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Natural World
1983 - 2020 7.1 (25 votes) 39 Seasons
Official Website
Genres
Documentary
Networks
BBC Two

Natural World

Overview

Natural World is a nature documentary television series broadcast annually on BBC Two and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history brand. It is currently the longest-running series in its genre on British television, with more than 400 episodes broadcast since its inception in 1983. Natural World is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol, but individual programmes can be in-house productions, collaborative productions with other broadcasters or films made and distributed by independent production companies and purchased by the BBC. Natural World programmes are often broadcast as PBS Nature episodes in the USA. Since 2008, most Natural World programmes have been shot and broadcast in high definition.

Key Crew

Writer: Brian Jackman

Director: Andrew Graham-Brown, Mike Birkhead

Top Cast

David Attenborough
David Attenborough

Self - Host

John Hannah
John Hannah

Narrator (voice)

Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Stevenson

Narrator (voice)

Seasons

Season 0 poster
Season 0 (1984)

No overview available.

12 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: On the 8th Day
1984-09-24

The effect on the natural world of a nuclear war, reporting on reseacrh in America, Russia and Britain which suggests that for thirty years the world has had the capacity to cause `a nuclear winter'. A Natural World special transmitted in 1984.

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Episode 2: Vanishing Earth - Soil
1986-08-04

Filmed in Nepal, Ethiopia and China investigates how the misuse of land and not drought lies at the root of famines in Ethiopia and elsewhere. The programme reveals how government policy and international trade conspire to cause starvation.

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Episode 3: Vanishing Earth - Water
1986-08-05

Burkino Faso, the edge of the Sahel in west Africa, is one of the poorest countries in the world. It has been gripped by drought since 1968, yet simple techniques are helping to conserve their rainfall. In the western USA, massive and expensive irrigation schemes are bringing a harvest of subsidised yet unsaleable crops.

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Episode 4: Animals: The Inside Story - Fight For Life
2002-01-01

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Episode 5: Animals: The Inside Story - New Lives
2002-01-01

In this fascinating new three-part documentary, viewers can look inside animals to see what makes them tick. Fusing exciting computer animation, thermal imaging and compelling science, Animals: The Inside Story puts creatures under the microscope to expose the hidden mechanisms that drive their actions. Part 2, New Lives, unravels the mysteries of animal reproduction from courtship and mating through to the creation of new life. The virtual world of the elephant womb allows us to see a baby elephant develop over 22 months. Emperor penguins produce eggs in the harshest climate on earth. Go inside this life support capsule and see how the shell is made and the chick grows. Metamorphosis is one of nature's miracles. From the inside, watch a total transformation as a land-based caterpillar becomes a graceful aerial athlete.

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Episode 6: Animals: The Inside Story - Extreme Lives
2002-01-01

Extreme Lives, the final episode of Animals: The Inside Story, explores the limits of animal endurance. A polar bear uses its thick fur coat to turn light into heat and survive the Arctic cold. Hibernation is one way to endure winter but the rare Vancouver Island Marmot is on a knife-edge between life and death. Wood frogs enter a state of suspended animation, freezing 65% of their bodies to stay alive. The camel survives extremes of desert heat with amazing blood cells and a nose designed to conserve every drop of moisture.

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Episode 7: Symphony
2005-01-01

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Episode 8: Echo of the Elephants: Africa's Forgotten Elephants
1997-04-06

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Episode 9: 100 Years of Wildlife Films - Cinema
2007-08-25

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Episode 10: 100 Years of Wildlife Films - Television

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Episode 11: Making of Empire of the Ants

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Episode 12: Queen of the Savannah
2012-03-29

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Season 1 poster
Season 1 (1983)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Save The Panda
1983-10-30

Follows the great land migration in Africa, one of the seven wonders of the natural world. Wildebeests, numbering in the millions, run for their lives on a-mile trek to find food and water, battling predators along the way.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 2: From Aadvark To Zebra
1983-11-06

Impalas move with the great migration on the Serengeti plains of Africa. A new fawn is on his way, but so is danger for the herds.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 3: Programmed For Flight
1983-11-13

On an African river in the Serengeti, a mother crocodile defends her babies against predators in the sky and on the ground. Discover the secret way that crocodiles have survived for millions of years.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 4: Jungle
1983-11-20

The animal kingdom in the Serengeti is in constant competition for resources. The essence of competition is for the hunt and those who can't cut it are left behind.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 5: Secret Weapons
1983-11-27

Two mother cheetahs, able to reach top speeds of nearly 70 miles per hour, are in a race to protect and feed their new cubs. Predators close in on the families, who must work to prevail on the Serengeti Plains of Africa.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 6: Birds of Paradox
1983-12-04

Known to be aggressive and dangerous, hippos are also fiercely protective of their young. Watch as mother hippos in Africa risk everything to keep their newly born calves away from predators, both in and out of the water.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 7: Jet Set Wildlife
1983-12-11

A newborn wildebeest befriends a fierce lioness, and a rare meeting between two river monsters, a hippopotamus and a Nile crocodile.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 8: Pelican Delta
1983-12-18

The wildlife of the Danube delta in the Black Sea, especially the white pelicans.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 9: Winter Days
1983-12-25

There are only two seasons in the Serengeti, dry and wet. As the long dry season ends, the clouds begin to darken as the rain signals new life on the Serengeti Plains.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 10: God's Acre
1984-01-02

The wildebeest path on their endless migration is impeded several times by rivers. The waterways have certain dangers that can can result in death for the wildebeest, mainly the Nile crocodile.

Runtime: 50 min
Season 2 poster
Season 2 (1984)

No overview available.

8 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Plight of the Bumble-Bee
1984-05-06

The programme is about bumble bees in the forests of New England. We follow a queen bumble bee as she emerges from hibernation to find a suitable nest site and establish a colony from the eggs she has carried over the winter. She duels with a rival queen. Honey bees, bee mites and wax moths also feature in her life story.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 2: Salim Ali's India
1984-05-13

Documentary which tells the story of some of the discoveries made by Indian ornitholigist Salim Ali

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Episode 3: The Kiwai - Dugong Hunters of Daru
1984-05-20

In their hunt for the dugong, the Kiwai people of Papua New Guinea still use magic to bewitch it and to charm their boats, whether they are powered by sail or outboard motor. The dugong, or sea cow, is the gentle creature that gave rise to the legend of the mermaid. To the Kiwai it is an important food and a central feature of their livelihood and culture. Now it is being hunted to the extent that it is a rare and endangered species.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 4: Commandos of Conservation
1984-06-03

Greenpeace fights in the front line of the conservation battle, where the whales or the seals are being killed, the toxic waste is being dumped, the bombs are being exploded. Their policy is non-violent direct action. They break the law and make the headlines, and in a few years they've grown from a handful of west-coast idealists into a fashionable international movement. This is the story of how it happened, told through some of their most impudent and most daring campaigns.

Runtime: 60 min
Episode 5: Long Point
1984-06-10

Once a shooting reserve, now a rich wildlife preserve, Long Point on the north shore of Lake Erie is a testimony to the resilience of nature and to the benefits of the sport of wild fowling. In protecting their shooting, past wildfowlers also conserved the wildlife of Long Point. It is now a permanent home to rails, raccoons, toads and turtles and visited by migrating wildfowl.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 6: Beneath The Keel
1984-06-17

This film looks at marine life off the Devon coast, as viewed by filmmakers Jeff Goodman & Laurie Emberson, who like to get close to and interact with these creatures. Sparkling jewel anemones, exotic cup corals, massed spider crabs and rare red band fish are just a few of the unusual animals that make their homes beneath the waves of our coastal waters.

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Episode 7: Treasures of the Gulf
1984-07-01

Pearls once brought wealth to the Arabian Gulf. Today it comes from oil that gushes from beneath the sea. The gulf's bounty of wildlife is a part of its natural riches too. Migrating birds flock to its shores and its waters conceal a stunning array of creatures: sea snakes, batfish, corals, huge shoals of jacks and blooms of jellyfish that stretch to the horizon. But for how long can these priceless treasures survive the onslaught of modern development or, worse still, the war which now threatens its shores?

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 8: Fragments of Eden
1984-07-22

Islands which time passed by, the Seychelles appeared out of the mists of legend only 300 years ago. These tiny granite islands are fragments of a long-lost continent, and even today they retain an air of mystery and fable, for they are home to birds, trees and flowers that are found nowhere else on earth. On a palm-fringed isle giant tortoises amble in the company of rare magpie robins.... and on another, black parrots, tiger chameleons and blue pigeons live in a forest so primeval that General Gordon of Khartoum believed he had found a lost Eden.

Runtime: 50 min
Season 3 poster
Season 3 (1984)

No overview available.

15 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Among The Wild Chimpanzees
1984-11-04

As a child Jane Goodall dreamt of going to Africa and living with the animals. In 1960 her dream became reality: she began a study of chimpanzees in Tanzania's Gombe National Park. Today, more than two decades later, her work still continues, and it has given us a remarkable portrait of the animal most like man. Spanning three generations of chimps, it shows them in all their moods.... playful infants, turbulent adolescents and adults whose behavior ranges from tender motherhood to hunting and even murder.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 2: One Man's Island
1984-11-11

Documentary programme on Keith Brockle who spent twelve months painting and drawing the bird life on the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 3: Invaders Of The Truk Lagoon
1984-11-18

Truk Lagoon in the western Pacific is a peaceful tropical atoll. In 1944 its tranquillity was shattered when the US Navy surprised and sank a fleet of 60 Japanese ships. Within 40 years a dazzling array of corals and colorful fish have transformed this sunken arsenal into the world's largest artificial reef.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 4: The Desire Of The Moth
1984-11-25

The largest known moth in the world has wings the size of a dove, the smallest lives inside a leaf. Although they are creatures of darkness, the bizarre designs and garish colors of moths rival those of butterflies in the hide-and-seek game of life. Among the stories of their double lives are tales of heroes that rescued Queensland from the prickly pear, blizzards of bogongs that were a summer feast for the first Australians, and the story of that irresistible desire that draws the moth to the flame and sudden death.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 5: A Question Of Space
1984-12-02

Five hundred miles above the parched African landscape a satellite seeks clues to the problem of space on the ground. In Kenya, fueled by a rapidly rising population, the competition for land is threatening one of the wildlife wonders of the world. But the tools to tackle the problem are at hand - ranging from low-tech charcoal-burning stoves to the latest in high-tech space technology. Can solutions be found before the land race gets out of control? Or will the elephant, rhino and zebra lose out in this earthbound battle for space?

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 6: Peacocks, Parasites And The Puzzle Of Sex
1984-12-09

What's the purpose of sex? To protect us from disease! Brian Leith unravels the intricate puzzle of sex and finds that: Males seem to be a waste of time and energy - many of the successful plants and animals (like the weeds in your garden) do without them altogether! Big animals - from polar bears to human beings - always have males as well as females - for a very good reason! The vital clue to the mystery lies in parasitism and infection. Out of the puzzle emerges a sparkling new theory of sex that looks set to keep biologists buzzing for years.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 7: Land Of Ice And Fire
1984-12-16

The first explorers to penetrate beyond the headwaters of the Missouri brought back tales of a strange land. They spoke of valleys that seemed to smoke and burn perpetually, and of a river that never froze, even in the hardest winter. That land is Yellowstone, America's oldest national park. Two-and-a-half million visitors flock there each summer, but in winter the park takes on another face that most people never see. Bison huddle in the warmth of the hot springs and the steam vents and geysers attain a new beauty in the frozen air.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 8: The Lost World Of Medusa
1984-12-23

On a remote Pacific island a mysterious lake lies hidden by dense jungle. Below the surface a gigantic shimmering phantom swims, tracking the sun. This weird life form is composed of jellyfish - millions of them - a boiling mass of medusae. Like the other bizarre inhabitants of the lake, imprisonment in this peculiar marine underworld has changed their behavior. But there are other surprises too in this first filmed exploration of the labyrinthine limestone islands of Palau - rain forests sprout from razor-sharp coral rubble; whip scorpions, giant crickets and bats haunt vast caves; and a deep lake pulsates with a strange presence.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 9: Kinabalu - Summit Of Borneo
1985-01-06

The highest peak in south-east Asia, Kinabalu, was once a mountain of legend and fable. To Chinese adventurers it was the abode of a dragon, rumored to guard a pearl by a lake at the very summit. Today's visitors have yet to find a pearl.... or see a dragon ... but there are riches of another kind. A cool island rearing precipitously from the hot and humid lowlands, Kinabalu is a treasure-house of plant and animal life. Bizarre carnivorous pitcher plants, big enough to drown a rat, share its slopes with huge begonias and stately tree-ferns. Flamboyant rhododendrons shelter the elusive ferret badger as it hunts for giant worms, and there are nearly 1,500 kinds of orchid, many found nowhere else in the world.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 10: Wild Ireland
1985-01-13

Time, climate and the needs of the Irish have fashioned a magical island. Cast free when the ancient bridge from Britain sank, it still holds within its saucer of ice-scoured rocks the animals and plants that followed the retreat of the glaciers. There are Irish deer, Irish stoats and Irish mountain hares, but no snake ever came to trouble the people who cut the forests, fished and farmed. They invented a land of fairy tales, but there are real mysteries too: a strange meeting of the Arctic and the Mediterranean in a moonscape of white rock called the Burren; the unbroken ebb and flow of wildfowl from this mild winter haven; and the daunting sprawl of the bogs - unbeautiful to some, yet valuable to all, fragile wildernesses in a land wild with change.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 11: Water - A Fresh Look
1985-01-20

Shooting rapids without a kayak, playing with some hefty manatees and feeding piranhas by hand! These are the extraordinary activities of an ordinary German businessman Walter Sigl , whose modest manner hides a spirit of daring and determination. His objectives: to film in the relatively unfilmed world of fresh water. This he has done with camera equipment which may seem ordinary too, but the results he achieves are a glorious pictorial celebration of the Orinoco river in Venezuela, strange lakes in Germany and crystal-clear springs in Florida.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 12: Battle Of The Leaves
1985-01-27

Leaves are nature's pacifists -or so it seems. Leaves hang there green and uncomplaining, while animals chew them to death, birds tear them from their stems for nest building, and dusky maidens (it's rumored) roll them on their thighs to provide grandad with a fragrant cigar. But foliage fights back. Leaves struggle for survival in ice and in desert. They battle to the death for life-giving sunlight. Above all, they wage a relentless war against the animals who live on them. Above our heads, beneath our feet, the battle continues....

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 13: The Year Of The Rat
1985-02-03

Rats - should we like them? Some people hate and despise these rodents. As the Chinese Year of the Rat draws to a close, down on the farm the rats' year goes on. Resourceful and adaptable, these successful invaders have enjoyed our unwitting hospitality for over two centuries. But this Jekyll and Hyde of animals challenges our prejudices. Is it not also an attractive pet, and a clever animal; and don't we all owe our lives to the rat as a tool of research into good health? This animal opportunist should be watched - even from behind your chair....

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 14: Through Animal Eyes
1985-02-10

Is your dog color blind? How do cats and owls see so much at night and high-flying kestrels spot tiny mice scuttling in the grass below? Do insects tune in to colors invisible to us? Is a scarlet anorak like a red rag to a bull and can a rattlesnake really see its prey in total darkness? With the help of video techniques and specially-developed cameras, this program sets out to answer these questions and many more and to visualize what the world looks like through the eyes of a wide range of different animals. The results are often surprising.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 15: Within A Garden Wall
1985-02-17

A Cotswold dry-stone wall, built 400 years ago, is a haven for wildlife. The cracks, crevices and man-made crags of a Cotswold dry-stone wall form one of the harshest places for wildlife to live. There are plants that survive deluge and drought, 'wall-fish' that swim in a bed of slime, and royal households that each year rise to power, decline and die. There are creatures that emerge from the ghostly skins of their former selves, woody stems that keep demons from the door, and lichens, with a calendar spanning the four centuries etched into their patterns, that turn the stone wall into an enchanted wilderness; in all, a remarkable place and probably the most overlooked nature reserve in the world.

Runtime: 50 min
Season 4 poster
Season 4 (1985)

No overview available.

20 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Land of the Tiger
1985-09-15

Land of the Tiger looks at the protected species of the Kanha and Ranthambore National Parks, celebrating these elusive and endangered big cats and exploring the delicately balanced ecosystem they inhabit. Interweaving footage of monkeys, deer and the tiger’s main competitor, crocodiles, the couple’s impressive cinematography brings the private world of tigers to life, as these magnificent creatures swim, play, mate, suckle their young and stalk their prey.

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Episode 2: Namaqualand - Diary of a Desert Garden
1985-09-22

In all Africa there is no stranger riddle than the flowering of the land of the Nama. Those bushmen were the first to see their desert land burgeon into a blaze of color. But this paradise was always short-lived; a spectacular bloom that quickly withered away, not to be seen again for many years. RODNEY BORLAND filmed the most recent of these stupendous and mystifying displays. To a landscape already weird with huge halfmens plants, elephant ears and baboons' fingers, suddenly came vast arrays of nodding daisies and wave upon wave of mesembryanthemums, wild geraniums, gladioli and amaryllis. The landscape was bathed in brilliant hues, a natural garden whose glory may not shine again before the end of this century.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 3: Horns of Dilemma
1985-09-29

Documentary on the illicit trade in Rhino horns, which is threatening the five kinds of rhinoceros with extinction.

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Episode 4: On the Verge of Life
1985-10-06

Documentary about wildlife which lives around Britain's motorways.

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Episode 5: The Man Who Loves Frogs
1985-10-13

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Episode 6: Emas - The High Plains of Brazil
1985-10-20

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Episode 7: The Flight of the Whooping Crane
1985-10-27

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Episode 8: White Rock, Black Water
1985-11-03

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Episode 9: Never Stay In One Place
1985-11-10

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Episode 10: City of Coral
1985-11-17

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Episode 11: Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Frozen Ocean
1985-11-24

First in a three part series examining Arctic ecology, The Frozen Ocean focuses on the spring to summer months, providing an intimate portrayal of life in a land of relentless ice and intense cold.

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Episode 12: Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Land of Beyond
1985-12-01

Hywel Bennett narrates the second of an award-winning trilogy of films about the Arctic. The winter is long and harsh, but for eight weeks of the year the midnight sun warms the frozen earth, nurturing lush vegetation and a rich variety of flowers, and transforming the barren wastelands into fecund breeding grounds so the life of the Arctic can renew itself.

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Episode 13: Kingdom of the Ice Bear: The Final Challenge
1985-12-08

Documentary series about the Arctic and its inhabitants.

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Episode 14: Aspen - A Dance of Leaves
1985-12-22

The wild life of the prairies of Canada during the winter months.

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Episode 15: The Plant Hunters
1985-12-29

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Episode 16: Short Grass Country
1986-01-05

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Episode 17: The Forgotten Garden
1986-01-12

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Episode 18: Inside Stories
1986-01-19

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Episode 19: Masked Monkeys
1986-01-26

Documentary on Guenons, a species of African forest monkey, and their place in the evolutionary hierarchy.

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Episode 20: Sky Hunters
1986-02-02

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Season 5 poster
Season 5 (1986)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Leopard - A Darkness In The Grass
1986-10-05

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Episode 2: Where The Parrots Speak Mandarin
1986-10-12

Documentary, exploring the Chinese attitudes to mythological and real animals.

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Episode 3: The Mystery Of Laguna Baja
1986-10-19

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Episode 4: Have Fish Had Their Chips?
1986-11-16

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Episode 5: Why Dogs Don't Like Chilli But Some Like It Hot
1986-11-23

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Episode 6: The Elephant Challenge
1986-11-30

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Episode 7: Ichkeul - Between The Desert And The Deep Blue Sea
1986-12-07

Report on Tunisia's Lake Ichkeul, a vital source of water for wild birds in the middle of the desert. Conservation plans are now in progress to presere this wa ter resource for both man and animals.

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Episode 8: Man-Eaters Of Kumaon
1986-12-14

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Episode 9: A Cactus Called Saguaro
1986-12-21

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Episode 10: A Wilderness Like Eden
1987-01-11

First of a two part look at the wildlife of the Holy land - the Negev Desert.

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Episode 11: Sweet Water, Bitter Sea
1987-01-18

Second of a two-part look at the natural history of the Holy Land - the Judaean Desert and the Dead Sea.

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Episode 12: Bats Need Friends
1987-01-25

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Episode 13: Cockatoos At Three Springs
1987-02-01

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Episode 14: The Volcano Watchers
1987-02-08

The work of volcanologists, Maurice and Katia Krafft, who travel around the world examining and filming volcanoes in action.

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Episode 15: The Deciding Factor
1987-02-15

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Episode 16: Reflections Of A River Keeper
1987-02-22

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Episode 17: Towers Of Wax And Paper Palaces
1987-03-01

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Season 6 poster
Season 6 (1987)

No overview available.

13 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Spirits Of The Forest
1987-09-20

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Episode 2: Land Of The Kiwi
1987-09-27

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Episode 3: Lions Of The African Night
1987-10-04

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Episode 4: Forest Of Fear
1987-10-11

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Episode 5: Icebird
1987-10-18

Documentary on the penguins of Antarctica, as they travel 80km to their spring nesting sites.

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Episode 6: Ticket To The Wild
1987-10-25

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Episode 7: Grizzly!
1987-11-01

Documentary on the complex relationship between grizzly bear and man in North America.

