Thailand is a land of extremes. A country shaped by wild forces, where animals face tough challenges to survive. Yet they have evolved into some of the most iconic and successful species on the planet.
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Welcome to the world of wild assassins, where masters of the sky sweep from above with their fierce beaks and razor sharp talons.
The Baltic Sea is the youngest ocean in the world and first evolved after the last Ice Age. We think we know everything about it, yet still it has many surprises in store. Wind and waves still shape the shores of the Baltic Sea to this day. The third episode takes us to the Bay of Bothnia. More than double the size of the Netherlands, it is the most unknown region of the Baltic Sea. In the winter, the Baltic Sea freezes over at a length of 300 kilometres. In this 1-metre-thick ice tank, the third species of seal - alongside the grey seal and common seal - copes well with the Baltic Sea. The ringed seal is perfectly adapted to the Arctic winter and carves out breathing holes into the ice. More than 10,000 of the animals still live between Sweden and Finland. The Bay of Bothnia only has a salt content of just 1%, which is why it freezes quicker than other regions of the Baltic Sea. Many rivers disembogue here and “sweeten” the sea. The Tornio is the longest natural river in Europe. It forms the border between Sweden and Finland. Even when frost is severe, the Kukkolaforsen rapids in Sweden never freeze over, otters go hunting here. When it gets dark in the winter, solar winds conjure colourful light effects in the Baltic Sea sky. The Aurora Borealis can be seen in the northern regions of the Baltic Sea as of mid-October. The coast of Lapland is also the home of the reindeer. The Sami's, reindeer breeders, bring their herds in winter to the Baltic Sea, as the snow is not as deep here as it is further inland and the animals have better access to lichens and mosses. When Lapland's coast is still frozen, 300 kilometres further south in the Kvarken Archipelago, a special spectacle takes place. Millions of fish head for the coast. Barrier beaches prevent them from reaching the coastal lagoons. They can only spawn where the water is salt-free.
Stephen and Mark search for the nocturnal flightless parrot in New Zealand.
Wilson moves in at Maybelline's Aztecs but makes a dash for it when Zaphod pitches up.
Wildest Middle East reveals the remotest and most surprising corners of this ancient land, where you will find nothing is as it seems and where the natural world is fighting a constant battle to survive in an ever changing world.
Thailand is a land of extremes. A country shaped by wild forces, where animals face tough challenges to survive. Yet they have evolved into some of the most iconic and successful species on the planet.
Water is the beginning of all life - including the wildlife of Germany. Beavers fell trees, otters play under water, kingfishers catch fish for their young. Lakes and rivers cover just 2.5% of the total area of the country. The episode Rivers and Lakes takes the viewer on a journey through the water world of Germany. In winter, the few ice-free surfaces are popular with waterfowl. Coots throng the source ponds of the River Havel, while above them white-tailed eagles gather for the hunt, as their prey swim openly beneath them. The coots stick together, swimming to and fro to make it difficult for the eagles to pick out one individual bird. But with each attack, the coots grow increasingly tired. In Spring, the ice melts and the lakes and rivers awake from their winter torpor. Germany has more than 800 rivers longer than 10km. They transport the life-giving liquid into all corners of the country. The water of the River Danube alone would be enough to fill Germany's biggest body of water, Lake Constance, in 12 months. Every year, six times the volume of the lake falls in the form of precipitation: 800 litres per square metre. Otters and beavers had a very hard time in recent centuries. They were hunted mercilessly for their fur and eaten in periods of fasting. Today, both species are protected and their populations are recovering.
While diving for shellfish off Cape Howe, an Australian man ends up inside the jaws of a Great White shark. Determined to maintain his championship spear fishing title, an Australian man inadvertently becomes bait for a 15-foot-long Great White shark.
