America the Beautiful (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 4 - Westworld - full transcript
(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Welcome
to North America.
The most diverse
continent on Earth.
The only place where you can find
every landscape, from polar ice cap...
to baking desert, and
everything in between.
Whatever the neighborhood, there's
a hero who can make it a home.
Smart, tough,
brave, you name it.
They all have what
it takes to thrive...
in the wildest, most
beautiful continent on Earth.
SINGER: Patchwork quilt of life
Wildness never dies
Beauty always thrives
Under these spacious skies
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: The American Southwest,
from Texas to California,
is a spectacular world
of desert and rock.
An arid wonderland where
water, when it comes,
shapes the land and the
lives of all that live here.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: The Grand Canyon.
Three hundred miles long
and 6,000 feet deep.
An inaccessible place that's
pretty good at keeping secrets.
That's why the animal that rules this
world has been shrouded in mystery...
until now.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: A mountain lion.
Filmed in the Grand Canyon
for the very first time.
Two hundred pounds of muscle.
He's on a quest to
keep out rivals...
and father the next generation
of big cats in his kingdom.
But his success, and
that of all life here,
will ultimately depend
on events 500 miles away,
where the Southwest desert
meets the Pacific Ocean.
It's springtime, and off the
coast of Baja California,
a new life is just beginning.
(WATER SPLASHING)
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: A baby gray whale.
Birthweight, a
healthy 2000 pounds.
- (WATER SPURTS)
- (WHALE GROANS)
NARRATOR: This proud mom
travelled for months without food
to give birth in this
sheltered lagoon...
a safe haven from predators.
Now, she's building a bond with her son
and feeding him 50-percent-fat milk.
One problem, though. There's
no food here for Mom.
(WATER SPURTS)
NARRATOR: So she's about to lead
her calf, just eight weeks old,
on the longest mammal
migration on Earth.
But they're not alone.
Ninety-nine percent of the
world gray whale population
sets off from here each year,
to swim 6,000 miles back to
their Arctic feeding grounds.
The calf has been putting
on 200 pounds a day.
He's raring to go.
(WHALE GRUNTS)
- (WATER CRASHES)
- (MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Only Mom knows the
challenges that lie ahead
as they journey the length of
our continent's West Coast.
This is truly America's whale.
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: All along this coastline,
the Pacific is a life-giver.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Off California, the sun's
heat draws water from the cold ocean...
creating a fog bank, which
blows inland on the sea breeze.
This coastline is bathed
in fog for 60 days a year,
providing much of the water
for the world's tallest trees.
(BIRD CAWING)
NARRATOR: Three-hundred-foot
coastal redwoods
drink the droplets
through their leaves.
(BIRDS CAWING, SINGING)
(MAJESTIC MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: The fog also
supports less-celebrated trees.
(WOODPECKER DRUMMING)
- (BIRDS CHIRPING)
- (GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: This oak is the storehouse
for a family of acorn woodpeckers.
(RHYTHMIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: They live
to stash acorns.
All day, every day.
(DRUMMING)
NARRATOR: Almost to the
point of... obsession?
But 50,000 acorns stored
in the bark of one oak?
That's bound to attract thieves.
- (MUSIC TURNS DRAMATIC)
- (WOODPECKER CALLING)
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: One woodpecker
is always on lookout.
- (MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
- (WOODPECKER CAWS)
(MUSIC FALLS)
(TENSE MUSIC BUILDS)
(WOODPECKER CAWS)
(SHRIEKING)
(MUSIC FALLS)
NARRATOR: Looks like a
win for the squirrels.
But the lookout's
called in backup.
(WOODPECKERS CAWING)
NARRATOR: By working together,
they keep their stash safe.
But not for long.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(BRANCHES SNAPPING)
NARRATOR: This thief
has his own power tools
to break into the family vault.
Even the most committed
teamwork is no defense
against a raider a
thousand times your size.
All that hard work,
undone in minutes.
These hoarding heroes don't let
a little setback get them down.
(DRUMMING)
NARRATOR: The new collection
begins straightaway.
(BIRDS CAWING)
NARRATOR: The woodpeckers'
oak is watered by Pacific fog.
Travel away from the coast, and
that water supply evaporates.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: A hundred
and fifty miles inland,
the Sierra Nevada Mountains
capture the Pacific clouds.
(WIND HOWLING)
NARRATOR: These mountains are
a wall, up to 14,000 feet high,
blocking water from
blowing further inland.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC FADES)
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Beyond is the
ultimate desert world.
The hottest place on Earth.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Death Valley.
