The wildlife producer says it was essential to re-create the animal sounds on Planet Earth

Around ten million of us will tune in tomorrow night for the final part of Sir David Attenborough’s blockbuster series Planet Earth II on BBC1. We’ve already gazed in wonder at dancing birds-of-paradise and fighting komodo dragons, and next up are the animal world’s city dwellers, including amazing footage of leopards in Mumbai.

It’s been a feast for the eyes, but some viewers have complained that some of the accompanying sounds have been faked, such as a millipede’s noisy footsteps and a jaguar’s fatal bite on a caiman. The BBC has admitted some sounds were re-created, but says that’s because it isn’t always possible to capture them in the field.

Does this lessen the brilliance of the series? Not at all! And as a wildlife film-maker with more than 30 years’ experience, I’ll explain why. Sir David himself has pointed out that series like Planet Earth are more akin to dramas than documentaries. The footage for each sequence is painstakingly gathered over many weeks, months and years by camera people willing to endure extraordinary discomfort to bring previously unseen animal behaviour to our screens. To achieve this, they use a range of devices such as long lenses and camera traps. But as Chris Watson, the doyen of wildlife sound recordists, has pointed out, there’s simply no sonic equivalent of the telephoto lens.

Much of the footage in Planet Earth is taken from far away – the only means by which shy animals can be filmed without causing unnecessary disturbance. Some is filmed using noisy drones, which makes recording natural sound impossible. Finally, the latest cameras allow us to see the world in ultra slow motion, meaning that even if sound were being recorded, it would not synchronise with the pictures.

So I’m with the Planet Earth II producers when they say that adding sounds recorded later helps create a sense of place, engaging viewers with the drama. There are various methods of re-creating the sounds of nature – I once dropped a sugar lump into a cup of coffee to re-create a baby coot diving! The key thing is that when they’re broadcast, they must be true to life, which they are.

But it’s important to point out that some nature programmes always use sounds recorded at the time of filming. On live shows such as Springwatch, which I’ve produced, there’s no choice. When you hear baby blue tits cheeping with excitement because mum has brought back food, I assure you you’re listening to the real thing. Planet Earth II is on tomorrow at 8pm on BBC1. Stephen Moss is the author of the book accompanying the series (BBC Books, £25).