WEBVTT
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Earth, a breathtaking planet
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that has supported life
for billions of years.
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But it can be a challenging
and cruel home.
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From the beginning, creatures
have had to be tough to survive.
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Mass extinctions
wiped out entire species.
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From super volcanoes
to an asteroid apocalypse.
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From megafloods to a frozen
planet strangled by darkness
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With every disaster,
there was suffering,
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but each time life returned...
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even stronger.
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Witness the heart
and the hope of our planet.
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Travel back in time to see
how life fights back...
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and wins.
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252 million years ago.
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At this time all our planet’s
continents are fused together
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in one giant landmass that
stretches from pole to pole.
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It is called, Pangaea.
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Its climate is a blistering
20 degrees hotter than today
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and its vast heartlands are
dominated by endless deserts.
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Life clings on here
but it is not an easy existence.
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And something is about to happen
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that will make it everything
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much worse.
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Not all of Pangaea is barren.
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Towards both poles
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the temperatures are cooler
and forests grow.
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Conifers cover
these northern hills.
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And, beneath their branches
life thrives.
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A young Gorgonopsian...
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on a mission...
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to irritate his brother.
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Oh well, how about a sneak
attack on his mother.
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These Gorgons are early,
distant relatives of mammals...
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and, long before the dinosaurs,
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this is what an apex
predator looks like.
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In this world,
the only thing a Gorgon fears...
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is another Gorgon.
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Bigger than a tiger, this
alpha bears the battle scars
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from years of defending
his position
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as leader of this family.
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He has fathered generations
of young Gorgons
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with this group of
three different mothers.
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In this overheated world,
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he has led his family up from
the baking plains
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to find food and shade
among these foothills.
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But now, he smells trouble.
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Skulking in the shadows
a lone, younger male.
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These are his woods.
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Males will fight to the death
for the right to mate.
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This one is waiting to see
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if the old alpha shows
any signs of weakness.
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Not all creatures in
these northern forests
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survive by being aggressive.
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Some, like this burrowing Elph,
have to rely on their wits.
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Playing dead is one trick.
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It’s a good performance...
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if he can just hold on...
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Too late.
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Our young Gorgon
has run straight into a giant.
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A whole herd of them...
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Scutosaurus.
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Growing over 10 feet long
and weighing over a tone,
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these bulky plant eaters
are reptiles
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and some of the largest
creatures on Earth.
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They’re slow,
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but with creatures this size
he could easily be crushed.
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His frantic mum has only
now realized he’s missing.
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As long as they remain calm
our little guy should be safe.
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But, across the plains below,
trouble is brewing.
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The herd can sense it
and a thunderstorm.
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And they are getting restless.
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Up here in the mountains,
lightning strikes are common.
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None of which is good
news for our youngster.
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252 million years before
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modern humans walked the Earth,
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all the continents are fused
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as one giant landmass
called Pangea.
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It is a dry desolate place,
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except at the poles
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where lush conifer
forests grow.
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Here a sudden storm has spooked
a herd of giant Scutosaurus.
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Caught in the middle
is our young Gorgon.
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One wrong step
and he will be crushed to death.
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His panicked mom needs
to find him.
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She spots him
and her every instinct is
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to save her son at all cost.
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Our mother succeeded in
protecting her little one.
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But, in doing so,
she made the ultimate sacrifice.
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He doesn’t want to leave
her side.
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But his father’s call
echoes through the forest.
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The old alpha leads the family
away from the panicked herd.
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After the storm,
the sun sets and the sky flares
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a spectacular blood red.
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It’s an ominous sign.
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Not far from our Gorgon family
the forces of nature are
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about to put on a show that will
bring all life to its knees.
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The mighty continent of Pangaea,
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the world’s single
landmass that has shaped life
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for almost 50 million years
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is being torn apart.
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A vast system of rifts
is reshaping the landscape.
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Over thousands of years
pulses of volcanic activity
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have produced enough lava
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to cover the entire
United States
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in molten rock half a mile deep.
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Now, all the side to the rift
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is ramping up
for its biggest eruption yet.
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Emissions from these
volcanoes are already having
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a profound effect on life.
