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00:00Transcription by CastingWords
00:30At the southern tip of South America, the Andes Mountains rise almost vertically.
00:48Their very height affects life throughout the continent.
00:56The barren slopes look inhospitable.
01:00But like all parts of South America, they're actually rich with wildlife.
01:21A family of puma.
01:24They live further south than any other kind of cat on Earth.
01:34These cubs are only six months old, entirely dependent on their mother for food.
01:51She knows how to exploit this rugged landscape to her advantage.
01:59And she has to do so if she is to catch the continent's most challenging prey.
02:13One arco.
02:35Two meters tall and over three times the weight of a puma.
02:47The mother's only hope is to go for the throat and try to suffocate her prey.
02:55Threeometers.
03:05One day.
03:06Three Diamonds.
03:09Seven Chili döpery.
03:13I don't know.
03:43The cubs tried to help.
04:13But they themselves don't yet have the skills or the weight to bring down such large prey.
04:35And the mother is now badly injured.
04:50Her wounds are severe and will take weeks to heal properly.
04:54But without food, the cubs won't survive for long.
05:08The weather in the Andes is harsh and unpredictable.
05:29Snow makes the camouflage on which she relies much less effective.
05:50But she must have food.
06:03The huanaco have left her normal hunting ground.
06:19And are now in the territory of a much larger male puma.
06:24He's just made a kill.
06:29But he isn't about to share it with her.
06:32To hunt here, she'll need to leave her cubs behind in the safety of their home territory.
06:39Almost invisible in the shadows.
06:54She's nearly within pouncing distance.
07:07She's nearly within pouncing distance.
07:14She's nearly within pouncing distance.
07:31Another failure.
07:32Another failure.
07:33Another failure.
07:38Another failure.
07:45The
07:57huh?
08:02She's got her speed back now she must hold on
08:32But she's in the male's territory so her prize isn't safe
08:45And her hungry cubs are almost a mile away
08:52In her weakened state she will need all her reserves of energy to drag it back onto her territory
09:03Only her determination to feed her young keeps her going
09:19Nearly there
09:44Nearly there
10:04This one meal will barely last the whole family for more than a few days
10:11Then their mother somehow will have to summon the strength to hunt again
10:23Life for a hunter in this land is as hard as it gets
10:28The Andes themselves were built by forces deep in the Earth's crust
10:47In this part of the Pacific the ocean floor has been moving eastwards for millions of years
10:53Where the sediments meet the edge of the continent they're pushed together and forced upwards
11:02This pressure creates fractures of which molten rock rises
11:11And is then spewed out as ash and lava from great volcanoes
11:26Nearly 200 of them stretch in a line along the length of the continent
11:30Some erupt with the force of an atomic bomb every 10 seconds
11:42Some erupt with the force of an atomic bomb every 10 seconds
11:46As the collision continues the sea floor is dragged downwards creating a deep trench just offshore
12:03Rich cold waters rise up from it
12:08And this upwelling creates an abundance of life
12:15Here on the coast of Peru there are so many seabirds fishing in the offshore waters
12:29that the cliffs are covered in droppings over a meter thick
12:36Humboldt penguins regard the soft guano as a good material in which to dig their nest holes
12:45But it's a messy business
12:51It's the breeding season and more hopeful nesters arrive spotless from swimming in the sea
13:10Time for the residents to get cleaned up and catch some fish for themselves and their chicks
13:21To get to the sea they cross the remains of an old nesting ground
13:48Only a hundred meters to go
13:51But the beach is already crowded with sea lions
14:13They too have come ashore to raise their young
14:21And they don't like being disturbed
14:24And they don't like being disturbed
14:34To get through such a minefield needs a bold and courageous leader
14:39A brave start
14:49A dead end
14:54Now he's in trouble
14:58Now he's in trouble
15:07This is going to need a bit of crowd surfing
15:10Come on
15:11The sea lions
15:31But now all the sea lions aroused
15:32Now, all the sea lions are roused.
15:36Getting through them will be tricky.
16:02A cleansing bathe in the ocean, well worth the effort.
