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Exploring India's incredible biodiversity India: nature's wonderland, highlights everything from tea plantations frequently visited by elephants to the nesting grounds of the Olive Ridley sea turtles ....
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00:09India.
00:14A vibrant, bustling world.
00:17Home to over a billion people.
00:20But if you know where to look,
00:23the most spectacular wildlife.
00:29Ancient cultures.
00:33And extreme landscapes can be found.
00:40I'm Liz Bonin.
00:42I'm here to explore India's spectacular wildlife
00:46in one of the most biodiverse places on Earth.
00:49I've spent years studying wildlife.
00:52But every time I return to India,
00:55I discover something new.
00:59I completely underestimated how extraordinary
01:03and eye-opening this is going to be.
01:07Actor Frida Pinto was born here.
01:10She wants to share the remarkable bond
01:13between India's people and the natural world.
01:17You always see that there is a connection
01:20between man and animal.
01:25And from the highest peaks on Earth,
01:28mountaineer John Gupta explores India's most extreme landscapes.
01:33My passion is mountains.
01:36And there is nowhere in the world like the Himalayas.
01:44We're travelling the length and breadth of this subcontinent
01:48to reveal the hidden wonders of India's natural world.
02:15India is a place that's captivated me ever since my first visit.
02:20India is a place that's captivated me ever since my first visit.
02:22It's very special because I have a family connection.
02:24My great-grandparents came from India.
02:27And every time I return, I know I'm going to discover something new
02:31that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
02:35I want to start this journey with one of India's biggest surprises.
02:39It comes in the form of one of this country's most iconic animals.
02:45The big cats.
02:50India may be known as the land of the tiger,
02:53but up until 1970, another big cat was the national animal of this country.
02:58The lion.
02:59India is home to the world's only Asiatic lions.
03:04A rare subspecies that once ranged from here to the Mediterranean.
03:09Hunting and population growth over the past 200 years
03:13have resulted in their disappearance everywhere except India.
03:18I've tracked tigers across India, but I've never seen an Asiatic lion.
03:24This is the home of India's last remaining Asiatic lions.
03:28The Ghir forest.
03:31A national park that's 580 square miles of broadleaf scrub
03:36in the northwest of the country.
03:41At one time, there were said to be as few as 12 lions left.
03:47Park director Dr. Sandeep Kumar and his team have worked tirelessly
03:52to ensure that the number is now over 500 and rising.
04:03After two hours on the road, I get my first sight.
04:08Two young males soaking up the early morning sun.
04:12Look at that! Look at that!
04:15Oh!
04:17They are just beautiful.
04:22So immediately you can see two of the main features that differentiate the Asiatic to the African lion.
04:29The belly fold.
04:30And the mane is much shorter, isn't it?
04:33And it doesn't surround the face in the same way?
04:35Yeah.
04:37The belly fold is one of the best ways to identify Asiatic lions.
04:43It serves no purpose, but is a trait that was retained in those lions that travelled here from Africa.
04:52At three to four years old, these males are not quite adult yet.
04:56They've only recently left their mother.
04:59And they must now display their own strength and independence.
05:09What are they doing?
05:11Basically, they are telling now.
05:15If there is anybody who wants to challenge me, please come.
05:19Yeah.
05:20They are beginning to assert themselves.
05:22Yeah.
05:23Establishment.
05:24Establishment.
05:35Basically, they will not compete with each other.
05:38Both, you know, both of them will try to fight with the other pairs of, you know, the lion.
05:48African lions can form coalitions like this too, working together to protect their territory and the prides they can associate
05:56with for several years.
05:58But these two will never live with a pride.
06:01For Asiatic males, it's all about protecting territory.
06:07But what about the females?
06:12If we can find them, we might even see cubs.
06:17In Africa, they would be in prides up to 30 strong.
06:21They have to be to take down large prey like wildebeest.
06:24But here we're looking for a smaller group since their prey is usually smaller.
06:30Now you can see there, there is, you know, the cubs and, you know, lioness.
06:33Where?
06:33Just in front of this prey, yeah.
06:35Oh, wow.
06:37How old are the cubs?
06:39They are just four months old.
06:43This is typical of lions in India.
06:45A couple of females with a few cubs.
06:52The one, the cub in the middle, is passed out.
06:55He is not budging.
06:56Okay.
06:57These two are, you know, the male.
