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-I'm in Africa. -(BARKING)
And I'm here looking for one of the largest animals in its species.
And it's probably an animal that you've never heard of.
It's called the giant white goliath beetle.
And it's one of the biggest, most sought-after insects in the world.
It's also one of the most rare.
In fact, in any given year no more than a dozen have been found.
And they are found in this huge forest ahead of me.
It's home to hundreds of species of fascinating animals
and deadly predators.
And that's where I'm going...
In search of the giant white goliath beetle.
(ALARM BEEPING)
I'm Dominic Monaghan.
All my life, I've been driven by two strong passions.
Acting, and wild creatures.
Since I was a kid, I've dreamt of travelling the planet
to get my hands on the rarest...
Scary.
...and most dangerous animals out there.
And now, I finally have my chance.
I'm in Africa.
Cameroon to be exact, in the town of Buea.
Picking up some supplies in this market.
Can I get some peppers?
And I'm about to embark on one of my most challenging expeditions yet.
Thank you.
I'm heading deep into the jungle
to track down an insect so rare,
only a handful are found every year.
And here it is. Right here.
The beautiful white giant goliath beetle. Check it out.
Once found throughout the region,
loss of habitat to logging and farming
has driven this 11-centimetre-long giant
to the brink of extinction.
It's the largest beetle in the planet.
And this could be my last chance to observe
this incredible beetle in its natural environment
before it becomes extinct.
They are so rare that my only hope of finding one
lies in contacting the hunters and dealers
that supply collectors with insects like the goliath beetle.
Hello.
And I'm told that they like to hang out here, in the market.
I managed to get a hold of the name of a guy called Mr Ivo.
But finding him in this chaos is going to be almost impossible.
(PEOPLE TALKING INDISTINCTLY)
Hey, do you guys know this person?
Mr Ivo?
You know this person, Mr Ivo?
I've looked all over the market with no luck.
-WOMAN: No idea. -No?
But finally, I catch a break.
I'm told that Mr Ivo runs his insect export business
from his home, at the top of a nearby hill.
I don't know how these guys go up and down this hill in a car
because I can barely go up and down on my two feet.
After a long hike to the top, I hope I've come to the right place.
-Mr Ivo? -Yeah.
Oh, man, you're not an easy man to find.
Now, I've got to convince him to help me out.
Okay, great.
Oh, wow!
You have a ton!
MONAGHAN: Ivo is one of the biggest insect dealers in the region.
(IVO SPEAKING)
MONAGHAN: Ah, these are beautiful.
And he relies on a large network of middlemen and insect hunters
spread out across Cameroon.
Mmm-hmm.
And then you preserve them and then you prepare them and then you send them
-to different places around the market. -Yeah. Yeah.
MONAGHAN: He's got tons of the more common giant beetles.
Oh, it's so heavy.
But even Mr Ivo doesn't own any rare white goliaths.
How many times do you think you would see
a white goliath beetle in one year?
-One? -Yeah.
MONAGHAN: But I've come to see one alive in the wild
and only Ivo's beetle hunters can make that dream a reality.
Can you help me?
All right. Well, that's the best that we can do, right?
-Hmm. -I'll just have to hope that I'll be lucky.
-Yeah, I'm quite lucky. -Yeah.
That was great, meeting Mr Ivo.
But who knows how long it's gonna be until he gets back in touch with me.
So while I have a little bit of time to kill,
I'm going to go check out this amazing volcano.
At just over 13,000 feet, it's the highest mountain in Cameroon,
and the most active volcano in West Africa.
So I hear there's a legend about the mountain.
MONAGHAN: And in the last century alone,
this volcano has erupted seven times.
But judging from the relaxed mood of my guide, Ferdinand,
I don't think I've got to worry about that today.
Hopefully, we should see a bunch of wildlife.
It's incredibly fertile around here
because the volcano spews out a lot of ash.
I just hope I can keep up with Ferdinand.
FERDINAND: This is called Kigelia africana.
