLES) Volcano birds are equipped with enormous feet, perfect for digging. - (CALLS) - They also have an amazing ability to sense heat. It's thought that by using a special throat gland, she's able to pick up on changes of just half a degree Celsius. (VOLCANO RUMBLES) (BIRDS CALL) (RUMBLING, CALLING CONTINUES) There are only a few spots around the volcano where the temperature thereafter is just right ` 33 degrees. (RUMBLING, CALLING CONTINUES) It makes such places worth fighting for. (RUMBLING, CALLING CONTINUES) And this is why. Her only act of parenthood is this offering to the volcano. (ETHEREAL MUSIC) The heat of its slopes will incubate the egg for her. The egg can take 60 days to hatch ` among the longest time of any bird. When it does, uniquely, the chick emerges already able to fly. With an active volcano as the only parent it'll ever know, it's on its own from day one. (BOOM!) (BOOM!) (LOUD RUMBLING, EXPLOSIONS) Here, the earth's violent power has driven the evolution of an astonishing array of species. This is the front line in a story that's been unfolding for millions of years, and one that continues to this day. (GENTLE MUSIC) 25 million years ago, the Australian continent slammed into Asia. (LOUD RUMBLING) At the tip of the continent, New Guinea was thrust up amidst the carnage. With peaks rising to almost 5000m, this is the tallest island on our planet. And as part of Australia, its forests are filled with Australian animals, some of which have undergone a dramatic lifestyle change. (ANIMALS CALL) Kangaroos aren't best known for climbing trees. But with lots of leaves and few others to eat them, it was an opportunity not to be missed. Australia's shift north was so quick that tree kangaroos haven't had long to adjust to life in the canopy. Their limbs have become shorter and more powerful. But there's no mistaking they were built for hopping over open plains. (BIRDS WARBLE) Kangaroos may hold sway in the treetops, but for the most part, New Guinea is an island of birds. The largest, the cassowary, is from an ancient lineage that's roamed the earth since the time of the dinosaurs. (BIRDS WARBLE) - Most extraordinary of all are the birds of paradise. The very story of New Guinea is written in their profusion of plumes. - (SQUAWKS) - (WHOOPS) - The birds of paradise all descend from one Australian ancestor. And the mountain ranges thrown up by the collision isolated populations from each other. The result was the birds have evolved into 39 very different species. (MAJESTIC MUSIC) There's so much food in the tropical forests that males aren't needed to raise chicks. They put all their effort into one thing ` winning a female. His soul focus ` a perfect performance. Hers is to choose the best possible mate. Her inspection is thorough. Females are so discerning that every bit of his routine has been selected over countless generations. It's this intense female choice the drives the evolution of new species. (BIRDS WARBLE) And it's led to very different types of display. From bizarre shape-shifting... to spectacular plumage shown off at group gatherings. (BIRDS CALL) All this beauty is the result of New Guinea's violent birth. But this is a young island. These rainforests have only been here for some five million years, as tree kangaroos show. Giant feet once perfect for hopping take a long time to adapt for climbing. They've got a long way to go before mastering the tropical treetops. The islands at the opposite end of the chain have a very different tale to tell. These western isles are home to the greatest tree-climbers on Earth ` the primates. There are more species here than anywhere else, but the gibbon is the true master of the treetops. They reach top speeds of over 50km/h and clear 15m in a single swing. They're the ultimate canopy specialists, equipped with hooked hands and extra-long arms. - (CALLS) (CALL SPEEDS UP) The contrast with New Guinea's kangaroos couldn't be any clearer. It's all because gibbons have had an enormous head start. Their home has been in the tropics longer than anywhere else on Earth ` for more than 100 million years. (GIBBON CALLS) Gibbons have had plenty of time to master the high life. (GIBBONS CALL) (CALLS SPEED UP) These western islands are all part of the Asian continental shelf. During past ice ages, when sea levels were lower, species from mainland Asia crossed freely to Borneo, Sumatra and Java. These forests are filled with mammals, most of which simply walked here. The Sumatran rhinoceros. A creature so rare that fewer than 100 are though to remain in the wild. Bizarrely, she's the world's hairiest rhino. It's a feature retained from her mainland relatives, the now extinct woolly rhinoceros that roamed Asia during the last ice age. A hairy rhino in a hot, humid rainforest can quickly overheat. (GENTLE MUSIC) But her hair has its uses. Sumatran rhinos love to wallow. A hole left behind by a fallen tree makes the ideal spot. (PLOP!) She wallows every day, dipping herself for hours at a time. But these mud treatments don't come easily. She has to work hard to keep the wallow open so it collects as much rainfall as possible. It's here in the wallow that the reason for all her hair becomes clear. It helps the mud stick to her skin, keeping her cool. With a huge range of Asian animals, these