Transcripts For KQED Frontline 20170802

Your kisses lift me higher like the sweet song of a choir you blind my morning sky with burning love. That is gigantic. That is a big insect. I feel my temperature rising. Boy, did he look good on black. You know, people always ask me what my favorite animal is, and thats easy its always the next one. See, i could spend an hour just on that one. Thats really the point of the photo ark, to get people to fall in love with all creatures no matter whether they are big and orange with black stripes or small and brown. Done next, white. Done. Im fast, huh . Mmhmm, yeah. Sartore they all have value. Theyre all honed by millions of years of evolution, all equal, even cockroaches. Burnin love hunka, hunka burnin love im just a hunka, hunka burnin love just a hunka, hunka burnin love hunka, hunka burnin love. That is so cool. I wish he was the 5,000th species, you know that . Tracey dearlove so just watch your step. And this is the trail, huh . This is the trail, yeah. Sartore you know, i think i have the best job in the world. gasps most days. Do you think the folks at home seeing this will think im a weenie . laughs because i am. Sartore im traveling the globe to photograph the worlds rarest creatures. And that means getting very close, to all kinds of species. softly okay, here we go, here we go. Sartore im joel sartore, and ive been a National Geographic photographer for more than 25 years now. The pictures that have always meant the most to me are the ones that deal with vanishing places and animals, things that might not be around for much longer. camera clicking for the last 11 years, ive been collecting photographs for something i call the photo ark. The photo ark is the most comprehensive photographic record of the worlds biodiversity ever made using studio portraits. 50 of all animals are now threatened with extinction. And its folly to think we can drive half of Everything Else to extinction, but that people will be just fine. Thats why i created the photo ark. Ive seen how photos can lead to real change. Pictures ive made of parrots in south america and koalas in australia helped pressure local governments to protect these animals. So ill go anywhere from nebraska to europe to new zealand to work with the people who will do whatever it takes to save these creatures. whispering thats enormous. Its huge, eh . Sartore by looking the animals directly in the eye, i hope that my photos reach people on an emotional level because you wont save what you dont love. Rare creatures of the photo ark is made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by the kendeda fund, investing in transformative leaders and ideas. With Additional Support from the candis j. Stern foundation. And by viewers like you. Thank you. Sartore i usually shoot in controlled environments like zoos to capture images for the photo ark. But today, ive gone halfway around the globe to try to photograph one of new zealands rarest birds in the wild. Its the rowi kiwi, and of course, we have to find it first. Did i mention its in the wild . Hey, so im not exactly in the best physical shape of my life, and i have this camera bag that weighs a lot less than im going to tell you it weighs. Hopefully, we wont be going too far into the bush. So tell me exactly what were doing. Yep, so we are just on the edge of the lake here. Sartore traceys work takes place on the Southern Island of new zealand in the south pacific. The rowi kiwi used to range over hundreds of square kilometers, but its now confined to a tiny forest on the west coast. Tracey one place and thats it. But theyve been wiped out everywhere else, so. How many are left, total . Um, we dont actually know the exact numbers. We think around about 500. Mmhmm. And they got down to a low of about 150 to 200. If we leave the eggs in there, theres less than five percent survival. Five percent if you leave the egg alone. Sartore so five percent of the chicks survive to adulthood if they dont pick up the eggs because of predators, but if they do pick them up, theres a 65 chance of survival. That is, if you can find the eggs. Um, what are we looking at in terms of hiking . To be honest, theyre both. Theyre not too bad. Okay. So, um, it is a little bit steeper and its quite thick. When you say not too bad, youre all cut up and. Look, stand up and show the folks at home your legs are all ripped up. These are good pants. These are the best leggings you have and theyre all shredded and youre all cut up and. Yeah. Well, see, the thing is that we have birds all through here. And do you have names for these sections, like this sections called living hell and this one is i wish i was dead . Actually. Well, we do for some of them, but i probably shouldnt