Seasons & episodes

Wilderness is elusive in Britain, but in the Highlands of Scotland, the sacred dance between predator and prey is still played out against a rugged and unforgiving landscape. Gliding above this wild land is Britain's most magnificent predator -- the golden eagle.

This episode of Nature, narrated by Stockard Channing, provides us with a fascinating look into the many steps of evaluating a diamond and preparing it for public sale. Miners dredge the earth, dealers fret over valuation exams to probe the minutest details of the stones, and finally the would-be owners gasp in awe. Diamonds are their own glorious world. Get a look at how they go from mining to necklace--with plenty of human drama along the way. You may never look at jewelry the same way again.

S22 · E8The Real Macaw 2004-02-15 · 53 min＋

Everyone loves macaws. Playful, intelligent, beautiful, they are the stars of parrot parks and zoos, and the cherished pets of devoted owners around the world. All of which makes them prime targets for poachers, who can make enormous profits from illegal sales of the birds. Thousands are smuggled from the wild each year, and many die in the process. In the forests of South America, several species of macaw are severely endangered. But there is hope on the horizon. Dr. Charlie Munn, a wealthy American who is also a leading ornithologist and world expert on parrots, has begun a campaign to promote eco-tourism as a means of saving the birds. Employing former poachers as conservationists, and providing locals with the means to start and maintain a trade in tourism instead of smuggling, he’s betting that instead of buying birds, their fans will pay to see them in the wild.

S22 · E9Holy Cow 2004-02-22 · 53 min＋

About 8,000 years ago, the relationship between cows and man began with the revolutionary advent of domestication in Mesopotamia, the Indus River Valley, and Africa. Discover how cows have altered human life, human biology, and the geography of the world.

S22 · E10Ireland 2004-03-28 · 53 min＋

NATURE's "Ireland" explores the richly textured natural world of the Emerald Isle, from its diverse wildlife to its craggy mountains and fog-shrouded coastlines.

S22 · E11Flight School 2004-04-11 · 53 min＋

To help ensure the survival of endangered whooping cranes, Operation Migration maintains an artificial breeding program that prepares chicks for adulthood.

S22 · E12Land of the Falling Lakes 2004-04-18 · 53 min＋

“Land of the Falling Lakes” looks at Croatia's Plitvice Lakes National Park, an ancient forest of stunning beauty and waterways continuously evolving from limestone formations. Included: the brown bear, one of which intrudes on a wolf pack's meal of wild boar; and the olm, a subterranean creature without eyes which navigates and hunts via bioelectrical senses.

Follow the adventures of Pale Male, a daring red-tailed hawk who manages to thrive in the urban world of New York City.

S23 · E1Chasing Big Cats 2004-11-07 · 53 min＋

The big cats of Africa have always been favored subjects of wildlife filmmakers. But as little as 15 years ago, no one had captured the unforgettable image of a leopard in its ghostly nocturnal stalk. Viewers had never seen intimate portrayals of the sleek and elusive serval, or witnessed the nighttime romps of the beautiful black-eared caracal. The team of Owen Newman and Amanda Barrett filled those gaps with a series of spectacular breakthrough films in the 1990s. Among the first to apply infrared light and night vision goggles to wildlife studies, they combined technology with intrepid determination and a strong dose of luck, illuminating the cats we hardly knew, and giving us fresh insights into those we only thought we knew, such as lions and cheetahs.

S23 · E2Shark Mountain 2004-11-14 · 53 min＋

Rarely seen aspects of shark behavior highlight this extraordinary view of undersea life, including an organized feeding frenzy with other predators that help herd their prey; night hunting in packs; and their violent courtship ritual. Also: the red-lipped batfish, which “walks” on the ocean floor via modified fins.

S23 · E3The Good, the Bad and the Grizzly 2004-11-21 · 53 min＋

Yellowstone's restored grizzly-bear population and its conflicts with humans are examined, with food the force driving the bears, which have been protected as endangered species for 30 years. That's now challenged by lawmakers, while ecological changes threaten bears' food sources. Chris Cooper narrates.

S23 · E4Violent Hawaii 2005-01-09 · 53 min＋

“Violent Hawaii” offers a panorama of nature in action, including volcanoes; humpback whales; tsunamis; and big-wave surfers and the lifeguards who rescue them at a beach nicknamed “Jaws.” James Naughton narrates.

