Original subtitles

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NARRATOR: WHEN YOU SEE THIS SYMBOL, YOU KNOW YOU'RE WATCHING

TELEVISION THAT IS EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL.

THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

DYLAN: HI EVERYONE, I'M DYLAN DREYER, AND WE ARE HEADING OUT

TO EXPLORE EUROPE'S WILD PLACES.

THIS IS EARTH ODYSSEY.

COMING UP, THESE FEISTY FELLOWS ARE FIGHTING FOR THE HIGH GROUND

IN A BATTLE ROYALE.

AND FOR THIS LITTLE ONE, KEEPING SAFE MEANS KEEPING PERFECTLY

STILL.

PLUS, WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LIVE SEMI-WILD IN THE SOUTH OF

FRANCE.

AND THIS IS NO ORDINARY PREDATOR, BUT JUST WHO IS EATING

WHOM?

THESE WILDLIFE STORIES AND MUCH MORE, JUST AHEAD ON EARTH

ODYSSEY.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: FROM THE MOUNTAINS TO THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA, EUROPE IS

HOME TO A SURPRISING NUMBER OF WILD ANIMALS.

THOUSANDS OF YEARS OF CIVILIZATION HAVE DIMINISHED THE

GREAT FORESTS, BUT HIGH IN THE ALPINE WOODS, ONE SPECIES HAS

MASTERED THE ART OF SURVIVAL BY KNOWING EXACTLY WHEN TO MOVE AND

WHEN TO KEEP PERFECTLY STILL.

FOR MORE THAN 700 MILES, THE EUROPEAN ALPS FORM A CONTINUOUS

CHAIN OF PEAKS AND CHASMS.

TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS CAN EXCEED 140 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT

BETWEEN SUN AND SHADE.

TO SURVIVE IN SUCH A DEMANDING ENVIRONMENT, ANIMALS HAVE

EVOLVED IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR BLOOD,

LUNGS, AND HEART.

IN WINTER, AT HIGH ALTITUDES, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AN

ANIMAL'S BODY TEMPERATURE AND THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE CAN BE

MORE THAN 160 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.

THE THICK FUR OF THE IBEX, AN ICONIC WILD GOAT, CHANGES WITH

THE SEASONS AND THE TEMPERATURE.

BY RAISING AND LOWERING THE HAIRS OF ITS FUR COAT, THE

ANIMAL VARIES THE AMOUNT OF TRAPPED AIR IT CONTAINS,

EFFECTIVELY REGULATING THE HEAT THAT ESCAPES TO THE OUTSIDE.

IN THE LONG MONTHS WHEN FOOD SOURCES ARE BOTH RARE AND ALSO

HAVE LITTLE NUTRITIONAL VALUE, ANYTHING THAT ALLOWS THE SAVING

OF HEAT CAN PROVE TO BE VITAL.

EVEN FOXES LIVING AT HIGH ALTITUDES HAVE A MUCH THICKER

COAT.

A EUROPEAN RED FOX CAN SIT FOR HOURS PROTECTED FROM THE COLD.

HE CAN SURVIVE TEMPERATURES AS LOW AS MINUS FIVE DEGREES

FAHRENHEIT.

BUT TO DO THAT, HE'LL HAVE TO HIDE HIS FACE, THE PART LEAST

WELL-COVERED, BENEATH HIS TAIL.

IT MUST SAVE ENERGY FOR A STYLE OF HUNTING THAT IS HIGHLY

DEMANDING, WANDERING CONTINUOUSLY IN SEARCH OF

SOMETHING TO PUT IN ITS MOUTH.

DRIVEN BY HUNGER, HE'S CAUTIOUS, BUT ALWAYS CURIOUS.

THIS VOLE HAS DOZENS OF HIDING PLACES AND ESCAPE ROUTES UNDER

THE SNOW.

THE RED FOX'S HEARING IS SHARP ENOUGH TO HEAR THE RODENTS

BURROWING UNDERGROUND, BUT NOT TODAY.

DISAPPOINTMENTS ARE NOT UNUSUAL IN THE SCARCITY OF WINTER.

BUT IT'S NOT ENOUGH FOR AN ANIMAL JUST TO GROW A THICKER

COAT WHEN IT SNOWS.

A CHANGE OF SEASON BRINGS A TRANSFORMATION IN THE

ENVIRONMENT SO DRAMATIC THAT ONE INHABITANT OF HIGH ALTITUDES

NEEDS TO ALTER ITS PHYSICAL APPEARANCE BY CHANGING COLOR.

THE ALPINE HARE MORPHS FROM SUMMER GRAY TO WINTER WHITE.

