Brisbane's Native Wildlife 4K Nature Documentary

This is Brisbane, a city that 200 years ago did not exist. But as humanity built its own habitat, most of the wildlife remained living alongside us. This is their story. We will explore our city, now the newest habitat for the original residents. We will venture to the rural outskirts, where native species coexist on society's doorstep. We'll dive into the coast, where stories of family and survival take place every single day. And finally, we'll discover the forests beyond our city, where nature has been hiding some of its greatest secrets. So join me, as we discover the animals and ecosystems that have shaped Brisbane's wild identity. This is The Wild Next Door, Brisbane's native wildlife. Brisbane is Australia's third largest city, and it is home to almost 3 million people. For myself, Brisbane has been a very special place to live. On the city's doorsteps you have access to forests, mangrove swamps, and even islands. But with such great access to all these different ecosystems, it can become very easy taking the creatures that live there for granted. That's why I've set out to explore their life stories, hoping to share with you tales of both the ordinary and extraordinary wildlife. As Brisbane is young, to begin understanding its wildlife, we must first look at the city's history. Only a couple of centuries ago, a large proportion of the city was covered in mangrove swamps. These spaces were dominated by a species that continues living across the city today. The Australian Ibis, a bird perfectly adapted to life in the wetlands. Their slender beaks allow them to dig for buried invertebrates, giving them access to food that larger neighbours cannot find. But in Brisbane, most of the spaces they call home have taken on a new appearance, becoming a concrete jungle. Here, the Ibis has found a new way of life. They have become Australia's chief scavenger, a role that has earned them the nickname of bin chicken. Within the city, they are among the most abundant of Australia's native species, spending their days seeking out our food scraps. But a diet of bin juice does make them rather messy. Stand underneath one at your own risk. The Australian Ibis is far from the only resident to have built a life here. And lately, there have been rumours of an unusual visitor. Meet the noisy pitter, a mango-sized bird who moved to the city for a very special reason. It is here to prepare for the next breeding season. To do that, it has found somewhere to live where it is the only one of its kind. That means no need to share resources. Normally, the pitter lives in rainforests. But for now, the city's man-made gardens appear similar enough. Ideally, it will only want to stay for the winter. If it manages to gorge on enough food, it will return to the forest, where it can take up a lover. But being a man-made habitat, many of the species here are unfamiliar to the pitter. Best to treat this place with caution. Stealth is the tactic of choice. A difficult strategy when you were born with rainbow feathers. Although the pitter is the only one of its kind here, it is not the only bird in town. In fact, there is a lot more competition for food here than it thought. With a summer romance at stake, the pitter is going to need to move quickly. After a long day of foraging in the city, the pitter has returned to its burrow for a well-deserved night's rest. And like our mango-shaped neighbor, most of us are also heading to our homes, ready to get some sleep. But at night time, the city takes on a completely different appearance. And in the botanic gardens, a new mischievous community is emerging. These are brushtail possums, and they live in the city's shadows. To discover more about the possums, we have come to the botanic gardens, this dimly lit section of the city where they call home. In Australia's urban spaces, there has been no native mammal that's better adapted to our presence than the brushtail possum. They are fantastic climbers, and they're omnivores, being able to eat just about anything. They are, by nature, incredibly curious animals, trying just about any food source, just to see if it's edible. This means they've been able to live off our scraps and leftovers, and they're very comfortable around people. Over the years, this has made them, despite being nocturnal, the most seen and abundant marsupial living in Australia's cities. Possums and the ibis are prime examples of native species that have adjusted to city life. But for the next part of our journey, we will head east, to a place with a much slower way of life. This is Stradbroke Island, traditionally called Minjerribah. Sitting 30km at sea from Brisbane, the island is home to a huge diversity of wildlife. Here, much of the wildlife is rather accustomed to the presence of people. This is particularly true for a mob of eastern grey kangaroos, one of four kangaroo species. Adult kangaroos have very few predators, with dingoes being the main wild threat. But as no dingoes have been seen on the island, this mob has been living a peaceful life here for generations. This joey should have a very peaceful lifetime ahead of it. But even life in paradise can have its occasional challenge, and there is one that all kangaroos must eventually go through. Here we have a mother, her teenage joey and the small black feathers of an adopted friend. This is a willy wagtail, and it has joined the kangaroo family, following where they go. On this island, most of the predators are birds of prey. To avoid becoming food, the wagtail knows they will never strike near a protective mother. But as the wagtail is about to see, the kangaroo mum has a very difficult job to do. She needs to prepare the joey for independence, and life beyond the pouch. For the joey, it has been