12:42.719 --> 12:45.681
The vast amounts of carbon
dioxide being pumped out
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are sending atmospheric
temperatures soaring and forcing
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animals like our Gorgon
family to take extreme measures.
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The rising heat
is driving our alpha
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to keep migrating higher.
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For every 1,000 feet higher
he leads his family,
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the temperature drops
almost four degrees.
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It isn’t just the heat
that threatens them.
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Gases from the volcanoes
are destroying the Ozone layer,
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and this father wears
the damage of
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too much UV radiation
on his back.
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Eventually our family of
Gorgons reach somewhere
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higher and cooler to rest.
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But unlike the heat, one threat
has followed them up here.
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One that is focused exclusively
on our protective father.
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The desperate lone rival has
been shadowing his every step
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waiting for the right time
to strike.
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Dawn breaks
across the northern hills
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on the hot dry continent
of Pangea.
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The one giant landmass
on our planet.
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Volcanic activity
is making an already
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stifling world even hotter.
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To find cooler temperatures
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our Gorgon family has
climbed higher into the hills.
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They wake
in unfamiliar surroundings
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and they are starving.
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None have eaten in days...
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But just when they need it most,
a small meal appears.
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This should be no contest
for our hungry alpha.
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But this little creature isn’t
playing fair, he can climb.
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And just to rub it in...
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These little
climbers are Suminia.
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They are among
the first vertebrates
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to take to the trees.
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Living up here
requires good balance,
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coordination and hands
that can grasp.
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All of which can be put
to the test by a playful game
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of steal the cone.
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However,
these ancient conifer groves
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are no longer
a sanctuary for the Suminia.
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The trees are secreting resin.
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This is what they do when
they’re under severe stress.
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You’d think this dry,
overheated world
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could use a fresh rain fall
to cool it all down.
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But rain is the problem.
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All the volcanic eruptions
have poisoned the air
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and turned the rain into acid.
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This strips
the leaves of nutrients,
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and poisons the soil.
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The forests are dying.
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The tank-like Scutosaurus
have nowhere to hide.
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And the acid rain
is burning their eyes.
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Nearby, the lone younger
male is also in distress.
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He’s had to abandon
his long pursuit
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of the alpha to find shelter.
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But there is no escape.
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The burning acid rain
is a telltale sign
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that the northern rift volcanoes
are becoming even more active.
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Across the vast lava fields,
new fissures have appeared.
18:38.200 --> 18:41.286
The ground itself is on fire.
18:44.289 --> 18:48.460
Molten rock has ignited
giant swathes of coal beneath
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the surface across almost
half a million square miles.
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There is more coal burning
here than during the whole
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of the industrial revolution.
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Deserts are expanding.
19:15.528 --> 19:16.989
Seas are dying.
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There is no place on Earth
to hide from this catastrophe.
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In the desert heart of Pangaea
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temperatures are now
a lethal 140 degrees.
19:37.676 --> 19:39.845
From this ever-expanding
death zone,
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any life that can
is now migrating away.
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Moving at night,
to avoid the heat of the day,
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herds of Scutosaurus
try to escape
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toward the cooler
polar regions.
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Weeks pass...
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the days are brutal
and sweltering.
20:23.013 --> 20:25.641
Herds arrive
on the baking plains.
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Just below
the forested foothills
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where our Gorgon family
is taking shelter.
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As the blistering sun rises,
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they all jockey
for the same thing...
20:45.493 --> 20:47.079
Shade.
20:49.497 --> 20:51.583
With their survival
depending on it,
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competition for space
is intense.
20:58.131 --> 21:01.093
As the shadows
move throughout the day,
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these clumsy animals
jostle to stay with them.
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This is not good news
for the locals.
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Elph are tough, little animals
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that survive on
the baking plains by burrowing.
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But now the bulky Scutosaurus
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are about to trample all over
their underground homes.
21:39.881 --> 21:43.010
252 million years ago...
21:44.219 --> 21:48.390
and the Earth’s equatorial
regions have become so hot
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they cannot support life.
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Animals that can,
like these Scutosaurus,
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are migrating away towards
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cooler temperatures
at the poles.