ONLY THE TIPS OF ITS EARS REMAIN BLACK.

IN HIS WINTER WHITE COAT, THE HARE BECOMES LESS VISIBLE TO

PREDATORS, BUT EVEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, IT IS BETTER

INSULATED.

EACH INDIVIDUAL WHITE HARE ON ITS FUR COAT HAS MICROSCOPIC

SPACES FILLED WITH AIR, ACTING AS INSULATION.

THIS EXTRA WARMTH REALLY HELPS AT DUSK, THE ANIMAL'S MOST

ACTIVE PERIOD.

THE COLD AT NIGHT BECOMES MORE PENETRATING.

THICK FUR ON HIS FEET FUNCTIONS LIKE SNOWSHOES TO KEEP THE HARE

MOVING ON TOP OF THE DEEP SNOW.

THE SURVIVAL OF THIS ALPINE ANIMAL DEPENDS ON THE PROTECTION

OFFERED BY A COAT THAT MUST BE KEPT PERFECTLY GROOMED, EVEN

DOWN TO REMOVING TINY BALLS OF SNOW THAT REMAIN ATTACHED.

WHEN DAY BREAKS, THE HARE MUST REDOUBLE ITS ATTENTION.

EVEN THOUGH HE'S CAMOUFLAGED IN WHITE AND HIGHLY ALERT, THE

SLIGHTEST OF MOVEMENTS CAN BE SPOTTED BY THE MOST EFFICIENT

PREDATOR IN THIS ENVIRONMENT.

THE GOLDEN EAGLE.

UNLIKE RABBITS, HARES LIVE ENTIRELY ABOVE GROUND WITHOUT A

BURROW FOR PROTECTION.

BUT TODAY IS THIS HARE'S LUCKY DAY.

HE'LL KEEP HIS PLACE HIGH IN THE ALPS WAITING FOR THE WARMTH OF

SPRING.

COMING UP, ON FRANCE'S MEDITERRANEAN COAST, FLYING

MANES AND THUNDERING HOOVES MEAN AN ANCIENT EQUINE CHALLENGE IS

ABOUT TO BEGIN.

[HORSE NEIGHING]

DYLAN: AND AFTER A WILDFIRE, THIS PORTUGUESE NATIVE HAS AN

UNUSUAL SURVIVAL STRATEGY.

PLUS, FOR ONE ANIMAL, THE HIGHEST CLIFF IS THE SAFEST

PLACE TO RAISE A FAMILY.

DON'T GO AWAY, EARTH ODYSSEY WILL BE RIGHT BACK.

NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IS REPLENISHED BY MORE THAN TWO AND

A HALF MILLION GALLONS OF RIVER WATER EVERY SECOND, MOSTLY FROM

THE RHONE RIVER.

THE RIVER FLOWS SOUTH FROM THE ALPS THROUGH SWITZERLAND AND

FRANCE BEFORE REACHING THE COAST.

THERE, IT FORMS THE CAMARGUE, A BRACKISH WETLAND.

THE SIZE OF NEW YORK CITY WITH ITS LAGOONS, MARSHES AND

GRASSLANDS, IT'S A UNIQUE HOME FOR MORE THAN 500 DIFFERENT

ANIMALS.

HERE, SALT FLATS CAN TURN INTO GRASSY MARSHES AND LONG

SWEEPING BEACHES, FULL OF SALT RESISTANT PLANTS THAT ARE

PERFECT GRAZING FOR THOSE BUILT FOR THIS TERRAIN.

THIS ANCIENT BREED IS PERFECTLY ADAPTED FOR LIFE IN THE DELTA.

THE SMALL, GENTLE CAMARGUE HORSES HAVE LIVED HERE FOR

MILLENNIA, AWAY FROM THE PREDATORY WOLVES AND LYNX THAT

ROAM FARTHER INLAND.

[HORSE NEIGHING]

DYLAN: THEY'VE EVOLVED THE ABILITY TO CLOSE THEIR NOSTRILS

TO KEEP OUT THE SALTY WATER AS THEY FEED ON THE TOUGH,

NUTRITIOUS PLANTS THAT THRIVE IN THE SALT MARSHES.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: BUT IN THIS SUMMER HEAT, THE DOMINANT STALLION AND HIS

HERD ALSO NEED TO DRINK.

ALTHOUGH MOST FRESHWATER POOLS HAVE DISAPPEARED, THE STALLION

KNOWS A RELIABLE WATER SOURCE.

ON THE FAR SIDE OF THE DELTA, LONG LEGS HELP THE HORSES POWER

THROUGH THE TIDAL MARSHLAND.