living permanently inside that pouch for 8 months. And the sea breeze is cold, it must be much comfier back inside. The only challenge is how to get back in there. This requires some strategy. She has raised the joey since it was no larger than a jelly bean, nourishing it with milk also inside the pouch. But the heavier the joey becomes, the more tiring the process is for her too. Time for her to enjoy a brief moment of island peace. These two will live together for 18 months, a process she may go through with as many as 8 joeys. Snuggly back inside, the joey has learned another important life lesson. The power of persistence. Every year, the island welcomes a whole new generation of animals. And during the winter, the island lays witness to one of Earth's greatest tales of family and new life. Pumpback whales. As up to 16 meters long, they are the 8th largest animal anywhere on Earth. Every year, this species will follow the same ancient path, from Antarctica to the Great Barrier Reef. They are migrating as a species so that they can welcome their newest generation in the warm waters of the North. The newborn calves will need this time to blubber up before they can return back down south. Pumpback whales are the most researched whale of all in the animal kingdom, and a lot of that research is taking place right here in Queensland. What we now know about them is that when they sing their songs, there's actually regional dialects. Different communities of whales produce very different songs that are kind of unique to them. And also what we now know is it's only actually the males that sing. Whilst the females can make noises, they do vocalise to talk to their young, they don't sing in the way the males do. It's largely done to, I guess, impress the females and to find a mate. And over time, it's also the males that add different verses. Scientists have studied their choruses and their songs over years, and what they've found is that each year the songs slightly shift as new males add new verses, and that song will get picked up amongst all the whales as they kind of all learn it together. This journey will take the whales over 10,000 kilometres in distance. On such a long journey, it's important to stay entertained. Visiting the island gives us a glimpse of what Brisbane might have looked like without our presence. But while Brisbane's east is defined by a blue ocean, the city's west could not look any more different. This is the Hinterland, an expansive area covered in looming mountains, dense forests and rolling hills. Ancient volcanoes forged these towering structures, with the fertile soil painting the land green. For millions of years, these forests have been a refuge for wildlife, providing a home to many of Australia's most famous and charismatic species. But every now and then, some of these residents wander ever closer to our concrete jungle. This bundle of spikes is a short-beaked echidna, one of only two egg-laying mammals. They are clumsy, solitary creatures, and they exist with one purpose in life, to consume as many ants and termites as physically possible. The echidna's beak has evolved specifically to sniff out the location of the ants, and they will follow wherever that scent takes them, even if it brings them ever closer towards the city. It would seem the echidna has found something. Sweet, glorious ants. This will be short work, and the echidna's strong stubby limbs will ensure there are no survivors. Nearby, it seems there is an even bigger jackpot waiting. And the echidna has caught the scent. But how do you get up that hill with such little tiny arms? This is going to be a mountain to climb. Finally, the sweet taste of victory. The climb was certainly worth the reward. Exploring deeper into the hinterland, and we reach the scenic Rim, a subtropical rainforest where many of the animals have a slightly wilder look to them. This is Brisbane in a more primal setting. And the treetops are providing a home to many familiar residents. These are koalas, in their natural eucalyptus habitat. They share this home with laughing kookaburras and flying foxes. Two species that are regularly seen flying into the city centre. But they are far from the only creature calling this place home. And as night time begins, the forest is preparing to reveal one of its best-kept secrets. These lights belong to glowworms, tiny predators whose beauty is a mask for their real intentions. Glowworms produce their light out of the base of their tails, and in their colonies they kind of resemble starlight. This is to attract insects like moths and mosquitoes, which they're hoping to eat. The way the glowworms catch them is they build these very sticky webs around themselves, kind of like a spider with their spider webs. They hang these things called snares, made out of silk, which they will coat in a very slimy mucus. Once the flying insect is caught, the glowworm quickly feels the vibrations, pulls up the insect and consumes it. After they've eaten their meal, the glowworms will turn out their lights, meaning usually the brighter the glowworm shines, the more hungry it is. But also, if a glowworm is to ever get too bright and too hungry, something will switch inside of them and they will start to resort to cannibalism, moving around consuming all their neighbours. In this way, these living lights are full of deadly surprises. From the forests in the west to the shores in the east, Brisbane does not exist alongside nature. It is a part of it. Each of the animals living here are part of a story far older than the city itself. And even a short walk can feel like you're stepping into an entire new world. Brisbane is alive with wild secrets. Sometimes the more we notice, the more we will realise the wild is never far away. Sometimes it is right next door.