Wild Germany: Scenic Journey from the Black Forest to the Coastlines | Extra Long Documentary

foreign [Music] [Music] s and the unique mud flats of the warden sea National Park this is Germany's Coastline seals and cetaceans [Music] seabirds and even stately Stags populate the 2400 kilometers of the north and Baltic Sea coasts on the North Sea Coast the sky is big and the land fertile over thousands of years the slow current has allowed silt and sediment to build up forming intertidal mud flats 2009 the whole area was declared a UNESCO world heritage site [Music] harbor seals find the peace and quiet they need unlonely sandbanks they seem to be flourishing the population is growing from year to year at low tide there's not much to do for these expert swimmers the animals are enjoying a well-earned rest from the rigors of diving [Music] hands [Music] high tide brings radical changes to the Wharton sea [Music] [Applause] [Music] for the harbor seals it's time to go hunting they spend three quarters of their lives catching fish [Applause] water is their element [Music] foreign [Music] Birds element is air in April they returned from their winter quarters [Music] it appears to be a choreographed display with a flock a single entity centrally controlled yet the birds Orient themselves only to their immediate neighbors spontaneously and individually [Music] [Music] foreign sea is a resting place for thousands of migrating birds every year Globetrotters like dunlins and bar-tailed godwits gray plovers and red knots land on Germany's North Sea Coast here they find crabs shellfish and worms and can regenerate for the long flight to their Northern breeding grounds [Music] thank you [Music] as dusk Falls flocks of geese move into their sleeping quarters in the salt Meadows foreign [Music] sea changes [Music] the Ripple marks in the sand are formed Anew each day [Music] few species endure the constant changes from dry to wet and Back Again sure crabs are one at low tide everything buries itself in the wet sand even cockles dig in to prevent their shells from drying out but no shell in the world can protect against an oyster catcher's beak when the muscle beds appear at low tide it's all you can eat with up to 10 times as many life forms as other kinds of seabed the wooden sea has a lot to offer [Music] while the water forms the mud flats wind and weather work on the dunes what's removed in one place is banked up somewhere else [Music] oyster catchers have built their nest in a spot sheltered from the wind the female gives a warning cry she spotted a marsh Harrier in the sky the oyster catcher's strategy is simple they leave the nest and Trust in the natural camouflage color of their eggs the Raptor is distracted it skillfully passes prey to its partner and is then free to see off a rival all clear for the oyster catchers all the eggs are there brooding can continue the Harrier also returns to its nest hidden in the Reeds these birds brewed on the ground the German North Sea Coast has plenty of food for The harrier's Offspring and they in turn Can't Get Enough [Music] the parents bring Provisions several times a day not all the tidbits are bite-sized but that doesn't bother the young in the slightest [Music] [Music] yeah helgoland Germany's only Deep Sea Island once annexed as a British colony it returned to German sovereignty at the end of the 19th century foreign over the last 20 years the Sandy island of Dune next door has once again become home to an animal which had hither tube in regarded as extinct [Music] gray seals their return to the coast made them the biggest predator in Germany at up to 300 kilos the balls weigh more than brown bears they can easily be distinguished from other seals by their cone-shaped noses [Music] young Bulls test their strength up to now it's all play fighting Life's real battles still lie ahead there are now more than 400 gray seals in the status the North Sea is their hunting ground foreign [Music] 's attention is attracted by a cat shark every fish is potential prey [Music] the shark decides to make a run for it [Music] it tries to use its camouflage by staying close to the Sea bed the seal is right behind it when immobile however the shark is almost invisible [Music] before that was close but the seaweed is the territory of a Shore crab and visitors are most definitely not welcome foreign how long can the shark withstand the crabs pinching [Music] it's color blown the shark is soon rediscovered by the seal but then the seal hesitates something is putting it off maybe the shark's rough skin cat sharks have scales like sandpaper [Music] and that is its salvation The Gray Seal decides to find somewhere to rest this spot's already occupied and the sitting tenant makes his feelings unmistakably clear showing your teeth is the strongest form of threat sensibly the Intruder decides to withdraw helgoland consists mainly of a single huge Red Cliff at the beginning of the 1990s one species of bird that had been hithered to practically unknown in Germany decided to settle here the northern gamet [Music] foreign over 20 years the population has grown from one breeding pair in 1991 to a colony of about 400 pairs today [Music] in the gallet world brooding and rearing take an unusually long time four months pass between mating and the young leaving the nest [Music] feeding the chicks alone takes 11 weeks gametes aren't the only breeding birds on helgoland they share Germany's smallest nature reserve one hectare gilamot rock with other sea birds the black-legged kitty wakes are already nesting while the Gila mods are still arguing about the best spots on the cliff [Music] to keep their young supplied with food the gannets head out to sea to look for fish once they've discovered a Shoal the hunt begins [Music] foreign [Music] the birds aren't the only ones looking for prey they're joined by some Harbor porpoises while the gannets dive down as far as three and a half meters the porpoises surround the fish thanks to their sonar they can locate prey over long distances in the murky water home [Music] foreign [Music] Harbor porpoises are the only cetaceans that give birth and bring up their young off the coast of Germany the feast lasts well past dusk [Music] [Music] this is a very special evening the sunset brings a spectacle only few have witnessed [Music] one last colorful Ray of sunlight the rare Green Flash [Music] 400 kilometers away lies the Baltic Sea Island of rugen with its chalk Cliffs some as much as 120 meters high [Music] this impregnable part of the coastline has been chosen as a breeding place by a pair of peregrine falcons they've been making their nest here for the last six years so far they're the only pair to discover the cliff [Music] at the beginning of the 1970s peregrine falcons had disappeared from North German Skies altogether the use of pesticides had driven them to the brink of Extinction and it took a program of reintroduction to the wild to bring them back the bird's name derives from the Latin peregrinos which means pilgrim for the young Offspring the time has come to follow their Wanderlust and leave the nest [Music] the Western Pomeranian Boden shallow stretches of water almost cut off from the Baltic by a series of spits and only connected to the Sea by narrow channels long since missing from the region gray seals have for some years now been cited again off the coast of Ruben [Music] around a hundred years ago there were still 200 seals here which were mercilessly hunted by a fisherman competing for the same fish the Prussian government offered a bounty of five marks for every dead seal with the last being killed in 1920. [Music] today about 15 gray seals live in the nature reserve of whom [Music] are neither Inland Lakes nor sea their water is on the one hand too salty and on the other not salty enough few animals survive here but those that do thrive Pike and perch predatory fish are particularly successful survivors [Music] the abundance of fish in the Boden are certainly one reason that the gray seals returned a fish has laid its eggs on the edge of a rock a lump sucker the male is watching over the eggs on his own his partner has long since disappeared into the depths of the Baltic the father will go without food for the entire duration of the hatching period he won't go hunting again for another two months protecting the eggs is important as Predators can appear at any moment shore crabs for example the lump sucker's eggs would be ideal prey for the crustacean but the father isn't about to let that happen the fish which can reach up to 70 centimeters in length wood if necessary take on enemies far bigger than itself [Music] seeing off the shore crab is child's play for the lump sucker now it can return to Fanning its eggs with oxygen-rich water islands of salt marsh grass in the bottom some are used as sparingly as in the old days with the grass being allowed to grow long before being moaned for hay [Music] Meadow brooders like the lap Wing need just this cover to protect their chicks well camouflaged they hatch on the ground only a few hours after hatching lapwing chicks set out to discover the world their parents keep a watchful eye on them learning by copying the fledgling's Downy feathers don't yet keep them warm so mother still regularly takes them under her wing back to the North Sea on helgoland an unusual summer spectacle awaits The Towering monolith and the neighboring Cliffs are the breeding ground for around 2 000 pairs of gilamox [Music] every centimeter of the sheer Cliff face is occupied with partner a nest being defended by all means necessary [Music] quarrels with the neighbors