16:17The animals living along the Pacific coast
16:20are caught off from the rest of South America by the Andes.
16:24They form a gigantic barrier stretching over 4,000 miles
16:35from Patagonia in the south to Venezuela in the north.
16:46This is the world's longest mountain range.
16:54Many peaks are over four miles high.
17:00They are so tall they catch clouds
17:04and so create an environment unlike any other on the continent.
17:09The Cloud Forest.
17:28Every high valley here has its own unique plants and animals.
17:33One of them is the aptly named Pinocchio lizard.
17:46It was first recorded here 50 years ago and then lost.
17:52It's only recently been rediscovered.
17:54Up here lives a creature so rare that it's seldom seen.
18:10Even by those scientists who've come here to study it.
18:13The Andean bear.
18:17Only a few thousand remain.
18:20They eat mostly leaves and fruit.
18:22Often clambering up to the very top of the canopy to do so.
18:27They eat mostly leaves and fruit.
18:37Often clambering up to the very top of the canopy to do so.
18:41He's looking for a type of miniature avocado.
19:0030 meters up.
19:21The only fruit remaining here is out on the thinnest branches.
19:34Too thin to support the weight of a bear.
19:44A more experienced bear has turned up than once ago.
19:51Time for young ones to watch and learn how to do it.
20:02The trick is to bite the branch just enough...
20:08...to make it swing down and bring the fruit within reach.
20:21...to make it swing down.
20:27Whoops.
20:39Now there's a race to be first on the ground to claim it.
20:51The moisture needed to create a cloud forest only occurs above a certain altitude.
21:13So each peak may now have its own species.
21:21In Venezuela, there are similar small worlds, created not by rain, but by rock.
21:30A great layer of sandstone once covered this entire area.
21:35But rivers cut through it.
21:38As the valleys widened, the tablelands became first huge plateaus.
21:45Then isolated flat-topped mountains.
21:57And eventually, towers and spires.
22:01On the tops of the bigger ones, animals and plants have now become so different...
22:17...that they can be counted as new species.
22:19New species.
22:21There is no higher waterfall in the world.
22:51Than this one.
22:55Angel Falls.
22:57Almost a kilometer from top to bottom.
23:04The vertical cliffs surrounding many of these mountains
23:08have kept them largely free from human exploitation.
23:15No such barriers have protected the lowlands.
23:20But a few patches of forest still remain.
23:27One in Colombia is the home of one of the world's rarest monkeys.
23:35Cotton-topped Camarins.
23:38They're critically endangered.
23:48Only a few hundred families remain.
24:05They live largely on fruit and are particularly fond of tree sap.
24:11This is packed with sugars, so it also attracts insects.
24:23But tamarins like them too.
24:25A little bit of protein to add to their diet.
24:33There used to be over 50,000 species of insect to choose from.
24:43But as the forest has shrunk around them,
24:46it's becoming more difficult to find the right ones.
24:50South America is changing.
25:05Over 95% of Colombia's lowland forest has now been cleared.
25:19Farming has taken the biggest share.
25:27This patch of forest is now isolated.
25:39The few tamarin families here are now cut off from the rest of their species.
25:47And beyond their boundary lies an alien world.
25:57Today, more than 2,000 species of animal in South America are under threat.
26:08All across the continent, forest is being steadily cut down and replaced by farms.
26:24Images from space reveal the scale of the destruction.
26:28Throughout South America as a whole,
26:44an area of forest the size of a football pitch is being lost every five seconds.
26:50Of all the forests at risk,
27:07perhaps the most precious lies in the very heart of the continent.
27:12The Amazon rainforest, the largest on Earth.
27:18Over 2 million species of plants and animals now live here.
27:35More than is found on any other of the Earth's seven continents.
27:40yahoo
27:42.
27:45gesrch
27:49.
28:03Food is so abundant that some may be sick of others.
28:08so abundant that some male birds, instead of helping with nest duties, try to mate
28:13with as many females as possible. This is a male mannequin showing off to a female.
28:23He does so by dancing and he has a team of subordinate males to help him. By
28:37supporting him now, they may themselves eventually become leaders and get a chance
28:42to mate. The team is assembled and the performance begins. She takes a closer
29:01look.
