Natural World - Season 18
Season 18
Network
Episodes16
DatesOct 3, 1999 - Jul 10, 2000
Episodes
Season 18Episode 160 min
Riddle of the Right Whale
A dramatic film about Right Whales, the rarest of all the great whales. There's a race on to save them and even US nuclear submarines are part of the effort. Dramatic footage above and below the water reveals these fascinating giants battling for mates, rearing young, sailing with their tails and meeting other whales, dolphins, seals and sharks. It's called the Right Whale because it used to be the right whale to hunt - big and full of blubber. Today it's baffling biologists who cannot understand why, in spite of total protection, it refuses to recover.
Oct 3, 1999
Season 18Episode 260 min
Hokkaido: Garden of the Gods
A look at the unique wildlife of Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost island, and the island's few remaining members of the ancient Ainu race, who see all animals as sacred.
Swept by winds from the high Arctic, Hokkaido is an island of towering volcanos and fairytale forests, where cranes perform dances in the snow, brown bears plunge for salmon in rivers and eagles plunder the spoils from winter fishing fleets.
The unique wildlife of Hokkaido has long been worshipped by an ancient race of hunter-gatherers, called Ainu, a few of whom still survive among modern Japanese. Even today, they honour the natural world around them through ritualised dance and prayer.
Oct 10, 1999
Season 18Episode 360 min
Elephants of the Sand River
Beneath the forested flanks of an extinct volcano lies a cave with a mysterious secret. Kitum Cave on the slopes of Mt Elgon in Kenya is the only place on earth where elephants venture deep underground. They are forced to make the dangerous journey into the cave because of their craving for salt. Humans have been drawn to Kitum Cave for thousands of years, originally to harvest salt, but more recently to slaughter elephants, leading to local rangers Daniel and Mike being assigned to protect the survivors
Oct 17, 1999
Season 18Episode 460 min
In the Company of Bears
Insight into Canada's black bears, mountain-dwelling creatures which have developed a mutually beneficial relationship with the local human population comprising skiers and snow-boarders
Oct 24, 1999
Season 18Episode 560 min
The Temple Troop
Remarkable film following an eventful year in the life of an unruly troop of macaque monkeys in Sri Lanka's ruined city of Polonnaruwa, tracing the audacity, resourcefulness and sheer animal cunning that enables them to outwit forest prey and engage in commando-style raids on neighbouring villages. Narrated by Roshan Seth
Dec 12, 1999
Season 18Episode 660 min
The Millennium Oak
Documentary charting 1,000 years in the life of an English oak, which would have existed from before the Norman Conquest, during the Black Death, Civil War and Industrial Revolution right through to the present day. Narrated by Tom Baker
Dec 30, 1999
Season 18Episode 760 min
Wild Indonesia: Island Castaways
Shrouded in mystery,Indonesia is a bizarre and beautiful place,home to dinosaur-like komodo dragons and tree kangaroos,tropical beaches and snowy mountain peaks.Indonesia is nicknamed "the ring of fire",as this 3,000 - mile chain of 17,000 islands,running from Northern Australia to Asia,was created by volcanic eruptions 150 million years ago.Today,there are 155 active volcanoes in Indonesia,and one erupts every day,making this the most violent volcanic region on earth.With 150 million people,Java is the most densely populated island in the world and it has the largest Buddhist temple - the stunning ruins of Borobudhur that date from the eighth century.
Jan 23, 2000
Season 18Episode 860 min
Wild Indonesia: Underwater Worlds
Indonesia is one of the worldís natural wonders.In its underwater wonderland,flamboyant reef fish,huge manta rays and shimmering schools of barracudas ride the strong currents that flow between the 17,000 islands that form stepping-stones between Asia and Australia.The coral reefs are the rainforests of the sea.The people of the sea are as fascinating as the wildlife.Off the island of Sulawesi,the Bajau people,known as sea gypsies,live on the water.
Jan 30, 2000
Season 18Episode 960 min
Wild Indonesia: Magical Forests
Kangaroos in trees and flying foxes - nowhere else on the planet are their animals as weird and wonderful as in the forests of Indonesia.Despite all the destruction,two thirds of Indonesia is still jungle and,as the islands of Indonesia connect Australia to Asia,itis a unique meeting point for wildlife from East and West.Magical Forests enters the steamy jungles of Borneo, Sumatra and Java where highly endangered Asian elephants and hairy rhinos still roam.
Feb 6, 2000
Season 18Episode 1060 min
The Tiger's Tale
Insight into the daily lives of a family of Bengal tigers inhabiting the Bandhavgarh National Park in India. Sita's newborn cubs find their feet in the jungle, learning how to clean and feed themselves, while adolescent Bachi seeks a mate. Narrated by Meera Syal
Feb 20, 2000
Season 18Episode 1160 min
The Wolf's Return
Documentary reporting on an ambitious plan to reintroduce wild wolves into America's Yellowstone National Park. The animals were virtually hunted out of existence 100 years ago and this film follows one pack as they attempt to re-establish themselves in the famous mountain wilderness
May 8, 2000
Season 18Episode 1260 min
Monkey Warriors
The monkeys of Jodhpur, India, held in great reverence by the Hindu townsfolk, squabble over territory with a troop from out of town : and finally engage in a full-scale battle to settle their dispute
May 15, 2000
Season 18Episode 1360 min
Dangerous Australians
Footage of the lethal wildlife which makes living in Australia a hazardous undertaking. Venomous red-back spiders inhabit garages, funnel-webs stalk houses and gardens looking for mates and divers exploring coral reefs risk attack by a range of fiercely territorial creatures vying for space in cramped conditions
May 22, 2000
Season 18Episode 1460 min
The Crater: Africa's Predator Paradise
Documentary about the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania, which has the highest concentration of predators anywhere in the world. A huge natural bowl inhabited by over 25,000 wildebeest, it is nonetheless a difficult environment for predators, and numbers are declining
Jun 5, 2000
Season 18Episode 1560 min
Salmon: The Silver Tide
The salmon that fill the rivers of the Pacific coast of North America have one of the most miraculous and mysterious life-cycles in the entire animal kingdom.
After years feeding in the Pacific Ocean, they travel thousands of miles back to the rivers of their birth to spawn and to die. Using miniature underwater cameras, 'The Silver Tide' reveals the drama and danger of the salmon on their last great journey, as they encounter and overcome fishing nets, hungry bears, raging floods and massive waterfalls. Each year, despite these obstacles, millions of fish reach their final destination, and in doing so, sustain one of the most beautiful and wild landscapes on Earth.
Jun 19, 2000
Season 18Episode 1660 min
Claws
Insight into the lives of crabs, whether they are climbing trees, travelling over mountains, scuttling across deserts or surviving in crushing pressure near super-heated water on deep ocean vents. From exotic tropical beaches to mosquito-infested swamps, this film gathers together examples of the most unusual and intriguing of the world's crabs
Jul 10, 2000
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