The tribe that evolved to stay underwater longer – BBC REEL

Scattered through Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, the Bajau are a semi-nomadic tribe of fishers with extraordinary freediving skills.

Research has shown that their anatomy has evolved to help them remain underwater for a longer time.

The Bajau’s traditional respect for their environment sets them as an example for ocean conservation.

Video by Anirudh Ganapathy
Edited by K Akhil Raj
Music, sound design and mixing by Bjorn Surrao

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#bbc #bbcreel #bbcnews

[KidJV]

happened in my town, a tourist drop his go pro at the port.. bunch of badjao kids heard this and asked where in the water it dropped..
minutes later with the go pro in hand, they gleefully returned it to the owner.. owner rewarded them..

absolutely incredible lads

[Kvmilla]

My family are of the same tribe, and I grew up watching my uncles dive for food. They would be diving for hours with only a homemade harpoon as a tool. My cousins and I would dive for sea urchins and hunt eels as a pastime but also to bring food to the table. When there wasn't enough money to buy food, the sea always provided it.

[Mimi-Meow]

The mother and child moment while the boy is just playing in the water and mom is looking for food is such a beautiful scene 😢

[VicTheFigGuy]

That video of the mother diving to collect food and the son just playing is so beautiful. Almost seems out of this world. Like they are merpeople.

[jasmineamorgan]

In the Philippines, the Badjaos are known not only for their diving skills but also for being really good people/tribe. They usually just mind their own business and never cause trouble.

[jonpaul]

3:28 its crazy how she "pluck" her kitchen ingredients from the sea with casual "mom suit"😂

[denisdaniswara]

"The way of water has no beginning and no end. The sea is around you and in you. The sea is your home, before your birth and after your death. Our hearts beat in the womb of the world. Our breath burns in the shadows of the deep. The sea gives and the sea takes. Water connects all things, life to death, darkness to light." - Metkayina proverb

[dnyarv]

in December 2022 we watch Avatar based on this tribe. so proud of you guys. from Indonesia inspiring the world.

[jhong-g]

There was a Bajau Olympic swimmer named Bana Sailani, we competed two times in the 50s. He did not win any all because the country did not care about sports sector AND indigenous people even today. But still he competed even without the amount of guidance other competitors of other nations had.

Our country could be having multiple Olympic swimmers from this tribe if they have them education, housing, and etc.

[random-pemh]

There's 3 divisions of "Sea People" or "Sea Nomads" in Maritime Southeast Asia. One is Bajau people explained in this video, living in the seas along the coast of East Borneo, West Sulawesi (Makassar Strait - Celebes Sea), the islands of Nusa Tenggara and some parts of Molucca. Second is the Orang Laut in Karimata Strait and Natuna Islands between the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. And third is Moken people from the Mergui Archipelago off the coast of Myanmar. Interestingly, all of these ethnicities that I mentioned are the member of the Austronesian people known for its seafaring abilities.

[bewe]

Yeah bajau tribe has evolved their spleen up to 50% in size, which is crazy how human can evolved.

[captainobvious]

James Cameron based the Metkayina in Avatar 2 after these people. It’s quite incredible. I wonder what kind of traits they’d have if they did this for 10, 000 years like the Metkayina

[dhlz]

she was just casually sitting underwater on the seabed without any bubbles popping out of her mouth or nose for a very long time...thats an amazing skill right there

[jonoboio]

See this is why I love James Cameron and the work he is doing with the Avatar films. He is raising awareness to a much wider range of people about the beauty of nature and the problems it faces. It also makes us aware of extraordinary groups of people like this.

[al-nur]

Seeing that man free dive without any gear is mind blowing to watch especially when he can stay underwater for so long. This video is amazing to watch! And I'm proud of my country the Philippines and to my Bajao/u brothers, mabuhay!

[longhaulblue]

Excellent video. It's encouraging to see young people who recognize the Bajau's necessary role in protecting the seas of their countries.

[ipezguk]

It is proven that the Southeast Asia nation was a real seafaring nations long before the compass was invented, even international maritime regulations were adapted from the Ammana Gappa, namely shipping regulations made by the Bugis and the others (Wajo, Bone, Makassar) in 1676 (The name refers to a Bugis from Wajo who wrote and collected all regional regulations regarding shipping).

[adriennefloreen]

It looks like that lady is preparing her dinner ingredients like she'd do in her kitchen, but underwater holding her breath. You should have showed the meals they make, I have seen food vloggers visit these people and the meals they make from what they catch are quite impressive.

[agirain]

The real.
Kita berdoa untuk kelestarian laut indonesia khususnya.

[gdottothegamer]

If you guys want to see a more in depth of the life of Bajau people, you should watch a video made by Kristian Hansen. He visited one of the Bajau villages that's located in Wakatobi, Indonesia. He shows how they live but he's also helping them by giving them money (also with the help of his subscribers) to fix the bridges there. It's a really beautiful video.

There's also a movie about the Bajau called The Mirror Never Lies/Laut Bercermin. Again, it's set in Wakatobi, Indonesia.