Narrator: Shape shifting. 这里有百变神君
Color shaking. 彩霞仙子
Dancing, singing, dazzling, 还有舞王，麦霸，玩杂耍的
Sex crazed transformers. 和性饥渴的巨无霸
The fabled birds of paradise. 这里是传说中的天堂之鸟
Cut off from the modern world, virtually unknown. 这里曾经与现代人类社会隔绝，无人知晓
Until two modern day explorers set out 直到两位现代探险家来到这里
On a decade-long quest. 进行了一场历经十年的考察
Tim laman: We have to try to outsmart them. 蒂姆·拉曼：我们必须得超过他们
Ed scholes: If we succeed in getting the moment of 艾德·斯科尔斯：如果我们能拍到xx
Transformation that's gonna be the holy grail. 那真是碉堡了
Narrator: A quest to find and photograph all 这次探索发现并用影像记录了
39 species of these spectacular creatures. 39种当地的鸟类
Tim laman: Kind of a narrow spot 蒂姆·拉曼：从这里下去
To get through here. 这块地方有点小
Narrator: And to capture some never-before-seen 采集到了一些从未见过的种类
Firsts for science. 是科学研究的绝佳对象
Tim laman: No way! 蒂姆·拉曼：不是吧？！
Narrator: National geographic photographer 国家地理摄影师
Tim laman and cornell university ornithologist 蒂姆·拉曼和康奈尔大学鸟类学者
Ed scholes have travelled the jungles of 艾德·斯科尔斯在新几内亚的
New guinea for nearly a decade. 丛林里探索了将近十年
It's an assignment turned obsession. 从开始的一项任务变成后来的爱好
A search for one of nature's holy grails, 寻找自然界中的公主
Images of every species of this 拍摄下这些华贵家族的
Flamboyant family of birds. 成员的肖像
Iridescent feathers, outlandish shapes, 它们有的长着荧光羽毛，有的有奇异的体型
Precision choreography, extreme ornamentation, 有曼妙的舞姿，令人惊叹的装饰物
Cacophonous flapping, male birds of paradise 还有莫名其妙的动作，在这个天堂里
Whose adaptations have only one purpose, 雄性鸟类搞出这么多花样的原因只有一个
To attract a mate. 那就是吸引雌性
New guinea, where birds of paradise live, 新几内亚，天堂之鸟的栖息地
Is one of the most remote places on earth. 地球上最偏远的地区之一
Tim and ed have taken over 20 expeditions to more 蒂姆和艾德对五十多个地区
Than 50 field sites, suffered countless days in 进行了二十多次考察，无数次
The rain-soaked jungle and one burst appendix. 被大雨浇透，一个人还犯了一次急性阑尾炎
They've survived it all, plus dubious flights, 他们都挺过来了，另外还乘坐过很不靠谱的飞机
Perilous boat rides, grueling hikes. 险象环生的小船，经历过令人筋疲力尽的徒步穿越
Tim laman: Here's where we go left. 蒂姆·拉曼：看来只能走这边了
Narrator: And the jungle pulsing 丛林中也时不时出现
With poisonous life. 各种有毒的生物
Tim laman: You gotta keep your eye out for them. 蒂姆：你得小心提防它们
So when you're bashing through the forest you 当你扒开枝叶开路的时候
Gotta pay attention or you might end up with 要小心别把这个东西
One of these on your face. 弄到你脸上
Narrator: They've filmed a lot of birds but they 他们已经拍摄了很多种鸟
Still have a few adventures left on their 但是，在计划清单上，
Birds of paradise bucket list. 还有未完成的探索目标
Their first target, the wahne's parotia is a 瓦氏六线极乐鸟是他们要寻找的第一个目标
Creature that transforms from bird to ballerina in 这种鸟可以
The blink of an eye. 一秒钟变芭蕾舞女
They live way up in the saruwaged mountains. 他们生活在萨鲁瓦吉德群山中
Tim laman: Getting into this location has turned 蒂姆：进入这个地区
Into a bit of a transportation nightmare 就像是一场噩梦
In the last few days. 在这过去几天中
Ed scholes: The plane that we were counting on flying 艾德：我们本来打算指望乘一架小飞机进来
In on had a small incident at an airstrip 但飞机在跑道上出了点问题
And had a crash landing. 不得不紧急着陆
Tim laman: So we decided to go with 蒂姆：所以我们决定
The helicopter option. 乘坐直升飞机进去
Narrator: When they finally do take to the 最后，当他们升空之后
Air, they'll be heading for a landing pad 他们面临的下一个问题是找到着陆点
They're not even sure exists. 还不知道有没有着陆点呢
Ed scholes: So we have no idea whether it's 艾德：所以我们一点谱也没有
Even a helipad that a helicopter can land on. 能不能找到一个区域来降落
Narrator: They can only safely fly 他们只能在
In clear weather. 天气好的时候飞行
Ed scholes: Mountains here are really, really steep. 艾德：这里的山实在是太陡峭了
Some of these ridges are over 6,000 feet. 一些山脊超过6000英尺高
No pilot in papua new guinea flies 在巴布亚新几内亚，没有飞行员可以在
