All language subtitles for Wales Land of the Wild 4of4 BBC 1080p_ENG_Subtitles01

It's the beginning of autumn.

Though the days are still warm,
this is a time of change.

Leaves are turning,

storm clouds are gathering.

Wildlife is on the move.

It's a critical time of year
for animals...

..as they prepare
for the lean times ahead.

There are battles to be fought...

..and mates to be won.
BELLOWING

Time is short.

Winter is coming.

Wales.

A land of mountains...

..and rugged shoreline...

..where lush meadows border
ancient forests.

And where you're never
too far from wildlife.

Home to 50,000 species.

The spectacular.

And the surprising.

Each season brings
its own challenges.

Finding a mate,

raising a family...

..or simply surviving.

Filmed over a year of extremes...

..through storms...

..and drought...

..and wonder.

Welcome to the Land of the Wild.

HORSE NEIGHS

It's early autumn.

Wales's trees
are still in full leaf

and form an impenetrable
green canopy.

BIRDS CHIRP

It's the ideal hunting ground

for a master ambush predator.

The goshawk.

Around half of all British
breeding goshawks live in Wales.

They can easily
navigate the maze of trees,

and are strong enough to take down
prey more than twice their size.

And they have a cunning ability
to just disappear.

But soon the leaves will be gone...

..and the goshawk's
cover will be blown.

But this seasonal challenge
is not a problem

for such an incredible hunter.

In a forest in the Black
Mountains of Monmouthshire,

a female goshawk
turns her attentions

to a nearby walnut grove.

Barrels protect the trees
from grazing sheep,

but their fallen bounty
is up for grabs.

Nuts are definitely worth caching

in preparation
for the hard times ahead.

Distracted, the squirrel
is unaware of the danger it's in.

It would make a substantial
meal for the goshawk.

Our female makes her move.

LOUD CHITTERING

INTENSE CHITTERING

Goshawks will
pursue squirrels in a chase

that can last many minutes.

A missed opportunity.

But this formidable hunter
won't go hungry for long.

TWIG SNAPS

It's mid-September.

Though the days are shortening,

South Wales is still
bathed in sunshine.

The long hot summer has produced
a bounty of food.

Ivy is one of the last plants
to flower in the UK.

This vital food source attracts
lingering butterflies...

..and a host of other insects.

One of which
is so in tune with the plant

that it synchronises
its life cycle around it.

GENTLE BUZZING

And even takes its name from it.

The ivy bee.

These recent arrivals
blew in from Europe

on warm continental winds
18 years ago.

They are now permanent residents
in South Wales.

They live for only six weeks.

And now it's the peak
of their breeding season.

Just outside Caldicott
is a rather special meadow.

In an exposed patch
of sun-baked earth,

there are hundreds of tiny holes,

each home to a female.

LOUD BUZZING

This one is emerging
for the first time...

..and is looking for a partner.

She's giving off a powerful
scent that is irresistible

to the males hovering nearby.

She will only mate once

so competition
for her affections is fierce.

Males pile in from all directions,

and a rolling maul ensues.

INTENSE BUZZING

The lucky male at the bottom
must hang on tight to the female.

His competitors will try
and wrestle her from him in a scrum

that can last ten minutes.

But a victor eventually emerges.

Unlike honeybees,
ivy bees are solitary.

Our female digs a burrow
into which she'll lay her eggs.

She'll fill the nursery
with ivy pollen

for her growing young to feed on.

Next autumn
they will emerge as adults,

just as their favourite
plant flowers again.

The ivy bees are not
the only mothers busy

at this crucial time of year.

A mile off the Pembrokeshire
coast is Ramsey Island.

Its remote beaches
are becoming rather crowded.

SEAL ROARS

SEAL GROANS

Female grey seals and their pups
relax in the late season sunshine.

Seals spend most of their time
in the water,

but for a few weeks
they come ashore to give birth.

And Ramsey is the largest breeding
colony in southern Britain.

Where there are females,
males are quick to follow.

This one is the first to arrive
at the pupping beach.

He wants to mate.

But grey seals
are dedicated mothers.

When they're suckling a pup

they're completely devoted
to that task,

and will rebuff any male advances.

Males are twice the size of females

and could accidentally crush
a newborn pup if they get too close.

So it's understandable why
the females don't want them nearby.