Here, the summer temperature
can reach 130 degrees.
Even in spring, it
can top a hundred.
So, how do you survive in this
land hardly ever reached by rain?
One tiny desert dweller has a solution
straight out of a science fiction movie.
- (ANT RUSTLING)
- (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Ten feet underground,
where it's an ideal
temperature year-round.
A bizarre insect society.
(RUSTLING)
NARRATOR: These
are honeypot ants.
Some members of the species only
exist to store food for others.
The worker ants gather flower
nectar in times of plenty
and feed it to others,
who never leave the colony.
Their abdomens swell to the size
of a cherry with sweet nectar.
It's the colony's insurance
policy against hard times.
Now, the precious
honeypots are full
and kept clean by their comrades
to keep 'em healthy.
But in this corner of Death Valley,
the driest place in North America,
it hasn't rained all winter.
If this drought
goes on much longer,
these desert survivalists
will need a plan B.
(OMINOUS MUSIC CONCLUDES)
(INSPIRING MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Two hundred and
fifty miles further inland,
the Colorado River carves through
the high desert of Arizona
to form the Grand Canyon.
(MUSIC SWELLS)
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: This spring morning
brings a first-ever glimpse
into the private life of the
Canyon's most elusive resident.
Our mountain lion is
on a mission to breed.
Like all male mountain
lions, he's a loner.
His scarred face shows he'll fight to
keep rival males out of his kingdom.
But his biggest battle
is finding a female.
There's only a handful in a hundred
square miles of this canyon,
so he can't rely on
a chance encounter.
He needs to advertise.
His scent mark will
last for weeks...
a message to any passing females
that this eligible bachelor
is looking for love.
For others in the West, finding a
mate is the least of their worries.
Over 20 million
free-tailed bats,
one of the largest gatherings
of mammals on Earth,
flock to this sheltered Texas cave
each spring to mate and have pups.
(BATS CLICKING)
NARRATOR: These baby bats
have to grow up fast.
Tonight, at just a month old,
this little guy will fly up to a
hundred miles in search of food...
on his very first flight.
As evening falls, the
bats start to leave.
(WINGS FLAPPING)
NARRATOR: They'll get more time
to feed by heading out early...
but leaving their sanctuary
in daylight is a gamble.
There's danger from above.
A Swainson's hawk.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: And even
greater danger from below.
Cactus spines snag the
inexperienced pups...
making them an easy target.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Coachwhip snakes.
Their large eyes mark them
out as visual hunters.
Non-venomous, they rely on
dagger-sharp teeth to catch their prey.
(BAT SQUEALING)
NARRATOR: And if a bat
makes a run for it,
it stands no chance against the
fastest snake in North America.
(TEMPO RISES)
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: Despite the danger, every
bat has to head out sometime...
or starve.
What a time to take
your first-ever flight.
(INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
(BAT SQUEALS)
NARRATOR: His only chance
is to climb quickly
to somewhere he can re-launch.
Sometimes, you just
need a bit of luck.
(MUSIC TURNS UPBEAT)
NARRATOR: This young bat's
cleared the most dangerous hurdle
on his path to adulthood.
Tonight, he and the rest of his
colony will devour 250 tons of insects
in the Southwest skies.
Back in the Pacific, the clock is
ticking for the gray whale mom and calf.
They're averaging three miles an hour
on their journey up the West Coast
to the summer feeding grounds.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: The beaches of Los Angeles
are an eye-opener for a baby whale.
(WATER SPURTS)
NARRATOR: If he can memorize
landmarks like this,
it will help him navigate
when he's old enough to make
this migration on his own.
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: No time
to hang out, though.
Mom knows it's still a long way,
4,000 miles to the Alaskan Arctic.
Next stop, a wonder
of the American West.
A forest of giant kelp,
growing up to 18 inches a day,
fueled by the California sun.
This is the ocean equivalent
of a tropical rainforest...
full of life at every level.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Sea otters take
it easy in the kelp beds.
Moms can even get daycare
here, from the kelp.
Wrapped up in weed, this
youngster won't drift away.
And Mom can go free diving.
She can hold her breath
for up to eight minutes
while she hunts on the seabed.
Her favorite spot is the
surf zone, near the shore,
where the waves churn up nutrients,
feeding beds of shellfish.
(WAVES CRASHING)
NARRATOR: The otters thrive on
this protein-rich superfood.
There's plenty for everyone, if
you can hold on to your catch.
The ocean supplies all
the otters' needs...
even rocks from the seafloor
to smash open mussels.