29:31The top male signals the end with the final flourish.
29:50What's the verdict?
29:57Not good enough. Unbelievable. So it's back to practicing.
30:17Each animal species in this crowded environment has to have its own way of creating a niche
30:24for itself. This is a poison dart frog. Males raise their young in a very special way.
30:31A father will place each one of his tadpoles in its own tiny pool of animals. A father will
30:36place each one of his tadpoles in its own tiny pool of animals. A father will place each
30:40one of his tadpoles in its own tiny pool of water. This is one. Nice and safe.
30:47He might have up to five other tadpoles. But he needs to remember what he has to do. He might have
30:54up to five other tadpoles. He might have up to five other tadpoles. But he needs to remember
31:02where he put each one of them. This one isn't doing so well. His tiny puddle has all but dried
31:09out. The tadpole will die. He might have up to five other tadpoles. He might have up to five
31:15other tadpoles. But he needs to remember where he put each one of them. This one isn't doing
31:21so well. His tiny puddle has all but dried out. The tadpole will die unless its father
31:33can find a better place for it. If dads are good for one thing, it's piggyback rides.
31:51Fathers are no bigger than a human thumbnail, but this enables them to get to places that
31:58others can't. This could be perfect. The only problem is that there's no food here. Fathers
32:16need help. Somewhere in this forest is mum.
32:46A female could do something a male cannot. But first, dad must lead his partner to their
32:56hungry tadpole. And mother deals with the problem.
33:15She lays a single, unfertilized egg. And her tadpole gets a much-needed meal. For the next six
33:38weeks, parents continue their rounds. An extraordinary test of teamwork and memory.
33:51Warmed by the tropical sun, the Amazon's trees release so much moisture from the surface of
33:57their leaves that they create their own clouds. And these, over the course of a year, release
34:05up to six metres of rain. The water flows through the saturated forests along a thousand streams.
34:20They eventually unite to form the largest river of them all. The Amazon carries more water
34:31than the world's next seven biggest rivers combined. Some sections of its banks are particularly sought
34:40sought-after.
34:41Scarlet macaws travel over fifty miles to visit them.
34:55The macaw couples bond for life and may stick together for over forty years.
35:10Pears return to favourite trees, ones they've known for decades.
35:27Parents provide their chicks with fruits and seeds. But they're far from the ocean and their diet lacks salt.
35:35Without it, the chick's brains and bones will not develop properly.
35:40So, someone has to go and fetch it.
35:45Many other creatures are looking for the same thing.
36:00A clay lick. The earth here may be forty times richer in valuable minerals than anywhere else in the surrounding forest.
36:17Over a dozen species of parrot jostle for space. There's a strict order in who feeds first.
36:35Everyone is in a rush to fill up and get airborne.
36:40Everyone is in a rush to fill up and get airborne.
36:42Well, who are those swanses.
37:01I could tatsächlich to spend mothers when they're not taking a life on competitors.
37:05Parents have to carry over five kilograms of clay to the nest
37:11before their chicks are ready to leave.
37:18Once fledged, these young will follow their parents for up to a year,
37:23learning where to find the salts.
37:25Many of the great riches of South America lie far beyond the Amazon basin.
37:48Over 1,000 miles to the south of the Amazon,
37:51there's one creek unlike any other on the continent.
37:55Here, at Bonito,
38:11freshwater springs bubble up from deep underground.
38:19Filtered through limestone, they create crystal-clear pools.
38:25And in them live some remarkable fish.
38:32Piraputanga.
38:35The water is so clear that they're able to see what is going on above its surface.
38:41Brown capuchins are up there, looking for a meal.
38:52The Piraputanga watch them attentively.
39:05Wherever the monkeys go along the banks, the fish follow.
39:09The monkeys are on their daily search for ripe fruit.
39:22And the fish cannot by themselves know where that might be.
39:27But here it is.
39:28But here it is.
39:41And fortunately, the monkeys aren't the neatest of feeders.
39:45Every scrap is fought over.
39:58Every scrap is fought over.
