All language subtitles for Arg1_Track04

The Andes.

Stretching over 4000 miles.

This is the longest mountain range
in the world.

Over 100 summits eclipse
the western edge of Argentina.

With their highest peak
reaching almost 23,000 feet,

these are mountains of extremes.

Creating winds
of over 70 miles per hour.

And casting a rain shadow
hundreds of miles wide.

Every creature and plant
in their wake has had to adapt,

or endure to survive.

Nature here has become
highly specialized.

No animal
is out of reach of the Andes.

From Tierra del Fuego in the south,

to Argentina's northern border...

at almost 12 times
the size of the UK,

Argentina's terrain is
a varied expanse of rich plains...

rolling plateaus...

rugged mountains...

and rainforests.

Over 10,000 species
of animals and plants

are spread out
across 18 different eco regions.

Alongside neighboring Chile,

Argentina is the most
southern country in the Americas,

and encompasses around 80%
of the region known as Patagonia.

To the west,
the Andes dominate the skyline...

and ancient glaciers
still carve the rugged landscape.

In the east,
the low Patagonian desert

sweeps across the country...

before plunging
into the fierce Atlantic Ocean.

The peaks of over 45 mountains
tower over Argentina at icy heights

over and above 20,000 feet.

In these extreme mountains,

survival is all about
skill and strength.

The Andes are a stronghold
for an apex predator.

Pumas.

These big cats
are solitary creatures...

and with good reason.

This female needs at least
30 square miles of hunting territory

to find enough food to survive.

After jaguars these are
the biggest cats in the Americas.

Males and females
can weigh as much as humans.

Here, these cats
have no natural predators.

Conditions on the mountains
are one of their biggest killers.

The pressure to hunt is on...

and their favorite food
is on the move.

These strange-looking animals
are guanacos

ancient ancestors of llamas.

They thrive
in the foothills of the Andes.

Around half a million live here.

These guanacos are nomads,

constantly roaming
in search of food.

In their quest for a meal
they forage at altitudes

as high as 14,000 feet.

In Argentina weather conditions
can change by the minute.

The stark beauty of this region
is only matched by its hostility.

But guanacos have evolved to counter
what the mountains throw at them.

A thick shaggy coat
protects them from the biting cold,

and winds up to 75 miles per hour.

Their blood is rich to help them
cope with life at altitude.

They have four times
the number of red blood cells

found in human blood.

These creatures
are perfectly adapted to life

at the mercy of the mountains.

It's November, the most prosperous
month in the guanacos' calendar.

Breeding season.

This mother has been pregnant
for 11-and-a-half months.

And with the first signs of rain,

her grazing is interrupted
by her baby's arrival.

Baby guanacos are called chulengos.

She guards him
as he tackles learning to walk.

His first steps are clumsy.

But after just five minutes
he is up.

He has no choice.

Chulengos are vulnerable
in these hills.

Only 30% make it to adulthood.

The puma has a home range
of over 40 square miles.

The guanacos
have wandered into her patch.

They are the most
protein-rich prey available.

She won't turn down
an opportunity to hunt.

Pumas make their kill with a
combination of stealth and strength.

She is an expert ambush hunter,

and possesses one of the strongest
bites in the animal kingdom.

But guanacos aren't easy to catch.

They outstrip her on stamina,

able to maintain speeds
of almost 40 miles per hour.

A chance of success
relies on the element of surprise.

She's missed her chance.

But all is not lost.

With night approaching, she'll try
again in the cover of darkness

n freezing temperatures...

traveling
as far as 20 miles overnight,

to catch her prey off-guard.

As the morning sun
climbs the slopes of the Andes,

the puma's victory is revealed.

Using her incredible eyesight,

she has made a kill
during the night.

And the dawn
finds her still feasting.

But she needs to keep
a watchful eye for company.

There are many others
in these mountains

who could benefit
from the guanaco's meat.

Patagonian pumas
have to make 50% more kills

than their North American relatives
to eat the same amount.

