ARCTIC WOLVES

From cute cuttlefish to flamboyant flamingos, here’s how to meet the stars of Sir David Attenborough’s A Perfect Planet. By SARAH MARSHALL

IN a pioneering break from traditional natural history documentary-making, new five-part BBC series A Perfect Planet studies how the forces of nature are responsible for constantly reshaping the planet we call home and looks at how different species have adapted to their demands.

Narrated by Sir David Attenborough, programmes cover the ocean, the sun, weather, volcanoes and perhaps the most powerful force of nature in recent times: humans.

Stark warnings about climate change are woven into each episode, but there are also plenty of high-spirited wildlife sequences, featuring characters so weird and wonderful, they promise to steal our hearts.

Discover some of our favourites and find out how to see them in real life.

A Perfect Planet is currently screening on BBC1 on Sundays at 8pm and is also available on iPlayer.

STEALTHY predators adept at living in the harshest conditions, these regal animals can survive months without sunlight in icy lunar landscapes where temperatures plummet below -50oC. Watching them hunt prehistoric muskoxen in the Weather episode is a nail-biting experience. “We captured some of the most beguiling aerial images of the polar landscape I have ever seen,” says episode producer Nick Shoolingin-Jordan.

Where to see them: Still remote, but accessible to tourists, Ennadai Lake in Nunavut, Canada, is used as a denning site by several wolf packs. Windows on the Wild offers an nine-night full-board trip timed to watch pups emerge in August and September. From £10,500pp, including flights and helicopter transfers. windowsonthewild.com or call 020 8742 1556.