All language subtitles for Life.2009.S01E05.1080p.BluRay.x265-RARBG

Ati'en borough: One hundred
and fifty million years ago,

as dinosaurs approached
their golden age,

one group evolved
along new and revolutionary lines.

Although they retained
many of their reptilian characteristics,

they acquired extraordinary new ones.

Feathers.

Feathers helped with insulation
and display.

But they offered something
far more valuable,

the power of flight.

And for birds, that changed everything.

Birds have the freedom of the skies

to tra vel further and faster
than any other group of animals

and to seize opportunities
in all corners of the planet.

But this freedom
brings many survival challenges,

which birds must tackle
at pivotal moments in their lives.

Flying demands
enormous skill and effort.

And nowhere is that
more evident than here

in the foothills of the Peruvian andes.

This female hummingbird
hovers with precision

in her quest for nectar.

Her wing and tail design
allow her to fly in any direction.

But the male has a real problem flying.

And this is why.

He's weighed down
with two super-long tail feathers

tipped with cumbersome discs.

This is the marvellous spatuletail
hummingbird

and these are his flags,
with which to seduce a mate.

Waving them back and forth
takes a lot of effort,

even from the comfort of his perch.

But to win her heart,
he's got to go up a gear.

He must show her how well he can fly,

but it's exhausting work.

It's so demanding,

he can only stay airborne
for a matter of seconds

before he needs a rest.

He's struggling to impress her,
so one last try.

The extreme effort and energy
needed to hover

means hummingbirds can only fly
in short sharp bursts.

But most birds need to stay airborne
for considerably longer

and must find far more
energy-efficient ways to get around.

Here in the simien mountains
of Ethiopia,

at a breathtaking altitude
of 75, 000 feet,

lives a supreme aerial maestro.

The lammergeier.

This youngster glides on air currents
rising from the mountain slopes below.

His nine-foot wingspan
can carry him hundreds of miles a day

in search of animal carcasses
with precious little effort.

He watches out for other
airborne sca vengers

like these griffon vultures.

They lead him to some
commotion on the cliffs

and maybe the chance to feed.

But this youngster is not the only
lammergeier to spot the opportunity.

So too has this adult.

The vultures quickly
strip the carcass clean.

It seems he's too late.

But in fact,
he's timed his arrival perfectly.

There's no meat left.

And that's exactly the moment that
the lammergeier has been waiting for.

It's bones he's after.

The young lammergeier
too homes in on the carcass.

Bones contain rich marrow fat.

But extracting it is not easy,

especially when the bone is a solid
four kilos and too big to swallow.

But lammergeiers
have an extraordinary solution,

thanks to their flying skills.

Soaring up on thermal air currents

and positioning the bone
parallel to his body to minimise drag,

he soon reaches the perfect height.

From here, he glides to a place he knows

where he can deal with the bone,

where there are giant rock slabs
on the lip of an escarpment.

The bone is smashed.

T he juices in his stomach

are more corrosive than battery acid.

They dissolve the bone so that
he can now digest the marrow.

Others come looking for leftovers.

But their timing isn't ideal

because now the young lammergeier
has his turn.

T he y'd better mind their heads.

Proficient bone smashing
takes endless practice,

to find just the right height,
speed and moment of release.

Lammergeiers have long, broad wings,

ideal for gliding great distances
with maximum efficiency.

But on the island of little Tobago
in the Caribbean

lives a bird for whom aerial agility
is of Paramount importance.

The red-billed tropicbiro'.

Short, pointed wings give it great
manoeuvrability and speed.

During the breeding season,

these flying skills
are tested to the limit.

While one parent looks after the chick,

the other must journey far offshore

to gather small fish and squid
from the surface waters.

But the hardest part
is getting food back to the island,

because they share this airspace
with thieves.

Magnificent friga tebirds,

known as man-of-war birds,
patrol high above.

These pirates are not trying
to kill the tropicbird

but force it to give up its catch.

It's an aerial dogfight.

T ropicbirds are quicker on the turn.

Frigates have exceptionally
lightweight bodies

and their extremely long wings
give them great power.

Success!

A favourite attack is from behind
and at height.

There goes the fish.

Another victory.

This tropicbird chick
still awaits the return of its parent,

who has yet to run the gauntlet
of the pirates.

Keeping close to the waves
is his best chance.

Frigatebirds have so little oil
in their feathers

they can't risk ditching.

If he can just reach the cliffs,
he'll be safe.

He has made it,
with his crop still full of fish.

Red-billed tropicbirds rely an
extreme aerial agility

to overcome the many challenges
of their life.

