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(light music)
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Where endless grasslands have grown over
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empires vanished long ago, a legendary Russian force
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is heading inland.
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(light dramatic music)
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With a stunning variety of landscapes and species,
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the Volga has expanded into a vast basin.
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(water splashing)
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(sand rustling)
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Over 2,000 miles, this extraordinary river traverses
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the heartlands of Russia for a spectacular finale.
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(light music)
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The Volga stretches across
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the better part of Eastern Europe.
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An area as large as France, Spain and Portugal combined.
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It sources in Russia's snow rich north have swelled
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the river into a huge, unstoppable force.
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All the planet's major rivers flow into the oceans.
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All except one; the mighty Volga.
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Its southern banks are bare and expansive.
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(birds chirping)
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Perfect for the world's heaviest
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flying bird to show its stuff.
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(birds chirping)
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In early morning mists, great bustards gather along
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the Volga steppes near to the city of Saratov.
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(light music)
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Each male wants to prove why he is special,
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with an extravagant wardrobe.
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And a bright white feather ball.
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He is very distinctive.
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(bustard trilling)
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With so many males around,
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each has to make an effort to stand out.
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(bustards chirping)
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Two are readying for a fight.
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The first to flinch will lose.
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(suspenseful music)
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(light dramatic music)
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Enter an onlooker.
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He has come to observe battle.
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But he has a crafty plan.
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With the two cocks busy tousling, he makes a discrete exit.
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(bustards grunting)
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It's all about timing.
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Enter not just one, but several females.
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(birds chirping)
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(light music)
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(bustard gobbling)
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A true charmer indeed.
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(light dramatic music)
(bustards squawking)
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As such, he steals the show.
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(playful music)
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But not before a final solo.
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And with his rivals busy, it's time to close the deal.
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(wings flapping)
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Time to exit.
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(light dramatic music)
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Further south, the land grows barren.
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Yet even in the badlands, there is life.
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(birds chirping)
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A steppe eagle's nest.
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Four chicks make an unusually large brood.
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On average there are two and only one might survive.
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(wings flapping)
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(ground crunching)
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(chicks chirping)
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Their mother shows her experience.
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Carefully she tears up and shares out
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morsels in bite sized pieces.
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With so many mouths to feed,
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she has to leave the nest more often.
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However, leaving the chicks alone is always a risk.
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With steppe eagles, hunting is therefore
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mostly the job on the male.
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(squirrel chomping)
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Ground squirrels are the eagle's favorite prey.
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Yet those that live close by the nest are left alone.
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(chicks chirping)
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It could be she's saving them till last.
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(pheasant humming)
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Meanwhile, other neighbors are free to wander undisturbed.
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Free to do as they like.
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(wings flapping)
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(antelope baaing)
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Saiga antelope, a true nomad.
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No one can predict where they'll roam.
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The mother eagle is relaxed.
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She's seen it all before.
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(chicks chirping)
(antelope baaing)
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Saiga give birth to their young almost simultaneously.
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A fawn is no bigger than a hare and would make easy prey.
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Mothers have little time to nurse.
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Within just hours, calves must be on their feet and moving.
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Saiga are prodigious wanderers.
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Herds like this can easily cover 60 miles in a day.
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(ground crunching)
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Demoiselle cranes are well acquainted
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with breeding in open country.
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(chicks chirping)
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They don't even make a nest.
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A small depression will suffice.
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(light music)
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The chick won't remain under the wing for long.
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As soon as they can, they follow a parent into the steppe.
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At this age, the demoiselle crane chick can walk,
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but it cannot yet feed itself.
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(light music)
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And so, it accepts tidbits;
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tiny spiders, ants, grasshopper legs.
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Both parents take turn to feed it.
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(chick chirping)
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A second chick hatches.
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Alone in the blazing mid day heat,
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it uses its last strength to free itself.
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Spring heat on these steppes is merciless.
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(chick thudding)
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(light dramatic music)
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Moving south, the land dries out further
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and tributaries grow smaller.
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Many don't even reach the main river.
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Instead, they run into vast salt flats in the middle
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of nowhere, like Elton Lake on the border with Kazakhstan.
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A desolate, almost lifeless world.
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A land defined by water,
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which has long since left it behind.
