All language subtitles for Irelands Wild River PBS Nature 2014 720p HDTV EN Sub

af Afrikaans
ak Akan
sq Albanian
am Amharic
ar Arabic
hy Armenian
az Azerbaijani
eu Basque
be Belarusian
bem Bemba
bn Bengali
bh Bihari
bs Bosnian
br Breton
bg Bulgarian
km Cambodian
ca Catalan
ceb Cebuano
chr Cherokee
ny Chichewa
zh-CN Chinese (Simplified)
zh-TW Chinese (Traditional)
co Corsican
hr Croatian
cs Czech
da Danish
nl Dutch
en English
eo Esperanto
et Estonian
ee Ewe
fo Faroese
tl Filipino
fi Finnish
fr French
fy Frisian
gaa Ga
gl Galician
ka Georgian
de German
el Greek
gn Guarani
gu Gujarati
ht Haitian Creole
ha Hausa
haw Hawaiian
iw Hebrew
hi Hindi
hmn Hmong
hu Hungarian
is Icelandic
ig Igbo
id Indonesian
ia Interlingua
ga Irish
it Italian
ja Japanese
jw Javanese
kn Kannada
kk Kazakh
rw Kinyarwanda
rn Kirundi
kg Kongo
ko Korean
kri Krio (Sierra Leone)
ku Kurdish
ckb Kurdish (Soranî)
ky Kyrgyz
lo Laothian
la Latin
lv Latvian
ln Lingala
lt Lithuanian
loz Lozi
lg Luganda
ach Luo
lb Luxembourgish
mk Macedonian
mg Malagasy
ms Malay
ml Malayalam
mt Maltese
mi Maori
mr Marathi
mfe Mauritian Creole
mo Moldavian
mn Mongolian
my Myanmar (Burmese)
sr-ME Montenegrin
ne Nepali
pcm Nigerian Pidgin
nso Northern Sotho
no Norwegian
nn Norwegian (Nynorsk)
oc Occitan
or Oriya
om Oromo
ps Pashto
fa Persian
pl Polish
pt-BR Portuguese (Brazil)
pt Portuguese (Portugal)
pa Punjabi
qu Quechua
ro Romanian
rm Romansh
nyn Runyakitara
ru Russian
sm Samoan
gd Scots Gaelic
sr Serbian
sh Serbo-Croatian
st Sesotho
tn Setswana
crs Seychellois Creole
sn Shona
sd Sindhi
si Sinhalese
sk Slovak
sl Slovenian
so Somali
es Spanish
es-419 Spanish (Latin American)
su Sundanese
sw Swahili
sv Swedish
tg Tajik
ta Tamil
tt Tatar
te Telugu
th Thai
ti Tigrinya
to Tonga
lua Tshiluba
tum Tumbuka
tr Turkish Download
tk Turkmen
tw Twi
ug Uighur
uk Ukrainian
ur Urdu
uz Uzbek
vi Vietnamese
cy Welsh
wo Wolof
xh Xhosa
yi Yiddish
yo Yoruba
zu Zulu
Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated: 1 00:00:07,841 --> 00:00:10,175 ¶¶ 2 00:00:19,085 --> 00:00:23,422 MAN: There aren't many really wild places left in Ireland. 3 00:00:23,424 --> 00:00:26,225 But on the Shannon River, you still get that feeling 4 00:00:26,227 --> 00:00:28,494 no one's ever been there before. 5 00:00:28,496 --> 00:00:32,865 I want to see this river in all its moods 6 00:00:32,867 --> 00:00:34,633 in every season -- 7 00:00:34,635 --> 00:00:37,136 not just how it looks, but how it sounds, 8 00:00:37,138 --> 00:00:40,806 how it feels -- I want to find the hidden places 9 00:00:40,808 --> 00:00:43,008 and the hidden creatures living there. 10 00:01:07,300 --> 00:01:09,935 I'm going to have no fixed agenda, 11 00:01:09,937 --> 00:01:12,704 just want to wander. 12 00:01:12,706 --> 00:01:17,342 Wander and explore. 13 00:01:23,716 --> 00:01:27,252 This river is a lifeline for countless creatures 14 00:01:27,254 --> 00:01:30,422 who shelter in and around its waters. 15 00:01:30,424 --> 00:01:35,427 I'm going to follow them, see where they take me. 16 00:02:02,956 --> 00:02:07,459 [Birds singing] 17 00:02:07,461 --> 00:02:11,513 [Soundtrack playing over] 18 00:02:17,821 --> 00:02:20,389 [Paddle stirring water] 19 00:02:33,970 --> 00:02:37,606 MAN: Early mornings for me are some of the best times. 20 00:02:37,608 --> 00:02:39,141 The dawn chorus comes 21 00:02:39,143 --> 00:02:41,743 and the reeds are full of birdsong, 22 00:02:41,745 --> 00:02:44,179 and it's a wonderful, happy time. 23 00:03:03,166 --> 00:03:06,835 It's a great time to be on the Shannon. 24 00:03:06,837 --> 00:03:08,203 It's a time to find food, 25 00:03:08,205 --> 00:03:11,006 'cause you've been building up an appetite all night. 26 00:03:11,008 --> 00:03:14,643 Time to find a mate... 27 00:03:14,645 --> 00:03:17,045 A time to declare your intentions. 28 00:03:17,047 --> 00:03:19,948 This is still my patch, 29 00:03:19,950 --> 00:03:21,817 this is my part of this riverbank. 30 00:03:30,560 --> 00:03:33,862 It's a wonderful, peaceful time of day. 31 00:03:33,864 --> 00:03:37,466 And the light! 32 00:03:37,468 --> 00:03:40,202 If you're out there at sunrise, 33 00:03:40,204 --> 00:03:43,772 sometimes the light is so, so special. 34 00:03:54,284 --> 00:03:59,288 Spring on the Shannon -- the great awakening. 35 00:03:59,290 --> 00:04:03,959 And there's such a sense of purpose in the air. 36 00:04:03,961 --> 00:04:07,663 The orange tip butterfly is one of the first of the season, 37 00:04:07,665 --> 00:04:08,964 and it's a real sign 38 00:04:08,966 --> 00:04:10,999 that spring is here. 39 00:04:12,302 --> 00:04:16,738 Just a couple of months ago, all this was under water. 40 00:04:16,740 --> 00:04:18,273 And then the water recedes 41 00:04:18,275 --> 00:04:20,642 and they sort of appear out of nowhere 42 00:04:20,644 --> 00:04:22,778 and colonize these watery meadows. 43 00:04:22,780 --> 00:04:25,781 They're the most perfect little creature -- 44 00:04:25,783 --> 00:04:27,849 their wings are so delicate 45 00:04:27,851 --> 00:04:32,087 and the colors are so rich. 46 00:04:34,090 --> 00:04:36,692 These must be some of the most beautiful 47 00:04:36,694 --> 00:04:39,628 natural wildflower meadows left in the country. 48 00:04:39,630 --> 00:04:41,964 Never seen herbicides or pesticides -- 49 00:04:41,966 --> 00:04:44,132 it's just the way this rough 50 00:04:44,134 --> 00:04:46,868 grassland/farmland used to look in Ireland. 51 00:04:46,870 --> 00:04:50,172 The landscape really hasn't changed, 52 00:04:50,174 --> 00:04:54,042 but there is something missing. 53 00:04:54,044 --> 00:04:56,812 This place should be resounding to the cries 54 00:04:56,814 --> 00:04:59,881 of the wading birds -- the lapwing and the curlew 55 00:04:59,883 --> 00:05:02,384 and the ringed plover, the red shank... 