can last for ages unless of course one or other of the parties happens to lose their balance the guillermods lay their eggs straight onto the rock face thanks to their shape the eggs roll in a circle and only rarely fall off [Applause] besides killer mocks and kitty wakes a few razor bills also nest in the wall [Applause] the birds get their food from the sea guillemot certainly don't give the impression of being particularly secure in the air [Applause] their wings are better designed for flying underwater where they hunt for sand eels foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] chicks are constantly hungry but their parents can only transport one fish at a time back to the Cliff face to stop hungry neighbors stealing the catch the parent birds feed their young furtively under their wings [Applause] after about three weeks the parents end their strenuous feeding efforts and the first chicks start to get nervous they're not yet able to fly so if they want fish they'll have to jump [Music] those jumping in daylight become themselves easy prey [Music] outside the safety of the colony the young guillemot has to fend for itself the older birds don't follow the chick down its fate is as good as seal [Music] [Applause] [Music] it may seem cruel but the seagulls also have young to feed when Twilight Falls the chicks chances of survival rise considerably each decides for itself when it is ready to jump this time the parents follow the chicks down and accompany them out to sea thank you the North Sea Island of amhom Broad dunescapes and few people at 10 square kilometers knee sand is one of the biggest beaches in northern Europe those seeking Tranquility find it here the dunes are up to six kilometers wide [Music] he beaches along the north and Baltic seas are breeding grounds for ringed plovers and little turns these are the smallest turns in Europe the freshly hatched chick is as big as a matchbox [Music] the nests are regularly raided by Foxes the parents defend their young with vehemence successfully this time at least today the little turn chick is being fed fish for the first time the first steps are always the hardest especially when the second adult bird disappears with the food the next attempt as in the rest of the natural world here too the young learn fast [Music] the most Northerly point of the Baltic Sea Island of wound with its landmarks the Kappa Corner lighthouses [Music] foreign [Music] at its nest off the coast the ever hungrier lump sucker blows oxygen-rich water over its eggs [Music] at last the larvae hatch the male has been holding out for a good two months and has successfully defended the spawn against enemies having done its Duty it will this very evening disappear into the depths of the Baltic [Music] the Wharton sea Mudflats make up Germany's largest National Park it's the biggest area of mud flats in the world and created a unique landscape which due to the tides is in a constant state of flux [Music] [Music] in June the harbor seals give birth their numbers are at a record high with more than 20 000 between Denmark and the Netherlands the pups are always born at low tide until the sea Returns the young drink their fill and recover from the exertions of birth just six hours later they have to be able to swim with their parents that's why they're born with open eyes and thick fur they love riding piggyback on their mother's backs it saves energy on the long journey until they reach land again foreign from birth the pup at once feels at home in the cold Waters of the North Sea its insulating layer of fat keeps it nice and warm [Music] where the sea ends the marshlands begin they lie only just above sea level in many places the groundwater is high enough to fill ponds and lakes one species in particular benefits from these Wetlands one that you would usually expect to find in more exotic regions the spoonbill is a summer guest in the North Sea it's feeding time the parents have caught fish frogs and all manner of smaller creatures these beautiful birds haven't been native here for long only in the 1990s did a few Birds move from their winter quarters in Africa to Northern Germany today Germany is home to a few hundred breeding pairs of spoonbill the long crest of hair on the back of the neck is only present at breeding time thanks to the shelter of the national park the population of spoonbills spending the summer by the North Sea is steadily growing of more concern are the montagues harriers in the 1980s numbers fell to below 50 pairs but since farmers and Wildlife organizations started working together the situation has improved somewhat at least now there are about 450 pairs in Germany again but it will take a while until the survival of these rare Raptors is secured [Music] on the Baltic it's September and the summer is coming to an end time for the Red Deer to migrate to their mating grounds [Music] oh no the deer have been assembling in these Meadows for centuries [Music] even the Vikings encountered these Mighty animals near the Baltic Sea [Music] but the deer can still live in unspoiled nature today is thanks to the four pomisha Boden landshaft National Park [Music] thank you [Music] new Travelers are arriving from the north across the Baltic Sea cranes the long flight South is exhausting and this is the perfect place for a stopover [Music] [Applause] these birds of Fortune are heading for fields that have already been harvested where they can regenerate every Autumn around sixty thousand use the coast as a resting place [Music] [Music] once the cranes are full up they fly to the Baltic Sea lagoons their sleeping places are in the shallow bottom between Mainland and Islands a fascinating sight not only for humans [Applause] the Crane's winter quarters lie in France Spain and North Africa [Applause] the bottom near tsingst offers somewhere to sleep for 20 000 cranes [Applause] [Music] the next morning it's time to go with the sunrise the birds set off on the long flight South oh [Music] they won't return until the spring [Music] hard on the heels of the cranes follow the first storms of autumn life on Germany's coasts is getting increasingly harsh [Music] now only seasoned storm-proof Flyers take to the skies [Music] even in this weather seagulls can tack Against the Wind [Music] oh amidst the storms helgoland offers a safe haven [Music] starlings too have taken refuge on the island they'll wait for the worst of the weather to pass before continuing their Journey again and again individual birds test the flock's Readiness to leave [Music] not until the wind dies down or a few Birds able to start a chain reaction that then causes the whole flock to take off on the Helga land Dune gray seals give birth at the most inhospitable time of year [Music] oh the young are born with pure white coats this female is already experiencing labor contractions not long to go now [Music] [Music] the newly born pup has hiccups and a good thing too this will help it clear its Airways and stop amniotic fluid getting into its lungs [Music] mother and baby greet each other affectionately they recognize each other by smell and voice there's hardly any time to recover an obtrusive bull approaches it's the mating season and the males are courting the females the bull could present a danger to the pup [Music] the mother shows no mercy [Music] the danger is over [Music] the male has got the message for the moment at last the pup can suckle thanks to the nutritious milk it puts on up to two kilos a day in just four weeks the pup will have to fend for itself until then it has to grow an awful lot [Music] if the baby is male it could end up weighing 300 kilos like this bull thank you relaxing in an icy sea the frosty January temperatures are no problem for either the mother seal or her baby immediately after the birth the mother watches over and suckles her pup without interruption [Music] just a few days later the mother will only come to suckle every six hours the rest of the time the pup will be on its own on the beach next door trouble is brewing it's mating time and the Bulls are defending their harems fights like these often end in bloody scenes that the summer tourists would find hard to imagine on their bathing beaches [Applause] is in the end the loser withdraws and the proud winner can and claim The Spoils of victory he is now king of this section of beach the Harem is his along with the affection of the females for these two it takes a while to find their happy ending [Music] thus the gray seals on Germany's coasts can look forward to welcoming a new batch of Offspring into the world next year [Music] Germany's mountains from the Alps to saxonian Switzerland and the world famous black forest there are animals here hardly anyone has ever seen this is a journey from mysterious Mountain forests to the remotest Peaks [Music] deep in southern Germany lies the Baptist Garden National Park the country's only nature reserve in the Alps craggy mountainous terrain over an area the size of the city of Seattle in the shadow of Mount wattsman the marmots are emerging from their hibernation the females are only fertile one day a year so right now the male isn't leaving his mate's side for a second young males are marauding trying to take over colonies from more senior marmots fights like these often result in the new rulers killing The Offspring of the old this is just a harmless family spat after the Thor there's food in abundance for the Chamois and it's not unknown for high-spirited kids to lose sight of their mothers in all the excitement [Music] but when hunger calls they all find their way back [Music] the days only gradually