(SMASHES)
(MUNCHES)
NARRATOR: Many sea otters spend
their entire lives at sea,
where the year-round riches are
in stark contrast to the land.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
- (WAVES CRASH GENTLY)
(BIRD CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: In the desert, the
scorching summer is just weeks away.
And somebody's in a
hurry to raise a family.
A Costa's hummingbird, the
hardest-working mom in America.
- (ENERGETIC MUSIC PLAYING)
- (HUMMINGBIRD CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: She's on a mission,
at 2,000 wingbeats a minute,
collecting dried grass and
spiderwebs to build a nest.
She has just five weeks to raise a brood,
and she needs just one more ingredient...
- that only a male can provide.
- (MUSIC FADES)
(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING)
(CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: The mom's short on time,
but she's still really picky.
(WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: He sticks out
his throat feathers.
He's throwing some great shapes.
But she's still not sure this
thumb-sized heartthrob is the one.
He'll have to pull out
his very best move.
He climbs to a hundred feet...
then dives at 60 miles per hour.
(WHISTLES)
NARRATOR: Whistling tail feathers
are the soundtrack to his show.
(HIGH-PITCHED WHISTLE)
NARRATOR: That dive...
That face...
Now she's sure.
(MUSIC FADES)
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: After the
briefest of encounters,
the mom soon has eggs to lay.
And now, the real
hard work begins.
(WINGS FLAPPING)
NARRATOR: In the sweltering
heat, she's soon visiting
up to 2,000 flowers a
day to feed her brood.
(BRIGHT MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Twins. Twice the work.
(CHIRPS)
NARRATOR: Each chick started out just
half the weight of a dollar bill.
She feeds them up on a protein
shake of insects and nectar.
In just 21 days, they're ten times
heavier than when they hatched...
and ready to take their
very first flight.
(TEMPO RISES)
NARRATOR: Supermom
has done it...
- and just before the summer heat hits.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: Soon, they'll have to leave
for the coast, where it's cooler.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
(SOFT MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Our gray whales have traveled
another 300 miles since leaving L.A.
The mom now hasn't
eaten for six months.
She's lost a fourth
of her body weight
while feeding her calf
six gallons of milk a day.
She needs to reach the
feeding grounds ASAP.
And now, she faces a choice.
Does she save energy and take
a shortcut across Monterey Bay,
a dangerous 25-mile
stretch of open water,
or keep on hugging
the shoreline?
She puts the safety of
her calf above her hunger
and stays inshore, hidden
in the kelp forest.
(WATER CRASHES)
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: Another
less experienced mom
chooses to take her calf
straight across the bay.
The wrong call. Orcas.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: This pod comes
here at this time every year
to hunt gray whale calves.
The older orcas teach the
young ones how to hunt.
(SEAGULLS CALLING)
NARRATOR: First, they ram the
calf at 30 miles per hour.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: When the gray whale mom tries
to lead her wounded youngster to safety
in the kelp forest,
other orcas block their path.
Working together, they drive
their prey back to deep water,
and separate the
calf from its mother.
(WATER CRASHES)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: Their plan has
worked. Now they drown the calf.
(MELANCHOLIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: It's a cruel lesson,
but this young mother will have
other calves in years to come.
(SPURTS)
For our more experienced mom,
sticking to the American coast
has saved her calf's life.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: They've passed
the most dangerous test
on their journey to Alaska...
and they're getting out of the West just
as the toughest time of year begins.
(WATER CRASHES)
NARRATOR: Summer.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Sun beating on the bare rock
turns the Grand Canyon into an oven.
Our mountain lion
seeks out the shade.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Still no
sign of a female...
so he posts a new message
on the big cat dating site.
Then he waits for evening...
when the Canyon
animals get active.
Deer are his favorite food...
- (BOAR SQUEALS)
- though he's not fussy.
He knows every inch of his
150-square-mile kingdom.
The Canyon rim is a
favorite hunting ground
for this stealth hunter.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: With night vision nearly
ten times better than a human's.
He's returning to a kill
he's made a few nights back.
He can eat 40 pounds
of meat in a day,
but it could still take him a
week to chow down a whole elk.
His belly's full. He goes
to sleep off his meal.
And while the cat's
away... thieves move in.
Most mountain lion kills
get raided by black bears,
just one of many that benefit
from the lion's leftovers.
(BOAR SNORTS)
NARRATOR: The King of the Canyon
is both predator and provider.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: July in Death Valley.
There's been no rain
now for six months.
Through the drought, the honeypot
ants have gradually drained
all the nectar they'd
stored in their nestmates.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: So with
nothing left to eat,
the workers are setting
out on a raiding party.
