The Kimberley - Season 1 Episode 1
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00:00This little bubba is only a few days old.
00:29She doesn't know it yet, but she's been born into one of the wildest places on earth.
00:54For now, she's stuck in this nest, and she's very hungry.
00:59But one day, she'll grow up into a fearsome white-bellied sea eagle, and she'll soar over
01:15an ancient land full of incredible stories.
02:10I come from the oldest culture on earth.
02:38An oral culture.
02:40A culture of storytelling.
02:43And this is a story about the landscape we call home.
02:59My name is Mark.
03:00I'm a Nyingana musician, actor, and storyteller, and I grew up on my mother's country in the
03:06north of Western Australia, a place called the Kimberleys.
03:09It's a nation-sized tropical wilderness, spanning over 400,000 square kilometres.
03:19A land defined by its extremes, a wild climate, harsh terrain, and remarkable biodiversity.
03:36And these unique conditions have created a hotspot full of species found nowhere else
03:41on earth.
03:48Following their wild lives through six intense tropical seasons, I'm going to tell you the
03:53story of a year in one of earth's last great tropical wildlands.
04:03From monsoonal abundance to drought, fire, and flood, every season presents new challenges
04:14and new opportunities for all who call this place home.
04:21This is a place of incredible biodiversity and cultural heritage.
04:26This is a place unlike anywhere else on earth.
04:38Our country has many moods.
04:44And life here is driven by cycles of extreme change.
04:52Many First Nations peoples of the Kimberley chart the course of a year in six distinct
04:58seasons, each defined by what we observe in the natural world.
05:07Right now, it's hot and dry.
05:12It's the season my people call l'Alen.
05:15There's been no rain for six months, and the vast savannah plains are parched.
05:26It's a tough time of year.
05:32And for many, the most precious resource of all is what we call willa, water.
05:48Thirsty creatures from hundreds of kilometers gather around the last remaining water.
05:55At first light, hundreds of agile wallabies make their way down to the river's edge.
06:13Mum and Baba had it easy when the plains were full of green grass, but the dry season will
06:19test them.
06:25If mum doesn't get water, joey doesn't get milk.
06:31But the riverbank's a dangerous place.
06:34Predators are watching.
06:39They have babas of their own to feed.
06:43And mum knows it.
06:44She's been here before.
06:47There's eyes in the sky, and there's something in the water.
06:56An ancient predator, honed by 200 million years of evolution.
07:05The saltwater crocodile, the largest and most aggressive reptile on earth.
07:28Anyone who wants a drink, drinks from his river.
07:40But for the wallabies, the sweet promise of fresh water is irresistible.
08:09Wallabies are masters of stealth, and they can hold their breath for over an hour.
08:40Mum doesn't waste any time, and even little joey is on the lookout.
08:56It's the croc you can't see, that you should be worried about.
09:02When they strike, it's with lightning speed.
09:32It's the croc you can't see, that you should be worried about.
09:48The mob scatters in all directions.
10:08It's hard to find your way up the cliffs in a panic.
10:14It's the croc you can't see, that you should be worried about.
10:39One slip, and it can all be over.
11:01None of his mob can help him now.
11:05This young fella is on his own.
11:35It's a miraculous escape, but he's not out of the woods yet.
12:01Seizing an opportunity, the sea eagle moves in.
12:07An exhausted animal is an easy target.
12:11These raptors are powerful predators.
12:15They rarely miss their mark.
12:31But this one may have a different plan.
12:43He drives the wallaby back into the water, so the croc can make the kill.
13:01Life is tough in the Kimberley, and not everyone survives the dry season.
13:26For our land's most fearsome predator, the season of lilac is the season of plenty.
13:36In Ningana culture, the crocodile is a revealed spirit of the riverways.
13:42It plays a vital role in the ecosystem, and symbolizes the raw power of nature.
14:04The croc's a messy fetus, and it isn't long before the eagle gets his reward.
14:10The long dry season is a test for all who live up here.
14:36But there are signs on the horizon that things are about to change.
14:46It starts with a distant rumble of thunder far out to sea.
14:50Then, dry lightning storms begin to roll across the land.
15:00Sparking destructive wildfires, and pushing life to its limits.
15:10Temperatures can push well into the high 40s.
15:14Humidity becomes unbearable.
15:18We call this season durable, the build-up to the wet.
15:22But it could be months before the rain comes.
15:30Over in my mother's country, at the mouth of the Mudawara River,
15:34the braided channels and estuaries of the Fitzroy floodplains have all but dried up.
15:42The remaining shallow pools offer welcome relief from the building heat and humidity.
15:48But us ninganamob are a little more careful than the wallabies when choosing where to swim.
15:56This is how I spent a lot of my younger years, jumping around in a lot of the little freshwater pools.