For others, survival demands endurance.

Every spring,
red knots fly 70, 000 miles

from their wintering grounds
in Argentina

to their nesting sites in Canada.

The only way they complete
this marathon journey

is by making a crucial fuel stop

here in Delaware bay,
on the east coast of america.

What is most extraordinary is that

as well as having to find
their way to this one location,

they must also time
their arrival to perfection.

They have a rendezvous with prehistoric
creatures emerging from the deep,

which have hardly changed
in 250 million years.

They come ashore in greatest numbers
on the highest spring tides.

Horseshoe crabs.

The crabs are here to lay their eggs.

That's what the knots are after.

Most eggs are buried out of reach,

but some are accidentally dug up
by other crabs.

Most of the west Atlantic
red knot population

join this feeding frenzy.

In a matter of weeks,

the knots need to rebuild their
fat reserves and double in weight.

To achieve this, each knot must eat
as many as 400, 000 eggs,

a tall order, given the skill and effort
needed to swallow just one.

Head down, feeding nonstop, means
it's hard to be alert to predators.

A peregrine falcon.

With egg-laying complete,

the horseshoe crabs
now leave these shares,

while the knots gather
every last egg they can find.

It's time for the birds to move on.

The knots still have a further
2, 000 mile nonstop flight

to reach their breeding grounds
in Canada.

Flight gives birds many advantages.

But there's a period in their lives

when the y're forced back down to earth.

The nesting season.

This is the time
when they are at most risk,

so they must find
the safest possible location.

Few go to greater extremes
than lesser flamingos.

They nest in the remotest corners
of a frica's caustic soda lakes.

Like their reptilian ancestors,
birds lay waterproof eggs.

Despite this,
flamingos still protect theirs

on special mud-stacked nests,

as the lake is prone to flooding.

It's also just a little cooler up here.

Temperatures at ground level

can reach a blistering
50 degrees centigrade.

Once a chick hatches,

it spends the first six days
in the nest.

This is when it's at
its most vulnerable,

totally reliant on its parents.

The caustic mud deters predators.

But the adult flamingos
can cope in this quagmire

because of their long, scaly legs.

Any chick that slips
from the nest, however,

is treading on very dangerous ground.

This parent encourages her chick
to climb back to safety.

Raising chicks requires
huge parental investment

in both time and labour,
where ver you are.

Few places are tougher
than the antarctic.

Chinstrap penguins.

Every day, they travel up to 50 miles
out at sea, hunting for krill.

But the hard part is getting this food
back to the colony,

because it sits on the ice-free rim
at the top of this giant volcano,

deception island

For the returning fishing party,
the first challenge is getting ashore.

The beach is steep,
with a powerful undertow.

This female lands safely.

But she now begins
a long journey on foot.

For a flightless bird

getting to the top of the volcano
means a gruelling climb,

especially when glaciers covered with
muddy volcanic ash stand in your way.

It's like a game of
snakes and ladders.

A combination of beak,
wingtip and feet,

and she wins through.

Now she joins penguin rush hour.

Almost home.

She's reached the crater rim,

but her trials are still not over.

She must now try and find her family

among more than 750, 000 birds.

Her hearing is so acute

she can identify the individual cry
of her own chick in the din.

She's made it
and the family welcomes her return.

The result of all this parental effort,
a mouthful of krill.

Now it's her partner's turn.

A chick's demands are endless.

Sometimes they can push parents
to desperate lengths.

But birds are masters of impro visa tion.

Dassen island
off the coast of South Africa

is home to a nesting colony
of great white pelicans.

There are chicks of all ages,
all with a hefty appetite.

The parents have a formidable task.

These pelicans are among the heaviest
flying birds in the world,

weighing up to 70 kilos.

A I/-formation is the most
energy-efficient means of flying.

It significantly reduces drag
for the bird behind.

Pelicans normally fish along the coast,

but a shortage of food supplies
has forced them to look elsewhere.

Cape gannets plunge deep, hunting fish
beyond the reach of the pelicans.

But the pelicans aren't after fish.

Their sights are set on a bigger catch.

Malgas island is the nesting ground
for some 60, 000 cape gannets.

Normally, one gannet parent
goes off fishing

while the other looks after the chick.

But declining fish stocks means

both parents are often away
hunting at the same time,

leaving their chicks unguarded.

Something which hasn't gone unnoticed
by the pelicans.

Only chicks with parents at their side
or those too large to swallow

have a chance.

Back at the pelican colony,
the parents regurgitate

partially digested gannet chicks
for their brood.

