All language subtitles for Walking with Dinosaurs s01e05 Spirits of the Ice Forest.eng

Dawn over a silent forest

a few hundred miles
from the South Pole

It is the end of months
of total darkness

and as the sun's rays
filter down through the trees,

they reveal a cold, harsh world

Polar dinosaurs are adapted
to cope with extreme conditions,

but even they
struggle to stay alive

This far south,
the first day of spring

lasts only a few minutes,

but it triggers the start
of an astonishing story

of survival through the polar year

It is the mid-Cretaceous period

and dinosaurs
are more widespread than ever,

reaching every part of the globe

But one place is a special
challenge - the South Pole

Here, a giant continent
made up of South America,

Australia and Antarctica

is kept warm by ocean currents

that are forced down
from the equator to encircle it

Instead of ice caps,
there are lush forests

But unlike the unchanging
tropical climate elsewhere,

Antarctica has seasons -
from hot summers under midnight sun

to cold winters of total darkness

(Cheeping cry)

Leaellynasaura is a dinosaur

that has adapted
to this extreme climate

Throughout winter, they survive
in the heart of the forest,

but now, in spring,

they emerge to feed
on the fresh plant growth

They are just two metres long

and their most distinctive feature
is their large eyes,

which help them
find food in the dark winter

They are sociable little animals
that live in small clans,

enabling them to make
the most of scarce resources

The clan is dominated
by one breeding pair,

and the hierarchy ensures

that one of them
is always on lookout duty

He issues reassuring clicks
as long as the coast is clear

(Whirring clicks)

(Squeaking)

The sentry has spotted
a giant amphibian, Koolasuchus

He has massively powerful jaws,

weighs about half a tonne
and is a carnivore

In the water, Koolasuchus is lethal,

but on land, his legs have trouble
dragging his bulk around

and he is no threat
to the lithe little dinosaurs

He has been hibernating
over winter in the forest,

and now faces what for
him is an arduous journey of 200m

to get back
to the river for the summer

This bizarre-looking creature

is a relic from a time
before dinosaurs

In most parts of the world,

competition from crocodiles
drove them to extinction

Here, the waters
get too cold for crocodiles,

and the last Koolasuchus survive,

still patrolling the waterways,

just as their ancestors did

150 million years before them

As spring takes hold
and the days grow longer,

a forest bursts into life

Many of the plants in these
unique conifer and fern forests

have specially adapted to lie
dormant during the dark of winter

Only with the spring light

do they start
to photosynthesize again

For the clan, it is also
a time of feverish activity

Having mated with the spring
sunrise, they now build nests

The dominant pair
builds in the centre

and other subordinate
animals work around them

Many of these piles of leaves
act as decoys

to help protect the main nest

But no matter how busy they are,

they always have
to remain alert to danger

A polar allosaur -

a summer visitor
from warmer lands to the north

He is a one-tonne ambush predator

(Rumbling growl)

(Squawking)

(Ferocious roar)

The allosaur is the largest and
fiercest killer in the forest,

but he was spotted by the sentry

As the clan
melt into the undergrowth,

he is no match
for their speed and agility

Spring across the polar forests
brings the movement of many animals

In the sky,
lines of pterosaurs head south

for their summer roosts

And among the trees, there is
the echo of unfamiliar sounds

(Booming call)

The largest
of all the summer migrants

is coming to the forest

These unusual calls
herald the arrival

of huge herds of Muttaburrasaurus
from the north

For the last two months,

they have been migrating 800 km
down the coast of Australia,

following the sun to the south

They do this every year
to strip the lush vegetation

and find secure sites
to lay their eggs

The herds have a major impact
on the forest

Each adult weighs about 3 tonnes

and can pluck food from branches
several metres off the ground

While feeding, they keep in touch

using their specially adapted noses
to produce trumpeting calls

(Horn-like call)