They must be quick. By
the middle of the day,
the surface can hit 200 degrees.
That's hot enough to
cook an ant in seconds.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: They find a
rival from another colony.
They size her up and follow
her scent back to her nest.
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: Here, they find
ants still full of nectar,
black from food found on
tree roots deep underground.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Buried treasure
worth fighting over.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
The starving invaders eat
some honeypots on the spot.
Others, they capture and drag
back to their home colony.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: The raiders will
have to get home fast,
because a force of nature
is building nearby.
(WIND RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: The
thundercloud collapses
into a monster dust
storm known as a haboob.
(WIND WHOOSHES)
Most ants make it back just before
the 60-mile-an-hour wall of sand
takes out any
stragglers in its path.
- (WIND WHOOSHES)
- (DRAMATIC MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: The entrance
to the nest is buried,
but the stolen honeypots will ensure
the colony's survival... for now.
By late summer, the heat and drought
across the West are almost unbearable.
Even clouds don't signify rain.
These are pyrocumulus,
fire clouds,
formed by soot particles rising
high into the sky above wildfires.
They can climb up to seven miles
high, the edge of the stratosphere.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Hotter summer temperatures,
caused by climate change,
are making wildfire season
increasingly extreme across the West.
The residents of Los Angeles are all
too familiar with these infernos.
Homes and wildlife habitat are regularly
destroyed, right up to the city limits.
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: But there's
an oasis in Tinseltown.
- (SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)
- (BIRDS CALLING)
NARRATOR: Griffith Park, right
in the heart of Hollywood.
Protected from fires, these well-watered
lawns are a haven for wildlife.
(BIRD CAWING)
NARRATOR: And after dark,
this park really comes alive.
(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
(SIREN WAILING IN DISTANCE)
NARRATOR: There's
prey... and predators.
Bobcat... coyote...
and one A-list star with
an amazing backstory.
(LIVELY MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: When he
found himself homeless,
this intrepid hero made a 50-mile
trek along the Santa Monica Mountains.
He crossed the busiest
freeway in the U.S...
- right into the heart of the city.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Meet P-22, the world's
most famous mountain lion.
As there's so much prey in this
park, he thrives in a territory
just five percent the size
of his Grand Canyon cousins'.
His radio collar sends
scientists his location.
(SIREN WAILING IN DISTANCE)
NARRATOR: In the small hours, he leaves
the park and prowls the city streets.
If it's a mate he's
after, he's out of luck.
(MOTOR WHIRRING)
NARRATOR: There's next to no
chance another mountain lion
will ever emulate
his amazing journey.
But he can find something in the
city that's in very short supply.
Water.
In the heat of the summer, a broken
water pipe can be a lifeline.
(WATER SOFTLY SPLASHING)
(SOFT MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: But for those across the
parched West without a water supply,
hope is finally on the horizon.
In late summer, the winds
shift over the Pacific Ocean,
blowing rain clouds
hundreds of miles inland.
This is the beginnings of one of the
most powerful weather systems in America.
The American monsoon.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: For three months, torrential
downpours drench the Southwest.
(RAIN WHOOSHING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: These storms can drop
two inches of rain in an hour,
rejuvenating the barren deserts.
(RAIN POURING)
(LIGHTNING CRASHES)
NARRATOR: This region can get
up to half its annual rainfall
in this late-summer monsoon.
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: The rain
from the distant ocean
is the secret to life
in America's deserts.
- (WATER CRASHING)
- (WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: All the way to
the top of the food chain.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: A new mountain
lion in the Grand Canyon.
Not the scarred-face male...
but a female.
After the recent rain, she can
travel outside of her usual range,
safe in the knowledge that there'll
be drinking water to be found.
(BIRDS CHIRPING, CALLING)
(GENTLE MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: This first-ever look
into the lives of the Grand
Canyon's mountain lions
shows that big cats are still thriving
in this iconic American wilderness.
A source of hope for the future.
This female is on
her own, no cubs.
So, quite likely, she's in
season, looking for a mate.
She's found the scent marks
of the scarred-faced male...
her first introduction
to a potential partner.
(INSPIRING MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: And following on,
just an hour later, is the male.
He'll soon achieve his goal,
another generation of big
cats in his kingdom...
true heroes of the
great American West.
(INSPIRATIONAL MUSIC CONTINUES)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: Welcome
to North America.
The most diverse
continent on Earth.
The only place where you can find
every landscape, from polar ice cap...
to baking desert, and
everything in between.
Whatever the neighborhood, there's
a hero who can make it a home.
