Wildlife Moments - The World's Weirdest Animals | Free Documentary Nature

[Music] animals and us together often unbeatable on birds in front and behind the [Music] camera some creatures arise right out of our nightmares while others allure us and sometimes they're just too close for comfort [Music] welcome to the weird wild [Music] australia the continent where nature does things a little differently [Music] the outback is one of the harshest deserts in the world yet full of surprises [Music] a living tornado a shimmering cloud of birds does happen i was really fascinated by how they were so coordinated and the shapes that they formed in the sky you actually can't take your eyes off these are no ordinary birds but thousands and thousands of budgerigars it's an absolute cauldron here i've never experienced anything like it before unbelievable they're flying around everywhere it's just like a hitchcock film amazing how many are there one two three four five six seven eight nine ten i have no idea how many there are i can't count that high there's an unbelievable number of birds here we're so lucky we've spent ages looking for them and i've never seen such large flocks before i think only a few people actually know that budgerigars normally fly through the land here in such giant flocks rather than sitting in a cramped cage it's hard to keep track of it the black falcon swoops in swift as an arrow [Music] the rest of the flock moves on only few are left behind for the benefit of others honeypot ants have a very weird way of storing food the delivered nectar goes straight to their abdomens they are living pantries for the welfare of the colony we spent a long time deliberating on how we could actually film these creatures and then came up with the idea that we should build an artificial ant cave we then had help from a person from alice springs who's married to an aboriginal woman we then created our construction from cement and earth and such and but we actually took individual ants with a spoon and hung them from the roof of our nests the children from the neighborhood came and asked us have you finished filming yet we would like to eat our honeypot ants now they won't get any better if you spend so long playing around with them so i said they can have one but then needed to go [Music] i was actually surprised that it worked so well that the ants really did act like they do in nature but the workers looked after the actual honeypot ants but they cared for them like they were underground [Music] not only australia has strange wildlife to offer the banuela wetlands in zambia one of the largest marshes on earth [Music] a wildlife haven nearly 400 bird species live here natural history filmmaker thomas berrant only has eyes for the weirdest of all a shoe bill there's not a single feather in sight the heat is another challenge for the team [Music] an area half the size of belgium where to start searching the fact that shoe bill often hide in the papyrus thicket doesn't make the task easier be careful [Music] up close with a rare bird but it gets even better a shoe bill on the hunt something that no one has filmed before like this the prehistoric looking birds feed mainly on fish only about seven thousand of these shy creatures exist 500 of them live in banguelo this one doesn't appear to be anxious at all what a shot no one would believe that thomas is totally relieved yes it flies right into frame [Music] that's fantastic not only animals can be weird but plants too south africa's nature is exceptional in almost every way especially the desert vegetation is full of surprises [Music] mirko tribaneck has already made himself comfortable on the hot stones of knees vlachten he likes this harsh landscape a lot it looks as if nothing can live out here but this is not true the really exciting things are right under your nose they hardly look any different from a normal stone but these are living stones uh the timing of the team seems to be perfect soon first clouds appear on the horizon a few drops are sufficient to create a small miracle 150 millimeters of rain per year transforms the living stones into flowers [Music] [Music] her deserts have even stranger places on offer namibia in southwest africa baron but yet full of life an international team of scientists is on its way to a cave that one would not expect in the midst of a desert a lake to explore it the divers need to absorb from a platform 30 meters into the deep okay okay no one has tried to dive here until now [Music] [Music] the water is crystal clear where there is still light perches are on the hunt the species is endemic that means it only lives here in this region of namibia the team wants to dive down to the bottom of the lake more than 100 meters deep they need a special mix of diving gas and a lot of experience the rope serves for the orientation of the divers in depths of 30 meters part of the team stays for safety reasons for the advance into the abyss continues below 50 meters it is pitch black and finally the divers reach the bottom of the lake and collect some rock samples one glance onto the depth gauge 103 meters suddenly something on the ground catches the eye of the divers a bone it's definitely petrified nothing left of the former bone material how old is it that's the secret i'm not quite sure it's older than a million years