It's a medicinal plant.
The bark is anti-poison.
So that's what's happened here. Someone's...
Someone took the bark
and they took for poison food or poisonous snakes.
-Should we do it? -Yeah.
Is it tasty? What does it taste of?
It's a little bit bitter.
-Is it good? -It's good.
-Where's my piece? -(LAUGHING)
Oh, what?
So if I get bitten by a snake...
No, you cannot be bitten by snakes.
So you can try.
Hmm. It is bitter.
But hey, if it's good for you...
Cool, man.
-So we're protected from snakes now. -Yes.
Let's keep going.
(WHISPERING EXCITEDLY) Oh, look. Look, look, look!
It's a chameleon.
Oh, wow!
This is a four horned chameleon.
Because as you can see from the front of his little face,
he's got these four horns.
Chameleons are the most famous for changing colour.
Which he's doing right now.
For a long time, it was thought that they change colour
based on their environment and they do, do that.
But for the most part, they change colour based on their mood.
When a chameleon is happy, they'll be kind of pistachio green.
When a chameleon is annoyed, they'll be kind of a dark brown.
Chameleons have a prehensile tail.
That means that they use their tail as a fifth limb.
They can actually hang on by it.
And they have these fused feet. See right here.
I'll put this little guy back for a second.
These amazing little arms that they have will actually grab on to
individual branches like an oven mitt.
Grab on to a branch and it gives him great grip.
The four horned chameleon. Wicked.
And the rest of my hike up the mountain proves equally thrilling.
Absolutely beautiful.
Oh, there's more in there. That's a little family of beetles.
Check it out. Check it out.
These are African army ants.
You can actually see that they're moving with their eggs.
So they're protected by the soldiers.
He's got all of his jaw in my finger tip.
Ow! That's kind of painful. Ow!
We've been on the volcano for hours
and it's time to head back to town.
Thankfully, there's a message waiting for me from Mr Ivo.
And it looks like I'm finally in business.
He told me to head to a village called Konye
to meet up with a middleman.
He's the connection between Mr Ivo and the hunters.
All I have to do now is convince him to share the secrets of beetle hunting
with a complete stranger.
What's up, buddy?
Easy peasy.
(CHUCKLES)
It's really nice to feel like you're on the road now.
Up until now, it's been a really amazing trip in Africa.
But I've not felt like I've made any real progress.
Now, I do.
I'm on my way to the remote village of Konye
to meet Mr Ivo's middleman. Getting there isn't going to be easy.
You can forget GPS.
Directions here are strictly word of mouth.
Is this Konye?
No, Konye is up there.
-Konye? -Yeah.
MONAGHAN: I'm close to Konye, evidently.
And I now start a search for this middleman.
There's just one small problem.
Mr Ivo gave me a name but no address.
So once again, I'll have to rely on the locals for help.
-Hello. -White man.
Hi.
Given the reception I'm getting...
White man!
...I'm feeling that they don't get a lot of strangers around here.
I think they're saying, "White man." I think...
Every time I drive past some kids,
I think they say, "White man, white man."
-BOY: White man! -Hi. Yeah, white man.
Ah, feels like we're at the centre of something here.
-Hello. -(DRUMS BEATING)
Let me see if this guy knows.
-Is this Konye? -This is Konye.
This is Konye. Do you know anyone that works with insects?
Insects. No, I don't.
I don't know, man. I mean, he could live in any of these places.
Hello.
(MAN LAUGHS)
(CHUCKLING)
There's a whole bunch of kids here.
If I can't find the middleman,
maybe I'll let the middleman find me.
So I'm going to park my car and see if I can join this game.
Who knows, maybe my David Beckham skills
will draw a crowd.
Hey, what's up, man?
I'm going to give you a lesson in football right now.
(CHUCKLING) That's not strictly true.
I'm probably gonna roll my ankle.
All right. Let's do this thing.
(CHEERING)
(WHISTLE BLOWING)
Here, pass, pass, pass.
