The spectacled bear is the most threatened of all the bears. ibid.
The bears making beds in the trees. ibid.
Spectacled bears have probably always scavenged on carcasses. ibid.
A giant roams the world’s oceans. At more than 12 metres long the whale shark is the largest fish in the sea. Natural World s27e2: Whale Sharks
Then off tropical coast and coral reefs the what shark suddenly appears. ibid.
Unlike a true whale these sharks don’t need to come up for air and can spend several days deep underwater. ibid.
‘They’re still one of the most feared animals in North America. My name is Lynn Rogers: I’ve studied black bears for over forty years.’ Natural World s28e1: Bearwalker of the Northwoods, Rogers, BBC 2009
‘It’s amazing the difference in personality among bears.’ ibid.
Black bears stay with their cubs for more than a year. ibid.
A third of Africa’s elephants live here: in dense dark rain-forests. Forest elephants stand just two metres at the shoulder, are more slightly built and have pinker tusks than those on the savannah. (Animals & Elephants) Natural World s28e14: Forest Elephants, Rumbles in the Jungles
Forest elephants are now under greater threat than their savannah cousins. ibid.
Each family has its own distinctive call. ibid.
The Orinoco river basin in Venezuela is a strangely eerie place. It’s a lost world with some of the largest areas of pristine jungle left in South America. These forests are the stronghold of a secretive, poorly understood bird of prey. The harpy eagle: they’re massive birds which snatch large monkeys from the tree-tops. Natural World s29e1: The Monkey-Eating Eagle
This is the eagle of all eagles. ibid.
The coast of California is a wild and unpredictable place. It is the home of the Californian sea otter – a small animal in a huge ocean. The shoreline divides us – marking the edge of our edge and the beginning of theirs. Natural World s29e3: Sea Otters: A Million Dollar Baby
The mum gave birth right here on the dock. ibid.
There are 2,500 sea otters here. ibid.
Sea otters don’t eat fish. ibid.
Meet Brutus, the leader of the Kyambura chimps. His community is plagued by nightmare teenagers, naughty kids, squabbling adults and serious rivalry. But that’s pretty normal for chimps. Brutus has a problem that’s much more serious: these chimps live in a deep and ancient forested gorge that cuts through the plains of Africa’s Rift Valley. The Kyambura Gorge may be a lush oasis but it’s also their prison. Brutus and the chimps are trapped. As the pressures of isolation take hold, can they stick together or will they self-destruct? Natural World s29e11: Chimps of the Lost Gorge
The Kyambura chimps have been marooned in a five-mile gorge in a corner of south-west Uganda for nearly fifteen years. ibid.
Could this be evolution in action? ibid.
I’ve seen skilled builders, I’ve discovered spotters and burglars, I’ve noticed interior decoration, I’ve found store-rooms and air-conditioning and even en-suite bathrooms, I’ve visited animal cities and huge communities. Wild home-makers are special creatures. Natural World s30e6: Animal House
Scaled up to our size termite mounds would be almost a mile high. ibid.
The greatest animal houses in the world are caves. ibid.
She [bamboo rat] has the same iron-coated teeth as the beavers: both are rodents. ibid.
Winter in the suburbs of London. It’s late, people are tucked up, or watching David Attenborough on the tele. There’s a migration going on here too. The last bus does its rounds. The old residents of this place are looking to reclaim the streets. Fallow deer are stepping in a world where nothing is quite natural. Natural World s30e14: Unnatural History of London, BBC 2012
There are other mass migrations and alien invasions, a world most of us never see … This is the real urban jungle. ibid.
This seal can escape to the Thames should she choose to do so but prefers to stay [Billingsgate fish market] … ‘What she likes most are the squid’ … ‘salmon and trout.’ ibid.
Hedgehogs have it tougher than most. ibid.
To the feral pigeon, the streets of London are paved with gold. ibid.
Foxes and feral cats migrate through the City seeking their fortunes. ibid.
Train-riding pigeons: Is this a new kind of evolution? ibid.
The pelicans have been here since 1664. ibid.
At dusk wave after wave of parakeets can build to a roost of over 6,000 birds. ibid.
There are now three separate colonies of scorpion living in London. ibid.
The giant otter – six feet long from tip to tail. They’re known in the Amazon as wolves of the river. Natural World s31e9: Giant Otters of the Amazon, BBC 2013
Otters have got unique throat markings, rather like fingerprints. ibid.
Giant otters live in family groups. ibid.
They do have an arch-enemy here on the lake: black caiman. ibid.
There are over 700 black caiman here on this lake. ibid.
The jaguar is the ultimate forest hunter. ibid.
Beyond the southern tip of India lies a jewel in the ocean – Sri Lanka. It’s a land of extraordinary beauty, of jungles, mountains and vast fertile plains. A rich variety of animals live here; many of them are found nowhere else. But for me one animal stands out – it’s totally iconic and instantly recognized right around the globe. Sri Lanka is home to its own unique sub-species of the Asian elephant. They look very different from their African cousins: their ears are smaller, their foreheads domed and their backs more arched. Natural World s32e4: Sri Lanka: Elephant Island
The elephants here swipe clumps of grass against their feet before eating it; something I’ve not seen before. It seems to be their way of knocking off the sand and dust that sticks to the roots when they pull it from the ground. ibid.
Sri Lankan elephants have a matriarchal society. ibid.
Carried over the remote forests of Bornea is a very precious cargo. Meet Leonora. She doesn’t know it but she is a pioneer. With a handful of old friends Leonora is on an adventure into the unknown. She and her baby boy are leaving behind the security of a lifetime in captivity for a chance of freedom, with a chance for a new life as a truly wild orangutan. Natural World s32e6: Orangutans: The Great Ape Escape, BBC 2013
Vultures – the most maligned of the world’s birds, the undertakers, the cleaners, able to strip a carcass in minutes, these birds have got to be tough and aggressive to survive in one of the most savage environments on Earth. But there’s more to these birds than meets the eye. Natural World s32e10: Vultures: Beauty in the Best
Vultures are one of the few animals known to rely solely on carcasses on the dead for food. ibid.
There are 23 species of vultures worldwide. ibid.
The power and the efficiency of it. ibid.
I’m amazed how cautious the vultures are. ibid.
Vultures and hyenas relay on each other but their relationship is a fractious one. ibid.
Endless form, startling and beautiful. Natural World s33e4: Nature’s Misfits, BBC 2014
Others fascinate us by well being a bit odd. Creatures that don’t normally grab the limelight. ibid.
Giant pandas are so dependent on bamboo that it affects every aspect of their lives. ibid.
Flying fish are definitely fish. They take to the air to avoid underwater predators. Gliding up to 400 metres. ibid.
This is the world’s heaviest and only flightless parrot … Kakapos can be surprisingly nimble on the ground … only 125 left in the wild. ibid.
Mudskippers look like creatures that began to evolve then got stuck halfway. A fish that can live out of water. ibid.