say it on camera. Okay. Do you need anybody to just watch the boat for you while you go get the eggs . Miles is going to watch the boat. Dammit. All right, okay. Theres no pulling out now. All right, i can do this. Tracey is a conservation ranger with operation nest egg, which takes eggs from the wild before predators can, raises the chicks on a predatorfree island, and returns them to the same forest. Tracey and her team have tagged 70 mating pairs with transmitters. Their job now is to find them in the bush and retrieve their eggs. Today, were on the trail of a bird named moonshine, and we hope he and his mate are sitting on an egg. static followed by beeping there he is hear that beeping . I hear it. Hooray oh, no. The beeping were hearing is a signal from moonshine. The pulse rate is 48 pulses per minute, so you can hear. How do you know that . You just get an ear for it. Seriously . You listened to, like, four pulses. Well, theres only three that it can be. One is 30, and that means its alive. One is 48. That means its incubating. And one is 80, and that means its. So its on an egg . Yeah, its on an egg. Really . Which is great. So, um. Its not super close. laughing hahaha. static continues i apologize in advance, this might be a bad bush bash. It might be a what . A horrendous bush bash. A horrendous bush bash, which means what . Well, its a little bit, um. The track is not particularly tracklike. Do you have a trail cut . There was a trail cut at one point. Uhhuh. Okay. There goes our ride. It will get dark eventually and well have to quit, right . Sartore so were climbing this, captain . Tracey we are. Great. You looking forward to it . Yeah, yeah, yeah, you go first. Sartore as much as i like to whine about it. Is this the nice part of the trail . Yeah, this is the nice part, but theres a giant tree fall area. Sartore . Im actually willing to do whatever it takes to get a photograph. panting and earlier this year, that meant hijacking my familys european vacation. Were in beautiful prague, taking in the sights. Does that look pretty cool, dad . Sartore but my idea of a great tourist attraction. streetcar bell ringing . Is actually a good zoo. And this one is home to one of the rarest creatures on earth, a northern white rhino. Nabires her name and this is her home, the dvur kralove zoo. Imagine that, this twoton animal that uses endless acres of african savanna, having only lived in a zoo. But if nabire lived in the wild, shed probably be dead by now, killed for the horns on her head. One of five left in the world. One of just five left. Isnt it amazing people will kill these animals just for this . Thats it. Its unbelievable. Unbelievable, isnt it . Worth more than gold now, right . Yes. For medicine. Unfortunately, yes. They say its for medicine, but it doesnt have any healing effect. Yeah, its made from keratin which is actually the substance of our nails. So if you chew your nails, the consequences would be the same if you swallow rhino horn. Yeah, just for this. This. Thats it. Thats why the northern white rhinos going to go extinct. Right there, thats it. Over ten feet long and five feet high, nabire is one of the biggest animals ive had to photograph. camera clicks im pretty sure shes bigger than my rental car, so this shoots going to require the biggest background i have and quite a bit of light wrangling. Im lucky to have my trusty and very affordable photo assistant with me. His name is cole. He works for food. And hes my son. Could be that we just do that. Yeah. How about that . Okay, so were going to power this one up. Nice no matter where i work, i depend on naturalists, scientists, and keepers to help me get the images for the photo ark. Jan was there when nabire was born 32 years ago, so he knows her Favorite Foods and how to get her in position. speaking to nabire in czech its all about shaping the light, and weve got some work to do here. Yiri, can you move this ladder down this way a little bit . Colie . Colie . Yes . It needs to come a whole lot more towards the wall. Towards me. Whole lot more this way. Okay, now twist the light, twist the light so its pointing more towards me, towards the sound of my voice. See where she is right now . If we can get her head to lift up right there, well get a picture. Nabco. Nabiaa. Sartore better, but the light on the right isnt edging her yet. Keep it coming my way, the whole light. All the way down to the post. Very nice, cole, very nice. Okay, just leave it there. Man, that looks great. I mean, we have a little spotlight of light right on her head. Its really nice. Better than i thought it would be. What a relief. Im really honored that i got to come here. Its the best rhino shoot ive ever had, and the worst rhino shoot ive