I may not be able to speak a word of the local dialect
but football doesn't need any translation.
Come on.
(MONAGHAN EXCLAIMING)
(CHEERING)
-(WHISTLE BLOWING) -Halftime.
Just in the middle of a very tactical team talk here.
-Pass ball. -Yeah, exactly. Pass and then you pass.
And then you pass. Then you score.
This is it. Second half.
I play way better in second half. I always do.
(GRUNTING)
Very passionate.
(GROANS)
I still haven't found my scoring touch.
But my game plan seems to be working.
Most of the town has turned up to watch the match.
(CHILDREN CHEERING)
Team, team, team...
As the final whistle goes,
we managed to hold on to our slim one-goal-lead.
Thank you. Thank you.
(SINGING INDISTINCTLY)
Well played, well played, well played.
Well played.
-MAN: Hello. -Hi.
Hey, how are you?
-Oh, you're Mr Ivo's friend. -Yes.
-You're the middleman. -Yes.
-Okay, great. Well, should we go to your house? -Yes.
All right, great. Cool.
Maybe you will play for Manchester United one day.
(SINGING INDISTINCTLY)
You're a middleman for Mr Ivo?
Well, I'm glad.
Now that I've connected with Sonny, I can learn a little bit more
about how to find the illusive giant white goliath beetle.
That's great. I mean, he said he's got some beetles.
And this is the place to find beetles.
So fingers crossed, we should be on the right track here.
Oh, cool, man. So these are all goliath beetles?
(SONNY REPLYING)
But this... This isn't a white beetle?
So the white beetle is all white.
(SONNY REPLYING)
I'd love to see one of these guys in the wild.
I've now reached my second objective.
Sonny's agreed to connect me with one of his best beetle hunters.
And with our business done for the day,
he invites me in for a home-cooked meal.
-Yeah? -(SONNY SPEAKING)
MONAGHAN: Yeah, what type?
-Juka? -Yeah.
Okay.
No idea what Juka is.
Oh, thank you very much. Wow! It looks good.
This is oil from a tree.
From a tree, right?
Oh, the fish is good.
Oh, it's really good.
I'm going to try the meat.
It's spicy.
It's tough. It's like jerky. It's like jerky.
-Thank you very much for the food. -Yeah.
MONAGHAN: With dinner over, I'm treated to yet another example
of African hospitality.
Despite the cramped quarters, Sonny insists that I stay for the night.
So I'm gonna get some sleep, wake up in the morning,
and say bye to Sonny and his beautiful family.
And then I'll be on my way. See you in the morning.
Sonny has told me to head to Ediki, a remote village
a few hours' drive deeper into Cameroon's rugged interior.
Once there, he's arranged for me to meet a family of beetle hunters
he's employed for years.
These guys collect insects for him
and they've actually collected
the giant white goliath beetle before.
Not too many times, but they've definitely done it.
So I am getting closer and closer to my goal.
But I'm quickly learning that on this expedition, nothing is easy.
Yesterday's roads were bad,
but they were like a freshly paved motorway compared to this one.
Some of these ruts are swallowing the car,
so trying to avoid them as best I can,
but to be honest, they're all over.
(ENGINE ROARING)
I haven't seen a soul for hours.
And a breakdown out here could put me dangerously behind schedule,
threatening to derail this entire mission.
All right.
Wow, that engine is hot. You could fry an egg on that thing right now.
Well, that's pretty stuck.
Maybe if I go backwards and then go forwards, I might get out of this thing.
(ENGINE STARTING)
(ENGINE ROARING)
Is that like the 27th time I've stalled?
The tyre is smoking a little bit now.
But I'm at the crest of this hill,
I've probably got 20, 30 feet to go.
So I'm going to see if I can get up there
without this car dying on me.
Oh, good times.
Oh!
Couple more stalls and we should be good.
(ENGINE REVVING)
I think that was the worst of it.
So this is definitely a nicer part of the road.