rainforests are some of the biologically richest on the planet. But they too were forged by the earth's power. (LOUD RUMBLING) Volcanoes have ruled here for millions of years. Their ever-changing temperaments govern all life on these islands. When the giants stir, they create deadly realms. This is Ijen on the island of Java. Its crater is a cauldron of boiling sulphuric acid. Alongside it, toxic gas bellows from beneath the earth at over 600 degrees Celsius. Some of the gas condenses into flows of liquid sulphur. (LIQUID TRICKLES) There is beauty in this poisonous landscape which increases as darkness falls. (HAUNTING MUSIC) (WOMAN VOCALISES) When the gas comes into contact with oxygen, it catches fire, burning with a soft blue light. (VOCALISING CONTINUES) The liquid sulphur continues to burn too, creating rivers of fire. (VOCALISING CONTINUES) Ijen's blue flames dance only in the darkness. (VOCALISING CONTINUES) A sight so ephemeral that as day dawns, they will vanish. (VOCALISING CONTINUES) - While Ijen's crater is a toxic realm, other volcanoes rule with extreme violence. At 100km long and 500m deep, Lake Toba is all that remains of the most powerful eruption in human history. (LOUD RUMBLING) Toba erupted 75,000 years ago. The ash cloud rose 42km into the sky. And some believe it almost wiped out the human race. (RUMBLING CONTINUES) (SOLEMN MUSIC) Yet, despite Toba's violent destruction, in its wake lies a realm of exceptional biodiversity. Volcanic ash is very rich in minerals. Over time, they break down, making the soil particularly fertile. Today, the forests around Lake Toba are among the richest ecosystems on Earth. Over 10,000 different plant species grow on these fertile volcanic soils. (BIRDS, ANIMALS CALL) There are so many different fruiting trees that the orangutans who live here are spoilt for choice. (GIBBONS CALL IN DISTANCE) Individuals have their own favourite fruits and unique diets, which they pass on to their offspring. As he grows up, her baby will learn the location and fruiting times of this setur tree. So, while Mum's favourite fruits will form much of his diet, nearby, another youngster is raised on different fruits. Today, it's rambutan. This is the only time such individual diets have been found in a population of great apes. All of it the result of nature's most violent force. On Sumatra, young volcanic soils support an abundance of life. But as soils age, they become less fertile. Borneo is an ancient isle, much of its rock thrust up tens of millions of years ago. Without fresh volcanic ash, plants here have had to take extreme measures to find nutrients. They've become carnivores. Their traps are modified leaves. As the leaf blade opens, the midrib continues to extend outwards. Over several weeks, the tip inflates. Finally, the deadly trap is revealed. A liquid-filled chamber from which there is no escape. These are the pitcher plants, and with over 30 species, Borneo is their heartland. Sizes and positions of traps vary, but all share a common goal. They use nectar to lure in prey. And a slipper rim means they plummet into the pitcher,... where digestive fluids dissolve the victims' bodies. But beyond this basic method, some have even more astonishing ways to get the nutrients they need. A few pitcher plants engage in remarkable relationships that stretch beyond carnivory. The broad, exposed back wall of hemsleyana has evolved to reflect the sonar of a small bat. After a night on the wing, the pitcher is an ideal resting spot. It's a perfect fit ` enough to stop the bat slipping down into the digestive fluids. (SERENE MUSIC) The traps provide a parasite-free and cool place to sleep. It's a great arrangement for the bat, but quite how hemsleyana benefits isn't clear until evening arrives. (SERENE MUSIC CONTINUES) As it stirs, the bat pays its way... in poo,... supplying nutrients the plant can't get from the soil. Hemsleyana has become a bat toilet. One of myriad ways in which species have adapted to life on Borneo's ancient soils. The violent shifting earth means change is the only certainty here. To survive, life must adapt and seize opportunities. And nothing presents an opportunity quite like an entirely new island. Over millions of years, magma from the top of undersea volcanoes builds up. With new land to colonise, species just need a way of getting there. (WIND HOWLS) Plants are the obvious early colonisers of any island. Grasses, their seeds blown on the wind, are some of the very first to arrive. But they aren't the only ones who travel on the breeze. Baby spiders get about by casting silken sails into the sky. (GENTLE, SERENE MUSIC) They join an invisible aerial army that float wherever the wind takes them. It's thought several million make landfall on small islands each day. (SERENE MUSIC CONTINUES) Others take to the sea to make the crossing. Coconuts can still germinate after six months floating on the open ocean. Sweet water inside the coconut helps the young plant get a foothold beneath the baking tropical sun. (WATER BURBLES) Animals swim these tropical waters too. Monitor lizards have colonised islands several hundred kilometres apart. (WATER BURBLES) A streamlined body and flattened tail aids their ocean wanderings. As a scavenger, wherever they make landfall, they have little trouble