These cats have serious competition.

The mountains conceal countless
carnivores who want their share.

Life is tough at these altitudes.

Most choose lower climbs.

With food so scarce,

the puma must eat
as fast as she can,

and run
before the scavengers arrive.

One carnivore
has an aerial advantage.

Andean condors are the real masters
of these mountains.

They are amongst the largest
flying birds in the world.

This male has a wingspan
of over ten feet.

Perfect for effortless gliding.

He weighs 30 pounds,

as much as the average dog.

With such heft
the condor capitalizes

on the mountain's strong winds
and morning thermals...

soaring to heights of 18,000 feet
with minimal effort.

From his airborne vantage point,

he has spotted the puma's prize
from several miles away.

But he's not the first to arrive.

An Argentine gray fox
is making the most of the free meal.

Andean condors are carrion feeders
and opportunistic thieves.

With a sharp hooked beak
and an insatiable appetite...

the condor makes light work
of ripping apart

what remains of the dead guanaco.

Caracaras also arrive
to take a share of the bounty.

In just a few hours,
nothing but bones will be left.

The harsh reality of life
in the mountains

does little to detract
from their desolate beauty.

This is a landscape
30-million years in the making.

Beneath the South Pacific Ocean,
lies the Nazca tectonic plate.

Million of years ago it collided,

and was forced
under the South American plate,

forcing the land above
to buckle and rise.

Lifting an ancient seabed
far above the surface

over the course of 30-million years.

Creating
some of the highest mountains

and volcanoes in the world.

Changing the landscape
of South America forever.

Volcanic ash carried on the wind

cloaked and petrified the forests
that once covered this land...

leaving behind
incredible stone monuments

to the landscape of the past.

A reminder that Argentina was
once covered in rich green forests.

The Andes have rewritten
the natural history of Argentina.

Creators of this moonlike landscape.

In the high plateaus
of the Andean Mountains...

at an altitude
of around 11,000 feet...

strange geometric shapes
crisscross a wide white landscape.

Salinas Grandes is one of
South America's biggest salt pans.

Literally translating
as "salt desert"

this is the remains
of what was once an ancient lake.

Trapped by the rising of the Andes,

the lake disappeared
over 10,000 years ago.

Today the wind continually
strips the surface of the lakebed,

carrying tiny pieces of salt
far across the Patagonian steppe.

But not all salt pans
are such vacant wastelands.

Laguna Brava or Brave Lake
lies just west of Salinas Grandes

at over 13,000 feet.

Like much of the Andes,

the volcanoes
that surround this salt pan

are an indication
of its ancient origins.

It's still possible
to find mud pools like these

high in the mountains.

Nearly 2,000 acres
make up this salt-pan water mirror.

A shard of silver
in a patchwork of color.

In spring
the dusty hues of the desert

are brought to life with the arrival
of a flamboyant seasonal visitor.

Flamingos.

Thousands have descended
on Laguna Brava.

Their pink coloration comes
from their diet of shrimp and algae,

which they filter
from the salty shallows.

They have migrated here
from nearby Bolivia and Chile.

The reason why soon becomes clear.

This dusty plateau,
high in the mountains,

becomes a stage
for a spectacular dance.

This is no frivolous footwork.

Flamingos use dance
to find a partner.

If a female is impressed
with the male's moves,

she will leave with him,
and they will mate for life.

The water here is too salty
for most other animals.

Most of the wildlife
in the mountains

relies on using initiative.

The guanacos have followed water
down the mountain to a plateau lake.

With spring in full force,

the herd swells in numbers
as the final chulengos are born.

Only two weeks after birth,
the mothers are ready to mate again.

Nearly all the offspring
in this herd share the same father.

But it's not an easy life
for the dominant male.

Younger, fitter males
frequently challenge his hierarchy,

and finding time
to mate can be a struggle.

He chases the young contender,
attempting to trip and injure.

This headlock is test of strength.

Fighting can be vicious,

as each male tries to attack
the other's most prized possession.

