All language subtitles for Asia (2024) - S01E04 - Tangled Worlds (1080p BluRay x265 Silence)

Asia has more forest

than any other continent.

A trillion trees.

At its heart, in the shadow
of the Himalaya...

...stand the monsoon jungles
of India and Nepal.

They are ruled
by the biggest of all cats.

The Bengal tiger.

Asia's forests are full of life.

For the animals
that live here...

...they provide a multitude
of opportunities.

Nepal.

Forests cover
almost half the country.

It's the dry season.

Between the trees,

meadows of elephant grass
provide cover...

...for the most intimate
of behaviours.

In the last ten years,

the number of tigers in Nepal
has doubled.

There are so many here
that, remarkably,

pairs are mating within
just 100 metres of each other.

Males play no part
in raising their young.

This mother has three
almost fully grown cubs.

The largest, a male,

is becoming
increasingly restless.

His favourite playmate
is his brother.

His sister is less sociable.

He is two years old

and beginning to explore
by himself more frequently.

He must keep his claws sharp.

Prey is never far away.

But to catch a hog deer,

he must get within
pouncing distance...

...undetected.

Blown it.

Tigers visit the river
frequently to cool off.

He tests the water.

Just right.

His siblings are also here.

But afternoon baths

are not going to get
any of these tigers a meal.

It's their mother
who must provide.

And there are
good opportunities

on the other side of the river.

No matter
how experienced tigers are,

most of their hunts
end in failure.

But they can stalk
for hours on end...

...hunting relentlessly.

Spotted chital deer
are constantly alert.

Their fawns
are extremely vulnerable.

This will keep her going
as she continues to hunt.

Not everybody's been
so successful, though.

But Asia's monsoon forests
are so rich...

...this family
should continue to flourish.

200 miles to the east
lives a beast so big

that even a tiger
rarely dares to attack it.

The greater
one-horned rhinoceros.

They weigh over two tonnes

and have skin an inch thick.

They eat mostly grass
and reeds.

There are ponds here
filled with water lilies...

...where the females
regularly bring their young.

The males compete
for access to the females.

A third of all male rhinos
die in fights like these.

Sometimes,
the best move is to retreat.

Elsewhere...

...younger rhinos are engaged
in other business.

Flirting.

Their courtship
is an elaborate game.

A kind of kiss...and chase.

He's caught her.

But when you're lacking
in experience,

consummating
the relationship...

...Is not easy.

After all the excitement,

the forest
also offers relaxation.

A long, leisurely mud bath.

As the dry season continues,

small ponds like these
become increasingly popular.

But a change is coming.

The rains of the monsoon.

They fall most intensely
in southern India.

In the forests of Kerala,

huge storms unleash billions
of cubic metres of water.

And that triggers
the appearance

of one of the strangest
of all Asian creatures.

It spends most of its life
up to eight metres underground.

But just once a year,
it emerges -

to breed.

A purple frog.

This female
has a belly full of eggs.

And on her back, a newly
acquired male partner.

He grips her spine,

making deep indentations
in her flesh.

They have timed their emergence

to coincide
with the monsoon rains.

Somehow, in the darkness,

they must find a stream
in which to lay their eggs,

and then get back underground
before dawn.

But during the monsoon,

a torrent can develop
in minutes.

The best breeding spots
are upstream.

There's nothing for it
but to take the plunge.

Using her limbs
like grappling hooks,

she hauls them both
up the rocks.

At last, shelter!

An excellent place to lay eggs.

And the male
can fertilise them.

They can develop here
without getting washed away.

Having given their brood
the best chance of success...

...they return underground
for another 12 months.

What they do there...

...nobody knows.

To the southeast
of India's monsoon forests,

across the Indian Ocean,

lie the continent's
most diverse

and spectacular jungles.

The tropical rainforests
of Southeast Asia.

They are among the oldest
such forests on Earth.

Here, on the island
of Borneo...

...live orangutan.

They spend most of their time
foraging for food.

But this female also has
something else on her mind.

She is looking for a partner.

Finding a suitable one
should be easy.

Dominant male orangutan in
Borneo have huge cheek pads.

This one
would be quite a catch.

Normally, it's the males
who pursue the females.

But sometimes, a female may
have to take the initiative.

This sort of behaviour
is very seldom seen.

But the feeling does not
seem to be mutual.

Never mind. There's plenty
more swingers in the trees.

This one has a higher rank...

...So he is an even more
desirable mate.

An orangutan with an appetite
like this should be strong.

If only he had eyes for her,
too.

Oh, well.

The search continues.

This male hasn't yet developed
cheek pads.

But looks aren't everything.

He seems keen
on sticking around.

Could he be the one?

The two of them
are soon inseparable...

...even going so far
as moving in together...

...sharing a nest.

It's not long
before she's showing.

Orangutan pregnancies

last the same length of time
as human ones.

At last...

...her son...

...just ten days old.