When you can't see. 能见度极低的时候飞行
Narrator: Fortunately, the next day breaks clear. 幸运的是，第二天就放晴了
They're flying into one of the least 他们飞往地球上人类探索最少的地方之一
Explored places on earth, from the air there 从空中看，
Isn't a road in sight. 地面上没有一条路
Tim laman: Wow, what a day compared to yesterday. 蒂姆：哇哦，这天气跟昨天比起来真是天壤之别
Narrator: Birds of paradise are also 天堂之鸟们同样是
Cut off from the world. 与世隔绝的
The definitive field guides have countless
Entries that read, simply "unknown."
Tim and ed are filling in the blanks.
Tim laman: It's not so much just being the first,
But just the fact that it hasn't been done.
This group of birds hadn't been
Documented in the wild.
Ed scholes: They're a biological
Wonder of the world.
It's like, "why the great pyramids?
Why machu picchu?"
It's like the avian equivalent of
Looking at animal life on another planet.
Narrator: Or perhaps from many planets,
Each species more incredible than the next.
Parotia are famous for the intricacy
Of their dancing.
Their choreography is part riverdance,
Part ocd, this one, carola's parotia,
Draws an endless "figure 8" in the air.
Strange, but the females seem to like it.
Deciphering what the male's behavior means to
The females is like learning another language;
This mission is all about cracking the code
Of the wahne's display.
Ed scholes: Real excited to be back,
To see this species of parotia.
I spent so many years studying them
And it's nice to be back.
They're kinda like old friends for me.
Narrator: On one of these ridges,
Is a field camp tim and ed will call home
For the next three weeks.
If they can land.
Ed scholes: Rory we're just looking
For a cut clearing on a ridge.
Rory: Ok.
Ed scholes: And hopefully they get
The helipad for us.
Rory: Yeah.
Ed scholes: It is the moment of truth.
Tim laman: Yeah really.
Ed scholes: Let's hope, let's hope, let's hope.
Tim laman: I see smoke dead ahead on the ridge.
Right there.
Ed scholes: Yeah, you can see the bamboo there.
Tim laman: Yes.
Ed scholes: What do you think rory?
Rory: Yeah, no problem.
Barely a challenge.
Tim laman: That's what we like to hear.
We've got a helicopter only a "sat" phone
Call away and a few thousand dollars.
Narrator: Parotia territory at last.
Ed scholes: The parotia is one of the
Quintessential shape shifting species.
Narrator: When the male displays he
Tucks his wings away and pops out
Specialized breast feathers.
Ed scholes: They're kinda funny and
Comical to watch.
You can't help but to think of them as like a
Little person in the forest,
Wearing a skirt, dancing around.
Narrator: There are five species of parotia
And tim and ed have photographed them all.
But this time they want to change it up.
They're trying to film a male parotia from above,
From the perspective of the females,
Who are the arbiters of what makes a good display.
Ed thinks the aerial view will be very
Different from anything they've ever seen.
Ed scholes: The way the females look at
'em is from above looking down.
So the females see this really distinct
Circular shape that's made by the skirt.
Alright, this is the camp;
They've already got the old tarp up.
Narrator: Ed's command of the
Local language, pidgin, comes in handy.
Ed: [speaking pidgin].
Narrator: As their porters make camp,
They strike out to scout display sites.
Ed scholes: There's a couple of old ones
Right over here in this thicket.
That's what I first noticed.
I think it's here.
There's like a sink hole and this one's a
Fresh one because look it's got fresh bird poop.
Or, as they say in pidgin, "peck peck."
