All language subtitles for BBC.Hidden.India.2of3.Land.of.Mountains.1080p.BluRay.x264.AAC.MVGroup.org

India is a land of over one billion people.

An ancient world...

...it is forging a bright future.

it may look like there's little room for wildlife.

But away from the hustle and bustle...

...there are exotic kingdoms of rock and ice...

...dense jungles...

great deserts...

...and mighty rivers.

All bursting with life.

Here nature has been woven into people's lives.

Wilderness holds strong.

And the wild spirit of India thrives.

This...

...is hidden India.

Winter in the remote Himalayas

Hardy markhor goats are able to make
a living by being nimble on these vertical slopes.

The male's enormous curling horns equip them
for fights with other males.

Now is the time of the rut where they must fight
for territory and a harem of females.

It's a precarious place to fight.

A wrong footing can lead to a fatal fall,

and that's not all there is to worry about.

A snow leopard.

The stealthiest of mountain predators.

They are able to stalk the markhor or from above.

A female and kid looks like
this leopards best bet for a meal.

The markhor out at agile...

...but the snow leopard is in her element.

Faced with a choice of getting caught
or making the leave,

the markhor's gamble with
the uncertainty of the river the loan.

Today the leopard has lost her chase.

But her persistence eventually pays off.

There is good reason for her resolve:
she does not just have herself to feed.

At the den a yearling cub too inexperienced
to hunt on its own weight.

She has brought her kill to share.

The cub could stay with its mother for
almost another full year.

It takes time to learn the ropes
in the landscape this tough.

This is life in India's mountains.

Extreme conditions breed tough survivors.

But they also shelter a spectacular
variety of life at all levels.

From hidden valleys to snow-capped peaks.

Their influence extends far and wide...

...fostering the unique array of life that
thrives throughout the subcontinent.

Nowhere is this more evident than
India's other great mountains :

the Western Ghats, a hidden gem far to the south.

Often overshadowed by the mighty Himalayas
but no less spectacular in their way.

The wildlife that call these hills home
do not have to face the extremes of the Himalayas.

The lush rainforests here have bred endless variety.

The quiet of a mountain glen is broken
by a ghostly sound of huge wings.

This is the great pied hornbill.

They are huge birds, the heaviest of all Asian hornbills...

...with wingspans of up to 2 meters.

They are called that gardeners of the forest...

...living off abundant fruiting plants and
dispersing their seeds throughout the hills.

This male begins his morning routine.

He visits this tree again and again for
one very important reason.

His mate is sealed within, she is incubating
their clutch of two eggs.

To protect their future family
the pair worked together...

...to close the entrance of this hollow
with their sticky dung.

The opening is too small for most predators
to get in...

...and ensures no other hornbill will take
this valuable asset.

She will remain here for four months...

...completely dependent on his deliveries of food.

This is an actor devotion carried out
throughout the spring.

The male's bring mainly fruit but they also seek out
small insects than other flying creatures...

...like bats a rare feast.

Once the eggs hatch, the mother will break out

and the chicks will reseal themselves in
for a further few weeks.

But for now the expectant fathers continue
to garden these lush mountain forests.

the Western Ghats are much older than
the Himalayas.

They are also much smaller, they reached
just 2700 meters above sea level.

Although this mountain range takes up
barely six percent of the land mass of India ...

...it is home to almost a third
of all native species.

For one good reason: rain.

Lots of rain.

The Ghats literally means steps.

They rise sharply from the coastal plains and are the first place
to catch the monsoon rains as they arrive from the southern seas.

Up to eight meters of rain can drench
these hills over the monsoon season.

The persistent downpours and the heat of
the southerly location...

...creates the perfect conditions for
rain forests rich in wildlife.

One group of animals in particular thrives
in such wet humid conditions.

More than half of all the amphibian
species in India live on these green slopes.

And over three-quarters of those
are found nowhere else in the world.

Some are easy to spot, the common Indian toad
in breeding colors.

Others are far more secretive.

A male purple frog.

One of the strangest sights of the natural world.

Scientists believe it is a rare survivor of a lineage
that dates back 130 million years...

...to the time of the dinosaurs.

For 50 weeks a year, he has lived in
hidden burrows beneath the ground.

His oddly pointed nose his perfectly shaped
to push through soil.

