In this captivating final episode of the series we meet some incredible conservation champions on nature's front line, fighting to preserve the future of our beautiful planet. The episode opens with a dramatic rescue operation for the critically endangered black rhino, showcasing the efforts of Dumi Zwane and his team to establish a new breeding colony in a safe haven. The focus then shifts to the Centro Jambatu research center in the Andes, where Jaime Culebras works tirelessly to save the last of certain frog species. The documentary also highlights the efforts of Trang Nguyen, who bravely infiltrates the illegal wildlife trade in West Africa to protect forest elephants from ivory poachers. Meanwhile, in Vienna, Katharina Huchler undertakes a remarkable journey to reintroduce the northern bald ibis to Europe after its extinction 400 years ago. Indigenous leader Alessandra Korap's battle to preserve the Amazon rainforest from exploitation is a key focus, alongside Mohamed Nasheed's fight against climate change to save coral reefs and his country. This episode addresses the broader issue of habitat destruction, emphasizing its role as a primary driver of extinction. It poignantly demonstrates the interconnectivity of life on Earth and the critical importance of conservation efforts.
Sir David Attenborough presents this landmark documentary which brings to life, in unprecedented detail, the lost world of the very last days of the dinosaurs. Searching in the hills of North Dakota, palaeontologist Robert DePalma makes an incredible discovery in a prehistoric graveyard known as Tanis - fossilised creatures, astonishingly well preserved like the bodies found at Pompeii. Whilst DePalma hunts for the evidence that can shed light on the final days of the dinosaurs, state-of-the-art VFX transports Sir David back in time to the Late Cretaceous to witness the creatures who lived at Tanis at the end of the Age of Dinosaurs. Meanwhile, cutting edge scanning techniques reveal fossilised secrets that could change our understanding of the dinosaurs' extinction once and for all.
The risk of human extinction has never been higher. Recent years have seen a global pandemic, a renewed nuclear threat and runaway climate change. New research predicts a 1 in 6 chance that life as we know it won't make it to the end of this century. This compelling science documentary looks at the greatest risks to humanity and what we can do about it. Are we all doomed?
A new force threatens our perfect planet. In the past, five mass extinction events were caused by cataclysmic volcanic eruptions. It was not the lava or ash that wiped out life, but an invisible gas released by volcanoes: carbon dioxide. Almost every part of modern life depends on energy created by burning fossil fuels, and this produces CO2 in huge amounts. Humans are changing our planet so rapidly, it’s affecting earth’s life support systems: our weather, our oceans and the living world. The greatest change to be made is in how we create energy, and the planet is brimming with natural power that can help us do just that. It’s these forces of nature - the wind, the sun, waves and geothermal energy - that hold the key to our future. Through compelling animal-led stories and expert interviews, we discover how CO2 is destabilising our planet. We meet rescued orphaned elephants in Kenya, victims of ever worsening droughts, and join ocean patrols off the coast of Gabon fighting to save endangered sharks. In the Amazon, we witness wildlife teams saving animals in the shrinking forests, and in San Diego we enter a cryogenic zoo preserving the DNA of endangered species before they become extinct.
David Attenborough and the world-renowned scientist Johan Rockström examine Earth's biodiversity collapse. The film explains how humanity has pushed our planet beyond the boundaries that have kept it stable since the dawn of life, but also that this crisis can still be averted, thinking and acting with one unified purpose to ensure that Earth forever remains healthy and resilient.
Beneath Yellowstone National Park, lies the biggest volcano on Earth. An eruption in the past was so big it plunged the earth into a volcanic winter that lasted years. A super-eruption would be more than millions of Hiroshima bombs going off all at once. It would be even worse than an asteroid impact: Entire cities lost beneath ash, people and animals crushed alive, power networks destroyed, sun dimmed across the globe, harvests failed, widespread famine.
Could this nightmare really happen? We will use the latest scientific data to uncover the danger beneath us, as we see our planet like never before.
This episode addresses the broader issue of habitat destruction, emphasizing its role as a primary driver of extinction. It poignantly demonstrates the interconnectivity of life on Earth and the critical importance of conservation efforts.