maybe 10 or even 15 million years old maybe an animal that's been extinct a long time most likely an exciting find later experts date the age of the bone to five million years in the rainforests of brazil many weird creatures hide animals that no scientist has ever described [Music] the boat calabella is on its way into this terra incognita on board the dutch primatologist and species hunter mark van rossmarlen on his expeditions he discovered an area that offers surprises on a daily basis since then mark has discovered about 20 previously unknown monkey species more than any other man before for his work he depends on the help of locals hunters bring the skin of a killed peccary they knew would be of interest to mark it looks different from the known peccary species could it really be possible that such an impressive creature has managed to go unnoticed for so long but skin is not enough for the biologist [Music] [Applause] at a nearby wallow the ground is covered with hoof prints among them fresh prints of peccaries but they belong to the mysterious giant peccary mark builds a viewing platform from there he can easily observe the wallow without disturbing the animals he settles down to wait for hours and hours [Music] and always alert [Music] [Music] at last his patience pays off the animal has neither a white lip nor a white collar typical features of the known species [Laughter] it's a giant peccary it has never been filmed before and lives in a small family group confirming observations of local people all together four two adults and two youngsters mark utterly thrilled takes in every detail even today the discovery of a big land living mammal is possible [Music] then just minutes after they arrived the giant peccaries begin to move on but mark got more than he could have dreamed of yeah i'm so happy now because um after sitting here for ages on the platform i finally got some nice footage of the whole family of the new species of peccary so now i can publish this new species so i'm extremely happy and i leave this platform as soon as possible with my treasure a sensation but there is an alien world beneath the surface of the amazon that is full of surprises nobody knows what kind of creatures lurk in the depths part of the team is german marine biologist and underwater cameraman florian grana this is ronaldo this is ronaldo a remote operated dive robot an rov and this is its umbilical cord the connection to our control center on board we have two cameras and a kind of slider in front we want to fix bait onto it so that we can film the fish in front of the cameras team will dive down with ronaldo they want to film a candy rule possibly the creepiest fish in the amazon i haven't heard of anyone diving with gandaroos it's very exciting the tension is literally tangible [Music] so your oxygen should be 8.4 the divers will be in constant contact with the crew above water as florian approaches the rov and the bait the feeding frenzy has already begun the whole bait is moving it looks like a bunch of maggots giant maggots they're trying to attach themselves to me i just found one in my armpit this is getting very unpleasant as it's been one more time i'm not sure whether we should end the dive now court step four if you liked him talking up to brighton and the show is over hardly anything is left at the bait the abyss of the amazon hides many more secrets like this [Music] on the other side of the world in arctic russia animals are less mysterious but their behaviour is nevertheless astonishing [Music] for four months wildlife filmmaker uv anders lived under very basic conditions on vrangle island the plank should prevent polar bears from entering the hut at least the simple construction keeps the chilly wind outside the animals on wrangle though have to deal with the sudden return of winter at any time the ida duck has to protect its eggs 24 7 against the polar wind [Music] within hours the temperatures can plunge if snow comes on top of it all of a sudden the winter is bad one day it's nearly spring the next everything is white minus 10 celsius and all the birds are having trouble finding food alice fish night against food that makes breeding difficult many snow geese abandon their nests not the idle duck the ida duck just continues breeding despite the snow from time to time it moves its head so that it's not covered in snow for me this duck is a symbol of all arctic animals they have to adapt or they die with allah the neighbors however have failed the skewer nest was probably raided by an arctic fox he didn't find the ida duck the duck managed to survive that's good good [Music] ireland's coast a place of myths home to very special marine mammals dolphins some live a solitary life but make surprising friends it was in the year 2000 when i met fungi for the first time i immediately felt i finally found a place i always wanted to be this was kind of decided for me uttar margarete explores the loners one of her favorites is mara the female is very playful and examines anything that drifts in the atlantic but she is not tame at all dolphins live in families or larger groups loners like mara are called solitary dolphins she has a strong interest for other creatures [Music] dolphins are very intelligent mara understands the use of her find and takes it to ulta hats off or better hat on [Music] mara's