SHE ROARS

At times like this,
retreat is often the best tactic.

But even that can cause a ruckus.

LOUD ROARING

Despite his size, these females have
no qualms about letting him know

they don't want him around.

LOUD ROARING

He won't be welcome
until their pups are weaned.

HIGH PITCHED MOAN

So for now, our male
needs to bide his time.

A few days later, and it seems
like the females might be ready.

Another male has arrived,
and he hasn't been chased away.

Our male must try again.

This time he receives
a less hostile welcome.

One female is interested.

She comes in for a cwtch.

And one thing leads to another.

It's his first successful conquest.

But more males are on their way...

..and he'll soon have to fight
for the right to mate.

It's October,

and another species' mating
season is in full swing.

BELLOWING

On the south coast, just a stone's
throw from the town of Port Talbot,

is Margam Park.

DEEP BELLOWING

Red deer are the
UK's largest land mammals.

STAG BELLOWS LOUDLY

At this time of year,
the stags are full of swagger.

The stags and hinds have spent
the summer apart,

but now come together to mate.

INCESSANT BELLOWING

This male has already
laid claim to his harem

by seeing off a number of rivals.

But the risk of serious injury
is never far away.

On the sidelines,

two young stags watch on.

They are full of testosterone

but not yet big enough
to challenge the older males.

For now, all they can do
is practise.

The rut is a test of stamina
and strength.

Early battles allow with the stags
to hone their technique.

BELLOWING

Our male has seen enough
and asserts his authority.

His roar resonates far and wide.

There's no mistaking
that he's the boss.

The hinds are only in season for 24
hours, so time is of the essence.

But this is his
first year in charge.

He's not mated before and seems
reluctant to make the first move.

The females are ready
and show him what to do.

This is awkward.

Finally, he gets the message.

But his technique
leaves a lot to be desired.

He'll need to get his act together.

He's surrounded by rivals.

Down below in the bracken,
another male has his own harem.

And he's at the top of his game.

HE BELLOWS

Dominant stags will steal another
male's hinds, given half a chance.

On the higher ground,

our male is unperturbed.

But he's still missing the mark.

Hopefully, it won't be long
before he finds his mojo

and has a successful end
to his first season as top stag.

Autumn is when much
of Wales's wildlife

hunkers down in preparation
for the cold months ahead.

But in a tiny meadow
nestled beneath the Brecon Beacons,

there's an unexpected sight.

Marsh fritillary
butterfly caterpillars.

This species is in decline
across Europe,

but Wales is a stronghold.

The caterpillars have lived
in several silken webs like this one

since they hatched in early July.

And now it's time to move home.

They've undergone three moults
and are ready to hibernate.

But first, they need to make
a more sheltered tent

lower down in the vegetation.

At this stage in their lives

they enjoy the company
of their siblings...

..and work together
to weave a new home.

They'll spend the winter months
cocooned within.

Next spring, larvae will emerge
and begin a new phase of life.

In November,
it's not just the animals

that are preparing for winter.

Across Wales, the trees are too.

The green pigments essential
for photosynthesis

will not be needed
in the dark months ahead.

As they break down,
orange hues come to the fore.

Creating an ever-changing
palette of colour.

As the days shorten,
the trees continue to shut down.

But these golden offerings
won't go to waste.

Their nutrients are recycled,

adding much-needed nourishment
to the soil.

As deciduous trees shut down,

the woodlands come alive
with new arrivals.

Fungi.

These vital organisms usually remain
in the soil, hidden from view.

But at this time of year they
put out their fruiting bodies -

mushrooms and toadstools.

These are like the apples
of an underground tree

and they enable the fungi
to reproduce.

TRAIN HORN TOOTS

In a woodland in Carmarthenshire,

strange egg-like forms
litter the ground.

They're actually part of a fungus,

one whose Latin name,
Phallus impudicus,

means "shamelessly phallic".

And as they hatch,
it's obvious why.

Two hours later, the fruiting
body is fully formed

and it immediately
attracts attention.

This is a stinkhorn fungus.

It smells like decaying meat,

but to flies, it is ambrosia.

As they land to feed,

spores from the fungi
attach to their feet.

And when the fly leaves, it carries
them away to scatter elsewhere.

This cunning trick ensures the
stinkhorn colonises new areas

of the woodland.