finding the food needed to survive. By air and by sea, new islands are soon filled with a rich diversity of life. And some animals play an important role in turning a few trees into a rainforest. (BATS SCREECH) Offshore islands make a safe resting place for thousands of fruit bats. (SCREECHING CONTINUES) Fruit bats can be essential to bringing new life to distant worlds. As evening approaches, the roost stirs. (ETHEREAL MUSIC) (MEN VOCALISE) Under cover of darkness, they fly many kilometres across the water to the mainland in search of fruiting trees. (VOCALISING CONTINUES) By dawn, the bats return to the safety of their island roost, bellies full of fruit. (BATS SCREECH) And now, in their droppings, they deliver the seeds of those fruits to the island. Huge batches of seeds are delivered each day, with their own dose of fertiliser. (GENTLE MUSIC) Fruit bats help turn a handful of trees into a thriving rainforest. Now isolated from their mainland kin, inhabitants of these new islands evolve into new species. Long isolation defines the islands that lie between the Australian and Asian continents. Separated by deep water channels, these islands belong to neither realm. Some were born of fire; others were torn away as the continents collided, carrying animals with them. The island of Halmahera was ripped from New Guinea. (BIRDS, ANIMALS CALL) Its forests are home to a stowaway, cut adrift for some 11 million years. Before dawn, the males gather. (BIRDS SCREECH) (SCREECHING CONTINUES) Standardwing birds of paradise. (BIRD SCREECHES) Their aerial display is totally unique, as are the translucent feathers from which they get their name. (BIRDS SCREECH) (SCREECHING CONTINUES) Very little is known about these weird creatures. - (SCREECHES) (SCREECHING CONTINUES) - Their display seems to be a bizarre mix of the different gatherings and dances of New Guinea's birds of paradise. They're adorned like the plumed dancing birds, but daylight also reveals an iridescent breast shield, much like the shapeshifters. - (SCREECHES) But Halmahera's neighbour Sulawesi is inhabited by even stranger stowaways. (LOW RUMBLING, WIND HOWLS) It's made up of land from both Australia and Asia and is home to a mix of animals that evolved on totally different continents. This mineral spring deep in the rainforest sets the stage for a bizarre cast. There are creatures here that have been isolated on Sulawesi since the ancient past. The true stars are the shy and seldom seen babirusa. - (GRUNTS) (GRUNTS) (GENTLE, INTRIGUING MUSIC) (GRUNTS) - Babirusa are a type of pig, isolated from their ancient relatives for as long as 20 million years. They've evolved and become very different from other pigs. (BABIRUSA SNORT, SQUEAL) Their piglets lack stripes and are born in ones and twos rather than large litters. (PIGLET SQUEALS) Babirusa emerge from the forest in family groups, with dozens visiting each day. So many come to drink that it soon gets overcrowded,... much to the frustrations of the local macaques. As strange a spectacle as this is, nothing quite compares to male babirusa. Their tusks grow through the roof of their mouth. It was once thought males used them to hang from branches while sleeping. A fair guess, as they're not for fighting. (GRUNTING, SQUEALING) When male babirusa face off, the contest is decided by boxing. (GRUNTING) (GRUNTING) (GRUNTING CONTINUES IN DISTANCE) The ancestors of the boxing babirusa were isolated on Sulawesi when it was torn away from the Asian continent. And they collided with another island ` one carrying an animal from a totally different world. (CURIOUS MUSIC) Like the babirusa, the bear cuscus has been isolated on Sulawesi for some 20 million years. Its prehensile tail acts like an extra hand, helping it move through the rainforest trees. (CURIOUS MUSIC CONTINUES) But, amazingly, the bear cuscus is a marsupial. It drifted here all the way from Australia. What's more, Sulawesi's Asian and Australian arms joined with yet another realm. The northern part of Sulawesi was born of fire. And so its rainforests are richer than those further south. Of the eight species of macaque that live on Sulawesi, these crested macaques have the richest and most varied diet. There's so much fruit that they can live in troops over 100-strong. (MACAQUES CHATTER) With so many living side by side, communication is an essential part of keeping the peace. Each expression conveys a different message so others know how they're feeling, be it threatened, aroused or submissive. - (CHITTERS SOFTLY) - These are the most sociable of all the world's macaques. They can spend hours grooming each other. (GENTLE, SERENE MUSIC) - (CHITTERS) (MACAQUES SCREECH) - Sulawesi is this region's most extraordinary island. (SERENE MUSIC CONTINUES) It's an ancient realm of stowaways torn from different worlds, ruled over by the earth's raw power. These are the islands in time. Over millions of years, the violent forces of the earth have created the biologically richest place on our planet. But there are other forces at work here. Powers that preside over very different time scales to the ancient earth. Along the shoreline and in the sea, the mysterious moon rules a realm that is every bit as extraordinary. Captions by Julie Taylor. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2020