Protecting one's assets
during battle isn't an easy task.

Finally, the newcomer gives up.

He knows he won't always lose.

Order has been restored.

For now.

East of the Andes, stretching from
the foothills is a barren wasteland.

The Patagonian steppe
covers 260,000 square miles.

An area almost as large as Texas.

The mountains cast a rain shadow
across Argentina

that can be seen from space.

As summer approaches
the temperatures during the day

rise by 25 degrees
in a matter of hours.

What rain the plateau receives
through spring stops altogether.

The dry air
that crests the mountains

becomes so cold at these heights,

that when it meets the Andes'
eastern flanks it rapidly falls.

As it follows the slopes down,

the air picks up speed
due to compression changes.

Creating winds
over 70 miles per hour...

which hurtle down
the Andes' slopes...

and spread out
across Argentina's desert...

the seventh largest in the world.

Sandstone canyons
are sculpted by the winds.

And animals and plants must do
all they can to protect themselves

from the extreme elements.

One peculiar creature
has found that the best way

to escape the howling gales
is to make its home underground.

These strange rabbit-like animals
are members of the rodent family.

Patagonian mara
are closely related to guinea pigs.

With short front legs
and four sharp claws,

they are well adapted to digging.

It's the females who have dug
this burrow in the soft sandstone.

Here, babies from different
families are raised together,

n a communal nursery.

Protected from the elements,
as well as predators.

Unusually for rodents, the mara
are active during the day...

and spend most of
their waking hours either grazing,

or basking
in the hot Patagonian sun.

Mara parents are monogamous,

and a female
will only nurse her own offspring.

Using her keen sense of smell,
she's able to detect her own.

Imposters aren't tolerated.

With so many predators around,
it's important to have a lookout.

It doesn't take much
to make them nervous.

With a single alarm call
from a neighbor...

everyone races to safety.

The babies dive underground...

and the adults scatter.

In a very peculiar way.

This bizarre hopping allows the mara
to travel surprisingly fast.

Almost 30 miles per hour.

Thankfully, it's a false alarm.

Maras aren't the only weird and
wonderful creatures on the steppe.

In this treeless landscape,

even owls have learnt
to live on the ground.

Like many of Patagonia's residents,
burrowing owls use underground nests

to protect their young from the
cold sand-laden winds of the steppe.

But unlike the mara these owls
don't always excavate their own.

Instead, they'll use a burrow
owned by someone else.

And they won't give it up
without a fight.

This is a steppe standoff.

Once they have procured the burrow,

the female lays seven eggs,

which she will incubate for a month.

In summer the chicks will make
their first foray outside the nest.

But until then the winds of
the steppe are only just bearable.

Here in the Patagonian steppe,

every corner of the compass
offers vast uninterrupted horizons.

The creatures of the desert
might be unaware of the Andes...

but even this far east,

Argentina's landscape
is defined by the mountains.

In the sandblasted passageways
between hardy shrubs,

one enterprising animal
is at home in the wilderness.

Everything
about the large hairy armadillo

s perfectly adapted
for desert life.

Patagonia is the furthest southern
limit of this creature's range.

Like all armadillos,

ts head and body are covered
in protective bony plates.

Long coarse hairs
also add a protective layer.

This species
is an accomplished digger.

Its powerful claws
make light work of burrowing...

and special membranes in its nose

allow it to extract oxygen
from the soil without inhaling any.

Armadillos have poor eyesight,

but they make up for it
with a fantastic sense of smell.

Unusually for an armadillo
this far south,

conditions
have created meat eaters.

This one capitalizes
on an abandoned kill.

A hare's misfortune
is a lucky break for the armadillo.

Armadillos are usually omnivores.

Those that live closer
to the equator

mainly eat insects and plants,

but here the large hairy armadillo

has had to find a way
to cope with the lack of resources.

The softest flesh is eaten first.

As the temperatures
climb in the midday sun,

the armadillo
needs to retreat underground,

where his meal
can be saved for later.

