An eastern myth says that a sea turtle carries the universe on its shell
And no universe could be more colorful and diverse than this
The warm sea around the islands of Indonesia
Indonesia seas have been a cradle for the evolution of marine life
Even by the flamboyant standards of the tropics
This variety and profusion are exceptional
This turtle's universe is truly an underwater wonderland
The fertility of these waters is no myth
Lying in the heart of Indonesia is the tiny Spice island of Banda
In 1988, after sleeping almost a century Banda's volcano woke into violent life
Lava cascaded down the mountain
scorching and smothering everything in its path
Underwater the island's fringing reef was totally destroyed
crushed and scalded under tons of sterile rock
Ten years on, the volcano's still scarred by the lava that flow down its northern slope
On land, the lava is still barren of life
no plants have found a foothold
but underwater, it's a very different story
In just a few years, the corals have returned
completely covering the rocks that bury the older reef
The speed of this rebirth has been astonishing
The new reef has even more kinds of coral than the old
with the corals come fish
and all the other animals that depend on the coral for their livelihood
For all of them, the destruction of the old reef was an opportunity
a wiping clean of the slate and a new beginning
That so many different creatures took advantage so fast
is a sign of the richness of Indonesia seas
The Indonesian archipelago has over 17000 islands
stretching 5000km along the equator
at the crossroads between the Indian and Pacific Oceans
Almost every island is an opportunity for the growth of coral reefs
These reefs are the rainforests of the ocean
and are one reason why Indonesia seas are so fertile
At the reef's edge, underwater cliffs plunge into the deep
As far down as the sunlight reaches,
these island walls are crusted with a vibrant profusion of living things
In the darkness of the deep below, life is sparse
but most of Indonesia seas are shallow
often shallow enough for light to reach the seabed
Even islands that don't break the surface can rise high enough into the sunshine to support coral reefs
Oasis of life in what would otherwise be an ocean desert
These seamounts attract wanderers, like the turtle
Here it can rest from the burden of carrying the universe
and with the help from the fish, even lose a little weight from its shell
parasites and encrusting algae
Some fish make their whole living like this
cleaning others of parasites
Seamounts are often a rendezvous for these specialized cleaner fish and their clients
A shoal of yellow-backed fusiliers have come to be cleaned
though the tiny, black and white cleaner wrasse will have its work cut out with an army like this
The variety of life in these seas is extraordinary
but just as striking is the sheer abundance
For most fish, coral reefs such as at-home
For bumphead parrotfish, they are food
Their teeth are fused into a beak, ideal for biting off chunks of living coral and encrusting algae
They sometimes use the bump on their head to ram corals and break them up
They can weigh 55k, so they pack quite a punch
The hard parts of the coral are ground up and passed through the fish's gut, coming out the other end as sand
The reef may be scarred by the grazing
but the corals grow fast in these sunlit waters
For cuttlefish, Indonesia's reefs are both a hunting ground
and a safe place to lay their eggs
they hide them in deep crevices in the coral
These extraordinary creatures are the comedians of the sea
Their skin has thousands of tiny sacs of pigment
which can expand and contract to give an almost instantaneous change of color
You can tell when a female has just laid an egg
she turns white perhaps a signal to her attendant male
After they're laid, the eggs absorb water and expand
that wages them firmly into the coral and makes them hard to dislodge
but new-laid eggs are still loose
so they are vulnerable to long-nosed predators
like butterfly fish
Reefs are a place to feed and a place to breed
They can also be a place to hide
Little fish escape the attentions of larger hunters by sheltering in nooks and crannies
too tight for pursuers to enter
Bigger fish must devise other means of defense
they gather in huge shoals hundreds even thousands
when hunters like tuna attack them there'll be safety in numbers
It's hard for a predator to pick a target in this crowd
Even if a hunter does single one out, the twists and turns of the shoal
distract the pursuer
There's another hunter on the reef
but this one's slower and more cunning
While tuna rely on speed
the cuttlefish hunts by stealth
The reason for those shimmering changes in pattern isn't known
It could be camouflage against a wave ripple background
or perhaps they mesmerize and distract the prey
Whatever their effect,
this is a hunter that seldom misses its target
It seizes its prey with a pair of modified tentacles
Its strike is one of the fastest movements in the animal kingdom
When hunting is over
the cuttlefish changes its dinner dress
The bumphead parrotfish have ended their meal too
They've ground coral into fine sand
Parrotfish can be major contributors to the buildup of sand
Sand provides a home for garden eels
These sinuous fish are plankton eaters
They rely on ocean currents to bring them food
but they keep their tails firmly anchored in the sand
ready to retreat into their burrows if danger threatens
With so many pairs of eyes on watch, any hunter would have to be very fast
or very well-camouflaged
A flounder would eat an eel
but first it has to catch it
On these scattered islands,
people reap harvest from both land and sea
Many believe that bounty flows from the Goddess of the sea - Nyale
especially on the island of Sumba
The object of this extraordinary mock battle is to shed blood
an honor to the Goddess and atonement for the past year's misdeeds
These days these spears are blunted
but in years gone by many warriors would be killed
The battle takes place each February just after the full moon
Nyale was the daughter of the king of the moon
She gave her life so the people of the earth would have food
and now that promise is fulfilled
Nyale worms