THEIR WIDE HOOVES ARE UNIQUELY ADAPTED TO THE BOGGY GROUND.

UNLIKE OTHER HORSES, THEY CAN STAND FOR HOURS IN THE MARSH

WATER WITHOUT INJURY.

IT TURNS OUT THIS HORSE'S FAVORITE WATERING HOLE IS NO

SECRET.

ANOTHER MALE HAS BEATEN THEM TO IT.

THIS LONE STALLION HASN'T JUST COME FOR A DRINK, HE'S LOOKING

FOR A MATE.

THAT MEANS COMPETING WITH THE HERD'S ALPHA MALE.

BUT THE RULING STALLION IS BATTLE-HARDENED AND WEIGHS MORE

THAN 800 POUNDS.

HE WON'T GIVE UP WITHOUT A FIGHT.

THESE STURDY HORSES HAVE A COMPACT BODY WITH POWERFUL

CHESTS.

BITING AND KICKING THESE CLASHES CAN INFLICT SERIOUS INJURIES.

[HORSE NEIGHING, WATER SPLASHING]

DYLAN: BUT THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE KING.

DEFEATED, THE OUTSIDER RETREATS.

IT WON'T BE THE LAST CHALLENGE FOR THIS STALLION'S CROWN, BUT

WITH HIS HERD SECURED, HE FINALLY ENJOYS THE DRINK HE CAME

FOR.

THE CAMARGUE HORSES HAVE INSPIRED LOCALS AND VISITORS FOR

THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

NAPOLEON CHOSE THEM TO SERVE IN THE FRENCH ARMY,

AND THEY CLOSELY RESEMBLE AN EXTINCT STONE AGE HORSE FOUND IN

FAMOUS CAVE PAINTINGS.

TODAY, SOME OF THEM LIVE WILD IN A PROTECTED BIOSPHERE.

OTHERS ARE SEMI-FERAL AND USED AS WORKING HORSES.

BUT ALL OF THEM ARE ADMIRED HERE AS A SYMBOL OF RESILIENCE,

STURDY CREATURES FLOURISHING IN AN UNFORGIVING LANDSCAPE.

COMING UP, YOU CAN'T TELL BY LOOKING, BUT THIS UNUSUAL MEAT

EATER IS BITING ITS TIME BEFORE ITS NEXT MEAL.

AND JUST HOW DO THESE EXPERT MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS DO IT?

WHEN EARTH ODYSSEY RETURNS.

NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: IN THE ARID MEDITERRANEAN REGION, DROUGHT AND WILDFIRE CAN

THREATEN A FRAGILE ECOSYSTEM, BUT SOME ORGANISMS THRIVE AFTER

FIRE AND HEAT, INCLUDING A VERY UNUSUAL PLANT THAT'S ACTUALLY A

PREDATOR.

TAKE A LOOK.

AS WEATHER PATTERNS CHANGE, MANY PARTS OF SPAIN AND PORTUGAL NOW

GO FOR MONTHS WITHOUT RAIN.

AND AS SUMMER TEMPERATURES RISE,

GRASS AND WOODLANDS CAN IGNITE.

THE BLAZING SCRUB CAN BURN AT 2000 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.

[FIRE CRACKLING]

DYLAN: AND WHILE FIRES ARE DEVASTATING TO MANY SPECIES,

SOME DEPEND ON IT.

THIS LAND THAT WAS SCORCHED BY FIRE A YEAR AGO HAS HAD A

REVIVAL.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: THE EXTREME HEAT TRIGGERS PORTUGUESE SUNDEW SEEDS TO

GERMINATE.

THIS RESILIENT PLANT IS FOUND ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY ON LAND

DECIMATED BY FIRE.

BUT THE POOR QUALITY OF THE SOIL MEANS THIS PLANT MUST GET ITS

NUTRIENTS ELSEWHERE.

SO IT RELEASES A SWEET SMELL, LURING INSECTS TO COME CLOSER.

BUT THAT CAN BE A FATAL MISTAKE.

THE PORTUGUESE SUNDEW IS A CARNIVORE, A PERFECT PREDATORY

PLANT.

STICKY GLOBULES ARE SECRETED FROM SPECIAL GLANDS, AND THE

MORE THE INSECT MOVES, THE MORE ENSNARED IN THE PLANT IT

BECOMES.

ENZYMES DISSOLVE THE VICTIM SO THE PLANT CAN ABSORB ITS

NUTRIENTS.

DIGESTION CAN TAKE SEVERAL DAYS.

IT MIGHT BE NUTRITIOUS, BUT IT'S NOT A PRETTY SIGHT.

