Water, falling on a city.
The sound of nature all around us.
Listen to what the rain has to say.
Follow it, up to the clouds
that sweep across the turning Earth.
Far, far away...
...to find a land where
water shapes all life.
Where Nature still holds sway...
...Africa.
Realms of fire and ice...
...water and wind...
...heat and dust.
Worlds within worlds...
...where we can be
swept back in to Nature.
ENCHANTED KINGDOM
The rainforest...
The very heart of
this vast continent.
The wettest place in Africa.
What lies hidden beneath this dense
canopy of green?
The mysterious forest.
With so much sun and rain,
it grows relentlessly...
...and all around the
tangled forest is the noise...
...of numberless creatures.
More animals live here
than in any other realm.
But they're hard to find.
Hardly any light gets through,
and down here, on the forest floor...
...a leaderless army of blind
ants is on the move.
Driver ants.
A swarm,
five million strong.
You don't want to get in their way.
They eat everything in their path.
These tiny ants
can overcome creatures...
...thousands of times bigger than them.
It's war, animal devouring animal
in the darkness...
...while plants struggle desperately
with each other to reach the light.
Life here can be a constant struggle.
But it's only a short walk to paradise.
In a glade in the forest...
...a family rests in the sun.
Gorillas.
Some of our closest relatives.
Just like us, they live in families.
Mothers and children,
uncles and aunts.
The big silverback's in charge.
He keeps an eye on everyone.
For this family
the forest is really the garden of Eden.
All the food they need
is within easy reach.
They play, they talk...
...they quarrel, they learn...
...and make friends for life.
It's an idyllic place to grow up.
This is their world...
...they are really comfortable here.
And if anything threatens the peace...
...the silverback is ready
to protect his family.
Rain and sun made this rich forest.
But in the world beyond...
...another very different
realm is being forged...
...by a far more brutal clash
of the elements...
The Underworld.
The heart of a volcano...
...a fiery furnace...
...where rocks melt before your eyes
at temperatures of a thousand degrees.
You're seeing the Earth stretch open.
When our planet was first formed,
the whole world was like this.
Underground...
...the furnace stills burns,
making new land every day.
A world built from sulphur and salt,
belched from below.
Like an alien planet.
Acid pools and choking gases.
You can't even breathe the air.
Almost nothing can live here...
...but sometimes in the realm of
the volcanoes the fires breed life...
...out of poisoned water.
Lake Bogoria...
where boiling springs from the
underworld spill into a vast lake.
These waters are far
saltier than the sea...
...yet they draw life
from hundreds of miles away.
Flamingos...
...flame birds!
Occasionally, when the water
conditions are just right...
...the lake blooms with
masses of tiny algae.
A delicacy for the flamingos.
Their food contains
a red pigment...
...so, the more they sip
the pinker they glow...
...as if they're blushing.
Now the more they blush
the more desirable they become.
And when they're all
looking beautiful...
...they start to dance.
Inflamed by the waters of
this volcanic lake...
...they seek out partners
in the crowd.
Who will choose who in this
great gathering?
Somewhere out there is
the perfect match.
Out of the fires comes love...
...flamingos mate for life.
They are leaving the bubbling lake
to find a place to nest.
Soon they'll all be gone
the lake empty for another year.
But there are worlds in Africa so dry
they seem permanently empty.
The Namib desert.
It's been here for over
fifty million years.
One of the oldest, hottest,
driest places on Earth.
A great sea of sand...
...as restless as the ocean.
How can anything survive
in this wasteland?
But some do.
Millions of years
have taught them the necessary tricks.
A desert viper...
...sidewinding to get a
grip on the loose sand.
Food's hard to find,
so the viper hides...
...and waits for it come to him.
If you are going to hunt for a meal...
...it helps if you have eyes
in the back of your head.
Meet the Namaqua chameleon.
He's set his sights on an
armoured ground cricket.
His eyes are bigger than his stomach.
Better try again...
...for a lighter lunch.
Delicious!
In the middle of the day...
...the sand's so hot most
creatures can't stand it.
This little lizard's no bigger
than your little finger...
...and to stop his feet burning,
he's got to dance.
The shovel snouted lizard
can handle the heat...
...but all that dancing
works up an appetite.
He better be careful though.
Not everything here is
what it seems.
Tempting...
...but is it safe?
That was too close.
Time for a vanishing act.
With so little moisture in the dunes
there's only a sprinkling of life...
...and all of it small.
But if there is rain,
even a little...
...the water can change
the whole character of a place.
East of the Namib lies the realm
of the scorched plains.
Water occasionally
softens the earth...
...but now the land is bone dry.
It's a desperate time
for elephants.
They have to drink
more than any other animal on Earth.
To find enough water at
this time of year...
...the family must trek
huge distances.
The smallest just have to keep up.
This is a family of females
with their young.
One mother is in charge.
She has an incredible memory.
She can remember the few places
where there might still be water.
They can't afford to rest
until they find a drink.
They must push on through the night.
It's a dangerous time.
There are hunters about.
Leopards, hyenas, lions.
To keep their babies safe,
the family needs to stick together.
Another family nearby
have not been so careful.
This youngster has strayed too far.
Our family has survived.
The mothers were wise,
and kept their babies close.
Together, their search continues.
Water at last!
The mother's led them to a special place
where there's water underground.
To reach it, the elephants have dug
wells with bare feet and tusks.
Some of them are pretty deep,
so the longer your trunk the better.
