"ATTENBOROUGH:" "A hundred years ago, there were one-and-a-half billion people on Earth." "Now, over six billion crowd our fragile planet." "But even so, there are still places barely touched by humanity." "This series will take you to the last wildernesses and show you the planet and its wildlife as you have never seen them before." "Imagine our world without sun." "Male emperor penguins are facing the nearest that exists on planet Earth, winter in Antarctica." "It's continuously dark and temperatures drop to minus 70 degrees centigrade." "(HEAVY WIND BLOWING)" "The penguins stay when all other creatures have fled because each guards a treasure, a single egg resting on the top of its feet and kept warm beneath the downy bulge of its stomach." "There is no food and no water for them and they will not see the sun again for four months." "Surely, no greater ordeal is faced by any animal." "As the sun departs from the Antarctic, it lightens the skies in the far north." "It's March, and light returns to the high Arctic, sweeping away four months of darkness." "A polar bear stirs." "She has been in her den the whole winter." "Her emergence marks the beginning of spring." "After months of confinement underground, she toboggans down the slope, perhaps to clean her fur, perhaps for sheer joy." "Her cubs gaze out at their bright new world for the very first time." "The female calls them, but this steep slope is not the easiest place to take your first steps." "(WHIMPERING)" "But they are hungry and eager to reach their mother, who's delayed feeding them on this special day." "Now she lures them with the promise of milk, the only food the cubs have known since they were born, deaf and blind, beneath the snow some two months ago." "Their mother has not eaten for five months and has lost half her body weight." "Now she converts the last of her fat reserves into milk for her cubs." "The spring sun brings warmth, but also a problem for the mother." "It starts to melt the sea ice." "That is where she hunts for the seals she needs to feed her cubs and she must get there before the ice breaks up." "For now, though, it's still minus 30 degrees, and the cubs must have the shelter of the den." "It's six days since the bears emerged and spring is advancing rapidly." "But even now, blizzards can strike without warning." "Being so small, the cubs are easily chilled and they would be more comfortable resting in the den, but their mother must keep them out and active." "She's becoming weak from hunger and there's no food on these nursery slopes." "The sea ice still holds firm, but it won't last much longer." "Day 1 0, and the mother has led her cubs a mile from the den." "It's time to put them to the test." "They've grown enormously in confidence, but they don't have their mother's sense of urgency." "At last it seems that they're ready for their journey and only just in time for, a few miles from the coast, the ice is already splitting." "Now the mother can start hunting for the seals they must have, but she's leading her cubs into a dangerous new world." "Nearly half of all cubs die in their first year out on the ice." "Summer brings 24 hours of sunlight and a thawing, shifting landscape." "Further south, the winter snows have almost cleared from the arctic tundra." "Northern Canada's wild frontier." "Here, nature stages one of her greatest dramas." "Every year, three million caribou migrate across the arctic tundra." "The immensity of the herd can only be properly appreciated from the air." "Some herds travel over two thousand miles a year in search of fresh pastures." "This is the longest overland migration made by any animal." "They're constantly on the move." "Newborn calves have to be up and running the day they're born." "But the vast herds do not travel alone." "Wolves." "Packs of them, eight to ten strong, shadow the migration." "And they're hungry." "It's the newly-born calves that they are after." "Running directly at the herd is a ploy to generate panic." "The herd breaks up and now it's easier to target an individual." "In the chaos, a calf is separated from its mother." "The calf is young, but it can outrun the wolf if only it manages to keep its footing." "At this stage the odds are even." "Either the caribou will make a mistake or, after a mile, the wolf will give up." "Midsummer on the tundra and the sun does not set." "At these latitudes, the sun's rays are glancing and not enough of their energy reaches the ground to enable trees to grow." "You need to travel five hundred miles south from here before that is possible." "These stunted shrubs mark the tree line, the beginning of the Boreal forest, the taiga." "The needle-shaped leaves of the conifers are virtually inedible, so this forest supports very little animal life." "It's a silent place where the snow is unmarked by footprints." "In the arctic winter, snow forms a continuous blanket across the land." "But as spring creeps up from the south, the taiga is unveiled." "This vast forest circling the globe contains a third of all the trees on Earth and produces so much oxygen, it changes the composition of the atmosphere." "As we travel south, so the sun's influence grows stronger and at 50 degrees of latitude, a radical transformation begins." "(BIRDS CHIRPING)" "Summers here are long enough for broad-leaved trees to replace conifers." "Broad leaves are much easier to eat and digest so now animals can collect their share of the energy that has come from the sun." "It's summer and these forests are bustling with life." "But the good times will not last." "Broad leaves must be shed in winter for they're damaged by frost." "As they disappear, so the land becomes barren with little for animals to eat." "The inhabitants must migrate, hibernate or face months of near-starvation." "The Amur leopard, the rarest cat in the world." "Here, in the deciduous forests of eastern Russia, the winter makes hunting very difficult." "Prey animals are scarce and there's no concealing vegetation." "The cub is a year old and still dependent on its mother." "Deer are frequent casualties of the harsh winter and these leopards are not above scavenging from a corpse." "African leopards could never survive here but the Russian cats have thick fur to shield them from the cold." "There are only 40 Amur leopards left in the wild, and that number is falling." "Like so many creatures, the cats have been pushed to the very edge of extinction by hunting and the destruction of their habitat." "The Amur leopard symbolizes the fragility of our natural heritage." "The future of an entire species hangs on the survival of a tiny number of mothers like this one." "All animals, rare or common, ultimately depend for their energy on the sun." "In Japan, the arrival of the cherry blossom announces the beginning of spring." "The sun's energy brings color to the landscape." "The Earth, as it makes its annual journey round the sun, spins on a tilted axis and it's this tilt that creates the seasons." "The advance of the seasons brings constant change." "As the sun's influence diminishes in the north, so the deciduous forests of America begin to shut down," "losing their leaves in preparation for the dark, cold months ahead." "One season hands over to another." "Some organisms thrive on decay, but most must make special preparations for winter and a life with little sun." "Whole populations of animals are now forced to travel great distances in pursuit of food and warmth." "Three hundred thousand Baikal Teal gather to escape from the Siberian winter by migrating south to Korea." "The world's entire population in a single flock." "But there are parts of the world that have no seasons." "In the tropics, the sun's rays strike the Earth head-on and their strength is more or less constant all year round." "That is why the jungle grows so vigorously and supports so much life." "This forest covers only 3% of the planet's surface but it contains more than 50% of all its plants and animals." "The canopy is particularly rich." "There are monkeys, birds and