The Baltics: Untouched Animal Paradise | Free Documentary Nature

three countries in northeastern europe the baltic states estonia latvia and lithuania are full of primeval forests and moors the wilderness is a spacious habitat for large animals water defines the rhythm of nature and the life of the region's human inhabitants [Music] in the baltic ancient traditions are still alive today in a landscape like no other in europe [Music] in winter a meter thick carpet of snow covers estonia's endless expanses of forest large pores with dense pads of hair prevent their owner from sinking into the snow when stalking the tufted ears and excellent eyesight can locate prey a good distance away caper cayley's for instance having to get by on low nutrient food during the cold season pine and spruce needles no matter how great its hunger in the trees the big birds are out of reach of the links unusual calls echo through the woods over the last few years dog sled tours have become popular in the estonian wilderness the tourists won't spot the links even though they're not that uncommon here with a population of more than one thousand [Music] in january the baltic is ruled by icy temperatures and larger rivers freeze over the gower winds for over 450 kilometers through latvia at minus 30 degrees celsius even waterfalls turn to ice the red coloring comes from the sandstone through whose thick layers the gauyer has been eating its way for thousands of years the more the river freezes over the less chance the otter has of finding food it needs open places where it can slip into the water to hunt every seven to eight minutes of the latest it has to find a hole under the ice to snatch a few breaths of air at some point the gower will almost completely freeze over leaving only a handful of entry holes for the otter ice can cover the river for two or three months for golden eagles too finding food in the winter is hard about 20 pairs breed in latvia the partners usually stay together for life in early february the mating rituals begin as every year with the eagles renewing their vows soon they'll be extending their eerie in contrast to their alpine relatives in the baltic golden eagles nest in trees rather than on cliff faces a dead mountain hare has attracted the attention of some siberian jays in hard winters the birds migrate to central europe they were once seen as harbingers of catastrophe this time they're out of luck and are driven off golden eagles can kill animals weighing up to 15 kilos three times their own weight in winter the kings of the air depend on carrion animals that die of hunger or cold like this hair help the eagles survive the chilliest time of year deep in the estonian forest humans unintentionally created a winter wildlife shelter the sandstone caves of pusa a labyrinth dug out by hand here quartz was once mined for the production of glass today the galleries are deserted no air currents target the flames of the candles set out by matty marcin to light his root back out of the cave the passages are cold but frost free and moist enough to prevent the objects of his interest from drying out that's damp with dew [Music] moths glisten in the torchlight [Music] from october to april the bats hibernate in pusa their metabolism is close to zero and their body temperatures greatly reduced since mining ceased more and more bats come here whereas in 1949 it was a mere 22 today more than four thousand spend the winter undisturbed in the cathedral-like cloisters [Music] pusa has become the most significant winter quarters for bats in the baltic in the spring they will leave the cave again at the moment however the nights are icy cold and temperatures of minus 20 degrees celsius not uncommon [Music] when the sun climbs higher in the sky and the days get longer the clattering call of the caper cayley can be heard from quite a distance in february march the birds begin their courtship rituals measuring up to one metre high the makes quite an impression red swellings over the eyes flash the calls of the attract some hens and a rival who is quickly driven off allowing the local hero to convince the females of his particular charms in peace spreading their wings means that they are ready and willing to mate then the mounts the chosen hen all in a matter of seconds from now on the hen has sole responsibility for the offspring bringing up chicks is not on the cox agenda [Music] half of estonia consists of pine ridge open forest ideal living conditions for caper [Music] cayleys the other half is characterized by moors swamps and meadows it's april the first white stalks are back from africa everywhere snow and ice are melting from all directions water is flowing into lower lying parts of the soma national park after summer autumn and winter shortly before the advent of spring begins the fifth season in the flat land of central estonia high water a vast expanse of country is now flooded become waterways for the villagers this is no catastrophe they've been adapting to the watery conditions for centuries they simply build their houses higher now they can only reach them by boat [Music] the melt water has come quickly and caught the spring snowflakes in full bloom [Music] every year this mystical water world lures many visitors to soma in