06:58Okay.
06:59The two awake ones.
07:00The sleeping one, you know, is the female.
07:02Okay.
07:02Basically, male cubs, you know, they will keep on behaving like a smart guy, you know, moving
07:06here and there.
07:07They're more active.
07:08Yeah, more active.
07:09Yeah, yeah, yeah.
07:09They're more foolish, probably.
07:14I now understand what you mean about Asiatic females.
07:19These lionesses are incredibly muscular and powerful.
07:24And so it's all about how they have to hunt their prey.
07:30In this dense forested habitat, the females don't need to chase their prey any great distance.
07:37They're built to take them down quickly.
07:42Not that these lions show any interest in anything more than keeping out of the sun.
07:48But in an instant, everything changes.
07:51And these remarkable hunters become opportunist ambush predators.
07:56A large Indian antelope called a Nilgai has unwittingly strayed a little too close.
08:04The females are on the alert.
08:22The lions are using the terrain to their advantage, creeping into a dry riverbed, hoping to ambush the Nilgai.
08:41This time, the Nilgai escapes.
08:47Next time, it might not be so lucky.
08:52This has been a fascinating trip.
08:56I wasn't sure I'd even see Asiatic lions, let alone get close to them or witness them in action.
09:07They are absolutely perfect, such a privilege to get so close to these extremely rare animals.
09:29With Sandeep and his team dedicated to helping them, these lions, once the symbol of India, will continue to have
09:36a home here.
09:462,000 miles away in the northeast of India, the state of Assam holds another surprise.
09:53I'm not here to see India's cheeky monkeys, but another member of the primate family.
10:00One of our closer relatives and India's only ape, the hulak gibbon.
10:07I did not know apes actually existed in India.
10:11But more people need to hear about these endangered animals, because they have an enchanting skill.
10:19Every morning, they sing.
10:23Their sanctuary is only eight square miles.
10:27For just over a hundred gibbons, it's a tiny, semi-evergreen forest island.
10:36Surrounded by the modern world, tea plantations and towns.
10:44I've come to meet Debenbura, a warden here.
10:47He has dedicated his life to protecting this small gibbon population.
10:53How many years have you worked here?
10:55I was here in 1985.
10:58At that time, I was in reserve forest.
11:00Debenbura has been here since 1985, and he's been working in the forest right since that time.
11:07So, no wonder he's our man. He's our expert.
11:11I'm travelling with wildlife cameraman Sandesh Kadur.
11:15He and Debenbura have collaborated to film these gibbons for years.
11:20Sandesh's camera is the best way for me to get a close look at these gibbons, as they live high
11:24in the canopy.
11:27All right, you want to see the great view right here?
11:33Gibbons are the only apes that sing.
11:36Every morning, this forest comes alive with a complex range of calls.
11:42Debenbura knows everyone.
11:44Why are Gibbons singing?
11:46One group calls from the other group.
11:49We are here, this area is here.
11:51The other group calls us here, this area.
11:53The other group calls us here, this area for the tree twill.
11:55Sometimes, there is a lot of people watching the leopard.
11:58They are also on the ground.
12:00They are on the ground.
12:01When the leopard is on the ground, they are on the ground.
12:07They are on the ground.
12:09They are on the ground.
12:10They are on the ground.
12:13They are on the ground.
12:16They are on the ground.
12:16Hulak Gibbons are monogamous.
12:18This is a family with a three-year-old.
12:21The babies are born pure white.
12:24They turn brown and dark into black if they are males, like this one.
12:30Females stay golden brown, like his mother.
12:37Like Gibbons, what do you like Gibbons?
12:40What do you work with Gibbons?
12:42What do you work with Gibbons?
13:03him. He's part of the family.
13:06Before the gibbons sing, they have breakfast, feeding off the fruits at the top of the trees.
13:15When this family notice us, they swing over. They may regard Deben as one of the family,
13:23but they'd still like us to give them space.
13:27Oh, it did poop on you!
13:40Don't be grossed out. This is given to you. And guess what? It's all vegetarian. It's only fruit.
13:47Hulak spend their lives up to 100 feet high in the canopy. They have specially adapted joints
13:53for gripping and swinging. They are the fastest non-flying animals in the forest. They can
14:01move through the trees at 35 miles per hour. So when they set off to find other fruit trees,
14:08it's a struggle just to keep up.
