Eden: Untamed Planet (2021) s01e05 Episode Script

1
NARRATOR:
At the tip of South America,
spanning Chile and Argentina,
lies a remote and frozen domain.
It's known as Patagonia.
17 million years ago,
the clash of tectonic plates
creased and buckled
the landscape.
Vast glaciers shaped it
into an Eden like no other.
Isolated by sheer distance
and preserved in time.
Adaptable and resilient
creatures
(grunting)
NARRATOR:
evolved unique
survival strategies
(squawking)
NARRATOR:
to flourish
across its remarkable habitats.
From precipitous
mountain citadels
and icy desert plateaus
windswept steppe uplands
through remote,
primal forests
to a mosaic of glacial valleys.
To thrive here
is to be as extreme
as the land itself.
There are still places on Earth
that remain pristine.
Where wildlife flourishes.
These are the last regions
that could be called
Eden.
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Our journey begins high
in the Andean mountains.
Almost 5,000 miles
of jagged peaks
extend the length of Patagonia,
where their influence
shapes life itself
in this remote
and mysterious land.
North of Patagonia,
in the shadow of the Andes,
lies one of the driest,
most inhospitable
deserts on earth
Atacama.
Almost 40,000 square miles.
There are places here
with no recorded rainfall
in 500 years.
Around 16,000 feet up
the ultraviolet radiation
is so intense
it can burn human skin
in minutes.
Yet for some,
this is paradise.
(squawking)
NARRATOR: Every spring, from as
far away as southern Patagonia,
2,000 miles away,
thousands of flamingos gather.
Descending on shallow lagoons,
they feed on
vast algal blooms
and the prolific brine shrimp
that flourish here
from which the birds inherit
their fiery coloring.
Every little helps when
you need to attract a mate
in a crowd of lookalikes.
22 weeks later,
the lake is a nursery
for thousands of chicks.
For safety,
they stick together in creches.
(chirping)
NARRATOR:
Culpeo foxes patrol the shore
so it pays to keep up.
Watchful guardians
are on hand
shepherding
the hungry youngsters
to the richest feeding grounds.
They have just three months
to fatten up on shrimp
and build the strength to fly
(chirping)
NARRATOR:
before the onset of winter.
By April, nightly temperatures
fall to 22 degrees
below freezing.
At dawn, the surface of the lake
is frozen solid
(whimpering)
NARRATOR: cutting off
the food supply
and imprisoning the fledglings.
Only adults have the strength
to break their bonds
and make good their escape.
Even as the lake
begins to thaw
shackles of salt and ice
continue to weigh
the chicks down.
(chirping)
NARRATOR: And with every day
deeper into winter
cold and lack of food
take a toll.
But a breath of seasonal wind
offers hope.
(chirps)
NARRATOR:
Gaining strength
it provides just enough lift
for a last chance at liberty.
♫ Classical Music Playing ♫
NARRATOR: Trading their rich
nursery feeding grounds
for the southern lowlands,
they'll find refuge
from the grip of winter.
(wind blowing)
NARRATOR: As the Andes
runs south into Patagonia
its tallest peaks tower
13,000 feet or more.
Despite the extreme conditions,
some creatures find sanctuary
in this remote mountain refuge
year round.
Emerging from its burrow
to catch the first rays
the viscacha.
These members
of the chinchilla family
are hardy mountain specialists.
Way up here,
sunbathing is more lifesaver
than luxury
raising their body temperatures
after the chill of night.
But snoozing in the sun
can be a perilous pastime.
On the prowl
an Andean cat.
These intimate images
are the first ever filmed
of South America's
rarest feline species,
numbering a thousand or less.
Twice the size
of his domestic cousins,
he's protected from bitter cold
by dense fur
over an inch and half long.
But a cat still needs
fresh meat for fuel.
Even when dozing,
those 2.5-inch ears
are tuned in
to signs of trouble.
He knows he'll get
another chance
in over 30 square miles
of territory.
But as global temperatures
rise with climate change,
his cold mountain habitat
is shrinking
and this unique cat,
so perfectly adapted,
would overheat
in warmer conditions.
But for now, the Andean cat
continues to enjoy
its top-of-the-world life.
Each dawn, another
of Patagonia's residents
awakens in its mountain eyrie.
The world's heaviest
soaring bird
the Andean condor.
At almost 30 pounds,
this six-month-old juvenile
has already reached
his weight limit.
Launching at first light
could mean risking
a crash landing
4,000 feet below.
So, his flight plan
is to follow
the more experienced adults.
