Babelgum - Off The Fence: Into the wild

The Crystal Ocean

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

As the long chill of twilight descends, floating pancakes of ice appear on the waters surrounding Antarctica. Eventually the surface of this sea will freeze solid, doubling the size of the continent and isolating the south of the planet in an almost impenetrable shell of ice up to six foot thick. Carving a path through the midst of this frozen sea, the icebreaker Nathaniel B Palmer appears more like an alien craft than a research vessel. Travelling further south than any other vessel has ever successfully attempted in winter, its crew’s goal is to reach the Ross Ice Shelf. But even with state of the art equipment this is a dangerous journey. Icebergs trapped in the ice shell pose a constant danger, and scientists must brave the ice to extract core samples for onboard analysis and further research.

Awesome Pawsome

2007-06-28T17:00:10Z

In 1995, Dreamworld, on Australia's Gold Coast, acquired six captive-bred Bengal tiger cubs from California and set them up in a large, open public display area, ‘Tiger Island’, modelled on a similar facility in San Francisco, USA.

Ice Worlds Episode 1: Life at the Edge

2008-04-01T12:01:02Z

Life at the Edge is the story of the survival strategies of two remarkable polar animals: polar bears in the Arctic and emperor penguins in the Antarctic.

Ice Worlds Episode 2: Polar People

2007-11-16T16:00:16Z

Polar People follows the lives of people who have made the world’s harshest environments home.

Ice Worlds Episode 3 : Secrets of the Crystal Ball

2007-08-22T17:00:03Z

Join an intriguing series of expeditions to check on the health of the Arctic and Antarctic and the role these regions play in governing the climate of our planet.

Inside Noah´s Ark Episode 1: Tales of the Desert

2007-08-09T14:00:07Z

PIlanesberg National Park is world-famous for its magnificent disease-free lions - prime predators that kill anything they can catch.

Inside Noah´s Ark Episode 2: Tales of the Grassland

2007-08-09T14:00:07Z

Gus van Dyk leaves Pilanesberg to manage the Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, Southern Africa’s newest and largest wildlife sanctuary. His job is to help heal the damaged Kalahari ecosystem, return this part of the Kalahari Desert close to its wild state and make Tswalu one of the finest wildlife reserves in the world.

Inside Noah's Ark Episode 3: More Tales of the Desert

2007-07-02T17:00:05Z

The last documentary in the trilogy starts as an adventure. Gus van Dyk flies two uncaged, sedated, black-maned Kalahari lions across South Africa on the floor of a small plane to inject fresh blood into the inbred Tswalu prides. If the lions wake, theyâ€™ll have to be killed to protect everyone on board.

Naughty By Nature

2007-08-02T14:00:12Z

You could be forgiven for thinking that humans are the masters of the mating game but, as Naughty By Nature reveals, there is some wild behaviour going on in the animal kingdom.

Mako - Swift, Smart and Deadly

2007-08-02T14:00:11Z

The word “Shark” and all that it stands for is the embodiment of one of our deepest fears.

Red Crabs Crazy Ants

2007-08-02T10:17:29Z

Located 360 kilometres (223 miles) south of Jakarta, Australia’s Christmas Island is home to one of nature’s greatest, most colourful and most spectacular natural mass migrations. Each year this pristine island’s shoreline is covered with an ankle-deep carpet of red crabs.

Shark Gordon´s Most Dangerous Moments

2007-08-08T17:00:08Z

A shark encounter in the middle of the ocean, miles from land is most people’s worst nightmare, but for Ian Gordon, the shark man, life doesn’t get much better.

Wild Asia Episode 1: In the Realm of the Red Ape

2007-08-08T17:00:13Z

Tropical rainforests are one of the oldest habitats on the face of our earth – older than many of the stars. The first programme in the Wild Asia series is set in the tropics of Asia and explores a small area of rainforest in Northern Sumatra. This forest is the realm of our central character, Asia’s largest ape, the orangutan, dubbed the “Red Ape” in honour of its orange-coloured coat.

