1 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:40,840 Imagine a world where temperatures rise to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. 2 00:00:45,480 --> 00:00:49,600 Where there's no escape from sun, wind and dust. 3 00:00:55,400 --> 00:01:00,040 Imagine a world with almost no food or water. 4 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:11,360 These are the conditions in 5 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:14,360 one third of the lands of our planet. 6 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:22,800 To live here demands the most extraordinary survival strategies. 7 00:01:45,840 --> 00:01:49,920 This is the oldest desert in the world. 8 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:52,960 The Namib in south-west Africa. 9 00:01:54,160 --> 00:01:57,560 It's been dry for 55 million years. 10 00:02:02,720 --> 00:02:06,720 Life here for a hunter is as hard as it gets. 11 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:19,800 A pride of lions. 12 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:24,320 One of the very few that endures this desert's scorching temperatures 13 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:25,840 and lack of water. 14 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:46,600 Hunting here presents special problems. 15 00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:57,800 A herd of oryx, the only prey within 20 miles. 16 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,760 Out here, there is no cover for an ambush. 17 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:08,560 It'll have to be a straight chase. 18 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:47,680 They have failed 19 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:51,800 and each failed hunt brings the lions closer to starvation. 20 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:05,800 To find enough to eat, 21 00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:10,680 the pride continually searches an area the size of Switzerland. 22 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:30,920 Three days and 100 miles later, and still no kill. 23 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:32,440 BIRDS CAW 24 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:37,400 A dry riverbed on the edge of their territory. 25 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:44,200 The only animals here are giraffe, 26 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:49,000 but these one-tonne giants could kill a lion with a single kick. 27 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:05,320 Lions seldom tackle such formidable prey... 28 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:13,240 ..but this pride can't go on much longer without food. 29 00:05:41,080 --> 00:05:44,680 The whole pride must work together as a team if they're to succeed. 30 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:15,840 Two lionesses lead the chase. 31 00:06:15,840 --> 00:06:18,960 Others race to cut off possible escape routes. 32 00:06:35,960 --> 00:06:40,600 The giraffe has the speed and stamina to outrun the pride... 33 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:44,480 ..but it's being chased into a trap. 34 00:06:46,840 --> 00:06:49,760 Up ahead, the lead female waits. 35 00:07:00,520 --> 00:07:02,520 It's now up to her. 36 00:07:25,880 --> 00:07:30,720 But no lions fail more often than those that live in the desert. 37 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:38,280 Once again, the pride must continue their search. 38 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:46,960 THUNDER RUMBLES 39 00:08:02,600 --> 00:08:06,600 It does, sometimes, rain in the desert. 40 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:15,120 Here, in the American West, storms can strike with devastating force. 41 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:22,680 After ten months of drought, 42 00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:27,240 millions of tonnes of water are dumped on the land in under an hour. 43 00:09:17,080 --> 00:09:18,880 Over millions of years, 44 00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:22,240 sand and gravel carried by the rampaging floods 45 00:09:22,240 --> 00:09:25,120 have carved channels through the solid rock. 46 00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:33,880 Slot canyons, 150 feet deep. 47 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:09,200 In some places, these canyons have widened 48 00:10:09,200 --> 00:10:13,160 until the land between them is sculpted into tablelands 49 00:10:13,160 --> 00:10:15,520 and isolated pinnacles, 50 00:10:15,520 --> 00:10:19,360 some of the most dramatic landscapes on the planet. 