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Episode 8: Islands Of The Fire Goddess
1987-11-15

Documentary on the world's most active volcano, Kilauea in the Hawaiian Islands.

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Episode 9: Paradise Reclaimed
1987-11-22

Documentary on American biologist, Dan Janzen, who is reconstructing a tropical, dry forest park in Costa Rica.

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Episode 10: Battle For The Eagles
1987-11-29

Documentary on different species of Eagle, their population and habitat in Europ e and North America.

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Episode 11: Okavango, Jewel of the Kalahari: Search for the Jewel
1987-12-06

The first installment of the epic series Okavango:Jewel of the Kalahari, Search for the Jewel is an intriguing and visually stunning portrayal of wildlife in the Okavango delta, exploring the variety of life residing in and around its waterways.

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Episode 12: Okavango, Jewel of the Kalahari: The Living Jewel
1987-12-13

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Episode 13: Okavango, Jewel of the Kalahari: A New Challenge
1987-12-20

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Season 8 poster
Season 8 (1989)

No overview available.

16 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Gorillas In The Midst Of Man
1989-10-01

An intimate and touching glimpse into the lives of these gentle, highly intelligent creatures, it follows a team of scientists and volunteers as they continue the research of the late ethologist Dian Fossey.

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Episode 2: Ivory Wars
1989-10-08

Report on the threat to the African elephant population from ivory poachers.

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Episode 3: Gran Paradiso
1989-10-15

Documentary on the national park of Gran Paradiso in the Italian Alps, focusing on the imbalance in the fauna which inhabit the area.

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Episode 4: Fear Of The Wild
1989-10-22

Documentary on the ways man has devised of coping with a fear of dangerous animals. Questioning whether this reaction is a throwback to a time when they were a real threat.

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Episode 5: Splashdown: A Diver's Natural History
1989-10-29

Splashdown is a diver's natural history of Britain and Eire - showing the amazing abundance and variety of our often threatened, yet rarely seen marine flora and fauna. Auks that 'fly' underwater, a giant whirlpool, scallop farms and Fungie the dolphin are among the sights seen in this marine safari.

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Episode 6: Island In The Air
1989-11-05

Looks at the isolated Bale highlands in south-west Ethiopia, preserved as a National Park, considering some of the animals, foliage and humans that live there, and also its importance as a vital water catchment zone for thousands of people in southern Ethiopia and the desert nation of Somalia to the east.

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Episode 7: Amazon, the Flooded Forest (1)
1989-11-19

The first of two films about the Amazon basin with its immense river system and vast rainforests. Every year for six months, the Amazon floodplain is entirely submerged, forcing residents (plants, animals and man) to adapt to an environment half in, half out of water. The first film reveals some of the wildlfie species of the area during the flooded half of the year, including dolphins, fruit-eating fish and the white-furred, bald-headed uakari monkey.

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Episode 8: Amazon, the Flooded Forest (2)
1989-11-26

The second of two films about the Amazon Basin, with its immense river system and vast rainforests. Looks at the species of wildlife that inhabit the region after the flood waters that cover it for six months of the year recede to reveal for forest floor. Fish, concentrated into small pools, attract a host of predators, and on sandy beaches giant turtles hurry to lay and hatch their eggs before the foods return.

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Episode 9: A Tramp In The Darien
1989-12-03

Naturalist and writer Jonathan Maslow treks through one of South America's last great wildernesses, looking at the nature, wildlife, environment and indian tribes in the area.

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Episode 10: The Taming Of The Ewe
1989-12-10

Explores how man has exploited the natural behaviour of the dog to control sheep, examining the dog's instincts and ways of ensuring sheepdogs do not attack their flocks by bringing them up from pups alongside sheep. The future of sheep farming and experiments are also considered.

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Episode 11: Under The Ice
1989-12-17

Program looking at the world and life forms found under the ice in the seas of the Antarctic.

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Episode 12: The Sisterhood
1990-01-07

Richard Goss spent 18 months in the isolated heart of the Okavango Delta in Botswana, sharing in the nocturnal lives of a clan of spotted hyaenas. The film documents the lives of these creatures, Africa's strangest but most successful carnivores.

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Episode 13: Erin Through The Mists Of Time
1990-01-14

From the arrival of the first people 9,000 years ago through the coming of Christianity and beyond, myths and legends have enriched the reality of Erin's wildlife. Seen through the eyes of Ireland's leading wildlife film-maker Eamon de Buitlear, this is a story in which the country's natural and human history are intertwined.

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Episode 14: The Serpent's Embrace
1990-01-21

Snakes: a look at the facts and fiction.

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Episode 15: Haida Gwai - Islands Of The People
1990-01-28

An exploration of the seas, forests, and wildlife of Haida Gwai, the name given to the Queen Charlotte Islands, Canada, by the Haida Indians, from the viewpoint of the Haida people. The special relationship between the indians and the natural world is explained and their attempts to prevent the destruction of forests by logging companies.

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Episode 16: La Loire Sauvage
1990-02-04

About the River Loire and the campaign for and against the government plans to build a dam across the Loire.

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Season 11 poster
Season 11 (1993)

No overview available.

16 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Echo Of The Elephants
1993-01-03

David Attenborough and Cynthia Moss narrate an award-winning film about 18 months in the life of elephant matriarch Echo and her family, who live in Kenya's Amboseli National Park.

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Episode 2: Shadows In A Desert Sea
1993-01-10

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Episode 3: Cougar: Ghost Of The Rockies
1993-01-17

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Episode 4: Kimberley: Land Of The Wandjina
1993-01-24

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Episode 5: Journey To The Dark Heart
1993-01-31

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Episode 6: Ice Fox
1993-02-07

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Episode 7: The Great Bears Of Alaska
1993-02-21

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Episode 8: The Little Creatures Who Run The World
1993-02-28

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Episode 9: Strandwolf: Survivor Of The Skeleton Coast
1993-03-07

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Episode 10: Ibera: The Land Of Shining Water
1993-03-14

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Episode 11: The Ghosts Of Ruby
1993-03-21

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Episode 12: Sanctuaries Of Defence
1993-03-28

The MOD is one of Britain's biggest landowners. Surprisingly, these training sites are havens for rare wildlife, as those visited for this programme show.

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Episode 13: Treasure Of The Andes
1993-04-04

Documentary looking at the camels living amongst the dramatic scenery of the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile.

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Episode 14: Cheetahs And Cubs In A Land Of Lions
1993-04-11

An atmospheric and perceptive portrayal of the Earth’s fastest land mammal, world-renowned wildlife cameraman Hugo van Lawick focuses on two cheetah cubs, exploring their challenging journey towards an independent adulthood. With the beautiful backdrop of the Serengeti plains, the young cats play, practice hunting, escape lions and repeatedly sabotage their mother’s hunting attempts. Typical of his distinctive filming style, van Lawick presents the cheetahs as individual characters, bringing their unique personalities to the forefront as he examines the struggles they face to survive.

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Episode 15: The Burning Question
1993-04-18

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Episode 16: Secrets Of The Golden River
1993-04-25

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Season 12 poster
Season 12 (1994)

No overview available.

14 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Sex, Hot Eruptions and Chili Peppers
1994-02-20

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Episode 2: Firebird
1994-02-27

An atmospheric account of the lesser flamingo, Firebird explores the incredible adaptations these resilient birds possess in the hostile environment of East Africa's Great Rift Valley.

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Episode 3: Killer Whales: Wolves of the Sea
1994-03-06

An extraordinary glimpse into the world of these incredibly efficient predators, Killer Whales: Wolves of the Sea is an intriguing celebration of the species’ ingenious hunting methods, sophisticated communication skills and strong family ties.

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Episode 4: Toadskin Spell
1994-03-13

Looks at the extraordinary properties of frog and toad skin, showing how it enables them to survive hostile environments. Amphibian skin contains many chemical compounds, including antibiotics, fungicides, anti-viral agents and toxins, which serve as built-in barriers against infection and protection from predators. Scientists in America have even identified an anti-cancer agent in the skin of certain amphibians. One sequence reveals a dangerous and illegal craze in California for toad licking - the skin of some toads contains hallucinogens so powerful that the US Drug Enforcement Agency puts it in the same class as heroin. The programme features toad and frog species from Britain and the continents of Africa, America, Asia and Australia.

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Episode 5: Island of the Ghost Bear
1994-03-20

Reveals the life of the snow-white black bears that inhabit a remote island off the coast of British Columbia in Canada. The whiteness of the bear is believed to be caused by a double recessive gene.

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Episode 6: Webs of Intrigue
1994-03-27

Wildlife film capturing the Dinopis spider and Sydney funnelweb amongst others.

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Episode 7: Vampires, Devilbirds and Spirits: Tales of the Calypso Isles
1994-04-03

A celebration of Caribbean wildlife, Vampires, Devilbirds and Spirits: Tales of the Calypso Isles takes an entertaining look at the myths and legends of Trinidad and Tobago, and many of the creatures on which they are based. Nature plays a significant role in the country’s folklore, with narration by a local person and extensive role-play, the production interweaves these intriguing tales with impressive photography of the abundant wildlife, including infra-red footage of the elusive cave-dwelling oilbirds.

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Episode 8: Pandas of the Sleeping Dragon
1994-04-04

Filmed in the nature reserves of the mixed bamboo forests of the Sleeping Dragon Mountains in Sichuan province, central China. Focuses on the predicament of the giant panda and on the lessser-known red panda. The giant panda's digestive system is more suited to meat eating yet, because it feeds almost exclusively on bamboo, which has a low nutritional value, the animal must feed virtually around the clock to survive. Other animals that live in the forests include parrot bills, bamboo rats, golden monkeys, tufted deer, wild dogs, golden pheasants and the takin - a distant relative of the musk ox. The giant salamander, known as the water dragon, the world's largest amphibian is also to be found in the area.

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Episode 9: The Witness Was A Fly
1994-04-17

Scientists demonstrate ways in which animals, insects and plants can provide clues to the detection of crimes.

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Episode 10: Untangling the Knot
1994-04-24

Follows Dutch, Canadian and British biologists as they chart the journeys of two groups of knots(shorebirds) from South America and South Africa.

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Episode 11: Snowdonia: Realm of Ravens
1994-05-08

Reveals the most complete record of raven life ever filmed, at the National Park.

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Episode 12: Race For Life: Africa's Great Migration
1994-05-15

Records the epic joiurney of more than a million and a half wildebeest, travelling in a 500 mile arc across the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.

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Episode 13: Islands in the African Sky
1994-05-22

An atmospheric and evocative portrayal of the wildlife in East Africa's rugged mountain ranges, Islands in the African Sky was widely acclaimed for its stunning soundtrack. The second part of an African trilogy, the production explores the extraordinary adaptations and unusual appearances that have evolved to aid survival in this extreme climate. Straddling the equator, the mountains undergo vast temperature changes as scorching days give way to arctic nights. The intriguing footage is brought to life by Gunning's powerful score, the haunting sounds emphasising both the eerie beauty and intense mystique of this hostile land.

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Episode 14: Comrades of the Kalahari
1994-05-29

Focuses on the co-operation between the yellow mongoose and the ground squirrel that enables both species to thrive in the arid Kalahari.

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Season 13 poster
Season 13 (1994)

No overview available.

15 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Mysteries of the Ocean Wanderers
1994-11-27

Focusing on a pair of albatrosses during the year they produce and raise a chick, Mysteries of the Ocean Wanderers is an engaging and atmospheric insight into the wildlife of the sub-Antarctic Crozet Islands. Delving into a previously unknown area, the film follows the intriguing work of French scientist Henri Weimerskirch as he uses satellite tracking and time-depth recorders to follow the ever changing population of these remote isles.

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Episode 2: Badlands
1994-12-04

Documentary on the prairie dog of the South Dakota Badlands.

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Episode 3: Hunters of the Sea Wind
1994-12-11

Documentary showing life under the Pacific Ocean and the predatory life of the marlin, sailfish, sea snakes, dolphins and tuna, birds and turtles.

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Episode 4: Parrots: Look Who's Talking!
1995-01-15

Examines the parrot in the wild and sees how its natural behaviour is modified in a domesticated environment.

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Episode 5: Avenue of the Volcanoes
1995-01-22

Records the rare and unusual wildlife that lives in a remote volcanic area of Ecuador

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Episode 6: Ytene: England's Ancient Forest
1995-01-29

Documentary, filmed over a two year period, exploring the wildlife found in the New Forest in southern England, which the Saxons called Ytene. The woodland, bogs and heaths of the area are home to wild ponies, fallow deer, badgers, foxes, wildfowl, and insects. Seasonal changes are shown, and some elusive species, such as firecrests, hawfinches, woodlarks and tadpole shrimps are pictured. The programme is interwoven with a history of land use in the area from mediaeval times.

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Episode 7: Gentle Jaws of the Serengeti
1995-02-12

Focuses on a clan of spotted hyenas.

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Episode 8: Monkey in the Mirror
1995-02-19

Observes some of the behaviour of the Bonobos, pygmy chimpanzees that inhabit a remote area of rainforest in Zaire. The species is considered to be man's closest living relative.

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Episode 9: Ocean Drifters
1995-02-26

Examines the weird planktonic animals that drift in the current of the Gulf Stream as it passes Florida and enters the Atlantic. Follows a baby loggerhead turtle which hatches on a Florida beach and heads out to the Atlantic.

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Episode 10: The Call of Kakadu
1995-03-05

Follows a pair of kookaburras over the course of a year in the Kakadu National Park in Australia.

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Episode 11: The Riddle of the Sands
1995-03-19

Documentary on the wildlife found through the four seasons in the estuary of the River Ythan in north-east Scotland, a five-mile stretch of marshes, mud flats and sand banks situated some ten miles north of Aberdeen. The waters of the estuary are home to waders, wildfowl, shellfish, small crustaceans, fish and otters. The estuary is a nature reserve and, since the 1950s, the University of Aberdeen has been running a research project to examine its complex ecosystem.

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Episode 12: Jewels of the Caribbean Sea
1995-04-02

Delving deep into the tropical waters of the Caribbean Sea, this Emmy award-winning production celebrates the region’s bountiful life and impressive diversity. World-famous marine photographers Howard and Michele Hall explore this vast underwater world, their stunning cinematography bringing to light both the area’s radiant beauty, and that of its abundant wildlife population.

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Episode 13: Survival of the Fittest: a Natural History of Sport
1995-04-16

Looks at the aspects of nature with which sportsman come into contact.

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Episode 14: Sulawesi: an Island Bewitched
1995-04-23

Looks at some of the unusual fauna found on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, including pig-like creatures which have curled tusks growing through their cheeks, punk-crested primates, the world's largest snake and birds that incubate their eggs in volcanic soil.

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Episode 15: The Little Creatures of Africa's Hidden World
1995-04-30

Filming in South Africa's Kruger National Park, looking at the lives of small creatures e.g dung beetle, ticks, termites etc.

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Season 14 poster
Season 14 (1996)

No overview available.

12 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Echo of the Elephants: The Next Generation
1996-01-14

A deeply moving account of elephant family life, The Next Generation is the sequel to the BBC Natural History Unit's award-winning Echo of the Elephants. The award-winning cameraman Martyn Colbeck returns to direct and photograph this piece, his stunning cinematography bringing to life the touching intimacy, brutal fights and amazing perseverance of these magnificent animals. Filmed over four years, elephant expert, leading conservationist and world-renowned research zoologist Cynthia Moss continues her research into the ageing matriarch Echo and her rapidly expanding clan.

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Episode 2: Incredible Suckers
1996-01-21

In the depths of the world’s oceans, biologist and award-winning wildlife photographer Mike deGruy explores the multi-sensory world of the cephalopods. Stunning underwater photography provides an incredible glimpse into these enigmatic invertebrates, recording species never before captured on film. Impressive footage from a remote-controlled submersible provides the first ever glimpse of two rare creatures in their natural habitat, the living fossil nautilus and the intimidating vampire squid.

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Episode 3: Arctic Kingdom: Life at the Edge
1996-01-28

An investigation into the inhabitants of the Arctic who have adapted to extreme conditions, looks at the polar bear, narwhal and guillemots.

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Episode 4: Fifi's Boys: a Story of Wild Chimpanzees
1996-02-04

Updated film portrait of Fifi a chimpanzee that naturalist Jane Goodall first studied in 1960. This programme follows her and her six offspring, studying their individual characters and behaviour.

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Episode 5: Last Feast of the Crocodiles
1996-02-07

An enthralling exploration of the 1991 South African drought, Last Feast of the Crocodiles focuses on the receding waters of the Limpopo River and the extraordinary social alterations this lack of water brought about. An incredible portrait of nature at its harshest, award-winning wildlife filmmakers David and Carol Hughes captured behaviour never before seen on film. Surprising counter attacks on crocodiles are launched by baboons as they avenge the death of their young, and an odd alliance sees the young of these reptilian predators calmly basking on the backs of tolerant hippos.

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Episode 6: Rhythms of Life
1996-02-11

Uses computer simulation and time-lapse photography to chart the effect of the rhythms of the sun, moon and earth on life forms.

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Episode 7: Lions: Pride in Peril
1996-02-18

The King of Beasts, the lion, has an image of noble magnificence - a deadly hunter, red in both tooth and claw, to which all creatures defer. And yet, behind this facade, every lion has a personal history of drama, intrigue and tragedy. For seven months, award-winning film-maker Owen Newman followed the lions of the Tokitok pride in Tanzania's breath-taking Ngorongoro Crater. What started out as an intimate story of lions in their full glory evolved into a record of a pride which had fallen on hard times. David Attenborough relates the demise of the Tokitok lionesses, and their two guardian males as they strive to retain their 'kingdom' and protect their cubs among the more powerful prides that inhabit the Crater.

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Episode 8: Monsoon
1996-02-25

Examines the Indian Monsoon and the effect it has on the wildlife of the region.

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Episode 9: Crossroads of Nancite
1996-03-03

Explores the battle for survival in Nancite, a small stretch of beach and forest on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, between animal species from both continents. Featured animals include monkeys, coyotes and turtles.

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Episode 10: Bowerbird: Playboy of the Australian Forest
1996-03-17

Documentary on the wildlife in Australia's Lamington National Park in Queensland, focusing on the bowerbird, the scrub turkey and the spiny echidna.

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Episode 11: Hightops of Scotland
1996-03-24

Captures the private life of the wild life that inhabits the Cairngorm mountains in the north of Scotland. Filmed over a twelve month period, features such animals as wild deer, hare and ptarmigans.

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Episode 12: Attenborough in Paradise
1996-04-08

David Attenborough fulfilsan ambition to travel to the rainforests of New Guinea to film the birds of paradise.

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Season 15 poster
Season 15 (1996)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Sperm Whales: Back From the Abyss
1996-10-06

Wildlife film about sperm whales, revealing the secret lives led by these often misunderstood ocean giants. Scientists all over the world are now learning about the secret lives of sperm whales, the world's largest hunters that spawned the legendy of Moby Dick. Although Mellville painted them as fearsome beasts of the sea, they are actually shy creatures, and cameraman Rick Rosenthal needed patience and persistence to film them at close quarters. They turn out to be efficient hunters with a close family network involving sophisticated and vocal social lives.

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Episode 2: Mara Nights
1996-10-13

The first ever production to record animal behaviour at night without the use of lights, Mara Nights is an intriguing insight into a whole host of unseen nocturnal antics in Kenya's Masai Mara National Park. The normally astute hunting techniques of the lion are replaced by complete reliance on scent and sound, and in the words of the filmmaker Martin Dohrn "bumping into things then jumping on them".

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Episode 3: Penguins In and Out of Water
1996-10-20

Documentary on penguins- not looking at their traditionally viewed habitat Antartica, but at those penguins who have adapted to life in the deserts of Peru, and the cities of New Zealand.

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Episode 4: Mandrills: Painted Faces of the Forest
1996-10-27

A look at the complex social behaviour of a mandrill troop in Gabon, West Africa and associated rainforest species - many of which are relatively unknown.

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Episode 5: Beetlemania
1996-11-03

Documentary investigating beetles - which account for a quarter of all animals on earth.

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Episode 6: The World in a Wood
1996-11-10

An investigation into Wytham Wood outside Oxford, which has been studied by biologists for more than fifty years to examine the dependence between plants and animals.

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Episode 7: Himalaya
1996-11-17

Documentary about the geological and natural history of the Himalayas, the highest and youngest mountain range in the world. The landscape is home to a remarkable diversity of wildlife, including red pandas, snow leopards and iridescent pheasants.

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Episode 8: Wolves and Buffalo: an Ancient Alliance
1997-01-19

Documentary on the Wood Buffalo National Park in Northern Alberta in Canada. Follows the buffalo herds in the last place where they roam freely and the timber wolves who prey on them.

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Episode 9: Benguela and the Burning Shore
1997-01-26

Documentary looking at the wildlife found in the Namib Desert in Africa- where baking sand dunes lie beside an ocean cooled by an icy current - The Benguela.

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Episode 10: A Lemur's Tale
1997-02-02

A touching and intimate portrayal of the ring-tailed lemur, award-winning wildlife filmmaker Adrian Warren spent five months in Madagascar's Berenty forest exploring the fascinating world of these distinctive animals. Providing a captivating glimpse into a year in the life of a lemur, the production starts just after the birthing season, focusing on fragile new arrival, Sapphire, an unusual pure white lemur. Capturing the troop's daily struggle to survive, the film offers an interesting insight into their evolution, behaviour and incredible teamwork.