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Sunlight sucks nearly all the moisture from the earth.
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Leaving salty mud.
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(mud squishing)
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(water splashing)
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Saiga antelope scour these pans for fresh water.
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(light dramatic music)
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(antelope baaing)
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Mothers still suckling their young have to drink more often.
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Saiga can drink brackish water,
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yet the salt concentration here is so high it's unpalatable.
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As thirst rises, so does stress levels.
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(suspenseful music)
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(horns thudding)
(antelope baaing)
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With no fresh water here,
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the herd has no choice but to move on.
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(light dramatic music)
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These ancient tracks can be seen for decades.
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(antelope baaing)
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And so, the herd follows them like a compass.
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(birds chirping)
(light music)
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100 miles away, clouds are gathering above the Volga.
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A river this size creates it's own microclimate.
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(light music)
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Wisps of cloud form over the cooler valley,
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bringing the promise of rain.
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Wind drives cloud masses out over the steppe.
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(wind whistling)
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(birds chirping)
(grass rustling)
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In the afternoon heat, the demoiselle cranes continue
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their search for small insects.
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The second chick has caught up.
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Now, it can feed with its sibling.
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(thunder rumbling)
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(light dramatic music)
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Rain brings welcome relief.
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Yet it has dangers, too.
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Adults can tolerate cold, but chicks are easily exposed
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and are at risk of hypothermia.
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With a days less reserves than its sibling,
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the second chick is weakening.
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(chicks chirping)
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(light dramatic music)
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The search for insects to feed her young
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is becoming evermore urgent.
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A break in the rain looks promising.
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But the chick is perilously cold,
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and if clouds don't disperse soon, its fate could be sealed.
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(light dramatic music)
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The Volga is an ancient power.
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For over five million years,
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it has built new roots into the heart of the continent.
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Ice ages and earthquakes have determined
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the river's flow and course.
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Even today, the land is shaped by the remains
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of all the rivers.
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(light music)
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The Volga has moved away long ago,
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leaving salt flats, semi-deserts and sediment beds behind.
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What once lay underwater is now at the mercy of heat,
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frosts and the eternal winds.
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Millions of tons of river sand are blown across the wastes.
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(dramatic music)
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There is no goal in sight.
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Shapes change with the wind.
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(wind whistling)
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(sand rustling)
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(light dramatic music)
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A toad-headed agama lizard;
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perfectly adapted to life in this ever changing sand pole.
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(light music)
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A ridge marks the boundaries of its territory.
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(sand crunching)
An intruder.
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This one is small, yet it could mean business.
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(tail thudding)
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Agitated tail wagging is a call to battle.
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(suspenseful music)
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With a dash, the agama sees off the unwelcome stranger.
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(tail thudding)
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(dramatic music)
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But only so far.
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At close quarters, the lizards make themselves
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big by flaunting their backs.
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(sand crunching)
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Whoever gives way will lose.
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(light music)
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His dune is safe once again.
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Time to get back to business.
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(light dramatic music)
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Hunting.
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A beetle could make a good meal.
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(sand crunching)
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Strangely, it doesn't seem alarmed.
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(dramatic music)
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(beetle thudding)
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Ground beetles are carnivorous,
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and this one has powerful jaws.
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To prevent being eaten, it aims for the agama's tongue.
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(sand crunching)
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But on his back, he's surely doomed.
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(dramatic music)
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A second wind and now the tables are turned.
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(sand crunching)
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The hunter becomes the hunted.
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(light music)
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It takes all sizes to triumph
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in the harsh world of the sands.
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(light dramatic music)
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(wind whistling)
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Today, this landscape known as Kalmykia,
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is settled by descendants of the Mongol hordes.
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(gate squeaking)
(water trickling)
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In spring, farms stand empty.
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Yet they are not all together abandoned.
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(light music)
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Hoopoes favor these derelict places for their nests.
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(birds chirping)
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The steppes are rich in caterpillars and spiders.
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(chicks chirping)
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The chicks' white beak stands out like a bullseye,
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making feeding easier in the dark.
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(wings flapping)
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(chicks chirping)
249
00:23:09,940 --> 00:23:13,233
A large camel spider is a rare catch for the hoopoe.