51 00:10:36,120 --> 00:10:38,040 The rain may be long gone... 52 00:10:39,880 --> 00:10:41,680 ..but there is water here... 53 00:10:43,520 --> 00:10:47,520 ..locked away within the tissues of specialist desert plants. 54 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:53,480 Cacti are unique to American deserts. 55 00:10:55,720 --> 00:10:57,680 They all hoard water, 56 00:10:57,680 --> 00:11:00,120 storing it in swollen stems 57 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:03,440 and protecting it behind a barricade of spines. 58 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:11,160 They're so successful that they dominate these deserts. 59 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:16,400 But this forest of spikes can cause 60 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:18,880 problems for the animals that live here. 61 00:11:26,800 --> 00:11:28,360 A Harrisxxx hawk. 62 00:11:31,560 --> 00:11:35,400 It has developed special techniques for hunting amongst the cacti. 63 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:44,080 Ground squirrels. 64 00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:45,040 Prey. 65 00:11:53,400 --> 00:11:56,960 At the first sign of danger they bolt for the safety of the thorns. 66 00:12:06,880 --> 00:12:09,480 But the hawks have a tactic to flush them out. 67 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:16,760 These are the only birds of prey that hunt in packs. 68 00:12:19,440 --> 00:12:23,520 Flying in formation, they try to drive their quarry into the open. 69 00:12:34,840 --> 00:12:37,160 But this squirrel is staying put. 70 00:12:43,840 --> 00:12:46,200 So now the hawks continue the hunt... 71 00:12:47,240 --> 00:12:48,600 ..on foot. 72 00:12:56,680 --> 00:12:59,240 They're closing in from all sides. 73 00:13:20,880 --> 00:13:24,240 Soon, all escape routes are cut off. 74 00:13:28,560 --> 00:13:30,280 The squirrel is trapped. 75 00:13:41,360 --> 00:13:44,760 The spines that cover almost every plant in this desert 76 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:48,240 can provide protection and shelter for many animals. 77 00:13:56,520 --> 00:14:01,280 So, why should these spikes be hung with corpses? 78 00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:10,160 What kind of creature could be responsible 79 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:12,560 for creating such a gruesome scene? 80 00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:25,680 There's a mysterious killer at work in this desert. 81 00:14:33,080 --> 00:14:34,840 It's a butcherbird. 82 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:42,240 This little songbird uses the spines as a butcher uses his hook - 83 00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:45,320 to hold its prey as it dismembers it. 84 00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:50,760 CHICKS SQUAWK 85 00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:59,960 And with chicks to feed, he also uses the spines as a larder. 86 00:15:05,920 --> 00:15:08,000 He's been stocking it for weeks. 87 00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:15,160 Hanging his prey out of the reach of scavengers on the ground 88 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:18,560 ensures that his newly hatched young will never go hungry. 89 00:15:20,280 --> 00:15:25,080 An ingenious solution to making the good times last in the desert... 90 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:30,360 ..if a little macabre. 91 00:15:30,360 --> 00:15:31,440 CHICKS SQUAWK 92 00:15:39,280 --> 00:15:41,720 Some deserts are so arid, 93 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:44,760 they appear totally devoid of all vegetation. 94 00:15:47,840 --> 00:15:52,800 Yet even these landscapes can be transformed in a matter of days. 95 00:16:07,880 --> 00:16:11,800 but just add a little water and plants that have lain dormant 96 00:16:11,800 --> 00:16:14,240 for months will burst into life. 97 00:16:31,280 --> 00:16:34,360 And when a desert suddenly turns green, 98 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:39,440 even the most seemingly desolate can become a land of opportunity. 