All language subtitles for Arctic Secrets S01E05 Wild Seas 1080p AMZN WEB-DL DD+2 0 H 264-QOQ

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(Narrator)
In stormy Arctic seas,

a mysterious gathering
occurs each fall.

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Giants congregate to feed on
clouds of minute plankton.

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The ice-choked waters deter
all but the bravest sailors.

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And the sea grows more
dangerous with

each passing year.

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On land, tiny animals thwart
the mighty Arctic winter.

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As the cold weather
draws close,

Arctic dogs sense
the change in the air,

and grow restless.

(Barking)

Soon they'll race across
the ice in teams,

in their natural element.

*

This is a voyage of
discovery along the

lonely coasts and wild
seas of Ninginganiq.

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(Wind blowing)

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On the northeast coast of
Baffin Island,

in Canada's Arctic,
lies Ninginganiq,

a blustery wilderness where
only the intrepid travel.

*

Powerful currents drive up
to forty icebergs

aground here every day.

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In fall, it can be so
dangerous that even

seasoned Inuit
sailors keep away.

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But this is when one of
Nature's great spectacles

unfolds, rarely
witnessed by humans.

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Bowhead whales gather
here, at home

in the stormy waters.

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They come to Ninginganiq
every year to

feed and socialize.

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Why here rather than
similar bays is a mystery.

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The gathering is as
extraordinary as it's beautiful.

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North Atlantic bowheads,
from eastern Canadian to

Norwegian Arctic
waters, are endangered.

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About sixty bowheads are
here - More than will

gather anywhere
else in this region.

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While other whales migrate
between tropical and polar

oceans, bowheads spend
their lives in the Arctic,

among sea ice.

This has made them
difficult to observe.

Scientists are still
making important

discoveries about
bowhead whales.

They swim slowly round
these frigid seas,

their bodies shielded by fat
thicker than any

other animal - up to
20 inches.

*

They have massive heads
and the largest mouth

of any creature .

It's 10 feet wide
and 20 feet deep,

large enough to feed
their huge body,

which can be 66 feet long.

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The bowhead's dense, bony
skull can break through

two feet of sea ice.

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For all their impressive
physical characteristics,

bowhead whales are most
intriguing because of

their intelligence and
culture of communication.

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(Whale noises)

They sing complex songs,
calling fellow travelers,

or seeking to attract
a mate with their inventions.

(Whale singing)

Each whale can compose new
songs, year after year .

And if one comes up with
a hit, it circulates.

(Whale singing)

Bowheads can be miles
apart but sing the

same song in harmony.

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Whales may even exceed
birds in singing the most

elaborate melodies
in the animal world.

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The songs fascinate
scientists because of

their eerie similarity
to human compositions.

Bowheads are slow-growing
and do not mature sexually

until well into
their twenties.

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They're the world's
longest-lived mammals,

believed to survive
for two hundred years.

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(Steam horn)

But tens of thousands from
this region alone

never got the chance...

victims of hunting on a
genocidal scale.

Their mouths contain
baleen - masses of

bristles, for sifting
the plankton they eat.

*

Whalers from Europe
plundered these shafts of

keratin to sell to corset makers

for 19th-century ladies.

They rendered the
bowheads' thick blubber

into oil for lamps.

Bowheads were so lucrative
to the whaling industry

for hundreds of years that
they were hunted

to the brink of extinction.

*

The industry collapsed in
the northeast Arctic

when there were too few
bowheads left for

whalers to profit.

Even though the whaling
industry ended a century ago,

the eastern Arctic bowhead
population remains devastated.

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Among those that gather
in Ninginganiq each fall,

there may be some that
survived the bloodshed

of the whaling era.

In recent years, bowheads
have been found with

fragments of harpoons
still embedded in their flesh.

*

Ninginganiq is the world's
first sanctuary

where bowheads can
swim untroubled.

No cruise ships are
allowed to come and watch them.

And no commercial
industries are allowed to

disturb them by blasting
the seabed in

search of oil or gas.

*

This is a place so
precious that access is

restricted - even
if you can get here.

Inuit are exempt.

Ninginganiq is their
traditional hunting ground.

Niore Iqalukjuak
is on a pilgrimage.

He helped found the
Ninginganiq wildlife sanctuary.

But he's never seen the
whales gather in fall.

He's coming with his
cousin Joelie Sanguya

to see the bowheads.

The sea ice and
weather are against them.

With the dangers of
capsizing, being swamped

by frigid waves, or
wrecked on ice or rocks,

they travel in two boats
to minimize the risk.