But his mouth is tiny so he is restricted to feeding on
termites and other subterranean bugs.

Now with the coming of the rains
He emerges for just two weeks to mate.

With such a short time above ground...

...the purple frog remained hidden
from scientists until 2003.

These forests are so rich that there is
life here yet to be discovered.

A more visible resident that lives only in
these hills is the lion-tailed macaque.

Although science has named them for the
small tuft on the end of their tail...

...there should probably be called what the
locals have always called them The lion maned macaque.

The rainforests that coats these slopes
is an ideal home for picky eaters.

Unlike many monkey species
these macaques cannot digest tough leaves.

So they need a rich forest full of fruit
insects and other high-quality foods.

Like jackfruit, the largest tree fruit in the world.

They're distend herbal cheek pouches
allow them to literally stuff their faces...

...saving the leftovers for later.

These rare lion-tailed macaques are unique
to the Western Ghats...

...and are utterly dependent
on this rainforest home.

But people are also drawn to these mountains.

They have come for one main reason: the moist hills
of the Western Ghats are perfect for growing tea.

India is one of the largest producers of tea
in the world...

...it yields more than a million tons of it a year.

Much of which is grown here in the southern hills.

But people here have a neighbor one that
could potentially cause big problems.

The name of this part of the Western Ghats
is Annamali which means elephant hills.

For centuries the forests here have been home
to India's largest land mammal.

It is still home to the largest population of elephants
anywhere in India around 10,000.

They have enjoyed the safety of
remote mountain landscapes.

The herds crisscross the slopes
traveling between feeding sites...

...along paths they have used for centuries.

So what is an elephant to do when their
forest has been replaced with plantations?

Keep to the paths they've always used
and pass right through them.

This is a unique sight.

Elephants in tea.

Elephants don't eat the plant
because it is too bitter.

But difficulties arise when the elephant's
encounter people unexpectedly.

A startled elephant can charge
with devastating effects.

But in India there is a willingness
to work with wildlife.

The scientists at the Nature Conservation Foundation
are responsible for an ingenious solution:

an elephant warning system.

Using the mobile phone network, one text
can reach 3,000 subscribers in an instant.

And lit beacons alert people to
elephants passing through.

In the past three years the number of incidents
has been cut in half.

This project is proof of how modern India
is trying to live in harmony with its natural world.

Thanks to the passion of the people here this place can
continue to carry the name elephant hills.

As night falls on the forests of the Western Ghats...

...a secretive creature awakes.

The slender loris a distant cousin to the monkey.

They move so quietly through the treetops
that most people will never see one.

But low-light cameras reveal their hidden lives.

Their long slender arms have a far
reach for moving through the trees.

Elongated fingers have a vice-like grip
that helps them navigate the branches

They get additional grip by rubbing
their hands and feet in their own urine.

Keeping their skin sticky for better
traction while climbing.

Enormous eyes pick up on
the tiniest traces of ambient light.

So that darkness is no impediment to hunting.

This grasshopper stood no chance.

These small primates are specialist insect hunters.

Silently stalking then striking out
to snatch their prey.

A praying mantis puts up a fight.

But not for long.

The slender loris spends its life
almost entirely in the canopy.

When the sun rises, it disappears
to sleep out the day.

The peaks and valleys of the Western Ghats
conceal another wildlife icon.

An animal attributed with almost
supernatural powers.

In Indian culture, the tiger is revered
as the guardian of the forests.

He creates the rains...

...regenerates life...

...and brings fertility.

No other animal has quite so much
attributed to it.

The Western Ghats are home to over 570 tigers
the largest number of tigers in India.

At the end of the monsoon, the numbers
are swollen by a few honorary tigers.

At the foot of the mountains, the harvest festival
Onam celebrates the time of plenty.

Central to the festivities are the men
of the Puli Kali the tiger dance.

Only a handful of artists can paint
the dancers with such skill.

And as for those bellies they take
a great deal of dedication to develop.

The dance invites a mythical King
back from the underworld...

...to show him how happy his people
are during this time of plenty.

No one is quite sure how to dance started.

It is said that over 200 years ago...

...a Maharaja wanted a dance
to celebrate the spirit of the world.

There's a choice of animal under tiger.

Away from the Western Ghats, India levels out.

Thousands of kilometres of rolling plateau...