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(chicks chirping)
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But nothing is going to deter the hungry chick,
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even if its eyes are a bit larger than its stomach.
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(light dramatic music)
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Next door's haystack is a good roost
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for the long-legged buzzard.
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(hay crunching)
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All that remains is to lay its eggs.
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(light music)
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Even the farm buildings could be put to good use.
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A delegation of rosy starlings is viewing a barn.
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(bird chirping)
Looks good.
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Time to move in.
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The breaking news has reached the flock.
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(light dramatic music)
(wings flapping)
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Soon enough, the barns are taken over.
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Now, the squabbling for space will begin.
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(light music)
(birds chirping)
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And after that, home building.
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(birds chirping)
270
00:25:04,600 --> 00:25:08,223
Rosy starlings are intolerant landlords.
271
00:25:14,270 --> 00:25:16,980
It doesn't matter who got here first,
272
00:25:16,980 --> 00:25:19,953
sparrows are evicted without notice.
273
00:25:28,600 --> 00:25:31,533
New residents must bring their own furnishings.
274
00:25:36,878 --> 00:25:39,628
(birds chirping)
275
00:25:44,857 --> 00:25:48,290
(light dramatic music)
(bird squawking)
276
00:25:48,290 --> 00:25:50,883
Now, the building belongs to them.
277
00:25:56,300 --> 00:26:00,553
Time to celebrate.
(bird squawking)
278
00:26:11,280 --> 00:26:13,938
(wings flapping)
279
00:26:13,938 --> 00:26:16,270
(light dramatic music)
280
00:26:16,270 --> 00:26:20,870
The steppes of Kalmykia were once an ancient seabed.
281
00:26:20,870 --> 00:26:22,980
At the end of the last ice age,
282
00:26:22,980 --> 00:26:26,355
the land was flooded by the Caspian Sea.
283
00:26:26,355 --> 00:26:29,188
(antelope baaing)
284
00:26:30,380 --> 00:26:34,433
Even today, this place lies 30 meters below sea level.
285
00:26:36,540 --> 00:26:40,633
As the waters receded, semi-deserts began to form.
286
00:26:46,577 --> 00:26:49,220
Limans were all that remained.
287
00:26:49,220 --> 00:26:51,960
Relics of an ancient delta
288
00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:55,353
with thousands of saline gullies and lakes.
289
00:26:57,416 --> 00:26:59,710
(water splashing)
(birds chirping)
290
00:26:59,710 --> 00:27:02,563
Rain has freshened the salty water.
291
00:27:04,340 --> 00:27:06,714
Salvation for the thirsty herd.
292
00:27:06,714 --> 00:27:09,547
(antelope baaing)
293
00:27:27,890 --> 00:27:30,710
This is the first time the young Saigas
294
00:27:30,710 --> 00:27:34,010
have seen and tasted fresh water.
295
00:27:34,010 --> 00:27:36,843
(antelope baaing)
296
00:27:43,182 --> 00:27:46,432
(light dramatic music)
297
00:27:49,420 --> 00:27:50,870
For a brief moment,
298
00:27:50,870 --> 00:27:55,626
the waterhole appears as lush as an African oasis.
299
00:27:55,626 --> 00:27:58,459
(antelope baaing)
300
00:28:12,560 --> 00:28:15,460
With her chick now grown much bigger,
301
00:28:15,460 --> 00:28:19,980
the crane can enjoy this rare time of peace and plenty
302
00:28:19,980 --> 00:28:22,197
in the Volga's harsh salt steppes.
303
00:28:22,197 --> 00:28:25,030
(antelope baaing)
304
00:28:26,869 --> 00:28:29,702
(water splashing)
305
00:28:30,930 --> 00:28:34,823
The Saiga will drink and drink.
306
00:28:40,588 --> 00:28:43,838
(light dramatic music)
307
00:28:48,030 --> 00:28:48,863
A wolf.
308
00:28:59,275 --> 00:29:02,442
Wolves seldom visit water in daylight.
309
00:29:04,423 --> 00:29:07,256
(water splashing)
310
00:29:13,073 --> 00:29:15,906
(antelope baaing)
311
00:29:18,027 --> 00:29:20,770
Normally, the Saiga would be prey,
312
00:29:20,770 --> 00:29:23,540
but with no pack to help give chase,
313
00:29:23,540 --> 00:29:25,963
this loner has no chance.