for believers they're the body of Nyale
coming to shore to give fertility to the land
to scientists, they are the reproductive segments of a marine worm
Whatever the explanation, local people find them good to eat
but the worm's orgy of spawning will soon be over
so the race is on to catch as many as they can
The adult worms live hidden in holes in the reef
And one night after the full moon
their tail ends break off and wriggle to the surface
There they shed eggs and sperm by the million
The seeds for nyale's return in the years ahead
This may not look appetizing, but to the local people, it's a delicacy
Nyale's gift will be taken home
and fried
Nyale comes just once a year
and the beaches are soon deserted
but other creatures are more frequent visitors
Baby turtles
newly hatched from eggs buried in the sand
In Indonesia, turtles breed all year round
As soon as they emerge, these bite-sized morsels dash for the safety of the water
The beach is a dangerous place
especially on one island
The Komodo dragon
the largest lizard in the world
These 3m giants
are scavengers and hunters
though much of their diet is carrion
they will kill quite large animals
even people
The dragons live only on Komodo
and a handful of islands nearby
They are good swimmers
but perhaps the strong currents between the islands
limit their spread
Through a unique accident of geography
these deep narrow channels
are some of the most treacherous waters in Indonesia
The Indonesian archipelago separates 2 great oceans
The waters of the Pacific are piled up by the trade winds
so they're a foot higher than the Indian ocean and there's a strong southerly flow
As it forces its way between the islands
it creates some of the fastest currents in the world
For creatures of the reef
these currents are both a challenge and an opportunity
They have to be securely anchored if they are not to be swept away
but the flow water brings a steady stream of food
The tiny particles of plankton
are snared by filter feeders
Each has its own way of trapping them
seemingly more flamboyant and ingenious than the last
These are Christmas tree worms
Filter feeders operate in all sorts of ways
some colorful, some elegant, some down right bizarre
Sea squirts are simple sacs with holes at the end
A sea cucumber spreads a net of feathery tentacles
each in turn transfers trapped food particles to its central mouth
A porcelain crab combs the current
with claws fringed with delicate hairs
But all these filter feeders have one thing in common
they rely on flowing water to bring them food
Powerful surface currents
have effects far beyond their immediate surroundings
they draw colder water up from the deep
These upwellings are the powerhouses of the ocean
they're rich in nutrients
the decayed remains of organisms long dead and sunk to the bottom
They support massive blooms of plankton
the minute plants and animals on which all other marine life
ultimately depends
Because they have so many upwellings
Indonesia's tropical seas
are some of the most productive on earth
The plankton may be tiny
but some of the creatures they support
are huge
Manta rays,
they have a wingspan of 3m
but they live entirely on plankton combed from the water that passes through their gills
Like so many of the fixed creatures of the reef
they are filter feeders
but they create their own current as they fly
Shallow seas support coral and the life that depends on it
Away from the reefs and islands, the open ocean would be a desert
were it not for the upwellings that enrich its deep blue water
These seas are so fertile that ocean wanderers
like turtles can breed all year round
they never have to go far from their nesting beaches
This one's a male
distinguished by his long tail
He's searching for a mate
Now that he's found her he'll try to hang on
until they've mated
but he may not have things all his own way
Another male tries to dislodge him
The challenger is defeated
Here in the open ocean
giants can appear out of the blue
The largest fish in the world
the whale shark
12m long, it's like a living reef
a shelter for shoals of smaller fish that shadow it on its travels
The whale shark's mouth is so wide
it could swallow a man whole
yet like the manta ray, this massive creature lives
entirely on plankton
it filters water through its gills
For thousands of years the ocean has played a vital part
in feeding Indonesia's peoples
One group of people live literally on the sea
This village on stilts is home to the Baga - the sea gypsies
The Baga were the hunter-gathers of the ocean
until recently they lived entirely on boats
wandering throughout the archipelago
Now most of them are settled
but they haven't lost their links with the sea
Even today, their lives are closely entwined with the ocean
A child's pet for instance
is most likely to be a frigate bird
The Baga villages are built over coral reefs
and the sea still provides almost all their food
From an early age, children learn how to make a living
from these tropical waters
Settling in villages may have increased the pressure on the reefs
but the Baga still respect the sea
Elsewhere in Indonesia
the close links between people and their natural world have been broken
Fishing methods are often far more destructive
they use dynamite, even cyanide
Tradition still permeates all aspects of Baga life
Young women still whiten their faces with rice flour
as a screen against the fierce tropical sun
For children this is a carefree life
But the children's world is changing fast
Their parents and grandparents gave up nomadic existence
for settled villages
if the younger generation can't find a living here
they may be tempted on to the land
severing the final links between the Baga and the ocean that was once their home
With so many islands Indonesia has a longer coastline
than almost any other country on earth
There's every kind of shore
from steep cliffs
to flat sandy beaches
each with its own distinct marine life
Muddy shallows are ideal for mangrove forest
Indonesia has some of the greatest expanses of mangrove on the planet
These different coastlines are one more reason
for the richness of Indonesia's marine world
and nowhere is that variety greater
than round the island of Sulawesi
Lombok strait, on the northern tip of Sulawesi.