millions of species of insects." "Exactly how many, we have no idea." "The character of the forest changes as you descend, becoming ever darker and damper, favoring different kinds of animals and plants." "Less than 2% of the sunlight reaches the floor." "But even here, there is extraordinary variety." "In the great island of New Guinea, there are 42 different species of birds of paradise, each more bizarre than the last." "This forest is so rich that nourishing food can be gathered very quickly." "That leaves the male Six-plumed bird of paradise with time to concentrate on other matters," "like tidying up his display area." "Everything must be spick and span." "All is ready." "Very impressive." "But no one is watching." "The Superb bird of paradise calls to attract a female." "And he has more luck." "But what does he have to do to really impress her?" "." "(TAPPING)" "She retires to consider her verdict." "It's hard not to feel deflated when even your best isn't good enough." "The sun influences life in the oceans just as it does on land." "Its richest parts are those where waves and currents bring fertilizing nutrients to surface waters that are bathed in sunlight." "The seas off the Cape in South Africa have this magic recipe and are hugely productive." "Summer is a time of plenty, and it's now that the seals start to breed." "The strike of a great white shark lasts a mere second." "Slowing it down 40 times reveals the technique and immense strength of this massive predator." "If surprise fails, there will be a chase." "The shark is faster on a straight course, but it can't turn as sharply as a seal." "It's agility versus power." "Once the seals have finished breeding, the giant sharks will move on." "It's now becoming clear that great whites migrate thousands of miles across the oceans to harvest seasonal abundances in different seas." "The sun, beating down on tropical waters, powers the weather systems of the globe." "Moisture evaporates from the warming ocean and rises to create great storms." "(THUNDER RUMBLING)" "The winds generated out at sea sweep inland across the continents." "As they travel across the Sahara, they create the biggest of all sandstorms, blowing sand halfway round the world, to fertilize the Amazon jungle." "Winds blowing across the Indian Ocean collect moisture and sweep northwards towards the Himalayas." "As the air rises, so it cools." "The water it carries condenses into clouds and then falls as the life-giving rains of the monsoon." "So air currents, powered by the sun, carry wet air to the middle of continents." "Without water there can be no life." "But its distribution over the land is far from even." "Deserts cover one third of the land's surface and they're growing bigger every year." "This is the Kalahari desert in southern Africa." "It's the dry season and thousands of elephants have started to travel in a desperate search for water." "All across southern Africa, animals are journeying for the same reason." "Buffalo join the great trek." "Nowhere else on Earth are so many animals on the move with the same urgent purpose." "They are all heading for the swamps of the Okavango, a vast inland delta." "At the moment it is dry, but water is coming." "The travelers are hampered by dangerous dust storms." "Females and calves can easily get separated from the main herd." "(TRUMPETING)" "For this pair, sanctuary lies in a patch of woodland a few miles ahead." "They can't rest until they reach it." "The main herd has already got there safely." "Finally, the stragglers emerge from the dust." "The exhausted calf is still blinded by sand." "Its mother does everything possible to help it." "The storm is now subsiding." "But not all the elephants have been so lucky." "One youngster has got lost." "Thirsty and exhausted, it follows the tracks of its mother, but, sadly, in the wrong direction." "At the peak of the dry season in the Kalahari, water arrives in the Okavango." "It fell as rain a thousand miles away in the highlands of Angola and has taken nearly five months to reach here." "The water drives out insects from the parched ground, which are snapped up by plovers." "Catfish, traveling with the flood, collect any drowning creatures the birds have missed." "It's a seasonal feast for animals of all kinds." "Birds are the first to arrive in any numbers." "Wattled cranes, then black storks." "Behind the birds come buffalo." "After weeks of marching, their trek is coming to an end." "As the water sweeps into the Okavango, a vast area of the Kalahari is transformed into a fertile paradise." "Nowhere on our planet is the life-giving power of water so clearly demonstrated." "The Okavango becomes criss-crossed with trails as animals move into its heart." "The new arrivals open up paths like arteries, along which water flows, extending the reach of the flood." "This is an Africa rarely seen." "A lush water-world." "Some creatures are completely at home here." "These are lechwe, antelope with hooves that splay widely, enabling them to move at speed through the water." "For others, the change is far less welcome." "Baboons are somewhat apprehensive bathers." "The water brings a season of plenty for all animals." "Hunting dogs." "(SNORTING)" "These are now among the rarest of Africa's mammals but they're, nonetheless, the continent's most efficient predators." "Their secret is teamwork." "Impala are their favorite prey." "They start to hunt and the pack splits up." "An aerial viewpoint gives a new insight into their strategy." "As the dogs approach their prey, they peel off to take up separate positions around their target." "They seem to form a cordon around the impala." "Moving in total silence, they take up their positions." "Those ears can detect the slightest rustle." "The hunt is on." "Three dogs close in on one impala." "Missed!" "The lead dog drives the impala towards the hidden flankers." "Anticipating their line, the leader cuts the corner and joins a flanker for the final assault." "It's all or nothing." "One on one." "The dog has stamina, the impala has speed." "Leaping into the lake is an act of desperation." "Impala can barely swim." "The dogs know their prey must come out or drown." "Now it's a waiting game." "The rest of the pack are calling." "They've made a kill in the forest and this is an invitation to join in the meal." "The impala is in luck." "A pack this size kills once a day, and everything is shared." "And this impala is reprieved." "The elephants are nearing the end of their long journey." "After weeks of marching, they're desperately tired." "The matriarch can smell water and encourages the herd to make one last effort." "The youngsters are exhausted, but their mothers have made this journey before and they know that they're close to water." "After many hundreds of miles, they've arrived." "The lives of these elephants are dominated by the annual rhythm of wet and dry, a seasonal cycle created by the sun." "At the southern end of the Earth, after four months of total darkness, the sun once more rises over Antarctica." "Now at last the emperor penguins abandon their huddle." "The males are still carrying the precious eggs that they've cherished throughout the Antarctic winter." "With the returning sun, the eggs hatch." "Other birds have not even arrived but the emperors, by enduring the long black winter, have given their chicks a head start." "These youngsters are now ready and eager to make the most of the brief Antarctic summer." "An aerial view gives a unique perspective on a vast landscape such as the Okavango Delta." "To achieve extraordinary top-shots," "Planet Earth pioneered the latest in high-tech filming." "Meet the chopper squad." "Producer Mark Linfield teamed up with helicopter pilot, Peter Perlstein, and Hollywood aerial cameraman, Michael Kelem." "This helicopter is fitted with a new high-definition camera system, the heli-gimble." "Originally invented for the military, it's only been used so far in Hollywood movies and glossy adverts." "Filming for Planet Earth will be the first