Although most sea bird colonies
on the African cape are in decline,

the population of white pelicans
nesting on dassen is growing.

When birds come together to breed,
and before they commit to one another,

they will often perform
the most remarkable displays.

One of the most enchanting
happens here on the lakes of Oregon.

Clark's grebes mate for life,

but the female must test
her partner's continuing commitment

and she does this by inviting him
to join her in a ritualised dance.

To strengthen their band
he offers her a gift.

Now, with eyes only for one another,

the faithful pair reach the climax
of their dance.

Other birds don't form pairs.

Instead, a male tries to mate
with as many females as he can.

Male sage grouse
gather in the grasslands of Wyoming

to advertise their virility with a
finery of feathers and proud posturing.

Females are much drabber looking

but extremely choosy.

They will only mate
with the most impressive male

and the y judge a male's worthiness
by the sounds he makes.

Birds go to great lengths
to impress their partners.

In the forests of new Guinea,

they famously use colourful feathers
and song to maximum effect.

Birds of paradise.

But in the western part of the island,
these flamboyant birds share the forests

with a rather unassuming looking
character,

the I/ogelkop bowerbird.

He might lack the plumage,

but he's got an extraordinary
repertoire of song.

And he's a wonderful mimic.

Those are pigeon wing beats.

T hat's a modest tiger-parrot.

And that, a sulphur-crested cockatoo.

Even more surprising,
he's an avid collector

with a very appreciative eye for colour.

This male favours red
and orange flowers.

And he's very fond of fungus.

Not everything he collects
stays where it should.

He puts these treasures on display

within and around a construction
that has taken him years to build.

A giant bower, woven around
a central sapling,

carpeted with mass.

This grand design is no nest,
it's the ultimate seduction parlour.

But he's not alone on this hillside.

He's got six rivals within earshot.

This one prefers darker colours,
decorating his bower with deer dung...

And charcoal.

I/isual effect is of crucial importance.

Clearly he hadn't planned
on all this sprouting fungus.

He and his nearest rival
live a stone's throw apart.

Competition is intense.

It's the dung ball bower

that is the first
to catch the female's attention.

He withdraws while she inspects
his workmanship.

She's back again and seems impressed.

But on closer inspection,
she's less convinced.

Perhaps it was that sprouting fungus.

Back at the flower bower,
the male performs a dress rehearsal.

He senses she's watching.

This is the moment
he's been working towards.

His bower channels his song
in her direction.

A final check.

All is to her liking.

Few birds devote such craft, effort,
and ingenuity

to achieve this life-defining moment.

But here on I(En ya's lake bogoria,
these massive pink slicks

signal the start of perhaps
the grandest courtship event in nature.

In certain years,
when the lake is at its richest,

more than a million lesser flamingos
congregate to feed.

It's now, when they're in their prime,

that they must find
their preferred partner.

To do that,
they perform a remarkable promenade.

With heads held high
and neck feathers ruffled

making them look as pink as possible,

more and more birds join
in the courtship march

and pairs begin to bond.

Small groups merge with larger ones

until almost a thousand flamingos
are on the move.

From the equator to the Poles,

birds have found the most ingenious ways

of overcoming the many challenges
of life.

And everything revolves around
their unique attribute, feathers.

For the past three years,
the life team has filmed birds

in every part of the world imaginable.

Nowhere was the filming trickier
than in the jungles of west Papua.

Here is found, for me,

one of the greatest wonders
of the bird world,

the display arena of
the I/ogelkop bowerbird.

Thirteen years ago,

I was lucky enough to witness
these spectacular builders.

But filming the timid female
and courtship behaviour

was a different matter.

And this was what the life team
set out to film.

Barrie britton was the principle
cameraman for this programme.

With over 20 years in the business,

not only is he
an accomplished photographer,

but he has developed
a deep understanding of

and empathy for his subjects.

Although each one posed
its own unique challenges,

Barrie did seem to spend
an inordinate amount of time

cooped up in his trusty old hide.

I think I may have misjudged
the hide position,

'cause the sea is coming in
the bottom of the hide.

Wow, well, that was 11 hours
in my little box.

Ati'en borough: Barrie saved his most
ambitious trip of the series

until last.

It took a team of 40 people

three days of tough uphill trekking
to get to the filming camp.

I could complain about leeches,
biting insects,

the tough going

but I really don't want to,
this is great.

I seem to have lost everyone else.
I hope I'm going the right way.

Ah, made it.

Briti'on: I'm completely shattered.