The passage is rough and
Joelie's dog is seasick.

*

Around them the sea ice
is shifting and churning.

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It's moving south with the
prevailing currents,

but smaller pieces
bob in eddies.

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The cousins have
roots in Ninginganiq.

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The place has existed
in Niore's imagination,

through stories
his family tells.

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He hopes to find a boat
his grandfather was forced

to abandon there
decades ago.

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The boat is the only
tangible link

Niorie has left
with his grandfather.

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At last, after hours of
intense concentration,

Niorie and Jolie arrive
safely at the

shores of Ninginganiq.

*

*

They stop at an Inuit
cabin for visitors to keep

safe in bad weather,
and for hunters to rest.

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From the lookout
visitors can observe the

ever-changing condition
of the sea ice.

And spot seals, polar
bears, and whales.

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*

(Speaking Inuktitut)

Niore is a wildlife
photographer and

environmental activist.

He strives to preserve the
Arctic waters from damage

by commercial exploration.

Joelie is a retired school
principal and an expert in

the old Inuit skill
of dog mushing.

He breeds and
trains sled dogs.

He and Niore live
75 miles away.

A world remote from
the one most of us know.

But even to them
Ninginganig is remote.

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This place is revered
in their culture for the

gathering of whales, as
this tribute left by a

previous visitor shows.

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Finally, Niore and Joelie
can enjoy the spectacle

they've traveled
to witness.

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And Niore can capture the
sight of the whales

he's fought to protect.

While you're taking pictures
everything seems so peaceful.

You're not really thinking
of anyone in particular

just the enjoyment of
capturing the land or the

wildlife in their
own elements.

I enjoy seeing
Niore's photography.

Oh, there's a fin;
there is it.

One time he was sitting
on the edge of the cliff,

and that scared me.

Don't fall.

There's the head.
Ah!

More, more, more, more,
more, more - two.

*

*

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Oh.

The slapping of their tail
flukes is called lobtailing.

It's believed to be
a show of dominance.

*

It's also a precursor
to sexual activity.

And it could
simply be playful.

As the whales age, their
body coloring changes

and their tails develop
markings as unique as

a human fingerprint.

Every now and then the
whales can be heard.

(Whale sounds)

Sometimes it's
a low rumble.

(Whale sounds)

Other times it's a sound
like a cannon shot...

(Splashing sound)

A whale slaps its gigantic
tail, signaling to others.

(Splashing sound)

Most often it's an
explosive hiss of a spout,

the exhalation of expended
air and water from the

bowhead's blowhole.

The spouts can fly
over 20 feet high.

Niorie wants to
take a closer look.

He sees a whale
committing to a deep dive.

It's delving into one of
the offshore troughs in

the seabed,
600 feet deep,

and rich in plankton.

Plankton is plentiful
here at this time of year,

particularly the copepods,

crustaceans that
bowheads favor.

Tiny animals feeding
one of the biggest.

Copepods are vastly
present in the world's oceans.

There are more copepods on
the planet than insects.

*

The bowheads can feed
underwater for forty minutes.

They maintain a rhythmic
cycle for hours -

resting, drawing breath,
and plunging down.

*

*

Mostly older whales feed
here, as evidenced by the

color and markings on
their bodies and tails.

When this one resurfaces,
it's further from the boat.

It may be because it wants
to stay away from humans.

As they age, whales become
increasingly wary of humans.

Their experience has
taught them that people

usually mean trouble.

At the end of a long day,
Niorie and Joelie set up camp.

Back on firm ground,
Joelie's dog feels more steady.

Her name is 'Siqiniq'
which means 'sun' in Inuktitut.

She's a trusted member of
the team that Joelie

takes on hunting trips.

She's also a good alarm
for the presence of polar bears.

Siqiniq is a tough work
dog bred for long-distance

travel across the sea ice.

Like any expert sledder,
Joelie has his own

repertoire of sounds and
commands for communicating

with his dogs.

(Joelie makes different
sounds/calls)

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There's no freshwater
source nearby.

But fragments of icebergs
from the sea provide them

with pure water from a
glacier thousands of years old

and hundreds
of miles away.

*

*

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The water in this pond is
stagnant, so people can't

drink it and fish
can't live in it.

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But, here, a tiny creature
thrives that can

combat the Arctic winter.

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Like the giant bowhead
whale, the tadpole shrimp

is a filter feeder.

It spends all summer
searching for food.