Wild Asia Episode 2: Island Magic

2007-08-08T17:00:13Z

Asia is the continent of islands: at its southern limit alone there are some 30,000 islands dashed across the watery surface of the world. On these islands, freed from the certainties of continental life and powered by the magic of islands, species multiply and diversify.

Wild Asia Episode 3: Kingdoms of the Coast

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

Along 120,000 miles of Asia’s shoreline, land and sea struggle against each other in a rivalry which creates one of Asia’s greatest resources.

Wild Asia Episode 4: The Arid Heart

2007-08-09T08:00:02Z

The Arid Heart is the story of life in Asia’s dry lands the dry grasslands of the Mongolian steppe, the stony Gobi Desert, and the sandy deserts of India. These are places of extreme, where summers are intensely hot and winters are bitterly cold. The animals who live here are tough and resilient, and not only survive, but thrive.

Wild Asia Episode 5: Creatures of the Thaw

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

Winters in North East Asia are so cold that freshwater all but disappears. Many creatures leave, but those that remain have developed sophisticated strategies to survive the region’s bitter winters, and to make the most of the short warm summers.

Wild Asia Episode 6: Monsoon — India’s god of life

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

Monsoon – India’s god of life is a fascinating chronicle of how the wild animals of India cope with the hardship of summer and how the arrival of the monsoon transforms their lives and the land they live in.

Wild Asia Episode 7: Between Two Worlds

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

In many Asian cities, wild animals have been a part of people’s everyday lives for centuries. In the Northern Indian city of Bharatpur, tribes of rhesus macaques have, for generations, had their lives and diets dictated by the city’s human inhabitants.

Wild Asia Episode 9: At the Edge

2007-07-03T17:00:10Z

Higher up the valley a wolf pack violently rejects an application to join by a young lone wolf. He must settle for a wary scavenge of the packs old kill. Little meat is left. Only the bone-eating bearded vulture can extract an adequate meal. The lone wolf moves off, driven to keep trying to join a pack no matter what.

Wild Asia Episode 9: A Forest for All Seasons

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

The far northern regions of Asia are dominated by long and bitter winters. To the south, in contrast, tropical Asia is dominated by continual heat and humidity.

Young and Wild Episode 1: First breath

2007-06-28T17:00:05Z

The process of birth can be a traumatic time for a mother and one when her life and the lives of her offspring are at great risk.

Young and Wild Episode 2: Breaking through

2007-06-28T17:00:10Z

Africa’s wild babies face many hazards especially those that must brave a new world alone and face predators, disease, and starvation….

Young and Wild Episode 3: Home truths

2007-06-28T17:00:10Z

In order to survive every creature must recluse periodically from nature’s moods. Which is why they pursue the business of shelter with such zeal.

Young and Wild Episode 4: First bond

2007-07-03T21:00:03Z

With most young animals the role of the mother or the parents continues long after birth and because young mammals are dependent on their mother's milk as a source of food, they all show some degree or other of parental care. This initial nursing stage varies according to how advanced or otherwise the young animals in question are.

Young and Wild Episode 5: Safety first

2007-06-28T17:00:04Z

In the wild there is constant threat and Baby animals are by nature small and defenceless, which makes them vulnerable to attack by predators.

Young and Wild Episode 6: Mr. Mom

2007-06-28T17:00:07Z

When it comes to looking after the young the female gender has always been number one and all babies’ retreat into mom’s arms and enjoy a moment of female affection, whether its food, protection or simple reassurance they are after.

Young & Wild Episode 7: Family affairs

2007-08-09T14:00:04Z

In all species the bond between mother and child is undisputedly binding and without doubt the strongest either will experience.

Young and Wild Episode 8: Table manners

2007-06-28T21:00:04Z

All babies are born small and have a relatively short time in which to grow and reach a size where they can look after themselves

Young and Wild Episode 9: Risky business

2007-06-28T17:00:11Z

Because of their small size and inexperience, baby animals are by their very nature vulnerable in the world at large.

Young and Wild Episode 10: Basic Instincts

2007-06-28T21:00:03Z

Because most babies’ basic needs are met by the mother, from food, to protection and shelter the babies have time to develop those skills needed for their survival.

