All language subtitles for Moon.Natures.Secret.Force.S01E02.Moonlit.Romance.1080p.NOW.WEB-DL.DDP5.1.H.264-FFG_track3_[eng]

Life, as we know it,
can only thrive

because of the Moon.

She is Earth's constant companion.

Regulating the rhythms of the planet,
so animals can come together

and raise the next generation.

The Moon influences the daily,
monthly and yearly cycles...

including the changing seasons...

which are most extreme
nearer the poles.

An Arctic fox emerges
from a cruel winter.

She has spent
the last four months alone,

in temperatures
far below freezing.

But now a new year begins,
spring is her cue,

to reunite with her lifelong
companion.

But if she is to raise
a family once more,

she must find him.

And, together,
they need to keep pace

with the lunar-driven seasons.

Our Moon shapes life on Earth
in extraordinary ways.

Creating the swelling tides...

dictating the length of day...

summoning the seasons.

She can light the way to love,

reveal hidden pathways,

bring times of plenty,

or strip away chances of survival.

4.6 billion years ago,

young Earth is thought to have
collided with another planetary body.

The debris fused,

and our Moon was born.

She has been Earth's stabilising
partner ever since.

The Earth is sightly tilted,

like a slowing spinning top,
but it is the Moon

that holds the planet steady

as they orbit around
the Sun together.

Earth's tilt means the Northern
and Southern hemispheres

take turns leaning into

and away from the Sun's light,

bringing us the turning
of the seasons,

and the perfect moments
for romance.

As the Moon steers
the North toward the sun,

in Iceland, the days are getting
warmer and longer.

For the Arctic Fox,

now is the time to mate.

Arctic foxes pair for life,
but they are short-lived.

She is only four years old,

but this could be her last chance
to raise cubs...

if her partner
has also made it through.

She returns to their former home...

desperately searching.

But there is no sign of him.

A familiar call.

With the change of season,
he is on his way home.

With no time to lose,
they must reclaim their territory,

from mountain top to the shoreline.

This rich habitat offers both
shelter and food,

to sustain them

and their future family
throughout the year.

But during the breeding season,

the best land is
the most contested.

A challenger.

Her mate must act.

This intruder may be the first,
but he won't be the last.

To maintain this territory,

the pair will need to fiercely
defend it

for the next six months.

For now,
they can focus on each other.

If mating is successful,

their cubs will arrive
just in time for summer.

The Moon driven seasons

create a distinct annual calendar
at the poles.

While closer to the equator,

the Moon's illuminating presence

in the night sky creates
a more dominant rhythm.

The lunar month.

Over 29 days, she completes one orbit
around the Earth.

As she journeys,
sunlight shifts across her face,

marking time in phases.

And it is this cycle that some

of the Earth's oldest life forms
have evolved to follow.

Off the Caribbean island
of Curacao,

a new life begins.

A baby mountainous star coral,
a mere speck in the ocean,

is embarking on the single greatest
adventure of its life...

to search for a place to settle,
and call home.

Only the most bustling reef will do,

where it can find food
and protection.

And this little coral larva
can travel

over 500 kilometres
of open ocean to find it.

Life began for this larva
the way it does

for many corals around
the world.

On a reef.

Built by millions of tiny polyps,

individual animals living
together, as a colony.

Light-sensitive cells
allow them to track

the Moon's light throughout
their lives.

The full moon
is the signal for them

to get ready to spawn.

In the nights that follow,

each species releases their eggs

and sperm in synchrony.

A mass spawning that boosts
the chances of fertilisation.

A new generation is born,

all set to seek a new reef
of their own.

For the newborn larva,
it begins its descent.

The hair-like cilia on its body

and sensory cells
detect tiny vibrations,

and smells of nearby reefs.

Not bad,
for something smaller

than a grain of sand.

It searches
for exposed limestone,

to provide a grippy surface.

But for every moment
spent searching,

the tiny larva
is rapidly losing energy...

and at risk of becoming food.

Even so, it continues to be fussy.

After all, the colony it forms
could be here

for over 500 years.

This is the place.

Over hours,
the larva transforms,

flattening into a tiny polyp,

anchoring itself to the limestone.

Within days,
tiny tentacles emerge,

reaching out for any morsel of food
that happens to float by.

Their photo-sensitive cells

begin to tune in
to the cycle of moonlight.

Over time,
the once single drifting larva

will grow
into a towering colony,

and form part of a reef...

where it will become part
of an ecosystem

that protects coastlines,

provides oxygen and supports

a quarter of all life
beneath the waves.