The fungus shrivels,

but it will re-emerge next autumn.

In mid-November, the countryside
is still ablaze with colour.

The rivers are flushed
with autumn rain.

One remarkable animal
swims against this torrent

on a final pilgrimage.

Three years ago, this salmon
was born here in the River Vyrnwy.

Now, thanks to an extraordinary
ability to smell the river

of her birth, she has returned
from the Atlantic Ocean to spawn.

She faces an arduous journey
with many obstacles.

It's a test of agility

and endurance.

Many tire
and don't make it upstream.

Some are wounded along the way.

Those that do succeed

have a chance to breed.

It's not just the rivers
that are drawing autumn migrants.

The Welsh coast is also a magnet
for long-distance travellers.

At the very top of Wales's
north-eastern edge

is the Dee Estuary.

It's a haven for wading birds...

..like oystercatchers...

..curlew...

..and dunlin.

They've been driven south
from the freezing Arctic

to spend the winter here.

This is the most important
wetland in the whole of Wales.

By November, many migrants
have already arrived,

and with each passing day
the numbers grow.

All the birds wait
for the retreating tide.

Estuarine mud is twice as fertile
as the richest farmland.

It's full of cockles,
mussels and worms...

..their calling cards
the only sign they're there at all.

Once the tide is out,
the banquet can begin.

Waders have special receptors
on their beaks,

and can find these juicy snacks
even though they can't see them.

This is the ultimate fast food
joint for hungry birds.

BIRDS TWEET

All this activity has caught
the eye of Wales's top gun -

a peregrine falcon.

The packed mudflats
are the perfect hunting ground.

Peregrines are the fastest birds
on the planet,

with a top speed of 200mph.

They hunt by hitting
their prey at speed.

But this one is a juvenile
and has a lot to learn.

BIRDS SQUAWK LOUDLY

He's not afraid, however,
to have a go.

For ten minutes, he terrorises
the other birds on the beach.

What he lacks in experience,

he's certainly making up for
with attitude.

There are other threats
on the horizon.

Late autumn is the beginning
of storm season.

WAVES CRASH

WIND HOWLS

At this time of year,
high over the Atlantic,

the jet stream picks up speed,

driving low pressure systems
onto the Welsh coast.

Seaside towns like Porthcawl bear
the brunt of this brutal weather.

WAVES ROAR

But as quickly
as the storms blow in,

they move on.

These brief blasts of winter
are a warning

of harsher weather to come.

Wales is still experiencing
unseasonable warmth,

even in some of the most mountainous
parts of the country.

On the abandoned Dinorwig
slate quarry, in the heart

of the Snowdonia National Park,

one of Wales's most sure-footed
animals makes its home.

Feral goats are Neolithic
survivors and have lived here

for at least 5,000 years.

GOAT BLEATS

Most animals can't cope
with this treacherous terrain.

But curved toenails and special
footpads enable the goats

to grip even
the most slippery slate.

At this time of year the males,
or billies as they are known,

have one thing on their mind.

Females.

It's the mating season.

This alpha male
has his work cut out.

Rival billies
are a constant irritation.

BLEATING

Our male curls his lip
to taste the air,

using what's known
as the flehmen response.

The females, or nannies,
give off a potent smell

when they're ready to mate.

So he can tell
when one is receptive.

He's been keeping an eye on this
female for the last few days.

She's close,
but she's not quite ready.

The weather here in the mountains
can change in an instant.

At this time of year,
torrential downpours

are an almost daily occurrence.

Their thick coats may be warm,

but they aren't waterproof.

Some of the herd retreat downslope.

BLEATING

The ancient woodland provides
shelter and a chance to feed.

Back on the mountain,

hormones are raging.

And even the nannies
are feeling feisty.

With so many females around, the
alpha billy is easily distracted.

The female who is just
coming in to season

has wandered down into the woodland.

This has not gone unnoticed
by a younger, smaller male.

She's playing hard to get,
quite literally.

Eventually she relents.

For this sneaky male,
a chance to sire some offspring.

It's an opportunity he wouldn't
have got on the open hillside.

Wales is one of the more
mountainous countries in Europe.

Much of the land
is over 500 feet high.

The peaks are covered with snow
for more than 30 days every year.

This is where winter hits first.

It's a wild, rugged place to live.

Only the strong can survive here.

