{1}{1}25.000
{1658}{1741}The pounding surf|of the great southern ocean
{1743}{1811}beating on the rocks of South Georgia.
{1813}{1894}Few creatures, you might think,|could survive it.
{1896}{1990}But Macaroni penguins|are desperate to get ashore.
{2377}{2449}Their flippers are of little help out of water.
{2451}{2529}All they have to give them|a grip on these slippery rocks
{2531}{2598}are small claws on their feet.
{3032}{3090}Now, at the end of summer,
{3092}{3156}life is becoming increasingly difficult
{3158}{3258}for these Macaroni penguins|struggling to feed their chicks,
{3260}{3350}that are almost fully grown|and have massive appetites.
{3352}{3452}With the approach of autumn,|the weather will worsen.
{3454}{3564}Massive depressions rush around|the fringes of the Antarctic continent,
{3566}{3675}creating huge gales|with gusts of over 100 miles an hour
{3677}{3736}and lash the sea into a frenzy.
{3740}{3836}Before long, the temperatures|will drop to below freezing
{3838}{3915}and then all the wildlife|of Antartica will be engaged
{3917}{3997}in a desperate race to complete breeding
{3999}{4062}before the ice closes everything down.
{4195}{4292}In the deep south, the sea|has stayed frozen all summer.
{4294}{4377}Penguins here|face an even greater challenge,
{4381}{4463}for this is where the door closes first.
{4465}{4602}Here at Cape Royds,|I'm 1,400 miles closer to the pole,
{4604}{4646}and this Adelie colony
{4648}{4763}is the most southerly nesting group|of any penguins anywhere.
{4765}{4832}The summer here is very short indeed
{4834}{4940}and these penguins have to breed|very swiftly to be successful.
{4942}{5013}They're well ahead|of the Macaronis up in the north
{5017}{5098}and the chicks are already losing their down.
{5147}{5262}Beneath the woolly coat lies|the waterproof layer of feathers
{5264}{5332}that will protect them in the icy southern seas.
{5525}{5625}The season is so short|that things have to move fast.
{5627}{5682}0ver a mere two weeks,
{5684}{5744}the jam-packed colony virtually empties
{5746}{5842}as the newly-feathered young|follow their parents to the sea
{5844}{5900}to make their first encounter with water.
{6234}{6298}And their first swim will not be easy.
{6304}{6418}The bay is filled with surging,|sharp-edged brash ice.
{6465}{6535}Even getting down to the water poses problems.
{6646}{6751}Soon the edge of the sea|is thronged by apprehensive youngsters,
{6755}{6849}nervously waiting|for someone to take the plunge.
{6948}{7007}The brash is so thick and extensive
{7009}{7059}that, on its seaward side,
{7063}{7153}adults returning with food|for their chicks can't get through.
{7448}{7492}They turn back.
{7693}{7763}The hungry youngsters|now have little alternative.
{7765}{7824}They have to get to sea to feed.
{8015}{8114}In fact, it's easier for them to cross|the brash than for their parents.
{8116}{8168}Being significantly lighter and more buoyant,
{8172}{8264}they can skitter across the surface|of the broken ice.
{8531}{8604}But moving so slowly and so clumsily
{8606}{8664}puts them in real danger.
{8750}{8797}(PANICKED CHIRPING)
{8955}{9003}A leopard seal.
{9295}{9388}The majority of the chicks|make it to open water,
{9390}{9434}where they are a little safer.
{9436}{9496}The leopard seal stays with its victim.
{10885}{10992}This game of cat and mouse|goes on for 20 minutes.
{10994}{11090}Like so many other|large predators on land and sea,
{11092}{11211}the leopard seal seems to feel|no urgency to complete its kill.
{11310}{11362}At last, the penguin is dead.
{11438}{11540}Now the process|of stripping off its flesh begins.
{12321}{12410}The carcass drifts down to the sea floor.
{12412}{12456}But it won't be wasted.
{12891}{12964}A nemeteme worm, a metre long.
{12966}{13049}It has detected the taste of penguin flesh
{13051}{13101}drifting through the cold water.
{13365}{13413}Another scavenger arrives -
{13415}{13490}a giant isopod, 10 centimetres long,
{13492}{13565}the equivalent of crabs in warmer waters.
{13780}{13899}The isopod strips off the meat|with its hooked legs and strong jaws.
{13903}{14019}The worm just turns its stomach|inside out and envelops the food.
{14078}{14135}Within hours, the carcass is covered
{14139}{14225}by a writhing tangle of worms.
{14307}{14376}Within days, there is nothing left
{14378}{14426}but bare bones.
{14505}{14586}The first snows of winter have fallen.
{14638}{14702}The last chicks to hatch are doomed.
{14704}{14756}Their parents have to abandon them
{14758}{14801}before they are fully grown.
{14803}{14899}The adults must go to sea|to build up their strength
{14901}{15049}before returning to the colony for one|last ordeal before winter - the moult.
{15051}{15153}All penguins need a new coat|of feathers for the winter,
{15155}{15212}which means shedding the old one.
{15214}{15263}So colonies right around the continent
{15267}{15332}fill with shed feathers.