Young and Wild Episode 11: First steps

2007-06-28T21:00:04Z

In all babies lives there comes a time when the lure of the outside world becomes too attractive to resist and the once strong bonds of mom are severed slightly.

Young and Wild Episode 12: The dating game

2007-06-29T11:00:03Z

All species are driven by an internal force to procreate and before this is possible they must find a partner.

Young and Wild Episode 13: Full circle

2007-06-29T11:00:03Z

In the wild there are many different methods of attracting a mate whether from persistent harassing, mutual attraction or just being in the right place at the right time, but whatever form this courtship takes and however the attraction is manipulated for each the grand finale is to mate.

Animal Inventors Episode 1: Animal Engineers

2008-04-16T18:01:02Z

Episode one explores the design principles that the natural world has been built on and looks at the intentional and unintentional parallels in the human world. We’re just beginning to see the vast untapped reservoir of animal inventions and engineering solutions nature has to offer us — like super-strong animal shaped and inspired buildings; lightweight space stations from beetle wings and micro air vehicles inspired by flies.

Animal Inventors Episode 2: Animal Magicians

2007-06-28T17:00:16Z

Episode two reveals some of nature’s most powerful secrets from medical solutions for cancer and diabetes to finding the answers to the most vexing of questions, such as how can humans live longer, love longer and live in outer space?

Animal Inventors Episode 3: Animal IT

2007-08-02T14:00:06Z

In episode three we explore the world of animal senses and animal intelligence. We may think we’re the smartest creatures on earth but animals often see and hear far more than we can. Their senses are more finely tuned and their responses much faster. Human roboticists are now turning to animal tech for inspiration in building the next generation of artificially intelligent machines.

Bloody Suckers

2007-06-28T17:00:06Z

For many people blood is a source of fear and fascination; for many animals blood is a source of iron and protein. These animal vampires can be found in every corner of the world, from the tropics to the Arctic Circle. There are insect blood suckers, mammals, birds and even fish. They are as exotic and mythologised as the vampire bat, or as common as the buzzing mosquito. Some have highly specific hosts, others will attack anything they can get their fangs into.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 1: Squadrons of the Deep: Hammerhead Sharks of Sudan

2008-04-15T12:00:59Z

Between the sands of Arabia and the sands of the Sahara lies a true oasis, a thin finger of water separating Africa from Asia. Here in the Red Sea, Peter and Stefania dive in search of enormous schools of hammerhead sharks.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 2: Grinning Predators: Ragged Tooth Sharks of South Africa

2008-04-15T12:00:55Z

With its sinister hunched back and a menacing mouthful of teeth, the ragged tooth shark is a fearsome looking predator. In colder waters, this could make for a dangerous encounter, but in the warm waters of the Natal reefs, the ragged tooth shark undergoes a dramatic change of personality.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 3: Graceful Flyers: The Ornate Eagle Ray of Maldives

2008-04-15T12:01:01Z

Strung like pearls across the turquoise sea, the 2,000 islands of the Maldives are a diver's paradise. The ornate eagle ray, with its dolphin-like head and unique markings, is said to inhabit these reefs, but has never before been filmed in this part of the world.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 4: Dive to the Extreme: The World´s Deepest Scuba Dive

2008-04-15T12:01:13Z

In the grassy highlands of South Africa lies one of the deepest freshwater caves in the world. Nearly 1,000 feet deep, one man has spent 15 years exploring its black waters. Now, he attempts to do what no one has ever done before: scuba dive to the bottom.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 5: Diamonds of the Restless Sea: Underwater Diamond Miners

2008-04-15T15:02:15Z

The richest diamond deposits on earth are found in southern Africa. Over the course of millions of years, some of these diamonds have been swept away by the Orange River and carried into the sea where they lay waiting like a sunken treasure. But the divers who attempt to harvest these riches have one of the most dangerous professions on earth.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 6: Gentle Giants: The Whale Shark