Carneddau ponies graze
on Snowdonia's highest peaks.

They are an ancient breed

that have roamed these mountains
for thousands of years.

Their small size and thick coats
enable them to live here

even during the depths of winter,

when temperatures plummet
well below freezing.

They are surely contenders
for Wales's toughest wild animal.

As winter continues,

the first flurries of snow
arrive at lower altitudes.

The days are short

and there's less time to feed.

Many species make the most
of free hand-outs.

In Powys, Mid Wales,
it's not just the sheep

that are being looked after.

Come rain, shine or snow,

the farmer provides food
for the country's national bird.

The red kite.

KITE SCREECHES

Kites are nature's scavengers,

but they also eat a lot of worms
and beetles.

During winter, the frozen ground
makes these harder to find

so this free meal
is incredibly welcome.

Kites come here every day
from far and wide.

A feeding frenzy ensues.

KITES SQUAWK AND SCREECH

As even more birds arrive,

the competition intensifies.

In the end,

there's plenty to go around.

Snow continues to
blanket the land...

..and Wales is transformed
into a winter wonderland.

Snow-covered fields
attract flocks of migrants.

BIRDS CHATTER

Some starlings live here
all year round,

but in winter their numbers swell
as millions fly in from Scandinavia,

escaping even colder temperatures.

Their short, stubby beaks are
perfect for sifting through snow

on the hunt for seeds and insects.

BIRDS CHATTER BUSILY

As the light begins to fade,

it's time to find a place to roost.

They head to the coast
where temperatures are milder.

Small feeding flocks join together.

Aberystwyth then becomes the stage

for the season's
greatest wild spectacle.

A murmuration, 50,000 strong.

There's safety in numbers

and the starlings' wheeling,
mesmerising display

confuses peregrine falcons
and other predators.

Every evening, this huge super-flock
roosts in the shelter

of Aberystwyth Pier, huddling
together against the cold.

The next morning,
there's a very rare sight.

Snow on Aberystwyth beach.

Winter has truly arrived.

The starlings lift off as one...

..ready for another day's feeding.

In a year of extremes,

Wales's animals have coped
with everything

the seasons have thrown at them.

Each passing day
will bring new challenges...

..as next year's cycle
begins again.

To capture Wales's wildlife
in all its glory,

the team travelled the length
and breadth of the country,

from high peaks to rugged shores.

And Ramsey Island,
off the Pembrokeshire coast,

was one of the most remote
locations the crew travelled to.

In autumn, it's the site
of a dramatic spectacle

when hundreds of grey seals
come ashore to breed.

With so many seals
gathered in one place,

it's the perfect opportunity
to study their behaviour.

Scientist Alice Perry has been
coming to the island for many years.

From a really young age, I used to
go out and do the lobster pots

with my grandpa, and we used to come
do some fishing around the island.

So it's always been a big part
of my life from a very young age.

These early experiences
ignited her passion

for the natural world.

Obviously, when you're out at sea
and you've got all the sea birds

flying around you, and you've got
the porpoises popping up,

it was just fascinating,

and I think that's what inspired me
to study marine biology.

And her research
has brought her back.

I'm studying seals on Ramsey Island
as part of my dissertation.

So the project is looking
at the seals

during the breeding season.

So we get 400 to 700 seal pups
born on the island

from August to the end of October.

So it is the biggest population
of Atlantic grey seals

breeding in the
south-west of Britain.

The first birth I actually
saw was on this beach

and I was really confused.

I was like, "What is she doing?

"She looks like she's acting
really weirdly."

And then I realised she was just
about to give birth,

and there it was, there was the pup.

It happened so quickly.

So you really have to be looking
at that individual

otherwise you'll miss it.

Having watched the seals
every day for many weeks,

Alice was able to take producer
Myles and cameraman Pete

straight to her favourite
monitoring spot.

This is the biggest beach
that we have on Ramsey Island

and this is where we get
most of the pups born.

We get about 100 pups born on this
beach at a time, but if you wanted

to get a female giving birth
or anything like that,

this is probably the
beach to look at.

Great. Cool. Looks good. Yeah.

And she had some extra advice
on how to spot a seal in labour.

Look for the female that comes
onto the beach

and then separates herself
from the others.

Usually, they'll look a bit agitated

and they might, you might even
see them start to contract.