Ati'en borough: The hard work
had only just begun.

Tomorrow, with the help of their guides,

the crew would go looking for
the best bowers to film.

But not before a cautionary tale
from the local chief.

So when he first was shown the bower
by his father, he...

There were flowers there

and as a 12-year-old child,
he wanted to grab them,

but his father immediately stopped him

and said that he
could not touch anything

or take anything away from the bower

because otherwise it would start raining
very heavily.

- Lyle: It's 10 to five, Barrie.
- Yeah.

Ati'en borough: With the chief's warning
fresh in their minds,

Barrie and the team make an early start
and head for the hide.

Well, we've reached the hide
just at sunrise,

so we're just going to get set up
as quickly as we can.

With knowledgeable guides,
finding the bowers wasn't the problem.

And who could miss
such obvious structures?

It was now a waiting game for Barrie,

heavily concealed
in his camouflaged hide.

Briti'on: Okay, so, 6:30.

So I'm just waiting now
for the bird to come,

hoping that he doesn't suspect
that anything is here

and that we can get
some natural behaviour.

I've just heard the bowerbird call
just at the right of the hide.

I can hear the bird outside.

It's plucking on the fabric of the hide.

I've just noticed that the bird
has pulled a snickers wrapper

out of the bottom of the hide
and has added it to its display.

Briti'on: It was
a very strange decoration,

which I had to remove
at the end of the day.

Ati'en borough: Had Barrie tempted fate
by removing the wrapper

and ignoring the chief's warning?

Or was this just rainforest
living up to its name?

When it pours like this,
filming becomes virtually impossible.

Soon the weather improved

and Barrie returned once more
to the hide.

This time his lunch box
was firmly sealed.

The bird is very keen on these little
tiny metallic ladybirds

and they're a bit put out
being put there in this bower,

so they start crawling off.

They're very slowly making their way
over the moss

and they just about get to the edge
of the display

and then the bowerbird notices
and goes and collects them

and puts them back again.
So they're kind of

in this endless cycle
of trying to escape from the bower.

They just...
They can never quite get away.

Ati'en borough: However,
for the male bowerbird and Barrie,

the female was still proving a problem.

The female did come down,

but she was quite nervous
near the entrance to the bower

so we didn't get very much of that.

This was a real concern,

because the courtship behaviour
was key to our story.

He's just done a 10-hour stint.

It's been a really nice day
so we're just hoping it's gone well.

Ati'en borough: Another day's filming over
and still little to show for it.

Lyle: Ten hours in the hide.

Fortunately, filming is over
for the day.

We're just going to go
and collect Barrie again.

- Lyle: Did you see a mate today?
- No, no. No mating.

Everything else is going well
but we haven't got the mating.

The fact I was getting
such good footage of the male

meant he'd obviously got used
to the hide.

But the visiting females
were still wary of it.

The females did seem a bit nervous.

So I took the decision
to push the hide back,

just to get more distance
from the birds.

The other thing I've done is
recess the lens

and we put this vegetation
all around it,

so I'm hoping that's going to
provide more female behaviour.

A'i'i'en borough:
There were few filming days left.

It was crucial Barrie's adjustments
paid off.

The male has just run into the bower
and started calling,

so I think that means
there might be a female coming.

It struck me, here we both
were, waiting in the darkness,

the male trying to attract the female,

and I was just hoping
that I've got it right this time,

and it was more than
just a fleeting visit.

Working in a hide involves hours
of prolonged inactivity

punctuated by the most intense moments
of action.

This was the crucial moment
the whole team had worked towards.

Ati'en borough: Everything was
falling into place for Barrie,

the behaviour unfolding.

Right, that's good,
I think we're in action.

Ati'en borough: T wenty-one days in a hide.

Astonishing Patience and perseverance.

This has never been filmed before.

Such effort and endeavour

for a crucial piece of beha viour
that's over in a matter of seconds.

Would you like to shake
my hand, Stephen?

- What does that mean?
- Ah, we got the mating.

- You got the mating?
- Yeah, yeah, we got the mating.

- Oh, wow!
- Yeah, it's a really good day,

brilliant day, yeah. Butjust amazing.
I must have...

Well, what is it, three weeks

- I've spent sitting in this hide.
- Wow. Yeah.

And I just didn't think
we'd ever get it. I just...

'Cause we're running out of days,
only a few left now, so...

So to get that this week
is just incredible.

And it was really, really good,
really good behaviour.

So I'm delighted.

Ati'en borough: Success.

This was Barrie's last filming trip
for the birds episode,

and what a befitting end.