16:04Did you get any kakaroo or what?
16:06I'm feeling rocks.
16:08See if you can find one freshwater mussel.
16:10I grabbed one because I lost it, that's how I grabbed it.
16:14Well that's a good story, but I want to see the mussel, because I get hungry otherwise.
16:24So there's six seasons in the Ningina calendar,
16:28and they're less tied to the time of year and more so what's happening on country itself.
16:34We're in durable now, which is just coming out of the dry season and into the build-up for the wet.
16:40And this is kind of the Kimberley at its most unforgiving.
16:44It's dry and it's really thirsty and all the animals are really, you know, they've lost a lot of weight.
16:52These rain clouds that are starting to build, they can be building for weeks and weeks,
16:56but it's just, it's all really muggy and really hot.
17:00And that's when a lot of arguments start breaking out, a lot of fights going on.
17:04And I think everyone's waiting for that release, for the sky to open up,
17:08you know, and for the rivers to run again.
17:26This little dragon is Gulamana, the frill-necked lizard.
17:34A skilled climber and an expert of camouflage.
17:46Gulamana knows his country well.
17:48He knows that when the rains begin to fall, the insects will emerge in their millions,
17:54and that'll give his young ones a good start in life.
17:58But he can't make kids on his own,
18:00and if he's hoping to pass on his colourful personality,
18:04he'll need to find a lady dragon.
18:12But he's not the only lizard looking for love.
18:18In the kingdom of Gulamana, there's fierce competition.
18:22There's fierce competition.
18:53Cut it out, you two.
19:09Bragging rights intact, Gulamana has proven his frills aren't just for show.
19:15And a nearby onlooker likes what she sees.
19:20All that's left to do now is, well, you know.
19:25As the season of jurebal reaches its peak,
19:27the power of the skyCE has been seen to transform the world.
19:31As the season of jurebal reaches its peak,
19:33the power of the skyCE has been seen to transform the world.
19:37It's the most good thing ever.
19:39The rain's coming, and the sun's out.
19:43The wind's blowing, and the rain's coming,
19:47and the rain's blowing, and the rain's coming.
19:51As the season of Durable reaches its peak, the power of the sky is ridden in lightning.
19:58Gulamana can read country, too. They know the rains are almost here, and when they arrive,
20:23there'll be plenty of food for their little ones. How clever of them to have chosen this
20:30moment to lay their eggs. Two months after mating, our soon-to-be mama dragon looks for
20:40somewhere safe, away from the gaze of predators. She's chosen a spot near lots of tasty insects
20:55and digs a hole in the soft soil. She won't be here to raise them when they hatch, which is why
21:15she takes great care in making her nest. She leaves behind ten perfect little eggs. If it's
21:31a good place, the right temperature, the right humidity, safe from fire and flood, then in a
21:38couple of months, her young ones will arrive into a completely different world. A green world,
21:52perfect for newborn dragons. On the brink of the wet season, what were once isolated electrical
22:10storms converge on the horizon, forming a mountainous cloud bank that roars with thunder.
22:27The long promise of rain is finally answered by the season of willigra. It's the moment country
22:52has been waiting for. The rain quenches the thirst of all our little creatures. Some animals have
23:08developed extraordinary adaptations to survive the long dry. Burrowing frogs like the Kimberley
23:17spadefoot have been hiding below the surface in sand soaks. When the rain seeps into the soil,
23:29they dig their way back to the surface and fill the air with their distinctive song. It's a song
23:40you'll hear nowhere else on earth. The torrential rain can last for days on end.
24:10The vital element that we call willa, or water, begins to feed its way through the veins and arteries of the
24:22entire landscape, bringing the Kimberley's largest river system roaring back to life. The Mutawarra, or Fitzroy
24:43River, is one of the last great free-flowing river systems on earth. It flows uninterrupted for over 700
24:52kilometers through almost pristine deserts, savannas, and mountain ranges. The Mutawarra has sustained First
25:03Nations people in the area for tens of thousands of years, and the return of the wet season is always a happy
25:12time for us.
25:13Too long since I had some roo-tail. So, we're just upriver from
25:43a place called Willair Bridge on the mighty Mutawarra, the Fitzroy River, in the Kimberley's. This is all my
25:51mother's country. This is all Nyinggina country. We're just out with some of the community today, cooking up some
26:00tails, having a little fish. Might throw the net soon, see if we can get some gerimba, some freshwater prawn.
26:05Kangaroos are one of my favorite meats. When I was as young as these little mob here, I was eating this. And the
26:17tail was always my favorite part, always my favorite bit. If you don't get in there, you might not get any.
26:23The Mutawarra and Nyinggina people are one and the same. Every element of our lives is born from our relationship to
26:42this river.