ever had. You know, its just pathetically sad, isnt it . And shes pretty old, right, i mean her health isnt great. If enough people know about it i think theyd care and turn things around. Right. Right. Right. Just eight days after i met her, a cyst in nabire ruptured and the northern white rhino as a species was down to four. nabires labored breathing four months after that, nola, another female, died at the san diego zoo. Today, only three remain, two females and one male. And despite having 24hour armed protection on a kenyan preserve, it may be too late for their kind. Still, scientists are working to develop in vitro fertilization techniques to hopefully revive the subspecies. If unsuccessful, the northern white rhino will go extinct in our lifetime. Extinction is forever. And its, its something thats just not tolerable to me. And so, now that im out photographing all these animals and seeing animals that are on the cusp of extinction, it just really motivates me to want to photograph every one and announce it to the world and get people to wake up and finally care. So, whenever a zoo opens its doors to me, i have to go. Cars a little full. Hope you dont mind. Sartore ive lined up four other european zoos this summer. Oh, not nice. Kathy wow, its already full. Hey, you can put things in this thing. Kathy stick that in there. Sartore okay, whos got a bag i can shove up this whole thing . Were going to go to the budapest zoo. Oh, the hilarity that will ensue. Ouch kathy laughing easy. This is a little ridiculous. Thats what you get. Should we try it . Yeah, lets try this. Pressing the button. Ellen careful. Cross your fingers. door clicks shut yes nice. Oh, it didnt. Did it . It did. Its down. Okay, so now all we gotta get is, like, ten more bags in the car. Can i put this on you . Sure. Okay, good. That way you dont have to listen to your dad. Can you hear me now . Yes ellen okay, spence . Go on into the middle. Sartore what is that . Thats my bag. Okay, go ahead and have a seat. Just get in there and im going to pile these bags on top of you. All right. You know the good thing, ellen . I have somewhere to rest my head while i sleep. Yeah, but you know what else . Were not going very far, only six hours. Goody. I knew that joel would be working, but i didnt realize how much gear he would need. I didnt realize how small the car would be, and. So, its not exactly what i thought it would be. But its still fun. Sartore you ready . Yeah, were ready. All right. Lets go to budapest now. Okay. Do you guys hate me . laughing you do, you totally do. After six hours, we made it to the budapest zoo. I have almost 5,000 species or subspecies in the photo ark already, and i hope to get number 5,000 here at the budapest zoo. The persian leopard. Is that a boy or a girl leopard . This big cat was once common in iran, but today its numbers are estimated to be as low as around 1,000 in the wild. And shes just eaten a rabbit, i see the fur everywhere. Okay, excellent. The next day, the mornings off to a good start. banging with only two more to 5,000. Number 4,999 really wants his 15 minutes. banging sartore oh, yeah. See, we dont want all this. Sartore . Or his food. overlapping voices see, we want all the food out of there, no food on the floor at all. Ah sartore speaking over the banging we feed one grape at a time. And we toss it, and he goes for that grape and turns around. This will take him an hour to eat, so we want to pull all the fruit. speaking in hungarian she says, its about four minutes to eat all of them that is on the floor. Rule number one about the photo ark always trust the keeper. Nice, very nice. This is a syrian brown bear. Brown bears are found throughout much of the northern hemisphere, but the syrian brown bear is thought to be extinct in its namesake country. Even before their civil war, the syrian brown bear was in deep trouble, so its no surprise that the bears last sighting in syria was more than 50 years ago. She could stand behind me and be right over me. Just get his attention. keeper calling out to bear in hungarian well, this guys absolutely wanting to get in here. camera clicks nothing makes him nervous, so whenever he stops to look up, well get him. camera clicks this ones nice. He looks sweet. The lights soft and intricate. Well do a few more until the grapes run out. This ones good, too. Very nice, and hes looking at the camera, so Mission Accomplished 4,999 species. One more to go to get to 5,000. Thanks to a syrian brown bear. Okay. Without zoos, the photo ark just couldnt exist. And when a zoo really understands the project and goes all out to prep enclosures, like removing a bar to make room for my camera, the payoff can be something even greater than a picture. Tibor