grow warmer the Peaks are in clear air the cold ground shrouded in Mist a meteorological phenomenon known as inversion foreign this is the time when the few remaining specimens of a particularly Rare Bird perform duels in the higher parts of the black forest Cape Achilles behavior is ostentatious as this can only be observed in The Mating Season recognizable by the white feather in its fanned out tale a challenger has entered the arena during The Mating Season a spike in the testosterone content of their blood makes Caper Kaley's particularly aggressive the pushy neighbor has incurred the alpha male's displeasure the Challenger wants to know who the real king of the castle is it hesitates each bird is about one meter tall and weighs five kilos the Challenger takes the initiative the aim is to Peck the opponent in the red especially sensitive areas of skin above the eyes the dominant parries the attacks and stands its ground for the Challenger All That Remains is to withdraw thank you the hen can't make up its mind between the two so that's it for today Germany's mountains increase in number as one moves from north to south towards the Alps at last spring arrives [Music] in Eastern Germany lies Saxony in Switzerland which created from a huge Sandstone plate as the Earth moved cracks opened into which water could flow rain and streams washed the stone away leaving behind single Cliffs and Stony Towers [Music] thank you The Cliffs are a paradise for rare Raptors [Music] peregrine falcons thank you [Music] this pair made their nest on a Ledge in the 1970s the birds had died out here and didn't return until in 1989 a program of reintroduction to the wild began the younger brought up almost exclusively on a diet of pigeons and songbirds for six weeks the parent Birds bring food before the young leave the nest at the moment it's still being portioned into bite-sized chunks at a spot specially chosen for the purpose the second adult is preparing a pigeon for its young removing the feathers and innards this way the nest stays clean [Music] as one goes the other comes the never-ending deliveries of food mean the young will grow up strong 250 kilometers to the West along the former inner German border lie the highest mountains in the north of the country the hearts the hearts region takes its name from the old word for Mountain Forest and its upper reaches are dominated by Furs below 700 meters it's mostly Beech trees [Music] the hearts is home not only to Germany's smallest birds like wrens but also the country's biggest cat foreign the last links in the hearts was shot by hunters just under 200 years ago it wasn't until the turn of the Millennium that environmentalists reintroduced the animal to the region as with most cats lynxes are single mothers which keeps them busy all day long when picked up by the Scruff of the neck the Cubs keep still so as not to hurt themselves thereafter it's business as usual the Cubs are just eight weeks old they'll spend a good year with their mother there are a lot of dangers to overcome before they've grown up only one in five Cubs survive [Music] one day Red Deer will be the young lynx's prey this calf is eight weeks old and its only protection is its mother for the Curious young animal everything is strange and new but the slightest noise it's straight back to Mum [Music] in a cliff face a pair of eagle owls have made their nest life for the four week old chicks mainly consists of waiting waiting for the next meal but that won't be until tonight when Dad gets back [Music] on the German French border lies the platinate forest the red Sandstone Cliffs are the remains of a seabed deposited by an ocean more than 250 million years ago foreign it's summer and the colorful Mountain Meadows are buzzing with insect life foreign [Music] foreign [Music] Forest lie The Vineyards of the German wine route in mid-may Sandy escarpments lure Sun Seekers returning from their winter quarters in Africa bee eaters the male is digging out a nesting hole in the soft sand his industry is designed to impress a female once regarded as extinct in Germany over the last 30 years bee eaters have returned to warmer regions of the country the shooter has to capture Bridal gift for his mate ideally an insect proudly he flies a lap of Honor with his catch whether it pleases his beloved remains to be seen expertly he removes the bee sting homemade comes from the heart [Music] rejected maybe the engagement gift was too prickly after all time for a second attempt a replacement gift is quickly found the sting-free hoverfly accepted the male has grasped what the female wants foreign [Music] gifts the marriage can at last be consummated [Music] gradually day turns to evening [Music] [Music] in The Cliff face the owlets are still waiting to be fed The Offspring are already so big and hungry that the parents now have to go on an extra hunt at Twilight the largest owl in the world sets out on its next foray the owl's ears hear not only from which direction a noise comes but also the exact distance the Gathering Darkness brings more and more animals out of hiding a bank vole is looking for food [Music] just missed the vole is in luck the outlets will have to be patient until one of their parents returns with something to eat [Music] Europe's highest mountains the Alps were created 135 million years ago Mighty tectonic forces turned a primeval ocean floor into a mountain range 100 kilometers wide [Music] today beneath the Hooves of Ibex's lie petrified sea creatures [Music] at the beginning of July the baby marmots leave the den for the first time as yet they have no idea of the dangers that await them with Offspring to feed the golden eagle is always on the lookout for prey at once warning cries go up from members of the Marmot Clan but how much attention they attract depends on Clan hierarchy thank you this time the chain of alarm worked [Music] back in the palatinum forest [Music] the young eagle owls have left the protection of their niche in the cliff and are exploring their surroundings [Music] not yet fully able to fly they haven't quite reached fledgling's status the peregrine falcons too have left the nest the young birds will stay in their parents territory for another two months then look for their own [Music] hard to believe that these birds begging for food will one day be the fastest hunters in the skies peregrines achieve speeds of over 200 kilometers an hour when diving for the kill at some point the parents will no longer return to feed that is the moment when the young birds have to start hunting for themselves [Music] Saxony in Switzerland is part of the Elba Sandstone mountains a range extending as far as the Czech Republic in summer the plateaus are hot and dry and support almost no vegetation crumbling Sandstone collects on Cliff Ledges creating miniature dunes and deserts [Music] ants have trouble dealing with the shifting surface it's for ant lions these rapacious insect larvae set funnel-like traps for their prey anything falling into the funnel has almost no hope of getting out again [Music] this ant is fighting for its life the ant lion leaves nothing to chance and scatters sand onto its prey [Music] [Music] the victim is faced with an avalanche of scree foreign [Music] extreme slow motion is needed to see how the hunter shakes the ant presumably to pump more poison into its hapless prey [Music] finally the ant lion drags the ant down Into the Depths to suck it dry [Music] [Music] in the palatinate forest old castles sit Atop The Hills as here at trifas on the 500 meter high Sun Mountain oh [Music] not much remains of Castle Dragon Cliff according to The Saga of the nebulongan this was where ziegfried became a dragon slayer [Music] thank you [Music] in summer young bee eaters leave the nest untiringly the adult birds call to their offspring to lure them out of the nesting holes the baby of the family doesn't seem to have the necessary confidence yet and no amount of tempting with a nice fat hoverfly will help the parents relent and provide one final meal on wings about one-fifth of breeding pears get help in bringing up their offspring honestly this assistance comes from Children of earlier Broods which help build Nest holes and feed the Young this strategy means that twice the number of fledglings are able to leave the nest than wood without help there are a hundred breeding pairs of bee eaters on the wine route if they continue to breed successfully this figure could rise [Music] [Music] oh [Music] in the forests of the hearts temperatures are falling please the Hinds and their calves seek the protection of the herd safety in numbers the lynx is not hunting the deer seem to sense this and carry on grazing in peace the Predator wouldn't otherwise move so openly through the countryside the lynx caught one of the Hinds the previous night at this time of year it needs a lot of food for its Cubs which are now fairly big this spot is probably too exposed for the links it needs all its strength to drag off the dead prey which weighs a good 40 kilos more than the lynx itself thank you for the time being the Cubs remain Undercover lynxes usually make do with smaller roe deer this spot seems perfect the female has three Cubs to provide for right now catching prey as large as this is excellent timing the Cubs eat as much as they can a hind like this will keep them going for three days the mother links finds a vantage point from which to watch over the feeding place the female with the blue earmark was introduced into the wild in 2002. that she then went on to have young is a measure of the success of her integration [Music] the Black