A celebration of the planet’s biodiversity

Life
Saturday,8.00 pm,Discovery Channel
A celebration of the planet’s biodiversityDiscovery Channel’s latest big show Life is definitely an eye opener. The 10-part series is a wildlife show filmed over 3000 days and shot across seven continents. The series has been shot in High Definition and the team has used various indigenous ways of shooting the flora and fauna in their natural habitat. A Yogi cam,for example,was used to film migrating reindeer and elephants.

The first episode of the series titled Challenges Of Life provides unique perspectives on what mammals do to survive in an increasingly competitive jungle. Thus,a pack of cheetah brothers hunt down an ostrich as a group rather than going about it individually. Another group of bottlenose dolphins in Florida swirl in groups in the Pacific ocean to create a mud ring. This causes the small fish to panic and jump straight into the waiting mouths of the dolphins. The best part of the episode comes when Brazilian capuchin monkeys showcase the unique skill in cracking open their prized palm nuts. The monkeys pick the nuts,strip the husk and leave them to dry. A few weeks later,the monkeys place the nut on a rock and smash it with a big stone to remove the shell and eat the nut. The ultra slow motion shots and almost life-like action of the monkeys makes it a visual spectacle. The episode also tackles challenges faced by animals during mating. The herons of Oregon in USA,for example,have to match steps with their potential partners. This creates an extraordinary choreographed sequence of herons walking on the water with their steps flapping against each other in perfect harmony. It is sure to bring a smile on anyone who watches the scene.

The second episode takes viewers on a trip of reptiles and amphibians of the animal kingdom. The episode has the unique distinction of being the only one featuring the Komodo dragon,the largest lizard on earth. Even more telling,the episode shows the Komodo dragon savagely hunting down a deer. Other visual treats include a toad curling itself into a ball and rolling down a mountain like a pebble to escape a tarantula,a basilisk lizard literally on water,a frog taking its newborns to different leaves so they can hatch properly and an extraordinary shot of a chameleon shooting its long tongue and catching unsuspecting prey in ultra slow motion.

The eight other episodes cover other aspects of wildlife such as mammals,fish,birds,insects,primates and plants. The voice-over by Sir David Attenborough adds depth to the series. The labour of love clearly comes through in the production values,the camera angles and incisive editing that each episode contains. A must watch for anyone even remotely interested in nature and wildlife.
Verdict:
Watch nature at its best.