David Bellamy: Australia has an abysmal record on species extinction. More mammals have become extinct in Australia over the last 200 years than in any other country in the world. Many other species which live in Australia’s forests and woodlands are now in severe decline. This is particularly the case with most of the 300 Australian animals and birds that use tree hollows to nest and find shelter. Hollows only form in trees older than 120 years. Destruction of habitat and old trees has to stop if we want these species to survive. The Threatened Species Conservation Act lists 80 animal and 300 plant species in danger of extinction in NSW.

Owl: Get him!!!

Owl: Who, whoo, WHOOOH do you think you are??? We were here long before you got here and look at what you've done to us… what you've done to the bush. You’ve wrecked the joint!

Quoll: Look at you! You poor mangy mongrel, you got no fur, you got no feathers, you can't fly, you can barely even swim or run...

Owl: You think you're so smart with your opposable thumbs and overdeveloped frontal lobes, you humans have had it your own way for far too long.

David Attenborough: Yellow-bellied Gliders are the most proficient gliders in Australia, able to glide 144 metres from tree to tree in a single bound. They live in tall, mature eucalypt forests in family groups of 3 to 6 and den in tree hollows. Being nocturnal they are rarely seen, though as they are the world’s most vocal marsupial their high-pitched shrieks and throaty rattles can often be heard at night as they forage for tree sap, nectar, honeydew, manna and occasionally insects. The Yellow-bellied Glider is very sensitive to forest disturbance, often vacating an area when logging first begins.

Glider: You carnivores are so aggressive and unevolved, so un-cool… relaaaax…

Glider: Endangered? What’s endangered? I've never heard of it. Has it got anything to do with important stuff like gliding from tree to tree or yummy sap or sweet nectar to eat?

Owl: No. endangered means that we're almost extinct, like Gastric Brooding Frog who disappeared 20 years ago.

Glider: STINK???? I do not stink…

Owl: No no. Extinct means that we and all our relatives will disappear from the Earth forever. Kaput! Gone! Deadibones! No more of us. Worse than death, extinction is the end of birth. We all die, sure … but extinction means that none of our kind will be born any more. No more young Tiger Quolls or Masked Owls, no more Yellow-bellied Gliders, ever.

Quoll: And it’s all because of bloody humans, like this one we’ve caught.

Quoll: They cut trees down you food-obsessed, flying carpet. They cut whole bloody forests down.

Glider: Oh yeah? I’d like to see them cut my tree down, Wallaby-breath. Its far too big. Just chill out. And do us a favour, get some sleep!

Quoll: You useless sack of meat! I'd eat you if ya didn't smell so bad!!!

Frog: "Endangered? You think YOU'VE got problems!

David Attenborough: The Gastric Brooding Frog was first discovered in 1973, last sighted 10 years later and is now presumed extinct. It is the only animal ever described which converts its stomach into a womb. After she laid her eggs, the female turned off her gastric juices and swallowed her eggs protecting her young inside her stomach and not eating until they were born out of her mouth 6 or 7 weeks later.

Quoll: You two-legged drongo. I've been here for millions of years and now you little Johnnie-come-latelies move in and ruin everything. I don't know why they let you off the ship. Why don’t you swim back to where you came from?

Freeze on closeup of Koala morphing into Koala natural history footage as voiceover continues.

David Attenborough: Koalas spend most of the day sleeping in the forks of trees, only becoming active in the evening. They feed on eucalyptus or gum leaves, preferring large trees from only a few select species in any area. Rarely drinking water, Koalas get all the liquid they need from these leaves. They usually only have one young, weighing less than half a gram when born. Among the principal threats to the survival of Koalas are clearing of native vegetation,and logging.

Koala: The pale-skinned humans have already driven so many species to extinction. We’ve got to do something about this. We’ve got to wake them up. Only thing is, you've got the wrong human. This is one of the GOOD ones, one of our friends."

Quoll: A good human? Yeah right! SURE!

Owl: There's no such thing. They disappeared long ago. I’ve never heard of one.

Quoll: The only good human's a dead one.

Koala: No, no, there ARE good humans, some of them are on our side,

even trying to protect our homes. A few of them even realise that trees are more than just wood chips. Us Koalas have worked with them for years … It all started when my grandfather, Blinky Bill was having all these problems when they logged his forest. Since then my family has found lots of humans ready to help us and we’ve always worked alongside them.

Quoll: Yeah… a fat lot of good it's done.

Shot of Koala, Quoll and Owl from behind walking off thru the trees.

David Bellamy: In 1998, expert panels of scientists commissioned by the NSW and Federal Governments identified the minimum area of habitat that they considered must be protected from logging so that core populations of threatened animals could survive.

In north-east NSW alone the scientific experts recommended inclusion of sufficient habitat in reserves for;

• 1,224 breeding pairs of Masked Owls
• 3,781 breeding pairs of Tiger Quolls, and
• 9,240 breeding pairs of Yellow-bellied Gliders,

It is estimated that there may be as few as 5000 Koalas remaining in the state of New South Wales.

Pauline: I know, I know, but we’re endangered too, things have changed so much, we’re teaching the young people and I know they will bring change. And hang in there no matter what, go down there and see them.

"Action not apathy, don't trust the law

The law is made to suit the criminals

All hands strong, lock on, lock on

They won't get away with the crime, unless you're blind

All hands strong, lock on, lock on

Action now people, come on, come on

Selflessly, put yourself on the line

My hands are tied, to your bulldozer

A thin line to the land, we are the lifeline

We are the lifeline..."

.

Eron (to the crowd): Our endangered friends are in trouble. We’ve got to get to the forest and stop the bulldozers and chainsaws, there’s no time to lose! Will you help us?

The Crowd: Yeah!....