S23 · E5Silent Roar: Searching for the Snow Leopard 2005-01-16 · 53 min＋

Most big cats do their best to remain hidden from human eyes, but none are quite as adept at this as the snow leopard. These cats lead largely solitary lives, populating the Himalayas at altitudes that offer only about half the oxygen to which humans are accustomed. So when wildlife filmmakers Hugh Miles and Mitchell Kelly set out to film this animal they knew they were in for a challenge.

S23 · E6Cuba: Wild Island of the Caribbean 2005-01-30 · 53 min＋

“Cuba: Wild Island of the Caribbean” explores the country's diverse animal life, much of it found nowhere else. Included: the Cuban crocodile, which can leap as high as seven feet.

Orphaned orangutans, their parents killed for their value as 'exotic' animals, face a struggle to survive in the jungles of Borneo. The researchers of Camp Leakey rescue the young and try to help the species hang on.

S23 · E8Snowflake: the White Gorilla 2005-02-20 · 53 min＋

For nearly 40 years an albino gorilla named Snowflake was adored by people around the world. NATURE’s Snowflake: The White Gorilla tells the story of this remarkable animal, from his loving upbringing by humans to his eventual death from skin cancer in 2003. It also tracks the revolutionary changes in our understanding of how best to care for gorillas that have taken place during Snowflake’s lifetime.

S23 · E9The Venom Cure 2005-04-03 · 53 min＋

Scientists have discovered that natural poisons and venoms contain chemicals that can be used to create drugs for treating everything from chronic pain to cancer.

The first of three “Deep Jungle” shows, with high-tech innovations capturing views of rain-forest life big and small. Included: the elusive Sumatran tiger; flying lizards and snakes in Borneo; a bird that moonwalks as part of its courtship ritual; a moth that feeds with a 12-inch tongue. John Hannah narrates.

In the Amazon — the world’s largest rainforest — trees fight to the death for water and sunlight. Giant spiders as big as dinner plates take shelter in underground lairs. Buzzing bees and scurrying mammals help hold together an amazing web of life that centers on the Brazil nut tree. One of the world’s largest rivers carries floodwaters that turn forests into massive lakes.

What jungles reveal about humanity, through studies of primates and ruins of ancient civilizations in Guatemala and Cambodia, and why those cultures collapsed. Cameras capture monkeys using tools to open nuts, and chimps are seen in a coordinated hunt for one of their own.

S23 · E13The Dolphin Defender 2005-05-15 · 53 min＋

Nearly three decades ago, filmmaker Hardy Jones became fascinated by wild dolphins. Even though many said it couldn’t be done, he set out to film these sleek sea mammals in the open ocean. Along the way, he became closely involved with his subjects and came to appreciate dolphins as highly intelligent creatures worthy of careful protection. Eventually, Jones turned his camera into a tool for conservation. He filmed dramatic dolphin hunts, and the documentary footage made headlines and sparked international protests. Jones also discovered the effects of chemical pollution on dolphins and orcas, the largest species of dolphin. He came to realize that threats to these marine mammals were threats to the ocean itself, and to us all.

S24 · E1Killers in Eden 2005-11-06 · 53 min＋

On the southeast coast of Australia, the town of Eden nestles along the shores of Twofold Bay. It was once a center of Australia’s thriving whaling industry, in part because it lies along the migration path of baleen whales swimming northward from the Antarctic. But residents say Eden’s whalers got some unusual help — from orcas, or killer whales, that patrolled offshore.

S24 · E2Can Animals Predict Disaster? 2005-11-13 · 53 min＋

In interviews with scientists and eyewitnesses, NATURE probes the evidence that some animals may have senses that allow them to predict impending natural disasters long before we can.

S24 · E3Katrina's Animal Rescue 2005-11-20 · 53 min＋

Rescue missions to save animals in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Included: a dog that spent days on a rooftop is saved; four dolphins that were washed out to sea from the Marine Life Oceanarium in Gulfport, Miss., are rescued by a NOAA crew. Also: the evacuation of 19 penguins, two sea otters, a sea turtle and sea dragons from the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans.