Nature ShockStagione 3
This intriguing documentary series examines freak occurrences in the natural world. Whether it's animals behaving oddly or even the planet that perplexes, each episode sees scientists studying baffling phenomena in a bid to understand what Mother Nature's really up to. The reasons behind incidents will vary, but there's one conclusion that we always reach: the world isn't as predictable as we'd like to think.
Dove guardare Nature Shock • Stagione 3
10 Episodi
- The Whale That Ate the Great WhiteE1
The Whale That Ate the Great WhiteIn 1997, tourists on a whale-watching boat 27 miles west of San Francisco were stunned to see a great white shark being attacked, killed and eaten by an orca, effectively deposing the former as the marine world's most feared predator. Using footage from the incident, experts provide their theories as to how the killer whale was able to overpower its adversary, and question whether this event warrants a reconsideration of the ocean's food chain - Cannibal HipposE2
Cannibal HipposExamination of the spate of deaths among Ugandan hippos that occurred in 2004. Though tests quickly confirmed they were being poisoned by anthrax, how it was spread astounded vets - noting that unusually no other species were affected by the outbreak, it became evident the creatures were catching the illness by eating the corpses of their kind as drought destroyed their regular sources of nutrition - Elephant GraveyardE3
Elephant GraveyardAn examination of the media uproar that surrounded the deaths of five elephants near a Bengali village in May 2007. Intensive investigations concluded the creatures were killed by a lightning strike during a fierce electrical storm, but some experts remained unconvinced. This programme explores allegations of foul play by the Indian state's Forest Department, and questions whether the animals could have been poisoned - Death FogE4
Death FogOn August 21, 1986, nearly 2,000 people living near Lake Nyos in north-west Cameroon dropped dead, severely depleting the populations of three lakeside villages. The documentary examines the circumstances surrounding the tragedy, questioning whether the eruption of carbon dioxide pockets at the bottom of the lake could have produced an odourless toxic cloud deadly enough to suffocate the locals - Killer SquidE5
Killer SquidThis instalment profiles the shocking advance of the Humboldt squid. Since 2002, these fearsome predators have colonised the seas at an alarming rate, destroying ecosystems and disrupting fisheries. Researchers around the globe are racing against time to find ways of halting this devastating invasion. - India's Silent KillerE6
India's Silent KillerThis instalment tells the story of how a dramatic decline in the vulture population has caused ecological disaster in India. The shrinking number of vultures has damaged the country's fragile ecosystem, and has kick-started a shocking chain of events, including an explosion in rabies cases and a marked increase in fatal leopard attacks. - The Crocs That Turned to RubberE8
The Crocs That Turned to RubberIn May 2008, rangers at Kruger stumbled across a horrifying sight in the Olifants Gorge. The gorge, normally a haven for giant Nile crocodiles, was littered with their corpses. Before long, more than 30 dead crocodiles were located, all of which bore no outward signs of injury. The rangers were perplexed as to how these extraordinarily resilient creatures could come to die en masse. Park authorities immediately launched an investigation into the mysterious deaths, led by ecologists Danie Pienaar and Dr Danny Govender, but no clues were forthcoming. However, after conducting post-mortems on some of the dead crocodiles, the team realised that a disease known as pansteatitis was behind the mass die-off. "When we first cut open these crocodiles we noticed this orange, really hard, really rubbery fat," Dr Govender recalls. Pansteatitis, which is more common in domestic cats, is caused by a combination of consuming too much rancid fat, and a lack of vitamin E. The condition causes fat to solidify, leaving infected creatures lethargic, heavy and unable to hunt, eat, or defend themselves. Meanwhile, the death toll in Olifants Gorge continued to rise. Soon, the rangers spotted a crocodile feeding on the corpse of one of its own kind. The crocs had turned to cannibalism, and the only method of preventing the disease from spreading in this way - and potentially into the land predators such as lions - was to remove all the corpses from the gorge. The intervention had an instant effect, and for several months no deaths were recorded. Before long, the team had another huge setback when pansteatitis appeared to return to the gorge. What was the cause of this affliction? - When Killer Whales Attack
E10When Killer Whales AttackExploring the life of the killer whale. Streamlined and cunning, killer whales have many hunting techniques. They live and hunt together in cooperative pods much like a pack of wolves, and work together as they hunt. Groups of orcas cooperate to herd fish into a compact area so that they're easier to eat. They will also slap their tails onto the water's surface, causing a wave to wash prey off ice floes and into the water. A pod will also surround a much larger animal, chasing, biting and wearing it down until it becomes a meal. They’ve also been seen playing with a meal, subjecting the poor victim to torment before eventually eating it - isolated, outnumbered and overwhelmed, their prey stands no chance.