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Episode 11: Grand Canyon: From Dinosaurs to Dam
1997-02-16

Looks at the wildlife that inhabits the Grand Canyon today, and how the ecology of the area has been affected by the building of two huge dams. Originally home to dinosaurs, it is now occupied by a strange mixture of species from bighorn sheep to ravens, lizards and tarantulas.

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Episode 12: Wings Over the Serengeti
1997-02-23

Documentary on the vultures who live on the plains of the Serengeti in Africa.

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Episode 13: New Guinea: An Island Apart
1997-03-02

New Guinea is the world's largest tropical island and is home to one of the most unusual collections of animals and plants on earth.

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Episode 14: The Wild Dog's Last Stand
1997-03-09

Looks at the wilderness existence of packs of African wild dogs, filmed in Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania and Kruger National Park in South Africa. Shows their hunting techniques, peculiar social lives and co-operative behavioural habits. They are considered to be one of the world's most endangered species.

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Episode 15: Postcards From the Past
1997-03-16

Examines the landsacpe of the British isles and how it has been affected by its journey from the South Pole where it was located 600 million years ago.

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Episode 16: People of the Sea
1997-03-30

Documentary about Newfoundland and the centuries-old reliance of its inhabitants on harvesting cod, whales and seals from the surrounding seas. Argues that increasing pressure from international fishing and advances in technology have had a profound effect on the marine wildlife of the area, pushing them to the edge of extinction. Considers what conservation methods have been taken or need to be implemented to retrieve the situation.

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Episode 17: Echo of the Elephants: Africa's Forgotten Elephants
1997-04-06

Following film-maker Cynthia Moss in her search for the unknown elephants of Africa.

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Season 16 poster
Season 16 (1997)

No overview available.

19 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Puma: Lion of the Andes
1997-10-19

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Episode 2: The Temple Troop
1997-10-26

In Sri Lanka's ruined city of Polonnaruwa lives the Temple Troop, the unruliest gang of monkeys around. This film follows an extraordinary year in the life of the troop.

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Episode 3: Denali: the Great Alaskan Wilderness
1997-11-02

An examination of the wildlife living around Mt McKinley, North America's highest peak.

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Episode 4: Jungle Nights
1997-11-09

Set in the tropical rainforests of Central America, this film reveals the unseen behaviour of jaguars, vampires, margays, kinkajous and other strange animals that spring to life after dark. The documentary was filmed in Belize, over the course of a year, by resident film-makers Richard Foster and Carol Farneti Foster. They used infra-red cameras and powerful software which converts the ultrasonic calls of bats into distinctive visual patterns on a computer screen.

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Episode 5: Paracas and the Billion Dollar Bird
1997-11-16

Along the shores of the Paracas National Park on the coast of Peru, two very different worlds collide - the barren Atacama desert and the seas teeming with wildlife such as sea lions, penguins and pelicans as well as guanay cormorants, a bird that once created fortunes for the local people through the sale of their droppings, an excellent natural fertiliser.

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Episode 6: Komodo Dragon
1997-11-23

A study of the world's largest lizard, the man-eating Komodo dragon of Indonesia, revealing the dinosaur-like creature to be far more than just a cold-blooded killer.

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Episode 7: At the Edge of the Sea
1997-11-30

An absorbing exploration of coastal British Columbia, At the Edge of the Sea provides an insight into the diverse life that thrives within the ever-changing landscape of the Pacific shoreline. A vivid portrait of life amongst the violent surf, impressive time-lapse photography reveals the clever adaptations of the area's inhabitants. Acorn barnacles 'glue' themselves to rocks, while mussels produce strong threads to anchor themselves to the ocean floor and anemones develop adhesive undersides.

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Episode 8: Beyond the Naked Eye
1997-12-07

The hidden world of microscopic bugs, microbes, fungi and plants is revealed using special filming techniques. These tiny organisms can cause deadly diseases, but they also help to provide food and control the climate.

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Episode 9: On the Path of the Reindeer
1997-12-21

This edition follows thousands of reindeer as they undertake a 400km migration through Lapland, guided by the Saami, the reindeer people. On the journey the reindeer give birth, evade predators, struggle over mountains and even swim across the sea to reach the lush summer pastures of the Arctic coast.

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Episode 10: The Secret Garden
1997-12-27

Timelapse and close-up photography reveals the natural lives of the plants and animals that inhabit an English garden.

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Episode 11: The Dragons of Galapagos
1998-01-18

A look at the iguanas of the Galapagos.

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Episode 12: Three Monkeys
1998-01-25

How three species of monkey - howlers, red spiders and white-faced - use their different skills to fight for survival deep in the unpredictable and unforgiving tropical forests of Costa Rica.

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Episode 13: Borneo: Island in the Clouds
1998-02-01

The wildlife of Borneo, home to a diverse array of creatures, including proboscis monkeys, forest elephants, rhinos and orang-utans. The island boasts the tallest peak in South-East Asia, Mount Kinabalu, and some of the world's largest cave systems, as well as mangrove swamps and a coral reef teeming with life.

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Episode 14: Oman: Jewel of Arabia
1998-02-15

Documenatary film looking at the geography, wildlife and peoples of Oman.

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Episode 15: The Lost Lands of Scilly
1998-02-22

Sharks, palm trees, shipwrecks and sandy shores are all vital ingredients for a sub-tropical paradise. Add sunken treasure, colourful corals, nectar sipping birds and exotic flowers and it sounds a long way from Britain. But the exotic Isles of Scilly are just beyond Land's End. Here Britain's biggest predator, the grey Atlantic seal, basks on the rocks and raucous colonies of nocturnal birds fill the midnight air.

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Episode 16: Fire and Ice: an Icelandic Saga
1998-03-01

During filming in Iceland, a huge volcano exploded under Europe's largest icecap, melting billions of tons of ice. But foxes, skuas, puffins and other wildlife have learnt to turn such natural disasters to their advantage.

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Episode 17: Metropolis
1998-03-08

New York's concrete and steel plays host to fascinating wildlife, including falcons, raccoons and horseshoe crabs.

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Episode 18: The Otters of Yellowstone
1998-03-15

Spanning three states, Yellowstone is America's most famous national park, with a cast of charming inhabitants set against stunning scenery. This film follows a family of river otters through the year as they learn to fish, fend off attacking coyotes and travel great distances around the beautiful park.

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Episode 19: The Forbidden Fruit
1998-03-22

Following the success of David Attenborough's PRIVATE LIFE OF PLANTS, a further chance to see flora from unusual perspectives. Time-lapse technology and high-speed cameras show how plants use animals, humans and the elements to spread seeds.

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Season 17 poster
Season 17 (1998)

No overview available.

18 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: South Georgia: an Island All Alone
1998-10-11

Focusing on the wildlife of the remote island of South Georgia in the South Atlantic.

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Episode 2: Capybara: Swamp Hogs
1998-10-18

This is the story of one Capybara group,whose territory spans a patchwork of of wildlife-rich swamp,grassland & forest in Venezuela's Orinoco flood plain -the "Llanos".

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Episode 3: Secret Sharks
1998-10-25

Includes footage of the gentle whale shark, and the perilous birth of a baby horn shark.

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Episode 4: Mountain of the Sea
1998-11-01

Wildlife documentary about South Africa's Table Mountain, home to a huge variety of animals, from black eagles at its peak to penguins at its shore-lined foot.

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Episode 5: Orangutans: the High Society
1998-11-08

Wildlife documentary series. Featuring the orangutans of Sumatra's Leuser National Park.

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Episode 6: The Fatal Flower
1998-11-15

This programme looks at orchids, the `femmes fatales' of nature, combining beauty and deceit in a way which ignites human and animal passions.

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Episode 7: Vanishing Pools of the Zambezi
1998-11-22

Herds of elephant, buffalo and impala graze on rich green grass by pools formed by the meandering Zambezi. But the short rainy season soon ends, and the battle for survival begins.

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Episode 8: Manu: Amazon Paradise
1998-11-29

The forest-dwelling creatures of the Amazon region of Manu, a treasure-trove of rare species, from jaguars and giant otters : which have earned a reputation for ferocity : to sloths and 13 different types of monkey.

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Episode 9: Impossible Journeys
1998-12-06

Using microscopy & animation,we journey into worlds previously beyond our reach.The familiar world hides incredible secrets that are revealed here.

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Episode 10: Cheetahs in a Hot Spot
1998-12-13

A look at the world's largest population of cheetahs - and their enemies - in Namibia, southern Africa.

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Episode 11: Dolphins: The Wild Side
1999-01-17

Explores the varied behaviour of wild dolphins around the world.

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Episode 12: Year of the Jackal
1999-01-24

This film, shot over the course of the year at the Ngorongoro crater in Tanzania, reveals some surprising facts about jackals.

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Episode 13: Everglades: to Hell and Back
1999-01-31

Wildlife documentary looking at some of the many species of life found in the Florida Everglades and the threat to the environment posed by nearby Miami.

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Episode 14: Tough Ducks
1999-02-21

Film revealing that there's more to the placid-looking duck than meets the eye. Including those that live in the Arctic and the Australian desert.

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Episode 15: The Man-Eaters of Tsavo
1999-02-28

Documentary about the lions of the Tsavo National Park in Kenya, and their current and future co-existence with humans.

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Episode 16: Islands of the Vampire Birds
1999-03-14

Wildlife documentary looking at the finches of the Galapagos Islands which have evolved to not only to eat seeds and pick ticks off tortoises but also to drink the blood of the latter.

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Episode 17: The Farm That Time Forgot
1999-03-21

Visits the Hosking family's farm in Devon where they farm traditionally and so help preserve local wildlife, especially in retention of old stone buildings and hedgerows.

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Episode 18: Iran: Secrets of the North
1999-03-28

The first of two programmes exploring the wildlife inhabiting this vast country, a natural crossroads that is home to animals from Asia, Europe and Africa.

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Season 18 poster
Season 18 (1999)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Riddle of the Right Whale
1999-10-03

A dramatic film about Right Whales, the rarest of all the great whales. There's a race on to save them and even US nuclear submarines are part of the effort. Dramatic footage above and below the water reveals these fascinating giants battling for mates, rearing young, sailing with their tails and meeting other whales, dolphins, seals and sharks. It's called the Right Whale because it used to be the right whale to hunt - big and full of blubber. Today it's baffling biologists who cannot understand why, in spite of total protection, it refuses to recover.

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Episode 2: Hokkaido: Garden of the Gods
1999-10-10

A look at the unique wildlife of Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost island, and the island's few remaining members of the ancient Ainu race, who see all animals as sacred. Swept by winds from the high Arctic, Hokkaido is an island of towering volcanos and fairytale forests, where cranes perform dances in the snow, brown bears plunge for salmon in rivers and eagles plunder the spoils from winter fishing fleets. The unique wildlife of Hokkaido has long been worshipped by an ancient race of hunter-gatherers, called Ainu, a few of whom still survive among modern Japanese. Even today, they honour the natural world around them through ritualised dance and prayer.

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Episode 3: Elephants of the Sand River
1999-10-17

Beneath the forested flanks of an extinct volcano lies a cave with a mysterious secret. Kitum Cave on the slopes of Mt Elgon in Kenya is the only place on earth where elephants venture deep underground. They are forced to make the dangerous journey into the cave because of their craving for salt. Humans have been drawn to Kitum Cave for thousands of years, originally to harvest salt, but more recently to slaughter elephants, leading to local rangers Daniel and Mike being assigned to protect the survivors

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Episode 4: In the Company of Bears
1999-10-24

Insight into Canada's black bears, mountain-dwelling creatures which have developed a mutually beneficial relationship with the local human population comprising skiers and snow-boarders

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Episode 5: The Millennium Oak
1999-12-30

Documentary charting 1,000 years in the life of an English oak, which would have existed from before the Norman Conquest, during the Black Death, Civil War and Industrial Revolution right through to the present day. Narrated by Tom Baker

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Episode 6: The Temple Troop
1999-12-12

Remarkable film following an eventful year in the life of an unruly troop of macaque monkeys in Sri Lanka's ruined city of Polonnaruwa, tracing the audacity, resourcefulness and sheer animal cunning that enables them to outwit forest prey and engage in commando-style raids on neighbouring villages. Narrated by Roshan Seth

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Episode 7: Wild Indonesia: Island Castaways
2000-01-23

Shrouded in mystery,Indonesia is a bizarre and beautiful place,home to dinosaur-like komodo dragons and tree kangaroos,tropical beaches and snowy mountain peaks.Indonesia is nicknamed "the ring of fire",as this 3,000 - mile chain of 17,000 islands,running from Northern Australia to Asia,was created by volcanic eruptions 150 million years ago.Today,there are 155 active volcanoes in Indonesia,and one erupts every day,making this the most violent volcanic region on earth.With 150 million people,Java is the most densely populated island in the world and it has the largest Buddhist temple - the stunning ruins of Borobudhur that date from the eighth century.

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Episode 8: Wild Indonesia: Underwater Worlds
2000-01-30

Indonesia is one of the worldís natural wonders.In its underwater wonderland,flamboyant reef fish,huge manta rays and shimmering schools of barracudas ride the strong currents that flow between the 17,000 islands that form stepping-stones between Asia and Australia.The coral reefs are the rainforests of the sea.The people of the sea are as fascinating as the wildlife.Off the island of Sulawesi,the Bajau people,known as sea gypsies,live on the water.

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Episode 9: Wild Indonesia: Magical Forests
2000-02-06

Kangaroos in trees and flying foxes - nowhere else on the planet are their animals as weird and wonderful as in the forests of Indonesia.Despite all the destruction,two thirds of Indonesia is still jungle and,as the islands of Indonesia connect Australia to Asia,itis a unique meeting point for wildlife from East and West.Magical Forests enters the steamy jungles of Borneo, Sumatra and Java where highly endangered Asian elephants and hairy rhinos still roam.

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Episode 10: The Tiger's Tale
2000-02-20

Insight into the daily lives of a family of Bengal tigers inhabiting the Bandhavgarh National Park in India. Sita's newborn cubs find their feet in the jungle, learning how to clean and feed themselves, while adolescent Bachi seeks a mate. Narrated by Meera Syal

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Episode 11: The Wolf's Return
2000-05-08

Documentary reporting on an ambitious plan to reintroduce wild wolves into America's Yellowstone National Park. The animals were virtually hunted out of existence 100 years ago and this film follows one pack as they attempt to re-establish themselves in the famous mountain wilderness

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Episode 12: Monkey Warriors
2000-05-15

The monkeys of Jodhpur, India, held in great reverence by the Hindu townsfolk, squabble over territory with a troop from out of town : and finally engage in a full-scale battle to settle their dispute

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Episode 13: Dangerous Australians
2000-05-22

Footage of the lethal wildlife which makes living in Australia a hazardous undertaking. Venomous red-back spiders inhabit garages, funnel-webs stalk houses and gardens looking for mates and divers exploring coral reefs risk attack by a range of fiercely territorial creatures vying for space in cramped conditions

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Episode 14: The Crater: Africa's Predator Paradise
2000-06-05

Documentary about the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania, which has the highest concentration of predators anywhere in the world. A huge natural bowl inhabited by over 25,000 wildebeest, it is nonetheless a difficult environment for predators, and numbers are declining

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Episode 15: Salmon: The Silver Tide
2000-06-19

The salmon that fill the rivers of the Pacific coast of North America have one of the most miraculous and mysterious life-cycles in the entire animal kingdom. After years feeding in the Pacific Ocean, they travel thousands of miles back to the rivers of their birth to spawn and to die. Using miniature underwater cameras, 'The Silver Tide' reveals the drama and danger of the salmon on their last great journey, as they encounter and overcome fishing nets, hungry bears, raging floods and massive waterfalls. Each year, despite these obstacles, millions of fish reach their final destination, and in doing so, sustain one of the most beautiful and wild landscapes on Earth.

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Episode 16: Claws
2000-07-10

Insight into the lives of crabs, whether they are climbing trees, travelling over mountains, scuttling across deserts or surviving in crushing pressure near super-heated water on deep ocean vents. From exotic tropical beaches to mosquito-infested swamps, this film gathers together examples of the most unusual and intriguing of the world's crabs

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Episode 17: The Story of an African Wild Dog

At home among the woodlands and floodplains is an African Wild Dog pack - fourteen adults and a bundle of boisterous pups. Part of the few viable remaining wild dog populations left in Africa, the Santawani pack is soon to become one of the most famous.

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Season 19 poster
Season 19 (2000)

No overview available.

18 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Otters in the Stream of Life
2000-10-08

This film follows a year on the exquisite west coast of Scotland, in the intimate company of a family of otters. Guided by their mother, the otter cubs survive the wildest storms of the Scottish winter, striving to overcome many challenges on their way to independence. The west coast is warmed by the Gulf Stream which is why dolphins and sharks, whales and puffins all come here to share it with the otters. Two years in the making, this film is packed with surprises and excitement and set in the most breathtaking scenery to be found anywhere in Britain.

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Episode 2: Camels Down Under
2000-10-15

Introduced to Australia in the 1840s by European settlers, camels were the only reliable form of transport in the country's harsh interior. Replaced by motor vehicles and abandoned at the turn of the 20th century, they now number over a quarter of a million - the only true wild camel population on the planet. This film tells the life story of a young camel growing up in the harsh world of the outback

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Episode 3: Deadly Vipers
2000-10-22

Predators with the largest fangs of any snake and venom containing up to 50 deadly ingredients, vipers kill more people than any other animal. But now that medical science is beginning to discover the healing power of natural poisons, could this lethal reptile turn out to be a boon for mankind?

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Episode 4: The Tigers' Fortress
2000-10-29

The chequered history of a tiger conservation park in Rajasthan, northern India, from its success in the 1980s through its battles with corruption and poaching in the early 1990s to its present status as home to the highest number of tigers and cubs for 15 years

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Episode 5: Big Red Roos
2000-11-05

A red kangaroo mother and baby belong to one of the hardiest species of animal athletes - but as this documentary shows, even they must battle to survive in the vast and inhospitable Australian Outback. The daunting challenges posed by the landscape are dramatically depicted over the course of a year in the kangaroos' lives

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Episode 6: Killer Whales: Up Close and Personal
2000-11-19

The intimate lives of a family of killer whales that hunt elephant seals and penguins off the storm-blasted Crozet Islands of Antarctica. French scientists study younger members of the group as they learn the complicated techniques involved in catching prey

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Episode 7: Madagascar: Land of Lemurs
2000-11-26

Isolated from the rest of the world for hundreds of thousands of years, Madagascar has become a treasure trove of unique wildlife. This programme follows the lives of its charismatic lemurs that are to be found nowhere else in the world.

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Episode 8: Seychelles: Jewels of a Lost Continent
2000-12-10

The epic story of how giant tortoises, silver lizards, the coco de mer tree and other extraordinary species came to be stranded on the tiny islands of the Seychelles, far out in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The islands' wealth of wildlife all provide clues to the Seychelles' dramatic origins in the break-up of a primeval supercontinent.

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Episode 9: Bower Birds: The Art of Seduction
2000-12-17

David Attenborough travels to the remote highlands of New Guinea and the rainforests of Australia to explore the little-known world of the bower bird, a fascinating creature which flaunts its charms, steals for its own purposes and indulges in spiteful acts - all in the pursuit of the opposite sex

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Episode 10: The Last Tusker
2001-01-21

A colourful feature on Sri Lanka's elephant population, focusing on one of the last wild bulls. On this Buddhist island, elephants may be sacred, but they kill over people a year, and many are shot, survivors winding up in an elephant orphanage. Fifty years ago, there were ten thousand elephants and three million people on Sri Lanka; now there are two thousand elephants and 20 million people.

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Episode 11: Seals: Invaders of the Sea
2001-01-28

Wildlife programme in which state-of-the-art camera techniques reveal the sophisticated underwater world of the seal - an animal capable of surviving in every ocean corner of the world.

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Episode 12: Killer Bees and Magic Trees
2001-02-04

Austrian scientist Gerald Kastberger studies the aggressive giant honeybees of Assam, in particular their unexplained annual migration from the Himalayan foothills to specific trees scattered across the plains a hundred miles to the south - a distance which takes the bees three weeks to cover. Feared locally as much as the tiger, the bees attack en masse, and a hundred or more stings can kill.

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Episode 13: Hippo Beach
2001-02-18

Insight into the bizarre behavioural habits of the African hippo, a creature which spends most of its lifetime in water but cannot swim, and eats mainly grass yet thinks nothing of challenging a lion for a share of its kill. Featuring action-packed footage of fearsome hippo bulls as they defend their territories

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Episode 14: Timeless Thames
2001-02-25

This is a journey along the River Thames, England's most famous river, from its source to the sea. The Thames may seem tame today but it is still wild at heart and just waiting to reclaim its lost wildness, despite our best efforts to control it. The recent flooding throughout the British Isles illustrates just how close we live to the limits of nature. London is actually sinking faster than Venice and despite huge technological innovations, such as the Thames Barrier, we are losing the battle. This winter's flooding will make everyone rethink how we live alongside the Timeless Thames.

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Episode 15: Coyote: the Ultimate Survivor?
2001-03-18

Documentary on the coyote, cousin to the wolf and one of America's most charismatic animals. The film explores how this elusive and intelligent creature with a spine-chilling call remains an icon of the Wild West - revered by native Americans, yet hated by white ranchers - and tells its remarkable story of survival, from its stronghold in Yellowstone Park right into the heart of modern cities.

