Category: nature

Exploring some of the world’s most isolated and iconic tropical islands.

Otters are playful, adaptable and champion swimmers – they’ve captivated cameraman Charlie Hamilton James for the last 25 years. He’s filmed them more than anyone else and now, through the eyes of three orphaned river otters, a set of groundbreaking experiments and some incredible wild encounters, Charlie wants to reveal their survival secrets and exactly why he believes they’re so special.

Deep in the jungles of Peru, a silky anteater is fighting to stay awake and a mother hummingbird is struggling to raise her chick. As this documentary reveals, life in his incredible part of the planet faces changing conditions.

Born from volcanic fire 25 million years ago, the Andes are the longest mountain chain on the planet. Pushed upwards by huge tectonic forces, they continue to rise, creating new landscapes and new habitats for a diverse variety of creatures. Explore the mountains’ extremes and celebrate the animals that call it home on a 4,000-mile journey along the western edge of South America, from icy Southern Patagonia to the oxygen-deprived Altiplano plateau to the northern tropical Andes.

The island of Barro Colorado in the Panama Canal is full of mysteries, some involving the wide diversity of wildlife, and some involving the island itself. Every year, hundreds of scientists and students come here to uncover the rainforest’s secrets, but this year is very different. The island is running dry and no one knows why. Follow several research teams as they observe, experiment, and conduct research in this pristine habitat, and most pressing of all, try to find out what happened to the rain and when it will come again.

Documentary about the world’s first National Park, filmed over a two-year period.

The wildlife and environments of this Latin American wonder are the most diverse and inspiring that anyone could wish to explore. Up until now its glories have been often overlooked… whilst trouble made the headlines. For the first time this cinematic series will reveal Colombia’s wild lands, wild life and the people who, everyday, are a part of it. Like the amazing creatures of Colombia the humans have battled, overcome, adapted and embraced the environments around them. Many people have become an integral part of the ecosystem others work selflessly to safeguard it. This film celebrates nature’s diversity and will also be a timely wake up call for all people to protect the creatures and respect the habitats that are Colombia’s wondrous wild treasures. Through artful photography and exceptional access, the film will explore the nature of Colombia at it most extreme and spectacular and at its most delightful and uplifting. A film of natural stories, striking splendour and surprising charm that will unveil a wild Colombia you wont forget.

The Auckland Islands are an isolated archipelago of islands far south of New Zealand. They might seem bleak, but they are a surprising sanctuary for wildlife. In summer, hordes of giant sea lions descend upon a desolate beach, and testosterone-driven males begin bloody battles for mating rights. When the pregnant females return to give birth on the beach, chaos ensues. The pups are always in danger of being squashed by overly eager males. Some of the rarest penguins on the planet, the yellow-eyed penguins, are also breeding here and must constantly evade the huge brawling male sea lions. Southern royal albatross, giant petrels and skuas are other species that go to extremes to ensure their offspring’s survival. The drama of summer in the sub-Antarctic islands peaks as the sea lion pups dare to take their very first ocean swims.

Following a trail of fossils found in all the wrong places–beech trees in Antarctica, redwoods and hippo-like mammals in the Arctic–NOVA uncovers the bizarre history of the poles, from miles-thick ice sheets to warm polar forests teeming with life.

Since 1976, the Dead Sea’s level has dropped more than 100 feet, leaving its coastline pockmarked with thousands of sinkholes. NOVA follows the unprecedented endeavor to connect the Red Sea to the Dead Sea by way of a massive desalination plant – perhaps the world’s largest water chemistry experiment – as scientists race to save the Dead Sea and bring water to one of the driest regions on Earth.

Explore the stark landscape, frigid sea, and wild animals in one of the most remote and inhospitable places on Earth. National Geographic Pristine Seas Explorer-in-residence Enric Sala leads a group of scientists on the first international scientific expedition to Franz Josef Land. His team works with Russia’s most formidable biologists, geomorphologists and ornithologists to understand how climate change is affecting this remote ecosystem. From diving in subzero temperatures to running away from polar bears to avoiding titanic icebergs, the Pristine Seas team faces some of its most dangerous challenges to date. Produced by National Geographic Studios

Filmed over two years by cinematographer Kim Wolhuter (Nature: The Cheetah Children), NATURE takes viewers into the heart of an African wild dog family. When lions kill her mate, a wild dog mother called Puzzles suddenly must raise two generations of pups all on her own without the help of a pack.