...lie between these and India's
other great mountain range.

The highest mountains in the world:
the Himalayas.

In comparison to the gentle green hills
of the Western Ghats...

...the Himalayas seem barren and forbidding.

But appearances are often deceptive.

The Himalayas were born when India
collided with the Asian mainland.

The pressure of this slow collision forced
the land upwards.

The Himalayas are the youngest mountains on earth.

In geological terms, they are mere infants
just fourteen million years old.

And like infants they are still growing.

The peaks rise by a few centimeters
every year.

Earthquakes and volcanic activity today
are the result of this continued action.

But not all of these immense geological forces
are destructive.

Thermal springs bubble up from
more than 2,000 meters below the earth.

Here at the top of the world
we find a snake that lives nowhere else.

No cold-blooded creature should be able
to live at these freezing high altitudes.

This is a thermophis meaning heat snake,

one of the highest living snakes on earth.

The streams here flow from hot springs
and the snakes can swim freely.

Bobbing their heads above water...

...stalking fish.

For those on the barren plateau north of
the Himalayas...

...life presents other challenges.

The Himalayas are India's Great Wall.

But their influence extends far beyond her borders.

Like the Western Ghats they
also capture monsoon rain.

This creates a vast range shadow to the north.

Here in Tibet the land is flatter but still high
on average 4,500 metres above sea level.

These grasslands are home to some
of the highest grazers in the world.

The wild yak the biggest animal to
survive at these heights.

Males can be two meters at the shoulder.

Many large animals take advantage of
this abundant grass...

...but it's the army of mini lawnmowers
at their feet that may have the biggest impact.

This is a Pika, a relative of the rabbit
common throughout the Himalayas.

He is making hay while the sun shines he is constantly eating
to get his body ready for the winter months.

He is the gardener of the region,
his grazing keeps the lawn down...

...but he'll also aerate the
tough soil with his underground burrows...

...and help fertilize the ground with the
vegetation he drags down into them.

Pika seemed to live a carefree existence.

But they must always be vigilant.

the Tibetan Fox.

And Pika are their main prey.

Keeping a low profile is essential in these planes...

...and the Fox with its short legs
and flat head is a master at it.

It now becomes a game of cat and mouse.

This is a dance that is played out
across the region.

The fox is sure to catch a meal eventually.

Pika are the stalwarts of the mountains
they stay put year-round.

In winter, they carry on their business
beneath the snow...

...where they maintain a secret stash of
grasses and seeds...

...to keep them going through the winter.

Others adopt a different strategy.

A mother bar-headed goose is raising her
chicks on the high plateau.

Because of the abundant plant
and insect life in this lake...

...and the lack of large predators
the summer is gentle to them.

But this sanctuary is only temporary.

In just four months time, temperatures will
drop to minus 40 degrees...

...and this lake will be frozen solid.

The family will have to fly south to escape winter.

In doing so they can fly higher than any
other bird in the world:

To cross the Himalayas.

The bar-headed goose is designed to cope
with these altitudes.

They are equipped with bigger lungs.

Their blood is able to carry more oxygen
in it than any other bird.

They cross the treacherous peaks
in just eight hours.

It won't be long until these chicks find
out whether they have what it takes.

Remarkably just eight weeks after they
first learn to fly...

...the chicks will follow their parents
over the roof of the world...

...south and into India.

As the geese journey across these passes
they will see a greener land below.

The southern slopes of the Himalayas are a
contrast to the lands to the north.

A wetter climate here can support a high
treeline and abundant vegetation.

The Indian Himalayas conceal an astonishing
variety of wildlife.

Wildlife that must adapt to the demands
of these precipitous slopes.

A Himalayan Tahr the ultimate mountaineer.

These mountain goats make the most of the green vegetation
that manages to take hold between the rocks.

His hooves have rubbery centers and hard
outer edges to wedge into the rocks.

His shoulders are shock absorbers.

Life in this extreme landscape
exists on a knife edge.

There is very little room for error.

A female leads her young kid down the cliffs.

This youngster must learn to navigate
the mountain if it is going to survive.

It can be a steep learning curve.

High above riding the thermals, Lama Gaya of scanning
the landscape for victims of the mountains.

They are scavengers who make
their nests in cliffs.

Griffin vultures have made quick work
cleaning meat from this carcass.