curiosity is so obvious that utter sometimes asks herself who of them is the real explorer dolphins love their freedom they are very self-determined have a good sense of humor full of happiness and liveliness with these attributes life can only be beautiful fear solitary dolphins are not lonely as many may think they are constantly on the search for new contacts and objects this is my treasure chest with all the things that mara brought to me many of the precious things look like rubbish but for ute there's a story behind each of these presents no matter whether it's a frisbee or a base camp [Music] in california another astonishing man-animal friendship moved the people's hearts don't you wish you were down here it all started in the rescue center of actress tippy hedren the hollywood diva became world famous as part of hitchcock's cast after she started her foundation in the 1980s to finance the shambhala preserve she got to know the easy rider chris gallucci she knew immediately that he was the right one for timbo a 46 year old african elephant paul for tippy one thing's for sure the two are a perfect match don't rip the pocket people ask us constantly well it's a bull elephant why you know they're they can be extremely dangerous i believe that's true but at the same time he is allowed to be whoever he is and he is there aren't a lot of rules and regulations that he has to deal with which has been really fabulous it of course has demanded that chris more or less gives his whole life to this animal [Music] [Music] i understand what it's like to be kicked when you're down i understand what it's like to have your freedom taken away i understand what it's like to be chained up and so maybe that's what got me the respect with the elephants is to show no fear and no weakness and if you can do that you can survive in that world but if you can't that world will eat you alive when timbo is in a bad mood there's only one who can calm him down [Music] [Music] when timbal starts blowing his horn and he gets angry and starts running i can't find someone else to jump in front of him and stop him i will i've always done it it doesn't mean anything except i'm just not afraid of him and he knows it he's the oldest elephant in the united states he's the largest african bull and the oldest african in the united states so i mean i hope he doesn't die for a long time but if he does then i'm going to be sitting here going what do you think what did i do i spent 28 years with this huge feeling this huge emotion and now i have nothing [Music] [Music] timber owes chris so much not least his life berlin the people of germany's capital want to relax in the many parks of the city but there's an increasing number of scary encounters there's a tusker on the path actually two of them there they are right in front of us [Music] more than 8 000 wild ball roam the streets and parks of berlin no wonder humans and animals more often run into one another serious accidents are almost unavoidable fortunately this group knows the dog sitter and he knows how to handle the situation but not everyone reacts correctly if you throw something or you kneel down or the dog runs over to them they panic and attack especially when a young one squeaks clean the vehicle the others immediately during the weekends there are so many people who are not used to the wild boar i'm sure soon something will happen one who is very familiar with the animal inhabitants of berlin is dirk aylett he's the official wildlife manager of the senate he's on constant patrol to check possible dangers caused by wild animals for the citizens of the capital and their pets [Music] it's really amazing what happens right in the city directly on the parking lots you see how close the balls approach humans a lot of people would say this isn't true but in berlin it's quite a normal occurrence but it's quite obvious that this animal has been fed regularly and she seems to be surprised that she's not getting anything from me for decades now this woman feeds wild boar in the nearby forest but she's not the only one the more people feed the animals the more piglets are born more and more wild boars show up a risky situation a little and is very calm she isn't even worried the little ones observe every move that i make i have to keep an eye on them they're a good example of how close the relationship between humans and boar can be in the city eight piglets are living next to the bus stop they have a good start in life thanks to visitors and passengers it's easy to see from their behavior that these animals have been fed the female is very curious every rustling sound is of interest it's unbelievable that you only have to pretend to hold something in your hand and the animal approaches you but i won't give anything to you this is really a fatal situation the female is a little excited me too this is something we cannot tolerate wild animals in the city yes but a tame ball is an absolute no-good dear galers can only continue his work to organize how animals and humans can co-exist in a metropolis like berlin the netherlands in the province of zealand each year a fascinating spectacle takes place [Music] underwater filmmakers florian grana and natalie tasha have a meeting with two passionate divers yolp and felicia steinberg help cuttlefish to spawn why are you so interested