Earth bursts with an incredible
diversity of life,

supported by the Moon,

a barren rock,
with almost no atmosphere.

Every species that has ever
existed on Earth

has evolved under her
familiar face,

scarred, wrinkled, blemished.

Marked by over 500,000 craters.

With black basalt plains
and pale mountain peaks.

Strikingly beautiful
and powerful.

It is this exposed surface
that allows her

to reflect 12% of the Sun's light,
into the night.

Her glow reaching
even the darkest habitats

of our planet.

In the Atlantic rainforest
of Brazil,

the Moon's bright light

forces many to retreat
into the shadows.

But not blacksmith treefrogs,

they become more active
and embrace the glow.

An essential tool
when looking for love.

Construction work
on this brightly lit site

is well underway.

And this bachelor has a lot to do

before the Moon sets
in ten hours' time.

To be worthy of a female,

he builds a crater-like nest
the size of a dinner plate.

The lunar light
will reveal any flaws.

Too deep,
and the eggs may drown.

Too shallow,
and they'll dry out.

It's a labour of love,

and he must guard it
with his life.

Competing males will kill
to steal nests.

But his work isn't done yet.

As the Moon casts her
spotlight on his creation.

It's time to get
the attention of the females.

He calls up to 120 times
a minute...

to showcase his
newly built nest.

And someone's taken notice.

A rival.

It's a standoff.

Close to drowning, he must
fight for his life.

Trespasser evicted.

But the Moon waits for no one,

and there is no time to lose.

This time a female.

With his nest in the spotlight,

she inspects it for flaws.

Not too deep.

Not too shallow.

She approves.

Under the Moon's light,
together, they make it theirs.

She lays over 2,000 eggs,

and leaves before sunrise.

This dedicated dad
will nurture their brood,

with only the Moon
for company.

When full,

the Moon completes her
longest stretch

across the night sky,

rising and setting
opposite the Sun.

Though she is nearly
400,000 kilometres away,

her dazzling glow can illuminate
empty plains on Earth,

making all the difference
between success and failure

when choosing a mate.

April, on a plateau in Utah.

For the last two weeks, sage grouse
have been gathering at the arena

known as a lek,
for their breeding season.

Each morning,
when predators are scarce,

males compete in a dance-off
before sunrise.

But tonight,
the contest is about to peak.

The arrival of the full moon
illuminates the plateau,

extending dawn
by more than three hours.

It gives the males extra time
to strut their stuff,

and for this female,
longer to judge them.

Over 70 males are competing
for her attention,

but only the best
will make the cut.

As they strut,

they gulp into
their large air sacs.

With each forceful exhale,
they rapidly deflate,

creating a distinctive pop.

This male works the moonlight
to his advantage.

It illuminates the whites
of his chest

and spots on his plumage.

She's noticed.

But looking good
only gets you so far.

She's after a male
with stamina.

The longer he struts,

the stronger her future chicks
may be.

Eager young males rush in,
desperate for attention.

But unsolicited advances
are not welcome.

She sets the rules here.

As the Moon begins to set,

the weaker males
quickly run out of steam.

Now she can separate the men
from the boys.

After circling the dance floor,

he's the one standing head

and shoulders above the rest.

Three beat pops,
ten times a minute,

each one landing perfectly
in time with his strut.

And he's been going
for seven hours straight.

One last serenade,
and her choice is made.

The other females appear to agree

and form an orderly queue.

Time is up.

This contest is over.

His winning performance
was made possible

by the light
of the full Moon.

And she has secured herself
the strongest male here.

While the Moon determines
the brightness of the night,

she also influences the light
we receive in the day.

Her gravitational pull

slows Earth's spin
to a 24-hour cycle,

and supports the tilt that decides
the relative length

of day and night.

At the Equator,

they stay almost equal
all year.

But nearer the poles,
when the north leans into the Sun,

it rarely sets.

Midsummer, in Iceland.

The landscape is transformed.

The Arctic foxes' lives
have changed too.

With temperatures rising

their winter coats are shed.

And they are now parents
to six new cubs.

But they only have ten weeks to get
them to independence,

before winter returns.

For the cubs,
play is always the priority.

Sparring and stalking build their
strength

and hunting skills.

And, like all youngsters,
they are always hungry.

At just under two kilograms,

they will need to double
their weight

to face the world ahead.

Mum has raised them on milk,

but now she must wean them.

Dad must guard their prized
territory, now more than ever,

to keep rivals out
and his young family fed.

At the coast,
seabirds have arrived

in their thousands.

Here to rear their chicks,

lured by the abundant waters
and warmer weather.

A reliable feast for mum

to feed her growing family.