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Each winter, the pond
freezes and a generation

of shrimps dies.

But it leaves behind
frost-resistant eggs that

lie dormant until the
water thaws in spring,

when they hatch.

It survives because its
eggs are so durable.

They can weather a
drought of twenty years.

*

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Landmarks left by
humans are from whaling.

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This stone ruin, weathered
by over a hundred

Arctic winters, was once a
whaling watchtower.

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It looked straight out to
the seabed troughs,

where the whales feed.

When whales appeared in
the bay, the whalers'

flags flew as a
call to the kill.

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Whaleboats launched and
whales perished

in the onslaught.

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A weathered fragment of
whale skull, about 3 feet tall,

may be a
whaling relic.

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It fits into a niche at
the top of the spine,

connecting it to
the huge jawbone.

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Higher up on a hillside
lie human remains.

This lonely graveyard
is 150 years old.

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Whalers are buried here,
far from their homes

in Scotland.

The harsh Arctic winds
have scoured the wooden

grave markers so they
are no longer legible.

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Whalers lived here,
alongside the native Inuit.

The Inuit supplied them
with food and clothing and

taught them the ways
of the marine mammals,

the sea, and the ice.

*

The decaying frames of
Inuit sod houses and tents

remain from the
last century.

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These are remnants of
Inuit dwellings

hundreds of years old.

The stone foundations
supported rafters of

whalebone and a roof
made of sealskins.

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Whalers lived on their
ships and left no homes behind.

*

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Niore and Joelie are in
Ninginganiq in September,

the same time of year as
the whalers were here.

*

In spring, the whalers
were drawn north by the

Baffin Bay current, which
determines the movement of

ice on these wild seas.

*

The current flows in
a counter clockwise direction.

It draws warmer water
up from the Atlantic

and thaws ice off
Greenland in spring.

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The old whaling ships
sailed north as the ice

broke around them.

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They hunted in Northern
Baffin Bay for the summer

and then traveled with the
current south in the fall.

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In the middle of Baffin
Bay is a vast field of floes.

It's so cold that these
sheets of ice,

trapped in the current's
eddy, never melt.

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Whalers called it
the Middle Ice,

and it struck them
with terror.

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They dodged it as
best as they could.

But many ships were
wrecked,

and many whalers perished.

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In the late 1800s,
bowheads avoided the

whalers' sailing ships
by retreating to the

ice-choked waters
of Ninginganiq.

They found sanctuary here -
until the whalers

returned in more powerful
steamships that

broke through the ice.

*

The sea ice is as much a
part of Inuit life as the land.

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For thousands of years,
the Inuit have navigated

around dangerous floes
and icebergs, hunting,

fishing, and traveling in
their small, agile boats -

umiaks and kayaks.

*

*

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Niore's grandfather,
Mosesie, died before they met.

So when Niore learned that
Mosesie had left a boat here,

he felt a
longing to find it.

But every attempt
has been thwarted.

I've tried to go to it
three times but had to

turn back because of
wind or snow or fog.

And I kept saying,
'It's not the time yet'.

He has felt that no
time has been right.

But now, after the hard
journeys, the time has come.

*

Mosesie's name is still
visible on the bow.

Niore can pay
his respects.

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A boat is a powerful
symbol in his Inuit heritage.

It represents providence,
inheritance,

and the struggle for survival.

*

Mosesie spent a
semi-nomadic life on the land.

He bartered the boat from
the Hudson's Bay Company

in exchange for furs.

He had to abandon it here
when it was no longer seaworthy.

Getting to it and looking
at something that

my mother's father once used
was a special moment for me.

*

Towards the end of the
day, the whales turn and

roll near the surface,
flashing flippers and flukes.

*

At least two groups move
closely against each other.

*

*

This behavior is rarely
seen and very special.

*

The bowhead whales are
sexually frolicking,

not in pairs, but many
together, skin to skin,

swirling in contact,
polyamorously.

*

*

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This is not mating
behavior,

which happens in spring.

They're not trying
to procreate.

*

It could be for
social cohesion,

or maybe for pleasure.

*

*

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One or two at a time may
take a turn, lying with

its white belly up,
presenting its sex organs.

*

Several others rub against it,

heterosexually and homosexually.

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They move around and over,
stroking each other with

their bodies and flippers.

*

This has never before been
filmed in such detail.

*

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When bowheads do engage
sexually for procreation,

it's around the age of 25.

A female who's ready to be
fertilized will engage

a group of males.

Scientists think male
bowheads cooperate

to take their turn.