14:11We're following the gibbons now. They're taking us for a little bit of a walk. They're really
14:16making us work very hard for the singing.
14:32Across the northeast, forests have made way for homes, industry, and roads. The number
14:38of gibbons has fallen to 2,600. But Deben's Forest has been protected for over 100 years. In 1997, it
14:47became the only sanctuary
14:49named after gibbons. The Hulangapar Gibbon Sanctuary.
14:57It's the mother who's easiest to spot. It just needs one family to start singing, and the others
15:03will all join in. Deben and I decide to try and get them going.
15:18Are gibbons choose to ignore us? Just a few minutes later, something quite extraordinary happens.
15:47The forest starts to fall with the sound of the other gibbon family singing.
16:00It's a crescendo.
16:17Locals call this the singing forest.
16:21It's thanks to Deben and his colleagues that India continues to hear the songs of her only ape.
16:34A thousand miles to the northwest, it's like being in another world.
16:40I'm in the middle of a collision of continents. This is where the Indian subcontinent crashed into Asia
16:4640 million years ago, pushing the seabed up.
16:52Absorbing the impact of this is the world's biggest crumple zone, the Himalayas.
17:07I'm 13,000 feet up in the air, and these are just the foothills.
17:14When I climbed Everest, I was 29,000 feet above the sea.
17:23This range is the roof of the world, and its winds and waters touch every part of the Indian subcontinent.
17:30It is the youngest and the highest mountain range in the entire world.
17:36I've climbed the Himalayas many times in Nepal.
17:41But I've never visited the Indian side.
17:45There's a reason I needed to come here.
17:48My grandfather was born in Shimla, a town further along the Himalayas.
17:53For me to finally be here, seeing what he would have seen growing up as a child, is really special
17:58to me.
17:59So for my first visit to India, I want to see how these mountains have a dramatic effect on its
18:05natural wonders,
18:06and shape life across the whole subcontinent.
18:13The word Himalaya means the abode of snow.
18:17It's a good name.
18:19These mountains bestow a precious gift upon India.
18:23Water.
18:30This is the source of fresh water for a fifth of the entire population of the world.
18:3815,000 glaciers feed five of the largest rivers in Asia.
18:45But for millions of Indians, one stands above all others.
18:50Over there is Chukumba, which means four pillars.
18:53It lies at the head of the Gangotri Glacier, which feeds the River Ganges.
19:00If the mountains are the driving force of India, the Ganges is its engine.
19:07The River Ganges originates in the highest mountain range on earth,
19:12and ends in the world's largest river delta.
19:18Almost half a billion people depend upon its life-giving waters.
19:26And countless species of animals would perish without it.
19:31No wonder Hindus worship the river.
19:37Millions flock to holy places all along her banks.
19:41Varanasi is considered the most sacred.
19:53It's said the goddess Ganga was called to earth to purify mankind.
20:02Ganga fell from heaven with such force that she would have destroyed the earth.
20:08So another god caught the deluge in his hair, distributing it into gentle streams.
20:19But as the streams grow, the power of the water begins to exert itself.
20:30This is truly a force of nature.
20:34I just sat here and I'm getting buffeted by the wind and absolutely drenched.
20:40The waters cut paths through the Himalayan rock, shaping this landscape.
20:47But these waters do not yet carry the name Ganges.
20:52Each time one river joins another, it's marked as a holy place.
20:57These sacred confluences are called Prayags.
21:03The most important of all is here.
21:12This place is called Dev Prayag and it means God's Confluence.
21:16These two rivers either side of me, coming together just here to start the beginning of the river Ganges.
21:25It is a lifelong ambition of every Hindu to bathe in the Ganges.
21:31The water here is holy and people come from all around the country to swim here to purify their soul
21:37and get rid of their sins.
21:41So I think I should give it a go too.
21:55It's pretty chilly, but it's actually incredibly refreshing and it feels wonderful.
22:04This is how Indians prepare for a journey, by washing.
22:15For Hindus, the Ganges connects India's past and present.
22:24It's a place where they can pay homage to their ancestors.
22:28Many people scatter the ashes of relatives in the river.
22:32Others make offerings of petals as a mark of gratitude.
22:36My grandfather left these mountains for Britain.
22:40These are for him.
22:43I'm grateful to follow in his footsteps and finally see the mountains and river that are such an important part
22:49of life here.