314
00:29:32,300 --> 00:29:36,143
So, for the time being, he satisfies himself with a drink.
315
00:29:37,285 --> 00:29:39,771
(water splashing)
316
00:29:39,771 --> 00:29:42,271
(light music)
317
00:29:44,020 --> 00:29:47,100
For the last 300 miles of its course,
318
00:29:47,100 --> 00:29:49,693
the Volga has no more more major tributaries.
319
00:29:50,630 --> 00:29:53,820
Smaller streams wander away, meandering along
320
00:29:53,820 --> 00:29:56,833
the flood plains and back into the main current.
321
00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:04,270
The few villages located along the banks are dwarfed
322
00:30:04,270 --> 00:30:08,223
by the river valley; over 12 miles wide at this point.
323
00:30:16,738 --> 00:30:19,488
(horse trotting)
324
00:30:28,876 --> 00:30:33,543
A corsac fox, their homesteads are often farmland edges.
325
00:30:34,460 --> 00:30:36,410
There's always something here for them.
326
00:30:37,350 --> 00:30:40,830
These smaller relatives of red foxes are hardly taller
327
00:30:40,830 --> 00:30:43,333
than the short steppe grasses they inhabit.
328
00:30:51,580 --> 00:30:54,850
Pups gain their independence at a young age,
329
00:30:54,850 --> 00:30:58,713
and go off to seek fortune providing for themselves.
330
00:31:00,930 --> 00:31:05,330
For a corsac fox, that means hunting insects.
331
00:31:05,330 --> 00:31:08,700
Grasshoppers and beetles are abundant,
332
00:31:08,700 --> 00:31:11,130
frequently right under your nose.
333
00:31:12,060 --> 00:31:14,977
(beetle crunching)
334
00:31:21,650 --> 00:31:25,023
The siblings will always have a bolt-hole close to hand.
335
00:31:26,472 --> 00:31:28,920
Corsac foxes often move burrows
336
00:31:28,920 --> 00:31:31,853
and dig numerous alternative homes in the steppe.
337
00:31:36,630 --> 00:31:39,120
As if from thin air,
(birds squawking)
338
00:31:39,120 --> 00:31:42,742
flying brigades make their landing on the mound.
339
00:31:42,742 --> 00:31:45,992
(light dramatic music)
340
00:31:49,137 --> 00:31:52,330
Shelducks prefer to breed underground,
341
00:31:52,330 --> 00:31:54,923
and are specialists in home invasion.
342
00:31:56,190 --> 00:31:58,850
They're much larger than the tiny owners,
343
00:31:58,850 --> 00:32:00,373
and they want the burrow.
344
00:32:06,245 --> 00:32:08,520
(ducks quacking)
Is there still someone home?
345
00:32:08,520 --> 00:32:11,463
Care is advisable when investigating a foxhole.
346
00:32:14,970 --> 00:32:18,343
Ladies first, the gander stands guard.
347
00:32:19,890 --> 00:32:21,603
Will she come back again?
348
00:32:25,730 --> 00:32:29,783
Nobody's home, the burrow is just right.
349
00:32:33,340 --> 00:32:38,285
What fox worth its salt lets a duck take its home?
350
00:32:38,285 --> 00:32:40,690
(duck quacking)
351
00:32:40,690 --> 00:32:43,800
One of them will have to give ground.
352
00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:47,007
They quack, but don't take flight.
353
00:32:47,007 --> 00:32:48,940
(duck quacking)
354
00:32:48,940 --> 00:32:51,670
Reinforcements are close at hand.
355
00:32:51,670 --> 00:32:54,170
(cows mooing)
356
00:33:00,350 --> 00:33:02,090
They're a lot bigger,
357
00:33:02,090 --> 00:33:05,113
but thankfully not suited to life in a burrow.
358
00:33:06,630 --> 00:33:08,653
Playing is much more their thing.
359
00:33:11,550 --> 00:33:13,690
A tight spot for the little one.
360
00:33:14,550 --> 00:33:17,420
The cows enjoy the foxes bastions.
361
00:33:17,420 --> 00:33:21,053
A cool breeze here drives away biting flies.