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But even here
they have to take refuge
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in the shade during the day.
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Beneath their feet,
Elph live in tunnels.
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And these migrants are not
welcomed by the locals.
22:21.923 --> 22:24.760
Now, the sun
is driving the shadows,
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and the Scutosaurus herd,
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closer to their homes.
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The tiny locals can see
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unless they do something,
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they are in danger of
being crushed...
22:50.827 --> 22:52.955
And the Scutosaurus
soon learn...
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...Never to underestimate
an angry Elph.
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In the forested hills above...
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our Gorgon father
continues to lead
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his starving family higher
in search of cooler air.
23:32.202 --> 23:34.329
They are struggling.
23:34.370 --> 23:37.458
Across the world,
oxygen levels are dropping
23:37.499 --> 23:40.294
and, although it’s getting
cooler as they climb,
23:40.335 --> 23:44.548
the lack of oxygen
means they are exhausted.
23:58.561 --> 24:03.984
Then, the starving alpha
picks up the scent of blood.
24:06.194 --> 24:09.406
Gorgons have
long skulls with huge jaws
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that carry six-inch canines.
24:14.744 --> 24:16.079
But their real superpower
24:16.120 --> 24:18.582
is their extraordinary
sense of smell
24:19.332 --> 24:22.794
which allows them
to track prey from miles away.
24:24.337 --> 24:26.924
Somewhere,
an animal is wounded,
24:26.965 --> 24:30.886
and for his family’s sake
he needs to find it.
24:34.430 --> 24:37.934
Frustratingly, another Gorgon
has gotten there first.
24:43.064 --> 24:46.109
Worse, it is the lone male.
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It’s clear he won’t give up
his prize...
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...Without a fight.
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The two desperate predators
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must face off against each other
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This confrontation
has been a long time coming.
25:36.618 --> 25:39.288
Then, suddenly...
25:42.707 --> 25:45.418
...Clouds of insects
fill the air.
25:52.508 --> 25:56.763
Only one thing can cause insects
to behave like this...
26:00.767 --> 26:02.394
An earthquake.
26:19.285 --> 26:22.706
The Gorgons must flee
for their lives.
26:25.208 --> 26:29.170
But nothing can save them
from what’s coming next.
26:40.723 --> 26:43.518
As the ancient
supercontinent, Pangaea,
26:43.559 --> 26:45.895
continues to tear apart...
26:47.313 --> 26:52.235
vast cracks in the Earth’s crust
erupt on a staggering scale...
26:56.030 --> 26:59.034
relentlessly pumping
even more of carbon dioxide,
26:59.075 --> 27:02.746
methane, and other deadly gases
into the atmosphere.
27:14.132 --> 27:17.260
This supercharges
a global apocalypse.
27:25.768 --> 27:28.188
Temperatures skyrocket.
27:32.608 --> 27:37.280
In the hills, our old alpha
continues to run from the heat.
27:37.947 --> 27:41.242
He has led his family so far.
27:42.618 --> 27:45.414
But the problem
with migrating higher
27:45.455 --> 27:49.042
is eventually,
you run out of road.
27:55.548 --> 27:58.635
And waiting for him
on the summit...
27:59.302 --> 28:02.431
is his old friend...
28:02.472 --> 28:04.391
...The lone male.
28:07.477 --> 28:10.814
Even as their world is
falling apart around them,
28:10.855 --> 28:16.445
their biological need to be
the alpha still conquers all.
28:26.954 --> 28:29.874
Our planet is on fire.
28:31.000 --> 28:33.586
The northern rift
volcanoes have erupted...
28:34.754 --> 28:38.550
spewing over
a million cubic miles of lava
28:38.591 --> 28:40.260
across the continent...
28:41.761 --> 28:45.932
and igniting the largest
coal deposits in the world.
28:48.142 --> 28:50.520
While the world
burns around them,
28:50.561 --> 28:54.691
our rival Gorgons
finally face off.
28:57.485 --> 29:01.281
And this time,
there is no backing down.
29:07.620 --> 29:10.915
The lone male may be
younger and more agile...