40:15One monkey has the job of keeping an eye out for danger.
40:18Anacondas are the largest of all snakes.
40:38They grow to over 200 kilos.
40:44And they usually stalk their prey from the water.
40:48But it's not fish that they're after.
41:07If the monkeys stray too close to the water, they will be in danger.
41:12The scout gives a warning call.
41:27That might have to be the end of the monkey's meal for today.
41:44But now the Piliputanga know where the fruit is.
41:51And there's still plenty left on the tree.
41:56In the monkey's absence, they go for it themselves.
42:03Success or failure is just a matter of millimeters.
42:11With a split-second adjustment, the fish bends in mid-air and collects the prize.
42:30With a split-second adjustment, the fish bends in mid-air and collects the prize.
42:39The Piliputanga's extraordinary feeding technique relies on these waters remaining clear.
42:42The Piliputanga's extraordinary feeding technique relies on these waters remaining clear.
42:46The Piliputanga's extraordinary feeding technique relies on these waters remaining clear.
42:55The Piliputanga's extraordinary feeding technique relies on these waters remaining clear.
43:05But today, the future of South America's rivers has become uncertain.
43:25As the human population has grown, people have become more and more reliant on its rivers for one of the essentials of modern life.
43:33Power.
43:37Two-thirds of South America's energy now comes from hydroelectricity.
43:48No other region on Earth is so dependent upon it.
43:53But the way these dams are managed can cause problems farther downriver.
44:01These are the Iguazu Falls.
44:08If the dams upriver suddenly release their excess, Iguazu can double in size.
44:22And that can cause major problems for animals that live here.
44:29And that can cause major problems for animals that live here.
44:34These are great dusky swifts.
44:40They fly alarmingly close to the thundering torrent.
44:43And then vanish.
44:47Miraculously, they're able to fly right through the curtain of water.
44:59And they do so because they've built their nests behind the thundering curtain.
45:12Their enemies, falcons like this Karakara, can't follow them.
45:19So the swift chicks are safe.
45:21But now humans have created new problems for the swifts.
45:42Just as some of the chicks are starting to fly, the spill over the dams is released in full force.
46:03As the torrent grows, parents give up on the last perches.
46:20Now the chicks are alone.
46:29But they don't yet have their parents' waterproof feathers.
46:36Every year, the sudden surges of water sweep some to their death.
46:49The chicks have never seen the world beyond the falling waters.
46:55Unless they can find a way through, they will not survive.
47:11Amazingly, driven by blind instinct, chicks do manage to power their way through.
47:40These remarkable birds have colonized a niche in which few can survive.
47:47Yet their future, and that of all wildlife in South America, will depend on us striking a balance between the needs of humans and animals.
47:54On the richest and most diverse continent on Earth.
48:01On the richest and most diverse continent on Earth.
48:08On the richest and most diverse continent on Earth.
48:15On the richest and most diverse continent on Earth.
48:22On the richest and most diverse continent on Earth.
48:39To film one of South America's most elusive predators, the Seven Worlds team would travel to the far south of the continent.
48:47Their aim was to capture footage of wild puma's hunting.
48:58But what the team encountered was the struggle of a mother desperate to feed her family.
49:09Chile's Torres del Paine covers nearly a thousand square miles.
49:13Cameraman John Shire has been coming here for eight years, but even he has never witnessed a successful puma hunt.
49:25With so much ground to cover, the crew use the latest technology to scout from the air.
49:31Bertie is setting up the drone because it helps find the cats and get a unique perspective on exactly where they are in this habitat.
49:44But expert tracker Roberto Donoso has 15 years experience here and he relies on help from a surprising local.
49:55No one can spot a puma as well as a huanaco.
50:07John is first to pick up the clues.
50:10Hey, cat.
50:11Yeah.
50:12Got a cat?
50:13OK.
50:14OK.
50:15You can see the huanaco on the other side alarm calling.
50:21That cat has just sat on the ridge and the full moon has just risen right behind it.
50:34It's almost cheesy.
50:37Our very first puma.
50:44Once John starts to get his eye in, he realizes he's being watched by more than one cat.