362
00:33:24,203 --> 00:33:25,880
(cows mooing)
363
00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:28,123
Time has come to make the jump.
364
00:33:31,460 --> 00:33:33,513
The open steppe awaits.
365
00:33:37,980 --> 00:33:40,070
Corsacs are loners.
366
00:33:40,070 --> 00:33:43,930
Sooner or later, each will go its separate way,
367
00:33:43,930 --> 00:33:46,763
yet the bond will remain between these siblings.
368
00:33:47,630 --> 00:33:50,460
They play and learn together.
369
00:33:50,460 --> 00:33:52,713
Each keeps an eye out for the other.
370
00:34:01,280 --> 00:34:04,780
Every encounter could be their last.
371
00:34:07,596 --> 00:34:10,096
(fox barking)
372
00:34:15,980 --> 00:34:19,173
For now, it still looks a little undecided.
373
00:34:22,985 --> 00:34:25,485
(light music)
374
00:34:26,380 --> 00:34:27,543
Time to leave.
375
00:34:34,920 --> 00:34:36,757
High water on the Volga.
376
00:34:39,540 --> 00:34:43,810
Over the last few miles, side streams fill and create
377
00:34:43,810 --> 00:34:47,063
an Amazon like oasis within the baron landscape.
378
00:34:54,990 --> 00:34:56,980
The river has traversed the Russian
379
00:34:56,980 --> 00:34:59,283
heartland for over 2,000 miles.
380
00:35:04,570 --> 00:35:05,603
Not far to go now.
381
00:35:08,960 --> 00:35:12,430
Finally, the Volga branches out into the huge delta,
382
00:35:12,430 --> 00:35:16,087
as it readies itself to meet the Caspian Sea.
383
00:35:16,087 --> 00:35:18,970
(light music)
384
00:35:18,970 --> 00:35:23,200
Astrakhan, once a major hub on the Silk Road,
385
00:35:23,200 --> 00:35:25,993
is the final city along the Volga's course.
386
00:35:31,850 --> 00:35:34,283
At this point, the river divides up.
387
00:35:35,270 --> 00:35:37,270
Even the waterways that branch off
388
00:35:37,270 --> 00:35:40,933
from the main source can easily carry ocean liners.
389
00:35:42,040 --> 00:35:45,203
Russia's Caspian Sea Fleet is based at Astrakhan.
390
00:35:54,940 --> 00:35:58,150
From here, hundreds of canals funnel out
391
00:35:58,150 --> 00:36:00,017
to carry the Volga to the sea.
392
00:36:10,154 --> 00:36:11,760
(birds chirping)
393
00:36:11,760 --> 00:36:14,893
Stranded cutters lie along the former shore line.
394
00:36:15,860 --> 00:36:19,223
Today, they make breeding islands in the marshlands.
395
00:36:20,165 --> 00:36:24,950
(birds cooing)
(birds chirping)
396
00:36:24,950 --> 00:36:28,733
Sea eagles have naturally taken up roost on the bridge.
397
00:36:37,870 --> 00:36:41,053
Other visitors must get to grips with railings.
398
00:36:47,710 --> 00:36:51,113
Most stay for just a short stopover before flying on.
399
00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:56,970
(water splashing)
400
00:36:56,970 --> 00:37:01,653
For fish hunters, the shallow salt water is like a goldmine.
401
00:37:02,923 --> 00:37:05,756
(water splashing)
402
00:37:12,020 --> 00:37:15,070
The young sea eagles waiting on the top deck,
403
00:37:15,070 --> 00:37:16,763
have had more than their fill.
404
00:37:19,163 --> 00:37:22,700
(water splashing)
405
00:37:22,700 --> 00:37:26,920
However, there's always room for a little extra.
406
00:37:26,920 --> 00:37:30,173
Especially if the fish is served right to the beak.
407
00:37:37,010 --> 00:37:40,260
For three months they've been enjoying this sun terrace,
408
00:37:40,260 --> 00:37:43,013
and it seems they're in no hurry to leave.
409
00:37:45,170 --> 00:37:47,524
(wings flapping)
410
00:37:47,524 --> 00:37:50,024
(light music)
411
00:37:56,077 --> 00:37:57,840
And why should they?