56 00:05:02,386 --> 00:05:03,852 But they've all gone. 57 00:05:03,854 --> 00:05:07,155 They've all disappeared 58 00:05:07,157 --> 00:05:11,259 within about the last 20 or 30, 40 years. 59 00:05:11,261 --> 00:05:14,730 Some people blame the mink for this emptiness. 60 00:05:14,732 --> 00:05:18,700 Ground-nesting birds, their little chicks and the eggs 61 00:05:18,702 --> 00:05:22,270 have no protection against a predator like that. 62 00:05:22,272 --> 00:05:24,673 But you know, 63 00:05:24,675 --> 00:05:29,845 nature tends to be more complex than that. 64 00:05:29,847 --> 00:05:33,281 The real reason sometimes for the rise and fall 65 00:05:33,283 --> 00:05:37,285 of different creatures can be very hard to identify. 66 00:05:40,189 --> 00:05:43,258 Our countryside has changed dramatically 67 00:05:43,260 --> 00:05:45,060 in the last few decades, 68 00:05:45,062 --> 00:05:48,897 and I guess the river is just reflecting that change. 69 00:05:54,537 --> 00:05:58,774 Now, you can travel for mile upon mile on this river 70 00:05:58,776 --> 00:06:02,110 and never hear the sound of the curlew, 71 00:06:02,112 --> 00:06:03,578 t t call of the lapwing, 72 00:06:03,580 --> 00:06:03,645 or the whistle of the redshank. 73 00:06:03,647 --> 00:06:05,447 t t call of the lapwing, 74 00:06:05,449 --> 00:06:08,617 It's all gone. 75 00:06:12,789 --> 00:06:15,624 It's very, very few and far between. 76 00:06:15,626 --> 00:06:18,994 There are one or two places left in the river 77 00:06:18,996 --> 00:06:21,730 where they still nest successfully. 78 00:06:25,868 --> 00:06:30,372 These low-lying fields are known as the Callows. 79 00:06:30,374 --> 00:06:35,143 This is exactly what birds like curlew and redshank and lapwing 80 00:06:35,145 --> 00:06:36,411 need to breed, 81 00:06:36,413 --> 00:06:40,415 and that...is the warning call of a redshank. 82 00:06:40,417 --> 00:06:42,884 He says I'm too close. 83 00:06:42,886 --> 00:06:43,985 [Calling] 84 00:06:43,987 --> 00:06:45,554 And it's a call 85 00:06:45,556 --> 00:06:48,256 that just says, "Potential danger, 86 00:06:48,258 --> 00:06:50,625 await further instructions." 87 00:06:50,627 --> 00:06:54,963 Now, if I was to get close, if I was to get out of the boat, 88 00:06:54,965 --> 00:06:58,366 you'd hear a very different call, and that other call 89 00:06:58,368 --> 00:07:00,102 is the real warning -- it says, "Not only have we 90 00:07:00,104 --> 00:07:01,536 spotted danger, but we actually have to 91 00:07:01,538 --> 00:07:03,839 react to it right now," 92 00:07:03,841 --> 00:07:05,941 and it's a particular call they make, 93 00:07:05,943 --> 00:07:08,110 it's sort of a lovely, flutey whistle. 94 00:07:08,112 --> 00:07:10,412 And that tells the chick to go straight for cover. 95 00:07:10,414 --> 00:07:15,050 They're relying completely on the parent's vigilance. 96 00:07:15,052 --> 00:07:20,155 People sometimes call them the guard dogs of the Callows. 97 00:07:20,157 --> 00:07:22,591 I have a friend who lives s st 98 00:07:22,593 --> 00:07:25,260 of the west of Ireland that, the only way to get to his house 99 00:07:25,262 --> 00:07:26,928 is on foot, 100 00:07:26,930 --> 00:07:28,897 and he can always tell if there are visitors on the way 101 00:07:28,899 --> 00:07:30,799 because he'll hear that redshank calling, 102 00:07:30,801 --> 00:07:32,901 and he'll know there'll be a knock on his door 103 00:07:32,903 --> 00:07:34,836 ten minutes later. 104 00:07:34,838 --> 00:07:37,772 So... 105 00:07:42,345 --> 00:07:43,945 I don't see this as 106 00:07:43,947 --> 00:07:45,847 a journey from source to sea, 107 00:07:45,849 --> 00:07:49,451 I see it very much as a wander around the entire system. 108 00:07:49,453 --> 00:07:53,889 I want to be on different parts of the river 109 00:07:53,891 --> 00:07:57,259 at different times of the year. 110 00:08:05,134 --> 00:08:07,502 I've lived in Ireland most of my life, 111 00:08:07,504 --> 00:08:09,738 and I guess the Shannon is something 112 00:08:09,740 --> 00:08:13,141 I feel I've taken for granted. 113 00:08:13,143 --> 00:08:16,011 I mean, this is the longest river in Britain and Ireland, 114 00:08:16,013 --> 00:08:18,313 and it divides our country in two, 115 00:08:18,315 --> 00:08:21,416 from sort of the wilder west to the gentler east. 116 00:08:21,418 --> 00:08:23,752 You have this feeling of crossing the Shannon, 117 00:08:23,754 --> 00:08:26,321 you know you're going to another part of the country. 118 00:08:29,926 --> 00:08:31,793 You learn in your geography books 119 00:08:31,795 --> 00:08:33,728 it's something over 200 miles long, 120 00:08:33,730 --> 00:08:35,430 but it's much more than that. 121 00:08:35,432 --> 00:08:37,832 The tentacles of the river fan out, 122 00:08:37,834 --> 00:08:40,869 and it's all the little streams and rivers that make it up. 123 00:08:40,871 --> 00:08:42,804 They come from all over the country, 124 00:08:42,806 --> 00:08:44,573 feeding into this central basin. 125 00:08:44,575 --> 00:08:48,777 This river has such a great sense of history. 126 00:08:48,779 --> 00:08:52,247 There are signs of our past all over 127 00:08:52,249 --> 00:08:56,518 this water system. 128 00:08:56,520 --> 00:08:58,486 It reminds you of how time passes 129 00:08:58,488 --> 00:09:00,488 and the lives that were once here, 130 00:09:00,490 --> 00:09:04,159 and you have to sort of wonder, what will we leave behind? 131 00:09:12,668 --> 00:09:15,036 Will the monoliths of the Celtic Tiger 132 00:09:15,038 --> 00:09:17,339 look as romantic as the castle ruins? 