time that a high-tech system like this has been taken into the wild." "The chopper squad fly the heli-gimble into the swampy heart of the delta, an area inaccessible to ground film crews." "With a 360-degree view and an extremely powerful lens, the camera can zoom in from a kilometer away." "The animal remains totally undisturbed, oblivious to the film crew hovering high above." "The gyro-stabilized camera produces rock-solid images, both in wide shots and in close-up." "For the first time, wildlife can be put in context of the epic landscape in which it lives." "This aerial system is key to the team's most challenging mission, filming African wild dogs hunting." "Impossible to follow when filmed from the ground alone." "A highly experienced ground crew joins forces with the chopper squad." "Mike Holding has been filming hunting dogs for over 1 0 years, but even he has never successfully filmed a complete hunt from the ground." "In such rough terrain, even keeping up with the dogs is a struggle, and filming anything more than glimpses is completely impossible." "Today, the challenge is to track the dogs so that Mike can guide in the helicopter." "We just saw an impala coming flying past us here, which means the dogs are actually hunting in this area." "So all hell will be breaking loose here..." "Whoa!" "Time to call in the chopper squad." "The dogs are now racing ahead." "MIKE:" "Peter, you better get in here." "They're moving towards impala." "PETER:" "I'm sitting ten thousand feet behind you in the air." "MIKE:" "Now they stopped." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "It's chaos for the ground crew, making it impossible to film anything." "Oh, there they are, down below." "9:00." "Straight beneath us." "Okay." "Left, left, left." "Turn left." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "From a great height, the camera locks on to the target and Michael zooms in for a closer shot." "You'll see the dogs here on the monitor, they're a reasonable size." "But they're actually way, way off in the distance." "Probably at least a kilometer-and-a-half away." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "The ground crew finally catch up, but face a new hitch." "Who has the right of way in a situation like this?" "." "(LAUGHING)" "It looks like..." "Don't know." "Stalemate at the crossroads." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "The dogs' interest in the car is short-lived." "They've already given up hunting and are on their way back to their den." "Yay!" "(IMITATING CHOPPER)" "ATTENBOROUGH:" "It's home time for everyone." "He's a maniac." "The ground crew's day starts well before sunrise." "They must reach the den before the dogs wake up or they will lose them." "Yesterday they caught us napping." "They went out earlier than we expected." "We spent three hours trying to catch up with them." "So we're gonna try not to do that today." "Sure enough, the dogs are already up and about." "The ground crew must keep on their tails until it's light enough for the chopper squad to take off." "The dogs seem oblivious to the filming vehicle and to the helicopter flying high above them." "(CHATTERING ON RADIO)" "Okay, we're in business." "The dogs are starting to hunt." "MIKE:" "Ifyou can pull back slightly..." "Hang on, might be on to something." "Yeah, they've clocked something." "Don't..." "Don't do anything, Michael." "Nothing rash." "There's two of them stalking." "They're stalking." "just hold still, Peter." "Hopefully they're just gonna make a dart out of these trees." "So get ready." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "This could be Martin's only chance." "I reckon in 10 seconds, they'll go." "MARTIN:" "Going, going, going." "Now they're off." "They're off!" "." "Hold that." "That's nice." "Just keep that going." "All moving as a group." "That's a nice shot." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "This is a unique perspective on a dog hunt." "A revelation even to the local experts." "PETER:" "He's flat out on the path after that impala." "Any second." "Oh no!" "." "I can't believe it!" "." "That was so close." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "For the chopper crew, it's a short ride back to their landing pad in the bush." "The ground crew still have a two-hour journey." "Back at camp, there's a worrying turn of events." "There has been an accident and a tent has caught fire." "The camp staff are on to it straightaway." "MAN:" "All right, put sand on it." "Put sand on it." "Okay." "All right." "If that had gone near the drums of fuel, and the chopper, we would have had an explosion." "That is just not even worth imagining." "And it's got the heli-gimble attached to it as well." "I don't want to think about that!" "I really don't want to think about it." "With the chopper and the heli-gimble still intact, the aerial team embark on a grueling 1 0-day stint." "They set off every morning and evening, but after 50 hours of flying, they're making little headway with filming a hunt." "Still got tomorrow." "We still got tomorrow morning." "We will get it tomorrow morning." "We will." "There we have it." "Sunrise over the Okavango Delta." "7:00 dead." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "It's looking promising." "The dogs are already on to something." "Hold that." "Hold that." "That's nice." "Just keep that going." "All moving as a group, that's a nice shot." "Yeah, feels like a real pack hunt." "Nice shot." "If I can see them from the chopper..." "There, there." "There they go." "They're racing." "They're racing." "Where are they?" "." "There." "They're at 3:. 00." "MICHAEL:" "There they go." "Three, four dogs, all spread out." "Yeah, tighten up, tighten up as much as you can." "That's good." "Stay with him." "Stay with him." "He's almost got him." "Stay with him, he's gonna get him." "Stay with him, stay with him." "just heading towards the water." "He's heading towards the water." "The other guy's pronking away." "Still a nice shot, though." "Oh, he's getting away." "Ohhh!" "Follow him through the water." "The croc's gonna get that impala." "Well then, go for the impala." "The dogs are all surrounding this impala." "You're gonna see these dogs grab this impala when he comes out." "Great." "Okay, let's get close to the impala so when he comes out, we're on it." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "With lunch seemingly in the bag, the dogs frustrate the chopper crew with a mysterious exit." "These dogs are really milking it." "I can't believe these dogs!" "That was the closest one." "That was." "He was so close..." "That is the closest I have ever..." "So determined." "Oh, I mean, I thought it was in the bank." "He was closing in on him so well." "I know, he was." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "The air crew think they've failed again, but soon catch up with the dogs and call in the ground crew." "Well, here we are." "They're on a kill somewhere in front of us." "The helicopter's right above us filming." "We're trying to get through this thick stuff." "Duck, duck, duck." "We're trying to get through the thick stuff to them to get some ground shots." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "At last, after two weeks of near misses, the whole sequence has come together in the final hour, both from the ground and the air." "A complete wild dog hunt as it's never been seen before." "That's amazing." "That is absolutely amazing." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Human beings venture into the highest parts of our planet at their peril." "Some might think that by climbing a great mountain they have somehow conquered it, but we can only be visitors here." "This is a frozen, alien world." "This is the other extreme." "One of the lowest, hottest places on Earth." "It's over a hundred meters below the level of the sea." "But here, a mountain is in gestation." "Pools of sulfuric acid are indications that deep underground there are titanic stirrings." "This is the Danakil Depression in Ethiopia," "lying within a colossal rent in the Earth's surface where giant land masses are pulling away from one another." "Lava rises to the surface through this crack in the crust, creating a chain of young volcanoes." "This one, Erta-Ale, is today the longest continually-erupting volcano on the planet." "A lake of lava that has been molten for over 1 00 years." "These same volcanic forces also created Ethiopia's highlands." "Seventy million years ago, this land was just as flat and as deep as the Danakil Depression." "Molten lava, rising from the Earth's core, forced up a huge dome of rock 500 miles wide." "The Roof of Africa." "Over millennia, rain and ice carved the rock into a landscape of spires and canyons." "These summits, nearly three miles up, are home to some very remarkable mountaineers." "Gelada baboons." "They are unique to the highlands of Ethiopia." "The cliffs where they sleep are for expert climbers only." "And geladas certainly have the right equipment, the strongest fingers of any primate and an utterly fearless disposition." "But you need more than a head for heights to survive up here." "A day in the geladas' life reveals how they've risen to the challenge." "For all monkeys, morning is grooming time, a chance to catch up with friends." "But unlike other monkeys, geladas chatter constantly while they do it." "It's a great way to network while your hands are busy." "But these socials can't go on for too long." "Geladas have a busy daily schedule and there's work to be done." "Most monkeys couldn't live up here." "There's no fruit and few insects to feed on." "But geladas are unique." "They're the only monkeys in the world to live almost entirely on grass." "They live in the largest assemblies formed by any monkeys." "Some groups are 800 strong and they crop the high meadows like herds of wildebeest." "The geladas graze alongside walla ibex, which are also unique to these highlands." "These rare creatures are usually very shy, but they drop their guard when the geladas are around." "You might expect that grazers would avoid each other's patch, but this is a special alliance from which both partners benefit." "It's not so risky to put your head down if others are on the lookout." "Ethiopian wolves." "They won't attempt an attack in broad daylight." "But at dusk, the plateau becomes a more dangerous place." "With the grazing largely over, there's a last chance to socialize before returning to the sleeping cliffs." "(YELPING)" "An early warning system puts everyone on the alert." "Their day ends as it began, safe on the steep cliffs." "The Ethiopian volcanoes are dormant but elsewhere, others still rage." "Volcanoes form the backbone of the longest mountain chain on our planet, the Andes of South America." "This vast range stretches 5,000 miles from the equator down to the Antarctic." "It formed as the floor of the Pacific Ocean slid beneath the South American continent, buckling its edge." "At the southern end stand the mountains of Patagonia." "It's high summer." "But the Andes have the most unstable mountain weather on the planet and storms can erupt without warning." "Temperatures plummet and guanacos and their newborn young must suddenly endure a blizzard." "Truly, all seasons in one day." "A puma, the lion of the Andes." "Pumas are usually solitary and secretive." "To see a group walking boldly in the open is extremely rare." "It's a family, a mother with four cubs." "She has just one brief summer in which to teach them their mountain survival techniques." "Rearing four cubs to this age is an exceptional feat, but she does have an excellent territory, rich in food and water." "Although the cubs are now as large as their mother, they still rely on her for their food." "It will be another year before the cubs can hunt for themselves." "Without their mother's skill and experience, they would never survive their first winter." "Battered by hurricane-force winds, these slopes are now lifeless." "Further north, they hold other dangers." "Moving at 250 miles an hour, an avalanche destroys everything in its path." "In the American Rockies, 1 00,000 avalanches devastate the slopes every winter." "This huge mountain chain continues the great spine that runs from Patagonia to Alaska." "The slopes of the Rockies, bleak though they are, provide a winter refuge for some animals." "A mother grizzly emerges from her den after six months dozing underground." "Her two cubs follow her and take their first steps in the outside world." "These steep slopes provide a sanctuary for the cubs." "A male bear would kill and eat them given the chance but big animals find it difficult to get about here." "Males may be twice the size of a female and even she can have problems." "Her cubs, however, make light of the snow and of life in general." "But the mother faces a dilemma." "It's six months since she last fed and her milk is starting to run dry." "She must soon leave the safety of these nursery slopes and lead her cubs away from the mountain." "If she delays, the whole family will risk starvation." "Summer reveals the true nature of the Rockies." "Stripped of snow, the peaks bare their sculpted forms." "Only now can mountaineers reclaim the upper reaches." "Two miles up, the crumbling precipices seem devoid of life." "But there are animals here." "A grizzly bear." "It seems to be an odd creature to find on these high rocky slopes." "It's hard to imagine what could have attracted it here." "At this time of the year, bears should be fattening up for the winter, yet they gather in some numbers on these apparently barren slopes." "They're searching for a rather unusual food." "Moths." "Millions have flown up here to escape the heat of the lowlands and they're now roosting among the rocks." "Moths may seem a meager meal for a bear, but their bodies are rich in fat and can make all the difference in a bear's annual struggle for survival." "Another battle is being waged here but on a much longer time scale." "These loose boulders are the mountains' crumbling bones." "The Rockies are no longer rising but slowly disintegrating." "All mountains everywhere are being worn down by frost, snow and ice." "The Alps were raised some 1 5 million years ago as Africa, drifting northwards, collided with the southern edge of Europe." "These spires are the eroded remains of an ancient seabed that once stretched between the two continents." "But these are just the Alpine foothills." "The range at its center rises to three miles high and is crowned with permanent snows." "The Matterhorn, its summit too steep to hold a snowfield." "Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Western Europe." "The distinctive jagged shapes of the Alps were carved by those great mountain sculptors, the glaciers." "Immense rivers of moving ice, laden with rock, grind their way down the mountains, gouging out deep valleys." "They're the most powerful erosive force on our planet." "A moulin, a shaft in the ice opened by meltwater as it plunges into the depths of the glacier." "Like the water running through it, the ice itself is constantly moving, flowing down the valley with unstoppable force." "(CREAKING)" "Alpine glaciers may seem immense, but they're dwarfed by those in the great ranges that divide the Indian subcontinent from Tibet." "This is the boulder-strewn snout of the giant Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram Mountains of Pakistan." "It's the biggest mountain glacier on Earth, 43 miles long and over three miles wide." "This huge, ice-filled valley is so large it's clearly visible from space." "This is the greatest concentration of peaks over five miles high to be found anywhere on Earth." "They're the most dangerous mountains of all." "K2 and her sister peaks have claimed more lives than any others." "The peaks here rise so precipitously, the glaciers are so steep and crevassed, that few except the most skilled mountaineers can penetrate these ranges." "Markhor gather for their annual rut." "Males must fight for the right to breed, but on these sheer cliffs, any