{15470}{15518}0n Deception Island,
{15520}{15620}Chinstrap penguins|stand silent and motionless.
{15759}{15801}0nly a month ago,
{15803}{15864}these steep slopes of volcanic ash
{15866}{15994}were noisy with the squawks|of 80,000 pairs of them coming and going
{15996}{16038}and caring for their chicks.
{16055}{16130}Now they have little energy to spare.
{16142}{16277}They can't go to sea with their coats|in this condition, so they can't feed.
{16415}{16484}For three weeks, they stand fasting,
{16488}{16547}losing half their body weight,
{16549}{16638}but at the end they will have|warm, watertight coats
{16640}{16696}and be ready for the icy blasts of winter.
{16706}{16762}(RAGING WIND)
{16875}{16963}By the end of March, most of them have left,
{16965}{17047}and the remainder are on the move,|making their way
{17049}{17130}across the emptying slopes back to the sea.
{17704}{17799}Escape to the north, to open seas,
{17801}{17918}is the driving force -|to move where the food should be.
{17920}{17987}But the obstacles are formidable.
{18596}{18668}At minus 1.9 degrees centigrade,
{18670}{18730}the sea begins to freeze.
{18741}{18852}A slight swell on the surface|produces "pancake" ice.
{18986}{19031}In the frigid air,
{19033}{19120}the ice above water grows into crystals.
{19138}{19232}The early explorers|called these fantastic shapes
{19236}{19286}"ice flowers".
{19497}{19562}As it gets colder and colder,
{19566}{19608}the ice thickens.
{19610}{19713}0n the coast, it freezes fast|to the margins of the land.
{19756}{19870}Farther out, the pack ice|consolidates into sea ice.
{19922}{20002}The belt of ice surrounding|the continent widens,
{20004}{20070}advancing north two miles a day
{20072}{20127}and driving life before it.
{20189}{20284}But the ice front has not yet|reached all the islands
{20286}{20365}and there are still some that|can provide a refuge for wildlife
{20367}{20412}well into autumn.
{20630}{20669}Here on South Georgia,
{20671}{20752}we are on the northern edge of Antarctica.
{20754}{20847}You can be fairly sure that|the sea here won't freeze over.
{20849}{20916}0nly once or twice a century does it do so.
{20918}{21026}This floating ice has all fallen|from the glacier behind me.
{21028}{21161}But although at 54 degrees south|we are as far away from the South Pole
{21163}{21213}as Britain is from the North,
{21215}{21332}the immense ice cap of Antarctica|still dominates the climate.
{21392}{21472}Glaciers cover over half the island.
{21474}{21523}They blanket many of the peaks,
{21525}{21615}the tallest of which are 2,700 metres high,
{21617}{21712}and in some places they run|right down into the sea.
{21714}{21786}During the winter, the temperature falls
{21788}{21847}to minus 10 degrees at the coast,
{21849}{21898}so the need for animals|to complete their breeding
{21902}{21948}in the short summer season
{21950}{22002}is still very intense.
{22080}{22148}Two million fur seals come here to breed,
{22150}{22195}and, at the end of summer,
{22197}{22300}the beaches are thronged|with young pups and their mothers.
{22369}{22454}The pups suckle for four months,|until late March.
{22456}{22506}That's longer than the fur seals
{22508}{22558}that live in the warmer waters further north.
{22560}{22644}It's a measure of how strong|young animals have to be
{22646}{22696}if they are to survive down here.
{22882}{22976}A pup, to get all the milk that is its due,
{22978}{23026}has to recognise its mother's call
{23028}{23081}when she returns from feeding at sea
{23083}{23134}and is ready to provide a feed.
{23138}{23207}(L0UD HIGH- PITCHED CALL)
{23609}{23667}Three months earlier,|this shore was a battlefield
{23669}{23760}as the bulls fought for the right|to dominate this stretch of beach,
{23762}{23807}and all the females on it.
{23809}{23891}Now the mating has finished|and the bulls have gone to sea.
{23893}{23936}0nly the pups are left,
{23938}{23999}testing their strength with mock fights.
{25278}{25327}Many of these youngsters
{25331}{25405}will not survive their first year.
{25407}{25464}The weaker ones will not get enough food.
{25466}{25508}There will be accidents.
{25510}{25547}There will be orphans.
{25556}{25612}By the end of the breeding season,
{25616}{25678}corpses lie scattered over the beach,
{25680}{25759}food for skuas and giant petrels.
{26143}{26207}(L0UD SCREECHING)
{26503}{26585}The petrels, with their great hooked beaks,
{26587}{26678}are usually the first to rip open a carcass.
{26736}{26814}They are Antarctica's equivalent|of Africa's vultures.
{26816}{26894}Their huge wings are two metres across.
{26896}{26969}But, unlike vultures,|they don't just scavenge.
{26971}{27046}They will tackle young penguins|and small sea birds
{27048}{27092}while they are still alive.
{27857}{27913}The whalers in the old days
{27915}{27959}used to call them "gluttons".
{27961}{28010}It's easy to see why.
{28012}{28123}And their dirtiness gave them|another nickname too - "stinkers".