133 00:09:21,877 --> 00:09:24,145 I don't think so. 134 00:09:38,427 --> 00:09:43,765 [Animal calling] 135 00:10:18,734 --> 00:10:21,336 [Squeaking] 136 00:10:27,043 --> 00:10:31,846 Bats are one of the most unappreciated of creatures. 137 00:10:31,848 --> 00:10:35,950 There are so many nasty stories associated with bats. 138 00:10:35,952 --> 00:10:39,921 When you hear these stories and you see the movies, 139 00:10:39,923 --> 00:10:41,423 it's always about vampires, 140 00:10:41,425 --> 00:10:43,391 and giving them a bad reputation. 141 00:10:43,393 --> 00:10:46,661 And that somehow seems to get ingrained in our consciousness. 142 00:10:48,898 --> 00:10:51,466 They are utterly harmless to human beings -- 143 00:10:51,468 --> 00:10:53,234 absolutely harm-- and they're not just 144 00:10:53,236 --> 00:10:54,769 harm less to us, 145 00:10:54,771 --> 00:10:55,937 they really benefit. 146 00:10:55,939 --> 00:10:57,839 I mean, any -- any creature that goes round 147 00:10:57,841 --> 00:11:00,475 scooping up midges in their thousands is a friend of mine, 148 00:11:00,477 --> 00:11:02,143 because some nights on the river, 149 00:11:02,145 --> 00:11:04,179 you wish you'd had an entire swarm of bats 150 00:11:04,181 --> 00:11:06,014 accompanying you every place you went. 151 00:11:08,150 --> 00:11:10,785 We have about 30 mammals in Ireland, 152 00:11:10,787 --> 00:11:13,388 and ten of them are bats. 153 00:11:13,390 --> 00:11:16,758 If only we could totally reverse the way that many of us see them 154 00:11:16,760 --> 00:11:19,327 and look at them as the incredibly well-adapted, 155 00:11:19,329 --> 00:11:21,563 sort of, ancient creatatates that they are. 156 00:11:32,274 --> 00:11:34,109 These are Daubenton's bats -- 157 00:11:34,111 --> 00:11:36,444 they're known commonly as water bats, 158 00:11:36,446 --> 00:11:37,712 and that's because 159 00:11:37,714 --> 00:11:40,849 they are perfectly adapted for life on the river. 160 00:11:40,851 --> 00:11:43,318 If you look really closely, 161 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:48,289 you can see the odd one just flitting by really fast. 162 00:11:48,291 --> 00:11:49,624 And what they are doing is 163 00:11:49,626 --> 00:11:51,893 they are hunting over the water's surface -- 164 00:11:51,895 --> 00:11:53,795 they are looking for little insects 165 00:11:53,797 --> 00:11:55,930 which are caught on the top of the water. 166 00:11:55,932 --> 00:11:58,433 As they struggle to free themselves 167 00:11:58,435 --> 00:12:01,403 from that surface tension, they make little ripples. 168 00:12:01,405 --> 00:12:04,239 And what the bats are doing now, they are echolocating, 169 00:12:04,241 --> 00:12:06,875 finding where those little ripples are coming from, 170 00:12:06,877 --> 00:12:08,943 and they can sort of scoop up the insects -- 171 00:12:08,945 --> 00:12:10,178 either with their tail 172 00:12:10,180 --> 00:12:11,579 or with their feet. 173 00:12:11,581 --> 00:12:14,582 They have extra-big feet, and they use those to just 174 00:12:14,584 --> 00:12:18,086 lift the struggling insect from the surface of the river. 175 00:12:18,088 --> 00:12:22,090 Flitting back and forth there. 176 00:12:26,495 --> 00:12:27,996 The bats themselves 177 00:12:27,998 --> 00:12:32,600 live, I guess, in a different world. 178 00:12:32,602 --> 00:12:35,437 They perceive the world in a different way to me. 179 00:12:35,439 --> 00:12:37,806 Although their eyesight is as good as mine, 180 00:12:37,808 --> 00:12:41,075 it's not much good to you when you're flying about in the dark. 181 00:12:41,077 --> 00:12:43,211 So, as they fly up and down the river, 182 00:12:43,213 --> 00:12:45,113 they have their mouths wide open, 183 00:12:45,115 --> 00:12:46,848 and they're effectively, sort of, 184 00:12:46,850 --> 00:12:48,316 screaming at the water 185 00:12:48,318 --> 00:12:50,952 and waiting for that echo to come back. 186 00:12:50,954 --> 00:12:53,988 And that's how they discern their environment, 187 00:12:53,990 --> 00:12:56,658 that's how they see where they're going. 188 00:12:56,660 --> 00:13:00,128 Incredible creatures. 189 00:13:02,331 --> 00:13:05,400 Beautiful creatures. 190 00:13:35,965 --> 00:13:38,967 This weather is really tough on the creatures 191 00:13:38,969 --> 00:13:40,602 that live off the river. 192 00:13:40,604 --> 00:13:43,738 This wind has been really continuously blowing now 193 00:13:43,740 --> 00:13:45,406 for over a month. 194 00:13:45,408 --> 00:13:47,675 Not quite what I had in my mind's eye 195 00:13:47,677 --> 00:13:50,078 when I set out on -- on this journey -- 196 00:13:50,080 --> 00:13:51,813 I imagined those lovely, fine, 197 00:13:51,815 --> 00:13:54,349 April evenings as the days start to lengthen, 198 00:13:54,351 --> 00:13:56,451 just listening to the birds singing, 199 00:13:56,453 --> 00:13:58,520 maybe sitting by a little campfire. 200 00:13:58,522 --> 00:14:00,622 But for the last four or five weeks, 201 00:14:00,624 --> 00:14:03,725 I've just been huddled down like all the other creatures, 202 00:14:03,727 --> 00:14:07,228 waiting for this spell of weather 203 00:14:07,230 --> 00:14:10,265 to pass on. 204 00:14:10,267 --> 00:14:13,968 This year, this weather came at just the wrong time. 205 00:14:13,970 --> 00:14:15,169 There should be 206 00:14:15,171 --> 00:14:16,571 great hatches of insects -- 207 00:14:16,573 --> 00:14:18,139 and not just for the birds, 208 00:14:18,141 --> 00:14:20,174 but for the fish and everything, too. 209 00:14:20,176 --> 00:14:21,776 They -- you know, everything is feeding voraciously 210 00:14:21,778 --> 00:14:23,211 at this time of year. 211 00:14:23,213 --> 00:14:26,581 For nesting birds, it's not just that the parents 212 00:14:26,583 --> 00:14:29,651 might not be able to supply their chicks with enough food, 213 00:14:29,653 --> 00:14:32,887 but the chicks get actively hammered 214 00:14:32,889 --> 00:14:36,324 by the wind and the rain. 215 00:14:36,326 --> 00:14:38,826 [Calling] 216 00:14:38,828 --> 00:14:41,829 But then it'll be amazing if the conditions do pass, 217 00:14:41,831 --> 00:14:43,431 and the first sunny morning, 218 00:14:43,433 --> 00:14:45,967 the whole place will just come alive again. 