99 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,840 No creature exploits the greening of a desert more quickly 100 00:16:55,840 --> 00:16:58,080 or more dramatically than a locust. 101 00:17:07,600 --> 00:17:09,800 Madagascar's arid south-west 102 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:12,400 has received its highest rainfall in years. 103 00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:21,520 Now, an army is on the march, 104 00:17:21,520 --> 00:17:24,280 attracted by the smell of newly sprouting grass. 105 00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:39,120 Locusts are normally solitary creatures, 106 00:17:39,120 --> 00:17:42,840 but when food becomes suddenly plentiful they come together 107 00:17:42,840 --> 00:17:47,160 into an unstoppable force that devours everything in its path. 108 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:10,000 But this devastation is about to get a lot worse. 109 00:18:21,840 --> 00:18:26,760 The locusts now transform into winged adults, 110 00:18:26,760 --> 00:18:28,880 and with conditions as good as this, 111 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:31,960 they do so three times faster than normal. 112 00:18:33,600 --> 00:18:37,840 Now they are at their most voracious... 113 00:18:37,840 --> 00:18:40,680 and with wings, they can take to the skies. 114 00:19:06,120 --> 00:19:10,000 Once airborne, the locusts can travel over 60 miles a day 115 00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:12,320 in their search for new feeding grounds. 116 00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:31,200 A super swarm of this scale may only appear once in a decade. 117 00:19:32,680 --> 00:19:36,040 This one extends over 200 square miles 118 00:19:36,040 --> 00:19:38,840 and contains several billion individuals. 119 00:19:40,520 --> 00:19:44,760 Between them, they will devour 40,000 tonnes of food in a day. 120 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:24,760 Nothing can strip a land of its vegetation with such speed 121 00:20:24,760 --> 00:20:27,920 and thoroughness as a plague of locusts. 122 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:35,920 When the food eventually runs out, the whole army will die... 123 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:38,400 but not before it's devastated the land. 124 00:20:53,560 --> 00:20:56,200 With no plants to bind them, 125 00:20:56,200 --> 00:20:59,680 thin soils soon turn to dust and blow away. 126 00:21:06,520 --> 00:21:11,120 Now, these barren lands are left to the mercy of the elements. 127 00:21:27,840 --> 00:21:33,120 Scorched by the sun and scoured by windblown sand, 128 00:21:33,120 --> 00:21:37,800 desert rock is shaped into strange, otherworldly landscapes. 129 00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:48,640 These rocky deserts may have a beguiling beauty, 130 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:52,320 but when they become this barren, very little life can endure. 131 00:21:59,360 --> 00:22:03,480 For many animals, the only way to survive the most hostile times 132 00:22:03,480 --> 00:22:05,080 is to keep moving. 133 00:22:12,480 --> 00:22:16,520 In the Kalahari, brief rains have given way to the dry season. 134 00:22:17,840 --> 00:22:21,000 Food and water are becoming increasingly scarce. 135 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:25,280 For these zebra, it's time to leave. 136 00:22:38,360 --> 00:22:39,760 They're setting off on 137 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:47,640 the longest overland migration made by any mammal in Africa, 138 00:22:51,640 --> 00:22:53,960 As drought intensifies, 139 00:22:53,960 --> 00:22:57,320 desert-living elephants must also undertake long journeys 140 00:22:57,320 --> 00:22:59,280 in search of water. 141 00:23:20,320 --> 00:23:22,880 The older females can remember where, 142 00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:28,040 even in times of extreme drought, there may still be water 143 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:31,720 and sometimes lead the herd to a water hole they may not have visited 144 00:23:31,720 --> 00:23:33,000 for decades. 145 00:24:02,880 --> 00:24:06,480 These zebra are almost at the end of their journey. 146 00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:15,760 This is what they've been heading for... 147 00:24:20,080 --> 00:24:21,120 ..a rare water hole. 148 00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:35,360 In deserts, most water holes are short lived. 149 00:24:35,360 --> 00:24:36,840 They appear after rains, 150 00:24:36,840 --> 00:24:39,480 but then vanish almost as quickly as they came. 151 00:24:46,920 --> 00:24:49,880 Animals have come here from many miles around. 152 00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:59,360 Yet this can be a dangerous place in which to linger. 153 00:25:07,760 --> 00:25:10,720 60 miles away, in the heart of the desert, 154 00:25:10,720 --> 00:25:12,720 sandgrouse chicks are hatching. 155 00:25:14,120 --> 00:25:16,000 It's safer for them to be here. 156 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:24,280 But being so distant from water is a gamble. 157 00:25:28,160 --> 00:25:30,800 With only their mother to shield them from the sun, 158 00:25:30,800 --> 00:25:34,360 if they get nothing to drink, they will be dead within hours. 159 00:25:43,120 --> 00:25:45,160 Their only hope is their father. 160 00:25:49,160 --> 00:25:52,880 Every morning he makes the 120-mile round trip 161 00:25:52,880 --> 00:25:55,000 to get water for the family. 162 00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:02,200 Grouse from all over the desert visit this oasis, 163 00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:05,520 arriving together in large flocks, 164 00:26:05,520 --> 00:26:06,960 and that is important. 165 00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:12,480 There's safety in numbers. 166 00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:30,040 The male snatches a drink, 167 00:26:30,040 --> 00:26:33,640 but he also needs to collect water for his chicks. 168 00:26:34,680 --> 00:26:37,080 Using specially adapted breast feathers, 169 00:26:37,080 --> 00:26:39,640 he can soak up water like a sponge. 170 00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:43,720 But it takes time, and he is in danger. 171 00:26:51,840 --> 00:26:53,120 Goshawk. 172 00:27:09,400 --> 00:27:11,720 Sandgrouse here are their main prey. 173 00:27:17,760 --> 00:27:22,760 Again and again, the male sandgrouse risk their lives 174 00:27:22,760 --> 00:27:24,960 in order to collect water for their chicks. 175 00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:49,760 This is why sandgrouse nest so far from water holes. 176 00:28:13,520 --> 00:28:16,880 At last, he's soaked up as much as he can. 177 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:21,680 Carrying a quarter of his body weight in water, 178 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,720 he can now set off on the long journey home. 179 00:28:51,600 --> 00:28:54,280 He's back, and just in time. 180 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:58,560 He can give the chicks their first ever drink. 181 00:29:06,360 --> 00:29:10,360 But he will have to undertake this perilous journey every day 182 00:29:10,360 --> 00:29:14,840 for the next two months until his chicks can finally make the flight 183 00:29:14,840 --> 00:29:16,960 to the water hole for themselves. 184 00:29:29,480 --> 00:29:34,160 It's July in the deserts of Nevada in the western United States. 185 00:29:35,800 --> 00:29:37,880 The hottest time of the year. 186 00:29:51,520 --> 00:29:54,600 Bands of wild horses, mustang, 187 00:29:54,600 --> 00:29:58,640 are converging on one of the last remaining water holes for miles. 188 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:07,800 Now, water not only offers them the chance to drink, 189 00:30:07,800 --> 00:30:09,800 it can also bring power. 190 00:30:13,520 --> 00:30:16,960 If a stallion can control access to water, 191 00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:19,640 he will have secured mating rights to the entire herd. 192 00:30:21,640 --> 00:30:24,600 So stallions try to dominate these pools, 193 00:30:24,600 --> 00:30:26,960 fighting off rivals who venture too close. 194 00:30:40,080 --> 00:30:41,280 A stranger. 195 00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:45,800 He's travelled ten miles to be here 196 00:30:45,800 --> 00:30:48,680 because the pools where he's come from have already dried up. 197 00:30:53,080 --> 00:30:55,120 With him come his females. 198 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:00,480 If he can't provide them with water, they will leave him 199 00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:04,520 for the white stallion who already dominates this pool. 200 00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:17,200 So, he will have to fight. 201 00:32:17,880 --> 00:32:19,080 There is everything to lose. 202 00:32:21,120 --> 00:32:23,360 A broken leg or a shattered jaw 203 00:32:23,360 --> 00:32:26,200 would mean a slow and painful death. 