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Working with a team from the world-famous ´óÏó´«Ã½ Natural History Unit, British naturalist and wildlife presenter Steve Backshall (The Really Wild Show, Lost Land Of The Jaguar) is on a mission and he is taking C´óÏó´«Ã½ viewers with him.

Steve is going on his most daring journey yet: a rollercoaster ride of adventure travelling to six continents to find his list of the 60 most lethal animals on earth, in his new series Deadly 60 which starts on the C´óÏó´«Ã½ channel on Thursday 28 May 2009 at 5.15pm.

From beauties to beasts, Steve embarks on an adrenaline-filled adventure to discover and learn about creatures from across the planet, travelling to far-flung places such as Australia, South Africa and South America, Borneo and India.

Not all dangerous creatures live in exotic places though and Steve unearths a lethal selection closer to home in the UK.

They all have one thing in common: every one of them is deadly.

Many of the featured animals are harmless to humans but in their own worlds they are lethal.

From predators in the sea to swooping attackers in the skies, from mighty giants to small speedy insects Steve searches high and low to discover his deadly 60 hit list.

He climbs into the Gomantong caves in Borneo to witness two million wrinkle-lipped bats and descends to the cave floor to discover the eco-system which thrives on the highest piles of guano (bat and swift dung) on earth, which have accumulated there over hundreds of years.

The Deadly 60 list features a wide range of mammals, birds, reptiles and insects. Some will be familiar to viewers but Steve will also introduce viewers to a host of rare and unusual creatures.

During the course of the series Steve pits himself against a host of creatures to test if he can match their special deadly skills.

He tries to hang like a bat, hurtles down a zip wire to emulate a fish eagle and attempts to match the yellowfin tuna's aquatic skills with hilarious results.

Steve says: "Making Deadly 60 has been the most incredible experience for me. There's something about deadly animals that children find inherently fascinating, and there's something for everyone on the list – and don't worry if you hate snakes and spiders, I promise you will find most of our subjects mesmerising."

Over the course of the series Steve gets up close and personal with hippos in South Africa. These cuddly looking creatures kill more humans than any other mammal in Africa.

He tackles rough seas to get a closer look at the world's largest predatory fish, the great white shark, and uncovers the honey badger, named the most fearless animal by the Guinness Book of Records.

He seeks out Britain's only deadly snake – the adder – the only venomous snake to have previously put Steve in hospital. He has a close encounter with some elephants and tigers in India and the Deadly 60 team go on a ghost hunt to seek footage of the elusive ghost bat.

This high-octane natural history series for C´óÏó´«Ã½, the channel for six to 12-year-olds, sees Steve embark on a journey to find the creatures that others spend a lifetime avoiding.

VT