219 00:16:18,227 --> 00:16:20,695 There's nothing like traveling on the river, 220 00:16:20,697 --> 00:16:22,897 there's just that feeling of, sort of, 221 00:16:22,899 --> 00:16:24,165 peace and tranquility. 222 00:16:24,167 --> 00:16:26,334 You can kind of drift in and out of animals' lives, 223 00:16:26,336 --> 00:16:28,202 and they don't even know you've been there. 224 00:16:28,204 --> 00:16:31,472 You don't disturb them. 225 00:16:42,251 --> 00:16:45,353 When I'm paddling my canoe, I'm just wondering 226 00:16:45,355 --> 00:16:48,623 what's happening beneath me. 227 00:16:48,625 --> 00:16:49,957 That whole cycle of life, 228 00:16:49,959 --> 00:16:52,093 things meeting and mating and breeding, 229 00:16:52,095 --> 00:16:54,162 and thing killing each other -- 230 00:16:54,164 --> 00:16:56,531 that's all happening in the water, 231 00:16:56,533 --> 00:16:59,133 but it's something that's hidden to us. 232 00:17:02,771 --> 00:17:04,772 There's one fish that's found 233 00:17:04,774 --> 00:17:07,809 throughout this river system, seldom seen, 234 00:17:07,811 --> 00:17:12,847 but at this time of year their presence becomes obvious, 235 00:17:12,849 --> 00:17:15,550 and that's because it's mating time. 236 00:17:17,920 --> 00:17:21,756 People call them the barracuda of the Shannon. 237 00:17:21,758 --> 00:17:23,691 It's very much the creature 238 00:17:23,693 --> 00:17:28,362 that, if you were a fish, you'd want to avoid. 239 00:17:28,364 --> 00:17:32,400 They're superbly adapted for their environment. 240 00:17:32,402 --> 00:17:35,803 They can move very, very fast if they have to. 241 00:17:35,805 --> 00:17:38,873 Any fish that comes within striking range 242 00:17:38,875 --> 00:17:42,410 has no chance whatsoever. 243 00:17:42,412 --> 00:17:46,314 Some people look at predators as being 244 00:17:46,316 --> 00:17:48,816 cruel and this sort of thing, but that's really not the case. 245 00:17:48,818 --> 00:17:50,718 If you were an animal 246 00:17:50,720 --> 00:17:53,054 that's been injured in nature, 247 00:17:53,056 --> 00:17:54,555 be you a deer in the forest -- 248 00:17:54,557 --> 00:17:55,990 if you've got a tiger round, 249 00:17:55,992 --> 00:17:58,025 the tiger will kill and injure deer -- 250 00:17:58,027 --> 00:18:00,328 if it breaks a leg, instead of dying slowly, 251 00:18:00,330 --> 00:18:02,130 a tiger will spot it and kill it. 252 00:18:02,132 --> 00:18:05,133 And the pike are sitting there at the bottom of the lake, 253 00:18:05,135 --> 00:18:07,568 they're just not randomly chasing any fish -- 254 00:18:07,570 --> 00:18:10,872 they're looking for the ones which are moving a bit slowly 255 00:18:10,874 --> 00:18:13,508 or aren't doing so well, so, they're, um, 256 00:18:13,510 --> 00:18:15,276 maybe sort of like an anesthetic -- 257 00:18:15,278 --> 00:18:17,145 they put people out of their misery -- 258 00:18:17,147 --> 00:18:18,813 they put fish out of their misery. 259 00:18:30,092 --> 00:18:32,960 People are always talking about climates and changing, 260 00:18:32,962 --> 00:18:35,630 and these are changing, and that sort of thing -- 261 00:18:35,632 --> 00:18:37,365 the natural world doesn't lie. 262 00:18:41,303 --> 00:18:44,906 You can see an increase in temperature. 263 00:18:44,908 --> 00:18:46,574 Things are moving 264 00:18:46,576 --> 00:18:48,676 north and west all the time, 265 00:18:48,678 --> 00:18:50,778 because they're able to tolerate 266 00:18:50,780 --> 00:18:53,614 living in those sort of warmer conditions 267 00:18:53,616 --> 00:18:55,449 that are now on offer there. 268 00:19:00,923 --> 00:19:03,324 So, you'll get this gradual influx in species, 269 00:19:03,326 --> 00:19:05,493 and the Shannon is going to, you know -- 270 00:19:05,495 --> 00:19:08,029 things are going to start being able to live here 271 00:19:08,031 --> 00:19:11,065 that couldn't live here before. 272 00:19:33,789 --> 00:19:35,590 I remember the first time I saw egrets, 273 00:19:35,592 --> 00:19:38,559 it was in the south of Spain, and I thought they were 274 00:19:38,561 --> 00:19:40,728 the most exotic thing I'd ever seen. 275 00:19:40,730 --> 00:19:42,430 I was walking up in the hills 276 00:19:42,432 --> 00:19:44,699 and I came over by this little lake, 277 00:19:44,701 --> 00:19:48,102 and there were these beautiful, pure white birds 278 00:19:48,104 --> 00:19:50,438 wading around in the shallows. 279 00:19:50,440 --> 00:19:52,707 And I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing, 280 00:19:52,709 --> 00:19:55,376 and little did I know that, within, I suppose, 20 years, 281 00:19:55,378 --> 00:19:57,478 that those birds would have made it to Ireland, 282 00:19:57,480 --> 00:19:59,413 and they're breeding alongside our herons. 283 00:19:59,415 --> 00:20:01,315 That's something I never thought I'd see. 284 00:20:01,317 --> 00:20:06,053 [Birds calling] 285 00:20:06,055 --> 00:20:07,555 There's something about herons, too, 286 00:20:07,557 --> 00:20:09,090 when you see them sort of hunched-up, 287 00:20:09,092 --> 00:20:10,725 they can look sort of a little bit angry, 288 00:20:10,727 --> 00:20:12,360 a little bit, sort of, fed up with life. 289 00:20:12,362 --> 00:20:15,129 The egrets are like, 290 00:20:15,131 --> 00:20:17,531 the new, beautiful cousins have just come along, 291 00:20:17,533 --> 00:20:20,001 and they're kind of taking their limelight or something. 