has been taking care of this leopard for more than 16 years, so hes been close. But not this close. tibor speaking to the leopard keeper so he said he hasnt actually been able to pet him like this because the bars are much thinner, so he hasnt actually ever pet him like this, because he cant really fit his hands through the bars. And he knows that hes enjoying it, because he can tell, otherwise he wouldnt be behaving like this. tibor speaking to the leopard lost power, no power. Okay. Thanks. Im sliding back this way, cole. Can you get the cord up from underneath my feet . Okay, here we go, here we go. Okay, cole, knock your light way back. camera clicks persian leopards are among the largest cats in the world. They once ranged all the way from turkey to afghanistan. But habitat loss, poaching, and a decimated prey base has made the persian leopard one of the rarest big cats on earth. Take your light out and take it around to the outside door, and well just sidelight this cat, okay . I think itll be a lot more effective. I need more oomph from you, colie. Yep. Need more juice. camera clicks hows it going, joel . Ah, the cats starting to get annoyed, so our shoots almost over with. camera clicks knock it down to two. camera clicking oh, man, thats nice. That is nice. Nice. Good, good. camera clicking what a good cat. Sartore i couldnt have asked for a better shoot. Keeper can he go outside . Yep, he can go outside, just dont open this one. That would be bad. door scraping okay, im ready. metal scraping okay, good, good. Ouch, ouch, ouch. Okay. I got 5,000 and it looked fantastic. Really good. Is this floor all covered with leopard pee, i hope . Ah. That feels better. Ooh, thats nice. Okay. Okay, i get out of this one, too, right . Ten years to get to 5,000 species. Ten years. Thats a long time. So, maybe if i go another ten to 15 years, if i can last that long. I mean physically. Mentally, ill last, but physically, i need to last another 15 years to get this done. So well see, but 5,000s a big deal. Its a big deal. And 5,000 is enough to show the variety of life on earth already. We just want to put a real fine point on it and show as many species as we can because half of everything i photograph will be extinct, we think, by 2100. Half of everything ive ever photographed will be gone for good. Zoos, the wild, you name it. So, this is a really important day. And im hungry and its time for lunch. The ark may be filling up with species, but thats also how many were pushing to the brink. For me, though, losing hope is not an option. And places like new zealand, where theyre working hard to save the rowi kiwi, show me why i shouldnt. panting tracey how you doing, joel . You all good . You do this every day for a living . laughing this is ungodly beautiful, but. Oh, my god. Straight up and down. Its all slimy, but its beautiful. It is a pretty forest. Be a good forest to lay down and die in, too. Okay. Some people pay real money to do stuff like this. Tracey you made it. Is this the top . This is the top. Oh, my god. This is the official top. panting this is the top of the mountain . Success. coughing success . We havent even found the bird yet. Oh, my god. Were most of the way there, though. We are . Hopefully. Good. Do you think the folks at home seeing this will think im a weenie . laughing because i am. I admit it. I knew i shouldnt have brought that camera bag. But then whats the point . Exactly. static its pretty faint, but theres a wee beep in there. Oh, god. This is all your fault. laughing static continues can you hear that . I hear static. In the background, theres a faint beep. And how far away is that faint beep . Quite far. Oh, god. This is like that blair witch hunt movie, but with an accent. tracey laughing static a really faint beep over that way, so i think if we head along the ridge that way. Well find him. Sartore the eggs were after belong to one of more than 100 birds unique to new zealand, including the eggs of this rarity, the rowi kiwi. So, why is that . Why is new zealand home to so many amazing birds, some of which dont even fly anymore . More than 80 million years ago, the islands of new zealand had almost no mammalian land predators. No bear or deer or foxes. Nothing with four legs and warm blood was stirring. Literally, not even a mouse. But there were plenty of birds. And their main predators were other birds. Flying ones. With few grounddwelling predators and plenty of food, some birds lost their ability to fly altogether. 