412
00:37:57,840 --> 00:38:00,810
This is a perfect luxury liner,
413
00:38:00,810 --> 00:38:04,643
a Noah's Ark in the treeless expanse of the reed delta.
414
00:38:14,770 --> 00:38:17,203
Even wild boar can make a living here.
415
00:38:18,100 --> 00:38:21,580
They spend the majority of the year among the rushes.
416
00:38:21,580 --> 00:38:24,200
The driest places are floating islands
417
00:38:24,200 --> 00:38:25,873
made of rotting stems.
418
00:38:33,460 --> 00:38:35,593
All basic supplies are ensured.
419
00:38:43,720 --> 00:38:48,111
Reeds grow everywhere, proffering nutritious sprouts.
420
00:38:48,111 --> 00:38:50,778
(boar chomping)
421
00:38:52,538 --> 00:38:54,090
(water splashing)
In the muddy reaches,
422
00:38:54,090 --> 00:38:58,370
they find snails, fish eggs, and roots.
423
00:38:58,370 --> 00:39:01,363
Wild boar have become reed pigs.
424
00:39:02,564 --> 00:39:05,814
(light dramatic music)
425
00:39:06,959 --> 00:39:08,180
(boar snorting)
426
00:39:08,180 --> 00:39:10,710
There is just one time in the year
427
00:39:10,710 --> 00:39:12,713
which is rather unpleasant for them.
428
00:39:14,010 --> 00:39:15,973
The sow is concerned.
429
00:39:16,830 --> 00:39:19,343
There's something in the air.
430
00:39:19,343 --> 00:39:24,343
(light dramatic music)
(locusts buzzing)
431
00:39:26,650 --> 00:39:28,513
Migratory locusts.
432
00:39:32,940 --> 00:39:36,563
Over the last few weeks, they've eaten the steppe bare.
433
00:39:37,400 --> 00:39:39,410
The delta is the only place
434
00:39:39,410 --> 00:39:41,743
where fresh green growth remains.
435
00:39:43,384 --> 00:39:46,217
(locusts buzzing)
436
00:39:47,560 --> 00:39:51,620
A swarm of biblical proportions.
437
00:39:51,620 --> 00:39:55,390
Miles long, this airborne carpet numbers
438
00:39:55,390 --> 00:39:57,573
in the hundreds of millions.
439
00:40:03,090 --> 00:40:07,110
They hatched just a few weeks ago on the Caspian steppes,
440
00:40:07,110 --> 00:40:10,327
and have devoured all vegetation on their way.
441
00:40:10,327 --> 00:40:13,244
(locusts chirping)
442
00:40:14,600 --> 00:40:18,750
Now, the swarm is going after the last green available;
443
00:40:18,750 --> 00:40:20,743
the reed in the Volga Delta.
444
00:40:21,950 --> 00:40:25,310
Hungry locusts can consume more leaves in a day
445
00:40:25,310 --> 00:40:27,900
then all the wild boar in one year.
446
00:40:32,870 --> 00:40:37,093
Once more, they infest the muddy reed belts.
447
00:40:44,780 --> 00:40:48,850
Despite breeding en masse, the majority of their billions
448
00:40:48,850 --> 00:40:52,923
of eggs sink into the delta to become fodder for fish.
449
00:40:54,108 --> 00:40:54,990
(water splashing)
450
00:40:54,990 --> 00:40:58,093
For the parents, the same fate awaits.
451
00:40:59,680 --> 00:41:02,800
The swarm reaches its end in the delta
452
00:41:02,800 --> 00:41:06,080
and here it is transformed into tons of nutrients
453
00:41:06,080 --> 00:41:09,130
for fish nurseries in the Caspian Sea.
454
00:41:09,130 --> 00:41:13,206
(water splashing)
(locusts buzzing)
455
00:41:13,206 --> 00:41:16,704
(birds chirping)
456
00:41:16,704 --> 00:41:19,204
(light music)
457
00:41:20,450 --> 00:41:24,500
Just one of the phenomena that make the Volga Delta
458
00:41:24,500 --> 00:41:29,023
so breathtakingly rich and a bird's paradise.
459
00:41:43,930 --> 00:41:47,040
In ways only mother nature can invent,
460
00:41:47,040 --> 00:41:50,223
the Volga reclaims ever more land from the sea.