{28173}{28257}Surprisingly, there are ducks|at this feast, too.
{28259}{28324}These are the South Georgia pintails.
{28326}{28361}Alone among ducks,
{28363}{28424}they have acquired a regular taste for meat.
{29389}{29454}An elephant seal wallow.
{29456}{29522}This is an all-female gathering.
{29524}{29580}They clearly like one another's company,
{29582}{29638}for they congregate in great assemblies.
{29640}{29736}But they can on occasion|get irritated with one another.
{29875}{29935}(L0W GR0WLING)
{30012}{30080}Like the penguins, they went to sea
{30082}{30119}after rearing their young,
{30121}{30208}fed intensively to put on the weight|they lost during breeding,
{30210}{30280}and now they have come back|in order to moult.
{30384}{30451}Large chunks of skin and hair
{30453}{30492}peel off their bodies,
{30494}{30555}and it seems to make them very tetchy.
{30624}{30701}It takes a month for them to grow new coats.
{30703}{30808}Then, as the temperatures fall still lower|and winter closes in,
{30810}{30882}they will return to the place|where they are most at home -
{30884}{30931}the sea.
{31046}{31139}Grey-headed albatross|also nest on South Georgia,
{31141}{31193}but they stay a little longer.
{31291}{31354}The waters are still ice-free,
{31356}{31409}so they can catch food for their young
{31411}{31457}well into autumn.
{31937}{32002}An adult bird caring for its chick
{32007}{32086}may travel 600 miles or more to find food,
{32088}{32142}which it brings back in its crop.
{32448}{32535}That was a squid, and very nice, too.
{32597}{32687}Above the grey-heads,|another kind of albatross -
{32689}{32747}the largest sea bird in the world,
{32749}{32799}with a three metre wing-span -
{32801}{32849}the wandering albatross.
{32881}{32939}It nests a little further inland
{32941}{33035}on South Georgia's meadows|and ridges of tussock grass.
{33216}{33279}In marked contrast to the other birds,
{33281}{33368}that have almost finished their|breeding and are preparing to leave,
{33370}{33453}this wandering albatross|has come to start a courtship
{33455}{33518}that may take two or three years.
{33556}{33611}(SCREECHING)
{33827}{33924}These young birds|have spent the first three years
{33926}{33974}of their adult life at sea.
{33976}{34043}Now they've returned|to the colony where they were reared
{34045}{34099}and are starting to look for a partner.
{34101}{34213}They do this by taking part|in dancing parties.
{34912}{34966}Young unmated birds
{34968}{35017}court like this for several years
{35019}{35081}before they decide|who their partners shall be
{35083}{35150}and together start work on a nest mound.
{35499}{35607}But as the winter sets in|and its icy door closes,
{35609}{35690}the young albatross too have to return to sea.
{36493}{36591}The sea won't freeze|here around South Georgia,
{36593}{36678}but as the sun moves north|and the days darken,
{36680}{36760}the temperature of the ocean falls lower still
{36762}{36848}and life in the water|becomes increasingly scarce.
{36850}{36924}The huge shoals of krill disperse
{36928}{37035}and for the seabirds, food becomes|more and more difficult to find.
{37278}{37409}By April, winter storms are beginning|to sweep across the Antarctic.
{38052}{38151}The winds rise to above 100 miles an hour.
{38153}{38259}The temperature|falls to 70 degrees below zero.
{38359}{38447}And then the sea freezes.
{38449}{38508}The door has shut.
{38559}{38677}Throughout the winter, the ice|continues to advance northwards.
{38679}{38720}The area it covers
{38722}{38833}increases at the rate|of 40,000 square miles every day.
{38835}{38883}Before the winter is over,
{38885}{38971}it will have almost doubled|the size of the continent.
{39767}{39834}Now, at the end of autumn,
{39836}{39936}practically all the wildlife|has escaped to the north.
{39938}{40040}The whales have gone to find|warmer waters in which to breed.
{40042}{40110}The seals, albatrosses|and most of the penguins
{40112}{40158}have also gone out to sea,
{40160}{40240}though no one as yet is sure exactly where.
{40242}{40305}But there is one truly remarkable creature
{40307}{40402}that seems to turn all|these rules upside-down -
{40404}{40438}the Emperor penguin.
{40485}{40538}Largest of all the penguins,
{40540}{40610}the Emperor stands over a metre high
{40612}{40684}and weighs on average 33 kilos.
{40688}{40761}Most creatures are forced|by the worsening weather
{40763}{40826}to retreat north to warmer latitudes,
{40828}{40899}but the Emperors are gathering|at the ice edge
{40901}{40963}to start travelling into the deep south,
{40965}{41033}where they will mate and rear their young.
{42141}{42222}Now the Emperors start their long march -
{42224}{42274}maybe tens of miles -
{42276}{42359}to reach their traditional|nesting site on the sea ice.
{42361}{42454}In the next programme, we'll follow them
{42456}{42574}and see, with temperatures|dropping to minus 70 centigrade,
{42576}{42690}how life in the freezer|faces the ultimate challenge -
{42692}{42734}the Antarctic winter.