22:56The Himalayas aren't India's only mountains.
23:00I'm travelling far south to India's other great range.
23:05The Western Ghats.
23:09These lower forested hills stretch from Mumbai all the way to the bottom of the country.
23:15They only reach 4,900 feet above sea level, but they are one of the most biodiverse places on Earth.
23:25India is well known for its tea.
23:29Assam and Darjeeling are household names.
23:34It produces over a million tons of it a year.
23:38A quarter of all Indian tea grows here.
23:43Thousands work in the plantations that carpet these slopes.
23:49But this part of the Western Ghats is called the Anamali.
23:54It means elephant hills.
23:58For centuries, the forests here have provided a safe home to India's largest land animal.
24:06I've come here to discover what happens when one of India's iconic animals has to share this land with the
24:12demands of the tea industry.
24:15There's elephant droppings all over this road.
24:18Asian elephants are easily distinguished by their smaller ears, dented foreheads, and the fact that only the males have tusks.
24:29The Western Ghats are home to the largest population of elephants in India, around 10,000.
24:36But as trees have made way for tea, so the forest has become fragmented.
24:42The elephants still need to get from one patch of forest to the next to find food.
24:48Which gives rise to one of India's unique sights.
24:52Something I wanted to see from the moment I first heard about it.
24:58Elephants in the tea.
25:00I think there she is. I think there's here.
25:02Where, where, where, where?
25:02Look there to the left, the swamp is here.
25:05Swamp, yes.
25:06You see her there?
25:07No.
25:07Yes! Elephant!
25:11There she is.
25:13My guide is Ganesh Raghunathan.
25:16He's been working with the elephants here for three years.
25:20We need to approach this elephant carefully.
25:23She seems calm, but if we startle her, it could be very dangerous.
25:27We've been upwind of her.
25:31But the wind is just changing direction, so we've got to be really careful that once she figures out we're
25:37here, that she doesn't get stressed.
25:41Ah, she's a beauty.
25:43Yeah.
25:45So the elephants don't destroy the tea plantations, do they? They don't feed on the tea.
25:49No, they don't feed on the tea.
25:50They walk along these paths, in fact, you look at these paths that are here.
25:54It's something that the elephants have worked on for a long time.
25:58The elephants have fixed travel routes to source food and water, using tracks established long before the tea plantations appeared.
26:10This is a landscape that these elephants have been moving through for hundreds of years, and they haven't changed their
26:17habits.
26:18They've sort of adapted to how the landscape has changed.
26:22The elephants do this every day, and wherever they appear, people keep a watchful eye.
26:30Their migration routes are so firmly established in a herd, passed on from the elder individuals to the youngest.
26:40It's not something that's going to change.
26:43Ganesh is part of a team tracking the movements of the elephants that live in several herds around the tea.
26:50The more they understand their behaviour, the more they can keep elephants and people apart.
26:57Is she the matriarch?
26:58Yes, she's the matriarch.
27:00How old is she?
27:01Definitely over 40 years of age.
27:03And how old is he then?
27:04He's about seven to ten years of age.
27:06And where, so where are the rest of the herd right now?
27:08They're headed that way, in this direction.
27:10Do they often separate?
27:13Yeah, they do that very often.
27:14Why, why is that?
27:15It's because...
27:15See, again, these are all fragments of forest, right?
27:18So, this herd is about 23 in number.
27:21The place wouldn't be able to provide for all of them to forage in one place.
27:24So they break up, they go in different directions, but they regroup very soon as well.
27:28Right.
27:30Oh look, oh look, she's nudging him, she's nudging him.
27:33Get into that forest!
27:33Yes.
27:38But I want to know what happens when elephants and people do meet.
27:44Thousands work here.
27:49The problems are caused by unexpected encounters.
27:56A startled elephant can charge and attack.
28:00They've even killed people.
28:03This happened mostly after sundown.
28:06So people would walk back home from the bus stops, like a bus stop that we have here.
28:10Yeah.
28:10And they didn't have any clue about where these elephants were.
28:14And it was mostly a surprise encounter.
28:16And since 1994 we've had about 41 people who've lost their lives here.
28:23But there is a determination to make cohabitation work.
28:27Ganesh works for the Nature Conservation Foundation.
28:30They've come up with an elephant warning system.