Smart, tough,
brave, you name it.
They all have what
it takes to thrive...
in the wildest, most
beautiful continent on Earth.
SINGER: Patchwork quilt of life
Wildness never dies
Beauty always thrives
Under these spacious skies
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: The American Southwest,
from Texas to California,
is a spectacular world
of desert and rock.
An arid wonderland where
water, when it comes,
shapes the land and the
lives of all that live here.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: The Grand Canyon.
Three hundred miles long
and 6,000 feet deep.
An inaccessible place that's
pretty good at keeping secrets.
That's why the animal that rules this
world has been shrouded in mystery...
until now.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: A mountain lion.
Filmed in the Grand Canyon
for the very first time.
Two hundred pounds of muscle.
He's on a quest to
keep out rivals...
and father the next generation
of big cats in his kingdom.
But his success, and
that of all life here,
will ultimately depend
on events 500 miles away,
where the Southwest desert
meets the Pacific Ocean.
It's springtime, and off the
coast of Baja California,
a new life is just beginning.
(WATER SPLASHING)
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: A baby gray whale.
Birthweight, a
healthy 2000 pounds.
- (WATER SPURTS)
- (WHALE GROANS)
NARRATOR: This proud mom
travelled for months without food
to give birth in this
sheltered lagoon...
a safe haven from predators.
Now, she's building a bond with her son
and feeding him 50-percent-fat milk.
One problem, though. There's
no food here for Mom.
(WATER SPURTS)
NARRATOR: So she's about to lead
her calf, just eight weeks old,
on the longest mammal
migration on Earth.
But they're not alone.
Ninety-nine percent of the
world gray whale population
sets off from here each year,
to swim 6,000 miles back to
their Arctic feeding grounds.
The calf has been putting
on 200 pounds a day.
He's raring to go.
(WHALE GRUNTS)
- (WATER CRASHES)
- (MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Only Mom knows the
challenges that lie ahead
as they journey the length of
our continent's West Coast.
This is truly America's whale.
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: All along this coastline,
the Pacific is a life-giver.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Off California, the sun's
heat draws water from the cold ocean...
creating a fog bank, which
blows inland on the sea breeze.
This coastline is bathed
in fog for 60 days a year,
providing much of the water
for the world's tallest trees.
(BIRD CAWING)
NARRATOR: Three-hundred-foot
coastal redwoods
drink the droplets
through their leaves.
(BIRDS CAWING, SINGING)
(MAJESTIC MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: The fog also
supports less-celebrated trees.
(WOODPECKER DRUMMING)
- (BIRDS CHIRPING)
- (GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: This oak is the storehouse
for a family of acorn woodpeckers.
(RHYTHMIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: They live
to stash acorns.
All day, every day.
(DRUMMING)
NARRATOR: Almost to the
point of... obsession?
But 50,000 acorns stored
in the bark of one oak?
That's bound to attract thieves.
- (MUSIC TURNS DRAMATIC)
- (WOODPECKER CALLING)
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: One woodpecker
is always on lookout.
- (MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
- (WOODPECKER CAWS)
(MUSIC FALLS)
(TENSE MUSIC BUILDS)
(WOODPECKER CAWS)
(SHRIEKING)
(MUSIC FALLS)
NARRATOR: Looks like a
win for the squirrels.
But the lookout's
called in backup.
(WOODPECKERS CAWING)
NARRATOR: By working together,
they keep their stash safe.
But not for long.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(BRANCHES SNAPPING)
NARRATOR: This thief
has his own power tools
to break into the family vault.
Even the most committed
teamwork is no defense
against a raider a
thousand times your size.
All that hard work,
undone in minutes.
These hoarding heroes don't let
a little setback get them down.
(DRUMMING)
NARRATOR: The new collection
begins straightaway.
(BIRDS CAWING)
NARRATOR: The woodpeckers'
oak is watered by Pacific fog.
Travel away from the coast, and
that water supply evaporates.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: A hundred
and fifty miles inland,
the Sierra Nevada Mountains
capture the Pacific clouds.
(WIND HOWLING)
NARRATOR: These mountains are
a wall, up to 14,000 feet high,
blocking water from
blowing further inland.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC FADES)
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Beyond is the
ultimate desert world.
The hottest place on Earth.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Death Valley.
Here, the summer temperature
can reach 130 degrees.
Even in spring, it
can top a hundred.
So, how do you survive in this
land hardly ever reached by rain?
One tiny desert dweller has a solution
straight out of a science fiction movie.
- (ANT RUSTLING)
- (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Ten feet underground,
where it's an ideal
temperature year-round.
A bizarre insect society.
(RUSTLING)
NARRATOR: These
are honeypot ants.
Some members of the species only
exist to store food for others.
The worker ants gather flower
nectar in times of plenty
and feed it to others,
who never leave the colony.
Their abdomens swell to the size
of a cherry with sweet nectar.
It's the colony's insurance
policy against hard times.
Now, the precious
honeypots are full
and kept clean by their comrades
to keep 'em healthy.
But in this corner of Death Valley,
the driest place in North America,
it hasn't rained all winter.
If this drought
goes on much longer,
these desert survivalists
will need a plan B.
(OMINOUS MUSIC CONCLUDES)
(INSPIRING MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Two hundred and
fifty miles further inland,
the Colorado River carves through
the high desert of Arizona
to form the Grand Canyon.
(MUSIC SWELLS)
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: This spring morning
brings a first-ever glimpse
into the private life of the
Canyon's most elusive resident.
Our mountain lion is
on a mission to breed.
Like all male mountain
lions, he's a loner.
His scarred face shows he'll fight to
keep rival males out of his kingdom.
But his biggest battle
is finding a female.
There's only a handful in a hundred
square miles of this canyon,
so he can't rely on
a chance encounter.
He needs to advertise.
His scent mark will
last for weeks...
a message to any passing females
that this eligible bachelor
is looking for love.
For others in the West, finding a
mate is the least of their worries.
Over 20 million
free-tailed bats,
one of the largest gatherings
of mammals on Earth,
flock to this sheltered Texas cave
each spring to mate and have pups.
(BATS CLICKING)
NARRATOR: These baby bats
have to grow up fast.
Tonight, at just a month old,
this little guy will fly up to a
hundred miles in search of food...
on his very first flight.
As evening falls, the
bats start to leave.
(WINGS FLAPPING)
NARRATOR: They'll get more time
to feed by heading out early...
but leaving their sanctuary
in daylight is a gamble.
There's danger from above.
A Swainson's hawk.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: And even
greater danger from below.
Cactus spines snag the
inexperienced pups...
making them an easy target.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: Coachwhip snakes.
Their large eyes mark them
out as visual hunters.
Non-venomous, they rely on
dagger-sharp teeth to catch their prey.
(BAT SQUEALING)
NARRATOR: And if a bat
makes a run for it,
it stands no chance against the
fastest snake in North America.
(TEMPO RISES)
(MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: Despite the danger, every
bat has to head out sometime...
or starve.
What a time to take
your first-ever flight.
(INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
(BAT SQUEALS)
NARRATOR: His only chance
is to climb quickly
to somewhere he can re-launch.
Sometimes, you just
need a bit of luck.
(MUSIC TURNS UPBEAT)
NARRATOR: This young bat's
cleared the most dangerous hurdle
on his path to adulthood.
Tonight, he and the rest of his
colony will devour 250 tons of insects
in the Southwest skies.
Back in the Pacific, the clock is
ticking for the gray whale mom and calf.
They're averaging three miles an hour
on their journey up the West Coast
to the summer feeding grounds.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: The beaches of Los Angeles
are an eye-opener for a baby whale.
(WATER SPURTS)
NARRATOR: If he can memorize
landmarks like this,
it will help him navigate
when he's old enough to make
this migration on his own.
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: No time
to hang out, though.
Mom knows it's still a long way,
4,000 miles to the Alaskan Arctic.
Next stop, a wonder
of the American West.
A forest of giant kelp,
growing up to 18 inches a day,
fueled by the California sun.
This is the ocean equivalent
of a tropical rainforest...
full of life at every level.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Sea otters take
it easy in the kelp beds.
Moms can even get daycare
here, from the kelp.
Wrapped up in weed, this
youngster won't drift away.
And Mom can go free diving.
She can hold her breath
for up to eight minutes
while she hunts on the seabed.
Her favorite spot is the
surf zone, near the shore,
where the waves churn up nutrients,
feeding beds of shellfish.
(WAVES CRASHING)
NARRATOR: The otters thrive on
this protein-rich superfood.
There's plenty for everyone, if
you can hold on to your catch.
The ocean supplies all
the otters' needs...
even rocks from the seafloor
to smash open mussels.
(SMASHES)
(MUNCHES)
NARRATOR: Many sea otters spend
their entire lives at sea,
where the year-round riches are
in stark contrast to the land.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
- (WAVES CRASH GENTLY)
(BIRD CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: In the desert, the
scorching summer is just weeks away.
And somebody's in a
hurry to raise a family.
A Costa's hummingbird, the
hardest-working mom in America.