*

Unlike many species,
it seems that the only sexual

competition between
bowheads is at the level

of sperm speeding
towards eggs.

*

Individual males make
no claim for dominance.

We're still learning about
this mysterious creature

and for now bowhead whales
are keeping many details

of their sex life
an Arctic secret.

*

*

While the whales
are busy frolicking,

a polar bear swims by.

It's looking for seals to
catch and isn't

interested in the bowheads.

Besides, the polar bear
can't intimidate the

enormous whales as it
can other Arctic animals.

A polar bear dare not
attack a bowhead but will

happily eat one that it
finds beached on shore.

Inuit in the region are
used to harsh weather,

but not as harsh as in 2015.

*

Landfast ice, lying on
the ocean but attached to land,

wasn't swept away
until early September.

*

Along the coast in coves
and bays, a relentless

wind kept the ice
close to shore.

*

Abnormally high
atmospheric pressure

changed the direction
of prevailing winds.

The sea ice didn't
disperse as usual and

packed coves and bays.

*

Several other factors
contributed to abnormal

weather in the area.

*

Polar regions are
particularly vulnerable

to climate change.

Temperatures here are
increasing twice as fast

as in temperate zones.

*

In 2015, the effects
of climate change were

coupled with El Niño.

This natural but irregular
climatic event originates

in the Pacific Ocean and
disrupts weather patterns

around the world.

*

It can cause droughts in
one region and

hurricanes in another.

2015's El Niño was one of the
most disruptive on record.

*

Between climate change and
El Niño, the stormy seas

of Ninginganik
became wilder.

*

*

*

The morning brings
new challenges.

The surging storm has
raised the tide,

stranding Niore and Joelie
from their boats.

(Dog barks)

They left the boats in a
sheltered spot,

but are worried the storm
has damaged them.

(Dog barks)

At the head of this
peninsula the tide now

sweeps across from
two directions.

They must wade
through the icy water.

The storm has ripped both
boats from anchor and

driven them into
the rocky shore.

The fiberglass hull of
Niore's boat is cracked.

It's no longer seaworthy.

They work hard to
salvage what they can.

We had to do a lot of
hard decisions then.

We took out the engines
and all the electronics stuff

and the steering hoses
and everything,

and in order to try
and save Joelie's boat,

we used up a lot of rope.

*

It should be in the water.

*

Niore's boat is wrecked.

But not the
memories it holds.

*

Lots of memories.

I don't know how many
caribou, 2 bowhead hunts,

a whole bunch of
narwhal hunts.

All the way from the
northern tip of

Baffin Island to

central Baffin it has taken me.

Plus,
a whole bunch of friends

who have been on this boat.

You think of them
and everything.

She couldn't face the
elements, here anyhow.

*

The cousins load up
Joelie's surviving boat as

soon as they can and head
up the coast of Baffin Island,

homeward.

*

They've had enough of late
fall weather and don't

want to be stranded as
winter fast approaches.

*

Siqiniq enjoys the trip
back as little as

she enjoyed the trip out.

(Whimpers)

*

(Dogs barking)

Near Clyde River,
Joelie's dogs

anxiously await his return.

(Dogs barking)

Siqiniq reunites with
her sled teammates.

(Dogs barking)

They've rested all summer and,
as the temperature drops,

they sense winter coming,
when they'll be

able to pull
the sled again.

This dog gave birth to a
litter of puppies a

few weeks ago,
here by the river.

(small whimpers)

(small whimpers)

*

She trusts Joelie, so
doesn't mind him

touching and examining them.

(Dog barks)
- Hey, hey.

(Barks)

Most sled-dog runners
prefer male teams,

but Joelie thinks females
are a better choice.

One male...five females.

Some people prefer to
have males as a team.

But some female
dogs are more agile.

They can move around, they
can twist, they can jump.

Female dogs will run more
and faster than a male.

*

When these puppies are
grown and Joelie trains them,

they can take their
place in his sled team.

*

*

At the end of the day,
Joelie takes his pack out

for a long run.

*

They're creatures
of winter.

*

Winter is hard but there
are Arctic animals,

and humans, who will be
in their true element.

*

*

On the coast of
Ninginganiq,

Mosesie's boat remains.

And now, his grandson
Niore's boat has also

been claimed by the sea.

*

The fall reunion of the
bowheads has dispersed.

*

Early winter waves batter
the shores, deterring the

bravest human seafarer.

And the occasional bowhead
cruises through,

at home in this wildest of seas.

*

*

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