28:33The local television channel shows news flashes every afternoon.
28:37And up to the minute alerts are sent using mobile phones.
28:42Almost 10% of phone users have signed up to receive group texts.
28:46So that's a facility where you can send out one single text message to a large number of people.
28:52So right now I can send out about 1500 messages to about 1500 people in a span of one second
29:00or so.
29:01And just as vital are the texts Ganesh receives of up to the minute elephant sightings every day.
29:08So how long has this system been up and running and have you noticed a difference in the fatalities?
29:13There used to be an average of about three people who used to lose their lives to elephants every year.
29:19And now I think that's dropped to about 1.5, which is half of it.
29:25When you started, did you anticipate it would be such a success?
29:28No.
29:29Really?
29:30No, we didn't anticipate anything since we started.
29:34Ganesh and the project he's working on are proof of how modern India is learning to live in harmony with
29:40its natural world.
29:43Elephants are complex and intelligent animals.
29:48Despite their size, they can be incredibly delicate and gentle.
29:57This is their home and thanks to the passion of the people here, these hills can continue to carry the
30:04name of Elephant Hills.
30:09But not all elephant stories are stories of co-existence.
30:14I've come to Kazirunga National Park, the largest national park in Assam, where elephants are the best way of getting
30:21around.
30:22It gives me a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
30:31One of the most wonderful things about Indian wildlife is that you never know when you're going to be surprised
30:36with something new.
30:37I just found out that a baby was born just a month ago, and I am going to see it
30:43right now.
30:45Elephants have been working animals in India for 4,000 years, hauling lumber and carrying heavy goods.
30:52In Kazirunga, they're the best way for both tourists and rangers to get around.
30:57They're almost part of the family.
30:59One of Kazirunga's working mothers is willing to share her family with me.
31:05I'm accompanied once more by wildlife cameraman Sandesh Kadur.
31:09His knowledge will help me understand how best to approach the mother and her infant.
31:14Just let her come to you.
31:16The baby's name is Rupohi.
31:19Beautiful one.
31:24There, see, she's coming, the mother's coming.
31:26She knows you have bananas, so now you can probably feed her.
31:29Do I give her one?
31:30Yeah, give her one at a time.
31:31Okay.
31:31Go ahead.
31:32I'm trying to break them.
31:34Here you go, mommy.
31:38Just keep giving her one.
31:39Look, look.
31:40And she lifts her legs so she doesn't trample the...
31:43The baby.
31:44That's a good way to get the baby close to you.
31:48Come around me on my right.
31:51On your right?
31:52Yeah.
31:52The gestation period for a baby elephant is 18 to 22 months.
32:02The calf will actually be fully developed by the 19th month.
32:06But it needs to stay in the womb so it can grow tall enough to reach its mother to feed.
32:13They are dependent on their mother's milk for three to four years.
32:17Oh, we're walking.
32:18We're ready to go to the water now.
32:25Elephants are not just part of work.
32:28They are also part of worship.
32:30All over India, you see evidence of how important they are.
32:35For Hindus, the god Ganesh has the head of an elephant.
32:39He's a symbol of strength and the remover of obstacles.
32:43Which means Hindus place his likeness everywhere, hoping he'll help.
32:49There is even one in my jeep.
32:59To me, elephants are the best example of how important animals in the natural world are to the culture of
33:05India.
33:10This is why getting to meet this precious newborn is so exciting.
33:32I can only get this close because the mother has decided to trust me.
33:37And Rupohi is so young, her trunk can't hurt me.
33:41If only she'd take my hand.
33:57This is clearly one of the most beautiful mother-baby experiences I've ever had.
34:02Just up close.
34:04To have the baby just trust you and to come and wrap its little trunk around you,
34:09you know that it's going to accept you as its playmate for a little while.
34:15In Kazuranga, the working elephants live almost like wild elephants.
34:19When they're not working, they're free to roam.
34:24It provides a wonderful example of the quality that bonds people to the wildlife here.
34:30Respect.
34:35From an animal you can get close to,
34:38to an elusive and mysterious predator.
34:42One that has always carried with it a deep cultural significance.
34:47The tiger is the guardian of the forest.
34:51He created the reins, regenerates life, brings fertility.
34:54No other animal has quite so much attributed to it.
34:58And perhaps that's because, unlike much of her wildlife, tigers can be found across almost the whole of India.
35:05India has 48 tiger reserves, but the tiger is an endangered animal.
35:12There are just over 2,000 Bengal tigers left in the wild.
35:17They're an animal I care passionately about, and for me there is no greater sight than seeing one hunt.
35:24There is no one hunt.
36:17The deer get away, but it's only a matter of time.
36:21About one in ten hunting attempts is a successful kill.
36:26It's no secret that I'm somewhat obsessed with tigers and there is nothing like seeing
36:32one in the wild.
36:33But when it comes to emulating the spirit of the tiger, South India is the place to be.
36:43Southern India is home to a spectacular celebration, the Puli Kali, the tiger dance.
36:51As someone who is so passionate about tigers, I simply have to see it.
37:08No one's quite sure how this local tradition started, but some say it began over 200 years
37:14ago when a maharaja wanted a dance to celebrate the spirit of the wild.
37:19And there's no animal that embodies that better for Indians than the tiger.
37:24So, how many painters in total get the honour of making these wonderful works of art?
37:3225, 30 people are there.
37:34Just 30?
37:35Uh-huh.
37:36How long have you been doing it?
37:37How many years?
37:38Ten years.
37:39Ten?
37:40Ten years.
37:40Ten years.
37:48Ten years.
37:49Ten years.
37:53Ten years.
37:53Ten years.
37:53Ten years.
37:54Ten years.
37:55Ten years.
37:57Ten years.
37:58Ten years.
37:58So you make the mouth bigger.
38:03I knew the belly was important.
38:06The bigger the belly, the better the tiger.
38:09I even get the chance to have a go myself.
38:12It's so beautifully done that I don't want to let the side down.
38:18I get to paint a tiger on someone's belly.
38:24We're performing in the grounds of a temple,
38:26so it's important that we receive a blessing
38:28before going ahead with the dance.
38:31Limbered up, painted up, looking the part.
38:35I think we're ready for the dance.
38:39I've seen tigers hunt.
38:42I've seen them prowl.
38:43But I've never seen them quite like this.
38:58The dance is a seasonal event,
39:01performed once a year at the Harvest Festival of Onam
39:05around the beginning of September.
39:07The biggest can have up to 900 dancers,
39:10and they can dance for hours on end.
39:15I fell under the spell of a tiger on my first visit to India.
39:21The female I set eyes on then had such an impact on me
39:25that when I returned home,
39:27I took up my studies in wild animal biology.
39:32Tigers have been part of my life ever since.
39:42They're clearly a part of the lives of these dancers too.
39:56That was incredible.
39:58It's just so lovely to see so much dedication,
40:01so much passion, so much energy in a dance like this.
40:07And when you think the tiger, you know,
40:08is on the brink of extinction,
40:10it's so heartwarming to see people who are so dedicated
40:15to revering, celebrating, and protecting the tiger here.
40:19Brilliant.
40:21This is a celebration with animals at its heart.
40:25And finally, there may be real calls for celebration.
40:28Some studies are reporting that tiger numbers
40:31seem to be recovering.
40:39Back in the northeast of the country,
40:41I've come to a land that is famous for its climate
40:44throughout India.
40:46A place I've known about since I was a seven-year-old schoolgirl.
40:51Meghaler.
40:54When I was in school in India,
40:56I learned about this little town in the northeast of India,
41:02in the state of Meghaler, called Chirapunji.
41:04And the interesting fact of this place
41:06was that it rained almost every day of the year.
41:12My geography textbook would proudly tell me
41:14that Chirapunji holds the world record
41:16for most rain in a calendar month.
41:19Over 30 feet.
41:29Chirapunji can get more rain in a month
41:31than Seattle gets in a year.
41:34Of course, it doesn't rain every day.
41:36But this is a land carved out by water.
41:41The rivers here can rise by over six feet.
41:44It makes it hard to get around.
41:48But Indians have always worked with nature,
41:51using what is available to overcome obstacles.
42:00So this is home to a wonder
42:02that dates back hundreds of years,
42:04yet is still in daily use.
42:11Living bridges made from the roots of trees.
42:23By the way, this is one single tree.
42:26Not just this, this, and this.
42:30One single tree.
42:32It's hard to believe, right?
42:35The trees are fig trees,
42:38chosen because of the way
42:40they produce a series of secondary roots
42:42from higher up the trunk.