- (ENERGETIC MUSIC PLAYING)
- (HUMMINGBIRD CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: She's on a mission,
at 2,000 wingbeats a minute,
collecting dried grass and
spiderwebs to build a nest.
She has just five weeks to raise a brood,
and she needs just one more ingredient...
- that only a male can provide.
- (MUSIC FADES)
(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING)
(CHIRPING)
NARRATOR: The mom's short on time,
but she's still really picky.
(WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: He sticks out
his throat feathers.
He's throwing some great shapes.
But she's still not sure this
thumb-sized heartthrob is the one.
He'll have to pull out
his very best move.
He climbs to a hundred feet...
then dives at 60 miles per hour.
(WHISTLES)
NARRATOR: Whistling tail feathers
are the soundtrack to his show.
(HIGH-PITCHED WHISTLE)
NARRATOR: That dive...
That face...
Now she's sure.
(MUSIC FADES)
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: After the
briefest of encounters,
the mom soon has eggs to lay.
And now, the real
hard work begins.
(WINGS FLAPPING)
NARRATOR: In the sweltering
heat, she's soon visiting
up to 2,000 flowers a
day to feed her brood.
(BRIGHT MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Twins. Twice the work.
(CHIRPS)
NARRATOR: Each chick started out just
half the weight of a dollar bill.
She feeds them up on a protein
shake of insects and nectar.
In just 21 days, they're ten times
heavier than when they hatched...
and ready to take their
very first flight.
(TEMPO RISES)
NARRATOR: Supermom
has done it...
- and just before the summer heat hits.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: Soon, they'll have to leave
for the coast, where it's cooler.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
(SOFT MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Our gray whales have traveled
another 300 miles since leaving L.A.
The mom now hasn't
eaten for six months.
She's lost a fourth
of her body weight
while feeding her calf
six gallons of milk a day.
She needs to reach the
feeding grounds ASAP.
And now, she faces a choice.
Does she save energy and take
a shortcut across Monterey Bay,
a dangerous 25-mile
stretch of open water,
or keep on hugging
the shoreline?
She puts the safety of
her calf above her hunger
and stays inshore, hidden
in the kelp forest.
(WATER CRASHES)
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: Another
less experienced mom
chooses to take her calf
straight across the bay.
The wrong call. Orcas.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: This pod comes
here at this time every year
to hunt gray whale calves.
The older orcas teach the
young ones how to hunt.
(SEAGULLS CALLING)
NARRATOR: First, they ram the
calf at 30 miles per hour.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: When the gray whale mom tries
to lead her wounded youngster to safety
in the kelp forest,
other orcas block their path.
Working together, they drive
their prey back to deep water,
and separate the
calf from its mother.
(WATER CRASHES)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: Their plan has
worked. Now they drown the calf.
(MELANCHOLIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(SPURTS)
NARRATOR: It's a cruel lesson,
but this young mother will have
other calves in years to come.
(SPURTS)
For our more experienced mom,
sticking to the American coast
has saved her calf's life.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: They've passed
the most dangerous test
on their journey to Alaska...
and they're getting out of the West just
as the toughest time of year begins.
(WATER CRASHES)
NARRATOR: Summer.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Sun beating on the bare rock
turns the Grand Canyon into an oven.
Our mountain lion
seeks out the shade.
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Still no
sign of a female...
so he posts a new message
on the big cat dating site.
Then he waits for evening...
when the Canyon
animals get active.
Deer are his favorite food...
- (BOAR SQUEALS)
- though he's not fussy.
He knows every inch of his
150-square-mile kingdom.
The Canyon rim is a
favorite hunting ground
for this stealth hunter.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: With night vision nearly
ten times better than a human's.
He's returning to a kill
he's made a few nights back.
He can eat 40 pounds
of meat in a day,
but it could still take him a
week to chow down a whole elk.
His belly's full. He goes
to sleep off his meal.
And while the cat's
away... thieves move in.
Most mountain lion kills
get raided by black bears,
just one of many that benefit
from the lion's leftovers.
(BOAR SNORTS)
NARRATOR: The King of the Canyon
is both predator and provider.
(MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: July in Death Valley.
There's been no rain
now for six months.
Through the drought, the honeypot
ants have gradually drained
all the nectar they'd
stored in their nestmates.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: So with
nothing left to eat,
the workers are setting
out on a raiding party.
They must be quick. By
the middle of the day,
the surface can hit 200 degrees.
That's hot enough to
cook an ant in seconds.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
NARRATOR: They find a
rival from another colony.