That was little hectic there for a section.
I'm a little worried that I'm behind schedule now.
This family that I'm meeting
go into the forest every morning to catch insects.
I probably added an extra hour onto my day.
So I'm hoping I'll make up some time now.
(INDISTINCT)
Oh, this guy's got some bottles and a knife.
Hello.
Hey, man.
-Are you Caiman? -Yeah.
Oh, I'm friends with Sonny.
-My name's Dominic. -Yeah, Dominic. How are you?
So, you're going into the jungle?
Can I come with you?
-Do I leave my car there? -Yes.
-Well, let me grab my bag and I'll come. -Yes.
-Thanks. -Yeah.
Oh, that's a cool lizard.
I come here looking for the white goliath beetle.
But beautiful, right?
MONAGHAN: White goliaths can sell for thousands of dollars.
Enough to support Caiman's family of five for well over a year.
This one?
MONAGHAN: Oh, okay. But not today. CAIMAN: Yes.
-Okay, well, I'll keep looking for you. -Yeah.
MONAGHAN: I used to hunt for beetles in my garden when I was a kid.
But out here, they take their hunting a little more seriously.
-Anything? -(CAIMAN SPEAKING)
MONAGHAN: The net doesn't seem to be working.
But Caiman's got another plan.
-Oh, we're making a trap? -Yeah.
All right.
-Which, this one? -Yes.
MONAGHAN: Okay, wish me luck.
Thanks, man.
This is where my baseball inability comes in.
Go.
MONAGHAN: Aw! So close.
To be fair, that wasn't the branch I was going for.
But it is in the right ballpark.
You see it?
You lose it?
We lost that rock 'cause I was too strong.
Oh, this little kid's got one.
Nice one. Yeah!
(CHUCKLES)
Okay, man. Ahem!
-Yup? -(CAIMAN SPEAKING)
Got it.
We're now creating a bucket
which is made from a plastic bottle.
And now he's gonna attach a string,
send it right through, over the branch.
In the jug is a sweet mixture of palm wine and bananas.
It's a kind of home-made bait that should attract the beetle.
Good. Shake. Jungle cocktail.
How much?
(CAIMAN SPEAKING)
-Good. -MONAGHAN: Yeah?
So, my very first beetle bucket trap.
A little different from turning over stones
when I was a kid looking for beetles.
Fun.
With my trap in place,
Caiman wants to check on something he set up earlier in the week.
But as we approach them,
we've come face to face with the undisputed king of this forest.
-CAIMAN: It's right there. -Yeah. Right there.
MONAGHAN: The black forest cobra.
This is one of the most dangerous and aggressive snakes in the world.
But I can't pass up a once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity to get a closer look.
Oh! Boy, he's fast.
Whoa!
(GRUNTS) I got it. I got it, I got it.
These guys are highly venomous.
He's a little skittish right now.
Whoa!
I have a friend... Whoa!
...who's a herpetologist.
And we were talking before I came to Africa...
Whoa!
...about venomous snakes.
And he said to me, "Do not get bitten by this snake."
They can kill a grown adult... That would be me.
...in as short as half an hour.
These guys do not mess around.
This guy is getting a little excited.
Whoa!
Their senses are highly tuned.
Calming down a little bit now, see how his hood is just disappearing.
It's a beautiful snake.
But before this guy gets too riled up...
It's all right, buddy.
...I think it's time to let him be on his way.
I'm still buzzing from my cobra encounter
when Caiman reminds me
we still have to check on the traps he set earlier in the week.
Okay, I'll get it.
Keep coming, keep coming. I got it.
We find some insects.
So this guy just had a little bit too much palm wine.
But I guess the white goliath beetle
isn't interested in today's special.
So that was a fun day, spending some time with Caiman and his family,
looking for insects.
No sign of the goliath beetle anywhere
so I'm a little worried about that.
So to make sure that our next hunt is more successful,
Caiman wants to ask for a little divine assistance.