Narrator: This bare patch is the male's
Display territory, it's called a court.
Parotia are neat freaks, keeping their courts
Spotless and clear.
So ed sets up a tiny camera,
Then scatters some leaves.
It's his sneaky way of telling if the
Males are using this site.
Ed scholes: Really drives them crazy to
Have those leaves down there,
They're very fastidious.
So when he comes by here and sees those he won't be
Able to help himself, he'll come right down
And toss them all off the court.
Tim laman: Holy cow, man.
We can almost get the looking down
View from up here.
Ed scholes: Yeah.
Narrator: If the site proves to be active,
It's perfect for the overhead shot.
Tim laman: This distance is very safe for parotias.
I mean, I think that's a wide enough view right
There if we just clean out that vine.
Ed scholes: Yeah.
This one's totally doable.
Narrator: Capturing the female perspective on film
Would be a scientific breakthrough and
A dream come true for ed.
Ed scholes: If we succeed in especially
Getting the moment of transformation that's
Gonna be the holy grail.
Narrator: They check the spy camera and
Sure enough it doesn't take long for the
Parotia to arrive.
Ed scholes: That's the leaf we put down.
Tosses it.
Yeah!
Yeah, he's coming like right up next
To the gopro.
Narrator: He's so intent on cleaning up;
He doesn't even notice the camera!
Tim laman: No way.
Ed scholes: Are you kidding me?
Tim laman: Wow, we actually got
An awesome gopro shot of a parotia!
That's hilarious.
I can't believe that worked,
He totally didn't care at all.
Whoa, this guy is big.
Ed scholes: That tail is long.
Tim laman: That tail is long,
That's a huge bird.
I forget how much bigger.
Ed scholes: This is a lot bigger.
Tim laman: This parotia is than some of the others.
Narrator: Tim plans to position three
Synchronized cameras around the display area.
Ed will control two from his laptop,
While tim shoots the third from a
Hidden vantage point.
Tim laman: I just need to get a bunch of bush rope
And start lashing together a ladder.
Narrator: Thankfully the forest itself is
As good as a hardware store.
Ed has been studying parotia displays for
Years, their dances are the most complex
Of any bird of paradise and
He knows every move they make.
Ed scholes: In pretty much an instant,
He'll do a bow.
And he basically then fluffs out those long
Feathers of the breast and flanks and that's when he
Forms them around his body and they go back behind
His back and cover his wings and
When he comes up and he's taking these
3 long head wires from each side.
And as he starts walking forward with his skirt out
He's shaking them back and forth,
Waving them in front of his head.
Then he begins waggling his neck and
Head back and forth like that.
None of it really makes sense unless we can
Interpret it from the perspective that the
Females are seeing him.
Narrator: For birds of paradise the females are
The evolutionary decision makers.
Tim laman: Ok, it's 12:15; we're getting this all set
Up during this, sort of lull in the
Middle of the day.
So if the bird starts coming back for some
Afternoon activity we'd be ready to go.
Narrator: It's a complicated rig.
Ed scholes: Perfect ethernet hiding material.
Narrator: Custom built cables,
Specialized software and electronics.
Ed scholes: Alright I'm going back to
Set up the computer.
Narrator: And none of it very jungle-friendly.
Ed scholes: (bleep).
Slippery.
Great.
All right, so it's working,
The cameras are on.
And I think we're in business.
Narrator: Tim settles into his blind,
Hoping their camera-ready parotia
Will make another appearance.
Ed scholes: They seem to be everywhere but
On the court where we need them.
[thunder]
Tim laman: Well, I'm still sitting
Here in my blind.
Think I'm gonna call it quits pretty soon.
Hey it's getting pretty dark over here,
I think I'm gonna start packing up.
Ed scholes: Okay, let me pack this up.
Alright, calling it quits.
Tim laman: Well.
Ed scholes: Too much good luck to get it
All in the first day.
Tim laman: Yeah.
Asking a bit too much indeed.
Narrator: Early the next morning
They're back at it.
Ed scholes: I had to stop by starbucks
On my way back to work.
Narrator: Miraculously, the parotia also
Shows up for the morning shift.
Tim laman: I got it, I got it on both.
Ed scholes: Yeah, it's great.
It's going to be fun to review this.
Tim laman: Yeah great, alright.
Ed scholes: Yeah, we got one!