in sepias you are not biologists right it's quite simple we love to dive you may compare it with bird watchers they build nesting boxes for the birds to lay their eggs we are doing exactly the same only for sepias we only wanted to observe them but over the years we realized how difficult it is to find the right places to spawn and that they often end in fish traps so if we don't help next year they're gone [Music] no more left and they are so beautiful it would be a pity do you still have some teepees for us yes we have a few it is a lot of work if you want to help us yeah please show us your name each of us take one side the entrance of the tp need to face the current the water needs to pass through the teepee to avoid that all the mud and plants stick to it okay that's clear okay so i take this side and you take that side and then we put it down into the ground [Music] felicia told natalie that the ground needs to be soft enough to fix the tippies but hard enough that the current does not float them away [Music] some algae makes the hideaway even more attractive soon after the first sepias appear [Music] the sepia arrives each spring of the dam to pass through a watergate to reach the water behind it thanks to the help of felicia renyop the strange creatures are able to lay their eggs now and in the years to come the national parks of the united states from the appalachians in the east to her yosemite in the west are a magnet for visitors all year round [Music] most of the time the big animals are in focus like black bears [Music] but in the smoky mountains small critters attract thousands of people all they need to do is wait until it's dark no not sasquatch but what they'll witness will be just as magical this is the time of year when the fireflies come out the smokies harbor 19 species of firefly an exceptional number for a place outside the tropics [Music] males use their built-in lanterns to lure mates and then it's show time the headliners of the light show are synchronous fireflies flashing in unison ensures females notice them [Music] mating season lasts just two weeks adulthood just three then they die talk about a flash in the pan it's called bioluminescence living light [Music] and there's more of this cold fire here bitter oyster mushrooms thriving on rotting wood [Music] why they glow remains a smoky mystery [Music] other creatures were directly related with evil demonic beasts with supernatural powers animal devils owls for example are a symbol of misfortune and death owls like bats hunt at night in silence unlike bats owls do use vision to fly in the dark they can't fly in complete darkness but their eyes are at least twice as sensitive as human eyes the medieval devil is part human and part animal with animal features from beasts that lurk in humanity's darkest nightmares [Music] but why have these creatures come to symbolize evil [Music] like the raven an ancient symbol for death and decay very many people associate the raven with evil because of its nature because it feeds off the dying it feeds off dead it feeds off carrion flesh which is a thing which is abhorrent human beings the bright intelligent birds eat a vast range of different things and carrion is just one meal on this long list the ability to learn stays with ravens all their lives in the past they learn to fly towards the sound of battle knowing food cannot be far the morrigan is one of three irish goddesses who appear as a triplicity she is the morrigan she is also of and she is maka and these three are seen in the vicinity of battlefields especially after the battle is done when they fall upon the bodies and they scavenge them the morrigan with her sisters very often appears in the form of a crow or a raven but if you take a closer look it becomes clear how extraordinary ravens are they are one of the few creatures that play as adults so there is no reason to demonize them in ancient egypt people even thought animals could channel the powers of the gods in deep underground chambers close to the oasis of dhaka men and women rest in peace close to each other sometimes they were buried next to their pets in some tombs the beloved dogs of the pharaohs lay next to them but what about the other sacred animals most of the jars made of clay are broken the devastating work of tomb raiders in honor of the god thought four million ibis were killed and mummified such a huge number couldn't be caught in the wild but where did all the bodies come from the only way to find out more is to analyze the bones of the mummies what exact species is it and how did the animal died [Music] knows more about the mummies [Music] in some cultures you may light a candle let's say as a sign of devotion to a deity in egypt at one point seemed to use animals in that respect animals that were associated again with particular deities and these would be raised if they could be such as ibises in vast numbers by the priests and then they would be killed and mummified and be given to the pilgrim to then bring to the temple we think um to be used in this way and left as a devotion to the god mostly falcons are found in the jazz at sakhara they were sacrificed in honour of the god horus conservative estimates suggested a half a million mummies horus was a powerful god no wonder people wanted to keep him happy even today our life is closely connected