80 million years of evolution created an ecosystem with 32 flightless bird species, more than any other place in the world. There were 10foot tall birds called moas, the worlds heaviest parrot, takahe, weka, millions of kiwi birds. Together, they owned the forest floor. Some of these bird species needed a source of protein to survive. And they preyed on critters like bugs. Really big bugs. Yeah, im very excited about these wetas. I think theyre awesome and very interesting. You have to have something in an ecosystem that eats leaf litter and consumes plant material as it hits the forest floor. Instead of mice, these guys are the ones that scavenge all the plant life off the forest floor. So these wetas are the new zealand version of mice. Theyre really important. Okay, cue the weta. So, these are wetas, huh . These are cook strait giant weta. Weve got a male and a female. These are basically big, flightless grasshoppers, right . Yeah. Look at how big, wow. And theyre sweet . Yeah, they. They dont bite . They dont bite. They are herbivores. And they took the place of mice. Yeah, essentially. Gentle creatures. What they have is, they have defense mechanism, they have these spikes on their legs. Now, these arent rare, are they . These are rare, yeah. Are they really . They are very rare, yeah. Predation by rats and mice. And theyve lost their ability to fly, like a lot of birds here in new zealand. Oh, yeah, yeah. Theyre essentially large crickets. And theyre so large, in fact, we put transmitters on them when we first introduced them. So, were ready. Okay. Lets try white first. On the white . Sure. Look at that, thats perfect. Youve styled wetas before, havent you . Yeah. All right. Can i move them a little . Yeah. Theyre interesting looking. I am trying to. Oh, look at that. The defense mechanism. Oh, awesome thats interesting. camera clicks sartore by putting his spikey back legs up, the weta appears much more threatening and probably less tastylooking to potential predators. If they go on black, we can get them on black. Watch him, they can move reasonably quick when they get their mind to it. Ill get him. You got him . Yeah, i got him. Hes hanging onto my finger. Ouch, ouch. There you go, there you go. camera clicks that is a cool behavior, isnt it . She thinks i am going to eat her . She got you now, right . Hooks, yeah. Whats that feel like . Oh, it just feels like shes. Thorns on a rosebush, basically. Yeah, no, not even that. Really, really quite delicate, so you have to be real careful with them. There you go. Sartore the wetas finely honed Defense Mechanisms were no match for what was to come. About a thousand years ago, a predatory land mammal showed up us. With humans came rats, weasels, cats, dogs, even the house mouse basically, a lot of Invasive Species with a taste not only for weta, but birds and their eggs. The forest floor was no longer safe, and in no time at all, many bird species went extinct, or close to it, including the kakapo, the rarest flightless bird in the world. To me, its face looks more like a mammal than a bird, and amazingly, it can live as long as we do up to 80 years. Weighing close to ten pounds, the Worlds Largest and heaviest parrot had to figure out a way to hide. As it stopped flying, it learned to freeze. Put its camouflage feathers to work, and let its predators go hungry. With just 154 left, theres only one im allowed to photograph. He answers to sirocco, and today, hes at zealandia in wellington, new zealand, where ill have an opportunity to add him to the ark. He travels all over the country to meet his fans. You could say hes new zealands wildlife ambassador. He even has his own twitter account. So you can imagine the care thats taken with him. Alisha, do you also have disinfecting agent . Vc, vc, from alisha. Can i get a copy, over . Sartore alisha is a Conservation Department ranger and has been his carekeeper for the past five years. His health and safety is her priority. They cant risk losing him to some kind of infection, so they clean anything that enters his enclosure. And ive never, ever had to clean these lights so thoroughly before. Its just all part of the quarantine ritual that happens with any interaction or gear thats potentially going in near sirocco. Sartore its almost like going into an intensivecare unit. Can i set this light somewhere . Yeah, yeah, just a minute. Is it one size fits all, maybe . Alisha im sure youll be fine. Okay. Also, just gel your hands once youre all suited up. Okay. Okay, yeah, this is better. Were going to go in with sirocco the kakapo. Kakapaw. Kakapu . Kakapaw. Think of a car, car that you drive. Cah. And the paw of a cat. Pawwuh. Cahcahpawwuh. Is that it . Yeah, kakapo. Yeah, its better than. Okay, im. Its better. Ill remember that for about three seconds. Ill keep reminding you is that all right . They have such a, such a beautiful word, kakapo. Its not that, its not really that hard. Kakapo. Yeah, thats perfect perfect. That is the only time ill