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Episode 16: Transylvania: Living with Predators
2001-03-25

Andrew Sachs narrates a documentary focusing on the large predators which live alongside humans in the beautiful forests and mountains of Transylvania, where shepherds always have to be on their guard for hungry wolves and bears seeking an easy meal of lamb. The programme examines the current situation and asks how long the inhabitants of Transylvania can tolerate these dangerous carnivores

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Episode 17: Danube Delta: Europe Untamed
2001-04-15

The delta of the river Danube is home to half a million wild geese, the greatest concentration of pelicans outside Africa, and the world's largest freshwater fish. Despite the previous efforts of communist regimes to drain the area, people still live and fish here in a way of life unchanged for centuries.

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Episode 18: Buffalo: The African Boss
2001-07-31

A study of the buffaloes of Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania, where they are prey to lions but will also attack them, and even kill their cubs. This dangerous side, which makes them the most feared of all Africa's large animals, is balanced by their loyalty and care for the other members of their herd.

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Season 20 poster
Season 20 (2001)

No overview available.

16 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The Lost Elephants of Timbuktu
2001-10-07

David Attenborough narrates this documentary following young research student Anne Orlando as she sets out on an unforgettable adventure, hoping to solve the mysteries surrounding a herd of elephants that inhabit the desert south of the fabled city of Timbuktu. How do they survive the arid conditions? Why do they disappear for two months each year? And why do they make an annual journey across the desert?

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Episode 2: Yellowstone: America's Sacred Wilderness
2001-10-14

Park ranger Paul Schullery presents a personal account of life in America's Yellowstone Park. After wolves were reintroduced to the park, he watched the natural order establish itself, as wolves hunted down elk parents and grizzly bears stalked their fawns.

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Episode 3: Wild Nights
2001-10-21

Simon King attempts to win the trust of shy and elusive night-time animals including badgers, foxes and owls, in an attempt to reveal the natural world on our doorstep.

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Episode 4: Hotel Heliconia
2001-11-04

The Heliconia plant provides food and shelter for a wide variety of jungle creatures and also produces some of the most stunning flowers on earth

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Episode 5: Night Stalkers
2001-11-18

This documentary introduces us to the variety of bats found in the rainforests of Central America. Fringe-lipped, Fishing, fruit and the notorious vampire bat are amongst the line up.

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Episode 6: Treasure Islands
2001-11-25

Documentary on the wildlife of the Channel Islands.

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Episode 7: Leopard Hunters
2001-12-02

Wildlife documentary featuring the Asiatic leopards of Yala in the south of Sri Lanka. This unique and revealing film shows the secretive spotted cats fighting crocodiles and bears, and three cubs surviving the perils of growing up in the jungle.

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Episode 8: War Wrecks of the Coral Sea
2001-12-09

Exploring shipwrecks in the Solomon Islands and Truk Lagoon that have been transformed into spectacular living reefs following the destruction of World War Two. Featuring the testimony of those involved in the conflict

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Episode 9: The Alps
2001-12-16

Documentary focusing on the wildlife of the European Alps, a spectacular wilderness area in the heart of the world's most densely settled continent. Carved by ice-age glaciers and invaded by animals adapted to life in harsh conditions, such as bears, wolves, golden eagles and ibex, the region is much more than a vast arena of ski slopes. Narrated by Andrew Sachs.

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Episode 10: A Wild Dog's Story
2002-01-20

Documentary following Newky, an African wild dog, over five years. Told through the personal recollections of wild-dog researcher Dr 'Tico' McNutt and set against the spectacular wilderness of Botswana's Okavango delta, Newky's story is a poignant tale of survival against the odds for one of the world's most endangered and fascinating creatures.

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Episode 12: Killer Whales of Monterey Bay
2002-01-27

Andrew Sachs narrates a programme focusing on the killer whales of Monterey Bay, fierce and nomadic hunters capable of taking down prey as big as a grey whale. As well as capturing the killers in their natural habitat, underwater film makers Paul and Gracie Atkins also uncover a secret that may threaten the whales' existence.

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Episode 13: The Canine Conspiracy
2002-02-24

The programme follows a puppy through the first year of its life and its willful destruction of the owner's property : which nearly led to the rebellious hound's expulsion from the family home. Producer Mark Flowers reveals the manipulative nature of the mutt and how the four-legged beast may have manipulated people for thousands of years, casting doubt on the notion of the dog as man's best friend. Have humans unwittingly become victims of a canine conspiracy?

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Episode 14: The Cat Connection
2002-03-03

The secret life of the cat, examining the Jekyll and Hyde nature of the feline, which is a ruthless predator in the wild. Filmed in several countries, the programme explains what place the creature has in history, asking why it's the most popular domesticated pet in Britain and the USA.

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Episode 15: Top Bat
2002-03-10

Rebecca Hosking presents an insight into the world of vampire bats, observing them in their natural habitat. She reveals that despite their dark reputation, they possess amazing abilities, including seeing in the dark and echo-location - technology which could benefit humans with impaired vision

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Episode 16: Amazon: Super River
2002-03-17

A look at the biggest river system on the planet, the Amazon, which rises as a small stream high in the Andes and ends over 6,000 miles away in the Atlantic Ocean. Holding a fifth of the Earth's river water, the Amazon floods an area larger than England and supports an unbeatable array of wildlife. The Amazon Basin is home to thousands of types of fish, including air-breathing species and the deadly piranha.

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Episode 17: Rhinos: Built to Last?
2002-03-24

Robert Lindsay narrates a documentary which focuses on the plight of the rhino, a notoriously feisty and well-armoured animal that is both revered and feared by humans. Hunted for its horn to the verge of extinction in the last century, this programme looks at whether the rhino is capable of staging a comeback

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Season 21 poster
Season 21 (2002)

No overview available.

15 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Meerkats: Part of the Team
2002-10-13

Documentary following a family of meerkats living in Tswalu National Park in South Africa. The ultimate team players, meerkats survive in harsh conditions by looking out for each other and constantly scanning the horizon for predators such as cobras, cheetah and martial eagles.

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Episode 2: Danger in Tiger Paradise
2002-10-20

Valmik Thapar returns to Ranthambhore National Park in Rajasthan to witness the progress of Machli, a tigress he has followed for four years. It's been a while since he last saw her and she now has two cubs, but with their father gone, presumed dead, she faces a new challenge - protecting her offspring from the males that are trying to establish themselves in the area

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Episode 3: Falklands: Flying Devils
2002-10-27

Film makers Jane Watson and Mark Smith observe a colony of aggressive caracaras, rare birds of prey on a stormy island in the South Atlantic.

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Episode 4: The Crossing
2002-11-03

A tense and spectacular drama unfolds as thousands of zebras, wildebeest and gazelles take on hungry crocodiles and lions at the Mara River in Africa.

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Episode 5: Death Trap
2002-11-17

The wildlife of the Pacific Coast. Offshore are whales, seals and sharks, on land, grizzlies, and in the air bald eagles. All wait to catch some of the many fish attempting to reach their spawning grounds.

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Episode 6: My Halcyon River
2002-11-24

An idyllic British river: misty dawns, dancing mayflies, lazy trout and fluffy chicks paddling under the watchful gaze of their parents. "My Halcyon River" is an intimate portrait of a secret world where otters hunt on the midnight current, mink lie in wait to ambush unwary victims and gleaming kingfishers pierce the water to spear their prey. These dramas, both mortal and touching are revealed through the eyes of a man who has loved the river since he was a boy, cameraman Charlie Hamilton-James.

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Episode 7: Killer Ants
2002-12-01

Documentary about predator ants. While big predators bask in their own spotlight, tiny assassins are lurking in the shadows, waiting to attack. The driver ants of Africa can devour a horse in one day, while the jack jumper ant of Tasmania can kill a man with a single sting.

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Episode 8: A Life with Cougars
2002-12-15

Canadian wildlife film-makers Jeff and Sue Turner's documentary about the cougar, one of North America's fiercest predators. Jeff and Sue were unaware that they lived among cougars until a family dog was killed on the doorstep of their home. Very little is known or understood about these carnivores, so the Turners devoted an entire winter to tracking and catching these elusive creatures on film.

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Episode 9: Cats Under the Serengeti Stars
2003-01-01

Cameras capture the events of a night on the African plains, revealing the fascinating lives of nocturnal creatures from hunting caracals to the complexities of hyena politics.

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Episode 10: Wild Women of Viramba
2003-01-15

Almost every day for the past 25 years, the Viramba troop of yellow baboons have been accompanied by scientists in one of the most extensive primate research projects ever conducted. Researcher Holly Carroll has come to understand the troop, which is controlled by its female members. She discovered that they had established a strict hierarchy in order to keep daily life running smoothly. Interestingly, female offspring automatically inherit their mother's rank. Research into the lives of these 'wild women' of Viramba shows that living in a group can work if all members cooperate. Life in Mikumi National Park is certainly not easy but their inherited hierarchy means there is little need for these baboons to fight.

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Episode 11: Killer Bees: Taming the Swarm
2003-01-19

Documentary about the Africanised honey bee, a notorious killer bee that has spread across the world causing devastation in the natural world. Is there any way of taming this lethal force of nature?

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Episode 12: Highgrove: A Prince's Legacy
2003-01-26

David Attenborough narrates this documentary charting a year in the running of Highgrove, home to the Prince of Wales, who takes an active part in the management of the organic garden and estate. Prince Charles is seen monitoring the garden's upkeep, working on the land, planting a new woodland area for the spring and hedge-laying in winter

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Episode 13: Flying Home
2003-02-02

A look at Operation Migration, a major project aimed at introducing rare whooping cranes back into the eastern USA by rearing chicks in captivity and then sending them out into the wild.

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Episode 14: The Elephant, The Emperor and Butterfly Tree
2003-03-02

A startling look at the two most destructive animals in South Africa and how their habits are a story of life, death and cooperation. The elephant, the Emperor Moth and the Mopane tree form the backbone of life on the African plains. This delicate ecological triangle determines the livelihood of all the other creatures in its system. The Mopane tree is under attack from rampaging elephants, but even more damaging is the Mopane worm, the caterpillar of the beautiful Emperor Moth. They gather in hoards and strip the trees of their leaves in minutes. But the worms are food for a host of animals - even humans - and the trees are home to a number of unpleasant creatures. What holds the delicate balance in check?

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Episode 15: Indonesia: Fire Islands
2003-03-09

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Season 22 poster
Season 22 (2003)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Lost Crocodiles of the Pharaohs
2003-10-12

Last year, while excavating a 5,000 year old temple buried by Egyptian sands, archaeologist Edda Bresciani unearthed a sacred chamber - with an unexpected secret.There in the center of the room, gleamed an iridescent pool of emerald water. And right next to it, in a small depression hewn into the floor - thirty perfectly preserved crocodile eggs. Nearby were mummified adults. "The temple was a nursery for sacred crocodiles," she says incredulously. "They emerged from the eggs, to be reared in the pool before being sacrificed and mummified. I'd found a temple to Sebek - the crocodileheaded deity." Despite their revered status in ancient Egypt, the crocodiles in the river Nile were all hunted out by the 1800s, and the Pharaoh's crocodiles were lost forever. Or so it was thought.Then there came mysterious sightings of crocodiles emerging from strange places in north Africa away from the Egyptian Nile. Are these the long lost ancestors of the Pharaoh's crocodiles - alive and well?

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Episode 2: Elephant Cave
2003-10-19

Beneath the forested flanks of an extinct volcano lies a cave with a mysterious secret. Kitum Cave on the slopes of Mt Elgon in Kenya is the only place on earth where elephants regularly venture deep underground. Driven by cravings for salt, these elephants are forced to make the dangerous venture into the cave. Humans have been drawn to Kitum Cave over thousand of years, originally to harvest salt, but more recently to slaughter elephants, leading to local rangers Daniel and Mike being assigned to protect the survivors

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Episode 3: White Shark/Red Triangle
2003-10-31

Each year, in the late summer, a region known as the Red Triangle bustles with marine mammal activity. Lying between San Francisco and Monterey, the Red Triangle includes beaches where elephant seals go to molt, and offshore sites where great whites feed on unwary prey. When not prowling the Red Triangle, great white sharks search the kelp forest for sea lions, or roam the open ocean. Their migration is predictable. Each year they turn up at the same place at the same time, occasionally crossing paths with humans who still swim and surf in these dangerous waters.

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Episode 4: Tigers of the Emerald Forest
2003-11-16

Huge male tigers are the focus of this film, Dedicated scientist Raghu Chundawat and his partner Joanna Van Gruisen have been studying them for the last eight years and reveals the unique secrets of the tigers of the Emerald Forest.

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Episode 5: Dune
2003-11-23

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Episode 6: Five Owl Farm
2003-12-07

This is the story of a remarkable place - a Yorkshire farm where all five British owls live side by side.

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Episode 7: The Monkey Prince

The Mountain Troop is the most powerful in the kingdom, and it lives in the best location. That is where Bobo is born. From the moment of his birth, Bobo is at the very pinnacle of troop hierarchy and is treated like a prince. But a territorial war between two rival troops changes his life forever. Once his princely status comes to an abrupt end, he has little choice but to find a new home. Somewhere between fact and fiction, The Monkey Prince delves into the destiny of a remarkable monkey and reveals the private lives of two rival troops by showing their territorial wars and their interaction with human and natural worlds.

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Episode 8: The Eagle Has Landed
2004-01-02

The struggle to bring ospreys, red kites and sea eagles back from the brink of extinction is Britain's greatest wildlife success story. Thanks to a few dedicated people these magnificent birds of prey are recovering fast, and after over 100 years absence they may even be about to reclaim the skies of southern England.

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Episode 9: Swamp Cats
2004-01-09

Film about a family of lions living in the swamps of the Okavango delta, seen through the eyes of a cub born just before the annual flood.

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Episode 10: Caribou and Wolves: The Endless Dance
2004-01-16

Across the top of North America, millions of caribou are led on their never-ending journey by the mothers of the herd. Driven by the demands of motherhood, they travel 3000 miles on a trek from their winter range at the edge of the northern forests to calving grounds and back again. The caribou keep themselves to open ground for visibility of their predators. The wolves are not far behind.

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Episode 11: Missing... Presumed Eaten
2004-01-23

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Episode 12: A Moose Named Madeline
2004-02-08

Richard E Grant narrates this documentary following a female moose and its calf Madeline in the dangerous Canadian wilderness. The youngster must overcome wolves, swarms of biting flies and the freezing weather if it is to survive into adulthood

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 13: The Amber Time Machine
2004-02-15

Amber is one of David Attenborough's great passions - he is captivated by its beauty and the animals frozen within it in perfect detail. In a personal journey he traces the history of a piece he has had since he was a boy, travelling back millions of years to the age of dinosaurs to unravel its secrets.

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Episode 14: Five Big Cats and a Camera
2004-02-22

The story of the hurdles overcome by Owen Newman & Amanda Barrett, as they set out 14yrs ago to film cheetahs, leopards, servals, caracals and lions.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 15: Ice Age Death Trap
2004-02-29

For thousands of years downtown LA hid an indiscriminate killer - in one of the most surprising wildlife crime stories in the world, Natural World turns forensic detective to solve the mystery and unmask victims and killer. Features sabre-tooth cats, dire wolves and huge short-faced bears.

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Episode 16: Ireland: Sculpted Isle
2004-03-14

Ireland - Sculpted Isle is a captivating journey through Ireland's most beautiful and enigmatic landscapes. This island in the Atlantic Ocean might seem like a land trapped in time, but appearances are deceptive. From the great limestone features of the Burren to the wide, bleak boglands of County Mayo the programme reveals how the Irish landscape has undergone some of the fastest and most profound changes of any in Europe.

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Episode 17: Lion: Out of Africa?
2004-04-11

The biggest of the big cats is declining fast, killed because it's developed a taste for beef - cows are much easier to catch than wildebeest in many parts of Africa. This film investigates solutions with help from big cat expert Jonathan Scott, a Masai entrepreneur, and a South African vet who's setting up a lion sperm bank.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 23 poster
Season 23 (2004)

No overview available.

14 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Cheetahs: Fast Track to Freedom
2004-10-14

For two years Simon King takes on the role of mother to two cheetah cubs, Toki and Sambu, orphaned when their mother was killed by a lion.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Norfolk Broads: The Fall and Rise of a Great Swamp
2004-10-21

The Norfolk Broads is one of the last fragments of a vast swamp where ancient Britons hunted wildfowl and fished for perch and giant pike. Over the centuries most of the marsh and its wildlife were destroyed. The swamp is now recovering, and spectacular birds like avocets, marsh harriers, and cranes are back. Can the Broads be restored or will they be destroyed by rising sea levels?

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Episode 3: Typhoon Island
2004-11-18

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Episode 4: Mississippi: Tales of the Last River Rat
2004-11-25

A stunningly photographed portrait of the wildlife and landscape of the Mississippi River seen through the eyes of 'River Rat' Kenny Salwey, a legendary hunter, trapper and author who lives off the land and shares his watery haunts with beavers, snapping turtles, sturgeons, pelicans and eagles.

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Episode 5: Hammerhead
2004-12-02

Profile of the hammerhead shark, which has until now been shrouded in mystery as no-one could understand why its head is such a strange shape, or how it might help the creature's survival. Marine biologists in Hawaii explain how the fish utilises the unusual shape to give it a unique, deadly weapon in the oceans. Narrated by Ian Holm

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Episode 6: The Wild Wood
2004-12-09

An ancient oak wood in the heart of England is as full of beauty and drama as anywhere on Earth. Philippa Forrester spends a year witnessing its secret life - the sparrow-hawk terrorising blue tits, fox cubs learning to stalk rabbits and a buzzard looking for love.

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Episode 7: Andes: The Dragon's Back
2004-12-16

The Andes is one of the world's most spectacular mountain ranges with one of the richest environments on Earth and a diverse and unique mix of plants and animals existing nowhere else in the world. Andes: The Dragon's Back so named because of the spines along its ridge travels through this range of mountains stretching from Cape Horn to the Equator, uncovering the largest ice field outside the poles, the Torres del Paine mountain region and the Atacama desert. The Andes is a perfect example of animals adapting to their environment, penguins manage to thrive in the desert, flamingos cluster around hot geysers and the spectacled bear which originated in North America subsists on South American flowers which now grow in the Andes. Take a tour of the world's longest and most geologically active mountain range in Andes: The Dragon's Back

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 8: Land of the Falling Lakes
2005-01-05

Documentary about Plitvice National Park in Croatia, Europe's oldest and one of its most beautiful national parks - a network of crystal clear lakes connected by thousands of waterfalls. Its ancient beech forests are a stronghold for wolves, lynx and bears, animals that almost became extinct during the Balkan civil war and are now recovering. Hidden beneath the trees are spectacular limestone caves, home to salamanders and cave voles.

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Episode 9: Echo of the Elephants - The Final Chapter?
2005-01-19

Documentary following the latest chapter in the story of Echo the female elephant and her family in the Kenyan National Park of Amboseli. Scientist Cynthia Moss believes she is charting the 59-year-old matriarch's decline - until she makes a surprising discovery. Narrated by David Attenborough. Part of 100 Years of Wildlife Week

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Episode 10: Shark Coast
2005-01-26

David Attenborough travels along the coast of Southern Africa which has an incredible variety of sharks, over 140 species, from massive great whites and tiger sharks to dozens of tiny sharks with intriguing names like the pyjama shark and leopard cat shark. The answer to why these seas are so rich in predators lies in the unique pattern of warm and cold currents allowing sharks that normally live oceans apart to coexist.

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Episode 11: Serengeti 24
2005-02-03

Documentary chronicled the maternal behavior of a cheetah and a leopard as they cared for their cubs in Tanzania's Serengeti National Park.

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Episode 12: Secrets of the Maya Underworld
2005-02-09

Beneath the jungle-clad temples of Mexico's Yucatan, a startling discovery has been made: the largest network of flooded caves and underground rivers in the world. The intrepid cave divers exploring this surreal landscape have made remarkable discoveries: bizarre new animals, as well as the skeletons of the ancient Maya and the offerings they made to the spirits. This was their underworld, and its secrets are finally being revealed.

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Episode 13: A Boy Among Polar Bears
2005-02-15

Documentary following Inuit boy Apak Taktu as he takes his first trip out onto the frozen Arctic with his father to be taught esssential and traditional survival and hunting skills.

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Episode 14: Wolf Pack

Sean Pertwee narrates this documentary exploring the passions and intrigues - from families torn asunder to jealous plots and sibling rivalries - that drive members of the world's largest wolf pack, living in Yellowstone National Park.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 24 poster
Season 24 (2005)

No overview available.

18 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The Orangutan King
2005-10-19

Documentary about Kusasi, the world's most famous orangutan. His rise to power was meteoric, from orphaned baby to 20 stone king of the swingers - the fearless ruler of the orangutans in the Camp Leakey sanctuary and in the wild jungles of Borneo beyond. Now 30- years-old, his power could be starting to wane, and his life takes a new direction with the arrival of a challenger for his throne.

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Episode 2: Eagle Island
2005-10-26

Wildlife documentary about the Hebridean island of Mull, home to the most spectacular wildlife of any stretch of our coastline - sea eagles, golden eagles, otters, seals, dolphins, whales and sharks. Cameraman Gordon Buchanan grew up on the island, but left to film wildlife all over the world. He now returns home, spending a year getting close to the island's wild inhabitants in this evocative film.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: The Queen of Trees
2005-11-02

Ian Holm narrates the extraordinary story of the African sycamore fig tree and its symbiotic relationship with a tiny insect partner, the fig wasp. Neither could exist without the other, and in turn they support hundreds of other animals from ants to elephants. Each fig is a world in miniature, a stage for birth, sex and death as the tiny players battle against predators and parasites.