Forest [Music] its highest mountain is the feldberg but almost 1500 meters the most spectacular view can be enjoyed from the Belgian with its bald Summit in the owls nest in The Cliff face all is quiet the chicks are almost fully grown they now go hunting by themselves [Music] on sunny days in saxonian Switzerland the warmth even penetrates Into The Ravines foreign [Music] s are most active on Summer Nights the animals are only awake six months of the year barely enough time to put on the fat they need for the other six months of hibernation young dormites are very nervous the nest in the cliff Niche is their Refuge but hunger keeps tempting them out unstintingly they search cracks and crevices for something to eat ripe raspberries are a delicacy which the mother Mouse would rather keep for herself berries alone however are insufficient to build up the necessary Reserves proteins are vital slugs protect themselves against attack with lots of slime which is why most animals leave the mollusks well alone dormice however roll slugs expertly back and forth in their pores to remove most of the slime what's left is a healthy portion of protein the meal can then be enjoyed in the shelter of the cliff [Music] gradually Autumn arrives in saxonian Switzerland around the basti rock formation the leaves are changing color in the Middle Ages The Towering rocks were part of the defenses of noise [Music] on the wooded Crags of the palatinate forest it's mating time for the mooflans ancient ancestors of our modern sheep the ram is trying to sniff out a sexually mature you oh this is the only time that the Rams join the herds of views and try to keep Rivals at Bay once they find are you prepared to mate they just won't give up if the conception was successful the you will give birth next march foreign [Music] a good 400 kilometers to the north lie the Visa Uplands [Music] here too it's mating season the Red Deer have gathered for the rut for Heinz ghastly have time to graze the alpha stag is constantly on the Move bringing its Harem together always mindful of the danger of losing its Hinds to a rival all it manages to do here however is Drive the hind into the arms of a young stag a mistake that must be corrected at once [Music] in a nearby Hollow a stag is taking a mud bath the sticky mixture of mud and fur is Perfect protection against ticks lice mosquitoes and other pests [Music] [Music] Germany's highest mountains are in the Alps the tukspitzer is almost 3 000 meters high and the tree line in the Berkus Garden National Park is at a height of 1800 meters above that is Ibex territory the animals are regarded as symbols of the Baptist Gardener Alps in contrast to other Alpine regions however their presence here is very recent [Music] wasn't until the 20th century that the wild goats were established here since then the animals have multiplied successfully in the remoter parts of the park it won't be long now before the first snowfall of winter High time for the marmots to finish building their nests [Music] the young are facing their first hibernation [Music] late autumn in Germany's Highlands oh [Music] in the hearts mating season for the Red Deer is coming to an end [Music] for weeks the mighty animals have been giving it their all [Applause] now they're exhausted [Music] foreign [Music] The Roaring that Echoes through the forest is becoming rarer [Music] the season has cost the biggest Stags most of their Reserves there's not much time left for them to put on the fat they need for the winter this elderly stag went down fighting the hole was probably caused by a rival's antlers it isn't long before the body is discovered Ravens are extremely cautious they'll wait for days to see if a cadaver presents any kind of danger before they dare to approach it if the coast is clear they'll then appear in numbers in a few days all remains of the Stag will be bones dravens feeding on a cadaver is a rare sight and one only likely to be seen in a national park where trophy hunting is forbidden only here can older animals die a natural death at some point The View that there's enough to eat for everybody prevails and the Raven Clan calms down the slopes are now increasingly obscured by mist [Music] the sun isn't strong enough to get the damp air to rise and the first Frost forms the Frost has no effect on the silver Furs which have their own anti-freeze in the needles their leathery wax covered skin prevents them drying out fur needles can stand the cold up to -28 degrees Celsius [Music] fur seeds need weeks of cold weather to be able to germinate properly the following spring in the Alps the first snow fell as early as September now the Peaks are covered in a thick carpet of white herbivores like the Chamois have a hard time finding food [Music] is the hungry animals even scratch like and off stones with every spur being minutely examined [Music] in the Black Forest too enter has taken hold the summit of Mount candle 1200 meters high further south Mount Belgian is living up to its nickname of the Shiner in the background are the Alps [Music] the Red Deer have withdrawn to lower lying territory finding food now takes a lot of time so they're up very early to save energy they reuse tracks in the snow fur needles alone won't suffice to get through the winter the animals need peace and quiet in their difficult search for food for this reason in certain regions like the hearts they're not hunted in winter some Bach Amiga meal animals without enough reserves will have a tough time in the cold season not being limited to a vegetarian diet has its advantages the young Lynx is now almost as big as its parent ah however only one of the three Cubs born to the mother animal with the blue earmark has survived it appears well fed and has a chance of surviving the winter in their nest the dormites have their own Survival strategy five of them have formed a community for the hibernation period please the little rodents heartbeat and body temperature are reduced to the minimum necessary [Music] from time to time one awakes within an hour its pulse Rises to over 200 beats per minute why this happens is a mystery the door Mouse checks its surroundings and makes itself comfortable again then its body switches back to economy mode [Music] and returns to a deep hibernatory sleep from which it won't emerge for another six months [Music] in the hearts a lynx has made a kill and is just returning to the snow-covered cadaver to eat in peace for the Caper Kaylee too it's time to eat lynxes don't like being watched when feeding in the end Hunger wins out after all for the links the prey is DoD go Caper Kaylee is a cold weather and snow Specialists a pound of fur needles a day is all they need [Music] apart from a few bizarre snowmen the mountains are deserted [Music] [Music] winter now also Reigns in Saxony in Switzerland these Mighty Cliffs once supplied the raw material for the frauden the swinger Palace and many other magnificent buildings in Dresden [Music] with the spring the sun regains strength [Music] winter aconites and snowdrops start to peek through the melting icy carpet [Music] the moisture in The Ravines evaporates [Music] with mating cries and fluttering jumps the Caper Kaylee once again starts to woo the females the cop loves the grand entrance and thus chooses to perform in the pristine whiteness of the snowy field only the highest ranking bird is allowed to pleasure the females and even then it still has to prove itself with a bit of luck these two will have Offspring which would be good for the future of this threatened species [Music] the eagle owls are one step ahead the female is already brooding and won't leave the nest for another month [Music] in the meantime its mate will keep it supplied with food on velvet pores the lynx is once again roaming its Mountain territory the return of these beautiful creatures after an absence of 130 years is a great benefit [Music] the animals in the highlands are as varied as the Landscapes they live in nature reserves secure their protection and in turn their habitat here in the mountains of Germany [Music] the forests of Germany are steeped in myth and Legend the Sea of trees is a refuge for rare animals jousting for the favor of females roaming their territories and fighting for survival this is their story [Music] good [Music] around one-third of Germany is covered in Forest making it one of the most heavily wooded countries in the European Union [Music] in the world famous black forest spring has teased the shoots from The Beech trees this is the largest area of forest in the country one particularly rare species only returned here a few years ago the wildcat it had been more than 90 years since the last sighting of a wild cat in the Black Forest now in the north of the region they've bred and are bringing up Offspring once more [Music] young wild cats are hard to distinguish from domestic cats when they grow older their tails take on the typical bushy form and black rings [Music] as with all caps climbing up is no problem with curved claws getting down there's more of a challenge thank you these kittens can enjoy their mother's care for a few more weeks not long now and they'll have to look for their own territory in the Sandstone Cliffs of the region known as Saxony in Switzerland the trees use every plateau and crevice to spread out [Music] the rocks are remote and inaccessible ideal conditions for black stalks [Music] these two have been returning to this spot for years to breed and bring up their young by now their nest resembles a fortress one or other parent stands guard over the nest for more than a month before the younger