slip by either animal could be fatal." "A snow leopard, the rarest of Himalayan animals." "It's a female returning to her lair." "These are the first intimate images of snow leopard ever filmed in the wild." "She greets her one-year-old cub." "Her den is well chosen." "It has exceptional views of the surrounding cliffs." "On these treacherous slopes, no hunter other than the snow leopard would have a chance of catching such agile prey." "A female with young makes an easier target." "Her large paws give an excellent grip and that long tail helps her balance." "Silently she positions herself above her prey." "(SQUEALING)" "She returns with nothing." "Golden eagles patrol these cliffs in search of the weak or injured." "With a two-meter wingspan, this bird could easily take a young markhor." "Eagles hunt by sight and the thickening veil of snow forces them to give up." "For the leopard, the snow provides cover and creates an opportunity." "The worsening weather dampens the sound of her approach, allowing her to get within striking distance." "It was an act of desperation to try and catch such a large animal." "Wolves have made a kill, giving other hunters a chance to scavenge." "The worst of the blizzard brings success for the snow leopard." "But having descended so far to make the kill, she has a grueling climb to get back to her lair." "The cub must be patient." "It will be a year before it has the strength and skill to kill for itself on these difficult slopes." "The snow leopard is an almost mythical creature, an icon of the wilderness, an animal few humans have ever glimpsed for its world is one we seldom visit." "The Karakoram lie at the western end of a range that stretches across a tenth of our planet," "the Himalayas." "These, the highest mountains in the world," "like other great ranges, were created by the collision of continents." "Some 50 million years ago, India collided with Tibet, thrusting up these immense peaks which are still rising." "This vast barrier of rock and ice is so colossal it shapes the world's climate." "Warm winds from India, full of moisture, are forced upwards by the Himalayas." "As the air rises, so it cools, causing clouds to form and the monsoon is born." "At high altitudes, the monsoon rains fall as snow." "Here, at the far eastern end of the range in China, one inhabitant endures the bitter winters out in the open." "Most other bears would be sleeping underground by now but the giant panda can't fatten up enough to hibernate." "Its food, bamboo, on which it totally relies, has so little nutritional value that it can't build up a store of fat like other bears." "Most of the creatures here move up or down the slopes with the seasons, but the panda is held captive by its diet, for the kind of bamboo it eats only grows at this altitude." "But these forests hold fewer challenges for the more mobile." "The golden snub-nosed monkey," "like the giant panda, lives only in China." "Their thick fur allows them to survive at greater altitudes than any other monkey." "And when the cold bites, they have these upper slopes to themselves." "Even if you have a warm coat, it apparently helps to surround yourself with as many layers as possible." "But at least these monkeys have a choice." "If they tired of tree bark and other survival food, they can always descend to lower, warmer altitudes and not return until spring." "As the snows retreat, trees come into bloom." "Cherry blossom." "Rhododendrons." "Here in their natural home, they form great forests and fill the landscape with the colors of a new season." "These forests are host to a rich variety of springtime migrants." "Beneath the blooms, another display." "It's the mating season for oriental pheasants," "Himalayan monal," "tragopan and blood pheasant." "Musk deer make the most of a short flush of spring foods." "This male smells a potential mate." "The red panda, rarely glimpsed in the wild." "It was once considered a kind of raccoon but is now believed to be a small mountain bear." "By midsummer, its larger more famous relative has retreated into a cave." "A giant panda nurses a tiny week-old baby." "Her tender cleaning wards off infection." "She won't leave this cave for three weeks." "Not while her cub is so utterly helpless." "Progress is slow, for milk produced on a diet of bamboo is wretchedly poor." "Four weeks old and the cub is still blind." "Its eyes do not fully open until three months after birth." "But the chances of the cub reaching adulthood are slim." "The struggle of a giant panda mother to raise her cub is a touching symbol of the precariousness of life in the mountains." "On the highest summits of our planet, nothing can live permanently." "The highest peak of all, Mount Everest." "Five and a half miles above sea level and still rising." "The roof of our world." "Of those humans who've tried to climb it, 1 in 1 0 have lost their lives." "Those that succeed can stand for only a few moments on its summit." "The Nepalese call it, "A mountain so high no bird can fly above it."" "But each year, over 50,000 demoiselle cranes set out on one of the most challenging migrations on Earth." "To reach their over-wintering grounds in India, they must cross the Himalayas." "By late morning, ferocious winds are roaring past the peaks." "The cranes must gain height to avoid the building storm." "They've hit serious turbulence." "They must turn back or risk death." "A new day and a new opportunity." "The flock stay in close contact by calling to one another." "Weak from lack of food and water, they use thermals, rising columns of warm air, to gain height." "For many, this is their first journey across the Himalayas." "For some, it will be their last." "The golden eagles have been expecting them." "The eagles work in pairs to separate a young crane from the flock." "It escapes the clutches of one and is caught by another." "But even a young crane is a heavy prize and the eagle has to struggle to control it." "The mother can wait no longer." "This is a desperate race against worsening weather." "The rest of the flock battle on." "In the final ascent, every wing-beat becomes an exhausting struggle." "At last, they are over the highest barrier that lies in their way." "But like all who visit the world of the high mountains, they dare not linger." "It's not just the scale of mountains that makes them a daunting place to work in." "The wildlife is scarce and extremely hard to find." "And it doesn't come any harder than finding and filming the snow leopard." "Scientists can spend years in the field with barely even a sighting of this rare creature." "Planet Earth sent one of the toughest cameramen in the business to begin a three-year quest to film it." "So I guess this is where you could say it really starts." "We're up here in snow leopard country." "You look around and anywhere, anytime, you might just see it." "These are big, big mountains." "And there are not many snow leopards." "There it is." "There's home entrance for the next wee while." "If I take you inside, I'll show you the amenities." "Very much five star." "It's actually, I think, quite comfy." "There's the bed." "And I've got pretty much everything I need." "There's film stock." "I brought some water up from the river." "True, it..." "It's a little bit cramped, but it's quite enough." "And all I need now... are one or two pussycats." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "As an insurance policy, the crew set up remote camera traps." "CAMERAMAN:" "Yeah, that's good." "Okay, Doug." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "These cameras are triggered by movement and capture images of any passer-by." "Am I a good snow leopard?" "." "MAN:" "No, but if the snow leopard does what you did, that'll be jolly good." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "But to stand a chance of filming any behavior," "Doug just has to sit in a hide and wait." "This is tedious stuff." "This is the seventh session that I've done." "I do three hours in the morning and three hours in the late afternoon." "Not a sign." "If you got just..." "Just a little bit of a hint..." "A wee bit of a sighting now and again, your spirits would be lifted." "But right now I'd swap a little bit of this animal's charisma for a little bit more visibility." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Doug's hide is carefully positioned to give him the best view of the valley just in case a snow leopard should turn up." "Five days." "That's 35 hours of watching." "Nothing, no cats." "Yeah, of course it's boring." "It's boring as hell." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "After seven weeks of patiently sitting and waiting, these distant shots are all that Doug managed to film from the hide." "But luckily, the remote cameras proved to be more successful." "Whilst even a few shots of snow leopard in the wild are thrilling to see, the crew was still far from having a sequence of behavior." "Planet Earth needed to take another risk and move to a new location." "Unfortunately, where they hoped to search for snow leopard, others were already searching for Al-Qaeda." "REPORTER:" "Any American..." "REPORTER 2:" "This is the location in the war against terror..." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Only news crews were given access until the political situation became more stable." "One year later, Planet Earth was finally allowed into Pakistan." "They faced a week-long trek through terrain that was not only politically but geologically unstable." "The BBC has put us through two days of safety training." "It went from landmine clearing to hijack attempt." "And actually having watched the markhor, which we're trying to film, climb these cliffs that we're on today, the most terrifying thing is these football-sized rocks that keep flying past at head height." "You just think..." "Actually you can't prepare for that sort of thing." "Getting knocked on the head by a big rock." "Quite scary really." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "But it turned out to be worth all the risk." "The crew were in promising snow leopard terrain and soon finding plenty of signs that they were around." "MAN:" "How old do you think that one is?" "." "We just got a lot of snow, and we'll be able to track the snow leopard and so have a lot better chance of filming it." "It's just fantastic." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Good news for tracking, but the snow would make it far harder to get around." "To increase their chances of finding a snow leopard, the crew split up, leaving Mark to spend Christmas on his own." "It's gonna be the first Christmas and New Year I've spent away from my family." "I spoke to my wife and kids last night and they were just about to go out carol singing around the village." "It would've been nice to have been with them." "Um, however..." "Well, that's it really." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Although Mark woke to a white Christmas, there was no sign of the present that he had most been wishing for." "He had to wait five days before he heard any more news." "We just got a report that there's a snow leopard up on the ridge." "We were too low where we were before." "Just trying to get some height to get a better view of it." "Team on the radio said it was just up the valley on a cliff on the left here." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Finally Mark was rewarded with his first ever glimpse." "MARK:" "When I looked up onto the ridge," "I could see this leopard-shaped rock which I'd seen a million times before." "And I looked through binoculars and it was a leopard just sat there." "And I said, "Leopard, leopard!" and they went, "Nah, markhor."" "And I said, "No, look at it!"" "It was perched just on the top of a rock and it looked down at us and it sat down in a sort of sphinx-like posture." "Came down very quickly and it's in a cave just up here about 1 00 meters away, above us." "And we've just gotta stake it out now and wait." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Mark's patience had paid off." "News of his success quickly reached the tracking team." "Snow leopard?" "." "Snow leopard." "(MEN LAUGHING)" "(MEN SINGING AND CHEERING)" "I can't tell you how relieved I am." "This is just the best news ever." "And tomorrow is New Year's Eve." "So I think we're gonna party like there's no tomorrow." "No excuses, I think, on this one." "I just..." "Unbelievable." "I couldn't be happier." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "The crew were lucky enough to spend two whole weeks with this snow leopard and her cub capturing intimate details of their lives in this extremely remote location." "But the final day of filming was to bring the best luck of all." "Planet Earth'sthree-year quest ended with this extraordinary footage." "A wild snow leopard hunt." "Something few humans have ever even seen." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Only 3% of the water on our planet is fresh." "Yet these precious waters are rich with surprise." "All life on land is ultimately dependant upon fresh water." "The mysterious tepuis of Venezuela, isolated mountain plateaus rising high above the jungle." "This was the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle's Lost World, an imagined prehistoric land." "Here, strange towers of sandstone have been sculptured over the millennia by battering wind and torrential rain." "Moisture, rising as water vapor from the surface of the sea, is blown inland by wind." "On reaching mountains, the moist air is forced upwards and as it cools, it condenses into cloud and finally rain, the source of all fresh water." "There is a tropical downpour here almost every day of the year." "Fresh water's journey starts here, high in the mountains." "Growing from humble streams to mighty rivers, it will travel hundreds of miles to the sea." "Angel Falls, the highest waterfall in the world." "Its waters drop unbroken for almost 1,000 meters." "Such is the height of these falls, that long before the water reaches the base in the Devil's Canyon, it's blown away as a fine mist." "In their upper reaches, mountain streams are full of energy." "Streams join to form rivers, building in power, creating rapids." "The water here is cold, low in nutrients but high in oxygen." "The few creatures that live in the torrent have to hang on for dear life." "Invertebrates dominate these upper reaches." "The hellgrammite, its body flattened to reduce drag, has bushy gills to extract oxygen from the current." "Black fly larvae anchor themselves with a ring of hooks." "But if these become unstuck, they're still held by a silken safety line." "There are advantages to life in the fast stream." "Bamboo shrimps can just sit and sift out passing particles with their fan-like forearms." "Usually these mountain streams only provide enough food for small animals to survive, but with the spring melt here in Japan, monsters stir in their dens." "Giant salamanders, the world's largest amphibian, almost two meters long." "They're the only large predator in these icy waters." "They begin their hunt at night." "These salamanders have an exceptionally slow metabolism." "Living up to 80 years, they grow into giants." "The fish they hunt are scarce and salamanders have poor eyesight." "But sensory nodes on their head and body detect the slightest changes in water pressure." "Free from competition, these giants can dine alone." "Pickings are usually thin for the salamanders, but every year some of the world's high rivers are crowded by millions of visitors." "The salmon have arrived." "This is the world's largest freshwater fish migration." "Across the northern hemisphere, salmon, returning from the ocean to their spawning grounds, battle their way for hundreds of miles upstream." "Up here there are fewer predators to eat their eggs and fry." "A grizzly bear." "From famine to feast, he's spoilt for choice." "This Canadian bear is very special." "He's learned to dive for his dinner." "But catching salmon in deep water is not that easy, and the cubs