42:45These act as added supports for the trunk.
42:49The roots grow quickly,
42:51stabilizing in thin soil
42:53and around rocks.
42:55They are ideal trees for these bridges.
42:59There are quite simply more roots to use.
43:04I don't think I've seen anything like this before.
43:07This is probably one of the most
43:10spectacular things nature has ever shown.
43:13It's shown to me.
43:14Don't think I have stood on a bridge
43:17that is made out of roots of a tree
43:19that is 400 years old.
43:22In Meghalaya, you have these root bridges
43:25almost everywhere,
43:26and it was actually grown by man
43:28in order to overcome the challenge
43:30of crossing the raging rivers,
43:32the raging torrents,
43:33to get from one place to the other,
43:35for trade, for example.
43:40Unlike the bridges I know of,
43:42it is a very, very strong bridge,
43:44and it's only going to get stronger in time.
43:47As the tree grows,
43:49the roots that form the bridge
43:50get thicker and stronger.
43:52New roots are used to maintain the bridge.
43:55This skill may be ancient,
43:57but the local villagers still use it
44:00to maintain old bridges
44:01and even grow new ones.
44:04It's a skill they proudly pass on
44:06to the younger generation,
44:08like Vascomh Walang,
44:09who grew up in the local village
44:11and was taught by the elders.
44:14Vascomh, my friend,
44:15I hear you're an expert
44:16at training the roots
44:18of these living bridges.
44:20How long have you been doing this for?
44:22I mean, not less than five, six years.
44:25I learned from the villages,
44:27and first of all,
44:28the people have to plant the tree first.
44:31And when the roots come out,
44:32that means they just train the roots
44:33to come on the other side of the river.
44:35So, one minute,
44:36you said they plant the tree first?
44:38Yes.
44:38They don't just pick a tree
44:39that already would probably have the roots
44:41that they could train?
44:42No.
44:43That's a lot of dedication.
44:45Yes, yes.
44:46Okay, so they plant the tree,
44:47the roots start growing,
44:49then what's the next phase?
44:50What do they do next?
44:52They direct it by putting this betel nut trung.
44:54So this is a betel nut trung?
44:55Yeah, this is a betel nut trung.
44:56And because it's hollow,
44:57it's useful to pass through?
44:59Wow, that's interesting.
45:00So these are betel nut trees right there, right?
45:02Yeah, that's one of the betel nut trung, yeah.
45:03By using betel nut trunks
45:04to train the roots
45:05in the right direction,
45:07the structure of the bridge
45:08is brought to life.
45:10It takes skill,
45:11but most of all,
45:13it takes patience.
45:15And how long does it take
45:16for it to become this?
45:17Maybe around 10, 15 years
45:19it'll become.
45:19Wow.
45:21Maybe then I should try one, right?
45:22Yeah, you can do it.
45:25So, let's take the thin one,
45:28like this one's good?
45:28Yeah.
45:29Okay.
45:32Keep it inside.
45:33Keep it inside.
45:34All the way through, right?
45:35Yeah, all the way through.
45:45Is that safe and secure now?
45:48Okay, 10 years.
45:49I'll be back in 10 years.
45:54But there's something puzzling me
45:57about this particular bridge.
45:59I wondered why they needed two bridges.
46:01It took 400 years
46:04to train and grow the first one.
46:06So, why spend another 200,
46:08300 years to build a second one?
46:10Well, simply because
46:11in the monsoon season,
46:13which is June to October,
46:15the lower part of the bridge
46:18is actually fully submerged.
46:19It's underwater.
46:22But, of course,
46:23the people of these villages
46:24needed the second bridge
46:25to continue their day-to-day activities.
46:35to see how inventive people are,
46:40how they work with nature
46:42to create solutions.
46:52From the far reaches of the north
46:55to the very south of India
46:59for the last of our natural wonders.
47:05An iconic bird of the rainforest
47:07with an extraordinary breeding behaviour.
47:11The best time to see it
47:13is in the spring.
47:16The crack of dawn,
47:18and we've come to a coffee plantation
47:20to try and spot
47:21one of the most iconic,
47:23bizarre,
47:24and spectacular birds
47:26of the rainforest.
47:27And just as we were walking up this track,
47:31we spotted the male
47:33that's now in that tree
47:35just ahead of me.
47:44The bird I'm here to see
47:46is the great pied hornbill.
