deadly wetlands shift with the cycle of the seasons. The creeks and rivers often change course, leaving behind isolated bodies of water. These water holes are centerpieces to a mosaic of terrains that require multiple talents to traverse. Amongst the thick grasses that surround the waters, a serpent assassin seeks its next meal. Those brown stripes and its highly aggressive nature have earned it the name tiger. Instead of claws, it wields fangs. One of Australia's deadliest snakes, tigers are responsible for the second highest number of bites to humans. When

untreated, half of all tiger snake bites result in death. Equally adept at hunting in water as on dry land, it swims with ease and can stay submerged for at least 9 minutes. stalking fish and amphibians. Tigers have been known to climb 29 ft from the ground to claim bird prey. Today, the snake has been spotted. The honey eater sounds the alarm, alerting others to the threat. A missed opportunity. The snake will need to seek a meal elsewhere. The brown rat is an introduced rodent abundant in these grasses.

Tiger snakes play an important role preventing their population from blooming beyond control. The tiger snake's fangs are hollow. It injects a complex cocktail of toxins, one of the most potent of all known snakes. Some components in the venom attack the rat's nervous system. Other ingredients target the rat's blood, causing internal hemorrhaging. Having consumed its prey whole, the tiger snake seeks out a quiet place to digest its feast.

The tiger snake isn't the only reptile to conquer the diverse terrain around the water holes. On the fringe of a bibong in Australia's north, another solar powered stalker soaks up energy for the day. Never far from a source of fresh water, a merrenton's water monitor will eat almost any suitablysized animal that crosses its path. With strong legs, it navigates the rocks. Its long claws and powerful tail fend off rivals during ritual combat in the breeding season. It hunts both on the land and in the water.

The tail is both propeller and rudder. The water monitor detects the odor trails of potential prey using his tongue, a trait he shares with the tiger snake. The appendage is split in two, each tip flickering separately, maximizing the amount of air the monitor can sample, but also providing directional guidance. The scent particles are transferred from the tongue to a cheesive organ located in the roof of the mouth. The monitor has big teeth for ripping apart larger prey, but smaller meals are devoured whole.

Merton's monitor absorbs the last of the sun while it digests, surveying the landscape it has so easily conquered. While venom and claws might rule the water holes, other wetland invaders secrete toxins from their skin or strike from the sky. This flood plane fighter simply squeezes the life from its victims. Hundreds of large rivers snake their way across Australia's coastal plains as they flow to the sea. Tropical monsoons drown the land, transforming these plains into a vast expanse of shallow wetlands. A nocturnal water python patrols the soggy land surrounding the river's edge.

The python can go for 2 years without feeding, shrinking its gut to reduce the amount of energy it needs to survive. It's been a long time between meals. The python's appetite needs to be satiated. And there's a perfect target scurrying about. A Rali, a native water rat and wetland forager. Like the python, it prefers nighttime ventures. It will scoop up crustations and pounce on the opportunity of an easy muscle. It then slinks back to a regular feeding site to consume the meal. The water python stalks its prey.

The snake's mouth is surrounded by scales that can pick up the heat signatures emitted by warm-blooded victims. In Australia, only constrictors like the python possess this sense. It receives a faint signal from the Rali and closes in. There's no escaping the python's suffocating grasp. Its coiling body forces the water rat's blood pressure to soar. The rodent's heart fails to pump blood to its vital organs. The python squeezes until the rakali is dead. The snake should be wary when consuming its prize.

These wetlands are full of thieves. The python's lower jawbones aren't fused together at the front. Instead, they're held together by an elastic ligament, which allows for an exceptionally wide gape. Teeth in the lower jaw then rake the food back into the throat before waves of contracting body muscles push the food down. The snake's gut quickly kicks back into action, producing powerful enzymes and gastric juices that slowly digest the Ricali.