a canoe almost impassable areas in the swampy woods become accessible red ribbons mark the way through the labyrinth of trees freshly arrived from africa black-tailed godwits look for food in the soft ground on the edge of the vast lake in some places the water is five meters deep the fifth season lasts at least two weeks until the melted snow has run off the land of swamps [Music] until then soma is a gigantic watery wilderness [Music] during the melt streams become rivers [Music] to the east of the capital talin lies estonia's biggest waterfall [Music] here the yegala river plunges downwards for eight meters its amber moore water only has three kilometers to go before it reaches the baltic sea the widest waterfall in europe is in latvia [Music] here the venta overcomes a 400 meter long barrier of stone [Music] in early may vimba breen relatives of the cup move up the river to their spawning grounds [Music] it seems almost as if they first checked to see how high the obstacle is before then taking a proper run-up [Music] barely 50 centimeters long the fish have to get over a one and a half meter high waterfall [Music] this early in the year only a few manage the leap and then overcome the strong current of the venta which is still swollen with melt water [Music] in two weeks time it will be a lot easier [Music] by then it will finally be spring in the baltic [Music] everywhere water levels are falling the meadows however stay damp offering food for many birds besides the white stalk another unusual migratory bird has returned from africa to the hilly meadows of central latvia one of europe's rarest birds of prey the lesser spotted eagle with its peculiar method of hunting instead of falling to earth like a stone and snatching up its prey this eagle pursues it on foot the raptor lives mainly on frogs and mice latvia is home to three thousand six hundred pairs one-fifth of the world's population nowhere else on earth do so many lesser-spotted eagles live as close together as here the fragmentary mosaic of the landscape offers perfect living conditions along with damp meadows and moorland as hunting grounds the birds need quiet primeval forests to build their eeries in this eaglet is just 10 days old and all alone the first born chick usually throws the second born out of the nest the parents allow this active siblicide to happen after all they did exactly the same thing when they were eaglets the second egg is a kind of reserve in case anything goes wrong with hatching out the first the surviving eaglet has its parents attention all to itself today's tasty morsel is mole the parents remain within calling distance while one feeds and warms the chick the other brings further supplies [Music] in the remote northeast of the baltic close to the russian border lies al otagusa the largest expanse of forest in estonia with its evergreen woodlands swamps and moors it's reminiscent of the tiger [Music] in amongst the sparse brushwood grow blueberries [Music] the red flowers and fresh green shoots are the first meal for a family of brown bears who've just finished hibernating [Applause] [Music] the two cubs are one year old young bears usually stay with their mothers for three or even four years estonia is home to around 700 brown bears half of them in the forest of aludagusu while the mother bear satisfies her winter long hunger in the woods the cubs have discovered something up in a tree a flying squirrel the emblem of estonian nature conservation in europe these rodents only live in finland and estonia where they've become very rare for accommodation they need woodpecker holes and old mixed woodlands with aspens woodlands that aren't really planned for in modern forestry in estonia there are very few places where one can observe flying squirrels gliding from tree to tree the bear cubs spent the winter in a cozy den dug and padded out by their mother now at last they can get rid of all that excess energy they're occasionally suckled until they're about two years old that's why the mother has to eat for three and keep a watchful eye out danger lurks in the forest male bears [Music] they can be very aggressive especially during the mating season in spring the mother bear warns her cubs which immediately seek the safety of the trees the adult male knows what's what if it were to kill the two cubs in a few days the mother would be fertile and it could become a father the mother prepares to defend her offspring and threateningly rattles her teeth if the male really does mean business the cubs would have to climb right up into the treetop [Music] suddenly the bear seems to get cold feet and makes itself scarce the situation takes a surprising turn an even mightier bear appears it however ignores the family the mother bear can relax again and calls her young down from their tree one had already climbed quite a way up is the danger really over the large bear has settled down nearby it may be the father then it would have no reason to kill the cubs some female bears use a tactic of multi-paternity to protect their young by mating with as many males as possible in one area then all the potential sires think they could be the father and thus spare the mother's cubs [Music] close by and well hidden a young family has just seen the light of day [Music] after a four week brooding period the caper cayley's chicks have hatched the single mum is just back with something to eat adult caper candies live on the leaves and berries of blueberry plants but the chicks need protein-rich food ants and other insects before the mother brings out her young to eat she carefully checks that the coast is clear for the big brown bear the chicks would make a tasty snack the caper cayley hen remains calm relying on her perfect camouflage thickly wooded estonia is almost as big as the netherlands but it has only a tenth of the population around one and a half million more than seven thousand streams and rivers crisscrossed the country since the fall of the soviet union they've become much cleaner [Music] once almost extinct the otter population is now thriving in the 1970s the animals were endangered by environmental pollution and poachers after their soft pelts today they're a protected species all over the baltic otters are once more looking for something to eat even under heavy stones in the water the agile creatures use their eyes for orientation when visibility is bad the long whiskers or vibrissie help to find food and that can be fish shellfish water snails crayfish or insect larvae the cool streams are the nursery of broad-winged damselflies having spent their first year or two in the water as larvae they now take to the air as adults [Music] where the sun shines shimmering blue males stake out temporary territories from here they caught the brown females perches such as this yellow pond lily are especially popular vantage points like this naturally attract the competition [Music] one well-aimed attack and the rival retreats briefly [Music] then a battle of threats begins [Music] with fanned out wings the two males face each other in mid-air [Music] while the rivals size each other up nearby love has found a way [Music] the happy couple can talk themselves into the shape of a heart [Music] the male grips the female's head with its abdominal pincers and carries her off in tandem to mate [Music] aerobatics high above a baltic stream the 450 kilometer long river gauya flows through latvian switzerland ever since the last ice age the river has been carving its way through the million-year-old sandstone sometimes to a depth of 80 meters the water was extremely clear and clean its dark coloring comes from the moorish ferrogenous subsoil today the gowya still flows in lazy loops through the national park that bears its name untamed and unstraightened ships have no chance here [Music] latvian switzerland is full of wooded river valleys sand banks and islands and castles the first built in the 13th century were of wood then german invaders built citadels of stone like castle turaida which has been restored over the last few decades away from the rivers too the baltic is characterized by water one-fifth of estonia alone is made up of moorland when lakes dry up thick layers of peat are formed that are low in nutrients to survive here some plants use tricks [Music] the sun do for example sugary droplets glisten on the gland tentacles of its leaves they look as harmless as morning dew [Music] when insects land and stick fast the tentacles exude digestive juices which dissolve them thus these carnivorous plants gain vital nutrients that the pt ground does not offer [Music] in the summer the moors are decorated by the fruit of the cotton grass the warm season has finally arrived an adolescent brown bear takes the opportunity to have a bath in the swampy lake it's not alone the two bears seem to know each other maybe they're siblings when at the age of three or four young brown bears are weaned off by their mother and then driven away the cubs may stay together for another two or three years they're not fully grown until the age of 10. brown bears eat almost anything but they're mainly vegetarian besides blueberries the more has juicy water lily shoots to offer the moorlands of the baltic are unique treasure houses of nature estonia alone has more than seven thousand some are over 10 000 years old and consists of 10 meter thick layers of peat more than half have been drained and are now used by humans peat is cut on a large scale for west european gardens no local here would think of using low nutrient peat to improve the quality of the earth they would use compost or bark [Music] fertile compost instead of peat that would also spare the large primeval baltic moorland help is coming from an unexpected quarter little by little europe's largest rodent is reconquering its former habitat building dams and thus helping to irrigate the thirsty moors the beaver in summer these vegetarians enjoyed juicy green herbs and leaves buds and water lily roots they only fell trees in winter this aspen was uprooted in a gale to the delight of the beavers the bark leaves and twigs are particular delicacies one after another all the members of the family turn up at the tree this year's offspring are already up to eating buck unusual calls ring out in the forest this is the first time the young beavers have heard the cry of the j they'll get used to it soon enough once extinct here there are now 150 000 beavers in latvia alone they're important helpers in the restoration of the moors their dams put large areas