50:57It's crazy.
50:58So we're sitting here.
50:59We've got this young male over the ridge.
51:01So we've got that cat.
51:03While you're sitting here, you hear other guanaco alarming other spots and you realize that there's just cats roaming all around the landscape.
51:12Over the coming days, John sees more puma than ever before.
51:18The situation is like nothing the crew expected.
51:22For a long time, we used to say that trying to spot puma was so unusual and so rare.
51:27But the real remarkable thing is actually we're seeing cats every day.
51:33And to think that there's this many puma around is just, it's incredible.
51:39After decades of persecution by humans, puma are now protected in southern Chile and making a comeback.
51:46But to stand any chance of seeing them hunt, the crew would need to find just the right cat.
52:01Three weeks in, John has spotted something promising.
52:05He alerts the crew.
52:07He's supposed to be.
52:08He's supposed to be.
52:09He's supposed to be.
52:10He's supposed to be.
52:11I'm just off here to my right, about a hundred yards from me.
52:15See, he's to the right.
52:17But closer to Jordan.
52:18Oh, I got him.
52:19Yeah, yeah.
52:20Wow, that's four, all right?
52:22Oh, really?
52:23Looks like Pride Alliance.
52:26A mother with three cubs.
52:31And Roberto knows exactly who she is.
52:34That's right.
52:37Her name is Samiento.
52:41Her struggle to feed her family is now the crew's main focus.
52:48The challenge is to keep up.
52:52A mother, on the search for food, will roam vast distances.
52:57Seven miles they've walked.
52:59Haven't stopped walking.
53:01For the crew, this means dragging heavy equipment over difficult terrain.
53:10So we've been following the cat so much that there's now a hole in the bottom of my shoe?
53:18Unpredictable weather makes it even harder.
53:31Five weeks in, and John finally thinks Sarmiento might have some luck.
53:46So it's more of a hope, but I think she's going to get one of these guanaco today.
53:50There's been a big herd that's streaming into this valley,
53:52and for the last two hours she's just been watching them with laser focus.
53:55Fingers crossed. Today's the day.
54:01Fingers crossed.
54:03Easy, easy, easy, easy.
54:08Fingers crossed.
54:10poner and
54:30She fought so hard, the guanaco fought really hard.
54:32In the end, she didn't get it.
54:33It's amazing how she has to fight to just get a meal to survive.
54:37Trying to take down an animal as large as a guanaco
54:40has left Sarmiento badly injured.
55:00Every failed attempt, she gets weaker.
55:08Yeah, I got it.
55:09It was close.
55:10But yeah, she got thrown off pretty good.
55:12But a hungry mother doesn't give up easily.
55:21There's a group of guanacas down here,
55:23so I'm trying to get in a good position to watch this right.
55:27He's here.
55:28Yeah, I got it.
55:29She's coming down.
55:33The crew will only have seconds to get into position.
55:4250, 50 meters, 50.
55:48Okay, 20, 20 meters, it's going, 20 meters.
55:56It's going, it's going, it's running, it's running.
55:58It's running.
56:13Witnessing this life and death battle is difficult.
56:19But at last, John sees Sarmiento provide for her cubs.
56:23I feel greatly relieved.
56:24It's been 30 days, 100 miles of walking with her.
56:25And we finally got her doing it.
56:26During the chase, I was thinking this time, please, please get it down.
56:38There's been three chases where it got away.
56:41Cubs got food now.
56:42She had to fight for it.
56:43Conservation efforts here have given these secretive cats a rare safe haven, enabling the team to capture a filming first.
56:55And tell the remarkable story of a fearless mother at the far edge of South America.
57:02Next time, a continent marooned during the time of the dinosaurs, where the castaways are like nothing else on Earth.
57:20Australia.
57:23It is a truly stunning series, and the book is just as breathtaking.
57:40Seven worlds, one planet is available now.
57:43Next tonight, everyone wants to make it to Blackpool, but one couple will just miss out.
57:48Strictly, the results in a moment.
57:50And then to another world, one of light and shadow, making Sunday nights magical.
57:55His dark materials here at eight.