But one bird is only enough
to feed around two cubs.

Every hour counts,

so she must make the most

of the 20 hours of daylight
summer brings her.

But this feast won't last.

The majority of seabirds
will leave

as soon as their chicks fledge.

The relentless hunts
and intense heat

begin to take their toll on Mum.

But the cubs' hunger never wanes.

She must keep going.

A missed meal
could threaten the cubs future.

A third won't survive
their first year,

from a lack of food.

Soon, the days will become shorter,

as the Moon guides Iceland
into autumn.

The Earth is the only planet
in our solar system

under the influence
of a single moon.

Her gravity draws the seas
toward her,

setting a consistent rhythm

that travels across
the entire planet.

The tides.

Where land meets sea,
the repeated ebb

and flow of tides
carves solid rock,

to form tidal pools.

Warmed by the sun,

these pools have been nurturing
new life

for over 600 million years.

Shallow refuges cut off
from the ocean,

yet deep enough to hold water.

And today, still act
as natural incubators

and safe havens.

Off the coast of Brazil,

nurse sharks are drawn
to these tidal pools.

The open ocean is a ruthless place
to give birth,

as predators lurk everywhere.

Crossing the barrier,
they find safety together.

Forming neonatal sisterhoods,

while the warm water incubates
and speeds up their pregnancies.

But the pools only open
once every 12 hours,

when the tides rise
almost two metres...

just enough to flood
the rocky barrier

and open safe passage.

But this young mum-to-be
is running late.

The water is too shallow,

and she cannot reach safety
with the other females.

She has no choice
but to wait.

Alone, she is vulnerable,

predators roam these waters.

Tiger sharks.

Aggressive,
opportunistic hunters,

and they will eat other sharks.

Their electroreceptors detect

even the slightest movement
of prey.

She must lie low.

But the oceans
are always shifting.

Her own senses detect increases
in pressure

as the water rises
above her.

High tide is coming.

This is the moment.

It is only with the Moon's
gravitational pull,

that the sisterhood
has this oasis.

The tide allowing them

to reach the otherwise
unreachable.

The Moon's pull
keeps the Earth's tides

in constant motion.

But twice a month, the Moon,
Earth, and Sun align,

their combined gravitational
force causes the ocean

to surge higher than usual.

These events are known
as the spring tides.

One species entire
reproductive cycle

is synchronised to them.

The sloped sandy beaches
of California,

play host to one of nature's
most lusty beach parties.

Anticipation is building beneath
the waves,

gate crashers line the shore.

No one wants to be the first
to a party.

Soon the shoreline turns silver,

as thousands land on the beach.

Californian grunion.

Females lead the way,

drilling into the sand
with their tails,

each laying around 3,000 eggs.

And for the males,

it's a race to fertilise
as many as possible.

All before the tide recedes,
in two hours.

It's a mating frenzy,

but fish out of water

can only breathe
with a passing wave.

The Moon high, the party peaks.

But for some,
it can be a little overwhelming.

He can't reach a female,

and no one wants
to be left high and dry.

It's time to get back to it.

Finally, he reaches a female.

The tide begins to recede.

And the party ends,
as quickly as it started.

The last waves wash sand
over the exposed eggs,

leaving no trace.

After 14 days,

the second spring tide
of the month arrives.

Beneath the warm, moist sand,
away from the regular waves,

the grunion eggs
have been developing,

to be ready
for this moment.

The turbulence triggers
the eggs to hatch.

And a new generation enters
the sea.

The Moon sets the rhythm
for life along shores

across the planet,

but its influence
doesn't stop there.

Even on land,
top predators rely on its tides

to fuel their success
in courtship.

On Costa Rica's coast,
a male jaguar is on patrol.

He spends most of the year
alone in the forest.

But for the past few weeks,

he has been stalking this beach.

He knows the full Moon's high tide
brings opportunity to feed.

Sea turtles.

They are returning
from across the ocean to lay eggs

in the dry sand
where they were born.

For just a few nights,

they reach further up the beach
with the high tides.

Slow and predictable,
they are easy to catch.

One turtle will sustain him
for up to three days.

This energy boost puts him

in prime condition for courtship.

If he can find a female,
they will mate as much as possible

while she is receptive.

He has learned
to take advantage

of the rhythms of the Moon

which increases his chance
of fathering

the next generation.

Although the Moon
is only 1% of the Earth's mass,

her gravitational pull
is strong enough

to hold Earth steady
on its tilt.

Twice a year, light falls evenly
on both hemispheres,

and day and night
are of equal length

across the planet.

The equinox.

It's autumn in Iceland,

the seasons are shifting again.