with the life of many animals we think cities belong to us but the concrete jungle is teeming with wildlife a lot of animals have adapted but the real estate market is tough on them too [Music] the port of hamburg covers huge areas in some places only few people work a perfect habitat for animals like this fuel depot it is home to a colony of common gulls the birds traditionally rest on bare exposed islands along the coast but large patches of concrete or wasteland are no different they are fenced and provide big flat areas where colonies can form of course they're not always peaceful or stress-free [Music] the protest remains unheard the nest is overrun [Music] but girls wouldn't be the most successful city dwellers if they couldn't come to terms with a situation like this even at the end of the world animals use man-made structures when looking for a home or shelter not far from antarctica on south georgia scientists and animals live side by side [Music] but it all began in the 19th century with seal hunting and came to a climax with industrial whaling the island whaling stations were in operation for about 60 years [Music] only in 1965 did the whalers leave south georgia for good and the animals could once again reign supreme of the island more than three million fur seals live on the island today the world's largest community of marine mammals while the seals spend their time relaxing and playing around the old whaling stations accommodate some special summer guests male elephant seals seek shelter from the wind and weather in exactly the same halls their ancestors were slaughtered in [Music] their annual change of code is due [Applause] the term catastrophic malt describes the seal's mood perfectly hell for some is paradise for others however sheath bills hammer over the backs of the foul tempered seals and the birds don't seem at all worried about the size of their grumpy hosts they shamelessly target the open wounds of their victims before bouncing but at some point even an elephant seal runs out of patience on the other side of the globe lies a lost world new guinea an international team of filmmakers and scientists is looking for animals that only live here and nowhere else [Music] have you seen the bristles think of the brush yeah [Music] so i'm looking forward to identifying this one oh wow this is maybe a new species i've never seen one like this before batwoman alana maltby can examine the bat it needs to be dried the bats will be dried in this box originally it wasn't meant to be for bats but for the camera equipment of photographer or a lowman this is my dry box but the bats are soaked wet from the rain they are my first priority now inside it's nice and warm the water will quickly evaporate [Music] alana takes care of her new arrival only photos show just how weird the bat faces look all together the team finds 23 different species one of them is new to science the region has more strange creatures on offer on the island of new britain lies mount to avoir for here the team is looking for a very special bird they are mega pods and bizarrely they depend on this active volcano they use it as an incubator talper just caught a megapod and now i know why they are named like this their feet are really big and strong they can dig holes up to two meters deep into the ground in which they lay their eggs the bird hasn't laid its egg yet i can feel it here it's really amazing such a big egg i'd rather let the bird free so that it can get rid of the egg as soon as the mega pod has buried the egg in the warm ashes it no longer bothers to take care of its offspring each day men paddle over to the mountain of fire risking their lives not only because of the ongoing eruptions toxic gases sometimes accumulate in lower areas to reach the egg the men need to dig about two meters deep in some cases the collectors suffocate it in their self-made holes oh thank you this is the egg of a mega code for the people around here it is very precious as there aren't many ways to earn money here the egg costs about two kina that's about 70 cent quite a lot of money around here but it's dangerously earned money back on papua new guinea in the village of fogo mayu villagers give a little bag to allah oh snake yeah [Music] there might be a snake inside but i don't know whether it's venomous or not what's this it's a little tree python as a juvenile the snake is yellow only later will it become bright green the little children are taught to fear snakes as there are a lot of venomous species around but you don't have to be afraid of this one thrilled everyone observes how ula handles the tiny tree python at least for some photos the little girl forgets her fear [Music] no matter how weird some animals may look they're all important for the ecological balance and our world will be so much poorer without them [Music] so [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary - Nature

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), nature documentary, Free Documentary Nature, Nature, Wildlife, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Documentary 2021, Animals, Animal Documentary, World's Weirdest Animals, Weird Animals, Wildlife Moments, Weird Creatures, Strange Animals, Strange Creatures

Id: mbZlVbn8eUU

Length: 51min 55sec (3115 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 15 2021