A few mouthfuls can make
all the difference...
...especially when you're small.
Thirsty bulls,
barging in for a drink.
Fortunately the family's
drunk enough...
...and the mother knows
somewhere nearby where they can all...
...relax.
Too dirty to drink...
...but a perfect for mud bath.
A quick cool off
a splash of muddy sunscreen...
...and it's time to move on again...
...to find food and
more fresh water.
Someone needs a bit of help.
Generations of elephants have gone on
journeys like this and survived...
...passing on their knowledge,
and their courage.
They'll keep on travelling.
...always on the move...
...always thirsty...
...until the rains arrive.
Fresh water is what brings
the dry kingdoms of Africa to life.
These fingers of mist
don't promise healing showers...
but they beckon us towards
another magical realm...
...just beyond these sands.
The sea!
An eternal, restless Empire,
at the boundaries of what we know...
...battering the shoreline of Africa
from all points of the compass.
Barracuda...
...cruising in a shoal.
They seem to sense
the path to take.
The traffic of the deep.
Ocean travelers...
...moving as one towards
a wonderful creation of the sea.
The most vibrant of
all Africa's realms...
...a coral reef.
Reefs can only grow at the perfect
temperature, at the perfect depth...
...and with plenty of sunshine.
So, they're rare.
But when it all comes
together you get this...
...a crowded city under the sea.
A hawksbill turtle
looking for food.
Like any human city, there are lots of
different places to live.
And being so crowded,
it pays to get on with the neighbours.
A quarter of all life in the sea
lives on coral reefs.
It may be beautiful, but don't let
the bright colors dazzle you.
Like most cities,
the reef has its darker side.
When you leave the light behind,
you never know quite what you'll find.
These sweeper fish like
to shelter in caves.
But they seem pretty spooked.
A gang of Lionfish
on the prowl.
Beautiful, but deadly!
Their spines are highly poisonous...
...and the stripes warn others
not to mess with them.
Lionfish use their outstretched fins...
...to corner their prey
against the walls.
Sunbeams pierce the depths...
...direct from the heavens.
Ride them to a kingdom in the sky...
...among a sea of clouds
to reach the top of the world.
A realm of ice and snow,
right on the equator.
Mount Kenya, towering over
three miles high.
Hidden among these snow-capped peaks
is a secret world of strange plants.
Life up here beats to a magical rhythm.
As night falls, temperatures plunge...
...and this whole place becomes
a crystal kingdom.
To avoid freezing, the plants wrap
themselves in a blanket of leaves.
Like snuggling under a duvet.
As they sleep,
everything around them turns to ice.
It's winter, every night.
Each morning the sun brings
the mountains back to life.
It's summer, every day.
Across the highlands,
everyone's waking up.
Geladas.
They live only up here,
in the mountains of Ethiopia.
Woken by a touch of the sun...
...as has been the way
for millions of years.
Their luxuriant fur has kept them
warm at night.
But needs a lot of attention
to keep it clean.
Pwah!
Life up here is all about
simple routine.
Easy days beneath the eternal sky.
As the day heats up,
everyone heads off to find food.
Families join up, in their hundreds,
searching for the best grass.
With so many monkeys together...
things sometimes get a bit out of hand.
Most of the time no-one
comes to any harm.
It's just the males showing off.
All part of the daily routine.
As the day ends it's time
to find somewhere to sleep
and huddle from the cold.
The same as every night
they can ever remember.
Winter then summer...
...summer then winter...
...like a whole year in a day...
...on and on, forever.
From a land where each day and each
night are the same as those before...
...comes a world
of constant change.
This is how rivers are born...
...drop follows drip,
follows drop.
A trickle that becomes
a flow and then a stream...
...and then it goes on and on...
...always downhill...
...always looking for the lowest level.
Africa's rivers create
a mercurial realm of great highways.
Legends like the Nile,
Congo, Zambezi.
Victoria Falls...
...the smoke that thunders.
Even the wildest rivers
calm down eventually.
This place might look peaceful,
but don't be fooled.
Wildebeest always on the move,
looking for fresh grass...
...but they have to stop to drink.
This is the closest thing to a dragon
you'll ever see.
The biggest crocodiles in Africa.
Some weigh over a ton.
Monsters like these have been around
since the time of dinosaurs.
They have the most powerful jaws
of any animal on Earth.
It's been almost a year
since these crocs last ate...
...and there's no guarantee the herds
will come back.
Even if they do,
they might drink elsewhere.
It's a long and winding river.
But if there's one thing
crocodiles are good at...
...it's being patient.
The wildebeest have to drink,
eventually.
Even the biggest crocs in Africa
can't stop them all.
They have to keep moving...
...to find a place where
there's fresh grass.
That means chasing the rain.
It's hard to predict when rain will
come to the savannah...
...but the animals seem to know.
They follow the clouds.
And they come into a world
being created anew...
...a world at the tipping point.
The sun and the rain...
...the light and the water...
...have come with a miracle...
...a transformation.
Rain brings the world into flower...
...and every living thing
blossoms too.
Something extraordinaryis
about to happen.
Africa...
...bursting into life again.
A happy ending after
so many difficult journeys.
A long search for water is over and
there is joy in the world once more.
Endless delight in being alive.
We can be swept back into Nature...
...and feel the joy of it...
...if we let the world show us the way.
The natural world is
so powerful...
...so enchanting that even here,
even in the city.
We can be swept back
in to nature.
It's all around us...
...and in every one of us.
THE END