Waiting patiently
for thermals
that rise with
the strengthening sun.
A plucked feather lets them know
when it's safe to fly.
If it floats up,
they're clear for take-off.
And now a youngster
can have confidence
in his leap of faith.
On ten-foot wings,
the condors soar.
Effortlessly gliding
over 300 miles a day
in search of food
across the high plateau
to the east of the Andes
known as the steppe.
In the rain shadow
of the mountains,
precipitation is largely blocked
by the high peaks.
So in this wintry desert,
only grass and shrub
can take root.
And yet it's more than enough
for the largest wild herbivore
on the Patagonian steppe
the guanaco.
(snorts)
NARRATOR:
A relative of the camel,
they can gain all the moisture
they need from grazing.
Kitted out in coats
of double-layered insulation
(wind blowing)
NARRATOR:
they withstand polar winds
that howl across
the open steppe.
For safety,
they gather in large herds.
These grasslands are prowled
by the puma.
(hisses)
NARRATOR:
At 300 pounds,
an adult guanaco
is three times her size.
A kick could leave her
badly wounded.
(wind blowing)
NARRATOR:
With so many eyes keeping watch
and such little cover
pumas must use
the shape of the land
to their advantage.
Approaching downwind
to close the distance
to 30 feet.
A change in wind direction
(hisses)
(guanacos screeching)
NARRATOR:
and her cover is blown.
(grunting)
NARRATOR: But this is
a resilient hunter.
Stalking prey
for up to five hours
possibly longer than any
of the solitary cats.
Finally within range,
she makes her move.
(guanaco screams)
NARRATOR: This kill
will feed her for four days.
Across the steppe, any remains
are quickly targeted
by the eye in the sky
the condor.
(flies buzzing)
NARRATOR:
First on the scene,
the young male claims his prize.
(flies buzzing)
NARRATOR: Ignoring his smaller
two-foot-tall cousin,
a black vulture,
he tucks in,
knowing he won't have long.
From a height of 15,000 feet,
other condors
can locate a carcass
from over four miles away.
Next to arrive, an adult male.
(hisses)
NARRATOR:
Standing almost four feet tall,
adorned with his very own crown.
(squawks)
NARRATOR: Condors adhere
to a strict feeding hierarchy.
And the youngster
is at the bottom
of the pecking order.
Only when he reaches maturity
in just another five or so years
will he join the grandees
at the top table.
Until then,
he must wait for them
to retire for a clean-up
(hisses)
NARRATOR: before making do
with leftovers.
(wind blowing)
NARRATOR: On the plateaus
below the condor eyries,
every spring, glacial melt water
pools in depressions.
Crystal lakes
temporarily transform
the barren steppe
into a paradise
for one of Patagonia's
most precious inhabitants.
(birds squawking)
NARRATOR:
Driven almost to extinction
by invasive species
the hooded grebe.
This is their time to shine
as the world population
of just over 700 gather.
Coinciding with the
yearly mass-emergence
of mayfly.
The main attraction here
is the chance
to dance.
(sings)
♫ Upbeat Music Playing ♫
NARRATOR:
For a young male,
it's the very first opportunity
to find a mate.
If he's going to be
taken seriously,
he needs to channel
some of the Latin flair
and flamboyance on show here.
(singing)
♫ Latin Music Playing ♫
NARRATOR:
It helps to look good too.
The next move could be
make or break.
Mate or wait another year.
These moves are certainly
turning heads.
This female likes what she sees.
They take center stage together.
She'll score him on technique
creativity
and performance.
Top marks are awarded
with a frond of waterweed
called milfoil
which he dutifully returns.
In Patagonia,
even a blustery lake
can set the scene
for a glorious romance
that gives their species hope.
(calling)
While the eastern plateau
of the Patagonian Andes
is defined by the dry steppe
Patagonia's western slopes
could not offer
greater contrast.
Millennia of flowing glaciers
and raging meltwater torrents
have sculpted a landscape
of vertiginous ravines
and isolated valleys
so remote that forests
of living fossils
evoke the days of the dinosaur.
The last tracts of
monkey puzzle trees on Earth.
Canyons carved
as far as the coastline
form one of the most
extensive fjordlands
in the world.
(insects chirping)
NARRATOR: Bathed in moisture
swept in from the Pacific Ocean,
rich, untouched
temperate rainforests
shelter prolific,
primordial life
found nowhere else.
Just over one foot tall,
the pudu,
the world's smallest deer.
