A Perfect Planet
The team behind A Perfect Planet faced sub-zero conditions…
SUNDAY 10 January, 8pm BBC1 Factual
All species have to adapt to the sun – or lack of it. In the Sahara, silver ants have evolved to cope with the deadly intensity of sunlight, while Arctic wolves can survive almost half the year in freezing darkness. We also find out about wood frogs in America that can freeze themselves solid to save energy. Sir David Attenborough narrates this second episode of the nature series.
Our planet has extreme habitats, and this week’s A Perfect Planet is all about how sunlight – or the lack of it – affects life on Earth.
As the production team filmed wildlife that has adapted to survive sunless Arctic winters, the crew had to operate in darkness and freezing cold!
‘The most challenging scene to film was the Arctic wolves,’ explains producer/ director Nick Shoolinginjordan. ‘It has rarely been attempted, as conditions are so brutal, with temperatures often dropping below -50°C.’
With the only light coming from the moon, the aim was to capture footage of wolves hunting musk ox, a species that survived the last Ice Age.
‘Each time the crew headed outside, it was like going on a space walk on a frozen alien planet!’ says Nick. ‘Every part of the body needed to be protected using the most sophisticated clothing and equipment. Just a tiny patch of exposed skin would result in frostbite within seconds.’
But the team were rewarded with spectacular sequences in which the wolves, which need to make a large kill every three weeks to survive the winter, hunted musk ox as well as hares.
‘Perseverance and experience paid off with a magical encounter with hundreds of Arctic hares – gatherings that had just been a mythical story until our team filmed it for the first time,’ says Nick. ‘We also think we may have unofficially broken the world record for the coldest drone flight ever!’