He's arranged for the local shaman to tell our fortune.
And find out if our next hunt will be a success.
(RHYTHMIC TAPPING)
And it looks like everyone in the village has come to watch the ceremony.
(SINGING INDISTINCTLY)
(TALKING INDISTINCTLY)
MONAGHAN: I'm not sure why the shaman is pouring beer on my feet.
But it looks like the ceremony can now begin.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
I think these are the leaves from the tree
that the goliath beetle lives on.
Caiman said I've got to pull as hard as I can on this stack of leaves.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
If they tear, I'm out of luck.
But if they don't, we're in business.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
Hopefully, this will bring me luck
when I go out looking for the beetle again later on tonight.
(TAPPING RHYTHMICALLY)
CAIMAN: That's good, that's good.
Trap the powers! Trap the powers!
(PEOPLE YELLING INDISTINCTLY)
(LAUGHS)
So the leaves didn't break, which should be a good sign.
Either way, it was really fun.
With the ritual over,
Caiman and I head back into the forest for a nocturnal beetle hunt.
So I'm in the forest, looking for the goliath beetle.
And the jungle's just a cacophony of noise at night.
-Hey, listen. -(CROAKING)
Frogs.
-(CHIRPING) -Grasshoppers.
Some pretty sophisticated communication going on
right now between these animals.
Probably a little bit of lovemaking. Little bit of lovemaking.
All right, let's keep moving.
Look, look, look!
(GRUNTS)
Let me see if I can grab it.
Whoa!
Oh, it's gone.
It's okay, buddy.
Look at this thing. Look at this.
I can't believe I saw this just sat by the side of this little crossing here.
I saw these two huge eyes looking. And I went over...
I was able to pick this guy up. Look, he's so relaxed.
This is the goliath frog.
The largest frog in Africa. Really the largest frog in the world.
An absolute beast.
Look at the size of that guy's hands.
And incredibly powerful animals.
I mean, look at the muscles in this frog's legs.
The French would have an absolute field day with this frog.
They're nocturnal, which is why their eyes are so big.
This guy's probably at least five, maybe even 10 years old.
I'm gonna let this guy go now.
That was cool.
That was the goliath frog.
But my hunt for the goliath beetle isn't going nearly as well.
So, we're looking in the trees for the white goliath beetle.
And just as we're about to call it a night...
-Hey, it's there, it's there! -...Caiman spots something in the treetops.
-Here, here. -Oh, right there.
Look, look, look.
It's a goliath.
It looks like we may have finally found the object of my quest.
Sweet.
Oh, got it. Look!
(CAIMAN SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
MONAGHAN: Upon closer inspection,
we see that this isn't the rare white goliath.
But rather its less valuable relative.
Beautiful animal though.
Ginormous beetle.
As our hunt ends,
I have to face the fact that the white goliath beetle just isn't here.
Luckily, Caiman tells me I've got one last shot.
(IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
Okay, so for me to get the best chance of finding the white goliath beetle
I need to head to a place called the Bakossi Mountains.
I guess that's where I'm going next.
Caiman's told me to head to Nyalle,
a small village nestled deep within the mountains.
And with my time in Cameroon running out, I've no choice
but to make the dangerous drive at night.
And these roads are pretty treacherous.
And I seem to be finding myself behind every single huge truck.
And they're kicking up this dust
so you can barely see in front of your face.
It feels like, up to now,
that this is probably the most dangerous thing that I'm tackling.
(HONKING)
Oh! Watch out.
I've driven all night to reach the remote village of Nyalle.
I'm in the beautiful Bakossi region of Cameroon.
And those are the Bakossi Mountains.
I was told to come here by Caiman,
who said that I should meet someone who he works with, a guy called Emanuel,
who he said is the best beetle hunter in Cameroon.
Hopefully he'll be here.
And I can get him to help me find this giant white goliath beetle.
Emanuel here?
Oh. Nice, right?
Hi.
-You Emanuel? -Yes, sir.
