| [00:00.430] |
No matter how remote the Hawaiian islands are,or how hostile, |
| [00:04.290] |
there is one creature that has reached almost all of them |
| [00:07.320] |
The mourning gecko |
| [00:08.600] |
It is the ultimate castaway, |
| [00:10.510] |
the marathon winner on the long journey from New Guinea |
| [00:13.800] |
Incredibly, |
| [00:14.800] |
the female mourning gecko has done away with the need for a mate |
| [00:18.470] |
Instead, she simply produces eggs that need no fertilisation |
| [00:22.460] |
So one single female washed up on an island could start a whole population |
| [00:27.700] |
Along with this extraordinary ability |
| [00:30.070] |
these thick-skinned and salt-resistant geckos |
| [00:32.580] |
could also survive long sea passages on rafts |
| [00:36.680] |
and even the force of cyclones |
| [00:39.560] |
But there is more to the gecko's story than this |
| [00:42.980] |
Less than 2,000 years ago, |
| [00:44.940] |
something happened that was to revolutionise the spread of plantsand animals |
| [00:51.420] |
Taking to their sailing boats once more, |
| [00:53.950] |
descendants of the Lapita left the central Pacific |
| [00:57.580] |
and set off again in search of new lands into the great unknown |