2008-04-15T15:01:46Z

Along the east coast of Africa, the largest fish in the sea follows the plankton rich current. Moving with the stately speed and grace befitting its enormous stature, the whale shark seems to be following a never before documented migration route. Peter and Stefania swim with the giants to uncover this little known species.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 7: A Ship's Graveyard: Wrecks of the Red Sea

2008-04-15T15:02:42Z

Beneath the waters of the Red Sea lie the sunken remains of the many vessels which have met their doom here. Peter and Stefania explore the past and present of some of the more famous wrecks and discover that pastel-colored coral and vibrant, shimmering schools of fish have taken over the shattered carcasses, bringing new life to this watery graveyard.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 8: The Great Hunter: Great White Sharks of South Africa

2008-04-15T15:01:05Z

No other living creature has evoked such fear and awe as the Great White Shark. This episode explores the exciting travels to the southernmost tip of the African continent to dive the treacherous waters of the Cape of Good Hope and delve into the life of one or our most powerful, mysterious and misunderstood predators.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 9: Giant Sleepy Sharks: The Shark Caves of Benguerra

2008-04-15T15:01:10Z

Riddled with gullies and hollows, the shallow reefs of Benguerra Island in the Bazaruto Archipelago were once known to divers for their harvest of pearls. Today, Peter and Stefania travel to Mozambique to encounter its wealth of marine life and reef predators, including the uniquely docile Tawny Nurse Shark.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 10: Silver Tip Sharks: The Predators of Cabo San Sebastian

2008-04-15T15:01:14Z

Rumors of fish larger than life and in quantities that make the sea boil take Peter and Stefania Lamberti to a reef off the desolate shores of Mozambique, where no diver has ever been before. As they plunge into a raging current and descend 90 feet below they find huge schools of game fish, gray reef sharks, manta rays and inquisitive silvertip sharks. Wild and untamed, the fish here have probably never seen divers before. And as the day draws into late afternoon, the Lambertis find that the sharks become more active, getting ready for the night hunt, they become bolder, coming dangerously close to the divers, eventually chasing them out of the water.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 11: A Threat in the Ocean: The Delicate Balance of the Reefs of Comores

2008-04-15T15:01:24Z

Coral reefs represent one of the most intricate habitats ever evolved. Covering only 0.1% of the earth's surface, these living microcosms are second only to the tropical rainforest in complexity and richness of lifeforms. Yet, the world's coral reefs are under threat. As global warming accelerates and the thermometers rise, the narrow niche that corals occupy is being squeezed out of existence.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 12: Gypsies of the Sea: Turtles of the Indian Ocean

2008-04-15T15:01:31Z

In southern Africa, rolling sand dunes stretch for miles, announcing the meeting point of land and sea. Each year, under cover of night, loggerhead and leatherback turtles come ashore on their ancestral beaches to perform an ancient ritual which will, hopefully, ensure the survival of their species for another generation.

Blue Reef Adventures Episode 13: Sea Riders: The Bottlenose Dolphins of South Africa

2007-06-28T17:00:06Z

Whether for their playfulness, intelligence, grace or beauty, dolphins strike a very special chord with humans and are among the best-loved creatures on the planet. Peter and Stefania swim with the dolphins along the Hibiscus Coast to experience firsthand their unique abilities and charismatic presence.

Chile - Land of Extremes Episode 1: Riddle of the Atacama Desert

2007-08-02T14:00:03Z

In the north of Chile there exists the driest place on earth - the Atacama desert. Deprived of any rain for millions of years, it is a stripped, elemental landscape devoid of any sign of life. Yet on the desert’s fringes there are some of the most productive areas for wildlife anywhere in the world. All that the sea can offer the parched land is a mysterious coastal fog which supplies just enough water to support a thin ribbon of life on the edge of the desert. Any water from the mountains never arrives, instead it evaporates in the scorching heat leaving behind huge pans of caustic salt.