26:49That spiritual connection that we have with our country, with the river, with the land, with all these things, you know, it's
26:55important. And it heals you. You can hear the birds tweaking, you can hear the sound of the river flowing, and the calmness of
27:03it. You know, your body is meditating to all those things.
27:06Worry and anxiety and things like that, we all got built and all them things. But then once you come up here, and you sit down and
27:19have a feed, go fishing, maybe catch a barramundi, if you're lucky. Those things are really, really, really good. Good, good for
27:29the heart, good for the mind, good for the spirit.
27:36We all got to just appreciate what we got while we got it, and make sure we hold on to what we have, not take it for granted. You
27:54know, we all share that guardianship, that custodianship for the river. River keeps us alive, we keep the river alive. That's the
28:01deal.
28:01There are many nations that make up the length of the Matawarra, and all of us have a cultural obligation to protect these waters for
28:12future generations. Despite suffering damage in the last 150 years from European farming, it's still one of the most pristine river
28:23systems on earth. But in recent times, new threats have begun to emerge. The Kimberley is being targeted for mining, water
28:34extraction, and fracking, presenting an imminent existential threat to the river and all life that depends on it. In response to these
28:46growing risks, First Nations leaders of the river have come together to form a coalition of hope called the Matawarra-Fitzroy
28:54River Council. Our goal is to preserve and advocate for the rights of the river itself. But in a place this big, that's easier said than
29:09done. Absolutely spectacular. We're on our way up into the upper catchment of the Fitzroy River, the mighty Matawarra. One of the
29:33most remote places on earth. For several years now, I've worked for the Matawarra-Fitzroy River Council. I've been on a number of
29:41expeditions like this one to promote the natural values of the river. We can't protect the river if we don't understand how she works and
29:47what lives out here. I think when people describe the Kimberleys as some of the most awe-inspiring wilderness in the world, this is some of
30:00the stuff that's all going to wrap.
30:30The team we've got on this expedition is made up of local ecologists and a couple of really experienced whitewater river guides. And that's
30:38going to help us build as complete a picture as possible of this incredible river system.
30:48Access is the biggest obstacle to conducting research in the Kimberley. There are very few roads in the region, and many are
30:57impassable during the wet. The rafts get us into places that even helicopters would struggle to land. But rafting a river like the
31:06Matawarra at high water levels has its challenges.
31:27Yeah, so this section of the river has a lot of freshwater crocodiles. They're pretty harmless, but you wouldn't do what we're doing with
31:45salties in the river, I'll tell you that.
31:53Yeah, it looks like we're coming up to this big one. That big rock in the middle is pretty dangerous. The water looks like it wants to pull you
32:03straight into it. You get pinned against something like that, it's going to be a really bad day. I hope this isn't a sign of what's to come
32:12downstream tomorrow. It could be a bit of a hard slog if this is what we've got further in.
32:23The Kimberley guards her secrets well, especially in the wet season. Throughout the season of Willowgra, heavy rains fill the ephemeral
32:34wetlands and waterholes. The sudden and abundant combination of water, heat and sunshine triggers a surge of life. Migratory wetland birds
32:53like brolgas, whistling ducks and magpie geese flying in from all over northern Australia. Many come to feast on the tubers of wetland
33:12plants. Others come for the fish.
33:23It's the perfect time to raise young ones. In the height of the monsoon, baby saltwater crocodiles begin to emerge into the world.
33:53But these little fellas have a long way to go before they're king of the river. Good thing mum sticks around to keep a watchful eye on them.
34:23The little ones will feed on insects and small fish. If they can figure out how to catch them. Life is tough when you're tiny. Only about 1% of crocodiles survive into adulthood.
34:44Right now, our hatchling is the perfect snack size for larger predators. If he wants to be king one day, he'll have to lay low for a little while.
35:15Back on the river, we are now traveling through some of the oldest rocks on earth. And this ancient geology hides incredible biodiversity. The rugged terrain has kept many of these animals safe from the modern world. But it's also made them hard to study.
35:39We're going to set up camp here in the Tsavo and explore some of the side creeks this evening. See what animals our ecologist Ian Ball can find.
35:48Trips like this provide us with opportunities to explore places that may have never been surveyed by Western scientists. The Kimberley is home to hundreds of plant and animal species that are found nowhere else on earth. And new species are discovered all the time.
36:14But during the day, the temperatures out here can become unbearable. So it's no wonder many animals choose the nightlife.
36:27And even though you can't see as much at night, what you hear is a completely new world. Documenting these sounds helps us to understand what lives here.
36:50There's so many frogs. And it can feel like they're right under your feet. And you look and you just you can't see them anywhere.
37:01Ecologist Ian Ball has been working in the Kimberley for many years.
37:05My happy place for sure, being out in the bush here and out in the wet. I've been doing it since I was a little kid and I love it.