Very nice to meet you. I'm Dominic. I'm friends with Caiman.
Oh, thank you. I only have a small amount of time here.
I came to Cameroon to find the white beetle because they're so rare.
Do you think maybe you could help me?
MONAGHAN: Finally, I think I've connected with the man who can help me find my prize.
But before the hunt can begin,
I've been invited to attend another local ceremony.
Blessing. All right. I'll take that.
(CHANTING)
All of the village elders have come out
to ask the Gods for permission to climb the mountain.
(SINGING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(CHANTING)
Thank you.
With the ceremony coming to an end,
it's time for Emanuel and I to start climbing the mountain.
Emanuel is taking me to a special grove of trees
about a day and a half from the village.
In 20 years of hunting, it's where he's caught most of his white goliaths.
But in this forest, they could be anywhere.
Okay. So we're looking for beetle larvae in here.
Oh, look. There's a millipede.
This is the giant African millipede, the biggest in the world.
Here, I got it, I got it.
Look at that guy.
Hang on. Let me get a leaf or something.
Oh, there's another one. Oh, it's a much bigger one.
And we've got two now.
Nocturnal.
It actually exudes this, kind of, orange poison here.
Leaks out of the side of its skin.
If you ingest that
or get it in a cut on your skin, it'll make you sick.
I'm just gonna try and get some of this poison off these guys.
Yeah, look at that right there.
I'm gonna put these guys back because they're nocturnal
and being out in the daytime is gonna be a little confusing for them.
But I enjoyed hanging out.
So that was an unexpected treat in the middle of the forest.
The giant African millipede.
Cool.
It's really steep here.
We're just a few hours from the village,
when I get my very first look at why it's so hard to find a white goliath beetle.
And you can see here, this clearing...
They actually cut into the forest in certain sections
so that they can use it to farm.
Use it to plant crops.
Makes sense, you know, they're feeding their families.
But it's also encroaching on the environment,
where all these animals live.
Including the white goliath beetle.
That means that Emanuel has to travel
deeper and deeper into these forests to find his beetles.
And the heat here is stifling.
We're really hot.
But Emanuel knows how to make our situation a little more comfortable.
So Emanuel is just tying these two sticks together
and I think it's because there's a papaya tree above us.
We're gonna have some refreshment.
Good shot!
I earn my supper.
-We eat it? -Yes.
Mmm. It's really tasty.
-It's good, Emanuel. Very good. -Mmm-hmm. Very nice.
Thank you.
Suitably refreshed, it's time to get back on the hunt.
You can find Goliathus beetle in rotten logs.
These logs are just little mini-worlds unto themselves.
Little tiny ecosystems.
There's a bunch of ants.
Looks like there's some termites.
Oh, look, look, look!
There, look.
Look. Wow!
This is one of
the animals of most people's nightmares.
Oh, she's a little skittish, probably never smelled a human before.
I'm just trying to work out what type of mood
this particular tarantula is in.
I'm gonna just leave my hand there
and see what this tarantula thinks.
It's okay, baby. It's all right.
It's never been on a human hand before.
Tarantula venom is extremely valuable to the spider.
It only uses it when it needs it.
And right now, hopefully, it doesn't feel threatened.
The fangs can definitely reach bone on your fingers.
And they get pushed down with an immense amount of force
because the tarantula raises up
and then comes straight down with these swords.
I'm gonna put this little guy back before she gets too annoyed.
I'll send you on your way.
That was cool.
The sun is now going down and Emanuel has told me that we should make camp.
I'm trying to see how Emanuel does it,
because it kinda looks effortless
when he swings his machete.
And look how much he's cleared in comparison to me.
We both started at the same time.
This is camping to the nth degree.
For anyone watching with 3D TV...
That one's for you.
Sweet.
Now that I have shelter, it's time to set up tonight's entertainment.
So I like to set up light traps everywhere that I go.
Insects are much more active at night.
So I'm gonna take this white sheet,
hang it over your rope and attach it.