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Episode 4: The King Cobra and I
2005-11-09

Documentary following the work of Rom Whitaker as he organises the fight to save the threatened king cobra, the world's largest venomous snake, from extinction. Whitaker is attemping to set up the world's first king cobra sanctuary and breed baby cobras for release back into the jungle.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: Return Of The Eagle Owl
2005-11-16

Raptor expert Roy Dennis investigates the remarkable comeback of the eagle owl. The fearsome predator is spreading rapidly across the continent and now looks set to invade Britain

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Episode 6: Cuba: Wild Island Of The Caribbean
2005-11-23

Cuba is home to spectacular wildlife, from the bee hummingbird - the world's smallest bird - to crocodiles, swarms of purple land crabs, sea turtles and giant iguanas. Natural World reveals the beautiful natural paradise that is Cuba.

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Episode 7: Flying with Condors
2005-11-30

With a ten-foot wingspan, the Andean Condor is nature's most accomplished glider, soaring unchallenged in the cold mountain air. This is the story of a British hang-gliding expedition that attempts to fly with condors in the Patagonia Andes. It's a perilous place to hang-glide, even for world champion glider Judy Leden.

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Episode 8: Ella: A Meerkat's Tale
2005-12-07

Documentary about Ella, a two-year-old meerkat. She's just given birth to three pups, but their arrival brings her into conflict with her mother, the group's tyrannical leader. If evicted from the family she will be separated from her pups, and alone in the desert she'll almost certainly die.

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Episode 9: Wild Harvest
2005-12-14

Britain's countryside is undergoing a revolution. For decades our farmland wildlife has been in serious decline - a depressing tale of hedges ripped out, marshes drained and fields saturated with chemicals. Now something remarkable is happening - wildlife is starting to recover, and across our countryside there's real optimism that we can combine wildlife with productive farms. Thanks to the dramatic rise of organic farming and a brand new system of subsidies, animals like lapwing, skylark, dormice and barn owls are making a comeback. In Devon horseshoe bats are benefiting from organic cow pats, in Yorkshire black grouse are thriving thanks to later hay making. Could our countryside one day return to its former wild glory?

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Episode 10: Australia: Taking The Heat
2005-12-28

An insight into the remarkable wildlife in Australia, the hottest and driest continent on Earth - once a wet territory covered in lush rainforest. The animals' survival is attributed to their strangely adapted bodies, bizarre behaviour and sheer cunning. Red kangaroos are forced to keep on the move, while frogs lie dormant for seven years and koalas sleep 20 hours a day.

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Episode 11: Penguins of the Antarctic
2006-01-11

Documentary charting the struggle for survival facing Antarctica's penguins. While some rely on thick down coats and fat reserves, others migrate north for the winter or stay on volcano-heated islands. However, the endearing animals' ability to defy the odds is about to be put to the ultimate test as the climate begins to change.

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Episode 12: Portillo Goes Wild in Spain
2006-01-18

Documentary in which ex-politician Michael Portillo returns home to discover the wilder side of his Spanish heritage. On his journey from the Pyrenees to the Straits of Gibraltar, he finds a land of striking natural contrasts supporting more varied wildlife than anywhere else in Europe. Among the fauna he comes across are the Iberian lynx, brown bears, vultures, bee-eaters and killer whales.

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Episode 13: Ant Attack
2006-01-25

Documentary that looks at the world of the African driver ant, a sinister army of 20 million sisters. It thrives by ravaging the forest, killing every living thing it can pin down and slice up - a super-organism that dominates a parallel and often violent world where miniature monsters roam.

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Episode 14: Stalking the Jaguar
2006-02-01

Big cat specialists Owen Newman and Amanda Barrett head for Brazil's Pantanal, the world's biggest wetland, to film jaguars in their natural habitat. Equipped with amphibious buggies, they venture deep into the wilderness, where the predators feast on caiman, peccaries, capybara and cattle. As the cameras begin to reveal their behaviour, the film-makers wonder who is stalking whom.

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Episode 15: Big Sky Bears
2006-02-08

A black bear is seen raising her two cubs in Montana's Rocky Mountains. The forest appears to be an idyllic playground, but the mother has to teach the pair to fend for themselves if they are to survive the summer. They slowly learn how to find food, but must also be able to climb trees to avoid predators.

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Episode 16: The Iceberg That Sank the Titanic
2006-03-01

An insight into the origins of the iceberg that sank the Titanic. Created 15,000 years before the ill-fated ship, its development in the heart of the Greenland ice sheet is charted, from its dramatic birth through a 4,000-mile journey toward its date with destiny.

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Episode 17: Bonobo: Missing In Action
2006-03-08

Dr Frances White takes a journey back to the Democratic Republic of Congo to find out if the bonobo apes have survived the war that has overtaken their jungle home. The peace-loving animals offer an insight into the gentler side of human nature, but scientists fear they are heading for extinction

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Episode 18: Satoyama: Japan's Secret Water Garden
2006-07-27

In the heart of rural Japan lies Satoyama, a landscape of lakes and rivers home to an incredible variety of fish, water birds, snakes and dragonflies. This poetic documentary follows 83-year-old fisherman Sangoro Tanaka, who lives according to an ancient way of life that has much to teach the world about sustainable living. Narrated by David Attenborough.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 25 poster
Season 25 (2006)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The Last Lions of India
2006-10-18

Documentary about Asiatic lions, which are completely different from African lions in both appearance and behaviour but are thriving in India. Their refuge is the Gir forest in Gujarat, and in the last 100 years their numbers have grown from 20 to over 300. They are now spreading out beyond the protection of the National Park, reclaiming lost territory and colonising new habitats. It's a rare conservation success story but one that brings new challenges to lions, naturalists and forestry staff.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: On the Trail of Tarka
2006-10-25

Filmmakers Charlie Hamilton-James and Philippa Forrester went in search of otters on a short stretch of the River Torridge in Devon, immortalised 80 years ago by Henry Williamson in his famous novel Tarka the Otter. Over months of patient fieldwork they got to know and film a family of wild otters. The result is both a lyrical portrait of these shy creatures and a tribute to Williamson's skills as a writer and naturalist.

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Episode 3: Eye for an Elephant
2006-11-01

Martyn Colbeck has spent 15 years scouring Africa for the ultimate images of the world's largest land creature- the African Elephant. Along the way he has learned how to read elephant minds, gain unsurpassed levels of trust and, so, achieve pictures of spectacular beauty and insight. An Eye For an Elephant charts the journeys Colbeck has made since he first became entranced by the magic and mystery of elephants after he arrived in Amboseli National Park in 1990 and met Echo, a young matriarch. His work on an eventual trilogy about Echo and her family resulted in scenes of elephant life and behaviour never seen on screen before - and inspired him to seek out and film other herds, including the forgotten elephants who struggle for survival in the parched deserts of Namibia and the dense confines of the Congolese jungle. The story of his personal and wildlife discoveries is told by inter-cutting new footage and Colbeck’s recollections with archive treasures and a selection of the powerful still images that helped him to win the title International Wildlife Photographer of the Year. As the story unfolds, viewers experience the intensity of the camerman’s relationship with the elephants he views almost as family, and gain a sense of why they deserve his affection.

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Episode 4: The Bear Man of Kamchatka
2006-11-08

The incredible story of Charlie Russell - the man who has devoted his life to the grizzly bears of the Kamchatka Peninsula. The Russian mafia killed Charlie's beloved bears but now he's back with four new cubs and he's trying to prove that Russia can live with its grizzlies. This film follows Charlie as he restarts the project, spending nine months living with the orphaned cubs as they become increasingly independent and make the crucial transition to the wild. But will he be able to keep them safe from other grizzlies and the ever-present threat of poachers?

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: The Falls of Iguacu
2006-11-15

The film explores Iguacu National Park on the Brazilian-Argentine border, home to some of the largest waterfalls on Earth. The story follows animals native to this Atlantic rainforest habitat, including kamikaze-like swifts who live behind and fly through the thundering masses of falling water, as well as spotted jaguars and a family of coatis. The film also shows the struggle of park rangers to defend this threatened reserve from opportunistic exploitation.

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Episode 6: Africa's Desert Garden
2007-01-09

This film chronicles the magical transformation of a landscape. Every spring, a barren stretch of land 100 km inland from South Africa’s west coast is briefly transformed into the largest flower show on the planet. Thousands of brightly colored species are pollinated by oil collecting bees within the few precious weeks before the blazing summer heat turns the garden to dust.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Battle to Save the Tiger
2007-04-11

The Indian tiger is in deep trouble. Thirty years ago India set aside over 30 tiger reserves controlled by Project Tiger. Initially it was hailed as a great success, but in the last few years hundreds of tigers have been poached from under officials' noses according to WPSI (Wildlife Protection Society of India) run by Belinda Wright. This film, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, looks at the controversy surrounding the plight of the tiger. Can they come back from the brink of extinction again?

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Buddha, Bees and the Giant Hornet Queen
2007-04-25

The Giant Japanese Hornet is the fiercest looking insect on earth, and one of the deadliest. This film follows the remarkable life of one giant hornet queen, as she emerges from hibernation and starts to build up a colony in an old temple garden. Her army of warriors terrorise the beautiful mountain valley in their constant struggle to find food for their hungry grubs. In a series of dramatic pitched battles, the giant hornets massacre thousands of bees, but victory isn't always assured - one local honeybee fights back thanks to a remarkable defensive strategy, and suddenly it is the hornets that are dying. A beekeeper monk bears witness to the rising power of the giant hornet colony, and despite the hornet's attacks on his own bees, he reveals a deep respect for these incredible predators.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Hawaii: Message in the Waves
2007-05-02

Nature documentary featuring the wildlife of Hawaii's famous surf zone and the surfers and scientists who are fighting to protect it. Turtles, dolphins, monk seals and albatrosses all have to cope with the growing number of people using the island beaches, but now animals face a new threat from washed-up plastic. A varied bunch of island characters, including born-and-bred Hawaiian musician Jack Johnson, make it clear that these beautiful islands have a powerful message for us all.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Invasion of the Crocodiles
2007-05-09

Australia's deadly saltwater crocs are making a dramatic comeback. They're spreading in alarming numbers through the billabongs, rivers and beaches of the Northern Territory. Last year, over 300 had to be removed from the harbour of Darwin, the region's capital. Hundreds of cattle are being killed, and most worrying of all, attacks on people are increasing every year, often in places where crocs were previously unknown. Biologist Adam Britton tries to find out why the crocs have suddenly become such a problem.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 11: Toki's Tale
2007-05-10

Two years ago Simon King made Cheetahs – Fast Track to Freedom a film about his attempt to return two orphaned cheetah cubs to the wild. The film ended tragically with the cub Sambu being killed by lions, but his brother Toki survived. Simon's new film follows the equally dramatic twists and turns of his continuing story.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 12: The Bloodhound and the Beardie
2007-05-16

For thousands of years, dogs were working animals not just pets, carefully bred to hunt, guard, herd or retrieve. Now these instincts are turning some dogs into problem pets. This film follows a bloodhound called Holly and a bearded collie called Herbie, who both face an uncertain future in rescue homes because they are so out of control. In order to give them a second chance, professional trainers see if they can be put back to work, sniffing out criminals and herding sheep.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 13: Saving Our Seabirds
2007-05-23

Britain has spectacular colonies of puffins, guillemots, kittiwakes and skuas, but recently many birds have failed to breed. In the summer of 2006, bird expert Roy Dennis travelled in search of answers. He reveals that, as our seas are getting warmer, the sand eels that seabirds depend on are declining. Some seabirds are learning to find new sources of food and, with a bit more protection, Roy believes they can adapt and survive.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 14: Desert Lions
2007-05-30

Many years ago lions thrived in the deserts of Namibia's Skeleton Coast, until they were exterminated by man. Six years ago maverick biologist Flip Stander discovered a tiny remnant population alive and well in nearby mountains, and started to study them. Their numbers have grown and they are now returning to the desert in increasing numbers. But if these lions are to continue roaming here, Flip will have to persuade local people that these lions are worth more alive than dead.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 15: Moose on the Loose
2007-06-01

Anchorage capital city of Alaska is the wildest city on Earth thanks to its dramatic wildlife. Alongside 260,000 people are up to 1,000 moose, 200 black bears and 60 grizzlies as well as large numbers of beavers, ravens and eagles. Managing this urban menagerie is all in a day's work for rangers Rick and Jesse. They believe that people and large dangerous animals can live in one city and through the groundbreaking Alaska Fish and Game project they're determined to prove it.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 16: Rainforests for the Future
2007-06-06

In a region of Africa more often in the news for human suffering and civil war, the state of Gabon is a stable democracy that is devoting itself to protecting wildlife. Over 10% percent of the country's rainforest is protected in a series of national parks that are home to elephants, gorillas, chimps and giant troupes of mandrills.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 17: Wye - Voices from the Valley
2007-06-13

Documentary study of a year in the life of the Wye Valley around the river, and four people who depend on the seasons, river and land, including cider maker Mike, beekeeper Gareth, salmon fisherman Lyndon and sheep farmer Derek. Considers the importance of the weather and seasons on them, and also at some of the wildlife found in the area.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 26 poster
Season 26 (2007)

No overview available.

11 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Toki's Tale
2007-04-04

Two years ago Simon King made Cheetahs – Fast Track to Freedom a film about his attempt to return two orphaned cheetah cubs to the wild. The film ended tragically with the cub Sambu being killed by lions, but his brother Toki survived. Simon's new film follows the equally dramatic twists and turns of his continuing story.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Battle to Save the Tiger
2007-04-11

The Indian tiger is in deep trouble. Thirty years ago India set aside over 30 tiger reserves controlled by Project Tiger. Initially it was hailed as a great success, but in the last few years hundreds of tigers have been poached from under officials' noses according to WPSI (Wildlife Protection Society of India) run by Belinda Wright. This film, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, looks at the controversy surrounding the plight of the tiger. Can they come back from the brink of extinction again?

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: Moose on the Loose
2007-04-18

Anchorage capital city of Alaska is the wildest city on Earth thanks to its dramatic wildlife. Alongside 260,000 people are up to 1,000 moose, 200 black bears and 60 grizzlies as well as large numbers of beavers, ravens and eagles. Managing this urban menagerie is all in a day's work for rangers Rick and Jesse. They believe that people and large dangerous animals can live in one city and through the groundbreaking Alaska Fish and Game project they're determined to prove it.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: Buddha, Bees and the Giant Hornet Queen
2007-04-25

The Giant Japanese Hornet is the fiercest looking insect on earth, and one of the deadliest. This film follows the remarkable life of one giant hornet queen, as she emerges from hibernation and starts to build up a colony in an old temple garden. Her army of warriors terrorise the beautiful mountain valley in their constant struggle to find food for their hungry grubs. In a series of dramatic pitched battles, the giant hornets massacre thousands of bees, but victory isn't always assured - one local honeybee fights back thanks to a remarkable defensive strategy, and suddenly it is the hornets that are dying. A beekeeper monk bears witness to the rising power of the giant hornet colony, and despite the hornet's attacks on his own bees, he reveals a deep respect for these incredible predators.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: Hawaii - Message in the Waves
2007-05-02

Nature documentary featuring the wildlife of Hawaii's famous surf zone and the surfers and scientists who are fighting to protect it. Turtles, dolphins, monk seals and albatrosses all have to cope with the growing number of people using the island beaches, but now animals face a new threat from washed-up plastic. A varied bunch of island characters, including born-and-bred Hawaiian musician Jack Johnson, make it clear that these beautiful islands have a powerful message for us all.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: Invasion of the Crocodiles
2007-05-09

Australia's deadly saltwater crocs are making a dramatic comeback. They're spreading in alarming numbers through the billabongs, rivers and beaches of the Northern Territory. Last year, over 300 had to be removed from the harbour of Darwin, the region's capital. Hundreds of cattle are being killed, and most worrying of all, attacks on people are increasing every year, often in places where crocs were previously unknown. Biologist Adam Britton tries to find out why the crocs have suddenly become such a problem

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: The Bloodhound and the Beardie
2007-05-16

For thousands of years, dogs were working animals not just pets, carefully bred to hunt, guard, herd or retrieve. Now these instincts are turning some dogs into problem pets. This film follows a bloodhound called Holly and a bearded collie called Herbie, who both face an uncertain future in rescue homes because they are so out of control. In order to give them a second chance, professional trainers see if they can be put back to work, sniffing out criminals and herding sheep.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Saving Our Seabirds
2007-05-23

Britain has spectacular colonies of puffins, guillemots, kittiwakes and skuas, but recently many birds have failed to breed. In the summer of 2006, bird expert Roy Dennis travelled in search of answers. He reveals that, as our seas are getting warmer, the sand eels that seabirds depend on are declining. Some seabirds are learning to find new sources of food and, with a bit more protection, Roy believes they can adapt and survive.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Desert Lions
2007-05-30

Many years ago lions thrived in the deserts of Namibia's Skeleton Coast, until they were exterminated by man. Six years ago maverick biologist Flip Stander discovered a tiny remnant population alive and well in nearby mountains, and started to study them. Their numbers have grown and they are now returning to the desert in increasing numbers. But if these lions are to continue roaming here, Flip will have to persuade local people that these lions are worth more alive than dead.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Gabon - Forests of the Future
2007-06-06

In a region of Africa more often in the news for human suffering and civil war, the state of Gabon is a stable democracy that is devoting itself to protecting wildlife. Over 10% percent of the country's rainforest is protected in a series of national parks that are home to elephants, gorillas, chimps and giant troupes of mandrills.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 11: Wye - Voices from the Valley
2007-06-13

Documentary study of a year in the life of the Wye Valley around the river, and four people who depend on the seasons, river and land, including cider maker Mike, beekeeper Gareth, salmon fisherman Lyndon and sheep farmer Derek. Considers the importance of the weather and seasons on them, and also at some of the wildlife found in the area.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 27 poster
Season 27 (2008)

No overview available.

17 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Snow Leopard - Beyond The Myth
2008-01-04

The Snow Leopard, one of the most beautiful of all big cats is also one of the rarest. Natural World visits a hidden lair and lifts the veil on this elusive predator.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Raising Sancho
2008-01-11

This is the story of a young giant otter's journey to adulthood. Rescued by local fishermen as a baby and raised by giant otter expert Carolina Vargas, this is the story of a young giant otter's journey to adulthood. At first, Sancho is utterly dependent on Carolina, and has to be bottle fed and taught how to catch fish. Eventually Carolina knows that she will have to break their extraordinary bond as Sancho makes his way back into the wild. Giant otters are highly social animals, so Carolina doesn't know whether an orphaned giant otter can survive alone in the world's biggest wetland. In the idyllic Pantanal, we follow Sancho's story as he learns to survive in a world fraught with danger.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: Earth Pilgrim - A Year on Dartmoor
2008-01-18

This exquisitely photographed film is a spiritual journey into the ethereal landscape of Dartmoor with Satish Kumar, the world-renowned ecologist, former Jain monk and pilgrim for peace. Through changing seasons, Satish walks the moor and explores ancient woods and rivers, which are home to a wealth of wildlife including red deer, emperor moths, starling roosts, kestrels and foxes. His meditations on the natural world are lyrical, uplifting and timely.

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Episode 4: Tiger Kill
2008-01-25

Simon King has filmed Africa's big cats for 20 years, but he has never seen a wild tiger. With so few remaining wild tigers, documenting a tiger making a kill is becoming harder. Simon seeks the help of tiger expert Alphonse Roy, who has spent 17 years in the Indian jungle.

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Episode 5: White Falcon, White Wolf
2008-02-01

On a remote island in the Canadian Arctic, a pair of white gyrfalcons and a pack of arctic wolves are struggling to raise their young. As the falcons' eggs hatch, the parents must find enough arctic hares to feed them. The wolf pack are raising their cubs in a hillside den. The film records behaviour that has never been seen by scientists, let alone filmed.

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Episode 6: Saved By Dolphins
2008-02-08

Since ancient times, there have been legends of dolphins rescuing humans at sea. Two recent cases where swimmers were rescued from sharks by dolphins seem to show that the legends are true. Dramatisations from the Red Sea and New Zealand's North Island help scientists analyse what makes dolphins take pity on humans.

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Episode 7: Badgers - Secrets Of The Sett
2008-02-15

While badgers are easily recognized, remarkably few people have ever seen one alive. It's a creature blamed for destruction and disease, but surprisingly little is known about the sett society. We spy on them for over a year in a Devon valley, Big Brother style, with hidden underground cameras.

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 8: Spacechimp
2008-02-22

In 1961, a four-year-old chimpanzee named Ham became the first animal to return from space alive. He proved that humans could survive the extreme conditions of space. This drama, based on NASA's records and archive footage, tells the story of this remarkable chimp and Jeff, the handler who came to love him over two years of training.

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Episode 9: Elephant Nomads of The Namib Desert
2008-03-26

This is the remarkable story of two baby elephants struggling to survive their critical first six months in the oldest desert on earth. The Desert Elephants of Namibia suffered a poaching holocaust in the 1980s. As the most endangered elephant population in the world recovers, every single calf is vital. Himba and Dusty are born in a boom year, but when the short-lived rivers on which they depend disappear underground, their lives depend on the memories, experience and decisions of the females who lead their tiny families.