29:12.083 --> 29:16.087
but the alpha is
the more experienced fighter.
30:15.897 --> 30:18.566
Exhausted and badly wounded,
30:19.191 --> 30:21.069
the old alpha has won.
30:29.327 --> 30:32.038
He leads his family on,
30:32.079 --> 30:34.707
but there is nowhere left to go.
30:37.752 --> 30:42.632
Their world is doomed
and even he can’t save them.
30:48.179 --> 30:50.640
Eventually,
the northern eruptions
30:50.681 --> 30:53.685
will go on to release
more than 700 times
30:53.726 --> 30:55.395
more carbon dioxide
30:55.436 --> 30:59.274
than humans have produced
in our entire history.
31:03.319 --> 31:06.823
This extinction event
is the worst assault on life
31:06.864 --> 31:09.742
our planet has ever known.
31:11.786 --> 31:16.165
90% of all species
on Earth are wiped out.
31:18.084 --> 31:21.546
While this catastrophe makes
life impossible for most...
31:22.713 --> 31:26.676
a stubborn few species
manage to survive.
31:39.355 --> 31:43.318
Close relatives of Elph
are among these survivors.
31:44.360 --> 31:46.571
By burrowing
and hibernating
31:46.612 --> 31:49.366
their kind withstand
everything the volcanoes
31:49.407 --> 31:52.785
can throw at them
and find ways to endure.
31:57.123 --> 31:58.792
This single event changes
31:58.833 --> 32:01.419
the entire direction
of evolution,
32:01.460 --> 32:04.297
as the few survivors
go on to establish
32:04.338 --> 32:07.634
all the animal dynasties
we know today.
32:11.345 --> 32:15.683
After 100,000 years
the volcanoes grow cold...
32:16.600 --> 32:20.229
but the world remains
a toxic wasteland.
32:21.522 --> 32:24.150
The atmosphere still
has carbon dioxide levels
32:24.191 --> 32:26.444
five times those of today.
32:31.907 --> 32:33.785
Millions of years pass,
32:33.826 --> 32:39.290
and slowly,
our wonderous planet heals.
32:41.959 --> 32:45.463
Helped by the most
lowly of the survivors...
32:46.380 --> 32:49.926
fungi, bacteria
32:49.967 --> 32:52.470
and photosynthetic algae.
32:58.392 --> 33:00.520
These tiny
life forms flourish in
33:00.561 --> 33:02.522
the carbon rich atmosphere
33:02.563 --> 33:06.609
and steadily consume
the excessive greenhouse gases.
33:10.446 --> 33:13.491
Earth finally begins to cool.
33:32.009 --> 33:36.473
10 million years later,
33:36.514 --> 33:39.851
free of
its poisonous volcanic legacy,
33:39.892 --> 33:42.228
Earth is renewed.
33:43.646 --> 33:45.940
Our planet
can once again support
33:45.981 --> 33:48.401
a rich array of habitats.
33:52.071 --> 33:54.199
In this empty paradise,
33:54.240 --> 33:59.370
life begins to reclaim
every corner of the planet...
34:00.871 --> 34:06.002
sparking an extraordinary
explosion in evolution.
34:18.722 --> 34:20.600
10 million
years have passed
34:20.641 --> 34:23.853
since the giant
northern eruptions fell silent.
34:25.104 --> 34:27.899
It’s taken this long
for the seas and forests
34:27.940 --> 34:29.609
to fully recover...
34:30.442 --> 34:33.029
and they are
teeming with life.
34:35.656 --> 34:37.909
On the shores of a shallow sea,
34:38.951 --> 34:40.828
the sand stirs.
34:42.746 --> 34:46.876
Eggs, laid months ago,
are hatching.
34:50.045 --> 34:52.632
It is a baby Cyamodus...
34:54.383 --> 34:56.886
a new type of
hard-shelled reptile
34:57.303 --> 34:59.806
that has taken to
a life in the sea.
35:02.391 --> 35:04.435
They lay their eggs in the sand
35:04.476 --> 35:06.979
to protect them
from marine predators.
35:12.067 --> 35:15.613
But these days there
are predators everywhere.