37:13If you walk out into a wetland like this here now and hear so many different species of frog calling, it's a sure sign of a healthy functioning ecosystem.
37:21Each species of frog has its own call, its own sound. So you can identify, you don't have to go and actually find and see the frog, you can just hear and listen to the biodiversity and know what sort of species live there.
37:37How many frog species do you think are in this wetland at the moment?
37:42Probably 10 or 12 calling tonight.
37:45Ian reckons there are around 40 species of frog that we know of in the Kimberley. And a quarter of those are found nowhere else on earth.
38:02It's certainly a pretty special thing to come to really remote places like this and you can hear these amazing choruses and sounds.
38:10It's just as noisy as a city, you know, but it's the sounds of nature. It's magic.
38:18The audio recordings help us document the biodiversity of this region.
38:24But for me, the sounds of country have also been a big part of my journey as a musician.
38:30I think there are tones and harmonics and textures in nature and in the wilderness that are really unique.
38:38And as a sound designer, I drew a lot of inspiration from spending time on country.
38:44No location is ever the same. To hear the world, like, as you walk through it is one thing, but then to hear it through, you know, like magnified microphones, like, I can hear like a hundred frogs in my ears right now.
38:58It's pretty incredible.
39:10That sounds like one of those laughing frogs, eh?
39:18He's laughing at me. He's like, what are you doing in the swamp?
39:27I've been listening to country for a very long time. I think a part of that listening, the reason behind it is because I care about this country and because I love it very much.
39:39And because I feel a deep amount of appreciation that it exists in the complexity and depth and richness that it does.
39:49But I've also grown up in a culture that doesn't just listen to country, it speaks to country.
39:53And I've tried to share some of the language of that conversation through music.
40:23The Matawarra winds its way through extremely remote country.
40:49Expeditions out here can last weeks.
40:55And heavy rains can turn it into one of the largest volume rivers on earth.
41:02It commands respect.
41:18The risk of drowning in white water like this is real.
41:42And as the river levels rise, the power of these standing waves grows.
42:12That was a bit of carnage.
42:40I think the Matawarra is keeping us humble, which makes sense considering we're doing it in inflatable pack rafts.
42:48It's a lot of water, man. It's a lot of water.
42:56The wet season comes in waves on country.
43:00These huge monsoonal troughs drench the landscape and are followed by steamy conditions perfect for insects.
43:10That means there's loads of food for our soon-to-hatch frill-necked lizards.
43:19Mama Gulamana built her nest with love and her eggs have remained safe and undisturbed.
43:27The warmth and humidity of Willagurra has created the perfect conditions for the little ones to grow.
43:34It's been 80 days and the first baby lizard is beginning to break free.
43:58You can't rush millions of years of evolution.
44:02The hatching process can take days.
44:05But within an hour of leaving the egg, the Baba Gulamanas can run, hunt, and even practice the cheeky frills they got from dad.
44:14But within an hour of leaving the egg, the Baba Gulamanas can run, hunt, and even practice the cheeky frills they got from dad.
44:45These little Babas will join thousands of other little ones born in the season of Willagurra.
44:56It's their first day in the Kimberley and their story is just beginning.
45:15At this time of year, the heat and humidity is gruelling, so there's nowhere I'd rather be than floating down the Marawara.
45:29Coming here tonight?
45:31I'm coming.
45:33I'm coming.
45:35I'm coming.
45:37I'm coming.
45:39I'm coming.
45:42Coming here tonight.
45:44This place looks alright, eh?
45:46This looks alright for a campsite.
45:48Got a beautiful water feature over the back there.
45:57Definitely starting to feel the physical wear and tear of travelling along the length of this massive river system.
46:12The longer I spend out here, the more and more my Lian feels at peace.
46:18Lian is a Ningina word for spirit and listening and intuition.
46:28As a Ningina person, we say Yumatawarra, which translates as, I belong to the river, but the river doesn't belong to me.
46:36And that's what I've been raised to recognise.
46:40We see a river system as a literal ancestral entity.
46:45It's the cause of countless generations of life for all of our families.
46:50Our legal system and our art systems, our stories and our songs, our medicine and our food is tied to the river.
47:01It has been that way for as long as we could remember.
47:06And so I can't fathom the generations behind me through my mother's family that begin and return to the river.
47:15But that's what I think of whenever I'm out here.
47:19The deep time story of the First Nations people of this country.
47:35Next time, we explore the Kimberley's wild coastline.
47:48Where tidal currents rage around isolated islands full of biological treasures.
47:58And the wet season gives way to the stunning season of Bagan.
48:06Coming up next, discover how a barren world became a cradle of life.
48:11David Attenborough takes you deep into the ancient secrets of the Galapagos.