Chile - Land of Extremes Episode 2: Forests of Defiance

2007-08-02T09:26:17Z

In the south of Chile, the mighty Andes dominates life and landscape. Youthful by world standards, this mountain range is constantly being ripped apart by massive volcanoes and huge earthquakes. It is into this battered landscape of continual catastrophe that a unique forest has evolved. Indigenous peoples, plants and the animals which all make their home in the depths of the forests are truly resilient in the face of the many catastrophes which continue to batter the region and have carved out successful lives over the years. But for those who rely on the forest, the latest catastrophe to threaten is indeed serious. The seemingly endless supply of timber has attracted greedy eyes and in the course of this century over half of the forest has disappeared. If they survive this, then they will truly be known as Forests of Defiance.

Chile - Land of Extremes Episode 3: Castaway Islands

2007-08-02T14:00:04Z

The fictional Robinson Crusoe was based on the true story of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish sailor marooned on an ancient volcanic archipelago 350 miles off the coast of Chile. Selkirk was by no means the first castaway; when the island first appeared above the waves, it provided the stage for the evolution of a unique cast of plants and animals. Whether washed up by the sea, borne by the wind or even carried by birds, whether it was by accident or design, all these castaways were faced by a stark choice - adapt or die. With their evolutionary potential unleashed they gave rise to numerous species found nowhere else in the world, ranging from giant daisies to copper coloured humming birds.

Chile - Land of Extremes Episode 4: To the End of the World

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

In the far south of Chile, the Andes which have overshadowed the whole country, finally descend into the sea breaking up into a myriad of islands fjords and channels. Here wildlife is in abundance, all well adapted to the cold windy weather at the foot of these mountains. In the shadow of the Andes, rheas and guanacos, geese and foxes abound watched over by predatory pumas and circling condors. And on the coasts, sea lions, penguins and sea birds thrive in waters that are blasted by storms that have raced non-stop round the bottom of the world.

Dolphins of the Shadowland

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

It's almost impossible to study dolphins for extended periods of time in the open ocean. For this reason a pod of sixty bottle nose dolphins resident in New Zealand's Doubtful Sound provides a unique opportunity for scientists to improve our knowledge of these mysterious, appealing mammals. Berlin-born researcher Karsten Schneider spent three years in this remote part of Fiordland studying the group, individual by individual. This compelling and at times surprising chronicle of his work reveals a matriarchal, highly communal society with a complex social order and way of life.

Elephant Orphans

2007-07-02T17:00:13Z

This documentary looks beneath the hides and into the hearts and thinking of a unique wilderness family - a herd of trained elephants and the small, dedicated band of people who share their lives, twenty-four hours a day, in one of Africa's last great strongholds of unspoiled nature.

Emperors of Antarctica

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

Shortly after the females have laid their eggs, the males take over the gruelling, four-month vigil through the darkness of the harshest winter imaginable. They have learned to live without aggressive territorial disputes huddled together against the blizzards until spring, when their mates return to relieve them. Then, after four straight months without eating, the males are more than ready to make their way back to the sea. Join the Wild South team on the world's most hostile continent as they follow the intriguing mysteries of the emperor penguin's breeding cycle.

Fit for the Wild Episode 1: Adapted to the Bushveld

2008-04-16T18:01:40Z

The bushveld is classic Africa: searingly hot, covered in scrub and dominated by predators. Summer has been good and a mother leopard has produced two cubs which have survived. It is now her duty to teach them the ways of the bushveld.

Fit for the Wild Episode 2: Adapted to the desert

2007-08-09T14:00:08Z

The only true desert in southern Africa is the most hostile and unforgiving of them all. No other African wildlife exhibits as much resourcefulness and flexibility as the desert elephants of the Namib, known to trek up to 400 kilometers for a precious drink of water. Filmed on location in the Namib Desert, Namibia.

Fit for the Wild Episode 3: Adapted to grass plains

2007-08-09T14:00:08Z

When the last summer rains have fallen in the Serengeti, 1.3 million blue wildebeest set out from the exhausted southern grasslands, pursuing fresh pastures and tropical rainfall in the north. Their 1600 kilometre annual journey is the most spectacular animal migration on earth. Filmed on location in the Serengeti, Kenya/Tanzania.

