All language subtitles for The.Wild.Andes.S01E01.Patagonia.Untamed.1080p.WEB.h264-CAFFEiNE-ENG

♪ ♪

Narrator: The
southern end of the andes...

Where a mother puma
tries to raise a family.

Andean condors soar
over endless rainforests,

Sheltering rare inhabitants.

There are species of tree here

That have
outlasted the dinosaurs.

In these remote
southern reaches of patagonia,

Everything must adapt...

... To constant upheaval...

... Invasion...

... And explosive change.

Wild and untamed, this is
life at the end of the world.

[♪ theme music ♪]

♪ ♪

Narrator: Aconcagua.

At nearly 23,000 feet it is the
highest peak in the americas.

Permanently cloaked in ice,
and deeply carved by glaciers,

Aconcagua straddles the border
between chile and argentina.

From here the andes
stretch down through patagonia.

An inhospitable land of
rock towers and biting cold...

Torres del paine, in
the patagonian andes,

Is a stronghold for one of
the world's greatest hunters.

The puma.

♪ ♪

This female is stalking another

Of the
mountains' hardy survivors:

The guanaco.

Hunter and hunted...

Each must use all its senses
to outmaneuver the other.

But she's been spotted.

The guanaco have a
temporary reprieve.

Here, wintry squalls can
blow in with little warning,

Even in summer.

Bad weather makes every
threat even more dangerous.

Fortunately,
guanaco are well-protected

From the freezing temperatures.

Their fleece is layered

With short downy hair
that keeps them warm,

And long guard hair
that waterproofs them.

But hunger and fear
are never far away.

Icy winds swirl
around the torres del paine,

The towers of blue.

At best, they make
life unpredictable...

At worst...

Unbearable.

Each valley
harbors its own weather.

Predators and prey
must keep on the move

If they want to avoid the worst

These mountains
can throw at them.

Sheltered by the granite
spires and surrounding peaks...

... Many of the
slopes are free from snow,

Making travel much easier.

The female puma
moves with determination,

But she isn't hunting.

Or, at least, not for food.

A male puma.

Females can come into
heat at any time of year.

Her pheromones signal
she's ready to breed.

[female puma yowling]

They'll now
spend a week together,

Mating many times a day, before
going their separate ways,

Endlessly roaming the
slopes of this vast landscape.

♪ ♪

The andes are the longest
mountain chain in the world...

... Stretching 4,000 miles

Along the entire
western edge of south america.

Parallel rocky spines snake
from the tropics in the north,

Down to the chill of patagonia.

Here, the mountains
have been carved by ice

And are
separated by deep fjords.

Heading north
from torres del paine,

The mountains embrace some of
the world's largest ice fields,

And hundreds of
active volcanoes.

On the western
slopes, in central chile,

Lies one of the most southerly
rainforests in the world.

♪ ♪

Moisturized by pacific
fog, the valdivian forest

Is bursting with
natural treasures.

Many of them are
named after the man

Who first discovered them...

Including darwin's stag beetle.

This male is about
three and a half inches long,

But its ferocious mandibles

Account for more
than half its length.

From high in the canopy
comes the irresistible smell

Of a female's
pheromones, luring him upwards.

♪ ♪

Along the way, he breaks
for a restorative drink of sap.

But he can't stop long.

Competition is on its way.

Another male, drawn to
the same seductive scent.

The rival takes to the
air to make his ascent.

They are heading
for a treetop showdown.

But will either of them
have energy left for a fight?

♪ ♪

Sixty feet up, the stage is
set for a clash of the titans.

♪ ♪

The two males
square up to fight.

The grappling begins.

A kind of beetle jujitsu.

The goal?

To launch one's
opponent from the branch.

And win the right to mate
with the female waiting nearby.

The climber hooks his longer
mandibles under the flier...

And triumphs!

♪ ♪

The interloper
survives the fall.

But he's out of the running.

Up above, the victor is
already claiming his prize,

Mating with the
much smaller female.

The fact that the winner usually
boasts the largest mandibles

Shows that with
darwin's stag beetles,

Size really does matter.

Down in the mossy undergrowth

Lives another of
darwin's remarkable namesakes:

Darwin's frog.

It's not unusual for male frogs
to look after their young,

But the male darwin's frog

Takes paternal responsibility
to a whole new level.

The brown female laid
eggs in the leaf litter.

Nearly a month ago.

After she left, the male took
the eggs into his vocal sac.

Three days later,
they hatched into tadpoles

And have remained
there ever since.

For the next three months, the
tadpoles will develop inside him

Until they're mature enough
to be spat out into the world.

Along with darwin's frogs,

An incredible 90
percent of species

Found in the valdivian forest

Have evolved to
live only here --

Isolated by the towering
uplift of the southern andes.

The lush rainforests
couldn't be more different

To the barren land
of torres del paine --

600 miles to the south.

This is the realm of the puma --

And its many prey that scratch
a living among the scrub.