left alone for the first time plenty of opportunity to spoil the kids in contrast to their white cousins black storks only rarely clatter [Applause] just at the shift change over rain sets in foreign [Music] [Music] the water could be dangerous for the young stalks which have not yet grown their water repellent plumage and could catch cold [Music] it's very practical having parents prepared to act as your own personal umbrella [Music] oh what's bad for baby birds is good for the plants [Music] [Music] fir trees need at least 600 millimeters of precipitation a year ideally even more and whether like this the Vixen stays in the den with her Cubs the little ones are just three weeks old and still haven't seen the outside world their mother provides for all their needs the Cubs aren't yet on solids to cycle the Vixen frequently stands up to make sure all her babies get a fair chance at a teat oh [Music] with a family this hungry the Vixen has to go hunting fairly often to keep her own strength up spring has now reached the upper levels of the black forest [Music] in the lower regions the cherry trees are already in flour each one bearing up to a million blossoms [Music] only when the blossoms have successfully been pollinated by bees will the cherries grow that end up in the famous local specialty Black Forest gateau in the orchard danger lurks the Vixen has got uncomfortably close to a rhodia form separated from the others its mother is alarmed the Vixen decides it's more sensible to move on and the Fawn has had its first taste of life's dangers there are about 2 million Road here in Germany and around half that number are shot every year by hunters the deer multiplies so successfully however that such statistics have no real effect on the overall population [Music] [Applause] [Music] while the Vixen is off Hunting the Cubs have plenty of time to play [Music] every day there's something new to discover finding a mouse for example arouses the hunting instinct [Music] the pursuit doesn't go unnoticed but as long as the fox is occupied the squirrel can go about its business time to go a horde of Ruffians like this isn't the nicest company they only start behaving again when mum returns the Cub bakes for food but the Vixen hasn't brought anything with her she's still feeding her Cubs almost exclusively on milk not all her teeth yield the same quantity but fighting for a drink is good practice for the Rough and Tumble of later life the young are still completely dependent on their mother male foxes don't usually get involved in bringing up their offspring Germany has a total of 11 million hectares of forest large areas like the hearts National Park are protected this has allowed one very special but rarely seen big cat to be reintroduced to the wild even in densely populated Germany [Music] sounds like the call of a black woodpecker can be heard by a lynx over a kilometer away this makes it fairly easy for the cats to avoid contact with humans prey on the other hand has an almost magnetic effect a courting Quail for example the bird is oblivious to the danger only having eyes for the head its cause have attracted both are preoccupied with their mating ritual pairs of quails often mate more than 10 times a day a great opportunity for the links no luck this time the big cat will have to find some other prey [Music] the hearts National Park was created across the former inner German border after the reunification of Germany in 1989. [Music] there are plenty of trees here for black woodpeckers to install their nurseries in [Music] the chicks are already half grown soon the parents won't be able to satisfy their offspring's hunger by themselves but until then The Adolescents will have it nice and easy the biggest mammal in the forests of Germany is the Red Deer stag or at least so long as brown bears and Elks remain only occasional visitors bags weigh in at up to 250 kilos in forest animals running is infectious if one runs the rest will follow be it Red Deer or wild boar there might be an enemy lurking in the undergrowth after a while the boars have calmed down again the sows live together with their piglets in groups called Sounders males are only tolerated until they're sexually mature in the summer heat cooling mud baths are a way of getting rid of bugs and parasites after the boar has had a good wallow the mud dries and falls off taking ticks mites and lice with it it's also good protection against mosquitoes and horseflies Bulls removed the stubbornness pests by rubbing themselves up against trees [Music] there are now over a million wild boar in Germany [Music] in the region close to the Czech German border the forest has penetrated deep ravines and the Sandstone is covered with yellow lichen oh yeah in a cliff Niche cold tits are bringing up their chicks the adult wants to feed them some caterpillars but something seems to be bothering it at first it flies off again without delivering its eagerly awaited load the reason a Pygmy Owl nesting in the immediate vicinity the tits would be a welcome Feast for the Raptor if only its front door weren't so small tits avoid pygmy owls at all costs as they also hunt in the daytime [Music] summer in the hills of Saxony in Switzerland the difference in temperature between Ravines and plateaus has now risen to 10 degrees Celsius up top it's boiling hot while deep down it's cool the black storks knew what they were doing when they chose to nest in the shade of a stone Pine the fledglings are now two months old and almost ready to leave the nest they're already trying their wings out in four weeks time they have to be prepared to take on the long flight South with their parents they need to weigh three kilos by then as the journey requires a great deal of energy by now the stalks have had enough to eat and it's time for some preening the birds are most particular about tidiness and personal appearance the siblings demonstrate a phenomenon that is hitherto scarcely been studied social or aloe preening Birds only allow good friends or Partners to pluck feathers this serves a hygienic purpose but also cements bonds between the animals in a similar way to Apes grooming each other foreign the feather is proving obstinate but the stalk cannot help itself Instinct forces it to continue [Music] thank you this may take a while [Music] the German forest an expression first used by The Romantics at the beginning of the 19th century to describe a Place full of symbolism and one tree was of particular interest the German Oak known in Britain as the English Oak [Music] the nine centimeter long stag beetle 2 has a special relationship with this tree taking as it does most of its nutrition from the sap [Music] the Stag beetles antlers are in fact huge Jaws at a part of the tree where sap is secreted through the bark the beetle has discovered a female a rather non-descript appearance compared to the Magnificent male another male has been attracted to the same spot making a duel inevitable thank you [Music] the Titanic struggle is over To the victor the spoils [Music] on the French border lies the palatinate forest red mottled Sandstone marks the remains of a seabed deposited by an ocean more than 250 million years ago [Music] after the last ice age a typically European Forest formed over thousands of years from Tundra [Music] foxes are also native to the platinate the vixen's booty Of Mice From The Hunt is awaited with enthusiasm [Music] she brings up the prey for her Cubs sharing is not a characteristic valued by Foxes in contrast to wolves they eat their prey alone and fight over every scrap their loners not pack animals not every Cub gets its fair share but it's no use whining to mum all the provisions have already been shared out until the next feed playing with sticks will have to do as a substitute [Music] [Music] further south at the Bavarian Forest the silver furs are beginning to Blossom these trees don't start to bloom until they're over 50 years old and then only every three to five years the wind spreads the pollen from the male flowers and pollinates the female both grow on the same tree the female blooms turn into cones [Music] the summer meanwhile is providing plenty of activity on the ground wood ants are swarming out into the trees to collect honeydew from their aphids thank you [Music] the ants use their feelers to animate the aphids to secrete their excrement [Music] the ants then suck up the sticky honeydew and take it back to the nest providing the Woodpecker doesn't get them first [Music] in a dead beech tree its chicks are waiting to be fed their hunger can hardly be sated okay it's a good job the Ant Hill is so close by as long as it's in the shade the ants are sluggish and easy prey for the woodpecker food in abundance for the Blackbird too but the Woodpecker Isn't So keen on competition the warmth of the sun arouses the ants from their torpa and they rush to defend themselves intruders are sprayed with searing formic acid intolerable for the Woodpecker but a joy for the Jay it doesn't even bother to turn up until the ants get really aggressive the bird promptly takes a formic acid shower to free its plumage as pests and parasites at some point though even the J is had enough the German forest is also home to Sprites red squirrels always on the hunt for berries mushrooms and nuts [Music] their sharp front teeth are perfect nutcrackers red squirrels come in all shades from Orange to brownish black the colors are genetic variations and the Animals shed their coats twice a year this one is still in its summer look squirrels are usually loners and drive Rivals out of their territory it might be a better