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Episode 10: Lobo: The Wolf that Changed America
2008-04-02

Ernest Thompson Seton rode into the wilds of New Mexico just before the turn of the century to kill a wolf named Lobo. The book he wrote inspired many generations of naturalists.

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Episode 11: Reindeer Girls
2008-04-09

Elle and Inga, 17-year-old cousins from the north of Norway, are far from ordinary teenagers. They are reindeer herders, equally at home helping reindeer swim fjords or ice fishing as playing with the internet and mobile phones. We follow the girls and their families as they accompany the reindeer herds on the annual migration across the acrtic tundra, gaining a unique insight into the lives of the girls and the reindeer on which they depend in this bleak and beautiful world.

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Episode 12: Moose In The Glen
2008-04-16

Multi-millionaire landowner Paul Lister wants to turn his 23,000 acre estate north of Inverness into Europe's first wilderness reserve. Reinstating the old Caledonian pine forests is the first of his plans. He then wants to release long lost animals, starting with moose and wild boar, and eventually predators such as brown bears, lynx and wolves. Some of the local people are far from convinced by Paul's vision. Will he even be allowed to let loose moose in the glen?

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Episode 13: Naabi - A Hyena Princess
2008-04-23

The story of Naabi, a young hyena growing up in Tanzania. Here hyenas aren't just scavengers, they're also skilled hunters when they work together in the clan. But life is still a struggle, and except for the few weeks a year when the wildebeest pass through, there isn't enough food to go around. Lions are their mortal enemies - they are quick to attack hyenas and often scavenge their kills. After Naabi's mother is killed by lions, life becomes even more difficult for the young hyena and she's forced to leave the clan, braving the perils of the outside world as she travels alone in search of food.

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Episode 14: Spectacled Bears - Shadows Of The Forest
2008-05-06

Paddington Bear celebrates his 50th birthday this year, but behind the children's story is a very real creature that still lives in Deepest Darkest Peru - the Spectacled Bear. Little is known about the habits of this elusive creature, and as narrator Stephen Fry reveals, many of our assumptions were wrong. For years they were thought to be gentle vegetarians, but the latest studies reveal a new and alarming side to this endangered bear.

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 15: Superfish
2008-05-14

The billfish are the biggest, fastest, and most dangerous gamefish in the sea. All have captured man's imagination like few other creatures, whether it's the graceful sailfish, the menacing swordfish or queen of them all, the marlin, immortalized by Hemingway in 'The Old Man and the Sea'. Marine biologist and film-maker Rick Rosenthal has travelled three oceans in his attempt to capture them all on film, and in doing so has become a passionate champion for these endangered yet little-known ocean giants.

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Episode 16: A Turtle's Guide to the Pacific
2008-08-07

Documentary following a loggerhead turtle as she journeys across the Pacific. On the way she meets dolphins and whales, sharks and giant squids, typhoons and fishermen. She swims over deep canyons, and uses underwater mountaintops like motorway service stations. Blue whales thunder by like juggernauts, and sharks dance a beautiful midnight ballet around her. Pacific means peaceful, but it is clearly not. One minute she is under fire from marlin, the next swimming over a coral reef, with crocodiles as well as sharks.

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Episode 17: Jimmy and the Wild Honey Hunters
2008-08-10

Jimmy Doherty, pig farmer and star of Jimmy's Farming Heroes, travels to Nepal to meet an ancient group of people who risk their lives to farm their local honey. A keen bee keeper with a passion for honey, Jimmy has always been blown away by the sheer variety of flavours, appreciating a good honey like others enjoy a fine wine. So when he heard about an ancient group of people in Nepal who are willing to risk their lives to taste their local honey, he knew he wanted to share the experience. As a 'honey hunter' Jimmy must scale a massive cliff to reach the home of more than two million bees and dangle 200 feet up to get their honey. If successful, the reward is not only to learn more about these amazing bees, but also to taste one of nature's finest bounties, beautiful wild honey.

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Season 28 poster
Season 28 (2008)

No overview available.

16 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Titus: The Gorilla King
2008-11-11

Abandoned as a baby, removed from normal gorilla family life as a youngster - so profound were the misfortunes that Titus suffered in his early years that no gorilla scientist could have predicted his eventual rise to power. His moving life story is pieced together here for the first time, based on archive film and the memories of field workers who have studied the mountain gorillas since Dian Fossey's pioneering work more than 40 years ago. At 33 years of age, Titus is not just one of the most powerful Silverbacks in Rwanda's Virunga Mountains, he is possibly the most remarkable gorilla ever known. His life story is as full of drama, intrigue and tragedy as any human soap opera. Against a stunning backdrop of misty volcanic peaks cloaked in bamboo and giant lobelia, Titus has successfully steered his family group through thick and thin. Now he is under pressure again. With his ally-turned-rival, Kuryama, jockeying for position, is the final chapter in Titus's extraordinary reign about to occur?

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Episode 2: Whale Shark
2008-11-18

Beginning at the fabulous coral reef of Ningaloo in Western Australia, intrepid marine biologist Mark Meakin attempts to unravel the mysterious wanderings of the biggest fish in the sea. Whale sharks grow to over 12 metres long but are gentle, filter-feeding giants; even Mark's five-year-old son can swim alongside them. Yet no-one knows where they go once they leave Ningaloo's turquoise lagoons. Using satellite tags and photo IDs, Mark tracks them to the white coral beaches of the Seychelles and the tropical jewel of Christmas Island, where bright-red land crabs begin their annual migration. It's hard work, taking in 20 failed satellite tags and countless frustrating dives, before Mark makes a breakthrough which doesn't just add to our understanding of these huge 'dinosaur fish' but offers crucial information about how the whale sharks of Ningaloo can be protected better.

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Episode 3: Clever Monkeys
2008-11-25

David Attenborough's entertaining romp through the world of monkeys has a serious side: for when we look at monkeys we can see ourselves. From memory to morality, from 'crying wolf' to politics, monkeys are our basic blueprint. Pygmy marmosets 'farm' tree sap; bearded capuchins in Brazil develop a production line for extracting palm nuts; white-faced capuchins in Costa Rica tenderly nurse the victims of battle; and in the Ethiopian highlands a deposed gelada baboon has got the blues.

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Episode 4: Crocodile Blues
2008-12-02

Another stunning look at the wonders of wildlife as Natural World tonight seeks out the Gharial crocodile. This mighty reptile, which can grow up to 20ft in length and tip the scales at one ton, evolved with the dinosaurs more than 150 million years ago. However, it’s now on the brink of extinction as the largest critically endangered animal on the Indian subcontinent. Filmed over a 12-month period, reptile expert and conservationist Rom Whitaker set out on a mission to solve the mystery of why numbers have rapidly declined. Currently, fewer than 200 breeding adults live in Indian and Nepalese sanctuaries that aim to ensure the future of the species via a captive breeding programme. From the safety of your armchair, enjoy Whitaker’s fascinating footage of the Gharial.

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Episode 5: Cork - Forest in a Bottle
2008-12-09

Every time we weigh up which bottle of wine to buy, we hold the fate of nightingales, rare black storks, secretive wild cats and one of the world's most remarkable trees in our hands. It has all to do with the stopper. If it is cork, it probably came from the bark of one of the ancient cork oak trees from the Montados, in the Alentejo region of Portugal.

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Episode 6: Great White Shark: A Living Legend
2009-01-02

Wildlife film. South African naturalist Mike Rutzen is crazy about great white sharks. He never saw Jaws, so he doesn't share the terror that makes these sharks the world's most feared predator.

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Episode 7: Cuckoo
2009-01-09

The sound of the cuckoo is to many the very essence of spring, yet behind the magical call is a bird that is a cheat, a thief and a killer. Just how does the cuckoo trick other birds into accepting its eggs and raising its young? Why don't the duped foster parents react as they watch the baby cuckoo destroy their own eggs and chicks? And why do they work so relentlessly to feed a demanding chick that looks nothing like them and will soon dwarf them?

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Episode 8: The Mountains of the Monsoon
2009-01-16

This moving film reveals the differing fortunes of a mother polar bear and a mother grizzly bear, and their new-born cubs, in a rapidly-changing world. The shrinking Arctic ice may be making life much tougher for polar bears, but it is offering new opportunities for grizzly bears to the south. Where once the lives of white and brown bears could not have been more different, in summer-time they now meet along shores and islands almost all the way to the North Pole. Amazingly they have even interbred. It Is a remarkable story of how bears, ever intelligent and resourceful, are adapting to a warming world.

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Episode 9: Polar Bears & Grizzlies: Bears on Top of the World
2009-01-23

This moving film reveals the differing fortunes of a mother polar bear and a mother grizzly bear, and their new-born cubs, in a rapidly-changing world. The shrinking Arctic ice may be making life much tougher for polar bears, but it is offering new opportunities for grizzly bears to the south. Where once the lives of white and brown bears could not have been more different, in summer-time they now meet along shores and islands almost all the way to the North Pole. Amazingly they have even interbred. It Is a remarkable story of how bears, ever intelligent and resourceful, are adapting to a warming world.

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 10: Man-Eating Tigers of the Sundarbans
2009-01-30

Tiger experts in Bangladesh have a problem: how can they encourage local people to protect the beautiful and endangered Bengal tiger when these animals have developed a taste for human flesh? The Sundarbans forest is one of the biggest tracts of mangrove forest left in the world. It is rich in wildlife and provides important forest resources for communities living around its edge. But up to 50 forest workers are killed by tigers each year and now the boldest animals are sneaking into villages at night. This gripping film reveals the tension and heartache of living so close to a killer cat and follows the bold attempt by one village to teach street dogs to scare away the rogue tiger on their doorstep.

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Episode 11: Elephants without Borders
2009-02-06

Botswana's elephants are doing very well, too well perhaps. People are worried that too many elephants will damage their fragile desert home and have suggested that up to 60,000 should be culled. Researcher Mike Chase studies ancient elephant migration routes - he has tracked them across vast deserts, desolate salt pans, and Angolan minefields. Now he thinks he has a plan that could safeguard their future.

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Episode 12: Snow Monkeys
2009-02-13

n 1970, a picture of a snow monkey bathing in a hot spring graced the cover of Life Magazine. Ever since, Japan's hot-tubbing primates have been protected and well fed for the enjoyment of tourists and photographers - they have become international superstars of the natural world. But while their unique lifestyle has brought fame, the rest of Japan's snow monkeys lead very different lives, enduring incredible hardships as they fight for survival in their beautiful but unforgiving mountain home.

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Episode 13: Cassowaries
2009-02-19

This film follows the dramatic attempts to save these endangered giant birds, and reveals their fascinating natural history for the first time. Narrated by David Attenborough.

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Episode 14: A Farm for the Future
2009-02-20

Wildlife film maker Rebecca Hosking investigates how to transform her family's farm in Devon into a low-energy farm for the future. Last year's high fuel prices were a wake-up call, and realising that food production in the UK is dependent on fossil fuel, particularly oil, Rebecca sets out to discover just how secure this oil supply is. Alarmed by the answers, she explores other ways of farming and learns that it is actually nature that holds the key to farming in a low-energy future.

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Episode 15: Iron Curtain: Ribbon of Life
2009-03-06

When communism crumbled in 1989, it created an opportunity for wildlife. The Iron Curtain that divided communist Eastern Europe from the capitalist West had created a no-man's-land protected by barbed wire and minefields - a last haven for many rare animals and plants. This film tells the story of the movement, led by biologist Dr Kai Frobel, that set out to save the wildlife of this precious strip. Now as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Iron Curtain, we can also celebrate the birth of the biggest conservation movement in the world, a ribbon of life stretching 13,000 kilometres across Europe, protecting everything from bears and wolverines in Finland to rare eagles in Bulgaria.

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Episode 16: Uakari: Secrets Of The English Monkey
2009-03-26

In the flooded forests of the Peruvian Amazon lives one of the world's rarest and most mysterious primates, the red-faced uakari monkey. Local people call them English monkeys because of their resemblance to sunburnt visitors. Now there is a new Englishman on the scene, Mark Bowler, a young biologist who battles through the forest in his quest to understand the monkeys' secret lives. The film shows the first footage of these extraordinary animals in the wild and reveals why ice cream could be the greatest threat to their survival.

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Season 29 poster
Season 29 (2009)

No overview available.

14 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Bearwalker of the Northwoods
2009-10-28

Wildlife documentary. In the forests of northern Minnesota, biologist Lynn Rogers uses food to gain the trust of wild black bears, a controversial technique developed over his own forty-year journey from fear to fascination. Following the fortunes of mother bear June and her three cubs over a year, the film reveals an intimate portrait of the lives of black bears.

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Episode 2: Victoria Falls - The Smoke that Thunders
2009-11-04

Wildlife documentary. A tale of life on the Zambezi River, set against the epic backdrop of Victoria Falls. The story is told from the point of view of a local fisherman, Mr White, who has fished these waters for 69 years, and whose riverside companions are elephants, baboons, hippos and kingfishers. Follow the fortunes of these animals through his eyes, and learn how their lives are ruled by the moods of the river and the rains.

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Episode 3: Andrea - Queen Of Mantas
2009-11-11

Manta rays are one of the most intelligent creatures in the ocean and, at up to seven metres long, one of the largest. Yet despite their size and curious nature, almost nothing is known about their lives. Young marine biologist Andrea Marshall has given up everything for a life in Mozambique, diving amongst these beautiful animals. Superb underwater photography reveals new manta ray behaviour including breathtaking footage of their ritual courtship dances. The film follows Andrea as she studies these endangered animals up close. With the discovery of a giant new species and remarkable insights into mantas' secretive lives, Andrea's findings are already rocking the world of marine biology.

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Episode 4: Black Mamba, White Witch
2009-11-19

In the small African kingdom of Swaziland, the black mamba is a snake both feared and revered. During summer, these elegant yet lethal snakes turn up everywhere - in homes, schools and cars - and people are bitten every week. Enter Thea Litschka-Koen, a mum and hotel manager who has become known affectionately as the white witch. She and her husband are on call 24 hours a day to rescue and release black mambas when they get too close for comfort. But what everyone wants to know is will they come back again? We follow Thea and her team as they set up a pioneering new scientific project: to track the black mambas they release back into the wild, and find out just how these deadly snakes spend their lives.

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Episode 5: Bringing Up Baby
2009-11-26

Natural World investigates the vital bond between animal mothers and their babies. The more we study animals, the more we realise just how emotional they are; all mothers are faced with tough choices as they struggle to bring up babies in a difficult and dangerous world, constantly balancing their own needs with those of their infants. Yet there are many ways to raise your brood, from the fish who looks after her young in her mouth to the extended childhoods of gorillas or orang-utans.

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Episode 6: A Highland Haven
2009-12-03

This stunningly beautiful film reveals the unique wildlife of the Scottish Highlands, seen through the eyes of filmmaker Fergus Beeley. Based for a year at Loch Maree and the surrounding hills in Scotland's far North West, Beeley presents his personal view of the shy animals whose lives are ruled by the rains. He follows the fortunes of rare black-throated divers and white-tailed sea eagles, which both breed there, while capturing the red deer and salmon whose lives also revolve around the loch.

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Episode 7: Radio Gibbon
2009-12-10

In deepest Borneo, a remarkable young Frenchman called Chanee is combining his love of music and his passion for gibbons. These magical singing apes of the rainforest are in danger of extinction and to help save them, Chanee has set up a rescue centre, and become the world expert at matchmaking gibbons. Only when a pair has successfully bonded can they be released back into the wild. To increase awareness of the gibbons' plight, Chanee has created his own radio station, Radio Kalaweit, named after the local word for gibbon. Its music and message has now made it the most successful radio station in Borneo.

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Episode 8: Birds of Paradise
2010-01-06

Living in the depths of the New Guinea rainforest are the spectacular birds of paradise - creatures so beautiful that the first Europeans believed they must have fallen from heaven. Filming their bizarre courtship displays is the Holy Grail of wildlife film makers: some perform like iridescent acrobats, others make hypnotic pulsing sounds as they quiver and vibrate. David Attenborough narrates the film. He has been entranced by these birds since he was a boy and he introduces a team of New Guinean naturalists as they embark on a gruelling expedition to try to film ten birds of paradise deep in the heart of the rainforest.

Runtime: 51 min
Episode 9: The Secret Leopards
2010-01-20

Jonathan Scott narrates the extraordinary story of the leopard - the one big cat that still survives across half the world while tigers, cheetahs and lions are all struggling. By following the lives of leopard mothers and their cubs in East Africa the film investigates what it is about the natural history of these cats that makes them born survivors. Perhaps the most extraordinary revelation is that leopards are living undercover on farms and even in cities across Africa and Asia.

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Episode 10: The Chimpcam Project
2010-01-27

How does a chimpanzee see the world? A research project at Edinburgh Zoo is designed to answer just that question in an innovative new way - by training chimps to use video touch screens and giving them a special chimp-proof camera. How will they react to tools which in evolutionary terms are a few million years ahead of them? As chimp specialist Betsy Herrelko finds out, trying to communicate with chimps using video technology has its trials and tribulations as power struggles, bites and fights get in the way of the hairy chimp directors. However, by the end of the programme we are privileged to see the world's first film shot by chimpanzees.

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Episode 11: Prairie Dogs - Talk of the Town
2010-02-03

Prairie Dogs are America's answer to the meerkat - small, sociable and exceptionally cute. This offbeat film narrated by Rob Brydon takes us to the Wild West where prairie dogs live in huge colonies known as 'towns'. Like meerkats they are comical to watch, but there is a whole lot more to prairie dogs than just being cute - they can talk. For 30 years Professor Con Slobodchikoff has been recording their calls in response to predators like coyotes, hawks and badgers. He believes he has discovered a language second only to humans in its complexity. It's a bold claim but is he right? Con has devised a series of cunning field experiments to help prove his point.

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Episode 12: The Wild Places of Essex
2010-02-10

Multi-award-winning writer Robert Macfarlane sets out on a journey to explore the unexpected landscapes and natural history of Essex, revealing that there is far more to the county than the stereotypes of white stilettos and boy racers. Macfarlane spends a year travelling the county's strange and elemental landscapes of heavy industry, desolate beaches and wild woods. He encounters massive knot flocks over the Thames, peregrine falcons at Tilbury Power Station, water voles within sniffing distance of the municipal dump, deer rutting in earshot of the M25, barn owls, badgers and bluebells in Billericay as well as a large colony of common seals.

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Episode 13: A Killer Whale Called Luna
2010-02-24

This is the emotional story of one young killer whale's quest for companionship after he was separated from his family. Luna was just two years old when, alone and confused, he found himself on the rugged, wild coast of Vancouver Island. Following his tumultuous life, the film records the human friendships he developed and the trouble this led him into. From death threats, to numerous capture attempts by the government, the film-makers watched as people tried to determine his fate. Luna shows us how quickly our lives can once again cross with the natural world.

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Episode 14: Forest Elephants - Rumbles in the Jungle
2010-03-04

Deep in the rainforest of Central Africa lies an elephant oasis - a remarkable place that holds the key to the future for Forest Elephants. Over the last 20 years, Andrea Turkalo has been studying these enigmatic giants, getting to know over 4,000 intimately. She has begun to unravel the secrets of their complex social lives and the meanings of their unique vocalisations. New acoustic research is shedding light on the many mysteries that still surround forest elephant society. Will these endangered elephants finally speak out and tell Andrea what it is they need to survive?

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Season 30 poster
Season 30 (2010)

No overview available.

14 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The Monkey-Eating Eagle of the Orinoco
2010-07-08

The harpy eagle is the most powerful bird of prey in the world, plucking monkeys from the branches of the jungle canopy. Rare and elusive, they are seldom seen, but with the discovery of a harpy nest in the remote Orinoco rainforest of Venezuela, wildlife film-maker Fergus Beeley has a unique opportunity to follow the life of a chick from birth to adulthood. Fergus ascends high into the canopy to reveal a stunning world of colour and sound, following the trials of the harpy eagle's newly hatched chick as it grows up. Fergus becomes just another member of the dazzling community of birds and animals surrounding the harpy nest and develops an unexpectedly close bond with the chick.

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Episode 2: Echo - An Unforgettable Elephant
2010-08-05

A celebration of the life and legacy of Echo, the world's most famous elephant, who was born in 1945 and died in 2009, and who Natural World followed for the last 20 years of her life. The timing of Echo's death could not be worse. The wise old matriarch had guided her family for half a century but the cruellest drought in living memory devastated her home under the shadow of Kilimanjaro. Will her 38-strong band of relatives and descendants overcome the loss of their leader, hunger and poachers to survive?

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Episode 3: Sea Otters - A Million Dollar Baby
2010-08-12

The trials and tribulations of a sea otter pup growing up on the coast of California. The Californian Sea Otter is one of the rarest, and cutest, animals in the world. So when a sea otter mum decides to have her pup amongst the yachts of a millionaires' marina it is a unique event. The mum must teach her baby how to dodge the boats and find the food in this busy harbour. However the arrival of a tough male sea otter signals disaster for the family. When mum is attacked, the poor pup is left on her own and must fight for survival.

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Episode 4: The Himalayas
2010-08-19

The Himalayas look beautiful and lifeless, unable to give anything, not even enough air. Yet this powerful film reveals the Himalayas provide many gifts - water and food for animals, and for people too, rice and religion, or pets and perfumes.