The Baltic Sea is the youngest ocean in the world and first evolved after the last Ice Age. We think we know everything about it, yet still it has many surprises in store. Wind and waves still shape the shores of the Baltic Sea. The second episode presents a world comprising tens of thousands of islands, between Estonia, Gotland in Sweden and the Finnish Archipelago Sea. In the Autumn on Saaremaa, the largest Estonian island, nasal sounds can be heard from one corner to the next: The mating calls of the Moose. Huge bulls make their way to the traditional rutting areas in the south of the island. The landscape here is stony and riddled with countless bays. In the north, the Panga Cliff, a limestone wall of some 20 metres in height and more than 400 million years old. In the beginning of March, animal filmmaker Christoph Hauschild and his team accompany two seal researchers going about their work. Their destinations are two small islands in the Bay of Riga. A popular spot for grey seals. This is the first time that a film team has been allowed on the island. Just how many animals there are, can first be seen from the air. The beach is packed with young seals. The largest gathering in the Baltic Sea. The absence of pack ice forces the mothers to come here. Global warming has visibly changed the Baltic Sea as far as the Bay of Riga. The winters are simply too hot for the well-insulated young seals. So as not to overheat, they take dips in the cooling water. The underwater camera captures intimate moments and reveals just how playfully the youngsters enjoy the cool water. Just 200 kilometres to the west lies an ancient coral reef, Gotland. The Swedish island is like an ark in the central Baltic Sea. Much of the flora and fauna one otherwise only finds in Southern Europe can be found here on the second largest island in the Baltic Sea. Golden eagles breed here in the trees and in the spring, the ground is covered in orchids. 35 different varieties grow on Gotland.
Two large water birds are experiencing a real demographic boom that seems unstoppable.
A dramatic and poignant portrayal of the fragile alliances and desperate strategies for survival adopted by three species of animals caught in the no-man's-land where the human and natural worlds collide.
Zorro takes a group of Whiskers boys off roving at the Commandos.
Tropical rainforests are one of the oldest habitats on the face of our earth – older than many of the stars.
Evicted Sencha is thrown a lifeline in the form of attractive rover Lilac.
With the family split having become permanent, Rocket Dog's Whiskers loses Zaphod and a large group of males.
Where in Europe are bisons still to be found in the wild? And where do probably more migratory birds breed than in any other European country? The flora and fauna of Poland are full of surprises: the South is dominated by the 2000m peaks of the Tatra, to the North-East the Biebrza river forms one of the largest swamp regions of Europe, a paradise for rare birds like the ruff. Masuria is the breeding-ground for thousands of white storks, more than anywhere else on Earth. The much shier and rarer black stork also finds refuge in the large expanses of forest that stretch to the Baltic Sea. In winter, an icy wind sweeps Eastern Poland and only those with a thick skin survive in the region bordering Belorus. The cold doesn't bother the bison. Thick coats protect these ancient cattle against the snow and icy wind, but lack of food in winter does present a problem. The bison here are among the last of their kind. Once upon a time, huge herds roamed most of the European continent, today the only bison in Central Europe living in the wild are located in Eastern Poland. Poland's hard winters are no problem for otter and beaver, whose extremely dense coats protect them against the cold and enable them to swim and dive in the icy water. Although both animals are water-dwellers, they're not rivals: beavers are vegetarians and in winter eat stores of leaves and bark. Otters are active hunters all year round and live on fish and crabs. As soon as spring arrives in Poland, the river Biebrza becomes a hive of activity: thousands of birds vie with each other to be heard as they use the vast area of swampland to rest and breed. White-winged black terns and black-necked grebes build their nests, then the mating season begins for the ruffs, with the males strutting their stuff for potential mates.
Cloaked in tropical rainforest and warmed by clear blue seas Indonesia is a paradise. Although much of the island chain receives sporadic rain throughout the year, this alone wouldn't be enough to sustain the region's rich abundance of life.
A visually stunning and dramatic portrait of India's mighty monsoon as it brings life — and death — to a thirsting land.
Welcome to the world of wild assassins, where disease may just be the deadliest weapon of all.
A rich portrait of life and death at the vertical limit of mammalian life on Earth — the Himalayas — including the most intimate and extensive encounters with a wild snow leopard ever captured on film.
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