get that right. Perfect maori word, yep. If i had to do this for every shoot, the photo ark would have ended years ago. No, this is a very special case, and. laugh yeah, its a. Its a lot of work for a parrot, but hes a great parrot, so thats why were here. Hey, mate. Look at this, sirocco. Want some of this . Where do you want the light, though . whispers there he is. Sartore hes sweet. Were going to set it up to the left over there. Sirocco, buddy. Its all right, mate. So hes curious, thats good. And then this goes. Is there a bit that it screws onto, or does it sit. . Sartore ill be back here now, way back. Whats he think . Is he bored . No, he seems all right, actually. Hes just really hungry, i think. What are you feeding him . So its just walnuts. camera clicking way that way, where the light is. Youre a good caretaker, you know that . Thats my job. And hes my mate, as well, you know . Like, i want to look out for him. Sartore wherever i shoot for the photo ark, the one thing thats clear is how keepers and the animals they care for are actually like family. Have you worked with him more than anybody else . Yeah, this is year five. Alisha hell outlive me as well, which is the scary thing. Will he, really . Yeah, these guys could live potentially for 100 years. Hes only 18. Hes going to jump. Sirocco just when i got the light right. Sartore siroccos decided the shoot is over, but our meeting isnt. Youre a good boy, sirocco. Youre a good boy. He can see himself. He nibbled my finger a little. Did he . He did. Hes a sweet boy. Thats nice. Hes a sweet boy. Sartore even though sirocco doesnt seem to mind me, this is about all i got for now, and its just not good enough. Im coming back for another shoot tomorrow night, because i just have to get him in the ark. Sirocco wouldnt be alive if not for this remarkable island. He was born here, and nearly half of the kakapo left on the planet live here. Its called codfish island. 40 years ago, new zealand cleared this island of invasive predators and brought the kakapo back from nearextinction. Theyve come a long way from the 1970s, when the Kakapo Recovery Team knew of only 18 males. kakapo screeching yes. Sartore today, the birds receive annual health checkups, where they get inspected from ear to claw. Thats great. Sartore they also check each birds transmitter so they can keep tabs on them. Gulliver its got your name. Doesnt want to go in there. Doesnt want to go in there. He said, im not getting pulled out of there twice. Sartore by day, when kakapos sleep, this island could pass for any other. By night, and during the mating season, things play to a different tune. low pulsing sound sartore male kakapo dont advertise with a song and dance, more like a beat. pulsing continues sartore the males have these air sacs in their chests that they fill up, kind of like bagpipes. Then they sound off. These foghorns arent to warn other males away. Quite the opposite. Groups of males collectively choose a central location, then dig out boom bowls, basins thought to amplify their sound. Booms can be heard miles away, drawing in females who are lured to the bird that booms the best. Mating isnt an annual affair, though. Thats because it turns out that females respond more to a tree than their male counterparts. Thats right, a tree. The females wait for the islands rimu trees to fruit, and only when theres a bumper crop do they choose to mate and lay eggs. kakapo grunting sartore with kakapo numbers so low, its crucial to find out what the connection is between rimu fruit and the females decision to reproduce. Researchers suspect that kakapo fertility is linked to a vitamin crucial to reproduction. The kakapo is nocturnal, which means it has minimal exposure to the sun, an important source of vitamin d. Andrew kakapo have got really low vitamin d levels, and it seems unnaturally low. Were not sure whether that is just a natural feature of kakapo or whether theres some, perhaps, aspect of our management which makes them have the low vitamin d levels. Sartore vitamin d helps absorb calcium, essential for building eggshells and growing bones. So one theory is that the females only mate when they know they can get enough vitamin d, something found in their favorite food. Andrew the food they feed their chicks, the ripe rimu fruit, is extremely high in vitamin d. Thats a vitamin d superfood. So theres this contrast between the really rich food that they feed their chicks and the really low levels of vitamin d themselves. So were trying to understand whether theres a reason for the low fertility that we have in kakapo. Sartore this research could be critical to figuring out how to increase fertility in kakapo, and in turn help grow their population. Creating the photo