292 00:20:20,003 --> 00:20:21,769 And they seem to put up with them. 293 00:20:21,771 --> 00:20:24,405 And the egrets, I guess, are just so much more elegant. 294 00:20:31,213 --> 00:20:32,813 Everything seems 295 00:20:32,815 --> 00:20:34,382 very calm -- it's as if they've been 296 00:20:34,384 --> 00:20:35,816 living together all their lives. 297 00:20:35,818 --> 00:20:39,086 The two species seem to, sort of, 298 00:20:39,088 --> 00:20:41,956 accept each other's presence... even though they must be 299 00:20:41,958 --> 00:20:45,726 in competition for feeding sites and nesting sites. 300 00:20:45,728 --> 00:20:49,230 My guess is there's so many fish in the river 301 00:20:49,232 --> 00:20:52,600 that there's no big competition. 302 00:20:52,602 --> 00:20:55,770 [Birds calling] 303 00:21:01,310 --> 00:21:04,712 Great sounds. 304 00:21:04,714 --> 00:21:07,548 One of the parents has just come in 305 00:21:07,550 --> 00:21:10,351 and they're all just going for it. 306 00:21:10,353 --> 00:21:15,356 It's a real survival of the fittest. 307 00:21:15,358 --> 00:21:18,693 All the chicks have to be on their feet, as it were, 308 00:21:18,695 --> 00:21:21,395 and scrambling for food, and that's what it's -- 309 00:21:21,397 --> 00:21:23,698 it's known as "scramble competition" -- 310 00:21:23,700 --> 00:21:25,633 you've got to make your presence 311 00:21:25,635 --> 00:21:28,169 known to your parents so that you'll be fed, 312 00:21:28,171 --> 00:21:30,371 because if the parent doesn't spot you 313 00:21:30,373 --> 00:21:32,673 and you start missing out on your meals, 314 00:21:32,675 --> 00:21:35,176 you'll end up getting weak and not making it. 315 00:21:46,855 --> 00:21:50,691 My fear is that little guy has no chance, 316 00:21:50,693 --> 00:21:52,927 no future. 317 00:21:58,700 --> 00:22:01,736 It's sad. 318 00:22:01,738 --> 00:22:05,639 Nature can be tough. 319 00:23:00,629 --> 00:23:02,630 [Bird calling] 320 00:23:02,632 --> 00:23:06,567 That's a sound now that's really rare in these parts. 321 00:23:06,569 --> 00:23:09,003 That's a corncrake. 322 00:23:09,005 --> 00:23:10,237 [Calling] 323 00:23:10,239 --> 00:23:12,740 I remember the days when they were so common, 324 00:23:12,742 --> 00:23:15,643 they were found in pretty much every field in Ireland. 325 00:23:15,645 --> 00:23:17,178 And I used to listen to them 326 00:23:17,180 --> 00:23:19,447 just a few miles from Dublin city center 327 00:23:19,449 --> 00:23:22,116 when I was growing up, but now they've really 328 00:23:22,118 --> 00:23:24,552 disappeared from so much of the country. 329 00:23:24,554 --> 00:23:29,290 When you cut silage, you cut it early in the season. 330 00:23:29,292 --> 00:23:30,991 So, when you have 331 00:23:30,993 --> 00:23:33,828 a bird like the corncrake that nests in long grass, 332 00:23:33,830 --> 00:23:36,797 it's just gotten to the stage of finding a mate 333 00:23:36,799 --> 00:23:39,400 and the female's sitting on their nests, 334 00:23:39,402 --> 00:23:40,734 sitting on her eggs, 335 00:23:40,736 --> 00:23:43,337 and that's when the grass cutters arrive. 336 00:23:43,339 --> 00:23:45,639 So, they don't have time to raise their young, 337 00:23:45,641 --> 00:23:47,575 so year on year, corncrakes have just 338 00:23:47,577 --> 00:23:49,443 disappeared all over the country -- 339 00:23:49,445 --> 00:23:51,045 and it happened very quickly. 340 00:23:51,047 --> 00:23:52,913 And here on the Shannon they've been making 341 00:23:52,915 --> 00:23:54,882 a bit of a stand down on the Shannon Callows, 342 00:23:54,884 --> 00:23:59,019 probably because that land was used a little less intensively 343 00:23:59,021 --> 00:24:01,455 than other parts of the country. 344 00:24:01,457 --> 00:24:05,526 And unfortunately, they've done really badly the last few years, 345 00:24:05,528 --> 00:24:07,128 and I've heard this year 346 00:24:07,130 --> 00:24:11,999 that there's actually just one male left calling. 347 00:24:12,001 --> 00:24:15,102 [Calling] 348 00:24:15,104 --> 00:24:18,672 He's calling to establish a territory, 349 00:24:18,674 --> 00:24:22,443 but to let a female know that he's about. 350 00:24:22,445 --> 00:24:24,145 Because if you're a corncrake 351 00:24:24,147 --> 00:24:26,313 wandering round in the deep grass, 352 00:24:26,315 --> 00:24:27,848 you can't find each other. 353 00:24:27,850 --> 00:24:30,384 So, it's up to him to call in the female. 354 00:24:30,386 --> 00:24:33,120 And if there's a receptive female in the area, 355 00:24:33,122 --> 00:24:35,523 she should come and have a look at him. 356 00:24:35,525 --> 00:24:38,559 But it seems very likely, very possible, 357 00:24:38,561 --> 00:24:40,895 that there's no one out there for him. 358 00:24:40,897 --> 00:24:43,764 [Corncrake calling in distance] 359 00:24:43,766 --> 00:24:46,333 When I go to sleep tonight, 360 00:24:46,335 --> 00:24:47,935 there's a good chance 361 00:24:47,937 --> 00:24:50,104 when I wake up in the morning 362 00:24:50,106 --> 00:24:53,207 that little guy is still going to be calling, 363 00:24:53,209 --> 00:24:56,277 because the only thing on his mind right now 364 00:24:56,279 --> 00:24:58,579 is finding a mate -- that's why 365 00:24:58,581 --> 00:25:00,881 he's flown here all the way from Africa. 366 00:25:00,883 --> 00:25:02,183 He doesn't know that 367 00:25:02,185 --> 00:25:03,751 there aren't any other corncrakes here. 368 00:25:03,753 --> 00:25:07,555 He doesn't know that there aren't any females. 