As the forest gets more crowded,

the clan's nests
need constant attention

The lead female treats her pile
of leaves like an incubator

and uses her sensitive beak
to monitor the temperature

Then she adds and removes vegetation

to keep the eggs
at about 30 degrees centigrade

Already, the baby Leaellynasaura
can be heard inside,

responding to their mother's clicks

(Faint cheeps)

The nests also have to be protected
round the clock

Fur-coated mammals thrive
in these Antarctic forests,

and some are easily large enough
to steal an egg

But the Leaellynasaura
has an unusual defence

It is enough to see off
this egg thief,

but the little dinosaur
knows there will be others

The Muttaburrasaurus continue
to arrive on the flood plains

and are watched from
the forest edges by hungry eyes

The allosaur is testing the herd,

probing for sick or old animals

These herbivores are slow,
but find safety in size and numbers

(Booming roars)

The allosaur is no match
for a healthy bull Muttaburrasaurus,

and he is forced to back down

By late spring, the tree ferns
and conifers are in full flush

and have formed a thick canopy,

soaking up every bit of sunlight

Many of the nests
have now fallen victim to predators,

but the clan has ensured that
the dominant pair's has survived

Secure within are three hatchlings

For the first two weeks of their
lives, they will stay in the nest

while the adults
take turns collecting food

and bringing it back to them

(Squeaking)

The lead female takes great care
to maintain the nest

To stop predators
sniffing out her brood,

she removes the old eggshells
and eats the unhatched eggs

This also recycles the nutrients

At this stage,
the hatchlings are vulnerable

and can easily become lost
on the forest floor if they stray

All the adults
watch out for wanderers,

in case a predator moves in

Within weeks, this little hatchling
will be strong enough to keep up,

but for now, he is returned
to the safety of the nest

It is now summer
and permanently light

The sun will not set
for another five months

At this time,
the forest floor comes alive

with polar insects, like this weta,

out hunting for food
among the leaf litter

They themselves are food for
larger animals, like the tuatara

It is a reptile,

but one surviving from a time
long before the dinosaurs

It will remain long after them, too,

clinging on in the land
that will become New Zealand

The Muttaburrasaurus herd

is being tormented by bloodsuckers

Summer brings out
swarms of biting flies,

and although dinosaurs
are covered in tough, scaly skin,

they do have softer parts

The insects concentrate on areas
like the inside of the ear,

where they can pierce the skin
and suck out a meal

These swarms can drive
their gigantic hosts wild,

and soon the herd
has to move away from the river

In the forest, the Leaellynasaura
enjoy the summer bounty

and, despite the dangers
around them, sleep

During these long months of sun,

they rely heavily
on their patterned skin

to camouflage them among the ferns

Sleep is the last thing on the minds

of the hatchlings playing nearby

They have grown and are now
practising the sort of agile moves

which may one day save their lives

Wherever the young are,
their mother is not far away,

acting as lookout
for her increasingly active brood

On the banks of the river,

an old Muttaburrasaurus
has been brought down,

and a male allosaur
feeds off the rotting flesh

The polar allosaur is a descendant

of the carnivores of the Jurassic,
50 million years before

His type are rare in the Cretaceous,

but they survive at the South Pole

(Rumbling growls)

Although there is enough meat
for 20 allosaurs,

it is unlikely
this rival female will be tolerated

(Roaring)

(Roaring)

She is driven away
by the hungry male

A fully-grown polar allosaur

needs about
100 kilos of meat a week

She will need to come back

once the male has eaten his fill

Later,
under the light of the midnight sun,

one of the young Leaellynasaura

ventures down to the river alone

(Squeaks)

Saved by his lightning reactions

But the young Leaellynasaura
has much to learn

about the dangers
of his forest home

(Thunderclap)

In the time of dinosaurs,

Antarctica suffers summer storms
that cause widespread flooding

These floods drive
forest creatures together,

and this can lead to confrontation

(Squealing cry)