Pretty good.
Tie this off.
Attach the other side.
Make sure that's a good enough height.
Any insect that navigates by the light of the moon
is going to be distracted
by the lights that are pointing at this white sheet.
Thinking it's the moon,
fly towards the sheet...
(MIMICKING INSECTS BUZZING)
Hit the sheet and either stick on the sheet,
or they'll land on this little ramp.
So I'll come back in a couple of hours,
turn on the lights when it's dark...
And I'll see what we get.
(SOFTLY) All right, let's see.
Wow, this turned out really, really good.
This is a katydid.
And there's some noctuid moths and some flying ants.
There are some midges.
There's a beautiful white one here.
I was hoping to attract a goliath beetle
but one of its more dangerous cousins has shown up instead.
This incredible insect here, called an assassin bug.
And I'm staying pretty far away from it for a few reasons.
It can fly and it can bite.
And that little proboscis at the front of the assassin bug's head
is the straw that it uses to pierce into flesh and drink blood.
I'm gonna turn the light off and let these guys go on their way.
See you later.
So it's the end of camp day one.
We got a beautiful, roaring fire going now.
When I tell people in Cameroon
that I've come here to look for the giant white goliath beetle,
most people kind of laugh, you know.
They make out like it's going to be completely impossible.
I have to admit, with no luck today,
I'm starting to agree with them.
This beetle feels like it's a little bit of a phantom, you know.
It's like I'm chasing a ghost.
MONAGHAN: After a gruelling three-hour trek deeper into the jungle
we finally reach Emanuel's secret hunting ground.
And I'm probably one of the only westerners ever to have come here.
It's filled with cecropia trees,
the key to Emanuel's beetle hunting technique.
-Can I smell it? -Yes.
It's got a little... (SNIFFING)
...kind of sweet smell.
Does anybody else do this or just you?
Mmm-hmm.
So you don't share the secret?
-Well, I won't tell anyone, I'll keep it secret. -Yeah.
-Yes. -Okay.
-Let's keep walking. -Yeah.
(ANIMALS SCREECHING)
MONAGHAN: Emanuel wants to head deeper into the forest
to find some trees that he prepared last month.
So fingers crossed.
All of my hopes are pinned on this secret hunting spot, but it's not looking good.
Every tree we check is coming up empty.
Let's keep going.
After travelling hundreds of miles into the heart of Cameroon,
it's starting to look like I'm not going to complete this mission.
-But then suddenly... -EMANUEL: Hey!
MONAGHAN: Oh, wow!
...one of Emanuel's trees delivers.
Look, look, look.
This is the giant white goliath beetle.
I can't believe it! I can't believe it!
It's right here sitting on this tree.
So the technique that Emanuel uses works perfectly.
Here's a male. There's a female right here, that'll be his girlfriend.
So this tree almost acts like a beetle nightclub.
You come here to have some food, meet a friend,
maybe make some babies.
I can see why it's called the white goliath beetle.
This guy has this beautiful white wing case in here
which makes it so valuable to the collectors.
And it's really heavy. I wish you guys could feel how heavy this beetle is.
It's about the weight of a billiard ball.
Which for an insect is just crazy.
As you can see at the end of his legs, he has these little hooks.
They're like little climbing hooks.
And these beetles are so strong.
I mean, he just pulled my hand towards him
using the strength that he has in his body.
Ow! Oh, you'd love my finger.
This mission really pushed me to the limit.
But I've had a once-in-a-lifetime encounter
with a critically endangered species in the wild.
In the next 10, 15, certainly 20 years,
possibly the only way that you could see these
would be pinned in a museum, dead.
And that's nowhere near as fun as hanging out with something as alive
and beautiful as this.
And since he's been so good, and so well-behaved,
and he's not torn my hand up to shreds too much,
I'm gonna put him back with his girlfriend
because I'm sure he's got a little bit of work to do.
How cool is that? The giant white goliath beetle.