Narrator: The question is were all
Three cameras rolling?
Ed scholes: Alright, moment of truth here.
Lookin' left, lookin' right.
Bow.
Yeah, his tail.
Ok he's coming out of the ballerina,
Turning around.
Tim laman: It's a nice view of his wires.
Ed scholes: Oh and he goes under there.
Tim laman: Wow!
That flash is amazing.
Ed scholes: Yeah, yeah it is amazing.
Narrator: This is even bigger than ed expected.
Ed scholes: Wow, you know what,
So you can even see the flash,
So he's got this other ornament on the back of
His head that you almost never see and
It flashes right on the opposite side.
Tim laman: Oh look, he's.
Ed scholes: Yeah, he looks so different.
Tim laman: Yeah, that's nice.
Narrator: He knew the view from up top
Would be different, but these
Iridescent flashes are a shock.
It's like the male is sending out secret love
Messages that only the female above him can see.
Tim laman: Usually, we always filmed it from a
Blind on the ground so that flashing really is
Designed to face upward to flash to the females so
Now that we're really looking down
On it we're really seeing that flash flash!
That's just really cool to see it
From different angles.
Narrator: With all three cameras synched up,
They can see the top-down shot in context.
Tim laman: Nice.
Ed scholes: Man, those head wires look great.
He kind of does that tick, tick,
Tick exaggerated.
Tim laman: Ah, look at that flash,
That is like so cool.
Blue and yellow.
Ed scholes: Yeah, from this perspective you're
Kind of getting both colors at once, you know?
Tim laman: Yeah.
Ed scholes: Yeah.
That's good.
Alright nice work.
Narrator: It's the unknown that makes
Birds of paradise so fascinating.
Tim and ed were the first to discover
That one species, the arfak astrapia,
Performs its displays upside down!
Ed scholes: That's as close as you get
To a-ha moments in science anymore.
Narrator: And the arfak isn't the only one
To turn the mating dance on its head.
The blue bird of paradise, the red bird of paradise
And the emperor.
This footage of the emperor displaying
Is the first ever recorded.
But the birds rarely make it easy.
Ed once spent 80 hours waiting for just
90 seconds of magnificent riflebird display.
Tim has climbed nearly 150 trees over the years.
His highest perch was 165 feet in the air,
Getting to it was like climbing a
15 story building.
Sometimes he gets room service for lunch.
Tim laman: Alright.
I got the full indonesian lunch here.
I got rice, I got vegetables.
I got noodles.
Quite a lunch for up in a tree, huh?
Narrator: But the next bird on their list
Could be even more challenging.
Tim laman: So we good to go?
Ed scholes: Seems like it.
Tim laman: Man it's pouring, huh?
Narrator: To reach it, tim and ed
Are heading out to sea.
They're now on the trail of the rare
Goldie's bird of paradise.
Goldie's have an incredibly limited range,
They only exist on two tiny islands off the
Eastern coast of new guinea.
Ed scholes: The genus paradisaea,
These are the ones that are on the flag and
Have the most sought after plumes for human interest,
Especially new guinea culture.
Narrator: The plume trade impacted many bird of
Paradise species at the turn of the century,
But the striking feathers of the genus
Paradisaea were particularly prized.
Their numbers have rebounded since then,
But they're still hard to find.
Tim laman: Alright, see if I can get on
This sucker without falling in.
It's like the wettest start to an expedition
That we've ever had.
Narrator: Goldie's bird of paradise
Display in the canopy.
Tim will have to build himself a camouflaged
Blind high in a tree.
He's had success in the canopy with the greater
Bird of paradise using a multi camera rig.
Tim laman: This is the main display perch.
And there's my blind over there.
And right here is my leaf camera.
We put a whole slr here inside these leaves.
Alright, let's hope this works.
Narrator: Tim monitored the leaf cam with his
Laptop, while he shot with a second
Camera from the blind.
Tim laman: Alright, so we are good to go.
Now we just need the birds.
Narrator: First the males show up and
Ruffle their plumes to attract the females.
Once the ladies get there,
The males get really excited.
Tim laman: It's actually working!
It's kind of unbelievable.
Narrator: This is called the "flower pose."
If the female likes what she sees,
She'll stick around for some feather tickling
And eventually mating.
The innovative leaf cam captures a never before
Seen perspective of the mating ritual.
This time, they're hoping to combine
All of their successful tactics.