The Leaellynasaura
have spotted a rival clan

and it triggers
an aggressive response

Each clan must defend
its area of forest,

so it does not face
competition for food

The interlopers must be put off

by a convincing show of strength

It has worked

The rivals retreat
and, for the moment,

the clan's territory is safe

After the rains,
the floodwaters quickly subside

and dinosaurs can return
to the riverbanks to feed

When there is plenty of food,

herbivores can be
very tolerant of each other

As the Muttaburrasaurus
tear at the podocarp trees,

the Leaellynasaura
gather up the fruit

that gets scattered on the ground

Although a risky harvest,

the clan must take
every opportunity the forest offers,

because time is running out

The seasons draw on,

and for the first time
in four months, the sun sets

Autumn has arrived

and the forest prepares
for a polar winter

Up and down the river valleys,

the Muttaburrasaurus
sense the change,

and begin their long trek north

(Booming grunts)

Occasionally,
some of these giant migrants

get lost in the forest

But what for them
is a minor problem

can mean life or death
for the Leaellynasaura clan

The noise these huge herbivores make

prevents the Leaellynasaura sentry

from hearing
more threatening sounds

(Squealing and roaring)

The giant carnivore
has killed the dominant female

It is a bitter blow

Winter is coming,
and without a lead female,

there will be tension in the clan

In the gathering gloom,

the Koolasuchus
senses the drop in temperature

and reluctantly leaves
his summer home

Once again,
he lumbers into the forest

in search of a suitable shelter

to hibernate through the cold,
dark months that lie ahead

The low light also triggers
a change in the forest plants

They stop growing

and photosynthesis halts

Some will shed their leaves,

others will just lie dormant

(Chirruping cry)

The Leaellynasaura have to work
extra hard to find food,

searching for fungus

and nutritious roots
beneath the forest floor

At this time of year,
their survival strategy

is to move to the heart of
the forest, where it rarely freezes

and to keep active
to maintain their body temperature

But it is clear that the summer
predators have taken their toll

Only one hatchling has survived

and they still have no lead female

Towards the end of autumn,

the last day passes in a few minutes

and the long twilight begins

Life in the polar forest
faces its biggest killer -

freezing temperatures

Some polar creatures, like the weta,

have learned to cope with cold

by allowing themselves
to become frozen

In the winter sky,

the Southern Lights whip and flicker
over the silent forest

Under the sleeping trees,
it is almost pitch-black,

but with image-enhancement,

we get a Leaellynasaura's-eye view
of the clan

The dinosaurs are still active,
but the ground has frozen

and it has become almost impossible

to scrape a living out of the soil

Even pond water is frozen,

and the Leaellynasaura resort
to using their hard beaks

Temperatures this low don't usually
last long in the forest,

but with their
strict social order in tatters,

the fate of this clan
hangs in the balance

They push deeper into the forest

There has been no light
for two months

and another cold snap forces
the clan to take drastic action

They have evolved
one further adaptation to the cold

They huddle together
and drift into torpor

In suspended animation,

they can resist
the effects of the cold,

but they cannot stay like this
for more than a couple of days

The first hints of salvation
are small

Under his rock, the weta
is revived from his deep freeze

by a slight rise in temperature

On the horizon,
the sun's rays grow stronger

and there is the promise of spring

(Squeaking cries)

The forest silence is shattered
by an agitated clan

Two males are fighting

This is the mating season
for the Leaellynasaura,

and the males
are competing for dominance

These fights are short
but can sometimes be vicious

Having asserted his authority,

the victorious male
chooses a mate and, at last,

the clan can start to re-establish
round a dominant pair

Their annual struggle to survive
can begin again

Life at the poles

is a remarkable evolutionary
achievement for the dinosaurs

But eventually, a slight cooling
in the world's climate

will spell doom
for these lush Antarctic forests

And, without them,

all these unique dinosaurs
will also disappear

Away from the poles,
the dinosaurs continue to thrive

for another 40 million years
before extinction

In the final programme,

we see how,
just before the end of their reign,

they evolved
the most terrifying predator of all

(Ferocious roar)

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