They size her up and follow
her scent back to her nest.
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: Here, they find
ants still full of nectar,
black from food found on
tree roots deep underground.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Buried treasure
worth fighting over.
(MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
The starving invaders eat
some honeypots on the spot.
Others, they capture and drag
back to their home colony.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: The raiders will
have to get home fast,
because a force of nature
is building nearby.
(WIND RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: The
thundercloud collapses
into a monster dust
storm known as a haboob.
(WIND WHOOSHES)
Most ants make it back just before
the 60-mile-an-hour wall of sand
takes out any
stragglers in its path.
- (WIND WHOOSHES)
- (DRAMATIC MUSIC INTENSIFIES)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: The entrance
to the nest is buried,
but the stolen honeypots will ensure
the colony's survival... for now.
By late summer, the heat and drought
across the West are almost unbearable.
Even clouds don't signify rain.
These are pyrocumulus,
fire clouds,
formed by soot particles rising
high into the sky above wildfires.
They can climb up to seven miles
high, the edge of the stratosphere.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Hotter summer temperatures,
caused by climate change,
are making wildfire season
increasingly extreme across the West.
The residents of Los Angeles are all
too familiar with these infernos.
Homes and wildlife habitat are regularly
destroyed, right up to the city limits.
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
NARRATOR: But there's
an oasis in Tinseltown.
- (SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)
- (BIRDS CALLING)
NARRATOR: Griffith Park, right
in the heart of Hollywood.
Protected from fires, these well-watered
lawns are a haven for wildlife.
(BIRD CAWING)
NARRATOR: And after dark,
this park really comes alive.
(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
(SIREN WAILING IN DISTANCE)
NARRATOR: There's
prey... and predators.
Bobcat... coyote...
and one A-list star with
an amazing backstory.
(LIVELY MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: When he
found himself homeless,
this intrepid hero made a 50-mile
trek along the Santa Monica Mountains.
He crossed the busiest
freeway in the U.S...
- right into the heart of the city.
- (MUSIC CONCLUDES)
- (CRICKETS CHIRPING)
- (SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: Meet P-22, the world's
most famous mountain lion.
As there's so much prey in this
park, he thrives in a territory
just five percent the size
of his Grand Canyon cousins'.
His radio collar sends
scientists his location.
(SIREN WAILING IN DISTANCE)
NARRATOR: In the small hours, he leaves
the park and prowls the city streets.
If it's a mate he's
after, he's out of luck.
(MOTOR WHIRRING)
NARRATOR: There's next to no
chance another mountain lion
will ever emulate
his amazing journey.
But he can find something in the
city that's in very short supply.
Water.
In the heat of the summer, a broken
water pipe can be a lifeline.
(WATER SOFTLY SPLASHING)
(SOFT MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: But for those across the
parched West without a water supply,
hope is finally on the horizon.
In late summer, the winds
shift over the Pacific Ocean,
blowing rain clouds
hundreds of miles inland.
This is the beginnings of one of the
most powerful weather systems in America.
The American monsoon.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: For three months, torrential
downpours drench the Southwest.
(RAIN WHOOSHING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
NARRATOR: These storms can drop
two inches of rain in an hour,
rejuvenating the barren deserts.
(RAIN POURING)
(LIGHTNING CRASHES)
NARRATOR: This region can get
up to half its annual rainfall
in this late-summer monsoon.
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
(MUSIC FADES)
NARRATOR: The rain
from the distant ocean
is the secret to life
in America's deserts.
- (WATER CRASHING)
- (WINGS VIBRATING)
NARRATOR: All the way to
the top of the food chain.
(GENTLE MUSIC PLAYING)
NARRATOR: A new mountain
lion in the Grand Canyon.
Not the scarred-face male...
but a female.
After the recent rain, she can
travel outside of her usual range,
safe in the knowledge that there'll
be drinking water to be found.
(BIRDS CHIRPING, CALLING)
(GENTLE MUSIC CONTINUES)
NARRATOR: This first-ever look
into the lives of the Grand
Canyon's mountain lions
shows that big cats are still thriving
in this iconic American wilderness.
A source of hope for the future.
This female is on
her own, no cubs.
So, quite likely, she's in
season, looking for a mate.
She's found the scent marks
of the scarred-faced male...
her first introduction
to a potential partner.
(INSPIRING MUSIC PLAYS)
NARRATOR: And following on,
just an hour later, is the male.
He'll soon achieve his goal,
another generation of big
cats in his kingdom...
true heroes of the
great American West.
(INSPIRATIONAL MUSIC CONTINUES)
(MUSIC FADES)