They need to get their cameras up in the canopy
To capture the experience of a female goldie's.
But first they have to reach them.
Tim laman: We're headed into some
Dark weather over there.
The letim laman: We'reremember salheaded into some
Dark weather over there.
Ed scholes: As we came out of the mouth of the bay it
Just kept getting choppier and choppier so now we
Were in pretty much serious downpour rain,
As well as rough seas.
Narrator: This passage to the goldie's home,
Fergusson island is notoriously deadly.
Ed scholes and tim laman have got to cross the open
Straight, motor between the islands and around the
Tip of fergusson, then hike inland to a tiny
Village that will be their home base.
Scouting reports from the island have confirmed
That the birds are there.
Ed scholes: So we're not going to have to spend any
Time when we first get there searching for the
Birds and trying to find the display tree.
Narrator: It's legendarily inconvenient to work in
New guinea, but the same impenetrable jungles,
Far-flung islands and extreme elevations that
Make passage nearly impossible are also what
Has given rise to these otherworldly creatures.
Little jurassic parks, pocket environments cut
Off from each other and the outside create fertile
Ground for small populations of birds to
Evolve extraordinary characteristics.
Tim laman: Hey we made it.
Narrator: They've survived the passage,
But there's still a rough road ahead.
Their guide, local conservationist
David mitchell, returns from scouting
The inland trail with bad news.
David mitchell: Most of the water is up to about
Here on what's the walking track.
Tim laman: So what does that mean about
The forest around where the birds of paradise are?
Is it going to be flooded there?
David mitchell: It's flooded.
But give it two days it might go down.
Tim laman: Great.
David mitchell: Sorry.
Tim laman: Might as well camp here on the beach
Or something.
Just stay here.
Ed scholes: What would we do,
Just wait for it to go down?
Tim laman: Well it's not really practical to
Carry all of our gear to the flooded village
Through neck deep water.
I mean that's not going to work either.
Ed scholes: Can we walk over there and look?
David mitchell: Yeah, come have a look.
Ed scholes: Yeah, let's go have a look.
Tim laman: I don't believe this.
Ed scholes: Yeah, the rain finally stops but now we
Can't go anywhere because of the flood.
Tim laman: Oh gosh.
Narrator: With no time to waste,
And no way to work without their gear,
Tim and ed set off in search of another route.
Tim laman: Whoa!
Ed scholes: Is it getting deeper again?
Tim laman: Yeah.
Narrator: The local villagers eagerly pitch
In, cutting a new path through the jungle.
Ed scholes: It's like a universal in new guinea;
Wherever you go it's always the kids
And girls carrying your stuff.
You don't look so tough next to a 12 year old
Girl carrying your big bag for you.
Now all we need is a good downpour.
Tim laman: Alright.
Narrator: At long last they reach the village.
Tim laman: Here we are.
Ed scholes: Home sweet home, fergusson island.
Narrator: The goldie's live in the forest nearby.
Tim laman: Hello.
Villagers: Hello!
Tim laman: How are you?
Ed scholes: The patch of forest where the
Birds are is very close.
Narrator: They're anxious to see the tree
Where the goldie's display.
Tim laman: Slippery mud right there.
Ed scholes: That's the goldie call,
"wah, wah, wah."
Isn't that awesome?
This could be a quick trip to foot rot.
Narrator: In the flooded forest,
All sorts of creatures are scrambling to stay dry.
Some, like this spiny orb weaver are as colorful
As a bird of paradise.
But it's the birds they are here to see.
Ed scholes: That sounds more like what
They do before they start displaying.
You know, they do that chatter.
[makes bird sounds].
And then they would go [makes bird sounds]
And then they would jump right into it.
Tim laman: Well, that sounds a little.
Narrator: Finally, they manage to find
An active tree.
Ed scholes: See how that tree that goes up
And has got this fork in it.
There's kind of like an open gap of a
Bunch of little jungle gym-like sticks.
That's where the birds are.
Narrator: There is no place up there to build a
Blind so they have to adjust their plan.
Tim laman: The main approach is gonna be to
Try to use these remote control cameras.
So when I climb up in the tree,
I'm gonna rig up this camera, hidden,
With also a layer of leaves over this.
And try to hide it you know in the next tree
Closest to the display site.
Then we'll be able to run these cables down
To the ground and shoot with the remote control
Setup from our laptops.