For the next eight years,

she will devote her time
to teaching him

how to live and find food
in the forest.

And for the time being,
at least,

her search for a mate is over.

Orangutan babies
spend almost all their time

high in the canopy.

But other young animals never
leave the rainforest floor.

Almost hidden
amongst these trees

are the world's
smallest elephants.

A few months old,

this Bornean elephant calf
is only about the height

of a very large dog.

Guided by his mother,

he must follow the herd
wherever they go.

Elephants have
excellent memories.

Matriarchs retain a mental map
of different landmarks...

...some more challenging
than others.

There are threats here.

But crocodiles
are not the biggest danger.

The river
is over 100 metres wide.

And the current is so strong

it could easily
carry a calf away.

His mother and aunts
surround him...

...supporting him
with their trunks.

He is exhausted.

His mother has brought them
here for a particular reason.

She knows food is nearby.

The source is one of ours.

Oil palms.

Elephants greatly enjoy
their fruit.

The plantation owners

do their best
to protect their crop.

Electric fences are everywhere.

The elephants
have become trespassers

on their own land.

They know, however,

how to deal
with such feeble defences.

This is an unpredictable world.

Plantations are frequently
completely cut down

so that new trees
can be planted.

Now, it seems,
there is nothing to eat here.

But what looks like
desolation...

...Is actually opportunity.

This plantation is different.

Here, the elephants
are welcome.

When old trees are felled,

the herd can provide
a waste-disposal service.

As a result,
some Malaysian farmers

have started to encourage
elephants onto their land.

With so much food...

...youngsters have plenty
of get-up-and-go.

And this place has
other attractions, too.

In some areas
of Southeast Asia,

rainforests have been
selectively felled,

if not totally destroyed.

But in others,
they remain extremely diverse.

To the west of Borneo
lies the island of Sumatra.

This is the home

of one of the most
extraordinary of plants.

It's the biggest of its kind.

The titan arum.

Up to three metres tall,

it has taken ten years
to mature.

But now it has just two days
in which to reproduce.

As dusk descends...

...others are opening
simultaneously

across the forest.

As the air cools...

...the plant does the opposite.

Using ten years' worth
of stored energy,

the titan arum warms.

It starts to release
the stench of rotting meat.

The smell
drifts through the forest,

attracting visitors.

A carrion beetle.

The arum
has deceived the beetle

into thinking it has discovered
a dead animal.

The insect is now trapped.

The walls are too slippery
to climb back up.

And now it's surrounded

by hundreds
of male and female flowers.

It can use the female ones
like a ladder.

Above them, however,

are the tightly packed
male flowers

that lead to an overhang
on which there's nothing to grip.

But the arum is not about
to eat its prisoner.

It needs it to remain alive.

As the night continues,
a transformation takes place.

The male flowers
start to release pollen.

Microscopic granules
coat the unwitting beetle.

With the sticky substance
providing footholds...

...the overhang
is no longer an obstacle.

And the beetle flies away...

...to visit other arums...

...and so spread the pollen...

...completing
the flower's life cycle.

The rainforests
of Southeast Asia

are extremely diverse.

But to the west,

on the very edge
of the continent,

where conditions
are very tough indeed...

...there are forests with
perhaps even greater surprises.

This is a country seldom
associated with woodlands.

Iraq.

But in one special corner...

...lies the region
of Kurdistan.

Here grow dense groves of oak
and pistachio trees.

And they contain
a truly rich variety of life.

There are predators here -

the Asiatic wildcat...

...and the shy striped hyena.

But there is also
another carnivore...

...and one
that is hardly ever seen.

A Persian leopard.

There are perhaps no more
than two dozen individuals

in the whole country.

Their survival is precarious.

A lone male cautiously
patrols his territory.

Then...a female.

These are the first images
ever taken

of a female Persian leopard
in Iraq.

She is even more secretive
than the male.

Several months might pass

before she comes back
to this spot.

But finally...

...she reappears.

And at her side...

...a new family.

The cubs are very young
and follow her everywhere.

And if she can keep them safe,

there is a chance
that this tiny population

could establish itself

in these precious
upland forests.

High-altitude forests
can be found right across Asia,

from Arabia all the way
to its easternmost reaches.

In southern China grow
some of the most extraordinary.

Here,
more than 500 species of tree

grow on top
of immense rocky pillars.

Tree roots force rocks apart...

...hastening erosion
and creating new pillars...

...in these gardens
in the clouds.

These East Asian forests
are also home

to an army
of strange creatures.

Here, in nearby Taiwan,

these are the grubs
of the yellow-legged hornet.

This insect has a truly
fearsome reputation.

Its sting
causes excruciating pain...

...and, in rare cases,
even death.

The grubs must fatten up
if they are to become adults.

They scrape the sides
of their hexagonal cells...

...singing for their supper...

...a call to worker hornets.

The workers must
constantly feed the grubs

with protein of some kind.