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Episode 5: Africa's Dragon Mountain
2010-09-02

An intimate portrait of the spectacular Drakensberg - 'dragon mountains' - of South Africa, following giant antelope, bone-cracking vultures and raucous baboons as they struggle to survive in a land of extremes.

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Episode 6: The Dolphins of Shark Bay
2010-11-03

A dolphin is about to be born in the treacherous waters of Shark Bay in Western Australia. Puck, the wise mother, must use all her skills to keep her newborn safe from the sharks that sweep into the bay every year. With the help of her close knit family of females she must teach the vulnerable baby dolphin the secrets of survival. From whistling to her unborn calf, to the first few hours of baby Samu's life and the struggles her eldest son faces leaving home, this film provides a rare insight into the lives of bottlenose dolphins.

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Episode 7: Panda Makers
2010-12-07

Giant Pandas were on the brink of extinction but now they are coming back, thanks to an extraordinary conservation project. The Chengdu Research Base in central China is at the heart of a project to breed 300 pandas, and then start introducing them back into the wild. It is the most ambitious and controversial conservation effort ever mounted. Shot over two years, this film follows the pandas and keepers as, through visionary science and round-the-clock care, they edge closer to the magic number of 300.

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Episode 8: Butterflies: A Very British Obsession
2010-12-17

Wildlife documentary featuring the fascinating lives of Britain's beautiful butterflies filmed in exquisite detail and also a celebration of their enduring appeal to the British people. Butterfly-costumed carnival-goers dance at Notting Hill, street artist Nick Walker uses their image to brighten bare city walls, burlesque dancer Vicky Butterfly recreates butterfly dances and at Britain's biggest tattoo convention women reveal their butterfly tattoos. Britain's butterflies have never been so threatened, three quarters are in decline. A search for butterflies leads to some of the most beautiful parts of Britain. It opens up the intriguing possibility that a passion for butterflies could help us preserve the landscapes that we love.

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Episode 9: Miracle in the Marshes of Iraq
2011-01-18

It's the largest and most ambitious habitat recreation project ever known: to bring back to life one of the world's greatest marshlands. And it's happening in Iraq. Considered to be the original Garden of Eden, the marshes were once Iraq's wildlife jewel, where man and nature thrived for 5,000 years. But in the 1990s, Saddam Hussein drained these gigantic wetlands and turned them into a desert, destroying a home to thousands of people and millions of birds. Donning his body armour, filmmaker David Johnson travels to the Mesopotamian Marshes to follow the work of Azzam Alwash, the visionary Iraqi engineer at the centre of this extraordinary scheme to re-flood hundreds of miles of desert and bring back life to the sands. This is a view of Iraq the world never sees, a world of huge reed beds and vast flocks of birds that fill the sky. But nothing ever quite goes to plan in Iraq.

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Episode 10: Elsa: The Lioness That Changed The World
2011-02-01

In the 1960s, 'Born Free' captured the world's imagination with the story of Elsa, an orphaned lioness who was taken in by George and Joy Adamson and returned to a life in the wild. The book and film sparked a new love of nature that has blossomed ever since, but the true story of what happened afterwards was far more tragic as both George and Joy were murdered. Fifty years on, this emotional and revealing drama documentary re-lives those events - with intimate contributions from Virginia McKenna and David Attenborough.

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Episode 11: Chimps of the Lost Gorge
2011-02-08

A real-life drama about a family of chimps trapped in a lost world. They live in a deep and ancient forested gorge that runs though the African savannah and for fifteen years it has been cut off from the rest of the jungle, leaving the chimps imprisoned. Here, they face a daily life-or-death dilemma: whether to leave the safety of the gorge and venture into the predator-ridden savannah to find food, or face hunger. There's now only twenty of them left and as Brutus the alpha male loses his grip, can the family hold it together or is time running out for the Kyambura chimps?

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Episode 12: A Tiger Called Broken Tail
2011-02-15

Broken Tail was the most flamboyant tiger cub Colin Stafford-Johnson had seen during many years spent filming India's wild tigers. After leaving his sanctuary and going on the run, Broken Tail survived for almost a year where many said it was impossible - in the unprotected badlands of rural Rajasthan. Tracking Broken Tail's extraordinary journey, Colin and his soundman, Salim, piece together the cub's final days and, through Broken Tail's story, uncover stark truths about India's last wild tigers.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 13: One Million Snake Bites
2011-02-22

From the giant King Cobra to the tiny sawscaled viper, India is home to many of the world's deadliest snakes. Now a new report has revealed that India is in the middle of a snakebite epidemic of epic proportions, with a loss of human life far in excess of any official figures. Armed with more than forty years of field experience, snake expert Romulus Whitaker and his team set out on a journey around India to investigate the natural history behind these chilling new statistics and to see what can be done to help India's people and ultimately, its snakes.

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 14: The Last Grizzly of Paradise Valley
2011-03-01

Wildlife documentary following the search for grizzly bears in the beautiful Cascade Mountains of Canada. Wildlife filmmaker Jeff Turner has spent a lifetime tracking grizzly bears around the world, and now he has come home to spend a year in the mountains of his youth to discover if the grizzly is still surviving in this beautiful area of British Columbia. Tracking the wildlife through the four seasons of one year, he encounters many animals from his childhood, including black bears, ospreys, coyotes and mule deer. But with all the changes to his old stomping ground, do the wild grizzly still survive?

Runtime: N/A min
Season 31 poster
Season 31 (2011)

No overview available.

14 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: My Life as a Turkey
2011-08-01

Biologist Joe Hutto was mother to the strangest family in the world, thirteen endangered wild turkeys that he raised from egg to the day they left home. For a whole year his turkey children were his only companions as he walked them deep through the Florida Everglades. Suffering all the heartache and joy of any other parent as he tried to bring up his new family, he even learnt to speak their language and began to see the world through turkey eyes. Told as a drama documentary with an actor recreating the remarkable scenes of Joe's life as a turkey mum.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Empire of the Desert Ants
2011-08-10

Natural World visits the Arizona desert, where a new honey ant queen wages an intense battle for survival as she attempts to build and defend her empire. Eliminating rivals with ruthless efficiency, sacrificing thousands in her quest for domination, murder, cannibalism, genocide - she will do anything to keep her crown. Empire of the Ants is the epic story of one honey ant queen's dramatic rise to power - her brutal fall from grace.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 3: Heligan: Secrets of the Lost Garden
2011-08-17

Looking at the secret lives of the wildlife in one of Britain's favourite gardens. Shot by Charlie Hamilton-James, this film follows various animals, from the family of foxes that play after hours in the pleasure gardens, to the toads in the Italian garden and the badgers that clear up the tea rooms at night. Set against the background of the gardening year, these stories reveal life behind the scenes at Heligan.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: Komodo - Secrets of the Dragon
2011-08-24

The Komodo dragon was discovered one hundred years ago, yet the true nature of the biggest lizard in the world is only just being uncovered. Using hi-tech tools to take a fresh look at this prehistoric beast, Dr Bryan Fry discovers there is a lot more to the dragon than meets the eye - from hidden venom glands to its secret origins.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: The Woman Who Swims with Killer Whales
2011-08-31

The killer whale is one of the most feared predators in the ocean and most would consider it madness to enter the water with one. But New Zealander Dr Ingrid Visser thinks differently - and by swimming with her beloved whales she has come to know almost all of them by sight. But there's been an unusual number of deaths recently and Ingrid is on a mission to find out what is going on. Her findings reveal disturbing new information about the health of our oceans.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: Animal House
2011-09-07

Sir David Attenborough tells the stories of the world's best animal architects. There are house-proud bower birds, who only find a mate if they decorate their homes perfectly. There are hornets, who build electric central-heating systems, and the star-nosed mole whose house is so well designed that his favourite meal of worms literally drop in for dinner. From larders to nurseries and from high-rises to subway systems, Attenborough shows that the animal architects have designed it way before we humans.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Jungle Gremlins of Java
2012-01-25

The slow loris is the real-life gremlin, extremely cute but with a venom that can kill. Now it's also a YouTube superstar with millions of hits. Dr Anna Nekaris travels to the jungles of Java to solve the riddle of its toxic bite, but a shocking discovery awaits.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Tiger Dynasty
2012-02-01

A young tigress is chosen to found a new dynasty. Airlifted from her home in an Indian park to life in a new reserve, Baghani the tigress must fight with leopards for territory and learn to hunt dangerous wild boar. Also released is Rajore, a hot blooded young male. For two years every aspect of their lives are followed by the camera. Will they mate and start a family, or will they be killed by poachers?

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Grizzlies of Alaska
2012-03-08

A mother grizzly bear brings up her two cubs in the wilds of Alaska. She must keep them safe from prowling males, teach them to hunt and prepare them to survive the savage winter. Alaska has the highest density of grizzlies in the world, so fights and face-offs are common. Biologist Chris Morgan spends the summer in this city of bears - often getting far too close for comfort.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Madagascar: Lemurs and Spies
2012-03-15

Pure white lemurs called silky sifaka live in the remote rainforests of Madagascar. They are one of the rarest animals in the world. Now a passionate scientist joins forces with an undercover detective to investigate whether there is a link between these endangered lemurs, illegal logging and expensive guitars in the USA.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 11: Zambezi
2012-03-22

Africa's wildest river is home to the most spectacular wildlife. Hippos fight for territory while herds of elephant, water buffalo and zebra depend on it for life. In the wet season the rains burst the riverbanks and everyone, including people, must move whilst fish swim through the villages. In the dry season the creatures fight over the few pools of water while predators prowl. At its heart it plunges over Victoria Falls and into wild ravines before draining into the Indian Ocean, where storm clouds cycle the water back into the heart of Africa.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 12: Queen of the Savannah
2012-03-29

The queen African honeybee rules the savannah - even elephants panic at the buzzing of her hive. This recreates the life of the queen and her colony as they fight to survive. Ground-breaking close-up photography shows a bee-eye view of their world, from the queen murdering her sisters to fighting off giant invaders and eventually migrating across the savannah to the great Mount Kenya. Accompanied by short film Safe in the City with Dr George McGavin on the growth of the urban beekeeper.

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Episode 13: The Real Jungle Book Bear
2012-04-05

The Jungle Book's Baloo the bear character is based on the secretive sloth bear who lives in India's wildest places. The real Baloo does chase fancy ants, but his life is a lot tougher than that of his fictional friend. Narrated by David Attenborough, this is the first film ever made on these shy creatures and it follows a young male called Baloo as he grows up in the harsh Karnataka landscape, fending off foes and finding food. Baloo's mother is also nearby with two new cubs on her back, trying to keep them safe from prowling leopards.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 14: Unnatural History Of London
2012-06-18

Seals, parakeets and even pelicans that eat pigeons have all made London their home. That's as well as badgers, foxes, scorpions, and pigeons that ride the tube. But even more wonderful are the people who love the exotic wildlife of our capital, from Billingsgate fish porters to Indian Chefs to 'Crayfish Bob', who scours London's canals for Turkish invaders. This is a warm-hearted portrait of the world's greenest capital city and the Londoners who love its secret wildlife.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 32 poster
Season 32 (2012)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Living with Baboons
2012-07-19

The wild Hamadryas Baboons of Ethiopia have a friend in biologist Mat Pines, they even pick the nits from his hair. He's been studying and living with them for five years in the remote and arid Awash National Park. Now in his final year, we follow the fortunes of his favourite baboon 'Critical' as he tries to find a family and fend off his aggressive male rivals. But the local gun-toting Afar tribe have a traditional hatred of the baboons. Before Mat leaves, he hopes to broker a peace between the baboons and the tribe.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Tiger Island
2012-07-26

Jungle tigers are turning into man-eaters in the exotic island of Sumatra. Now a maverick millionaire is catching the killers and releasing them on his land. Is this madness, or could it save them from extinction?

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: Queen of Tigers
2012-10-19

The story of Machli, the most famous tiger in the world. She is a legendary fighter and a wise mother of nine cubs who has founded a vast dynasty of tigers. She is now in the last season of her life and wildlife cameraman Colin Stafford- Johnson returns to find his old friend one last time. This Special shows the extraordinary milestones in Machli's life all set in the most stunning Indian scenery.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: A Wolf Called Storm
2012-10-26

Storm is an extraordinary wolf - the head of a pack in Canada's frozen north that hunts the giant buffalo herds. This pack came to fame in Frozen Planet and now cameraman Jeff Turner spends a year with Storm and his wolf family, learning how they survive in this harsh wilderness and whether Storm can pass his hunting skills on to the new generation of wolf cubs.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: Attenborough's Ark
2012-11-09

David Attenborough chooses the animals that he would most like to save from extinction. He shows why they are so important and shares the ingenious work of biologists across the world who are helping to keep them alive.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 6: Jaguars - Born Free
2013-01-21

In this Natural World special, three tiny orphaned jaguar cubs are discovered in a Brazilian forest. A family decide to take the place of their mother and train them to become wild again. Over two years they must learn to climb trees, swim, and hunt for their dinner. If they can be successfully released, it will give new hope to these rare animals. Narrated by Zoe Wanamaker.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Kangaroo Dundee (1)
2013-01-26

Brolga is a tough Australian who lives in the desert outback with a mob of orphaned kangaroos. He rescues baby joeys from the roadside when their mothers are killed and nurses them back to health. Now he is sharing his one room tin shack with three joeys he hopes to return to the wild.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Kangaroo Dundee (2)
2013-02-02

Brolga is a tough Australian who lives in the desert outback with a mob of orphaned kangaroos. He is mum to three baby joeys that live in his tin shack with him. His hope is to raise and return them to the wild - but one has fallen seriously ill and may not make it.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Giant Otters of the Amazon
2013-02-09

Diablo the giant otter lives in a lake in the jungles of Peru, with his unruly family of six cubs. Even at the tender age of six months, they need to learn how to survive in this dangerous paradise. Their dad teaches them to swim and eventually to catch piranha for themselves, but they must also learn to stay away from the neighbours from hell - the giant caiman. These large members of the crocodile family are a real threat to the giant otter family and Diablo must go to extraordinary lengths to try to protect his cubs. Renowned cameraman and otter specialist Charlie Hamilton-James returns to the place he first filmed Diablo thirteen years ago. Following the family over several months, sometimes in very difficult conditions, he discovers how perilous a home this is for the cubs and watches them develop under the careful guidance of their father. He also films remarkable scenes of the giant otters fighting the caiman.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Flight of the Rhino
2013-02-16

In South Africa there is a daring plan to save the rhino by moving a whole population to a secret location. But the only way out is by dangling them underneath a helicopter! Can they be moved before the poachers reach them and will it work at all?

Runtime: N/A min
Season 33 poster
Season 33 (2013)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Leopards: 21st Century Cats
2013-05-17

Leopards are built for strength rather than speed, hunting in the shadows and ambushing their prey. In an ever shrinking world, their lives are colliding with people - attacks are reported regularly and hundreds of these big cats are stoned, trapped or shot.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Giant Squid: Filming the Impossible
2013-07-13

The giant squid, a creature of legend and myth which even in the 21st century, has never been seen alive. But now, an international team of scientists think they have finally found their lair, one thousand metres down, off the coast of Japan. This is the culmination of decades of research. The team deploys underwater robots and state of the art submersible vessels for a world first - to find and film the impossible.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: The Mating Game
2013-07-19

David Attenborough narrates the charming and fascinating story of some real-life animal romantics. There are show-offs and singers, dancers and fighters, stories of undercover affairs and heart-warming devotion. These include a male polar bear that plays hard to get, a lemur whose odour bags him a mate and a lizard who is tender and faithful to the very end. It reveals that animals can be loving, complex, funny and inventive - it is all part of the mating game.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: Sri Lanka: Elephant Island
2013-08-09

Sri Lanka, the tropical island lying off the southern coast of India, is home to its own special elephants. A sub species of the Asian elephant, they have their own unique characteristics. In this programme, award winning wildlife cameraman Martyn Colbeck of Echo of the Elephants fame travels to Sri Lanka to try and get to know them. Martyn has planned his arrival to coincide with the start of the monsoon, hoping it will be the best time to find and follow a new born calf. By drawing on local knowledge, Martyn begins to unravel the complex social world of Sri Lanka's elephants - he witnesses a fight over a calf, a battle between two bulls in musk and, at an elephant sanctuary, befriends an orphaned elephant who sadly lost a leg to a snare and is facing an uncertain future.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: Meet the Monkeys
2013-09-06

Peanut, Hero and Tarzan are three cheeky monkeys. They live on the paradise Indonesian island of Sulawesi with the rest of their gang of crested black macaques. These very special primates are found nowhere else in the world. Twenty-five years ago, wildlife cameraman Colin Stafford-Johnson visited Sulawesi for the first time and now he's returned. Fascinated by the monkeys, Colin hopes to reveal their sometimes violent, often playful and, just like our own, highly political world. What he discovers leads him on a much bigger journey than he was ever expecting.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: Orangutans: The Great Ape Escape
2013-10-04

Leonora is no ordinary orangutan, she is a pioneer. With her three year old son in her arms, she is about to set off on an epic journey back to the wild - the great ape escape. It is a long way from what she is used to. After being orphaned as a baby, she has spent the majority of her life in a rescue centre. She is leaving behind 600 other orangutans, all of whom are relying on her for their chance at freedom. If Leonora can make it, they could too.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Meerkats: Secrets of an Animal Superstar
2013-10-11

Meerkat pups Squirt and Weeny belong to one of the most famous animal families on the planet, animals that are now stars of screens both big and small. These furry celebrities are also part of the longest running animal behaviour study ever, now in its 20th anniversary year. David Attenborough tells the full story of the study - from its pioneering days when it was a challenge to even get close to a meerkat, to the very latest revelations about these animals and their complex lives. For Squirt and Weeny, the study means very little, as they are facing up to the challenge of a drought and one of the toughest years in their family's history.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Walrus: Two Tonne Tusker
2013-10-18

Sivuqaq is an 18 year old, larger than life captive pacific walrus. By now he should be a dad but things have not worked out. This is where reproduction scientist Holley Muraco comes in. Holley is taking on the biggest challenge of her career - trying to help Sivuqaq become a parent. Yet walrus love is a mystery - even pandas have been bred more successfully than walruses. Holley hopes the clues lie in in exploring the lives of Sivuqaq's wild cousins and that she can find the answers by journeying to their breeding grounds in Northern Alaska.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Killer Whales: Beneath the Surface
2013-10-25

The killer whale was long feared as a sea monster until, in May 1964, one was brought into captivity for the first time. This spawned a journey of discovery into the killer whale's true nature. It quickly became clear, these were not mindless killers - they were, in fact, highly intelligent social creatures. Today, our understanding is deepening still further and the latest revelations are among the most sensational - not only will these top predators 'adopt' and care for injured and abandoned orphans, but it seems there's no longer just the 'killer whale'.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Vultures: Beauty in the Beast
2014-01-31

Vultures are the birds that many people love to hate, but cameraman and naturalist Charlie Hamilton James sees them as beautiful and intelligent creatures that deserve respect. He believes that to appreciate them, people just need to spend time with them and he headed to East Africa to do exactly that. His journey exposes not only a softer, more caring side to these maligned birds but also a much bigger story, one that leaves vultures needing many more admirers.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 34 poster
Season 34 (2014)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Africa's Giant Killers
2014-04-11

Africa's largest herd of elephants and a fearless pride of young lions come face to face in an epic fight for survival. Rarely do their worlds collide, until now. This is no chance conflict; nature has played its part. Drought has weakened the elephants and the lions are desperately hungry. The dawn of the giant killers has arrived.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Honey Badgers: Masters of Mayhem
2014-04-18

Record books describe the honey badger as the most fearless animal on the planet; although barely a foot tall, they have a reputation for attacking just about anything - from venomous snakes to full-grown lions. In South Africa, an eager scientist, a tenacious beekeeper and a patient conservationist all have a soft spot for these so called 'bad boys' of the animal kingdom, and each of them wants to discover if the honey badger's bite really is as big as its hype.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 3: France: The Wild Side
2014-04-25

France is our closest neighbour and a popular holiday destination for many of us, but how familiar are we with its wildlife? With breathtaking photography, this film reveals that wolves, wild boar and even bears are living amongst France's many mountains, valleys and forests. Journeying from the Pyrenees to the Alps, all around the mainland to Corsica, this is the story of the 'wild side' of France. Narrated by Paul McGann.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 4: Nature's Misfits
2014-05-02

Bill Bailey introduces a delightfully eccentric cast of creatures that have chosen to do things differently. Odd, unconventional and unusual - these are animals that don't normally grab the limelight. From the parrot that has forgotten how to fly, to the bear that has turned vegetarian, a chameleon that is barely bigger than an ant, and a penguin that lives in a forest. Nature's Misfits reveals the extraordinary and rarely seen lives of these evolutionary oddballs, their strange habitats, unusual forms, and the incredible hurdles they overcome.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 5: The Pygmy Hippo: A Very Secret Life
2014-05-09

The pygmy hippo is one of nature's last great mysteries. Solitary, secretive and extremely hard to find, scientists know almost nothing about this endangered animal in the wild and what it needs to survive. Now, a young Australian ecologist, Wei-Yeen Yap, is taking on what could be 'mission impossible'. In a remote West African rainforest, Wei investigates the secret life of the pygmy hippo, attempting to unravel its mysteries in the hope that with greater knowledge we will be able to save it.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: The Bat Man of Mexico
2014-06-13

David Attenborough narrates the story of Rodrigo Medellin, Mexico's very own 'Bat Man'. Since he first kept vampire bats in his bathroom as a child, Rodrigo has dedicated his life to saving them. Now Mexico's most famous export, tequila, is at stake. Rodrigo's beloved lesser long-nosed bat is crucial to the liquor - pollenating the plants the drink is made from. To save both, Rodrigo must track the bats' epic migration across Mexico - braving hurricanes, snakes, Mayan tombs and seas of cockroaches. The threats are very real for not only Rodrigo and the bats, but also for anyone with a taste for tequila

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Penguin Post Office
2014-07-24

Welcome to the Penguin Post Office, a little bit of Britain in the heart of Antarctica. Inside, the post office has everything you'd expect; a postbox, stamps, postcards and some dedicated staff. Outside, things are a little bit different. Neighbouring the post office are 3,000 gentoo penguins. They are there to raise a family but their lives are far from picture postcard as adultery and robbery are rife. The post office and its penguins attract thousands of visitors. Whilst they come and go, the penguins must keep up with daily chores to ensure their chicks make it to sea before the Antarctic winter starts to bite.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Beavers Behaving Badly
2014-07-31

Who are you going to call when beavers are behaving badly? Well, if you live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Drew Reed is the go-to 'beaver buster'. Drew works as a wetland conservationist, helping to keep the peace between beavers and people. These busy rodents are incredibly industrious - felling trees and building dams are two of their favourite occupations. This can be good news in the wild, helping create rich habitats for a variety of wildlife, but in backyards it can spell disaster. A beaver is more than capable of bringing down a tree large enough to damage property and their dam building can result in flooded homes. Drew must do what he can to steer beavers away from trouble and stop their so-called bad behaviour.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: A Bear With A Bounty
2014-08-07

Meet Lily, an eight-year-old wild black bear, described by some as 'the most popular bear in the world'. Why? Thanks to bear biologist Dr Lynn Rogers, from day one her life has been documented online. Dr Rogers has a unique relationship with Lily and all of his study bears, feeding them by hand and walking with them in the Northwoods of Minnesota. But his methods have divided opinion, resulting in a bounty being put on Lily's head. With hunting season fast approaching, this is the latest and possibly most challenging chapter in her remarkable life.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Attenborough's Fabulous Frogs
2014-08-28

As a boy, frogs were the first animals Sir David Attenborough kept and today he is still just as passionate about them. Through his eyes, the weird and wonderful world of frogs is explored, shedding new light on these charismatic, colourful and frequently bizarre creatures. David reveals all aspects of the frogs' life, their anatomy, their extraordinary behaviour and their ability to live in some of the most extreme places on the planet, as he goes on an eye-opening journey into the fabulous lives of frogs.