Fit for the Wild Episode 4: Adapted to the coast

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

Where the ocean meets the African continent, the Cape fur seal leads a double life, depending on both land and sea to feed, breed and survive. As spring arrives, the pregnant females haul themselves onto the rocky shoreline to give birth and, almost immediately, mate again.

Fit for the Wild Episode 5: Adapted to the semi-desert

2007-08-10T14:00:02Z

The barren Kalahari landscape offers little protection to its animal inhabitants. Masters of survival, they must overcome drought, dust, wind and heat to survive. Clans of resourceful meerkats resort to burrowing in the ground to avoid the many predators that await them in the “land of the big thirst”.

Fit for the Wild Episode 6: Adapted to swamps

2007-08-09T14:00:08Z

The creatures of the Okavango occupy a mosaic of land and water. Throngs of birds and animals arrive with the seasonal floods, only to recede along with the waters. Permanent residents of this emerald oasis are specially adapted to survive its often unpredictable patterns. At the head of this food chain is the fearsome Nile crocodile.

Fit for the Wild Episode 7: Adapted to the Ocean

2008-04-16T18:01:47Z

Three great oceans meet at the southern tip of Africa and three distinct marine ecosystems extend their mingled currents thousands of miles around the continent, creating one of the most complex and varied marine environments on earth. The creatures here have developed unique body shapes, feeding techniques, hunting methods and courting rituals to ensure they are adapted to survival in the deep.

Fit for the Wild Episode 8: Adapted to the Underground

2008-04-16T18:01:51Z

Burrowed beneath the African bushveld, animals like the hyena, aardvark and pangolin shelter, retreat to sleep and breed. As the winter dry season sets in, wild dogs — the most endangered mammal in Africa — abandon their nomadic existence to give birth in these underground dens.

Fit for the Wild Episode 9: Adapted to the forest

2007-08-09T14:00:07Z

The towering 60-foot canopy of Africa’s rainforests creates a hot, humid habitat where time seems to stand still and seasons never change. Here where humans rarely venture, our closest animal relative, the chimpanzee, thrives in the trees. The forest floor is the domain of the largest and most powerful of the great apes, the gorilla.

Fit for the Wild Episode 10: Adapted to the reef

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

A reef is an incredible living organism. To survive and flourish, water conditions have to be perfect, only then can tiny coral polyps form thriving colonies. Algae attach themselves to the corals and reef fish soon follow to feed on both and make their home in every crack and crevice. This profusion of life soon attracts an inevitable visitor: the sharks.

Fit for the Wild Episode 11: Adapted to estuaries

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

Fluctuation between fresh- and salt-water, alternating immersion and exposure, temperature extremes and powerful currents make for extremely demanding conditions in southern Africa’s coastal estuaries. Nonetheless, fish, birds and reptiles thrive here and each year female loggerhead and leatherback turtles travel hundreds of miles to return to their traditional nesting sites.

Fit for the Wild Episode 12: Adapted to Flood Plains

2007-06-28T17:00:05Z

venture into the heat-hazed desert of the Karoo to the town that time forgot. One of the few remaining packs of wild dogs in South Africa's Kruger Park. The world's greatest game show: the Serengeti migration and where to watch it.

Fit for the Wild Episode 13: Adapted to the mountains

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

The Drakensberg is a mighty chain of peaks spanning South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho. Black eagles and cape griffon vultures rule the air, nesting on perilous cliff faces to avoid predators. However, agile baboons still find their way to the precariously placed nests. The rugged terrain demands carefully adapted behaviour of nature’s mountaineers.

Gift of the Rains Episode 1: Hoanib - The Hidden River

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

In the desert wilderness of Namibia, on southern Africa's western coast, there is an unusual river that lies hidden beneath the scorching sand for most of the year. It is an ephemeral river - a river that flows above ground for only a few days a year. The water that feeds the Hoanib River collects in the mountains of north-western Namibia. Its course cuts through the desert, travelling mainly underground all the way to the Atlantic Ocean where its waters fan out into a lagoon that is separated from the sea by a pebbled dune. Only when exceptional rains fall over the mountains does the water in the lagoon rise enough to break through to the sea.