Darwin's stag beetles
armed with monster jaws
to wrestle opponents.
And the world's
most southerly hummingbird
the Green-backed Firecrown,
can prosper despite the cold
powered by sugary
quintral nectar.
Before nightfall,
it must find shelter
from plummeting temperatures.
(insects buzzing)
NARRATOR:
Yet one animal curiosity
braves the cold after dark.
A prehensile tail
and arboreal acrobatics
earned it the name
the 'little mountain monkey',
the monito del monte,
an ancient marsupial.
Weighing less than
two silver dollars
allows him to survive
on the slim autumn pickings.
But being small
also makes him
vulnerable to cold.
As night temperatures drop
to below freezing
he needs shelter fast.
Tree holes offer refuge
but an empty nest, nuh-uh,
is no good for him.
This could work. Hmm?
No one there.
Just what he's looking for
Company.
A group of five snoozing
mountain monkeys
that form a life-saving cocoon
of communal body heat.
A monito has one last trick.
By lowering his heart rate
to just three beats a minute
he enters into torpor,
a hibernation
that conserves energy.
His extreme adaptation
transforms a chilly wood
into the lap of luxury.
As Patagonia's
temperate rain forest
descends to sea level
daytime temperatures
rise to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
And if your body
is around 50 percent fat
it pays to take to the shade.
The Southern elephant seal.
At over four tons,
the largest seal on Earth.
Hauling out
in this glacial bay
(barking)
NARRATOR: gives them a chance
to spruce up their fur
with a restorative molt.
In the past,
this left them vulnerable.
(snorts)
NARRATOR: Hunters prized
their blubber and meat.
(grunting)
NARRATOR: Today,
thanks to strict protection,
this is a healthy colony of 70.
But seniority
is still being disputed,
as in any group of young males.
(bellowing)
NARRATOR: If menacing bellows
aren't enough,
blows aimed
at toughened neck hide
establish who's the boss of who.
(grunting)
NARRATOR: But this adult alpha,
with his outstanding nose,
pays little heed
to whippersnappers
half his size.
By early evening,
they've worked up an appetite
so they head out
into the fertile waters
that provide these giants
with all the food they need.
These coastal fjords
owe their productivity
to Patagonia's vast ice fields.
Outside Antarctica,
they're the largest
in the Southern Hemisphere.
Since forming
in the last ice age,
they have
incrementally advanced,
carried forward
by 5,000 gigatons of weight.
From mountain to coast
San Rafael Glacier extends
20 miles up the valley.
The height of summer
is when it's most active.
Its 100-foot face fractures
into icebergs
the size of small houses.
They gradually melt away
unlocking the store
of volcanic nutrients
carried from the mountain tops.
But now, due to climate change,
this is one of the
fastest-disappearing glaciers
on the planet.
Half its previous height,
it calves more than 60 feet
every day.
Releasing a potential
overdose of fertilizer
into the fjord
that threatens
the delicate balance
of this ecosystem.
Glacial melt water
mingled with rich
Antarctic currents
allow Patagonia's
extensive coastline
to sustain some
of the greatest concentrations
of marine life on Earth.
(seabirds squawking)
NARRATOR:
After a day's hunting in waters
abounding in fish and squid
around two million
Magellanic penguins
return to feed their young.
Some trudge
over a mile inland
heading for their colony.
In Monte Leon,
87,000 penguins
crowd into just
three miles of coastline.
(penguins honking)
NARRATOR:
Myriad burrows,
up to six feet deep,
have been dug
by generations of penguins.
(honking)
NARRATOR: Each bunker
is fiercely contested.
(honking)
NARRATOR:
The stakes are high.
Darkness brings danger
to those with nowhere to hide.
Captured using
heat-sensitive technology
a female puma
is on the hunt.
Equipped with keen
night vision
(penguins honking)
NARRATOR:
she passes through the colony
virtually undetected
by the penguins
whose low-light sight
is comparatively poor.
On the beach,
they're easy pickings.
(honking)
NARRATOR: Panic spreading
through the colony
does nothing to deter her.
She'll catch eight or more.
Too many for her to eat
but she's a mother.
She needs to provide
for her cubs.
(honking)
NARRATOR:
At 12 weeks old,
they're too young
to hunt for themselves.
In behavior
only recently observed,
penguins now provide
a rich food source for pumas.
At dawn, the family heads
five or more miles inland.
Returning to their home
in the low-lying steppe.
(sheep bleating)
NARRATOR:
Over the last 100 years,
as much as 90 percent
of their habitat
has been overgrazed by sheep
forcing natural prey
to move away
and leading farmers
into conflict with the puma.