Today they're very much
in the female's sights...

♪ ♪

... Especially now she has
three extra mouths to feed.

For three months, she has
hidden her kittens in a den.

Now it's time to explore.

Every step brings new
adventures in this rocky world.

For the first time, the mother
lets the cubs run wild...

Free to learn from
their own mistakes.

However, they
will be many months

Before they are wily enough

Or fast enough to try
to ambush a darwins rhea.

[puma meows]

Despite the abundance of prey,

The kittens won't be
hunting anytime soon.

To keep them
close, mom calls to them.

[puma meowing]

But sometimes curiosity
gets the better of little cats.

♪ ♪

And wrangling
kittens is no easy task.

Fortunately, even
though they're weaned,

Her young know
not to stray too far.

Just one more to come.

♪ ♪

Now that they're all together,
it's time to get them fed...

A guanaco appears nearby...

And the mother
puma can smell her.

♪ ♪

The cubs follow.

Time for their
hunting lessons to begin.

Above the valdivian
forest in central chile,

Living fossils adorn
the mountain slopes.

Araucaria trees have been
around for 200 million years,

Since the time of
the earliest dinosaurs.

The araucaria are an
important source of food

For austral parakeets.

The sharp leaves are no
impediment to the hungry birds,

On the hunt for the
calorie-rich kernels.

It's thought that
long-necked dinosaurs

Would once have fed
on these seed cones.

Now only birds
can get this high.

Incredibly, this
ancient species of tree

Has been around longer than
the mountains beneath them,

Including llaima -- one of
chile's most active volcanoes.

♪ ♪

Araucaria have
outlived the dinosaurs,

And weathered the
rise of the andes.

But they've had
some help along the way.

Beneath the araucaria
trees lives a small rodent...

The andean long-clawed mouse.

Ninety percent of araucaria
seeds fall to the ground,

Where they're greedily
devoured by the little mice...

But first they have to
get through the tough husk.

Over time the araucaria
have come to rely on these mice

And other rodents
for their regeneration.

In times of plenty,
the long-clawed mice

Eat their fill...

... Then bury some for later.

If the extra cache
doesn't get eaten,

It may germinate into the
next generation of giants.

Compared to the
rise of the araucaria,

The rise of the
andes is a recent event.

♪ ♪

It's only 25 million years
since huge tectonic forces

Began pushing this
land towards the sky.

Many of these peaks
are dormant volcanoes --

Their slopes reddened
by iron-rich hematite

From deep within the earth.

Immense ash and debris
flows, triggered by eruptions,

Are today sliced
through by glacier-fed rivers.

Erosion has
chiseled hard igneous rock

Into famous landmarks --

Such as the three
torres del paine.

Predators and their prey
have carved their livelihoods

Between the imposing peaks.

The mother puma has left
her kittens in a safe place.

Silent and alone, she
moves in on the guanaco herd.

Shrubs and rocks
offer cover for an ambush.

There are inexperienced
youngsters among the herd...

Prime targets.

She must remain downwind and out
of sight of the dominant male,

Who stands sentinel
over the entire herd

Of females and young.

She will have to
approach very carefully.

The essence of stealth,
she is almost upon them.

Narrator: The female puma
has a target in her sights.

Strong, swirling winds could
betray her scent at any moment.

She takes advantage of
the mountain's shadow.

But she can't avoid
the sunlight completely.

Although strong and
agile, she can't outrun guanaco

With top speeds
of 30 miles an hour.

Her only option is surprise.

They run...

But it's too late.

Once in the grip
of her powerful jaws,

There is no hope of escape.

Her next meal is now assured.

But she'll struggle to
hold onto this prize for long.

On these open slopes
there's nowhere to hide

From the sharp eyes
of aerial scavengers.

It's heavy going as
she tries to drag the body

Out of sight of
any andean condors.

The mountain offers a
cloak of darkness once more.

A patagonian fox, or
chilla, is also on the prowl.

Once hidden in the shadows,
the puma rips open the flesh.

Dusk is approaching and she'll
need to return to her kittens,

But she won't leave the guanaco

Until she's at least
eaten its internal organs.

In this punishing environment,

There's no telling
when she might eat again...

... And, without
her, the kittens

Stand no chance of surviving.

The heart, liver and lungs

Are the most
nutritious parts of a kill.

She won't risk losing
these prizes to anyone else.

♪ ♪

The chilla may
have its eyes on her,

But she has to leave the
carcass to rejoin her young.

It's a long way...
And it will soon be dark.

Dawn reveals a
thief in the pantry.

Chillas mostly
hunt small mammals,

But this easy meal
is too good to miss.

It's not alone.

Its mate waits
nervously in the wings.

Even though they're
a monogamous pair...

There's no love lost
when it comes to sharing.

♪ ♪

As the day warms
up, rising thermals

Give andean condors a lift in
their endless search for food.