Even with the steppe's
smallest residents,

the mountains have been
the driving force for evolution.

Even though
it has fully formed wings,

this darkling beetle cannot fly.

Over the course
of thousands of years,

ts wings have fused together.

It has no chance
of taking flight in such gusts.

The only way for this beetle
to escape the fierce winds

s to bury himself
until it's safe to come out again.

He's an expert excavator.

It's not just the animals here that
have had to adapt to the desert.

Plants have also evolved
to cope in the harsh conditions.

This agave plant is a succulent,
specially adapted to storing water.

The leaves are coated
in a wax-like substance

to prevent water
evaporating through the surface,

and are shaped to allow the plant
to efficiently capture water

from rain and dew.

The needles on this plant
defend it from animals

attempting
to get at its water supply.

They are so tough
that ancient civilizations

used them as sewing needles.

Even the grasses of the steppe
are hardy survivors...

blanketing Patagonia
for millions of years.

Every living creature and plant
in Patagonia's desert

s locked in a battle with thirst.

One of Argentina's
most feared residents

s well adapted to the arid
conditions of the steppe.

This male tarantula gets
most of his liquids from his prey.

But at this time of year his focus
is on more pressing matters.

He's on the hunt for a female.

He'll travel for weeks on end
in his quest for a female.

It isn't long
before he finds a burrow entrance

with all the right signs.

Traces of her web outside
the burrow contain pheromones,

chemical messages to alert
passing males of her presence.

He taps the ground
to send a coded message

to the female tarantula inside.

He's checking
if she's open to visitors.

If he gets this wrong, or
the message is lost in translation,

she might come out only to kill him.

But, luckily,
she's in the mood for romance.

He strokes her legs gently
but quickly in order to subdue her.

Sending her
into a paralyzed trance.

Using small hooks on his front legs
called tibial spurs,

he keeps her fangs away from him
in case she suddenly decides

she'd rather have the male
as a snack than a suitor.

The male has specially
adapted organs called pedipalps,

which carry a small pocket of
spider silk sprayed with his sperm.

While the female is under his spell,

he quickly deposits
the packet of sperm

nto the female's
reproductive organs.

And makes a quick getaway.

The female will remain in
her trance for another few minutes,

giving him enough time
to make it to safety.

Later she'll use his sperm
to fertilize her eggs.

This female could have
over 400 babies this year.

For the male
it's time to hit the road again,

and find the next burrow.

Some of the desert's residents are
already in the throes of parenthood.

But this is no doting mother.

In rhea relationships, it's the
father who does most of the work.

Two months ago,
after mating and laying her eggs,

the female abandoned
her unhatched offspring,

and their father spent 40 days
incubating the eggs.

These chicks
all hatched within 36 hours,

and have been on the run ever since.

Rhea are flightless birds,

so they must keep moving
to avoid predators,

staying close together,

and communicating with whistles
when one falls behind.

When fully grown they run at speeds
of almost 40 miles per hour.

Their father is devoted.

For six months
he will stay with them,

guiding them across the steppe,

and showing them how to forage
for roots, seeds and leaves.

It is an endlessly
nomadic existence.

The Patagonian steppe stretches
the entire width of Argentina.

Over 800 miles, east of the Andes,

the desert finally plunges
into the South Atlantic.

Here the animals of the steppe

coexist
with visiting ocean voyagers.

Desert intermingles
with sandy beaches.

Since their formation
30-million years ago,

the Andes have defined
the landscape of much of Argentina.

From the slopes to the sea,
these mountains dictate the climate.

Creators
of the howling Patagonian winds.

Gatekeepers of the rain.

The extreme conditions of the Andes

have forced the animals
and plants of Argentina

to evolve and adapt
in unimaginable ways.

Only at the coast
does their control abate

nto the waves
of the fierce Atlantic Ocean.

Across Argentina the steppe
bears the scars of the Andes' rule.

These mountains
are the creators of the wilderness.

Subtitles: Asha Chong
www.btistudios.com