ark hasnt been just about taking pictures. Its also been about bringing attention to the frontlines of new science, science that might help save a species, and meeting animals i never thought i would. Tonight, i get to go on my second date with one, and already this is way better than last night. Alisha sirocco. Sirocco. Good boy sartore just a little more eye contact and were done. Sirocco, sirocco. Couple more, mate. Sirocco, sirocco. Sartore and thats it. Alisha cool. Sartore thats it, thank you. Alisha all right. Sartore what ive constantly been reminded of in new zealand is how hard it is to bring a species back from the brink. And its not just the kakapo theyre trying to save, its all their native species. Like the rowi kiwi. Hope im in the right spot. Sartore ive come to the west coast wildlife center, on the south island of new zealand, to learn more about why this species is so endangered and to add it to the photo ark. Nice, all done with that. This is, um, not a very glamorous life. This is four pieces of my seafood pizza last night from where i stayed. This is breakfast. Never had seafood pizza with clam on it before, cold. Yeah, i save a lot of money doing things this way. I often eat last nights dinner for breakfast to save money. Its kind of pathetic. laughs you have to have a little conviction or you couldnt do this. You have to know youre right, youre doing the right thing, that its worth devoting your entire life. I think it is, pretty sure it is. Youre gone a lot for this, all the time. Its just like being on assignment for National Geographic magazine, youre gone a big part of the year, so you miss birthdays and try not to miss many holidays. But, on sunday we moved my. I didnt, my wife moved my daughter into college, moved her down to the dorm. I wasnt there for that, yet again. But. sighs i dont know. I mean, to me if its a choice between getting an animal preserved for all time that the world will never see again because its really close to extinction and moving my daughter into the dorm, im going to choose the animal. I have to, and they understand that. I have to do that. Good morning man and woman good morning man photo session . Were with National Geographic and we are waiting for. These folks here we are. How are you . Joel nice to see you. Thanks for having us hello ready. Youve got a cafe here. Do you sell seafood pizza . No, we do not. Its awful good. Sartore when theyre not hosting photographers, kim and catherine are busy incubating and hatching kiwi eggs. Okay, so do i talk funny . Do i sound funny the way i talk . No, were. Youre from the states, right . Mmhmm. Yeah, no, were used to it. We get a lot of american television, so. Really . Yeah, but we probably talk funny to you. Yeah, say the word no. No. Nawer. No. Nur. laughs no, its just no. Theres no r on it. No. Can you say the word no . Even the word egg. Catherine egg, yeah, people laugh at that all the time. catherine and sartore repeating egg because i say the word egg a hundred times a day, but. Kiwi egg. kim and catherine laugh sartore do you want to wash this off at all . Catherine well give it a spray and wipe with trigene. Sartore just like we did with the kakapo, we take every precaution with the rowi kiwi. Catherine yeah, its a little bit nervous, just because we dont know how the birds will react. But its really exciting to get the kind of publicity, because a lot of people dont know that much about kiwi, definitely dont know that there are several species, and definitely dont know about this particular species. So its going to be really nice to get them, get them out there and. Sartore what percentage of people, i wonder, worldwide, would know that the kiwi is something other than a fruit . I have actually had someone say to me, im allergic to kiwi fruit. Am i going to be okay around the birds . And then i had to explain that theyre not a plant. So there is definitely a little bit of confusion going on out there. Kim stand up, buddy. Sartore kiwi are flightless and are the only bird in the world to have adapted nostrils at the end of their bill. It helps them smell and feel for food underground. Their long beaks tap the ground, probing for and retrieving insects. Their feathers are built for a ground game, as well. Loose and less aerodynamic than their flying relatives, kiwi plumage looks more like fur than feather. It worked out, ladies. Kim awesome. Sartore but focusing on the forest floor and not being able to fly has cost them in the long run. Kim so this is our stuffed stoat. And so this little guy, thats causing a lot of the trouble. This thing. Where are they from originally . Catherine europe. Sartore wow. Its a mustelid, its in the weasel family. And that little bitty thing has led to