"Our planet is home to millions of different species." "The big and the powerful capture our attention." "But there is another story to tell." "Beneath our feet are hidden- almost magical worlds teeming with extraordinary little creatures." "The world looks very different to them." "A falling acorn becomes a meteor." "A tiny trickle, a tsunami." "And every enemy, is a giant." "Now, using the latest technology, we can recreate the world from their perspective " "to experience it as they do." "These are tales of life from the tropical jungle, and the northern forest in the Hidden Kingdoms." "HIDDEN KINGDOMS" "SECRET FORESTS" "The ancient woods of North America." "Hundred-year-old oaks cast their shadows over a hidden world." "It's autumn." "Time for the yearly fall of acorns." "It's what every chipmunk in the forest has been waiting for." "This youngster is only six weeks old, but will soon face the most important challenge of his life." "For the smallest animals it's time to take cover." "For chipmunks, it's time to get hoarding." "Winter is on its way." "A quick quality check, and the first nut goes in the bag." "A chipmunk's tunnel may run for more than ten metres to keep its nuts safe." "And they need a hoard of more than a hundred acorns to see them through the long winter ahead." "For his first year, this youngster's done well." "But a hoard is no use unless it's well hidden." "He's being watched." "This is an older chipmunk and sneakier too." "Chipmunks are notorious thieves." "After all, why work when you can steal from someone else?" "For the burglar it's a dash back to his burrow to stock his own hoard." "Oblivious, the youngster gathers a last few "honest" nuts." "The competition is about to get a whole lot bigger." "A moose." "It's hungry for nuts too." "This holdup is one he can't afford, especially when his store is being burgled." "The young chipmunk is still held up." "Every autumn a moose can eat enough acorns to put on 100 kilograms." "Just what it needs to survive the harsh winter ahead." "And that's the problem for small animals, they just can't store enough fat." "It's why a larder of nuts is so important." "He's about get a nasty surprise." "His larder is now almost empty, and things are about to get worse." "The burglar is back, and he's a seasoned fighter." "An older, stronger chipmunk can kill a youngster." "The youngster may have escaped, but no chipmunk can survive without a store of nuts." "How will he make it through the coming winter?" "On the other side of the world is a forest where winter never comes." "The steamy jungles of Borneo- a kingdom of perpetual heat." "Concealed in the undergrowth are thousands of tiny creatures, more than anywhere else on earth." "In this hidden kingdom competition is intense." "So many different species battle for survival here." "Each one must find its own place within this crowded world." "Up in the canopy, lives one of the most curious creatures of them all." "A tree shrew, a tiny mammal whose ancestors have lived in these jungles for more than 10 million years." "Nearby is a giant mangosteen tree that provides all the fruit she needs." "Dinner is served, but it's a long way down." "Luckily tree shrews are born acrobats." "Tree shrews have the largest brain for their body size in the world and rarely make a mistake." "They also have the most demanding metabolism- they need food every two hours." "Even if it means leaving the safety of the treetops to find it." "There's no one else around and she has the fruit all to herself." "For now." "Darkness brings a change to the forest." "Only the toughest creatures venture out, with their very effective weapons." "Thousands of vicious quills on a porcupine's back means he'll be left to eat in peace." "At night, the best place for a tree shrew is safe up in the nest." "Until now the forest has provided well." "But she's yet to learn how fickle the rainforest can be." "Morning, and like every tree shrew she wakes up hungry." "Someone's up before her." "And they're heading right for the great tree." "Orang-utans are 500 times her size." "They are fruit-eating machines and can strip a tree bare in no time." "They're not the only ones attracted to fruit-bearing trees." "The hungry will come from far and wide." "If she's going to get her breakfast she'd better hurry." "Forest giants have got there first." "Weighing more than a man, these bearded pigs are as aggressive as they are greedy." "Unluckily for the shrew, pigs have the most sensitive noses in the forest." "Nothing escapes their attention." "Breakfast is disappearing." "To eat again means finding another fruiting tree and fast." "But in the rainforest, trees in fruit are actually few and far