369 00:25:07,557 --> 00:25:10,991 Poor little guy out there alone. 370 00:25:10,993 --> 00:25:14,461 [Corncrake calling] 371 00:25:14,463 --> 00:25:18,332 He'll be calling all night. 372 00:25:18,334 --> 00:25:22,469 All day, too, probably, if he doesn't have any luck. 373 00:25:33,915 --> 00:25:38,686 Shannon's going to flow through this area, now, 374 00:25:38,688 --> 00:25:41,589 and not hear that call again. 375 00:25:41,591 --> 00:25:45,025 [Calling] 376 00:26:39,748 --> 00:26:42,016 It's like being in another world. 377 00:26:42,018 --> 00:26:44,551 Very peaceful, 378 00:26:44,553 --> 00:26:48,188 just the sounds of the reeds themselves, 379 00:26:48,190 --> 00:26:50,557 blowing gently in the wind, and... 380 00:26:50,559 --> 00:26:54,862 But all this activity that's going on that's unseen, 381 00:26:54,864 --> 00:26:59,700 all the birds building their little platform floating nests, 382 00:26:59,702 --> 00:27:02,670 sitting on eggs, chicks hatching, 383 00:27:02,672 --> 00:27:04,605 that's all going on now all around here. 384 00:27:04,607 --> 00:27:06,206 Just by listening to the sounds, 385 00:27:06,208 --> 00:27:10,411 you can tell that's what's going on. 386 00:27:10,413 --> 00:27:13,814 None of the residents in here can see each other, either. 387 00:27:13,816 --> 00:27:16,617 [Birds calling, water splashing ] 388 00:27:16,619 --> 00:27:18,886 So, that's why they're constantly calling. 389 00:27:18,888 --> 00:27:21,655 Letting each other know where they are. 390 00:27:21,657 --> 00:27:25,359 Contact calling -- it's lovely to hear. 391 00:27:29,331 --> 00:27:32,766 There's always one animal every year 392 00:27:32,768 --> 00:27:35,969 that sort of somehow gets into your mind 393 00:27:35,971 --> 00:27:38,105 and just starts to fascinate you, 394 00:27:38,107 --> 00:27:40,808 and for me it's been the great crested grebe. 395 00:27:48,049 --> 00:27:51,251 The eggs hatch on different days, because as soon as 396 00:27:51,253 --> 00:27:54,988 the first egg is laid, the female starts incubating it. 397 00:27:59,627 --> 00:28:02,129 Both parents are very diligent. 398 00:28:02,131 --> 00:28:06,467 They have these amazing parental instincts. 399 00:28:29,190 --> 00:28:30,424 The little grebe chicks 400 00:28:30,426 --> 00:28:32,459 must be some of the cutest chicks on the river. 401 00:28:32,461 --> 00:28:34,328 Their beautiful little striped pattern, 402 00:28:34,330 --> 00:28:39,199 so different looking than their parents. 403 00:28:39,201 --> 00:28:43,070 Grebe parents will actually pluck their own feathers 404 00:28:43,072 --> 00:28:46,540 and feed them to the chicks. 405 00:28:46,542 --> 00:28:50,377 It's a remarkable thing to see. 406 00:29:00,021 --> 00:29:03,824 Beautiful birds. 407 00:29:43,998 --> 00:29:47,534 Amazing how the whole world seems to have gone silent now. 408 00:29:47,536 --> 00:29:51,071 It's -- every year I notice around the 15th of July or so, 409 00:29:51,073 --> 00:29:53,941 it's as if someone had just flicked a switch. 410 00:29:53,943 --> 00:29:55,776 The Shannon is no different -- 411 00:29:55,778 --> 00:29:58,212 all the birds just stop making noise. 412 00:29:58,214 --> 00:30:00,614 And that's 'cause the breeding season is over 413 00:30:00,616 --> 00:30:02,616 and they don't have to sing anymore, 414 00:30:02,618 --> 00:30:05,853 they don't any longer have to defend breeding territories, 415 00:30:05,855 --> 00:30:09,289 they don't have to attract females. 416 00:30:09,291 --> 00:30:14,761 There's no reason to sing, and that's why they've stopped. 417 00:30:14,763 --> 00:30:18,899 But it really seems to happen over a matter of a week or so, 418 00:30:18,901 --> 00:30:21,535 it just, suddenly, just goes quiet. 419 00:30:21,537 --> 00:30:24,571 Absolutely quiet. 420 00:31:18,626 --> 00:31:20,360 The greatest angler 421 00:31:20,362 --> 00:31:22,262 on the river has got to be the kingfisher. 422 00:31:22,264 --> 00:31:25,365 They're just master fishermen -- and they've got to be, 423 00:31:25,367 --> 00:31:27,167 because they can pretty much eat 424 00:31:27,169 --> 00:31:29,570 their own body weight in food every day. 425 00:31:31,072 --> 00:31:33,106 Most of the time, you just see 426 00:31:33,108 --> 00:31:35,342 a flash of blue. 427 00:31:35,344 --> 00:31:37,444 But to really see how beautiful they are, 428 00:31:37,446 --> 00:31:38,979 you've got to slow them down. 429 00:33:37,565 --> 00:33:40,600 I'm starting to see subtle changes in color 430 00:33:40,602 --> 00:33:42,636 on the riverbanks. 431 00:33:42,638 --> 00:33:47,040 Autumn isn't far away. 432 00:34:37,825 --> 00:34:40,327 Great to see the red squirrels around. 433 00:34:40,329 --> 00:34:44,831 The Shannon, which formed a barrier to people long ago, 434 00:34:44,833 --> 00:34:48,034 has been really important for the red squirrel in Ireland, 435 00:34:48,036 --> 00:34:50,604 because when someone decided, in their wisdom 436 00:34:50,606 --> 00:34:51,972 to bring the grays here, 437 00:34:51,974 --> 00:34:55,909 the grays never actually managed to cross the Shannon. 438 00:34:55,911 --> 00:34:59,679 And so that's why the reds are still here. 439 00:34:59,681 --> 00:35:02,149 The poor little blighters, they just can't compete. 440 00:35:02,151 --> 00:35:03,283 It's not that the grays 441 00:35:03,285 --> 00:35:05,152 are physically fighting with them, 442 00:35:05,154 --> 00:35:07,387 it's just that they find the food quicker. 443 00:35:07,389 --> 00:35:08,955 They'll take food that's still 444 00:35:08,957 --> 00:35:11,358 sort of raw -- raw nuts and that sort of thing. 445 00:35:11,360 --> 00:35:13,527 And these little guys just can't compete. 