We think it's gonna be a natural history
Filmmaking first to film birds of paradise
Like this up in the canopy.
Narrator: They just need to turn this pile
Of gear into a working camera system.
Tim laman: This goes to that.
This is going to be your number
2 laptop connection.
Ed scholes: Hey tim, there's one of those
Big millipedes going right by.
Tim laman: Oh yeah, yeah.
Narrator: Though not a biter,
The millipede can secrete a caustic acid
That causes a painful burn.
Tim laman: I'm going to wait so if he decides
To spray his chemicals he'll hit
My clothes instead of my leg.
Alright, I'm going to get rid of this dude.
I think we're about ready for this test.
Ed scholes: Alright, I am seeing two cameras.
Now we need a dancing bird.
Here we go.
I'm gonna do my best imitation of a
Goldie's bird of paradise.
[imitates bird].
Alright, you working?
Tim laman: Cut!
Ok.
Here it comes.
Ed scholes: Alright, look at that guy.
I'm pretty sure he'll be successful.
Tim laman: Alright, it worked.
Ed scholes: Shoulda had my red shirt on.
Tim laman: Alright now we gotta rig it up in a tree.
Narrator: The goldie's display site
Is a hundred feet up.
Ed scholes: Man, you had it,
But I think you hit a leaf.
Tim laman: Yeah it went right over to the right
Spot but then it bounced back off of a.
Ed scholes: A leaf.
Tim laman: Another branch.
David mitchell: Tim, moses was saying that's a
Soft wood so it's not very strong and
The branches are easy to break.
Tim laman: Okay.
So uh but if I go over one of the biggest branches,
Should be all right, yeah?
David mitchell: What do you think moses?
Do you think tim's too heavy, or?
Moses: That's right.
David mitchell: You don't think
It'll support him eh?
Moses: Yeah.
David mitchell: He said this is a
Soft wood so he was having reservations when
He saw you putting an arrow up in it.
Ed scholes: How soft is soft wood?
Tim laman: Well I think I'll pull a rope up
And see how strong it is.
It's good to be careful.
Ed scholes: We can put some double weight on the
Rope and just see how much it bends and.
Tim laman: See if the whole thing breaks off.
All right, here goes.
Ed scholes: A little short.
Tim laman: Alright.
Got it in the right spot.
Narrator: The rope is secure;
It's time to see if it will hold tim's weight.
Willpower. Narrator: National geographic photographer
Tim laman gingerly navigates the
Soft wood tree.
Tim laman: Alright I'm at the level now.
Ed scholes: Yeah?
Tim laman: It is pretty light wood.
Ed scholes: Is it gonna be all right?
Tim laman: As long as I stay in the middle.
I put a loop in the rope and clipped it in so if
The whole top of the tree where I'm at actually
Cracks and bends over.
My rope actually will still keep me from hitting
The ground, it still would be a nasty fall but it
Would be better than hitting the ground.
Narrator: With the nearest hospital
Two day's journey away, safety is paramount.
Ed scholes: How's the view of the branch?
Can you see it pretty easily?
Tim laman: I got a perfectly clear view
And it's two meters away.
Ed scholes: Two?
Tim laman: That's gonna be awesome.
Oh, my feet.
This is not gonna be comfortable up here.
Narrator: As tim rushes to get the cameras in place,
The goldie's start revving up for a display.
Ed scholes: It's a call to action.
It means it's time to get your groove on.
It's like the guy standing in front
Of the mirror going uh-uh-uh.
Narrator: For the males of most species of birds of
Paradise, promiscuity is a full time job.
They flirt and flirt to get the
Female's attention.
Ed scholes: The males would mate repeatedly
With the same females throughout the course
Of the display session.
Would mate with multiple females,
Would mate with the same females repeatedly over
Multiple days or weeks so, so yeah they're not very
Discriminating about who and how many.
It's pretty much up to the female.
Narrator: Which is why it's critical to see what
The females see, how they decide who's worthy.
Tim laman: Alright I'm up here in the canopy
By the goldie's bird of paradise tree and
Here are my two remote control cameras #1 and #2.
Narrator: It's taken three hours for tim
To perfectly position the cameras.
Tim laman: My legs are starting to get
Gripped up from just holding these
Weird positions for too long.
I need a break.
Narrator: Unable to rest on any of the fragile
Branches, tim has got to get down
Before his legs give out.
