Sir David visited Australia during the fourth episode of his new BBC series aired on Sunday night, where he revealed some of the most unique and dangerous animals of the nation, including sharks, dingos and a six-foot-tall bird. However, there was one animal that captured the 93-year-old’s heart. The Tasmanian Devil is a carnivorous marsupial of the family Dasyuridae and was once native to mainland Australia, is now found in the wild only on the island state of Tasmania.
Attenborough visited the outbacks of Australia, where evidence of the once-thriving species was clear.
He said: “This great stretch of boulders is covered by the largest concentration of pre-historic images anywhere in the world.
“Over one million pictures of wildlife and among them is the Tasmanian Devil.
“It was engraved on stone 60,000 years ago by some of the first human beings to reach the continent.
Then just 200 years ago European settlers arrived with guns and dogs and foxes, together they decimated Australia’s unique wildlife.
“This is one of the continents biggest animal predators, the marsupial wolf or thylacine.”
Sir David went on to reveal the Tasmanian Devil is not the only animal under threat.
He added: “The last known remaining one was filmed in 1936, in a zoo just before it died and so marked the final extinction of its species.
“These rocks are their memorial and they may become that for the Tasmanian Devil as well.
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“At the time people thought we were cranks but suddenly, after Blue Planet II, you hit the right note.
“I’m thrilled that we’re about to share this incredible series with the world.
“Seven Worlds, One Planet celebrates the variety of life on our planet while also shining a spotlight on its challenges.”
The fourth episode of Seven Worlds, One Planet was aired on BBC One on Sunday, November 17, at 6.15pm.
Viewers can now catch up with each instalment in Ultra-High-Definition (UHD) on BBC iPlayer.