With footage of octopus species rarely, if ever, seen before -- including one with giant eyes and another with antennae in place of suction cups -- Nature takes viewers into the deepest realms of the ocean for a front-row view of THE OCTOPUS SHOW.
According to legend, Spanish explorers believed that a fountain of eternal youth existed somewhere in the place we know today as Florida. In a poetic way, they were right. Beneath Florida lies the world's largest known system of springs. These springs shelter strange life forms and dot the land above it with outlets of water that once was as pure as any found on this planet.
The program explores a broad range of creatures with astonishing abilities, from the redwing blackbird, whose brain dramatically changes shape to accommodate the chants and songs of mating rituals, to a fungus that transforms itself into something resembling a stalk that plays a vital role in the proliferation of roundworms.
Seasonal changes impel a wide variety of creatures, from whooper swans to monarch butterflies, to begin their epic migrations to ancient feeding, mating, and breeding grounds, sometimes covering thousands of miles and employing ingenious methods to reach their destinations.
As the world's fastest land animal, cheetahs are the odds-on favorite in almost any footrace. After all, they can accelerate to freeway speeds in just a step or two. But in the dry scrublands of southern Africa, the fast felines are falling behind in the most important contest they've ever entered: the race for survival.
We may think of ourselves as the most intelligent beings on the planet, yet it seems there is a great deal we can learn from our fellow creatures. Their understanding of the world pre-dates our own, and carries with it extraordinary abilities to heal, communicate, and transform our lives.
In the extreme conditions of Alaska’s great Iditarod sled dog race, almost no factor is more important than the relationship forged between the mushers and their dogs. Their extraordinary bond can mean more than win or lose – it can mean life or death.