461
00:41:55,920 --> 00:42:00,920
On a front over 125 miles long, vast quantities of water
462
00:42:01,800 --> 00:42:05,010
and rich sediments flow into the Caspian.
463
00:42:05,010 --> 00:42:08,920
Some 250 cubic kilometers a year.
464
00:42:17,320 --> 00:42:21,640
Finding streams of sediment, the plants send down roots,
465
00:42:21,640 --> 00:42:25,303
holding the mud in place to enable their circular growth.
466
00:42:26,470 --> 00:42:29,240
Islands of reeds, which are linked
467
00:42:29,240 --> 00:42:31,923
in particularly exotic ways.
468
00:42:33,131 --> 00:42:38,131
(gentle music)
(birds chirping)
469
00:42:46,190 --> 00:42:48,830
Here, the Volga sands give birth
470
00:42:48,830 --> 00:42:51,773
to the most northerly lotus fields on earth.
471
00:42:56,270 --> 00:42:58,813
Not every year is so lavish as this.
472
00:43:06,700 --> 00:43:09,390
It's a wonder of nature that the water
473
00:43:09,390 --> 00:43:12,870
for this tropical performance originates
474
00:43:12,870 --> 00:43:15,533
in the frozen forests of the Russian north.
475
00:43:19,549 --> 00:43:22,049
(light music)
476
00:43:25,507 --> 00:43:30,273
Beyond the lotus fields, the Caspian shelf begins.
477
00:43:35,630 --> 00:43:37,800
Pelicans glide in majestically
478
00:43:37,800 --> 00:43:40,433
from their fishing grounds back into the delta.
479
00:43:45,640 --> 00:43:49,493
Their colonies lie obscured at the edge of the reed belt.
480
00:43:49,493 --> 00:43:52,326
(pelicans cawing)
481
00:43:53,640 --> 00:43:58,033
A three and a half meter wingspan takes up a lot of space.
482
00:43:59,110 --> 00:44:01,423
Pelicans may be elegant in the air,
483
00:44:02,360 --> 00:44:05,033
but are not specialists on the ground.
484
00:44:06,800 --> 00:44:09,710
Landing on someone else's chicks
485
00:44:09,710 --> 00:44:11,963
can get you into trouble with the owners.
486
00:44:12,853 --> 00:44:15,603
(beaks clicking)
487
00:44:18,950 --> 00:44:21,860
These young pelicans are four weeks old
488
00:44:21,860 --> 00:44:24,673
and need fresh fish at least twice a day.
489
00:44:31,746 --> 00:44:35,450
(pelicans squawking)
490
00:44:35,450 --> 00:44:38,911
Close by, non breeders practice communal fishing.
491
00:44:38,911 --> 00:44:42,244
(light classical music)
492
00:44:45,683 --> 00:44:48,516
(water splashing)
493
00:44:59,840 --> 00:45:02,923
Their results leave something to be desired.
494
00:45:04,030 --> 00:45:06,030
The proper schools of fish needed
495
00:45:06,030 --> 00:45:08,253
are only found on the open sea.
496
00:45:12,557 --> 00:45:13,490
(light music)
497
00:45:13,490 --> 00:45:17,320
Young pelicans know exactly when to beg,
498
00:45:17,320 --> 00:45:20,510
but getting a meal is far from straight forward,
499
00:45:20,510 --> 00:45:23,417
and there's only room for one at a time.
500
00:45:32,216 --> 00:45:35,299
(pelicans squawking)
501
00:45:39,217 --> 00:45:41,970
A pelican's stomach is pitch black.
502
00:45:41,970 --> 00:45:44,243
The fish is deep down in the gullet.
503
00:45:48,030 --> 00:45:50,673
One last dive into the depths.
504
00:46:01,810 --> 00:46:04,583
This portion was actually meant for two.
505
00:46:06,750 --> 00:46:08,420
Now, it's clear why pelicans
506
00:46:08,420 --> 00:46:10,663
have such an expansive throat sac.
507
00:46:12,290 --> 00:46:16,193
For the sibling, only scant pickings remain.
508
00:46:18,490 --> 00:46:20,990
(light music)
509
00:46:23,290 --> 00:46:24,773
One last check.