have lots to learn." "The annual arrival of spawning salmon brings huge quantities of food into these high rivers that normally struggle to support much life." "Although relatively lifeless, the power of these upland rivers to shape the landscape is greater than any other stage in a river's life." "Driven by gravity, they're the most erosive forces on the planet." "For the past five million years," "Arizona's Colorado River has eaten away at the desert sandstone to create a gigantic canyon." "It's over a mile deep and at its widest, it's 1 7 miles across." "The Grand Canyon." "This river has cut the world's longest canyon system, a 1,000 mile scar clearly visible from space." "As rivers leave the mountains behind, they gradually warm and begin to support more life." "Indian rivers are home to the world's most social otter." "Smooth-coated otters form family groups up to 1 7 strong." "Group rubbing not only refreshes their coats, but strengthens social bonds." "When it comes to fishing, there is real strength in numbers." "Fishing practice begins when the cubs are four months old." "Only the adults have the speed and agility needed to make a catch." "Adults share their catches with their squabbling cubs." "Most otters are solitary, but these rich, warm waters can support large family groups and even bigger predators." "Mugger crocodiles, four meters long, could easily take a single otter." "But confident in their gangs, the otters will actively harass these great reptiles." "Team play wins the day." "The Mara River, snaking across the plains of East Africa." "As the land flattens out, rivers slow down and lose their destructive power." "Now they're carrying heavy loads of sediment that stains their waters brown." "Lines of wildebeest are on the march." "Each year, nearly two million animals migrate across the Serengeti Plains in search of fresh, green pastures." "For these thirsty herds, the rivers are not only a vital source of drinking water but also dangerous obstacles." "This is one of the largest concentrations of Nile crocodiles in Africa, giants that grow over five meters long." "From memory, the crocodiles know the wildebeest are coming and gather in anticipation." "The crocodile's jaws snap tight like a steel trap." "Once they have a hold, they never let go." "It took over an hour to drown this full-grown bull." "To surprise their prey, crocodiles must strike with lightning speed." "Here, only the narrowest line separates life from death." "Most rivers drain into the sea, but some end their journey in vast lakes." "Worldwide, lakes hold 20 times more fresh water than all the rivers." "The East African Rift Valley holds three of the world's largest," "Malawi, Tanganyika and Victoria." "Lake Malawi, the smallest of the three, is still bigger than Wales." "Its tropical waters teem with more fish species than any other lake." "There are 850 different cichlids alone, all of which evolved from just one single ancestor isolated here thousands of years ago." "These two-meter wide craters are fish-made." "Fastidiously maintained by the males, these bowers are courtship arenas." "Cichlids are caring parents." "Brooding young in the mouth is a very effective way of protecting them." "This lake can be a dangerous place." "After dark, predatory dolphin fish emerge from their daytime lairs among the rocks." "Like packs of sharks, they're on the prowl for sleeping cichlids." "In the darkness, these electric fish hunt by detecting distortions in the electric field they create around their bodies." "(CRACKLING)" "Any cichlid that ventures out will be snapped up." "The floor of Lake Malawi drops 700 meters into an abyss." "Here in this dead zone the larvae of lake fly midges hide out away from predators." "In the rainy season, they balloon up to the surface and undergo a magical transformation." "At dawn, the first adult midges start to break out." "Soon, millions upon millions of newly-hatched lake flies are taking to the wing." "Early explorers told tales of lakes that smoked as if on fire." "But these spiraling columns, hundreds of meters high, are mating flies." "Once the flies have mated, they will all drop to the water surface, release their eggs and die." "Malawi may look like an inland sea, but it's dwarfed by the world's largest lake." "Baikal in eastern Siberia." "Four hundred miles long and over a mile deep," "Baikal contains one-fifth of all the fresh water found in our planet's lakes and rivers." "For five months of the year, it's sealed by an ice sheet over a meter thick." "Baikal is the oldest lake in the world and despite the harsh conditions, life flourishes here in isolation." "80% of its species are found nowhere else on Earth, including the world's only freshwater seal." "With this seal and its marine-like forests of sponges," "Baikal seems more like an ocean than a lake." "There are shrimp-like crustaceans, giant amphipods as large as mice." "They are the key scavengers in this lake." "The water here is just too cold for the bacteria that normally decompose the dead." "Most rivers do not end in lakes but continue their journey to the sea." "The planet's indisputable super river is the Amazon." "It carries as much water as the next top 1 0 biggest rivers combined." "Rising in the Peruvian Andes, its main trunk flows eastwards across Brazil." "On its way, the system drains a third of South America." "Eventually, over 4,000 miles from its source, it empties into the Atlantic Ocean." "The Amazon transports a billion tons of sediment a year, sediment clearly visible at the mixing of the waters, where one massive tributary, the Rio Negro, flows into the main river." "Its waters are wonderfully rich." "To date, over 3,000 species of their fish have been described, more than in the whole of the Atlantic Ocean." "The Amazon is so large and rich in fish that it can support freshwater dolphins." "These botos are huge, 2.5 meters long." "In these murky waters, they rely on sonar to navigate and hunt." "They work together to drive shoals of fish into the shallows." "Botos are highly social and in the breeding season, there is stiff competition for mates." "The males hold court in a unique way." "They pick up rocks in their jaws and flaunt them to their attending females." "Maybe each male is trying to show how strong and dexterous he is and that he therefore is the best father a female could have for her young." "Successful displays lead to mating." "Even for giant rivers like the Amazon, the journey to the sea is not always smooth or uninterrupted." "Iguacu Falls, on the border of Brazil and Argentina, is one of the widest waterfalls in the world, 1.5 miles across." "In flood, 1 3 million liters of water spill over every second." "All the world's great broad waterfalls," "Victoria, Niagara and here, Iguacu, are only found in the lower courses of their rivers." "In their final stages, rivers broaden and flow wearily across their flat flood plains." "Each wet season here in Brazil, the Parana river overflows its banks and floods an area the size of England." "The Pantanal, the world's largest wetland." "In these slow-flowing waters, aquatic plants flourish," "like the Victoria Giant Water Lily, with leaves two-meters across." "These underwater forests are nursery grounds for fish." "Over 300 species breed here, including red-bellied piranha." "And other predators, like the spectacled caiman." "Ripening fig trees, overhanging the water's edge, provide welcome food for shoals of hungry fish." "The commotion attracts dorado, known locally as the river tiger." "They patrol the feeding shoals looking for a chance to strike." "And waiting in the wings, ready to pick off any injured fish, are the piranhas." "A feeding frenzy quickly develops." "Piranha can strip a fish to the bone in minutes." "Great numbers of fish sustain vast flocks of water birds." "The roseate spoonbill is just one of the 650 bird species found in the Pantanal." "They nest alongside woodstorks in colonies thousands strong." "Spectacled caiman linger below, waiting for a meal to fall