Tim laman: Kind of a narrow spot
To get through here.
Whoa.
Oh man, it's really tiring up there.
The birds are calling just behind us.
Just above back over here.
So they're only about 25 meters away.
But maybe they're all spooked by my
Cameras up there, we're not sure.
Narrator: The digital trap is laid,
But no one's biting.
Ed scholes: Come on in boys, the water's warm.
Tim laman: They're kind of closer.
They're up higher.
If we had a stuffed female bird of paradise,
Stuck her up there, they'd be down there in a second.
Narrator: Unintentionally,
Ed tries to call them in himself.
Tim laman: That's the most ridiculous water bottle.
Ed scholes: I don't know what to do about it.
Tim laman: There's a lot of waiting
In this business.
Ed scholes: Oh man.
They're definitely there when they come around.
But they're just not in the right tree.
Tim laman: Come on dudes.
Come on.
Narrator: But today is not going to be the day.
Tim laman: Ah, (bleep).
It's starting to rain.
Ed scholes: Shuttin' down.
Tim laman: I can't believe they're coming so close,
Right when it's getting dark and I have to go up
And get the cameras down because
It's also starting to rain.
And now they're like right here.
Narrator: They can't film at night and
The cameras aren't waterproof, so day one
On fergusson is a bust.
Tim laman: Let's just hope we get the payoff moment
To go with all the misery and suffering.
Narrator: The next morning,
They're back before dawn.
Tim laman: Alright, we're going to try to be really
Quiet because we think the birds are sleeping very
Close to the tree here so we're just going to try to
Sneak up there and set up the cameras,
Get back down as fast as I can.
Narrator: As if the soft wood isn't dangerous
Enough, tim's climbing in total darkness and
The tree is soaked and slippery.
Ed scholes: Alright I'm gonna do a
Quick cable check here.
Make sure the rats didn't chew the cable overnight
Which would be a big problem.
Rodents love this rubbery wire.
Tree rats.
The bain of every ornithologist.
Tim laman: Alright 5:28.
So we're on schedule, I made it
Back down before 5:30.
Ed scholes: Yeah, good job.
Tim laman: Yeah.
Now we just got to sit tight and
Wait for like an hour for it to get light.
They haven't come to the display site yet.
You know, it was raining all night and it's been a
Really wet and kind of drippy morning,
So we hope that that's the reason that they're not
Being active and displaying this morning.
But we don't know, it's just kind of
A waiting game.
They're getting temptingly close now,
But I just don't think they're buying it.
Narrator: The goldie's seem to be
Avoiding the rigged tree.
Tim laman: It's been like two good mornings now and
They haven't come, so I'm pretty sure that having
Those cameras up there close to the
Display site is putting them off a bit.
So we're gonna have to try something different.
Narrator: Frustrated by the goldie's lack of
Cooperation, tim and ed head off in search of a
Different bird they've been hearing.
Tim laman: Manucodes are calling nearby.
So I'm gonna try to get that on video.
Hey, which one do you want to chase,
There's one over here now, too.
Ed scholes: Let's go, back toward the big fig tree.
Narrator: Curl crested manucodes have a
Spectacular call.
Ed scholes: Sounds like a ufo landing.
Ah, they're right here.
But we're on the wrong side of the sun.
Tim laman: (bleep).
Narrator: The manucode is a throwback species.
It looks more similar to the ancient,
Crow-like ancestor of all birds of paradise than it
Does to its flamboyant modern-day cousins.
Manucodes are quaintly monogamous;
They don't need fancy feathers to convince a
Female to mate with them,
Like the males of other species.
Ed scholes: Somewhere along the way they made
The shift from being monogamous to polygynous
And then things just went crazy
With sexual selection.
Narrator: Unlike natural selection which weeds out
The weak, sexual selection ensures the survival of
The male traits the female finds most attractive.
When a female bird of paradise selects a male to
Mate with, she is endorsing his assets,
Making sure those genes will live on.
Ed scholes: The more extreme your preference
Is for certain kinds of behaviors or ornaments,
The more extreme those traits are in the
Offspring of the males that have them.
So because of that, the females' behavior of
Spending time watching males and mating is sort
Of equally as obnoxious and extreme
And bizarre as what the males are doing themselves.
Narrator: Plentiful food and few predators free up
Male birds of paradise to devote
Most of their energy to mating.