35:23.412 --> 35:26.082
A female Dongusuchus.
35:26.665 --> 35:29.710
She’s a new type
of feathered reptile.
35:41.263 --> 35:44.392
She is being watched
35:44.433 --> 35:46.644
by another Dongusuchus.
35:50.272 --> 35:51.566
A male.
35:54.026 --> 35:57.322
He’s not looking for lunch,
he’s looking...
35:57.363 --> 35:59.949
for a lunch date.
36:01.825 --> 36:04.829
With his bright plumage
and cool moves,
36:04.870 --> 36:07.957
he’s hoping to impress her.
36:11.543 --> 36:14.755
She’s not sure, yet.
36:19.176 --> 36:21.721
But he’s got more moves.
36:27.559 --> 36:29.729
New types of
gliding reptiles
36:29.770 --> 36:34.442
called proto-Pterosaurs,
head for the sand.
36:38.696 --> 36:40.823
The beach is getting busy.
36:43.701 --> 36:47.079
But our guy is not giving up
on his mating dance.
36:51.959 --> 36:54.503
Time to pull out all the stops.
37:16.734 --> 37:20.446
Well, someone really
didn’t like his dancing.
37:33.542 --> 37:35.795
Cymbospondylus.
37:39.131 --> 37:42.468
A new type of
giant marine reptile...
37:43.218 --> 37:45.638
that will come
to dominate the seas
37:45.679 --> 37:49.892
for the next 157 million years.
37:55.939 --> 37:58.818
In the forests and mountains,
37:58.859 --> 38:01.696
in the water and in the air
38:02.363 --> 38:06.158
it is the reptiles
that have seized the moment.
38:10.496 --> 38:14.167
If there is one point in
the history of life on Earth
38:14.208 --> 38:17.628
that sums up
its limitless resilience...
38:18.462 --> 38:20.840
this is it.
38:34.019 --> 38:36.481
Only two hundred years ago
38:36.522 --> 38:40.192
Earth had some of the lowest
carbon dioxide levels
38:40.567 --> 38:42.695
that have ever existed.
38:50.869 --> 38:53.790
But since
the Industrial Revolution
38:53.831 --> 38:56.834
they have risen by
over 50 percent.
39:07.177 --> 39:10.848
Compared with
the history of life on Earth,
39:10.889 --> 39:15.102
today’s levels of carbon
dioxide are still not high...
39:19.565 --> 39:21.859
but it is
the speed of the change
39:21.900 --> 39:25.154
that is challenging
all living things.
39:33.871 --> 39:36.916
Recently,
action has been taken.
39:40.169 --> 39:44.256
In the next few years,
emissions could stop rising...
39:46.633 --> 39:48.719
but the extra greenhouse gases
39:48.760 --> 39:52.723
will remain in
our atmosphere for decades,
39:52.764 --> 39:55.309
possibly even centuries.
39:59.855 --> 40:01.732
If these levels are to drop,
40:01.773 --> 40:04.318
the key will lie in
our planet’s ability
40:04.359 --> 40:06.821
to absorb carbon dioxide.
40:10.991 --> 40:14.620
In our peat bogs
and sea grass meadows...
40:15.496 --> 40:17.998
oceans and forests.
40:18.624 --> 40:21.127
Nature already has
the best tools
40:21.168 --> 40:24.046
to turn the tide
on greenhouse gases.
40:26.465 --> 40:29.385
Protecting
and bolstering these habitats
40:29.426 --> 40:31.011
is the next great challenge
40:31.386 --> 40:34.306
in the fight against
global warming.
40:37.100 --> 40:41.522
♪ I see trees of green ♪
40:41.563 --> 40:43.983
♪ Red roses too ♪
40:44.024 --> 40:47.695
♪ I see watch bloom ♪
40:47.736 --> 40:49.989
♪ For me and you ♪
40:50.030 --> 40:54.035
♪ And I think to myself ♪
40:54.076 --> 41:01.000
♪ What a wonderful world ♪
41:01.041 --> 41:06.172
♪ Yes, I think to myself ♪
41:06.213 --> 41:11.677
♪ What a wonderful world ♪