PORTUGUESE SUNDEW PREFER DRY REGIONS WHERE FIRES COME EVERY

YEAR.

BUT MOST PREDATORY PLANTS PREFER MOIST OR TROPICAL HABITATS.

IN FACT, THERE ARE MORE THAN 700 OTHER CARNIVOROUS PLANT SPECIES

ON EARTH JUST WAITING FOR THEIR NEXT MEAL.

COMING UP, LEARNING THE SCALE OF SHEER CLIFF ISN'T EASY, EVEN FOR

A BILLY GOAT.

BUT THE VIEW IS MAGNIFICENT.

THE BIG PICTURE IS STILL TO COME WHEN EARTH ODYSSEY RETURNS.

NARRATOR: WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

.

NARRATOR: WE NOW RETURN TO THE MORE YOU KNOW ON NBC.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: SURROUNDING THE SPECIES-RICH WATERS OF THE

MEDITERRANEAN, 28,500 MILES OF COASTLINE CURVE AROUND

22 COUNTRIES ACROSS AFRICA, EUROPE, AND ASIA.

RUGGED SHORELINES,

ISOLATED COVES,

PRISTINE BEACHES, AND TOWERING SEA CLIFFS DEFINE THE WESTERN

MEDITERRANEAN COAST.

[MUSIC]

DYLAN: LIVING HERE REQUIRES CLIMBING SKILLS USUALLY ADAPTED

FOR MOUNTAINS.

BUT IT'S THE PERFECT SEASONAL TERRITORY FOR THE IBERIAN IBEX.

A MATURE MALE AND HIS FEMALE HERD ARE USUALLY FOUND HIGH UP

IN THE SURROUNDING MOUNTAIN RANGES.

BUT IT'S WINTER AND THE COAST'S WARMER WEATHER AND VEGETATION

HAVE BROUGHT THESE WILD GOATS HERE.

PLANTS HERE ARE SPECIALLY ADAPTED TO THE SALINE

ENVIRONMENT AND ARE HIGH IN SALT, AN ESSENTIAL BUT OFTEN

HARD TO FIND MINERAL.

THE DRAMATIC LANDSCAPE IS ALSO A SAFE PLACE TO RAISE THEIR YOUNG

AS FEW PREDATORS CAN SCALE THE CLIFFS.

THESE HUGE HORNS ADVERTISE THE ALPHA MALE'S STATUS.

THE BREEDING SEASON IS ALMOST OVER, BUT THERE'S STILL TIME FOR

A CHALLENGE.

THE 170-POUND MALE PATROLS HIS TERRITORY.

SHORT LEGS AND LARGE, FLEXIBLE HOOVES ALLOW THIS WILD GOAT TO

CLIMB THE SEA CLIFFS WITH EASE.

HIS HOOVES ACTUALLY EXPAND AND RETRACT LIKE SUCTION CUPS,

HELPING HIM GET A FOOTHOLD.

FROM UP HERE, HE CAN SURVEY HIS TERRITORY AND LOOK FOR

TRESPASSERS.

A YOUNG BACHELOR.

THIS MEANS ONE MORE FIGHT FOR THE ALPHA MALE TO HOLD ON TO HIS

POSITION.

THE BATTLE-WORN MALE KEEPS THE HIGH GROUND, FORCING HIS

OPPONENT DOWNHILL.

HE'S RULED THESE CLIFFS FOR MORE THAN A DECADE AND IS DETERMINED

NOT TO GIVE IT ALL UP TODAY.

THE YOUNG CONTENDER IS OUTMATCHED.

THIS ALPHA MALE WILL KEEP HIS BREEDING RIGHTS, AT LEAST UNTIL

THE SAME TIME NEXT YEAR.

UNTIL THEN, HE'LL LIVE ALONE OR IN A BACHELOR HERD OF MALES

CALLED BUCKS OR BILLY GOATS.

IT'S THE FEMALES, KNOWN AS DOES OR NANNY GOATS, WHO FEED AND

LEAD THE KIDS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR SO THAT THIS VENERABLE

SPECIES CAN KEEP ITS MAJESTIC PLACE IN THE IBERIAN MOUNTAINS.

TODAY, WE'VE SEEN HOW THE WILDER PARTS OF EUROPE STILL NURTURE A

REMARKABLE VARIETY OF ANIMALS.

INCREASINGLY, EUROPE'S NATIVE SPECIES ARE FINDING NEW LIFE AND

SHELTER IN DESIGNATED NATURE PRESERVES AND HABITATS.

THANKS FOR WATCHING.

I'M DYLAN DREYER.

PLEASE JOIN US AGAIN NEXT WEEK ON EARTH ODYSSEY.

[MUSIC]