Runtime: 59 min
Season 35 poster
Season 35 (2015)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Africa's Fishing Leopards
2015-02-24

David Attenborough narrates the intimate story of a leopard mother and her two cubs. This very special family must survive in the wilds of Botswana alongside some less-than-friendly neighbours: lions, wild dogs and hyenas. The competition for food is tough, and if they are going to make it they must learn a new skill - they must learn to fish. This is an epic family drama. With them every step of the way is local cameraman Brad Bestelink. Brad's 18-month journey following the lives of these secretive big cats offers a rare glimpse into an otherwise hidden world.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Super Powered Owls
2015-03-03

With their charismatic faces and extraordinary head-turning ability, owls are one of our best-loved birds. And yet it's rare to catch more than a glimpse of one in the wild. These mysterious birds haunt our night, floating through the darkness with an eerie silence. But how do they see in the dark? And how do they fly so silently? Through the eyes of two special barn owl chicks and with the help of world leading scientists, Natural World reveals the magic behind owls' superpowers.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 3: Galapagos: Islands of Change
2015-03-10

From enormous tortoises and deep-diving lizards to fish-eating snakes and birds that hunt giant venomous centipedes, the wildlife of the world-famous Galapagos Islands is unique and bizarre. This wilderness once inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, but it is currently undergoing a human revolution, with tourism driving a population boom. David Attenborough narrates this modern-day story of the Galapagos and reveals whether, in this ever-changing world, its animals can still thrive.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: Growing Up Wild
2015-03-26

A look at the challenges young animals face, from their first steps through to leaving home. For any animal, the early days of life are often the most difficult. Finding food, avoiding predators and generally learning life's essential skills is tough. However, with a little parental guidance growing up can be an adventure. By following some special tiger cubs in India, an adolescent mountain gorilla in Uganda and two nervous polar bear cubs in the high Arctic, the trials and tribulations of growing up wild are revealed.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 5: Iceland: Land of Ice and Fire
2015-05-01

In what turns out to be an explosive year, witness Iceland through the eyes of the animals and people that have made this wild island home. An arctic fox family must eke out a cliff-top living, an eider farmer has his hands full playing duck dad to hundreds of new arrivals and Viking horsemen prepare to saddle up for the autumn round up. But nature's clock is ticking, and the constant volcanic threat eventually boils over with one of Iceland's biggest eruptions in more than 200 years. This land of ice and fire will not be tamed.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: Attenborough's Big Birds
2015-06-16

Meet the big birds, a feathered family who have never flown a day in their lives! From ostriches to kiwis, these bizarre birds appear to be nature's greatest novelty act. How they came to be and how they continue to survive is a fascinating tale that has long captivated Sir David Attenborough. It is a story of dedicated dads, enormous eggs and a serious need for speed. And far from being the court jesters of the animal world, these flightless curiosities once nearly ruled the land.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: Mountain Lions: Big Cats in High Places
2015-06-23

For the first time, and through the eyes of two special mountain lion families, the true nature of North America's big cat can finally be revealed. Set in Wyoming's spectacular Rocky Mountains, the dramatic story of two mothers struggling to raise their kittens is helping scientists rewrite our understanding of these elusive predators. This is mountain lions up-close, in-depth and more intimate than ever before.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: Ireland's Wild River: The Mighty Shannon
2015-07-16

Running through the heart of Ireland, the Shannon is the longest river in the British Isles. For locally born naturalist and cameraman Colin Stafford-Johnson, it is also the wildest. Amongst the river's cast are kingfishers and predatory pike, and living on its banks are native red squirrels. On a seasonal journey in his faithful canoe, Colin paddles along the Shannon to reveal its wild treasures.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Ghost Bear Family
2015-07-23

In the vast Canadian wilderness, there lives a very special bear family. Just out of hibernation, two black cubs have a pure white mother. She's not a polar bear or albino - locally she's known as a ghost bear. This far north, winter is never far away, and this unusual family must work hard to find enough food to see them through. They will also need to avoid other large predators, but being so different could bring them unwelcome attention.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 10: Return of the Giant Killers: Africa's Lion Kings
2015-08-19

In southern Africa, a pride of lions has rewritten the rules - by learning to take down elephants. In this follow up to Africa's Giant Killers, we join the pride at the start of the rainy season. As the elephants depart, a catalogue of dramatic events unfolds. The pride males turn against each other, an inexperienced mum puts her new born cubs in mortal danger, a rival group of lions challenge the pride for its territory and, when lightning strikes, fires burn day and night. When the dust eventually settles, the pride is left with only one choice - to face their old foe the elephants or risk starvation. The final showdown awaits.

Runtime: N/A min
Season 36 poster
Season 36 (2016)

No overview available.

9 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Jungle Animal Hospital
2016-04-14

At the jungle animal hospital in Guatemala, the wards are full of exotic patients, many of them orphans rescued from the illegal pet trade. It is the job of a dedicated team of vets to nurse them back to health. We follow the team in their busiest year yet as they patch up animals in need, select a troop of spider monkeys for release and prepare a flock of very precious scarlet macaws for freedom.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 2: Meet the Moose Family
2016-04-28

In the wilds of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, a mother moose tends to her newborn calf. Spring is in full swing, but this far north winter is never far away and, with hungry bears and wolves for neighbours, many challenges lie ahead. Local cameraman Hugo Kitching knows this only too well, but he is determined to follow the mother and calf through the four seasons. What unfolds is a very intimate story, and when Hugo finds a second moose calf born late in the year, things take an unexpected and dramatic turn.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 3: Kangaroo Dundee and Other Animals (1)
2016-05-05

In the outback of Australia, the world's most famous 'kangaroo mum' is expanding operations. Brolga, aka Kangaroo Dundee, is opening his doors to a whole new bunch of animal characters, including a trio of camels and a southern hairy-nosed wombat called Pete. The kangaroo joeys are still very much a priority but these days Brolga is sharing maternal duties with his wife Tahnee. With three emu chicks set to move into the family home and the dream of building a wildlife hospital about to become a reality, life in the Australian bush is more hectic than ever before.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 4: Kangaroo Dundee and Other Animals (2)
2016-05-12

In central Australia, Brolga, the world's most famous kangaroo mum, is learning what it takes to look after his extended animal family. The three emu chicks are beginning to wreak havoc, the camels are rapidly outgrowing their backyard enclosure and Pete, the southern hairy-nosed wombat, is proving to be quite a handful. To help, Brolga's looking to move some of the animals to his 80-acre sanctuary. But, a clash with his old sparring partner, Roger the alpha male kangaroo, has left Brolga on crutches and put all of his plans, including those for the new wildlife hospital, on hold.

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Episode 5: Nature's Perfect Partners
2016-05-19

In the wilds of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, a mother moose tends to her newborn calf. Spring is in full swing, but this far north winter is never far away and, with hungry bears and wolves for neighbours, many challenges lie ahead. Local cameraman Hugo Kitching knows this only too well, but he is determined to follow the mother and calf through the four seasons. What unfolds is a very intimate story, and when Hugo finds a second moose calf born late in the year, things take an unexpected and dramatic turn.

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Episode 6: Giraffes: Africa's Gentle Giants
2016-06-23

Everyone loves giraffes, but what do we really know about them? Dr Julian Fennessy starts to reveal their secrets - the most important being that they are disappearing. In an urgent and daring mission, with a determined Ugandan team, he plans to round up 20 of the world's rarest giraffe to take across and beyond the mighty Nile River. The stakes are high, but if they succeed the reward will be a brighter future for an animal we have somehow overlooked.

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Episode 7: My Congo
2016-09-07

Wildlife cameraman Vianet Djenguet explores the extraordinary wildlife of the Congo.

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Episode 8: Jaguars: Brazil's Super Cats
2016-09-14

A pioneering team in Brazil follow wild jaguars to gain new insights into their lives.

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Episode 9: Cheetahs: Growing Up Fast
2017-02-02

David Attenborough narrates this astonishing story of a wild cheetah family. Known for being fast, captivating and extremely elusive, a new insight into their remarkable lives is offered by cameraman Kim Wolhuter. For nearly two years, he walked alongside a wild cheetah mother and her young family to unravel in intimate detail what it takes to turn tiny cubs into accomplished predators.

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Season 37 poster
Season 37 (2017)

No overview available.

8 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Puerto Rico: Island of Enchantment
2017-03-20

David Attenborough tells the revealing story of this Caribbean island's exotic but vulnerable wildlife. A team of conservation champions are making it their mission to save the most precious species. We see how Puerto Rican parrots, manatees and turtles are now making a comeback.

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Episode 2: Hotel Armadillo
2017-04-07

60 years after he first appeared on TV with an armadillo, David Attenborough introduces the family's biggest member and reveals never-before-screened secrets of giant armadillo life - including how this rare and seldom seen animal provides scores of other creatures with the hotel and restaurant services they need to thrive in earth's biggest natural wetland - the Pantanal of Brazil.

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Episode 3: Nature's Wildest Weapons: Horns, Tusks and Antlers
2017-04-18

The animal kingdom possesses a fearsome arsenal - a variety of extreme weapons used in epic battles to gore, stab, crush and batter. But are they more than just instruments of deadly force? For Professor Doug Emlen, it has been his lifetime's ambition to discover the secrets of nature's arms races, what triggers them and what they can teach us about the most formidable weapons on earth - our own.

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Episode 4: Nature's Miniature Miracles
2017-05-15

It really is a big bad world out there. So what happens if you are the little guy? This film tells the epic survival stories of the world's smallest animals. To make a living, these tiny heroes have evolved extraordinary skills and achieved mind-boggling feats. From the animal kingdom's greatest artist to the tiny creatures that provide us with so much of the air we breathe, we discover what it takes to be a miniature miracle.

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Episode 5: Supercharged Otters
2017-06-20

Otters are playful, adaptable and champion swimmers - they've captivated cameraman Charlie Hamilton James for the last 25 years. He's filmed them more than anyone else and now, through the eyes of three orphaned river otters, a set of ground-breaking experiments and some incredible wild encounters, Charlie wants to reveal their survival secrets and exactly why he believes they're so special.

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Episode 6: Sudan: The Last of the Rhinos
2017-06-28

The remarkable story of 43-year-old Sudan, the very last male northern white rhino on the planet. Aged just three, Sudan was snatched from his mother's side in Central Africa. He became a prized exhibit in azoo behind the Iron Curtain, while the rest of his kind was poached to extinction in the wild. Today, Sudan has become an unwitting celebrity and the focus of a desperate eleventh hour battle to save his sub-species. This astonishing modern day fable is told through the international cast of characters who have been involved in Sudan's life, for better and for worse.

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Episode 7: H is for Hawk: A New Chapter
2017-10-19

Following the success of Helen Macdonald's bestselling novel of the same name, H is for Hawk: A New Chapter is an intimate and personal journey. After the loss of her father, Helen trained the hardest bird in falconry, a goshawk. The cathartic experience helped her to grieve and now she is ready to do it again, but this time she hopes it will be her wings to somewhere new. In this beautiful and moving film, Helen trains a new bird and follows a wild goshawk family at the nest, getting closer than ever before to these fiery eyed birds of prey.

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Episode 8: Attenborough and the Empire of the Ants
2017-12-28

David Attenborough is in the Swiss Jura Mountains to discover the secrets of a giant. Beneath his feet lies a vast network of tunnels and chambers, home to a huge empire of ants. It is believed to be one of the largest animal societies in the world, where over a billion ants from rival colonies live in peace. Their harmonious existence breaks many of the rules for both ants and evolution, and raises some important questions. Through winter, spring and into summer, David turns detective to find the answers.

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Season 38 poster
Season 38 (2018)

No overview available.

8 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Attenborough's Wonder of Eggs
2018-03-31

David Attenborough has a passion for birds' eggs. These remarkable structures nurture new life, protecting it from the outside world at the same time as allowing it to breathe. They are strong enough to withstand the full weight of an incubating parent and weak enough to allow a chick to break free. But how is an egg made? Why are they the shape they are? And perhaps most importantly, why lay an egg at all? Piece by piece, from creation to hatching, David reveals the wonder behind these miracles of nature.

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Episode 2: Nature's Biggest Beasts
2018-04-19

The world's biggest beasts have always captured the imagination. But whilst being big can have its advantages, it also comes with sizeable challenges. Take the world's largest lizard, the Komodo dragon, whose huge appetite means it must take on prey ten times its weight or the tallest animal of them all, the giraffe, who with such a long neck must control immense blood pressure. Nature's biggest beasts must go to extraordinary lengths to thrive. These are their epic survival stories!

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 3: Super Fast Falcon
2018-04-26

The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on earth - it can reach speeds of over 200mph. But what does it take to be a high-speed record breaker? To find out, we follow a young family of falcons as they grow up in downtown Chicago. We join renowned bird handler Lloyd Buck, who, with the help of state-of-the-art technology and leading avian scientists, puts his peregrines to the test. And finally, we see if Lloyd can train one young peregrine for the ultimate challenge of speed and agility - against an Olympic skier in the Swiss Alps. Through such groundbreaking experiments and intimate views of these special birds in the wild, the secrets behind these super-fast falcons can finally be revealed.

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Episode 4: Red Ape: Saving the Orangutan
2018-05-10

For the last decade, a team of frontline medics has been fighting to save Borneo's critically endangered orangutans. Armed with cameras, International Animal Rescue has documented their struggle: pulling apes from devastated jungle, giving emergency medical care, rehabilitating and releasing the healthiest orangutans back into the wild. This is both the story of their life-saving work and of how one of our closest wild relatives has been pushed to the brink of extinction. Combining genuine rescue footage with contributions from experts throughout, this documentary looks toward the future and asks what hope remains to save the orangutan.

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Episode 5: Pangolins: The World's Most Wanted Animal
2018-05-15

The endearing pangolin is a little-known scaly mammal. Found in Africa and Asia, these shy creatures have an unfortunate tagline - they are the most poached and illegally trafficked animals in the world. Based in Namibia, conservationist Maria Diekmann rescues and rehabilitates her local pangolins. In a bid to better understand the global issues they are facing, we follow Maria to Vietnam, Thailand and China into the very heart of the crisis, where demand for pangolin products is greatest. In what turns out to be an emotional journey, Maria joins forces with a Chinese megastar to build a campaign to bring awareness to the plight of an animal most people have never even heard of.

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Episode 6: The Super Squirrels
2018-06-19

The squirrel family is one of the most widespread on earth, so what is the secret to their success? There are squirrels that can glide through the air, outwit rattlesnakes and survive the coldest temperatures of any mammal. We uncover the extraordinary abilities of these cheeky characters, putting their problem solving to the test on a specially designed assault course. We team up with some of the world's top squirrel scientists who are making groundbreaking discoveries - from the fox squirrel who can remember the location of 9,000 nuts to the grey squirrel whose tree-top leaps are the basis of new designs in robotics. We also see the world through the eyes of an orphan red squirrel called Billy, as he grows up and develops all the skills he will need to be released back to the wild. It is time to meet the animal family we should never underestimate - the supersquirrels.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 7: Humpback Whales: A Detective Story
2019-02-08

On 12 September 2015, a 30-ton humpback whale breached and landed on Tom Mustill and his friend Charlotte Kinloch as they paddled a sea kayak in Monterey Bay, California. Incredibly, both survived the incident, but the near-death experience haunted documentary maker Tom and left him wondering if the whale was deliberately trying to hurt them. To find the answer, Tom returned to California in 2018 to investigate. Tom meets those who have survived similar hair-raising encounters and the experts who know the whales best. What he discovers raises far bigger questions, not just about what happened that day but also about our relationship with whales and their future alongside us.

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Episode 8: Tasmania: Weird and Wonderful
2019-03-31

David Attenborough reveals that the animal inhabitants of this vast wilderness are every bit as extraordinary as they are bizarre. Unearthly calls of the notorious Tasmanian devil echo through the land, but following them over the course of a year reveals a surprisingly gentle side. In the dry east, rare white wallabies graze on the plains and jack jumper ants build huge nests – these venomous ants are amongst the most dangerous on earth. In the west, where it can rain nearly every day of the year, caves light up with the magical spectacle of thousands of glow-worms, and the trees are 100-metre towering monsters. Rivers are home to the peculiar platypus, and world’s largest freshwater invertebrate, the Tasmanian giant lobster. Miniature penguins come ashore to breed, and as winter approaches, the southern lights dance in the sky. Tasmania’s isolation and unique climate has created a world that is as weird as it is wonderful.

Runtime: 59 min
Season 39 (2019)

No overview available.

9 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: Florida: America's Animal Paradise
2019-04-07

Florida is famous for its beaches, blue water and year round sun – but it also has a surprising wild side. It is home to pine forests, coral reefs and the famous Everglades wetland, the largest sub-tropical wilderness in the US. Here, manatees swim in crystal clear rivers, baby alligators practice their hunting skills and miniature deer roam free. Every year, this state faces the full forces of nature - from wildfires to flooding and powerful hurricanes. And today, a growing human population and a cast of animal invaders are threatening this wild paradise. With the help of pioneering scientists, will Florida’s wildlife continue to weather the storm?

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Episode 2: Hippos: Africa's River Giants
2019-04-14

With incredible underwater footage, David Attenborough reveals the true nature of the hippopotamus – an animal that cannot swim yet is utterly dependent on water.

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Episode 3: The Octopus in My House
2019-08-22

A professor develops an extraordinary relationship with an octopus when he invites it to live in his home to learn about its intelligence.

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Episode 4: Weasels: Feisty and Fearless
2019-10-25

Looking at the true nature of weasels. Often portrayed as the villains of the natural world, do they deserve this reputation?

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 5: Meet the Bears
2019-11-04

How bears across the world have overcome the challenges of life - from finding food and raising cubs to confronting rivals and habitat loss - all thanks to brains, brawn and amazing adaptability.

Runtime: 59 min
Episode 6: Tigers: Hunting the Traffickers
2020-03-04

Former Royal Marines commando Aldo Kane exposes the shocking secrets of the illegal tiger trade in south east Asia, and those who profit from it.

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Episode 7: Wild Cuba: A Caribbean Journey (1)
2020-03-06

Colin Stafford-Johnson explores corners of Cuba that few outsiders have seen. Amongst the wonders he encounters is the bee hummingbird, the world’s tiniest bird found nowhere else on the planet.

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Episode 8: Wild Cuba: A Caribbean Journey (2)
2020-03-13

Colin Stafford-Johnson continues his journey in Cuba, encountering bats feeding on nectar from giant hibiscus flowers, and tiny frogs, smaller than a fingernail.

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Episode 9: Super Powered Eagles
2020-03-20

The science behind the extraordinary abilities of eagles, the most powerful birds in the sky, with dramatic stories and some remarkable experiments.

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Videos

Wild goshawks - Natural World: Preview - BBC Two

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