But there is hope.
Some are returning farmland
to the natural state
allowing areas of steppe
to rewild.
In this world of extremes,
adaptability
is the key to success.
As long as we protect
such a unique
and varied habitat
for Patagonia,
life at the very ends
of the Earth
could be an everlasting Eden.
NARRATOR:
Filming for over a year
the Eden team braved
the ever-changing
MAN:
Typical Patagonian summer.
NARRATOR:
and extreme conditions
of Patagonia.
MAN:
Look at that!
That is whopping!
NARRATOR: Employing
the latest filming technology,
the crew set out to capture
groundbreaking new behaviors
from its coasts
and pristine lowland forests
MAN:
Go, go, go, go, go!
NARRATOR: up to the high peaks
of the Andes
in search of
its rarest wildlife.
MAN: We really don't know
that much about the Andean cat.
Imagine this is like
a mini snow leopard.
NARRATOR: With closer encounters
than they had bargained for.
MAN:
I just found in my tent.
NARRATOR:
But the greatest challenge
was to tell the story
of flamingo chicks'
epic struggle to fledge
in some of the most
testing conditions on Earth.
Camera operator Tom Ross
and team
venture into the vast
and unforgiving Atacama Desert.
TOM:
It's freezing cold at night,
it's boiling in the midday.
It's basically like working
on a knife edge.
NARRATOR:
Timing their arrival to coincide
with the peak of the flamingo
nesting season
only to be confronted
with devastating news.
As you can tell all around me,
there are thousands
of empty nests.
NARRATOR:
This year, the adult flamingos
have abandoned
their newly-laid eggs.
The rangers believe
that this could be due
to the climate, it's been
hotter and drier this year.
Last year there was 500 born,
and this year there's none.
To realize and see that
first-person
it's quite hard-hitting.
NARRATOR:
The team head higher
into the heart
of the Atacama Desert
in the hope that the flamingos
are still breeding
in the cooler conditions
up here.
But recent flooding
has created waterlogged plains,
making their passage
near impossible.
(engines revving)
JUSTINE:
Our rescue car
is now also stuck in the mud,
um, so we're gonna have
to rescue the rescue car
(engine revving)
NARRATOR: Being so remote,
there's no other help on hand
so there's little choice
but to wait
until the plains dry out.
Three days later
WOMAN:
Yeah!
NARRATOR:
back on the road.
(man shouts in joy)
NARRATOR:
The team finally reach
one of the highest
and most remote salt flats
in Atacama.
Their reward?
A healthy colony
of newly-hatched
flamingo chicks.
They're just little bundles
of joy to watch.
Their gangly legs,
their little giblet wings,
and, you know,
they run like a kid
with a cape
around the school playground,
trying to fly like Superman.
NARRATOR:
Tom can now settle in
for a month of hide-work,
charting their
early development.
But the extreme conditions
that come
with working in this
high-altitude desert
begin to take their toll.
TOM: Going through
nearly knee-deep mud,
it's an absolute mission.
Um the lack of oxygen
is really hard to deal with.
Some people, like myself,
get headaches.
Um I mean, everything you do,
is exhausting.
NARRATOR:
Toughing it out brings benefits.
The locals are becoming
more friendly.
TOM: It's taken weeks
and weeks and weeks
for these flamingo chicks
to get accustomed to us.
And this morning,
they've literally just walked
straight past me
without a care in the world.
NARRATOR: To capture
the chicks' full story,
the crew returns
two months later
to face even more
extreme conditions.
By early winter,
the chicks must cope
with temperatures
that drop to sub-zero.
TOM:
Not only were they pinned in
from the night before,
they also have these shackles
of ice and salt
which weigh them down.
They've only just started
to fledge,
and they can't fly
because they're full of ice.
It's just crazy.
[CHUCKLES]
NARRATOR: After over three
months of sharing their company,
witnessing all
they have endured,
Tom has formed a deep attachment
to the chicks.
One of the hardest things
of filming wildlife,
is it's not
the braving the elements,
it's more of a mental
and emotional rollercoaster,
especially when you film
something that's so young
and you see them perish
one by one.
They have absolutely everything
thrown at them,
absolutely everything.
It's just true to how hardy
these flamingos are because
it's absolutely savage up here.
NARRATOR: Though the hardship
of their early lives
was sometimes emotional
for the crew
the safety offered
by this extreme habitat
means flamingos in Patagonia
will continue to flourish.