out of the sky." "When rivers finally reach the sea, they slow down, release their sediment and build deltas." "In Bangladesh, the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers join to form the world's biggest." "Every year, almost 2,000 million tons of sediment eroded from the Himalayas is delivered to the ocean." "At the delta's mouth, the largest mangrove forest in the world, the Sunderbans." "These extraordinary forests spring up throughout the tropics in these tidal zones where rivers meet the sea." "Crab-eating macaques are mangrove specialists." "In Indonesia, these monkeys have adopted a unique amphibious lifestyle." "They fish out fallen food." "The troop also uses the waters to cool off during the heat of the day." "But the channels are also the playground for restless young macaques." "Some of the young have even taken to underwater swimming." "They can stay down for more than 30 seconds and appear to do this just for fun." "Yet these swimming skills acquired during play will certainly be useful later in life in these flooded mangrove forests." "In cooler climes, mud laid down in estuaries is colonized by salt marsh grasses, and form one of the most productive habitats on the planet." "Four hundred thousand greater snow geese flock to the estuaries along the Atlantic coast of the United States to rest and refuel on their long migratory journeys." "This is the end of the rivers' journey." "Collectively, they've worn down mountains and carried them to the sea." "And all along the way, their fresh water has brought life in abundance to planet Earth." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Filming piranhas in a feeding frenzy in the wild has rarely, if ever, been attempted and it was to prove the freshwater team's greatest challenge." "Welcome to the piranha country." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Arriving in the Pantanal with over a ton of dive and camera equipment, producer Mark Brownlow and his team were heading into uncharted waters which have never been dived before." "The piranha lives everywhere, it is the most common fish in the area." "I think I have a gift for Peter." "This will give a good idea about the size." "Oh, wow." "Got teeth." "They do look like a white shark in miniature, don't they?" "." "They are very dangerous when they are closed in, trapped in smaller groups." "At those moments, I would not dive with them." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "There are many opinions and myths associated with the dangers of piranhas, but the team were pretty confident that they should be able to film the feeding frenzy safely." "Haroldo had recced this never-ending maze of river channels a month previously and thought he knew where to find the piranhas." "Peter is highly experienced and has filmed many so-called dangerous fish." "He at least remains skeptical about the risks of diving with the piranhas." "How is that, Pete?" "." "Well, interesting, different." "No piranhas." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "In fact, the main problems seem to be finding any piranhas in the first place and the murky conditions underwater." "What's the vis like, Pete?" "." "About three bad feet." "Okay." "Well, forget filming here." "Three bad feet." "Dusty, dusty, dirty, brown, dark..." "Forget it." "Forget it." "No?" "." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "After two days of fruitless searching, tempers were beginning to fray." "This is so frustrating." "So frustrating." "What's up, Pete?" "." "It's just a waste of time." "Well, these voracious monsters haven't turned up yet." "I don't believe the Hollywood stories." "I mean, we just haven't seen any piranhas and we're in sort of hot piranha territory, so we're told." "I don't believe they exist." "(SPEAKING PORTUGUESE)" "Unfortunately, we've arrived in the wrong moment." "There is too much water around here." "Piranhas are far away from the main stream, where the water is clear." "So we must find another place." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Resorting to a spotter plane, they surveyed vast tracts of wetland" "looking for pools of clean water and potential piranha habitat." "Back on the river and it was beginning to feel more like piranha country." "These fish are part of the staple diet here." "But sometimes dinner bites back." "After several minutes, she thought that the piranha was dead and then she was removing the fish from the boat and the fish cut her." "The big bite here." "Oh, he was just removing the hook from another piranha and approached a second one that was supposed to be dead on the boat, and this one took the bite here." "Yeah." "They are very fast, like biting machines." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "A single piranha bite is one thing, but what about a hungry shoal underwater?" "." "I would advise you to not go further away under the vegetation where it's very dark, far from the main stream, and not to remain still for a long time, too, because they approach you, circling, and they come curiously and even try to bite you." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "At last, Peter was diving with piranhas, but far from being any danger, they appeared to shy away from him." "They just go further and further and further into the dark and..." "Very difficult." "They're avoiding you, do you think?" "." "They seem to be." "I don't think they're used to divers." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Without a single shot in 1 0 days, the pressure was building for Mark." "A change in tactic was called for and the team decided to try diving at night." "In this eerie underworld, they discovered shoals of fish under the thick mats of weed, but the piranhas remained as elusive as ever." "Instead, they found another predator, the spectacled caiman, and decided to try and film these crocodilians the following morning." "Above three meters, crocodiles are considered too dangerous to dive with." "But at just two meters, these caiman were the perfect subject, big enough to impress but too small to be a threat." "One came sort of quite close." "Crawled over the top of the camera and chewed me hood." "Must've thought it was some sort of purple fish or something." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Filming the caiman was a great morale booster for the team." "They returned to civilization in high spirits, where piranhas still remain top of the menu." "Piranha soup?" "." "Piranha soup." "Okay." "This is made especially from the head of the piranha, and this makes you strong." "You are going to become a macho Brazilian man." "Macho man." "Very strong one." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Haroldo had received a tip-off from local fishermen the night before of a promising piranha hot spot." "But time was running out." "You see any piranha?" "." "No, not yet." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "At first, it appeared to be another fisherman's tale, but suddenly their luck was about to change." "I can see the piranhas from here." "Okay, good luck, Pete." "Fish activity had attracted good numbers of piranhas out of the shadows, and they were starting to feed." "Yes!" "(WHOOPING)" "Clear water, good visibility, and the piranhas in frenzy." "This is what we want." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "At last, Peter was in position to film unique, wild piranha behavior." "When they are in group attacking, you must consider them dangerous." "ATTENBOROUGH:" "Despite Haroldo's concerns, the piranhas were only interested in their fish prey." "As Peter expected, they never lived up to their frightening reputation." "But he did develop a new respect for piranhas as highly effective group predators." "How was that?" "." "Well, that went in about 20 seconds." "So you got a bit of respect for these guys now?" "." "A number of those attacking en masse," "I believe they'll strip a horse's head down in three minutes, yeah." "No problem." "You still got your fingers?" "." "Yep." "Yep."