Eden: Untamed Planet

Planet Earth,

now home to nearly eight billion people.

And yet there are still places

that remain pristine.

Where a spellbinding variety of life

continues to thrive.

These are the last regions that could be called...

Eden.

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In the heart of Southeast Asia

lies the tropical island of Borneo.

Around the size of Texas,

its ancient forest has remained unchanged

for 140 million years.

Bathed in sunshine

and quenched by abundant rainfall...

over time these hothouse conditions

have spawned some 60,000 species

of plants and animals...

Making Borneo possibly more biodiverse

than any other island.

Evolving in isolation,

over 6,000 of its inhabitants

are found nowhere else on Earth.

Remarkably, this wealth is built

on a foundation of shallow, nutrient-poor soil.

And yet, somehow,

life has triumphed...

turning this into a paradise

unlike any other.

Dawn breaks

over Borneo's flooded lowland forest.

A mosaic of tree-lined waterways

and swampy thickets.

A unique habitat that has given rise

to a one-of-a kind primate.

Proboscis monkeys,

named after their outstanding noses.

For an alpha male,

the bigger the nose...

the bigger the harem.

They live in groups of 20 or more.

This two-year-old female is no longer dependent

on her mother,

but still needs the protection of her tightknit family.

They survive mainly on a diet of leaves

that are low in calories

and difficult to digest.

Unless you have a barrel belly...

...and 48 hours to ferment them.

Young leaves aren't as tough,

but there are fewer to go around.

And breakfast finishes off their supply.

Now the tenderest shoots...

are on the other side of the river.

Patrolled by the largest reptiles in the world.

Saltwater crocodiles.

Up to 20 feet long.

They'll devour any animal

they can sink their four-inch teeth into.

But if the monkeys are going to eat,

they'll have to cross.

The alpha male leads the way.

The rest rapidly follow.

The babies must cling onto their mothers.

Each impact carries soundwaves

up and down the river.

Now too big to be carried,

for this youngster,

a solo plunge is a daunting prospect.

This is a 40-foot leap of faith.

At the surface, she's desperately vulnerable.

But these unique monkeys

are semi-aquatic.

With partially webbed hands and feet,

they can propel themselves quickly but quietly...

...covering a distance of up to 60 feet.

Made it.

She joins in the buffet of fresh young leaves.

As females mature,

they seek out mates in other groups,

but for now,

this family is all she needs.

Close bonds and specialist adaptations

allow proboscis monkeys to prosper

in this water world.

Moving inland,

Borneo's forest

rises to form a towering canopy.

By noon, the first of the daily downpours

tops up the humidity to 100 percent.

With twice as much rain as Florida...

this Eden is a sultry

90-degree paradise...

nurturing the tallest tropical trees in the world...

that play a crucial part

in the combat of climate change.

Each of them absorbing more carbon than any others.

120 feet up...

the world's largest tree-living ape...

the orangutan.

A 30-year-old mother...

and her three-year-old son...

are having a mid-morning snack.

She'll dedicate eight years to rearing him.

Aside from humans,

it's the longest infancy of any ape.

Until he's fully weened,

it's vital she gets enough to eat...

or her milk will run dry.

But she needs more than low-calorie leaves.

Her challenge is to find some energy-rich fruit...

and fast.

Arms that span more than six feet

and 80 pounds of body weight

help to bend branches and sway through the canopy.

Still fueled-up from his morning feed,

her son does a good job keeping up.

But he mustn't put a foot wrong.

A fall from up here would be fatal.

By the time they've covered a mile,

his mother needs a pick-me-up.

Leaves and bark offer some sustenance,

and it's an opportunity to teach her son

the 500 or so species of edible plants

that Borneo has to offer.

While his mother takes a power nap...

Nakal lives up to his name...

Malay for 'naughty.'

For him, life is an adventure...

and this is the ultimate playground.

All mothers know that kids like to push their luck.

Sometimes, a little too far.

Around one in ten infants die...

mostly from falls.

Nakal has learnt a valuable lesson.

The other great threat he faces is starvation.

In this rainforest,

finding fruit is a treasure hunt.

Scattered far and wide,

it ripens at different times.

But orangutans build up 3D mind maps

that detail not only where to find it,

but when it's good to eat.

Finally, after a morning of travel,

fruiting trees.

But they've been overrun by a troop of macaques.

Nakal voices his annoyance.

But he's just a pipsqueak.

They're more nuisance than a threat,

so his mother makes it clear:

'Mess with him...

you mess with me!'

Fruit provides the orangutans

with the calories they crave.

Over Nakal's long childhood,

his mother will pass on the knowledge he needs.

The wisdom of many generations...

allows Borneo's orangutans

to enjoy the riches available here.

By early afternoon,

as the tropical sun dries out the forest floor,

legions of plant-eating insects

home in on anything edible.

Armies of termites emerge.

Up to 7,000 per square yard.

Many specialize in consuming trees...

from the inside out.

The trees deploy defense systems,

sealing their wounds with healing resin.

But this meranti tree

has its very own protection...

Assassin bugs.

This inch-and-a-half-long female

repurposes resin

to weaponize her forelimbs.

Dressed to kill...

she comes to the tree's defense.

There's no escape from the viscous viciousness

of this femme fatale.

Once the termite is swaddled in sap,

she skewers it with her stiletto mouthparts...

and slowly syringes out its insides.

With so much prey to tap into,

this tree is the ideal place to raise a family.

A passing male could be the perfect partner.

What follows is completely new to science.

A courtship dance

thought to test his tenacity.

If he can't withstand her gluey grip,

they won't stick together.

Hmm! Suitably impressed,

she delicately dabs resin on the tip of her abdomen...

ready to cement their relationship.

The babies, with their menacing mittens,

will spend their entire lives liquidating termites.

There are close to 200,000 species

of insect in Borneo.