The Lama Gaia appears to have arrived too late.

But it has a clever trick.

With a wingspan of almost three meters
he can carry heavy bones up...

...and drop them from on high.

Smashing them open to reveal
the rich marrow inside.

This is why the Lama Gaya
is also known as bone breaker.

Throughout much of the year the Himalayas are
a monotone world of black and white.

With the arrival of spring, the mountains shed
their winter coat...

...to reveal an abundance that has lain dormant.

The mountains now burst with color.

The first tree to blossom is the rhododendron.

Though they have spread to gardens across the world
these slopes are their true home.

They formed some of the highest forests
in the world.

They're showy blooms provide a vital
early source of nectar for insects and for birds

One particularly colorful character...

...has traveled up from the valleys below as
the snows recede.

It's so small it's easy to miss.

A male sunbird.

No bigger than a mouse.

His delicate beak and long tongue mean he can
drink the nectar of the rhododendron.

In return he is an important pollinator
allowing these magnificent plants to flourish.

The richness of these high-altitude forests...

...supports the highest living monkeys in
India the central Himalayan langur.

They are very different from
their lowland cousins.

Their thick white coat and large size
help them to maintain heat in the chill mountains.

Their big bellies contain a huge gut that allows them
to live off tough leaves even pine needles.

But in spring, when the mountains come to life...

...the langurs can feed on more delicate
rhododendron blossoms and new growth.

This is the time shepherds lead their flocks
up to high-altitude pastures...

...they use pilgrimage routes more than a
thousand years old.

It's an arduous journey that can take
several days.

With the help of Himalayan sheepdogs the
Shepherd's must carefully guide their flocks...

...far up into the mountains.

It's a lot of effort but at this time of year
there are stunning riches to be found in the Himalayas.

Nanda Devi the second-highest peak within India.

The name means 'goddess of bliss'.

It is said that the remote peaks surround her
as protection from the outside world.

At her feet lies a hidden refuge...

...so remote it takes several days
on foot to reach it.

During winter the land is completely locked
away in snow and ice.

But for a brief spell when the snow is retreat
they reveal a vast spectacle.

Rolling meadows of alpine blues.

This is the valley of flowers.

From June to September over 500 species
of wild flower bloom.

A cacophony of color carpeting slopes
that are 3,600 metres above sea level.

Some blooms are found only here.

The mountains funnel the rain clouds up the valley...

...and every day they bathe it in gentle showers
coaxing new growth from the fertile soils.

Animals flock to feast
on this brief bounty of plants.

Though Hindu Yogi's have visited to meditate in
this blessed place since ancient times...

...the valley of flowers only became known
to outsiders in 1931...

...when a group of British explorers
happened upon it.

Since then it has become world renowned
among botanists...

...as it represents a unique transition zone...

...between the eastern and western Himalayas.

The Himalayas are vast.

Nearly 4000 kilometers long
and 8800 meters high.

Conditions vary from perennial snow and
ice at the top...

...to grasslands and forests below.

Tropical evergreen forests far to the
east awake to a haunting call.

This is the only place in India it can be heard.

This is the song of the Hoelok gibbon,
India's only ape.

Every morning, small family groups sing.

Their tunes establish territory...

...and males and females perform duets
to reaffirm their bond.

Hoeloks spend their lives in the canopy.

They are masters of their environment.

Their long arms...

...strong hands...

...and specially adapted shoulders allow them
to achieve great speeds through the treetops.

They are the fastest non-flying animals of the forest.

Capable of up to 55 kilometers an hour.

This young male looks agile...

...but he is still learning his way around the forest,
and stays close to his parents.

He was born pure white but soon turned
light brown like his mother.

As a male his fur darkened to black when
he was about two years old.

He may stay with his parents for another year
or until he has a sibling.

Then he will venture out to start his own family.

And the life cycle driven by
India's mountains continues.

The story of these animals is repeated
throughout the subcontinent.

The most spectacular wildlife clings to
the influence of the mountains.

The mountains shelter...

...nourrish...

...hide...

...and challenge india's wildlife.

They drive the climate and make Indian
wildlife unique.

From the rain-soaked Western Ghats
in the south...

...to the vast Himalayas in the north.

The mountains of India show off their bounty...

...and guard their secrets still.