47:52Hornbills make a special nest.
47:56To protect their eggs,
47:57they choose a hollow in a tree.
47:59The female is sealed up using dung.
48:05She'll stay there
48:06for four months.
48:09Twice a day,
48:10the male will bring food
48:11for her and their young.
48:15Hornbills mate for life.
48:19Their nests can be hard to find,
48:22unless you've been studying them
48:23for 15 years,
48:25like Divya Mudapa.
48:29They're such big birds.
48:30I mean, I knew they were big,
48:32but when you see them
48:33with your own eyes,
48:35look at that.
48:38Their colorings are
48:42impossibly perfect
48:44for something natural.
48:47The shadings of yellow
48:48and then the black and white feathers.
48:51They're just so beautiful.
48:54He's coming to the nest.
48:56He's going to go across
48:57to the nest.
48:59Does he have food in his bill?
49:01In his gullet.
49:02In his gullet?
49:03Yeah.
49:04So he regurgitates it
49:05for the female?
49:06That's right, yeah.
49:08I don't even need the binoculars.
49:10He's so big.
49:11Once he flies over,
49:13there he is, there he is.
49:19He's regurgitating.
49:21So how can you tell
49:22what he's regurgitating?
49:24Just by watching it
49:26and looking at the shape
49:27of the fruit.
49:28So you saw it in the binoculars?
49:33These are magnificent creatures.
49:44Their wingspan can fully extend
49:47to five feet.
49:53Each nest will normally contain
49:56one or two young.
49:59They're not born with
50:01the distinctive casks
50:02on their bills.
50:03These take about five years
50:05to fully develop.
50:09The bright yellow color
50:11looks artificial,
50:13but it comes from
50:14a preem gland secretion
50:16which the male spreads
50:17onto its primary feathers,
50:19giving them
50:19their distinctive color.
50:25The male brings
50:26all sorts of fruits
50:28to the nest.
50:29But he'll also seek out
50:30small insects
50:31and other flying creatures,
50:33this one
50:34even has a bat
50:35in its beak.
50:44I can see the bill
50:45of the female.
50:47They close up
50:48the entrance
50:49to protect
50:51from predators.
50:53That's something else,
50:54isn't it?
50:55She doesn't get
50:55to stretch her wings
50:56for like months.
50:58In fact,
50:58she might molt
50:59when she's sitting in there
51:00and get a new set
51:01of feathers.
51:03That's dedication for you.
51:08This really unusual
51:09growth on top of the bill,
51:12it's hollow,
51:13it's very lightweight,
51:13it's made of hollow cells
51:15supported by two walls
51:17and it acts as an amplification chamber
51:20so that when they call
51:21in the forest,
51:23the sound travels
51:23even further.
51:26And just before mating season,
51:29sometimes you'll see males
51:31butting or clashing
51:33their casts together
51:34in midair
51:35so that they can win
51:36the female.
51:40It makes for their name
51:42the hornbill
51:43and there's no question
51:45it's quite a bizarre structure.
51:50These magnificent birds
51:52are often called
51:53the gardeners
51:54of the rainforest
51:55because they play
51:57such a vital role
51:58in the ecosystem
51:59as seed dispersers.
52:02They feed on
52:03so many of the fruit trees
52:04around the forest
52:06and as they fly
52:09they drop all of the seeds
52:11all across the landscape.
52:19Oh, I can't catch
52:21enough of his head.
52:24The unusual cask,
52:27the shape of the beak,
52:28the shadings.
52:29They're such stunning creatures.
52:34Oh, he's off.
52:47The sound of the wings
52:48through the forest at dawn.
52:51I mean, there's nothing
52:52more glorious, is there?
52:53Yes, no.
52:54My hair stands on
52:55and every time I hear it.
52:57I got complete shivers
52:59as he soared
53:01across the sky.
53:13This is a land
53:14that seems to have it all.
53:17From the unexpected lions
53:19of the Ghir forest
53:21and the people's
53:22intimate connection
53:23with the animals
53:24that live here
53:26to the magnificent Himalayas
53:28that shape both
53:29with the landscape
53:30and its life.
53:33These are the natural wonders
53:35of India.
53:39And we've only just
53:41scratched the surface.
53:42which is the native
53:42of the beautiful
53:43Of plans with theplus
53:46.com and
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