204 00:32:46,960 --> 00:32:49,600 A missed kick, and it's all over. 205 00:32:52,280 --> 00:32:56,640 The new arrival has won... 206 00:32:56,640 --> 00:33:00,760 and his prize is more than just the chance to drink. 207 00:33:00,760 --> 00:33:03,920 He has provided for his herd, and in the process, 208 00:33:03,920 --> 00:33:06,200 stolen his rival's females. 209 00:33:08,040 --> 00:33:10,720 The white stallion's rule is over. 210 00:33:18,440 --> 00:33:23,000 Desert life is not only shaped by the scarcity of water, 211 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:27,480 but also by the relentless power of the sun. 212 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:36,480 The highest temperatures on Earth 213 00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:39,000 have all been recorded in its deserts. 214 00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:53,640 Changes in the climate mean temperatures here 215 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:56,800 are rising more than the global average and, 216 00:33:56,800 --> 00:33:59,920 as deserts heat up, they are also expanding. 217 00:34:02,400 --> 00:34:07,240 Every year, a further 50,000 square miles of grass and farmland 218 00:34:07,240 --> 00:34:10,880 are turning into barren stretches of dust and rock. 219 00:34:16,560 --> 00:34:22,080 In the heat of the day, surface temperatures can reach 160 degrees, 220 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:24,640 far too hot to handle for most. 221 00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:30,520 But not for this shovel-snouted lizard. 222 00:34:35,280 --> 00:34:37,560 Raising its feet off the ground in turn... 223 00:34:41,280 --> 00:34:43,320 ..enables each to briefly cool. 224 00:34:49,680 --> 00:34:52,840 But even this dancing desert specialist 225 00:34:52,840 --> 00:34:54,520 can't stand the heat for long. 226 00:35:03,560 --> 00:35:05,600 One option is to find shade. 227 00:35:10,680 --> 00:35:15,600 Dune grass, the only vegetation here, provides virtually none, 228 00:35:15,600 --> 00:35:18,600 but just an inch beneath the surface of the sand, 229 00:35:18,600 --> 00:35:20,960 it is several degrees cooler. 230 00:35:28,600 --> 00:35:33,280 Avoiding the extreme heat imposes a rhythm on desert life. 231 00:35:36,320 --> 00:35:39,800 And many animals here choose the simplest option of all... 232 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:44,480 ..staying hidden all day, 233 00:35:44,480 --> 00:35:47,280 and only venturing out in the cool of the night. 234 00:35:56,480 --> 00:36:01,240 As darkness falls, animals appear from seemingly nowhere. 235 00:36:08,560 --> 00:36:11,880 And, among them, inevitably, 236 00:36:11,880 --> 00:36:13,040 are hunters. 237 00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:31,720 One of the most voracious nocturnal predators 238 00:36:31,720 --> 00:36:34,920 is also one of the hardest to see. 239 00:36:37,600 --> 00:36:41,880 This mysterious creature hardly ever appears on the surface of the dunes. 240 00:36:49,040 --> 00:36:52,640 But there are signs on the sand that can give it away. 241 00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:10,280 It lives only here, where the sand grains are so perfectly dry 242 00:37:10,280 --> 00:37:13,400 and polished, that they flow almost like water. 243 00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:18,840 It's no bigger than a ping-pong ball. 244 00:37:23,560 --> 00:37:25,280 A golden mole. 245 00:37:26,360 --> 00:37:28,960 It's totally blind, 246 00:37:28,960 --> 00:37:31,200 but there's nothing to see underground anyway. 247 00:37:37,800 --> 00:37:40,240 Instead, it has superb hearing. 248 00:37:43,120 --> 00:37:45,760 Its entire head acts as an amplifier 249 00:37:45,760 --> 00:37:50,040 that picks up vibrations through the sand, so, to locate prey 250 00:37:50,040 --> 00:37:53,560 on the surface of the dune, it has, paradoxically, 251 00:37:53,560 --> 00:37:56,080 to thrust its face into the dune. 252 00:38:04,920 --> 00:38:07,000 Termites. 253 00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:09,080 Not easy to catch when you're blind. 254 00:38:13,240 --> 00:38:15,800 Far better to go into stealth mode. 255 00:38:17,580 --> 00:38:21,800 Once below the sand, it can detect the slightest movement... 256 00:38:25,200 --> 00:38:28,200 ..allowing it to strike with pinpoint accuracy. 