Table Mountain National Park • 2017 • episode "2/9" • Great Parks of Africa

58:40

Life and Death explores the impact of Darwin’s ideas on our understanding of the meaning of extinction and the interconnections between all life on earth and the environment. Darwin learned many lessons from the giant fossils of extinct animals he found in Argentina and Chile. He eventually revealed to us the unpalatable truth that the logical conclusion to evolution is not perfection but extinction. The extinction of one species creates an environmental niche for new species to fill. Darwin’s theory also gives us vital knowledge we can use to help prolong the existence of our species by respecting the interconnections between all elements of the natural world and the environment. It’s a story in which Darwin’s ideas are taken up with great enthusiasm by his followers throughout the 20th century. But humanity misses one opportunity after another to acknowledge and reduce its destructive impact on the planet. As a result we have set in motion the sixth mass extinction of life on earth. And we are running out of time to do something about it by preserving ecological "hotspots" like certain rainforests which are some of the most productive cradles of evolution. This programme is a warning, but also a celebration, of the knowledge Charles Darwin gave us in his theory of evolution. It confirms that Darwin’s theory continues to inform our understanding of ourselves, our planet and the intricate interconnections between all life on earth.

3/3 • Darwin's Dangerous Idea • 2009 • Nature

88:52

This film is a unique production that reveals the beauty of Romania as it is, raw, magical but fragile at the same time. In the heart of Europe, there is a fabulous wildlife, rich in biodiversity, home to numerous wild animals. The endless mountain peaks and river streams, ancient forests, all provide home to various creatures. Their lives are dictated by the seasons of these lands of beauty. It's a never ending battle for survival and Untamed Romania will tell their stories. Who will survive the trials of life in this ever changing environment?

2018 • Nature

58:59

It is high summer in the Polar Regions, and the sun never sets. Vast hordes of summer visitors cram a lifetime of drama into one long, magical day; they must feed, fight and rear their young in this brief window of plenty. Summer is a tough time for the polar bear family, as their ice world melts away and the cubs take their first swimming lesson. Some bears save energy by dozing on icy sun beds, while others go egg-collecting in an Arctic tern colony, braving bombardment by sharp beaks. There are even bigger battles on the tundra; a herd of musk oxen gallop to the rescue as a calf is caught in a life and death struggle with a pair of Arctic wolves. But summer also brings surprises, as a huge colony of 400,000 king penguins cope with an unlikely problem - heat. The adults go surfing, while the woolly-coated chicks take a cooling mud bath. Nearby, a bull fur seal is prepared to fight to the death with a rival. Fur flies as the little pups struggle desperately to keep out of the way of the duelling giants. Further south, a minke whale is hunted amongst the ice floes by a family of killer whales. The dramatic chase lasts over 2 hours and has never been filmed before. The killers harry the minke whale, taking it in turns to wear it down. Eventually it succumbs to the relentless battering. Finally, comical adelie penguins waddle back to their half a million strong colony like clockwork toys. The fluffy chicks need constant feeding and protection as piratical skuas patrol the skies. When an unguarded chick is snatched, a dramatic "dogfight" ensues.

3/7 • Frozen Planet • 2011 • Nature

54:57

The remote Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland, Australia is home to one of the world's most extraordinary and spectacular meteorological phenomena, the Morning Glory Wave Cloud. Up to two kilometers high and a thousand kilometers long, the Glory is a shock wave in the atmosphere of immense proportions.Join Professor Thomas Peacock from MIT in Boston and Dr. Jorg Hacker from Airborne Research Australia as they journey to Burketown in the remote north of Australia to study this elusive phenomenon and meet the glider pilots who ride the largest wave in the world.

2014 • Nature

43:57

From St Abbs in Scotland, Steve reveals how ocean plastic rubbish is turned into kayaks that clean up our seas, Gillian goes oyster fishing in Cornwall and Chris meets author Philip Hoare who thinks we should all take a daily dip in the sea.

1/5 • Blue Planet UK • 2019 • Nature

36:19

Like most big cats, the leopard is a master of secrecy. It's one of the hardest of all big cats to see, let alone observe. This is mainly because leopards need absolute invisibility to hunt. This is why they're such good climbers and why they evolved to be so incredibly secretive.

5/7 • The Secret Lives of Big Cats • 2019 • Nature