Gift of the Rains Episode 2: Zambezi - The Mighty River

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

Africa's landscape is sculpted by some formidable rivers and the Zambezi is one of the continent's mightiest. It is a river to which man has attributed a spirit of its own. It's course is marked by the Victoria Falls - one of the natural wonders of the world - as well as two dams, of which Kariba is as large as the country of Whales.

Gift of the Rains Episode 3: Luangwa - River of Extremes

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

Hidden between the mountains of Africa's Rift Valley flows a majestic river that brings an abundant surge of water to the Luangwa Valley. But this abundance does not last throughout the year, changing dramatically between summer and winter from a full-flowing river to a muddy trickling stream.

Gift of the Rains 4: Okavango - The Miracle River

2007-08-09T14:00:07Z

One of Africa's most remarkable rivers spreads its waters over the desolate plains of the Kalahari Desert, forming the largest inland delta on Earth, the Okavango. Fed by the summer rains that fall over southern Angola, the Okavango River flows into the heart of the desert in Botswana. The water flows slowly over the flat expanse of the Kalahari and fans out into shallow lagoons and wide floodplains.

Gift of the Rains Episode 5:Mara - River of Strife

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

The seasons bring life to the valleys forged by the African rivers, but they also play a part in nature's tragedies. For most of the year, the Mara River flows peacefully through the wide grassplains of Southern Kenya, but during the dry months it displays the ultimate life-and-death struggle: the crossing of hundreds and thousands of wildebeests.

Gift of the Rains Episode 6:Victoria Nile - River of Beginnings

2007-08-08T17:00:06Z

The quest to find the source of the Nile built and shattered explorers' dreams for centuries, until it was eventually discovered that the river's birthplace is Lake Victoria. The first part of the great river is called the Victoria Nile, it connects Lake Victoria to Lake Albert through a series of rapids and the powerful Murchison Falls.

Gift of the Rains Episode 7: Shire - River of Fertility

2007-08-09T14:00:05Z

The Shire River is one of the few African rivers that flows steadily and peacefully throughout the year. It flows serenely through southern Malawi, fed by the abundant waters of Lake Malawi. The lake contains more fish species than any other lake in the world, including at least 600 types of cichlids, small colourful fish that protect their eggs and fry in the mother's mouth.

Gift of the Rains Episode 8: Sand - River of Riches

2007-08-08T17:00:08Z

The Sand River is shorter and smaller than many of Africa's rivers, but it has great importance because it supports such an abundance of wildlife. The river is born in the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa, flowing for 80km until it joins the Sabie River.

Gift of the Rains Episode 9: Limpopo - River of Giants

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

The Limpopo River in Southern Africa is a giant, not only in its size, but also in the wealth of animal life it supports.

Gift of the Rains Episode 10: Rufiji - The Perennial River

2007-08-09T14:00:06Z

The Rufiji River flows through Tanzania in East Africa, through the vast Selous Game Reserve - the largest reserve in the whole of Africa. It is home to a variety of creatures such as the unique Selous wildebeest, and is a precious haven for endangered animals such as elephants and wild dogs.

Gift of the Rains Episode 11: Olifants - River of Treasures

2007-08-09T08:00:04Z

At the southern tip of Africa, the Olifants River flows through and nourishes the unique Cape Floral Kingdom. Despite being the smallest of the world's six plant kingdoms, it is the richest and most spectacular, containing 3% of all the plant species found in the whole world.

Gift of the Rains Episode 12: Pongola - The Generous River

2007-08-09T08:00:03Z

When in flood, the Pongola River creates a whole new wild world of quiet backwaters, hidden animals and ancient rituals. The river is born in the Drakensburg, and flows through one of the most remote parts of South Africa - Maputaland.

Gift of the Rains Episode 13: Ogooue - River of the Rains

2007-08-09T08:00:04Z

The Ogooue River flows throughout the year through the lush tropical rainforest of Gabon in West Africa. The country is an unspoiled wildlife haven where nature is almost untouched by humans, providing a precious refuge for endangered primates such as western lowland gorillas, chimpanzees and black colobus monkeys.