257 00:38:37,440 --> 00:38:40,400 Well, most of the time. 258 00:38:52,200 --> 00:38:55,960 They can travel two thirds of a mile a night in search of its dinner... 259 00:38:59,080 --> 00:39:02,960 ..and right now, it has just detected its main course. 260 00:39:05,000 --> 00:39:08,440 Little wonder it's sometimes called "the shark of the dunes". 261 00:39:17,440 --> 00:39:21,760 Food can be so scarce in the desert that, even at night, 262 00:39:21,760 --> 00:39:25,200 animals can't afford to be choosy about what they eat. 263 00:39:31,280 --> 00:39:33,400 Israel's Negev desert. 264 00:39:43,240 --> 00:39:47,520 Otonycteris, the desert long-eared bat, is on the hunt. 265 00:39:51,800 --> 00:39:56,240 Most bats catch flying insects on the wing, but there are so few 266 00:39:56,240 --> 00:40:00,440 of these in the desert that this bat must do things differently. 267 00:40:04,160 --> 00:40:06,200 It has to hunt on the ground. 268 00:40:13,720 --> 00:40:17,320 But what really sets it apart is what it's hunting... 269 00:40:25,360 --> 00:40:27,120 ..a deathstalker scorpion. 270 00:40:29,000 --> 00:40:32,880 The venom of this species is potent enough to kill a human. 271 00:40:34,920 --> 00:40:39,040 Tackling it seems madness for a bat weighing just half an ounce. 272 00:40:43,760 --> 00:40:48,920 In the pitch-black, both predator and prey are effectively blind, 273 00:40:48,920 --> 00:40:51,280 but the scorpion has one advantage - 274 00:40:51,280 --> 00:40:55,760 he can sense the approach of the bat through vibrations in the sand. 275 00:40:59,520 --> 00:41:03,480 Otonycteris must rely entirely on its hearing. 276 00:41:04,720 --> 00:41:07,680 If the scorpion doesn't move, it won't know it's there. 277 00:41:22,720 --> 00:41:23,760 The battle is on. 278 00:41:27,080 --> 00:41:30,800 Armed with crushing pincers and a sting loaded with venom, 279 00:41:30,800 --> 00:41:33,360 this scorpion is a dangerous opponent. 280 00:41:46,760 --> 00:41:48,800 A direct strike on the head. 281 00:41:51,560 --> 00:41:52,720 Is it all over? 282 00:41:56,880 --> 00:41:58,520 Not for this bat. 283 00:42:14,200 --> 00:42:18,360 Otonycteris clearly has some immunity to the venom, 284 00:42:18,360 --> 00:42:21,920 but repeated stings must still be extraordinarily painful. 285 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:32,280 And if the bat is not to go hungry, 286 00:42:32,280 --> 00:42:35,840 it must catch another three scorpions before sunrise. 287 00:43:04,120 --> 00:43:07,400 Desert animals have developed remarkable strategies 288 00:43:07,400 --> 00:43:10,600 to make the most of the rare opportunities that come their way. 289 00:43:13,120 --> 00:43:16,800 Although some deserts may not see rain for several years, 290 00:43:16,800 --> 00:43:20,240 most will hold a little water in one form or another. 291 00:43:21,480 --> 00:43:24,440 The trick is simply knowing how to reach it. 292 00:43:33,400 --> 00:43:38,520 Dawn in the dunes of the Namib, and something magical is happening. 293 00:43:57,320 --> 00:44:02,160 Moist air lying over the neighbouring Atlantic is cooled 294 00:44:02,160 --> 00:44:07,000 and blown inland, forming fog banks that shroud the desert in mist. 295 00:44:14,800 --> 00:44:18,800 This precious moisture lies tantalisingly out of reach 296 00:44:18,800 --> 00:44:23,200 at the top of the dunes, and it won't last long. 297 00:44:23,200 --> 00:44:27,120 It'll be burnt off by the sun just hours after it rises. 298 00:44:42,720 --> 00:44:45,840 Darkling beetles race to the top of the dunes 299 00:44:45,840 --> 00:44:48,080 to reach the fog before it vanishes. 300 00:44:57,640 --> 00:45:02,080 Some of the Namib's dunes are 1,000 feet high, 301 00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:03,280 the tallest in the world. 302 00:45:05,400 --> 00:45:09,080 For a beetle no larger than a thumbnail, this is the equivalent 303 00:45:09,080 --> 00:45:12,280 of us climbing a dune twice the height of Everest. 304 00:45:17,120 --> 00:45:20,560 But even more impressive is what it does next. 305 00:45:25,800 --> 00:45:29,040 Standing perfectly still, facing into the wind, 306 00:45:29,040 --> 00:45:31,400 the beetle does a headstand. 307 00:45:34,800 --> 00:45:37,400 Fog begins to condense on its body. 308 00:45:41,040 --> 00:45:44,640 Microscopic bumps on its wing cases direct the water 309 00:45:44,640 --> 00:45:46,800 to grooves that channel it towards the mouth. 310 00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:55,000 Before returning down the slip face, 311 00:45:55,000 --> 00:45:57,600 it will drink 40% of its body weight. 