between." "This young tree shrew must leave her home and search deep into the jungle." "She will need all her wits to survive." "In the hidden kingdom of the northern woods, it's leaves, not acorns, that are falling now." "Winter is just a breath away." "Small animals are already hunkering down for winter." "A wood frog buries itself, soon to become a living block of ice." "Once the freeze sets in, this chipmunk won't last long without a store of nuts." "Facing an empty larder this late in the season means a chipmunk is forced to forage in enemy territory." "Spotted." "No neighbour will tolerate an intruder." "Not where nuts are concerned." "That sound is irresistible." "There's a reason why chipmunks don't gather nuts from here." "This is the home of a silent killer." "A horned owl." "Owls sleep during the day, so he might just get away with it." "So far, so good, but he still needs lots more nuts." "The days are getting shorter and once it's dark, it's a very different proposition." "Owls have extremely sensitive hearing." "Time to go." "Speed may have saved him," "but his larder is still half empty." "And even worse, the first frost of winter is upon him." "Chipmunks can't survive outside in the cold." "Back in the rainforest, the tree-shrew's supply of fruit has run dry." "She needs an alternative source of food..." "And there's the daily shower to contend with." "When you're this small, raindrops are like water bombs." "She must make up for lost time." "Down on the forest floor, dangers lurk around every corner." "Fire ants." "They sting with acid." "Not to be disturbed, unless you're armour plated." "A pangolin has claws as strong as a bear's and eats fire ants for lunch." "She's drawn by the scent of something tasty." "Pitcher plants are carnivorous, known for luring insects to a watery grave." "This one lures hungry tree shrews." "The inside of the lid is covered in a sweet secretion." "But the liquid is a laxative, and a fast acting one." "The pitcher was after nutrients in the tree shrew's dung." "It means she is now running on empty." "And worse, she's not alone." "A reticulated python." "Instinct sends her up to the canopy." "No snake can climb as fast as this." "But nightfall is approaching." "Night is no time for a tree shrew to be up and about." "You never know who you might bump into." "Twice her size, flying foxes are the largest bats in the world." "They're able to fly from one fruit tree to another." "More than half the creatures of the jungle are nocturnal, but for a daytime creature, night in the rainforest is an alien world." "Strange fungi light the way." "Why they glow is one of nature's mysteries." "Their light doesn't travel far." "It's almost pitch dark." "These tarsiers are only ten centimetres tall." "They're hunting." "Nothing escapes their huge eyes and acute hearing." "Not even the stealthiest predator in the forest." "This python is also an expert night hunter." "It has heat-sensing pits on the side of its face and can follow the heat trail of a warm blooded mammal, even in the dark." "In the wild woods, dawn melts away the first ground frost." "But it was a warning." "Finding his stolen nuts and getting them back is now the youngster's only chance." "The nut thief is going out." "The youngster will have to be quick." "Caught in the act." "It's flight or fight." "He chooses fight" "The youngster's won." "He can reclaim his stolen nuts, while the thief nurses his wounded pride." "The youngster had better hurry, winter is here." "Back in the jungle, the young tree shrew is weak with hunger, and is being pursued by the most relentless predator in the forest." "She's driven higher." "Another snake." "Cornered." "There's only one way out..." "But it's further than she's ever jumped before." "Speed, distance, and timing must be judged to perfection." "Safe." "And, at last, a fruiting tree." "For today, the adventure is over." "But soon, her search will begin again." "With each day that passes, this clever little creature will grow a little wiser and better able to cope with the danger that comes her way." "In the Hidden Kingdom, life never slows down." "Except perhaps in the temperate forest, when the big freeze sets in." "Although for many animals this is a time of hardship, for a chipmunk, it's a chance to take a well-deserved rest." "The start of six months of peaceful sleep." "And when he gets hungry he'll wake, briefly and his nuts will be there." "They'll last him all the way until spring, when he'll re-emerge, ready to begin again." "Few little creatures survive their first months, but for those that do, what they have learned should make life become just that little bit easier, in the hidden kingdoms of the forests."