Natural World

Thousands of tons of war wreckage sank into the fabled lagoons of the South Pacific islands during the naval and air battles of World War II. This fascinating documentary Investigates the array of shipwrecks in the area which have been transformed into spectacular living reefs featuring fantastic mini-ecosystems and incredible marine wildlife.

Unlike great civilizations such as the Romans and the Egyptians, the Mayan empire did not arise from the banks of a mighty river. Then why did they populate Yucatan? The Maya believed that the freshwater pools dotted across the area were sacred portals to the underworld. They are indeed portals, but to an incredible underground labyrinthine system of rivers with amazing wildlife.

In 1893, Ernest Thompson Seton rode into the wilds of New Mexico to kill a marauding cattle-killing wolf named Lobo. The book he wrote about his experiences was the first to portray wolves in a sympathetic light and was an early important work in the environmental movement. It inspired a generation of naturalists, including David Attenborough, who narrates this thrilling wildlife documentary.

The ancient Gurung tribesmen of Nepal are master honey hunters. They risk their lives collecting honeycomb in the foothills of the Himalayas, using nothing more than handmade rope ladders and long sticks known as tangos. This thrilling natural history documentary follows the tribe as they undertake their perilous, life-threating endeavors.

Environmentalist and photographer Sandesh Kadur has traded a comfortable career to explore the natural wonders of the Western Ghats mountains. Just a few hours from the bustle of Bangalore, Sandesh could be a world away. Alongside familiar Indian species like elephants, tigers and peacocks are more mysterious animals like a purple frog with a face like a shrew and a monkey with a lion-like mane.

Black bears are the scariest animal that most people are likely to encounter in North America. There are nearly one million of them, often living very close to humans. This wildlife documentary traces the forty-year journey of maverick bear biologist, Dr Lynn Rogers, from fear to fascination, as he breaks with traditional research to gain the trust of one bear family in Minnesota.