For the Arctic foxes,

it's the final race
to prepare for winter.

Their time as a family
is coming to an end.

As food becomes scarcer
by the day,

each fox must fend
for itself.

Five cubs have already found
independence,

carrying enough fat reserves

to face the bitter cold ahead.

But one still lingers,
underweight

and reluctant to leave home.

At the shoreline,
his father forages.

Even he must gain
more than half his body weight,

if he is to make it
through the impending winter.

He has guarded this territory
for good reason.

Though most of the birds have gone,

the shore offers him a lifeline.

Protein-rich molluscs
and crustaceans.

And now, his smallest cub
wants in on it, too.

He needs to learn fast,

this could be his last chance
to bulk up.

He's leaving no rock unturned.

A scorpion fish...

a significant catch.

These foraging skills
will not only give him

the calories he needs,

they are going to last him
a lifetime.

As he seeks to carve out
his own territory.

Mum is no longer foraging.

The last six months
have drained her,

and she is exhausted.

But she has succeeded
in raising yet another generation,

and just in time.

If her cubs make it
through the winter,

they will begin to seek mates

and start families of their own.

As they too,
learn to keep pace

in this unforgiving land,

rising to the challenges
of the seasons,

steadied by the rhythms
of the Moon.

To capture the coral larvae
on film,

the Moon team
joined researchers

from the Carmabi Institute.

Corals have the ability
to sense the moonlight

and how many days
after the full moon it is.

They can sense light,
they can sense colours.

They actually have a lot
of the same sensory systems

that we have,
they just don't have big eyeballs

measuring light the way we do.

When the moon's getting full
and it's time for spawning

we have to be ready as well.

My name is Kristen Mahaver
and I'm a coral scientist,

and I'm lucky enough to study
the coral reefs here in Curacao

in the southern Caribbean.

Our main mission
is to solve the trickiest puzzles

in coral reproduction
and coral breeding.

Coral reefs around the world
are facing one set back

and one trauma after another

and it can be really hard
to watch.

And its gotten so bad
that for many corals

they haven't actually successfully
made any babies in decades.

But we know
that they can still make eggs,

we know that they can still
get their eggs fertilised.

So, we have to figure out
how to restore

all of the conditions
in nature

that let corals be parents
and let corals have babies.

But one thing
that really keeps us motivated

is the fact that
we're surrounded by babies,

and it's really hard
to be sad and pessimistic

when you're surrounded
by really cute babies.

The Corals all know
how big the moon is,

and they use the moon
to synchronise their spawning.

We basically have to have
a neonatal intensive

care unit ready for baby corals

right after we go on an expedition,
scuba diving at night.

We've got divers in multiple parts
of this reef,

there are divers diving in multiple
parts of the island

and we're going to do two dives
here tonight

and hopefully by the end
of the night

we will have caught
a bunch of spawn

and we'll get back in the lab
raising coral babies

for science and for conservation.

We end up taking
almost a comical amount of stuff

in the water on some dives.

Some corals make it pretty easy
for us

and we can just use
a big tent over the coral colony

that just helps funnel their eggs
into a collection tube at the top.

Some corals are a little trickier
and they just spray

a mist of eggs into the sea water
and so we'll use maybe a bag

or a syringe
to try to collect them.

Once the spawning peak is done,
we're heading back to shore

and we're heading back to the lab
while those eggs are still good.

They're only viable,
they'll only stay alive

for a few hours.

We had a really good dive,
so we've got

a few different males
and females collected

and we're headed back to the lab
to mix them

and hopefully
get good fertilisation.

What we're doing in the lab
is we're trying to shepherd

these corals through the whole
fertilisation process,

then get them to,
to metamorphose and settle

and grow and then get those
babies to get bigger and bigger

and actually grow into eventually
adult corals.

So we're essentially running
an IVF clinic

and a day care
for baby endangered species.

We've been able to learn
so much about the timing

of coral spawning,
how you collect it,

how you keep it healthy
in the laboratory

as you get the eggs
to fertilise.

And as we figure out
more elements of the puzzle,

we're sharing those answers
with the global community.

We're in year 50
of a 200-year project.

So, I'm not going to be around
to see

the really cool results
of the amazing restoration work

that people do
in the future.

We're already seeing
the impact of our work,

and we know that
with hundreds of more years

of innovation,
there's going to be some really cool

coral restoration projects
happening.

When I started my career,

it was pretty much considered
impossible to raise baby corals.

We took something from impossible

to possible
and now the next generation

has the challenge
of scaling it up

and deciding how we're going
to rebuild coral reefs.

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