idea to steer clear of trouble there's plenty more food up in the Treetops fur cones grow on the branch their seldom found on the ground as they usually fall apart in situ at 45 meters high the most famous tree in Germany must be grandfather fur in the Black Forest a king among trees [Music] Banks of mist in the early morning are evidence of the approach of autumn [Music] in the forests of the Visa Uplands the Red Deer are getting ready to mate [Music] the Hinds now scarcely have time to graze the dominant stag tirelessly rounds up his Harem it has no desire to lose even a single Hind to a rival usually roaring is enough to get the respect it seeks um the Stag keeps checking to see if the Hinds are ready to mate but the time isn't right yet roaring Rivals are also making the alpha stag nervous [Music] then a worthy Challenger appears [Music] a short test of strength is sufficient the alpha stag can keep its harem for the moment [Music] before the first night frosts comma peacock and red Admiral butterflies take the opportunity to fill up with nectar the signs of autumn are everywhere fungi in all shapes and colors this is the time when they expand their fruiting bodies in order to multiply [Music] the squirrel is collecting and hiding Provisions for the winter its pointed snout serves as a drill bit to make the holes it hides the nuts in they certainly won't be discovered by other animals and maybe not even by the squirrel itself [Music] the darker squirrel is harvesting cones [Music] foreign seldom reached the ground by natural means but if there's a squirrel involved [Music] everything's liable to get turned on its head the only thing it has to worry about now is the Nimble claws of its lighter colored colleague fortunately not all squirrels are fans of the resinous fruit takes a bit of practice to get at the seeds first the scales have to be removed [Music] another Forest to Anna is also hungry for Sparrow Hawks squirrels represent a tasty meal [Music] the birds are experts at Woodland obstacle courses [Music] this time however all its agility is in vain [Music] the days are getting shorter and the deciduous trees are transporting all valuable materials from their leaves into their trunks including the chlorophyll that makes them green what remains is the carotene that gives the autumn leaves their familiar color foreign Autumn the platinate forest offers an abundance of food for wild boar despite being enthusiastically hunted their numbers show a strong increase in the extensive Woods of sweet Chestnut the fruits are now ripe the local Specialties are a big draw for the forest dwellers from the Middle Ages right through to the 19th century sweet chestnuts were the main source of food for the rural poor in the mountainous regions of southern Europe well wild boar two are nuts about the prickly Delicacies rolling them around until the fruit falls out of the shell foreign chestnuts make it easy for the boar to cover their daily requirements of up to four kilos of food a day in the sour Sounder the not yet sexually mature boars are measuring their strength at only nine months they already weigh an impressive 50 kilos um there's trouble brewing in the neighborhood the Gladiator enters the mating Arena where every year the fallow deer gather each stag has a territory to defend here sharpening their weapons is designed to impress the females the Heinz crowd around the Stag they think is the strongest the Stag in turn checks to see if the Hinds are ready to mate by allowing their scent to pass through a special organ in the roof of its mouth a process known as fleaming the females chewing motion signify that it is not yet ready um but the alpha stag isn't prepared to give up so easily in contrast to Red Deer Stags it doesn't round up a hurry mode if a female leaves its territory within the mating Arena it has lost that female for good this is why it has to demonstrate its strength to both Heinz and rivals graphically if necessary foreign [Music] the first thing the Victor needs is a cooling bath courtship is an exhausting process with Stags losing up to 20 percent of their weight [Music] um foreign [Music] Frost and the first snowflakes fall Before Christmas [Music] in the higher regions like the hearts mountains it's now hard for the Wildlife to find food [Music] there's a lot of snow this year food will be scarce everywhere in Buzzard circles prey is automatically a source of envy the birds spread their wings in an effort to cow their rivals these two however are a match for each other and when two quarrel it's often the third that benefits in this case it's wild boar that settled the fight the omnivores possess one enormous Advantage their sensitive snouts which can smell out food under 30 centimeters of snow mating season and while the young ones practice for the adult boars things are getting serious for the winner a romantic Rendezvous awaits and he prepares himself accordingly putting on his best scent [Music] the object of his affection seems anything but disinclined [Music] deep in the south of the country too in Germany's oldest National Park in the Bavarian Forest Winter now rains in the snow the road ears camouflage colors are useless and the animals have attracted the attention of a predator a lynx the Red Deer are aware of the danger the roads seem oblivious not being great sprinters links is hunt by ambushing their prey a tree offers ideal cover the Red Deer the situation is getting too risky and they withdraw to safety which in turn sets off the rose [Music] the Ambush was successful for 150 years lynxes were extinct in the Bavarian Forest since the 1980s a project to reintroduce them to the wild in the neighboring Czech Republic has resulted in the animals returning to Bavaria the National Park is now home to 15 links [Music] about 300 kilometers to the Northeast Saxony in Switzerland the region gained its title over 200 years ago when two Swiss artists christened it thus on their postcards home [Music] an ant hill is a reliable source of food even in winter the male woodpecker has opened it up to look for larvae the female meanwhile is seeking insects on a spruce tree the tree is dead thanks to the bark beetles nutritious nuggets of protein now spending the winter with their laughy under the buck others seek to profit from the woodpecker's hard work a tree creeper is hoping there may be something in it for him at almost 50 centimeters long the Woodpecker is nearly five times as big as the Songbird which doesn't have the strength to peel the bark by itself it has to take the opportunities life offers even if it means getting within pecking range of that nasty looking beak the Woodpecker however obviously doesn't see the tree creeper as competition and tolerates the smaller bird [Music] [Music] in the Black Forest the hungry Wildcat leaves its den what's up [Music] mice are hard to find under the blanket of snow so the cat has to look for alternative prey foreign a bird would make a good substitute but the bullfinch is tipped off by a blackbird's warning cry a missed opportunity the cat has to keep looking [Music] in February the days are getting longer and the Sun is slowly gaining in strength [Music] the snow begins to thaw [Music] wild boar are among the first animals in the year to have offspring their piglets are playful and insatiable the sow and her little ones have left the pack and will stay separated until the piglets are old enough to follow the Sounder the mortality rate among piglets is high with only one in ten reaching the age of four in particular the cold and wet are hard to survive being born early in the year does have its advantages the newborn females will be sexually mature and able to mate before the next winter [Music] in the hearts mountains the last snow dissipates in the form of mist turning into steam without melting first this phenomenon is called sublimation and occurs only under certain meteorological conditions thank you the midday Sun finally puts an end to the spectacle and dissolves the Mist [Music] black stalks have arrived at their regular nesting place in the Spree forest and are now courting and looking for material for their nests [Music] thank you while for white stalks clattering is part of the mating ritual black stalks tend to limit themselves to high-pitched whistles the male does all he can to convince his partner of his amorousness in the end she cannot resist such an abundance of affection with luck the stalks will bring up their young here which would be a welcome Rarity has at the moment only three pairs breed in the area [Music] in the Black Forest the wild cat has also had Offspring this year the return of the big cats to German forests is a success story but one which without reintroduction projects and strict protection wouldn't have happened today like many other animals wild cats once again have a home in the forests of Germany water brings life to deep ravines and lonely forests [Music] home and hunting ground for Birds fish and mammals with them we dive into a world of many rare creatures all living in the wildest parts of Germany [Music] almost all rivers begin as streams regardless of whether they have a source or a fed by melt water from the mountains in the region known as Saxony in Switzerland streams provide good hunting grounds for otters wow [Music] where larger animals eat there are often leftovers for smaller ones the robin learned this trick from his mum in Frosty periods otters can spend days at a time in their Subterranean dens the animals don't hibernate and need to go hunting regularly nearby white-throated Dippers are also Gathering provisions they dig