This is a crucial task,

because amongst them are
the queens of future colonies.

Raiding parties
head into the jungle.

They're seeking prey -

wild forest bees.

They are only half the size
of a hornet...

...and they defend their home

by waving their abdomens
rhythmically,

in an attempt
to confuse predators.

But the hornets
don't plan to invade the nest.

Like goalkeepers,

they aim to catch the bees
in mid-air.

Clutching its victim...

...the worker returns.

A meatball of chewed bee...

...the protein-packed meal
for the grubs.

Other hornets
work as builders...

...making wood pulp

and building
hundreds more cells every day.

Their hunger satisfied...

...the grubs
spin silk cocoons...

...and enter the final stage
of their transformation.

But the entombed grubs
are vulnerable.

Nests are not immune to attack.

Honey buzzards.

These raptors have a particular
liking for immature hornets.

The workers fight back.

But the bird's feathers
interlock,

forming a sting-proof shield.

The nest is destroyed.

But deep within the ruins
is a new queen.

With a handful
of remaining troops...

...she will soon
rebuild an army.

In the mountains in China,

seasonal forests hide
Asia's most beloved bear.

The giant panda.

This four-month-old cub
has a lot to learn.

Escaping her mother's attention
isn't always easy.

But pandas spend virtually
all their waking hours

feeding on bamboo...

...So her cub
is left free to explore.

One of the cub's main concerns
is learning to climb.

In this reserve,

pandas are being bred
to return to the wild.

Several older ones
seem to have mastered

the skills of climbing
in the treetops.

And the younger one

is determined
not to be left behind.

The first stage
is to get a good grip.

Nobody likes
parental interference.

Even so, a bit of encouragement
goes a long way.

That is a whole 20 centimetres
off the ground!

What a shame
that nobody's watching.

It's tiring work...

...and time for a cuddle
with Mum.

Asia's animals thrive

in its extraordinarily
diverse jungles.

They adapt and grow,

using the trees
to their advantage.

And if we can protect them...

...the forests
of this continent

could give them a home
long into the future.

For the Jungles team,

filming the Persian leopard
would mean an expedition

to the remote region
of Kurdistan

in northern Iraq.

Prior to filming,

only a handful of shots
existed of leopards here.

To find them,

the crew join conservation
biologist Hana Raza,

who first discovered
the leopards.

When you meet people,

and the second they find out
that you're from Iraq,

there's this shock.

"How could that be?
Iraq is only deserts and war!"

They can't actually
imagine that

there's so many amazing,
rare and elusive animals.

The forests here hold

an astonishing diversity
of species...

...even Eurasian wolves.

But filming in this environment
is no easy feat.

One of the biggest challenges
is the landscape.

The forests where leopards
are thought to roam...

...are on steep mountainsides.

What's more...

...large areas of the country
are still off-limits

due to minefields.

Despite efforts to clear them,
millions remain in the soil,

decades after conflict.

Just walking along
in single file now.

And we're walking
in single file because

we're walking right along
the edge of a minefield.

Our guides know
where the path is,

so as long as we follow them...

...we're safe.

Although staying safe does mean

keeping close
to the cliff edge.

Brothers Nabaz and Bahez Horeny

have spent years
following the wildlife

between the minefields.

Hana, the brothers and the crew

set up a network
of camera traps.

Over the previous decade,
the only sightings had been

of male Persian leopards
passing through.

Expectations
are, understandably, low.

Yet footage starts to come in.

There are several males -

but one appears frequently,
suggesting he's dominant here.

His scent-marking behaviour
indicates

there might be a female
in the area...

...So the crew
intensify their efforts.

And the reward...

...Is a truly rare glimpse.

It's a beautiful shot,
to be honest.

These images are a huge moment
for the team.

It's been 12 years
camera-trapping leopards.

All of them have been males.

But this is the first female.

Which is amazing!
Absolutely amazing.

What's more,

this female's belly suggests
she might be pregnant.

Fingers crossed our next shot
will be with cubs.

But unfortunately,

the summer passes
with lots of camera-trapping...

...and no sign of the female.

The male, however,
is not so shy.

It's not for
another three months

that the female eventually
reappears on camera.

This time,
they notice a change.

Now it's just very skinny
and very different

from that stage it was
in that month.

So they are suggesting

that it might have given birth.

The crew reason
that if she has cubs,

she'll be hiding them away.

All they can do
is wait and hope.

And, in time,
their patience pays off.

The brothers film
the first leopard cubs

ever recorded here...

...and get to tell Hana
about it.

And a whole year
after the crew started...

...the brothers get a very
special sighting of the female,

recorded
on their own cameras...

...teaching her cubs to hunt.

The first time I captured
the Persian leopard,

not in a million years
did I think

that I would be looking at,
like, an amazing shot

of a family
of Persian leopards. No.

It's amazing!

Finding the cubs again

shows great hope for the future
of these magnificent cats

in these remarkable
Asian forests.