the ruination of some. To the extinction of birds here, not just. Definitely. So people brought in rabbits, and then the rabbits got overpopulated, so they brought in stoats. And then the stoats just cleaned the clock of everything here. Exactly. Biggest threat to new zealand native wildlife. Thats it. Wow. Its not much, is it . But its, but its everything. Sartore stoat, weasel, whatever you want to call it, its one of the worlds most destructive Invasive Species. These guys are in a land they dont belong in, and theyre great at killing flightless birds. But its not fair to blame them. We brought them here, so people like tracey are out here collecting rowi kiwi eggs before those weasels can eat them. Weve got a nice, strong signal, which is good. Sartore how far . Maybe about 40 meters. Excellent. Yeah. sartore grunts softly did you find it . You can see them both . Are they close . Sartore oh, yeah. camera clicking yeah. water pouring wow. Yes. kiwi grunting grunting hey, sh, sh. camera clicking that was amazing. Thats so cool. Yeah, thats one of the most Amazing Things ive ever seen. Okay. laugh hallelujah. Theres the boat. Sartore the eggs that tracey and others collect go on to kim and catherine, who will help them hatch. The chicks fly, on an airplane, to a predatorfree island, grow up carefree, and return to the forest where tracey first found them when theyre big enough to defend themselves from Invasive Species. The egg i saw tracey lift from the nest hatched, but didnt make it back to this forest. But 50 others did, and the growing population is now between 400 and 500. When it comes to rare animals, the rowi kiwi is a rarer Success Story and a perfect example of what makes new zealands Natural History unique and worth saving. Some very special creatures boarded the photo ark on this trip, many of which i never thought id get to in time. Their images have been put to work, displayed in some surprising places, showing millions of people what we stand to lose while we still have the time to save them. My job has some real highs and lows. Ive seen icons on the brink of extinction. But ive also seen underdogs beating the odds. exclaiming woman oh, i see it sartore thats why i do this. I know some of my photographs can make a difference. So ill do my part. Ill pack my bags again and go in search of the next rare creature. Vo the west coast of ireland its a special kind of place. Its just good for the soul. It almost seems other worldly. What could get better than this . Rare creatures of the photo ark is made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by the kendeda fund, investing in transformative leaders and ideas. With Additional Support from the candis j. Stern foundation. And by viewers like you. Thank you. And do you have names for these sections, like this sections called living hell and this one is i wish i was dead . Well, we do for some of them, but i probably shouldnt say it on camera. Okay. Do you need anybody to just watch the boat for you while you go get the eggs . Miles is going to watch the boat. Dammit. All right, okay. laughing rare creatures of the photo ark is available on bluray and dvd. Joel sartores book the photo ark is also available. To order, visit shoppbs. Org, or call 1800playpbs. This program is also available for download on itunes. Visit our website to see more about this program at pbs. Org. Oh, my god. Be a good forest to lay down and die in. coughing panting do you think the folks at home seeing this will think im a weenie . laughing sometimes i think that im a dreamer the one thats standing all alone hey, hey the time is now, not when im reaching for your hand will you go where i go . Yeah whoo live life like i never have [ laughing ] whoaahoh yeah, im gonna live life i love it oh, yeah, yo, yo the game is on. Like its the only one like its the only one we have hey, yo, yo oh, yeah, yo, yo oh, hey live life like i never have whoaahoh thats show business live life like i never have whoaahoh live life like i never have find more ways to explore at pbs. Org slash anywhere narrator tonight on frontlintheyre hailed as medicines greatest triumph, conquering smallpox, diphtheria, polio, and more. If you look at vaccines over the past hundred years, theyve increased our lifespan by 30 years. Narrator but in recent years, some americans have rejected vaccines, afraid they cause chronic disorders, from adhd to autism. My kid got six vaccines in one day, and he regressed. You dont have any science that the regression wasnt triggered by the six vaccines. Narrator when we investigated the war over vaccines in 2010, there was a growing group of parents choosing not to fully vaccinate their children. Now the debate has erupted again. A Measles Outbreak has