up caddisfly larvae from the riverbed and shake them out of their protective casings when an otter leaves its den to go hunting it cleans its fur very thoroughly the male Dipper is up in arms an interloper has dared to invade its territory and that means war or at least a fight the is defending both its hunting grounds and its mate and drives the Rival away [Music] the water flows fast enough it doesn't freeze and only calms down when it reaches a lake where it forms a thick layer of ice wow weaker animals suffer the most in the harsh conditions of winter this wild boar is sick its chances of survival aren't good but it's not prepared to give up easily respect for such willpower this female frog and her bow are on the Run Hot Pursuit across the ice [Music] the pair are trying to reach open water before the Rival catches up the male riding piggyback wants to be the only one to fertilize the eggs when his partner spawns it turns out that our hero won't be quite so alone with his Conquest after all the female's Offspring will have several fathers the male in turn has the chance to fertilize the spawn of more than one female thus guaranteeing genetic variety [Music] [Applause] Hoopa swans from Siberia and Scandinavia like to spend the winter in Germany there are now more than 20 pairs that come here to breed the reasons seem to be their Rising numbers and the increase in rapeseed cultivation [Music] in the states of Brandenburg and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania the snow lasts until February as soon as it gets a little warmer however bird calls signal the end of winter cranes fly in from the south [Applause] around 150 000 of the birds use Germany as a stopover on the flight North to their breeding grounds in Scandinavia [Music] [Applause] the farmers delay plowing in the fields until the Birds bat according to Legend bring luck have passed through these areas are in turn strewn with feed by biologists to stop the birds eating fresh seeds shown elsewhere [Applause] it's The Mating Season with their dance the males drive off Rivals and try and impress the females [Applause] among the few enemies cranes or at least young cranes have araptas like the white-tailed eagle its very presence ensures a degree of nervousness during the thaw the road ears resting places are often underwater here flight costs valuable energy that they need to survive every jump uses up far more strength than on land [Music] foreign [Music] it takes a while to reach the safety of the bank [Music] the deer has to summon up all its strength one more time [Music] [Music] then at last It's Made It the eagle is on its way home its Eerie is three meters high weighs a good ton and can only be supported by a strong trees like oak or Beach The Nest gets bigger from year to year the power have been working on it for a decade once their home is furnished the Eagles get into the mating spirit [Music] a hundred years ago these birds were almost extinct now there are about 500 breeding pairs in Germany again foreign the great bastards are a bigger course for concern weighing in at 20 kilos these relatives of the crane are among the heaviest Birds able to fly on Earth not exactly easy prey for a fox there are only about 120 of the birds left in Germany during the mating ritual the male presents its white feathers and inflates its throat sack which acts as a kind of resonance chamber for its deep voice [Music] it's by no means certain whether the species will survive in Germany a protection program has at least managed to double the population [Music] when and among the bastards two hairs stop their courtship ritual then spring can't be far off [Music] for many years it was assumed that when hairs boxed it was two bucks competing for the favors of a doe in fact it's foreplay between a buck and a doe [Music] hairs alone us and don't usually let others near them boxing helps them get rid of this fear of contact Familia can take hours mating on the other hand is a matter of seconds do made up to 20 times in a single day [Music] foreign the northeast of Germany has many traces of the last ice age glacier's ground Hollows into the Earth that later filled with water Paradise for white-tailed Eagles [Music] around Easter after a good five weeks brooding the Eagles Offspring arrive [Music] from now on the parents will be doing a lot more hunting eaglets can't eat by themselves and have to be fed several times a day the parents take it in turn the next delivery is already waiting white-tailed Eagles usually stay together all their lives and can live for more than 30 years [Music] foreign temperatures bring out snow drops crocuses and wood and enemies [Music] [Music] a few cranes have stayed on in Northern Germany and will breed here while one looks for food the other guards the nest these shy Birds brewed in wet alderwoods the nest on the ground is only safe from enemies like for example foxes if the water level is high enough once the eggs are laid the partners will take it in turn to brood for about a month Germany's rivers and lakes cover a surface area of around eight and a half thousand square kilometers that's just 2.5 percent of the whole country a relatively small habitat for a large number of species [Music] one particularly colorful bird builds its nest on embankments foreign the male is catching fish for its young six hungry chicks are waiting the siblings know that each will be fed in turn a tick bit this big is obviously no easy matter the parent seems to want to make sure that its Offspring can deal with it after each visit to the nesting hole the bird cleans its plumage every day unimaginable quantities of water flow through Germany's rivers and streams the water of the river Danube alone would be enough to fill Lake constants within a year [Music] water flowing into narrow valleys offers perfect living conditions for Fire Salamanders once humans thought that because the amphibians crawl out of the fire of freshly cut Brushwood they actually lived in the flames [Music] salamanders love earthworms and with the right nutrition they can live for more than 20 years [Music] the amphibians thrive in wet surroundings but only need a body of water to spawn in finding the right trees is much more important as they live in the undergrowth of deciduous forests [Music] there are more than 800 rivers in Germany longer than 10 kilometers that transport their vital contents into all corners of the country [Music] otters also benefit from the abundance of water these water Martins are loners the females will only tolerate males in their vicinity when they want to mate the animals have no fixed mating season two to three months after conception the females give birth young authors first have to learn to swim ultimately they will like their parents be able to stay underwater for up to eight minutes at a time [Music] [Music] thank you [Music] the first Warm Spring nights bring out the tones the woods are full of males wanting to mate each looking for a female and prepared to put body and soul into the exercise the female's salamanders are also out and about after mating around a year ago they're now looking to give birth to their young in water the biggest obstacle are the sex crazed toads they grab anything that moves regardless of whether there's a chance of procreation a few meters away the female salamander is having better luck its lower body is already in the water and it's about to give birth a rarely filmed event salamanders don't spawn they bear living young whose egg membranes burst at the moment of birth the larvae have Bunches of gills on their heads to allow them to breathe in water without surfacing the female leaves the stream having brought six young into the world over the next few nights it'll give birth to a further 70 larvae [Music] in the Black Forest rain often turns small streams into waterfalls the rocky ground can't absorb the water [Music] torrents collect in narrow ravines [Music] this is the home of the spotted Nutcracker besides insects nutcrackers love to feed on Swiss Stone pine nuts foreign offers ideal conditions for an underwater Hunter the white-throated dippers have new Offspring and are tirelessly bringing food to their nest in the embankment these birds specialize in hunting on site they take precise aim before they go for the kill they catch insects that no other Songbird is interested in [Music] in the far Northeast of Germany the countryside is often left to its own devices [Music] beavers have made their home in the former tributaries of the river Harbor besides humans these large rodents are the only mammals that create their habitats themselves if the water level is too low they build a dam to control it better beavers fell trees to get at Fresh Food in the lodge as a beaver's home is called the female has had a litter and the family is gathering food the young of previous years helped to transport the branches home in the middle of the 19th century beavers were almost extinct their fur was very popular and Christians counted them amongst the fish they were allowed to eat during fasting periods the Beavers Lodge here four generations lived together Under One Roof beavers have two to three Offspring a year the young stay with their parents for about three years along with their siblings from the previous two years the different Generations form an extended family when the young do eventually leave they'll stay close by usually they build a new Lodge a few meters away from the family home in the harbor Valley there's enough room for everyone further east 2 new offspring are being celebrated in the Alder Woods foreign s are watching