Action now people, come on, come on

Selflessly, put yourself on the line

My hands are tied, to your bulldozer

A thin line to the land, we are the lifeline

We are the lifeline

Like your Anzac brother in war

I'll stand by my father tree, that's my law

Won't let you die, fight for your life

Won't take me alive, unless I know that you survive

All hands strong, lock on, lock on

Action now people, come on, come on

All hands strong, lock on, lock on

Action now people, come on, come on

Send a message from the frontline, send a message now

Send a message from the frontline, send a message now

Calling reinforcements, to the front line

Calling reinforcements, to the front line

Logger: Its no good coming here.

You’ll have to talk to the boss.

I Can’t remember his last name.

They’re the blokes make the decisions.

Or you go to Sydney, I don’t know where it comes from.

Down there somewhere.

Its not our concern.

Glider: Can you help us? They’re cutting our forests down.

Policeman: You’ve made your point but you’ve got to leave the building to do it.

Glider: How would you like it if YOUR home was getting cut down. You wouldn’t like it would you.

Policeman: You’ve been asked to go, do you understand?

State Forests officer 1: You’ve had enough of a go, I’ll ask you again, please leave the premises.

Quoll: Nice little office you’ve got here, too bad if something happened to it.

Glider: Gee, I wonder what happens when I press this?

Quoll: You’re always hungry…

Ian Cohen: Wonderful to see you.

Koala: At last! A politician! Do you live in parliament? WE live in the forest and it's all being cut down. Can you help us?

David Attenborough: The Politician is hardly an endangered species. Perhaps that's because many of these much distrusted creatures spend so much time protecting and feathering their own nests. The Green-plumed variety however (as distinct from the better known left or right-winged kind) is known to display a highly developed concern for the environment and other living things.

Koala: Do you live in parliament? WE live in the forest and it's all being cut down. Can you help us?

Ian: Yes, I am a member of parliament, here to help all endangered species

Quoll: Do you speak for the Quolls of NSW too? Is there someone here who speaks for the Quolls?

Ian: I represent Quolls, I want to save your forests, I represent all you endangered species. Unfortunately many people in this state of NSW don’t realise the plight that you’re suffering under .

Owl: That's why we've come here. We want someone to remind them about us.

Ian: I’ll try but you’ve got to help me, you’ve got to get the message out…

Glider: We'll do what we can, but can you speak to the parliament on our behalf?

Ian: To-morrow night, in the parliament, I’m going to make a speech on behalf of all endangered species. You tell me what to tell them. What do you want me to tell the Parliament to-morrow?

Ian: Its quite clear that the opposition is running a political agenda on this matter and yet it’s a very important piece of legislation

Interjection.

… and the Honorable Member … When we’re dealing with something as important as threatened species, I have to say on this piece of legislation I would not like to leave it up to …

Owl: Tell them that that the forests are our homes.

Ian: Those species are Australians just like we are. They are losing their homes, we humans shouldn’t take everything for ourselves. We should leave enough for other species to ensure that they don’t become extinct.

Glider: The trees make the air we breathe, its as simple as that.

Ian: Protecting the ancient forests is for the benefit of humans as well as the species that live in them. The forests are the lungs of our planet. They maintain the stability of climate.

Quoll: … and what about the water? Ask them "where do you think the bloody water comes from?"

Ian: They protect water catchments, ensure clean drinking water as well as protection from floods and droughts. And they contain the gene pool that holds the foods and medicines and industrial products of the future

Koala: Tell them we're all strands in the same web of life. If you allow us to disappear, the web becomes frayed and tattered and eventually collapses, humans will die of a great loneliness of spirit."

Ian: We are all strands of the same web of life. If humans allow these creatures to disappear the web will become frayed and tattered and eventually collapse.

I put it to the House that it is the job of this Parliament to protect these critical habitats and species. We know what must be done, all that is missing is the political will. Extinction is the choice of this house, thank you madam president."

Compere: I now introduce Senator Bob Brown

Bob Brown: And lets celebrate our wild creatures. I have with me four of our threatened species.

Quoll: Extinction, well what were you thinking?

Its nothing less than abomination

4 billion years of evolution

Diversity There must be some solution

DOWN!! those old trees are fallin, ancient forest homes are callin

Habitat, have to have a habitat

Habitat, have to have a habitat

Habitat, have to have a habitat

So don’t destroy, our heritage

Old growth forest logging

Now that is sacrilege

Yellow belly glider, the masked owl too,

Spotted tail quoll and koala too

Habitat, have to have a habitat

Habitat, have to have a habitat

Habitat, have to have a habitat

Quoll: Koala was supposed to say this bit but now she’s gone. We can’t rely on her any more, so it’s up to us to take the lead. That means me, and you. Yes, I’m talking to you, humans! You have a choice. The way this story ends is still unknown, It could be devastation and extinction, you pass on to your children and your children’s children.

Or it could be that you can wake up in the morning and smile at yourself having hit the brakes in time to save great wild spaces of how the world used to be, spaces where I and my friends can live out our lives and continue to evolve alongside you into the bright future. Extinction? You choose."

David Suzuki: Worldwide more than 11,000 plant and animal species are on the brink of extinction. Humanity has initiated the first major extinction spasm since the end of the dinosaur epoch. If a state as wealthy as NSW can't find the means and the resolve to protect the native creatures entrusted in your care, what hope for the rest of the world?

Please, people of NSW, speak up, demand a fair go for all species, put the brakes on this slide to oblivion. Your descendants and all of creation will sing your praises if you do.

David Attenborough: Its not really the place for a Pom to tell Australians about their wildlife and I apologise for that. But I speak for the rest of the world, outside Australia. We know that you have, in your state boundaries some of the greatest natural treasures in the world, fascinating and unique. If you don’t look after them, no-one else will, and if they go, nothing can replace them.