446 00:35:13,529 --> 00:35:17,464 And so, they -- the females don't put on enough weight, 447 00:35:17,466 --> 00:35:19,566 and so they don't breed. 448 00:35:19,568 --> 00:35:22,969 Earlier I found some pine marten scat. 449 00:35:22,971 --> 00:35:28,175 There's some sort of evidence that maybe they are able to 450 00:35:28,177 --> 00:35:31,244 catch gray squirrels, easier than reds. 451 00:35:31,246 --> 00:35:32,546 Reds are a little more agile, 452 00:35:32,548 --> 00:35:34,748 they can get to the outer branches of the trees, 453 00:35:34,750 --> 00:35:36,883 maybe where the pine martens can't catch them. 454 00:35:36,885 --> 00:35:40,954 It may be that with the rise of the pine marten again, 455 00:35:40,956 --> 00:35:43,924 that grays are going to be disadvantaged 456 00:35:43,926 --> 00:35:46,560 and the reds might make a comeback. 457 00:35:46,562 --> 00:35:48,695 That would be great if that happened -- 458 00:35:48,697 --> 00:35:50,730 and it just might. 459 00:37:28,362 --> 00:37:31,598 For anyone who spends time on the water, 460 00:37:31,600 --> 00:37:33,300 they know that sound. 461 00:37:33,302 --> 00:37:37,203 That's just the sound of the Shannon in winter. 462 00:37:37,205 --> 00:37:40,707 Wonderful, haunting sort of call, 463 00:37:40,709 --> 00:37:44,444 the sounds of the whoopers arriving. 464 00:37:44,446 --> 00:37:47,113 The end of the autumn and beginning of winter 465 00:37:47,115 --> 00:37:49,816 is when they tend to arrive, and they've been chased 466 00:37:49,818 --> 00:37:51,851 from their northern breeding grounds 467 00:37:51,853 --> 00:37:53,653 by the cold weather up there -- 468 00:37:53,655 --> 00:37:55,255 they fly south to avoid it. 469 00:37:55,257 --> 00:37:58,425 They come to the Shannon because there's a great big larder here 470 00:37:58,427 --> 00:38:00,560 to keep them going for the winter months. 471 00:38:04,165 --> 00:38:06,232 You really have to watch swans taking off 472 00:38:06,234 --> 00:38:08,234 to see that flight doesn't really come 473 00:38:08,236 --> 00:38:09,736 all that naturally to them. 474 00:38:09,738 --> 00:38:12,372 They really have to push those bodies up into the air. 475 00:38:14,709 --> 00:38:16,743 You'd think that they'd be a bird 476 00:38:16,745 --> 00:38:18,979 that maybe couldn't fly all that far, 477 00:38:18,981 --> 00:38:22,248 but they can fly all the way from Iceland to here, nonstop. 478 00:38:33,027 --> 00:38:35,795 [Honking] 479 00:38:35,797 --> 00:38:38,732 Once you make a decision to undertake that flight, 480 00:38:38,734 --> 00:38:40,734 there's sort of no turning back, 481 00:38:40,736 --> 00:38:43,136 because you've nothing to turn back to, 482 00:38:43,138 --> 00:38:45,405 so, no matter what obstacle they hit, 483 00:38:45,407 --> 00:38:48,408 or what weather they hit, they just have to keep going. 484 00:38:48,410 --> 00:38:50,443 [Honking] 485 00:39:10,531 --> 00:39:13,600 They must be very, very pleased when they see 486 00:39:13,602 --> 00:39:16,636 the ribbon of the Shannon River from the air. 487 00:39:21,842 --> 00:39:24,110 Maybe they're calling because they're just happy to be here. 488 00:40:10,991 --> 00:40:15,728 They must use up a huge amount of energy on that flight. 489 00:40:15,730 --> 00:40:18,164 But when they get here, they're as graceful 490 00:40:18,166 --> 00:40:19,532 as when they took off -- 491 00:40:19,534 --> 00:40:22,469 you'd swear that they'd just come from down the road. 492 00:40:22,471 --> 00:40:26,873 They're just looking absolutely perfect and pristine. 493 00:40:28,843 --> 00:40:32,112 Some journey to undertake. 494 00:40:32,114 --> 00:40:33,847 But one thing's for sure, 495 00:40:33,849 --> 00:40:36,950 when they arrive here there's loads of food. 496 00:40:36,952 --> 00:40:40,386 They're vegetarians, they come here to feed on the grass, 497 00:40:40,388 --> 00:40:41,955 is what they like to eat, 498 00:40:41,957 --> 00:40:44,691 and there's no shortage of grass in Ireland. 499 00:41:29,770 --> 00:41:34,340 We tend to spend so much of our lives indoors now, and in cars, 500 00:41:34,342 --> 00:41:38,044 we may be losing touch with those sort of seasonal markers 501 00:41:38,046 --> 00:41:41,848 which give you a sense of a time of year and where you are. 502 00:41:44,652 --> 00:41:47,720 Our houses are probably as warm in winter now 503 00:41:47,722 --> 00:41:49,255 as they are in summer, 504 00:41:49,257 --> 00:41:51,758 and we eat any kind of food we want 505 00:41:51,760 --> 00:41:53,193 at any time of year, 506 00:41:53,195 --> 00:41:56,629 so those sort of traditional markers of the seasons 507 00:41:56,631 --> 00:41:58,531 are sort of disappearing. 508 00:41:58,533 --> 00:42:00,900 And in the natural world, of course, 509 00:42:00,902 --> 00:42:02,735 they're very much still there, 510 00:42:02,737 --> 00:42:05,071 they're still driven by the climate, 511 00:42:05,073 --> 00:42:06,239 angle of the sun, 512 00:42:06,241 --> 00:42:08,541 day length -- all those things, 513 00:42:08,543 --> 00:42:10,176 that wonderful sense of 514 00:42:10,178 --> 00:42:12,412 a year -- something cyclical. 515 00:42:37,304 --> 00:42:42,275 [Thunder rolling] 516 00:43:19,380 --> 00:43:23,149 This is a rare cold snap and it won't last long. 517 00:43:23,151 --> 00:43:25,918 As soon as the temperatures rise, 518 00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:28,521 things will start moving again. 519 00:44:03,223 --> 00:44:05,325 That's a great sound... 520 00:44:05,327 --> 00:44:07,593 Guess, to lots of people, 521 00:44:07,595 --> 00:44:10,797 birdsong is the first sign of spring, 522 00:44:10,799 --> 00:44:14,434 but for me it's the croaking of the frog -- 523 00:44:14,436 --> 00:44:18,338 breeding season has begun. 