312 00:46:03,120 --> 00:46:08,200 This little beetle has learned how to conjure water out of the air 313 00:46:08,200 --> 00:46:10,920 in one of the driest places on earth. 314 00:46:14,920 --> 00:46:17,880 And it's not alone on the top of the dunes. 315 00:46:24,600 --> 00:46:27,240 Web-footed geckos use a similar trick. 316 00:46:37,480 --> 00:46:41,000 Surely, few animals go to greater lengths to get a drink. 317 00:46:59,800 --> 00:47:03,680 Unfortunately, Namaqua chameleons know that on foggy mornings, 318 00:47:03,680 --> 00:47:08,320 the beetles coming down the dunes are juicier than those going up. 319 00:47:20,000 --> 00:47:24,440 The diversity of life that thrives in a world almost totally devoid 320 00:47:24,440 --> 00:47:26,800 of water is truly remarkable. 321 00:47:29,960 --> 00:47:33,720 Success in the desert depends on an extraordinary variety of 322 00:47:33,720 --> 00:47:37,640 survival strategies that have evolved over millions of years. 323 00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:42,520 But our planet is changing. 324 00:47:45,480 --> 00:47:49,560 The world's deserts are growing bigger, hotter and drier, 325 00:47:49,560 --> 00:47:52,320 and they're doing so faster than ever before. 326 00:47:54,200 --> 00:47:59,120 How life will cope here in the future remains to be seen. 327 00:48:15,920 --> 00:48:20,200 Finding animals in these vast empty landscapes was a persistent problem 328 00:48:20,200 --> 00:48:22,040 for the Deserts team. 329 00:48:22,040 --> 00:48:25,080 But surely this wouldn't be the case when they set out to film 330 00:48:25,080 --> 00:48:28,160 one of the greatest concentrations of wildlife on earth. 331 00:48:31,400 --> 00:48:35,720 It can't be hard to find a billion locusts, can it? 332 00:48:39,240 --> 00:48:40,840 OK. 333 00:48:40,840 --> 00:48:43,360 With news that freak rains have triggered 334 00:48:43,360 --> 00:48:46,880 a mass emergence of locusts in a remote part of Madagascar, 335 00:48:46,880 --> 00:48:48,680 the team sets off in pursuit. 336 00:48:56,760 --> 00:48:59,000 We've got some young hopper locusts just crossing the road 337 00:48:59,000 --> 00:49:01,560 in front of us here. We've just had to stop the cars. 338 00:49:01,560 --> 00:49:04,200 Here they are, here, all on the side of the road, look. 339 00:49:04,200 --> 00:49:06,160 It looks promising. 340 00:49:06,160 --> 00:49:08,560 But though finding hoppers is easy, 341 00:49:08,560 --> 00:49:11,160 filming them proves more of a challenge. 342 00:49:11,160 --> 00:49:14,160 Can we rethink this? Because it's not really working. 343 00:49:14,160 --> 00:49:16,080 The locusts are really skippy. 344 00:49:16,080 --> 00:49:18,640 Any kind of movement, they just freak out, So we're now doing 345 00:49:18,640 --> 00:49:21,680 our best locust-herding techniques to try to get them to go 346 00:49:21,680 --> 00:49:24,800 in front of the lens, which is proving harder than anticipated. 347 00:49:34,240 --> 00:49:37,600 This is my Monday morning locust-herding jazz hands. 348 00:49:55,240 --> 00:49:57,000 Ah! What? What's that? 349 00:49:57,000 --> 00:49:58,320 What? It's a wasp nest. 350 00:50:02,440 --> 00:50:05,840 Soon, the crew find themselves surrounded by locusts. 351 00:50:05,840 --> 00:50:08,600 No need for jazz hands now. 352 00:50:12,760 --> 00:50:16,600 It's a good start, but the team still need to film the winged swarms 353 00:50:16,600 --> 00:50:18,040 that complete the story. 354 00:50:22,680 --> 00:50:26,160 But, once airborne, they can travel 60 miles a day, 355 00:50:26,160 --> 00:50:28,200 so finding a swarm won't be easy. 356 00:50:32,040 --> 00:50:35,720 Fortunately, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation 357 00:50:35,720 --> 00:50:37,600 are here, too, to help. 358 00:50:41,440 --> 00:50:44,640 The FAO are on a mission to eradicate the plagues 359 00:50:44,640 --> 00:50:47,920 decimating crops across Madagascar, 360 00:50:47,920 --> 00:50:52,560 and if anyone knows where the locusts are, 361 00:50:52,560 --> 00:50:56,040 it's the local expert, Hasibelo. 362 00:50:56,040 --> 00:50:58,520 He thinks that they are moving this way. 363 00:51:01,200 --> 00:51:03,400 Time to go swarm-chasing. 364 00:51:06,400 --> 00:51:09,840 But chasing is the operative word. 365 00:51:09,840 --> 00:51:12,960 The locusts always seem one step ahead. 