With their 10-foot wingspan

They ride the air currents
above the southern cordillera,

Traveling up to
200 miles each day.

This group has
spotted the puma's kill.

In this barren land, any
leftovers attract like a magnet.

They quickly set to work,

Stripping the flesh
from her hard-won meal.

But with so much competition,
things soon turn scrappy.

♪ ♪

[condors screeching]

Those that eat their fill
can barely get off the ground.

♪ ♪

Southeast of torres del
paine, cool, wet forests

Blanket the
foothills of tierra del fuego.

Today it is being
seriously impacted

By an animal that
shouldn't even be here.

The north american beaver.

In 1946, 50 individuals were
brought to tierra del fuego

To create a
fur-farming industry.

The scheme failed, but
the beavers flourished.

They are extremely
industrious engineers.

On a small scale

They mark out their
home turf with mud piles...

... Which they
douse with castoreum --

A powerful-smelling secretion
from a gland near their tails.

But their profound
impact on the landscape

Extends far beyond
these earthen excavations.

Beavers fell trees to dam
rivers and create ponds --

In which they can build their
lodges and raise their young,

Safe from predators.

In their north
american homeland,

These busy beavers have evolved

In tandem with
their environment.

But in tierra del fuego they
have become a natural disaster.

Some native species, such
as the magellanic woodpecker,

Get a boost --

Winkling out insect grubs
from newly dead or dying wood.

But most species
here do not benefit

From the havoc wrought
by these rapacious rodents.

Whenever a dam is breached,
beavers quickly cut more wood

To plug the gap and
maintain the water level.

In north
america, their deep ponds

Provide protection
from a bear or wolf attack.

Here in tierra del fuego
they have no predators...

But still have the
urge to build their dams

And maintain
their protective moat.

Unfortunately, the trees here

Haven't evolved to
cope with being submerged.

Instead, they have
become a forest of skeletons,

Scattered across
a watery graveyard.

If the invasive beavers remain,

The future of
these fragile forests

Here at the end of the
world is in terrible jeopardy.

In contrast, the main
river in torres del paine

Is in excellent health.

Its waters are home to a
pair of chilean torrent ducks,

Trying to raise their family.

Their chicks are
barely a week old...

And still looked
after by their mother.

The fast-running water is
fed by snow and glacier melt,

So it is icy cold.

♪ ♪

Undaunted, a chick launches in.

The parents never
feed their chicks,

Forcing them to find their own
food from the moment they hatch.

The other youngsters
don't seem quite so keen.

But they aren't called
torrent ducks for nothing.

Strong swimmers, the adults
probe the underside of rocks

For the insect larvae

Abundant in these cold
well-oxygenated waters.

But the churning rapids

Are a dangerous
place for young ducklings.

♪ ♪

Narrator: They must
learn to feed for themselves,

Despite the powerful current.

Less than a week old,
it's time to take the plunge.

Even at their young age,

The three torrent
ducklings are doing fine.

Relatively, they are larger
than ducklings of other species

And have the extra strength
to swim against the current.

But there are limits
to what they can handle.

Away from the bank, the current
moves at breakneck speed,

Barreling towards
a set of cataracts.

Oblivious, the ducklings are
heading towards the main flow.

The parents call
out to their young...

[duck quacks]

... Luring the ducklings

Back towards the
safety of the riverbank.

Finally, the family is reunited.

♪ ♪

The still-downy chicks
accept a much-needed cuddle.

♪ ♪

Further up one of the
valleys in torres del paine,

The mother puma is leading
her kittens back to her kill.

Instinctively, they move
as silently as possible...

After all, who knows what might
be hiding in the long grass?

At the very least,
it's good training

For when they
themselves start hunting.

Their mother has
found the carcass

And there's still
some flesh on the bones.

Desperate for food, the kittens
can't get there fast enough.

The kittens will rely
on their mother's kills

For another couple of months
before hunting themselves,

But they'll stay close to
her for another year or so.

♪ ♪

Well fed, the family takes a
moment to relax... And play.

Sparring and wrestling --
interspersed with a clean-up --

Is good practice,

For a time when
teeth, claws and jaws

Will be put to
more deadly effect.

This intensely social
childhood will soon become

A largely solitary
existence -- if they survive.

Even for these big, powerful
cats, life hangs by a thread

In this unforgiving and
still-volatile mountain range.

♪ ♪

In 2015, the calbuco
volcano, in central chile,

Exploded into life.

It ejected ash nearly 10
miles into the atmosphere.

And it's just one of
nearly 500 active volcanoes

In chile alone.

These belching giants
offer stark reminders

Of the violent
subterranean forces

Pushing the andes ever higher.

Desolate rivers of ash
may kill all in their path.

But even the land entombed here
will eventually turn to green.

While these peaks
reach for the skies,

The natural world must
react and adapt around them.

For it is from
this volcanic fire

That the spectacular wildlife
of the andes has arisen...

In this untamed patagonia...

The land at the
end of the world.