524 00:44:18,340 --> 00:44:20,573 Male frogs, lots of them, 525 00:44:20,575 --> 00:44:23,576 calling to lure in the females. 526 00:44:23,578 --> 00:44:27,647 [Frogs croaking] 527 00:44:29,650 --> 00:44:32,952 Males await the arrival of the next female. 528 00:44:32,954 --> 00:44:35,154 This is an annual opportunity, 529 00:44:35,156 --> 00:44:38,091 and they want to make the most of it. 530 00:44:38,093 --> 00:44:41,027 Some of these little males have spent the winter 531 00:44:41,029 --> 00:44:43,796 at the bottom of the pond, hibernating there. 532 00:44:43,798 --> 00:44:46,032 It means that they're in position, 533 00:44:46,034 --> 00:44:47,967 they're in the breeding pond, 534 00:44:47,969 --> 00:44:50,403 when the females arrive at springtime. 535 00:44:50,405 --> 00:44:54,707 Females can be scattered out over this entire area. 536 00:44:54,709 --> 00:44:56,943 Something wakes them up -- 537 00:44:56,945 --> 00:44:58,778 the same sort of cues, I guess, 538 00:44:58,780 --> 00:45:00,847 that wake up the males, wake up the females. 539 00:45:00,849 --> 00:45:03,649 They've been wintering under stone walls 540 00:45:03,651 --> 00:45:06,352 or under bits of boulders or under logs. 541 00:45:06,354 --> 00:45:07,920 And some of these females 542 00:45:07,922 --> 00:45:11,023 have to make this arduous journey across the land, 543 00:45:11,025 --> 00:45:13,593 laden with eggs. 544 00:45:14,628 --> 00:45:16,429 Some sort of instinct 545 00:45:16,431 --> 00:45:19,298 drives them back towards these breeding ponds. 546 00:45:19,300 --> 00:45:22,602 And then it's the calls of the male that lure them in. 547 00:45:22,604 --> 00:45:25,872 [Croaking] 548 00:46:18,759 --> 00:46:22,462 The poor females, you got to feel sorry for them, 549 00:46:22,464 --> 00:46:24,363 because all these males 550 00:46:24,365 --> 00:46:28,367 have only one thing on their mind right now. 551 00:46:30,404 --> 00:46:33,372 She's on the edge of the pond, thinking, "Oh, will I, won't I?" 552 00:46:33,374 --> 00:46:37,410 And when she makes that final jump in, 553 00:46:37,412 --> 00:46:40,580 all hell breaks loose. 554 00:47:03,570 --> 00:47:05,638 Now, these little males, what they're trying to do is, 555 00:47:05,640 --> 00:47:07,807 they're trying to grab the female. 556 00:47:07,809 --> 00:47:09,842 They have special pads on their little hands, 557 00:47:09,844 --> 00:47:11,210 and what they're trying to do is 558 00:47:11,212 --> 00:47:14,247 get into the right position. 559 00:47:14,249 --> 00:47:16,449 They will wrestle each other, 560 00:47:16,451 --> 00:47:18,484 and she is stuck in the middle. 561 00:47:29,696 --> 00:47:31,864 Once they're really tight on there 562 00:47:31,866 --> 00:47:33,432 and in the right position, 563 00:47:33,434 --> 00:47:36,335 they will hang on for dear life. 564 00:47:36,337 --> 00:47:41,007 And for the next few days they will not leave her. 565 00:47:41,009 --> 00:47:44,977 Life for a female frog is not very easy. 566 00:47:47,180 --> 00:47:49,916 The other males sort of know and they give up. 567 00:47:49,918 --> 00:47:52,952 Right, she's taken. 568 00:47:52,954 --> 00:47:55,521 And then they wait for the next one to arrive. 569 00:47:55,523 --> 00:47:57,223 [Croaking] 570 00:47:57,225 --> 00:47:58,991 Love frogs. 571 00:48:35,796 --> 00:48:37,697 Every evening... 572 00:48:37,699 --> 00:48:40,533 every evening this happens. 573 00:48:45,472 --> 00:48:47,840 Small flocks of little starlings 574 00:48:47,842 --> 00:48:50,676 come together to form bigger flocks. 575 00:49:01,355 --> 00:49:03,456 Just remarkable how so many birds 576 00:49:03,458 --> 00:49:06,158 come from the entire surrounding countryside. 577 00:49:06,160 --> 00:49:08,628 They all make their way 578 00:49:08,630 --> 00:49:11,631 back to this one little spot. 579 00:49:18,372 --> 00:49:20,439 And those flocks start to wheel 580 00:49:20,441 --> 00:49:24,343 just a few minutes before they actually hit the reed beds. 581 00:49:24,345 --> 00:49:27,780 There's just those extraordinary abstract patterns, 582 00:49:27,782 --> 00:49:30,082 from a distance they could be Ireland, 583 00:49:30,084 --> 00:49:31,384 or a swarm of locusts, 584 00:49:31,386 --> 00:49:32,752 or a swarm of bees -- 585 00:49:32,754 --> 00:49:35,287 it's very hard to get a sense of scale. 586 00:50:09,656 --> 00:50:14,527 Many ways, this is the greatest natural spectacle in Ireland. 587 00:50:14,529 --> 00:50:17,563 It's just some sight. 588 00:50:17,565 --> 00:50:23,002 And the sounds -- the sounds of myriads of beating wings. 589 00:50:23,004 --> 00:50:27,039 [Thrumming of wings] 590 00:50:50,731 --> 00:50:55,334 Amazing sight -- just amazing. 591 00:51:20,360 --> 00:51:22,762 My journey is coming to an end now, 592 00:51:22,764 --> 00:51:25,397 and I've learned so much along the way. 593 00:51:25,399 --> 00:51:28,400 I've experienced this river in every season, 594 00:51:28,402 --> 00:51:30,636 I've gotten to know its moods, 595 00:51:30,638 --> 00:51:32,571 gotten to know its creatures. 596 00:51:32,573 --> 00:51:36,275 Somehow, it's sort of gotten into me 597 00:51:36,277 --> 00:51:40,146 and feels like it's a part of me know. 598 00:51:40,148 --> 00:51:42,915 It's no longer a river... 599 00:51:42,917 --> 00:51:45,818 Kind of my river. 600 00:51:49,790 --> 00:51:51,690 But it's our river. 601 00:51:51,692 --> 00:51:56,095 Its future health and wellbeing is up to us. 602 00:52:40,740 --> 00:52:44,944 To learn more about what you've seen on this "Nature" program, 603 00:52:44,946 --> 00:52:47,446 visit pbs.org. 52745

Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.