The choosy females only mate with
The sexiest males.
But every encounter starts with an audition.
Ed scholes: They've created their destiny of
Spending inordinate number of hours watching
The very males that their ancestors
Have created through sexual selection.
Narrator: The manucodes never made
The leap to polygamy.
But that doesn't mean they're
Without sex appeal.
For them it's an oral thing.
Ed records a male's call and plays it back
To fool a bird into revealing its position.
Ed scholes: There they go.
Tim laman: Where'd they go?
Ed scholes: Right there.
Tim laman: Is that him right there?
Ed scholes: He's low in there somewhere.
Tim laman: That's him, that's him.
Just behind the tree.
Ed scholes: He's right in the sunlight.
Tim laman: Yeah.
Ed scholes: Wow you can really see his
Throat moving now.
Tim laman: This is the bird that has this really
Crazy like windy trachea on its throat there that
It's using to make that crazy call.
Narrator: This is an unexpected,
But important catch.
Tim laman: This is a cool behavior that nobody has
Documented the postures that these
Guys do while they're calling.
Ed scholes: Better than what we did
With goldie's this morning.
Narrator: Taking the manucodes as a good sign,
Tim and ed head back to the goldie's.
Tim laman: Oh yeah, there's a
Bird really close.
Narrator: Scientist/photographer
Team ed scholes and tim laman have spotted two
Male goldie's displaying on a branch about
50 yards from their rigged tree.
This is what they've been waiting for.
Tim laman: It's pretty good.
They're so low.
With this big lens from this far away it
Feels like you're up there with them, so.
Narrator: The females have box seats
For the performance.
Ed scholes: Okay, it looks like the female came back
And now he's getting closer and closer.
There he goes.
And now they mated.
So that's one mating.
Tim laman: I just got a mating on film.
Narrator: An eternity of foreplay leads up to a
Hit and run transfer of sperm.
Tim laman: So they did their whole thing,
I got the mating and everything.
Ed scholes: Yeah, you get a pretty
Good view from here.
Tim laman: Yeah.
Ed scholes: Nice.
The stick is in the way, but.
Tim laman: Yeah.
There's this one stick where when the two males
Are there it's mostly like that.
I don't like that branch.
Narrator: Now if they can just get a display
With their leaf cam.
Ed scholes: Coffee's on.
It's pretty good.
We got our papua new guinea coffee with a
Bird of paradise on the front there.
Can't go without my little broken heart mug.
Narrator: Before tim climbs up to rig the
Remote camera, he attempts an aerial extraction.
Tim laman: No that was a bad one.
Oh!
Yes, I think we did it.
I think it's one of those softwood trees.
Well, the offending branch is no more.
Alright I gotta go up.
Here's a view of the canopy camera.
It's going to be looking out on
That tree over there.
Hopefully the birds will come,
Do a little displaying and
We'll get the canopy perspective.
Wow this is working great.
Now if the birds will just come.
Alright, I'm going to get my big lens set up.
I got a small tree in my way.
They're starting to get excited.
He's there.
Are you rolling ed?
Ed scholes: Yeah.
Tim laman: Boy they're coming in fast.
Ed scholes: There he is, there he is.
Tim laman: Oh awesome!
Ed scholes: Two males, two females.
Hey, first leaf cam footage of goldie's.
Tim laman: Alright we'll take it.
We'll take it.
There he goes.
Narrator: Before they leave the island,
Tim reveals their groundbreaking
Shots for the first time.
Tim laman: This is a rapid-fire sequence.
Narrator: The unique leaf cam perspective
Exposes previously unknown behavior,
The females seem to be mesmerized by the males
Red feathers and during every display,
The males brush their tail wires and
Plumes against the female's breast.
Ed scholes: Well, cheers to a good day.
Narrator: Tim and ed have accomplished many firsts
And this last expedition is no exception.
The first documented curl crested manucode display.
The first leaf-cam footage of goldie's.
The first parotia female perspective shot and
Over nearly a decade, the first photographs
Of every species of bird of paradise.
Tim laman: It's both sort of the most exciting
Project I have ever worked on and it's also the most
Frustrating project I have ever worked on.
Ed scholes: It's one thing to see a bird of paradise
And think, "oh its beautiful plumes
And it's a neat bird."
But it's mind-blowing when you really see it in
Context of what they're doing and how it evolved.