Be the Creature - Season 1

First aired: 10/5/2003 13 episodes

Episodes

1. Brown Bear

Aired: 10/5/2003

Alone in Alaska's Katmai National Park, the Kratts come face-to-face with the mighty brown bear. Contrasting his diet and strength with that of the largest carnivore in North America, Chris eats sedge and digs clams in the wet, cold sand. But the brothers never let their guard down. Just feet behind them, two bears brawl over territory and in front, a mother uses the brothers as a shield to protect her cub against a stalking male bear. This extreme proximity provides the opportunity for the Kratts to offer a truly up-close perspective on this peaceful creature harboring explosive power.

2. African Wild Dog

Aired: 10/12/2003

In the premiere episode, the Kratt brothers run with the wild dogs in the Okavango. Chris tests his sprinting speed and Martin drives their off-road truck to the max trailing these super predators on their turf, but neither brother is any match for the 40 mph pack. Back at the den, the brothers seek to understand the dogs' complex family structure as a ""favorite aunt"" baby-sits pups while the rest of the pack hunts. Living with the dogs for weeks on end, the brothers gain insight into behaviors of this deeply co-operative pack and its nomadic life.

3. African Lion

Aired: 10/19/2003

The Kratts prowl the same watering holes in the desert plains of Botswana as a pride of lions. Parked in an open-air jeep that puts no real barriers between them and these fierce predators, Martin and Chris are engulfed by the pride. Surrounded, the Kratts find the tables turned as they are scrutinized by these curious beasts. The Kratts' heart-pounding proximity offers them the opportunity to better understand the big cats and their hunting strategy, staying with them even as they close in on prey, which includes neighboring elephants.

4. Japanese Macaque

Aired: 10/26/2003

The Kratt's journey to Japan's snow mountains and coastal regions to live with the northenmost non-human primate, the Japanese Macaque. The brothers stave off the cold by joining these adaptable ""snow monkeys"" for a bath in natural hot springs. In the lower elevations, the Kratts offer insights on the monkeys' other human-like behavior, which includes washing their food before eating it.

5. Lemur

Aired: 11/2/2003

The Kratt brothers float on a raft to the island of Madagascar just like the endangered lemurs' ancestors who likely floated on clumps of vegetation to this exotic island. Hanging from the tree branches in the forest and offering insights on eating behaviors in the varied habits of this primate, known for its long tail and human-like hands.

6. Manatee

Aired: 11/9/2003

In winter, hot springs draw the endangered Florida manatees up the tidal estuaries and rivers. However, there are almost one million registered boats in Florida and many of them share these same waterways. The Kratts enter the manatee's habitat, swimming with the slow-moving mammals as they evade the deadly oncoming propellers. Chris and Martin gain a fresh perspective from underwater on the life and death encounters faced by these gentle mammals.

7. Coastal Creature

Aired: 11/30/2003

A killer whale, 25 feet long and weighing 10,000 pounds, hurls through the waves to stike a seal pup onshore, rocking back to sea with his prey caught in his jaws. This is just one of the heart-pounding experiences that the Kratt brothers bring to this episode, which depicts the coastal creatures of Patagonia. Patrolling the shoreline where arid land meets teeming sea, the Kratts experience the point-of-view of other sea hybrids like the sea lion, penguin, and more.

8. Chimpanzee

Aired: 12/21/2003

The Kratts visit Uganda to compare the lives of two bands of chimpanzees. First, they travel with the wild chimpanzees in the Ngamba and Kibate forests, witnessing their fascinating behavior, including attacks on other primates. Then, the brothers spend time at the Ngamba Island Sanctuary, home to chimpanzees that have been rescued from civil war and poachers. Climbing into trees, the brothers swing awkwardly on rope, contrasting the abilities of the human primate with its closest relatives.

9. Banded Mongoose

Aired: 1/11/2004

Uganda's Mweya Peninsula contains one of the richest concentrations of wildlife in eastern Africa. Surrounded by hippos, leopards, and warthogs, the Kratts crawl into the habitat of the banded mongoose. Intensely wary of an ""enemy,"" the mongeese are known to advance as a group, standing on one another's backs to appear like a menacing beast with many heads. Whether intimidating a predator or defending their young, mongoose behaviors provide an opportunity for the Kratts to understand the forces driving social relations amongst diverse species.

10. Mexican Free-Tailed Bat

Aired: 1/18/2004

Spelunking in Texas, the Kratts explore America's largest bat cave where more than 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats have made their colony. Using breathing apparatus while navigating mounds of bat droppings, the brothers camp inside to live with the nocturnal species on their turf, and are there as a new generation of bats is born and opens their eyes. The Kratts watch these young bats mature to the point where they can fly, using echolocation to emerge at sundown amongst the huge swarm.

11. Great White Shark

Aired: 1/25/2004

The Kratt brothers live for two weeks on a boat off the coast of South Africa to swim with great white sharks and observe their hunting techniques off Seal Island, home to a colony of seals that runs the shark gauntlet every time its members take to the water. Whether in the boat or underwater, the brothers study the behavior of the great white as these fierce predators patrol the depths of ""Shark Alley"" to target inexperienced juvenile seals.

12. Gelada Baboon

Aired: 3/7/2004

The Kratt Brothers visit the remote mountains of the Ethiopian highlands to check out some of the last gelada baboons remaining in the world.

13. Eastern Gray Kangaroo

Aired: 4/9/2004

The Kratt brothers go down under to the Outback of eastern Australia to live with eastern gray kangaroos, one of the largest marsupials living today. Here they learn how the kangaroos have adapted to their competitive environment, from hopping in mobs of up to a hundred to using classic kangaroo boxing techniques to fight females and territories.