366 00:51:14,880 --> 00:51:17,160 It's amazing, really, because this plan's completely 367 00:51:17,160 --> 00:51:20,240 radically changing, hour by hour. We now have to travel 368 00:51:20,240 --> 00:51:23,560 several hours further north, which is... 369 00:51:23,560 --> 00:51:25,120 a bit of a pain. It's a bit of a pain. 370 00:51:28,920 --> 00:51:31,000 As they venture into the unknown, 371 00:51:31,000 --> 00:51:33,800 it's clear it's been a very wet year indeed. 372 00:51:40,920 --> 00:51:45,080 Traffic is one thing, but boats on the road? 373 00:51:45,080 --> 00:51:46,880 Unconventional traffic. 374 00:51:51,640 --> 00:51:54,720 Progress is slow, and soon stops altogether. 375 00:52:00,880 --> 00:52:04,840 The locusts are just across the water, so the team must follow... 376 00:52:07,600 --> 00:52:09,000 ..on this. 377 00:52:11,080 --> 00:52:13,200 What could possibly go wrong? 378 00:52:18,520 --> 00:52:22,520 We're now stuck on, possibly, the world's most antiquated raft 379 00:52:22,520 --> 00:52:25,400 trying to cross a very fast-flowing river. 380 00:52:25,400 --> 00:52:28,080 But, onwards and upwards. 381 00:52:28,080 --> 00:52:31,480 We've now got an hour-long river crossing, and we'll just have to see 382 00:52:31,480 --> 00:52:32,760 what's on the other side. 383 00:52:57,720 --> 00:53:01,360 But once across, the team discovers that, yet again, 384 00:53:01,360 --> 00:53:03,600 the locusts are nowhere to be seen. 385 00:53:10,680 --> 00:53:12,560 And, after two weeks on the road, 386 00:53:12,560 --> 00:53:15,880 the local street food is beginning to take its toll. 387 00:53:19,840 --> 00:53:23,800 So Ed's not very well. Been yacking up and... 388 00:53:25,120 --> 00:53:28,200 And not very nice stomach. 389 00:53:28,200 --> 00:53:29,800 We just need to do whatever it takes now 390 00:53:29,800 --> 00:53:32,880 to get us to where the swarms are. 391 00:53:32,880 --> 00:53:34,960 The next day, the team forges on. 392 00:53:37,320 --> 00:53:38,520 Briefly. 393 00:53:42,880 --> 00:53:45,240 Here's Jamal, our driver. 394 00:53:45,240 --> 00:53:46,960 What do we think? Yeah? 395 00:53:48,080 --> 00:53:49,720 No? 396 00:53:49,720 --> 00:53:52,840 The road has turned into a bog. 397 00:53:52,840 --> 00:53:55,400 The cars can go no further. 398 00:53:55,400 --> 00:53:59,080 We need to cross this area of water to get to the savanna 399 00:53:59,080 --> 00:54:00,840 and find our locust swarms. 400 00:54:01,880 --> 00:54:05,160 And it's amazing to think that, with the combined might of the 401 00:54:05,160 --> 00:54:10,240 United Nations and the BBC, we are eventually defeated by a puddle. 402 00:54:12,360 --> 00:54:14,280 Back to the drawing board. 403 00:54:18,680 --> 00:54:21,240 Once again, it's Hasibelo to the rescue. 404 00:54:23,120 --> 00:54:24,320 Well, we have a plan. 405 00:54:28,240 --> 00:54:30,680 Taking to the air was never on the cards, 406 00:54:30,680 --> 00:54:33,280 but thanks to the FAO's helicopter, 407 00:54:33,280 --> 00:54:36,480 the team can now play the locusts at their own game. 408 00:55:00,400 --> 00:55:01,440 More smoke? 409 00:55:16,760 --> 00:55:19,920 ..and one very relieved producer. 410 00:55:32,960 --> 00:55:35,920 Woohoo! 411 00:55:35,920 --> 00:55:39,800 Against the odds, the team has located a super-swarm. 412 00:55:57,880 --> 00:56:04,360 This is exactly what we've been looking for. We've driven halfway 413 00:56:04,360 --> 00:56:07,920 It's just been a nightmare, but, finally, we're here. 414 00:56:07,920 --> 00:56:10,760 I mean, this is the biggest swarm we could have even hoped for. 415 00:56:10,760 --> 00:56:12,160 It is just amazing. 416 00:56:12,160 --> 00:56:14,160 Look at here, I'm going to film here. 417 00:56:16,120 --> 00:56:19,200 It's incredibly exhilarating, and yet totally shocking, 418 00:56:19,200 --> 00:56:22,440 to think of the devastation that swarms like this are causing. 419 00:56:22,440 --> 00:56:25,520 It just makes you realise how important the FAO are 420 00:56:25,520 --> 00:56:28,040 in getting this under control. 421 00:56:31,760 --> 00:56:33,160 I'm just going to run through it. 422 00:56:33,160 --> 00:56:35,080 I should be naked for this, but... 423 00:56:50,120 --> 00:56:54,320 Thankfully, Rob kept his clothes on, and, more importantly, 424 00:56:54,320 --> 00:56:56,760 this plague has now been halted, 425 00:56:56,760 --> 00:57:00,320 but not before the team had witnessed one of the biggest swarms 426 00:57:00,320 --> 00:57:01,720 ever recorded on film. 427 00:57:14,640 --> 00:57:19,560 Next time, we journey to the world's great plains, 428 00:57:19,560 --> 00:57:24,480 where spectacular gatherings of wildlife cope with extreme change... 429 00:57:26,840 --> 00:57:30,960 ..and surprising creatures survive in unexpected ways.