This region has been a centre for the evolution of marine life
Its scattered reefs and sandy seabed
are a kaleidoscope of improbable shapes and colors
Here, hunters and hunted run an evolutionary arms race
developing ever more unlikely ways of warning and deceiving
Deceit starts with simple camouflage
hunk flounders are easy enough to see when they are swimming
but what about the one that didn't move
The flounders are master of disguise
they can change both the color and texture of its skin in an instant
Some animals disguise themselves as other species
This looks like a sponge but in fact, it's a predatory frogfish
And this could be its prey - a pipe fish
but a pipe fish looks like part of a feather star
so long as it stays within its waving arms
it's almost invisible
Pipe fish are related to sea horses
and like them, it's the males that carry the eggs in a special brood pouch
The trumpet fish hides in the fronds of a sea fan
but what it may not see is the pygmy seahorse
that lives there too
These tiny fish are no longer than a finger nail
they mimic every detail of their background
Rather than just looking like other species
some animals enlist other creatures' defenses for their own protection
The Coleman shrimp
lives safe along the venomous spines of a sea urchin
with its hard outer shell there's no risk of being stung
To survive in a stinging tentacles of anemones
these clown fish have to take extra precautions
They steal chemical from the anemone and rub it on to their skin
so it doesn't recognize them as prey
They can live safely in what would be lethal surroundings for other fish
In most tropical seas
clown fish have enemies to themselves
but here in Indonesia, all sorts of other fish
are developing the same immunity
Cardinal fish for instance
and hogfish
it's beginning to get crowded
This is evolution in progress
from here, the habit could spread right across the ocean
In Lombok Strait
everything that makes Indonesia's ocean so rich comes together
a varied coastline
shallow seas warmed by a tropical sun
fertile upwellings from the deep
There's a greater variety of life here
than almost anywhere else in Indonesia
It's enhanced by animals that come and go with the seasons
Squid come here to mate
but first they must take their partners
in an elegant dance of courtship
The arms race between predators and prey
reaches a peak on Lombok Strait's open expanses of sand
Out here, there is nowhere to hide
often the best defense is to pretend to be something else
Not an inedible dead leaf
but a young batfish
It's almost indistinguishable from the real thing
That movement in the background isn't a squid swimming past an anemone
but a frogfish flaunting a lure
Predators too use mimicry to deceive
Sooner or later a curious fish
will swim within reach of those waiting jaws
but these aren't taking the bait
Everything about the frogfish is peculiar
rather than swim, it walks
The frogfish is bizarre
but there's another mimic even more extraordinary
It's only just been discovered and it's truly amazing
The mimic octopus
It's a masterly quirk change artist
altering not just its shape but even its behavior
to impersonate a whole range of other creatures
If danger threatens
a menacing color change is no problem
Time to move on
so it alters its shape to imitate a flounder
flattening its body and matching the color of the sand
It undulates low across the bottom
just like a real flounder
Most octopus are very vulnerable in open water
usually they hide amongst rocks or corals
And if they have to flee, they dart away behind a cloud of ink
but this mimic has another trick up its sleeve
It alters both shape and behavior
to impersonate a fish that swims well above the bottom
a lionfish
Lionfish's fins are tipped with venom
so predators learn to avoid them
by its deceit the octopus shares that protection
Back on the sand, and it's being pestered by an aggressive damselfish
so it imitates something else
a sea snake
Sea snakes are amongst the most poisonous animals on earth
They use their venom to immobilize their prey
small fishes like damselfish
If all else fails,
the mimic octopus can always retreat down its hole
When the ancestors of today's Indonesians created the legend of the sea turtle
they could have had no inkling of the true wonders of the marine universe that lay all around them
hidden beneath the waves
Only now are we even beginning to understand this remarkable world
and with each new discovery
the reality becomes yet more extraordinary than the myth
Indonesia never ceases to amaze
It has it all, from the tiny to the huge
Not far offshore within sight of Sulawesi's volcanos
there's a resident population of sperm whales
Sperm whales may seem out of place in the tropics
yet they are not as far from cold water as you might think
all they have to do is dive
They feed on squid in the ocean trenches offshore
up to 1000m down
In the darkness of the deep, it's as cold as any polar sea
They live in family groups of about a dozen
mostly females and young
But each May they're joined by wandering bulls that swim up from the Antarctic
to search for a mate
The water rings with the bulls' calls of courtship
For the whales this is a brief encounter
In just a few weeks the sea will fall silent again
and the bows return to the ice-strewn waters of the Antarctic
In Indonesia, the forces of nature have combined
to produce an underwater wonderland
But if the sea is full of surprises,
so too is the land
Indonesia's islands are stepping stones between Asia and Australia
They were settled by the castaways of 2 continents
Monkeys like these often forage on the shore
but their true home is the forest
It's where we'll go on in next program
the green jungle that clothes the islands of Indonesia
Transcription by Andrew and Hattie www.mvgroup.org