You might see their body
kind of like convulse,

and that usually means
they're about to have a pup.

So just keep your eye on that
because it will happen so quickly.

And then either
a couple of minutes later,

to sometimes about an hour later,

she will then produce the
afterbirth, and the gulls will

spot that straight away,

come straight down for it
and fight over it.

And when you see that happening,

you know there's been a pup
just been born.

Armed with that information,

it was simply a case
of watching and waiting.

Conditions on Ramsey Island
are notoriously unpredictable.

But over the next few days,
the sunshine held.

The crew had the perfect conditions

to film nursing females
and their pups.

And on the final day,
to top it all off,

they captured the moment
they'd been waiting for.

We spotted some of the pools
were red with blood

and gulls were descending
to take away the afterbirth.

And we looked over and found
the female had just given birth.

There was still blood around the mum
and yellow goo all over the pup.

And it was really nice to witness
their first moment of interacting.

They were rubbing
their noses together,

kind of trying to make sure
that that pup is their own.

That was just a really amazing
moment to experience.

It had been a successful shoot.

Not only had the crew filmed
the most intimate moments

between newborn pups
and their mothers,

but they had also managed to capture
the cycle beginning again

as males returned to
mate with the females.

The team were determined
to feature the country's

most iconic wild species -

the red kite.

But filming these magnificent birds
hasn't always been easy.

They were almost driven
into extinction.

In the 1970s, just a handful of
breeding pairs remained here

in Mid Wales.

Chris Powell, a local farmer,
is closely linked to their recovery

but this happened purely by chance,
thanks to his dog Jamie.

We had a spaniel who went into the
hedgerows and caught rabbits.

Every time he caught one,
we'd lay it out for the ravens.

And we came out for lunch one day

and looked up, and there were
two kites bobbing around.

I'd never seen anything like them.

I'd seen them in books
but never in real life.

So we got the dog
to catch more rabbits,

and over time it became a daily
occurrence, the kites would turn up.

And then we got the local butcher
to give us some off-cuts.

As the winter went on, we ended up
with, I think, six kites visiting

so it was quite something.

And then we had a telephone
call from the RSPB,

they wanted an urgent meeting.

And we thought we were in trouble
because these were protected birds.

And out of that,
they asked us to become

the official red kite
feeding station.

One rabbit used to be enough
to feed the kites.

But as their numbers
began to recover,

so did the demand for food.

These days, Chris has to use a
tractor to haul the huge amount

of meat that's needed every day.

Whatever the weather,
the kites are waiting for him.

When we put the feed out
at three o'clock,

there's a pecking order - the first
birds in will be the adults,

following that there'll
be the younger ones,

last year's chicks if you like.

We get a rolling population
of kites during the week.

It's not the same birds every day.

Feeding time is the best opportunity

to see these fabulous birds
up close.

It's an opportunity that wildlife
cameraman Graham couldn't pass up.

It's amazing, isn't it?

The place is alive with kites.

I filmed most of this
in slow motion

so you can see perhaps what is going
on in some sort of detail.

When they pick a piece of meat up,
they take it up

and they pass it from their foot
deftly to their beak.

They do that quite quickly
to get rid of it,

otherwise they'll get mobbed
in mid-air.

And when they do it,

it's almost like time has stopped
just momentarily.

They stop flapping, you'd almost
imagine they stop breathing.

How many do you think are here,
Chris, at the minute?

Er, anything between 400 or 500.
400-500, yeah.

It's difficult to count,

and that's going up every year,
you say. It is, yes, yes.

There's no air traffic control
there, is there?

With as many as 1,000 kites now
visiting Chris's farm every week,

it's hard to believe that
they'd almost disappeared

from the Welsh countryside.

What feeding has done is given
a rise to the number of chicks

that are hatched and kept alive.

The average before was one,

and now they're raising
two and three chicks.

And they're spreading now
into Shropshire and Herefordshire,

and into...

I think there's kites being seen
in all of the Welsh counties now

and that's all come from here.

The red kite is the bird of Wales.

I love the agility, their colour.

You know, they are just
so very precious, really.

I don't think anybody could look at
it and see the way it flies,

and not come away and say

that's the most fantastic
bird they've seen.

When we first put that
first rabbit out...

..and two kites appeared,

never did I imagine
that this would happen.