510
00:46:27,860 --> 00:46:31,180
And as it turns out, the adult has tucked away
511
00:46:31,180 --> 00:46:34,090
a hidden reserve after all.
512
00:46:34,090 --> 00:46:37,063
Yet, this wild carp is too big for the youngster.
513
00:46:44,990 --> 00:46:46,800
There's only one thing to do.
514
00:46:46,800 --> 00:46:49,733
The three pounder slips back into mother's belly.
515
00:46:54,846 --> 00:46:57,929
(pelicans squawking)
516
00:47:00,974 --> 00:47:02,807
It's just not his day.
517
00:47:08,159 --> 00:47:10,980
(light music)
518
00:47:10,980 --> 00:47:15,980
The inland delta, just as it reaches its end,
519
00:47:16,000 --> 00:47:19,183
the Volga creates a spectacular marshland.
520
00:47:20,230 --> 00:47:24,300
Twice the size of Africa's legendary Okavango Delta,
521
00:47:24,300 --> 00:47:26,820
on a par with the American Everglades
522
00:47:26,820 --> 00:47:30,173
or the Sundarbans of India and Bangladesh.
523
00:47:31,020 --> 00:47:34,897
This is the largest reed delta on the planet.
524
00:47:44,738 --> 00:47:47,571
(water trickling)
525
00:47:51,910 --> 00:47:55,606
Where the reeds end, only ghost ships remain.
526
00:47:55,606 --> 00:47:58,439
(birds squawking)
527
00:47:59,380 --> 00:48:04,380
Old Soviet Navy boats covered in a patina of guano and rust.
528
00:48:08,160 --> 00:48:11,333
A vital outpost for fish hunting cormorants.
529
00:48:14,150 --> 00:48:19,150
(light music)
(singing in foreign language)
530
00:48:23,120 --> 00:48:26,410
After a 2,200 mile journey,
531
00:48:26,410 --> 00:48:29,383
the Volga finally unites with the Caspian Sea.
532
00:48:30,520 --> 00:48:33,143
An ocean created by a river.
533
00:48:43,350 --> 00:48:48,013
A landlocked sea larger than the UK and island together.
534
00:48:55,640 --> 00:48:58,793
It's the end of an epic voyage.
535
00:48:58,793 --> 00:49:01,543
(waves crashing)
536
00:49:03,050 --> 00:49:05,553
But there is still one more story to be told.
537
00:49:13,621 --> 00:49:17,220
The ancestors of these Caspian seals once lived
538
00:49:17,220 --> 00:49:20,583
in the Arctic Ocean, thousands of miles away.
539
00:49:27,780 --> 00:49:32,463
Ice ages and glaciers isolated their forebears from the sea.
540
00:49:33,380 --> 00:49:37,300
Bound by the Volga, they followed the river downstream,
541
00:49:37,300 --> 00:49:38,983
all the way to the Caspian.
542
00:49:42,730 --> 00:49:45,560
Together with the seals of Lake Baikal,
543
00:49:45,560 --> 00:49:49,890
these are the only freshwater seals in existence,
544
00:49:49,890 --> 00:49:52,773
and they live exclusively here.
545
00:50:02,040 --> 00:50:04,360
After winter, during the malt,
546
00:50:04,360 --> 00:50:08,550
almost the entire global population of Caspian seals
547
00:50:08,550 --> 00:50:11,363
gather here on this warm northerly shelf.
548
00:50:12,880 --> 00:50:14,760
For just a few weeks,
549
00:50:14,760 --> 00:50:18,353
thousands of them squeeze onto this tiny sand bank.
550
00:50:23,720 --> 00:50:27,870
That they are here in Asia's remote interior,
551
00:50:27,870 --> 00:50:31,325
is thanks to the whims of a mighty river.
552
00:50:31,325 --> 00:50:33,825
(light music)
553
00:50:36,460 --> 00:50:41,460
Once, in forgotten times, they swam into this river,
554
00:50:41,670 --> 00:50:44,043
which to them seemed like a sea.
555
00:50:45,070 --> 00:50:49,360
And at its end, a sea is what one truly special river
556
00:50:49,360 --> 00:50:52,381
has given them; the Volga.
557
00:50:52,381 --> 00:50:55,631
(light dramatic music)
40909
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