over their only chick at this age they are still the target of many enemies foxes raccoons crows and wild boars the parents coax their young with gentle growling noises but like so many children this chick has its own way of doing things not for long however the little crane soon lose his heart but the parents aren't far away and the chick is soon back in safety [Music] 300 kilometers to the West on a tributary of the river Visa a kingfisher is brooding [Music] thank you it's caught a perch and wants to use it to coax its last chick out of the nest one more time the father bird crawls into the hole [Applause] but the chick obstinately refuses to leave outside the mother bird is calling its chirping sends the message that there's good stuff to eat out here this has the desired effect for the first time in its life the chick takes to the air thanks to the cause of its mother its parents will supply it with fish for another few days then it will have to fend for itself one of Germany's biggest rivers rises in the Czech Republic the Elba it crosses the border into saxonian Switzerland the river is fed by many Mountain Streams which over thousands of years have made their way through the sandstone thank you about a month ago the white-throated Dipper began to brood in this ravine in the meantime the chicks have left the nest it'll be another two weeks until they're completely independent the parent birds are still feeding young Dippers can swim and dive long before they can fly for now they're still enjoying full board and lodging at home to be able to see as well underwater is above it Dippers are just their eyes and can see five times better than humans or other songbirds salamander larvae are prey for the birds together they compete for amphipods and caddisfly larvae foreign it's rare that a victim has the chance to defend itself after three months the young salamanders lose their gills from now on they breathe mainly via their skin and live on land summer has arrived and in the fields a group of young hairs are waiting for their mother to return [Music] she doesn't turn up until after Nightfall during the day it would be too dangerous for the young hares to leave their hiding place hairs don't make nests or dens but press themselves into shallow Hollows called forms how mother and young find each other in the dark is still a matter of speculation the mother only visits her Offspring Once a Night her milk is so nutritious that one minute suckling lasts a young hair the whole day this mother has five young to take care of which is unusual such a large group of suckling babies have never been filmed before a few minutes later the meeting is over the young hares split up and each returns to its hiding place this increases the chances of not all of them being discovered by enemies in the East German order Valley the hunters of the night are circling a downed moth attracts the attention of a dorbenton's bat 15 different kinds of bat hunt in this region foreign [Music] early in the morning black turns go fishing around 150 pairs live on the odor [Music] these rare birds brewed on water lily leaves and artificial nesting AIDS put out by humans [Music] good 200 kilometers to the West in the state of Brandenburg a beaver is checking his territory on the Harvard River foreign the ponds and lakes here are home to an animal that was once thought extinct in Germany at the beginning of the 21st century it was rediscovered the pond turtle because Turtles were also allowed to be eaten during fasting periods they were almost wiped out grass snakes share the same habitat as pond turtles and go hunting in the water but if a turtle shows up the snake will choose to withdraw pond turtles can be very aggressive and have a ferocious bite they feed on snails slugs crabs and dead fish there are only 70 specimens in the wild in Germany and all of them live in Brandenburg the grass snake is out hunting and has discovered a frog this time the Frog was faster but the snake doesn't give up it smells with its tongue and follows its praised trail of scent the region is full of hundreds of lakes and ponds it's hard for the turtles to find one with a member of the same species living in it so it's very rare to witness a spectacle in Brandenburg that one would otherwise see on a Caribbean Beach the hatching of the pond turtles [Music] about four months ago a female laid her eggs Here and Now The Offspring are making their way to the surface as soon as the little ones have fought their way free they head straight for the water no easy Journey whereas sea turtles lay hundreds of eggs their Pond cousins only manage about 15. [Music] if Foxes or crows discover the babies a whole Year's brood can be gone in one go today they're in luck and reach the safety of the former tributary of the river hovel without difficulty [Music] while pond turtles suffered at the hands of humans other organisms benefited from their influence [Music] thanks to agriculture corn flowers and poppies have been able to spread all over the world humans transported them with their seeds wherever they went [Music] foreign on hot summer days a lot of water evaporates if it rises to join cold or air then cumulus clouds form and thunderstorms follow foreign that spent so many days flowing down river to the sea is returning on average about 800 liters of rain a year falls on every square meter of German soil wet Greenery tastes especially fresh this dandelion Meadow is a paradise for hairs which love this plant more than any other in heavy rainfall the authorities open overflow basins along the order to relieve the pressure on the dikes after the water has run off there may be the odd fish or two left over for the white-tailed Eagles conglomerations of this size would have been very rare a few years ago it's not just fish the birds love but carry them too last century these Eagles were threatened with Extinction today they're under strict protection and many chemicals that would poison their chicks are now banned a chick with a gray beak in time it will turn yellow at this age the fights are harmless the Young Eagles are still tolerant of younger relatives as adult birds they will defend their territory against Rivals without compromise these two still have a lot to learn before they're in a position to conquer their own territory [Music] from the order with its Ice Age Heritage it's back to the Harvard thank you [Music] the youngest Beaver has finally left the lodge full of curiosity it accompanies its mother on a foraging Expedition beavers are the second largest rodents on Earth in contrast to many relatives they're not that interested in seeds but prefer branches and leaves a beaver has to consume 200 meters of fresh Twigs a day and with a kid tugging at your Apron Strings that's not so easy but The Offspring learn fast laughs AMA is coming to an end the young cranes are already commuting with their parents between feeding and sleeping places [Music] it's now so cold that the insects have to warm up in the morning sun before they can move [Music] the dragonflies take a while to reach working temperature [Music] gray herons and black stalks are catching their breakfast [Music] the harvested Fields now offer the hairs zero cover [Music] at least they have plenty of room for mating rituals but at this time of the year they can't seem to really get in the mood The Neighbors on the other hand a red deer stag sniffs the air as the alpha animal it's checking if any Hinds are willing to mate time and again Rivals push their way into the mating Arena the old Stag's message is short and to the point be off with you The Roaring of the Stags rings out over the fields until late Into the Night [Music] autumn in the harbor land tens of thousands of cranes rest here on their way south for a few weeks they regenerate then one morning it's time [Music] the cranes set out for their winter quarters in France Spain and North Africa [Music] hard on their heels follows winter [Music] the Harvel remains free of ice which is why many birds choose to spend the cold season here the Eagles are spoiled for choice [Music] the Coots only stand a chance if they stick close together [Music] that way the Eagles can't concentrate on just one bird [Music] [Music] the strategy seems to be working but then for one coot curtains [Music] foreign still life becomes a balancing act between saving energy and looking for food buck and doe are now more interested in each other's forms than anything else what's cold for one is warm for the other Rupa swans come from Siberia to spend the winter in North Germany [Applause] after temperatures of minus 40 degrees Celsius in Russia here it's pleasantly mild the Beavers spend the winter resting rather than hibernating [Music] they regularly have to look for food in the neighborhood luckily they don't depend on Fresh greens bark is enough to survive the cold season [Music] a hard life in Germany's lakes and rivers but in just a few months spring will once again free the animals from the rigors of winter foreign

Channel: Get.factual

Views: 4,856,761

Keywords: Documentary series, Full Documentary, science, wildlife, wildlife film, wildlife documentary, nature documentary, Documentaries, get factual, get.factual, getfactual, get factual documentary, documentary, history documentary, documentaries, German Landscapes, Wildlife, Aerial Footage, Nature Documentary, Forests and Mountains, Baltic and North Sea, German Fauna and Flora, Stunning Scenery, Germany's Natural Beauty, Enchanting Wilderness, extra long documentary, nature

Id: gNvtR5-za2U

Length: 201min 24sec (12084 seconds)

Published: Sun Oct 22 2023