under water and create new habitats [Music] the often unspoiled woods also offer shelter for many species about a thousand wolves live in latvia working as a pack they can catch animals much bigger than a single wolf their fantastic sense of smell can pick up the scent of potential prey a grazing elk cow in winter in deep snow the wolves might attack if they could separate the calf from its mother it would be easy meat as long as it stays close to her the wolves don't really have much chance a kick from the cow could be fatal the pack withdraws sometimes it can cover up to 60 kilometers a day [Music] large parts of central europe used to look like the baltic today moore and woodlands fields pastures and meadows [Music] the baltic is a paradise for stalks with 23 000 pairs breeding in estonia latvia and lithuania in germany a country twice the size of the baltic states there are now only five thousand a stalk on the roof is seen as a symbol of good luck and fertility and that's what latvia's biggest festival is also all about [Music] on the night of the 24th of june the summer solstice is celebrated with traditional costumes and garlands of flowers caraway seed cheese bread and beer fires are lit and burn all night long the singing and dancing goes on until dawn [Music] the midsummer night festival is a lively one and in latvia more popular than christmas [Music] with the sunrise a procession of merrymakers leads across the moist meadows [Music] everyone wants to feel the dampness of the dew or bathe in clear spring water for all who wash on st john's eve will remain beautiful and strong for the rest of the year [Music] the sun rises over the lowlands of the dvieta a river on the border between latvia and lithuania [Music] in the moist pasture land a rarity is brooding [Music] its coal can be heard some distance away the great snipe it even has a doppelganger the somewhat smaller common sniper in its courtship rituals the male tilts its head back and clicks the two halves of its beak together rare footage of a fight between two rivals a strict ritual must be adhered to as they call the competitors fan out their tails showing off their white feathers they puff themselves up approach then each performs a pirouette and the fencing match can begin wow it's august for some the year in latvia will soon be over in the eerie the lesser spotted eagle chick is almost fully fledged it's still being fed by its parents untiringly they bring food the chick meanwhile can take the frog apart by itself it urgently needs reserves of fat in contrast to golden eagles which spend the winter in the baltic lesser spotted eagles have a 10 000 kilometer flight to south africa ahead of them the coming snow and ice would prevent them from finding prey it's time the chick finally learned to fly the parent wants to lure it out of the nest the first wing beats are followed by takeoff practice a first flight albeit a short one soon in late august or early september the parent birds will be setting off southwards then the young bird will be left to its own devices it will have to feed itself and find its own way to africa in mid-september what was the eagle's hunting grounds is transformed into an arena for an animal that was reintroduced to the baltic in the 17th century red deer once the local nobility kept deer at one point some animals escaped into the wild [Music] if two stags of similar stature meet a fight is unavoidable [Music] it's all about proving who's boss it's not about hurting each other [Music] if the animals are equally strong the stag size one another up they attempt to intimidate each other with body language and loud roaring [Music] the rivals take every opportunity they can to push into the mating arena with short leaps and bounds the older alpha stag drives them off and shows its strength it's probably the loudest spectacle of the year the calls echo across the fields until well into the night [Music] in autumn an even bigger species of deer restlessly roams the woodlands fully grown elks come to the traditional mating grounds with them a younger male here an experienced elk ball is already flaming pulling up its upper lip it tests the air for the scent of a female willing to mate this is transmitted by certain odours in the cow's urine the young elk is sexually mature but its time has not yet come an elk cow is only able to conceive for 30 hours the ball doesn't leave her alone at first the cow reacts negatively and rejects its advances in the end the bulls overtures get the desired response eight months later a new generation of elks will be born in the baltic landscape [Music] estonia latvia lithuania three countries in europe where unspoiled nature can still be found [Music] today [Music] um

Channel: Free Documentary - Nature

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), nature documentary, Documentary, Wild Animals, Baltic Coast, North East Europe, Baltic Sea, Estonia, Latvia, lithuania, Amber Coast, curonian spit, konik, Koniki Horses, Ringed Seals, Seals, Seal Documentary, Wild Life, animal documentary, animal documentary 2020, full documentary, nature, Lynx, Bear, spotted eagle, Wilderness, Moors, Wild Baltic

Id: T-xx7tYUGfM

Length: 48min 0sec (2880 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 14 2020