The Secret of the Savannah • 2012 • episode "S1E2" • Secrets of Our Living Planet

52:18

David discovers the plants that have evolved to shed their dependency on water enabling them to survive in the driest environments. The story begins at midnight in midsummer as David steps into the Princess of Wales Conservatory to witness the extraordinary nocturnal blooming of a cactus. The Queen of the Night, with its giant flowers, is the centre piece of a stunning symphony of cacti blooms that burst open in the desert (and at Kew) at night. In a mesmerizing 3D slow motion sequence, we discover the extraordinary connections between cacti and their natural ...

S1E3 • Kingdom of Plants • 2012 • Nature

58:22

In Inferno, Chris Packham explores one of the darkest periods in Earth’s history: the worst mass extinction the planet has ever seen, when as much as 90% of all species died, 252 million years ago. This extraordinary moment in Earth’s history took life to the brink, wreaking havoc and destruction on an unprecedented scale. But somehow, life found a way to bounce back, and a new geological era ushered in the age of the dinosaurs. The story begins with a massive volcanic eruption: the Siberian Traps eruption lasted for two million years and created enough lava field to cover an area the size of Australia. Life in the immediate vicinity was no doubt vaporized, but the fossil record reveals a bigger mystery – a strange ‘line of death’ in rock formations all over the world that indicates almost all life dying out, no matter how close it was to the lava field. Chris uncovers what the latest science reveals about the aftermath of the eruption, and the terrifying series of events that led to the global mass dying. It’s a stark cautionary tale of how rapid climate change can cause whole ecosystems to collapse, but the fossil record also hints at Earth’s miraculous powers of reinvention. Chris discovers clues in rocky mountain ranges to one of greatest deluges in the planet’s history – a downpour lasting on and off for almost two million years that transformed conditions and led life to bounce back in extraordinary style, with the rise and eventual domination of the dinosaurs.

S1E1 • Earth: One Planet, Many Lives • 2023 • Nature

48:05

A polar bear mother keeps watch over her cub as they wait for the coming winter and the plentiful feeding opportunities it brings. But there are threats abound: from cannibalistic male bears, to the devastating impact of climate change, which has delayed the seasonal freeze and put them at risk of starvation.

S1E8 • Arctic Secrets • 2015 • Nature

59:00

Approaching the end of their first year on Earth, the animal babies take on the most complex challenges of their lives. A mountain gorilla infant learns the co-ordination to roam free in the forest.

S1E3 • Animal Babies: First Year on Earth • 2019 • Nature

51:19

Jungles and rainforests are home to an incredible variety of species like preening birds, intelligent orangutans and remarkably ambitious ants.

S1E3 • Our Planet • 2019 • Nature

48:03

Witness the hard knock life of male kangaroos as they engage in constant fights to determine social rank.

S1E3 • Secret Life of the Kangaroo • 2016 • Nature