Island of the Sea Wolves (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 1 - Episode #1.1 - full transcript
A young wolf, Cedar,
has been scouring the coast for days.
Looking for food.
Leftovers.
Anything.
Keep your eye on the scavengers.
They can lead you to food.
A carcass on a small island.
It's 400 yards from shore.
Beyond the reach of most wolves.
But Cedar is not an ordinary wolf.
She's a sea wolf.
Unique to the North Pacific.
Most other wolves would never
risk swimming this far in an ocean,
barely above freezing.
Cedar lives an extraordinary life...
in an extraordinary land.
Her home
is a vast outpost of volcanic rock,
creating a giant island
filled with wonders.
Surrounded by the North Pacific.
A cold but vibrant ocean...
...that batters its shores,
yet feeds life across its lands.
Where young bears
learn the ways of the forest.
And how to hunt its pristine rivers.
Bald eagles rule the skies...
...but dine on the sea.
While endangered marmots...
...hide out in their mountain fortresses...
sea otters float on the waves...
...and fight to survive the ocean extremes.
The shore lines between
are patrolled by sea wolves,
whose spirit is legend.
Each year, families here are
in a race to raise the next generation...
before winter sets in.
This is life on the edge.
It's life on Vancouver Island.
Almost 300 miles from top to bottom,
it's the largest island
on the west coast of North America.
And spring has just come knocking.
This should be a sweet time for Cedar.
Her pack coming together
in the warming weather
to hunt the coastline.
Instead, she finds herself
shunned by them.
Unable to share in their spoils.
Forced to swim offshore
to reach a washed-up seal carcass.
Her first meal in days.
And a badly needed one.
Because Cedar... is pregnant.
And that's a serious problem.
Because the pack's alpha female,
Dagger, is pregnant too.
The alpha male, Jasper,
will be father to both their litters.
Cedar is trapped
in a dangerous love triangle.
Now a rival to Dagger
and ostracized by the pack,
it'll be a battle
to find food for her growing pups.
Bald eagles are the island's
undisputed masters of aerial fishing.
Except for Spiro,
who is underperforming today.
He and his lifelong partner, Misty,
are having some problems back at the nest.
For bald eagles, good fishing
and a happy partner go hand in hand.
If they're to raise
nice strong chicks this year,
he'll need to bring home a lot of food.
So the last thing Spiro needs
is another pair of hungry eagles
muscling in on his turf.
A lousy fisherman, maybe,
but a pretty good scrapper.
Misty doesn't want a fighter though.
She wants food.
She expects him to
prove himself each year before they mate,
by bringing her tasty gifts
to show how well
he could provide for his family.
Misty is not impressed.
No luck fishing? There are other options.
Uh... Never order the crab.
This year's wooing
is off to a terrible start.
Misty wants results.
Every spring,
the island's flourishing waters
draw in distant travelers.
From all across the Pacific,
millions of creatures
travel north along the coast.
Some migrating thousands of miles.
It's one of the greatest
mass movements of life on the planet.
And when they get here,
this place is going to get wild.
But, for now,
the island sea is a peaceful haven
for a proud sea otter mom, Skye,
and her son, Rocky,
one of the first pups of spring.
Their floating pool chair vibe
is a central part of their lives.
But in truth,
their lives are hanging by a thread.
Just to keep warm
and produce enough milk for Rocky,
Skye must eat
at least 15 pounds of seafood every day.
Right beneath her, there's a huge, rich,
delicious kelp forest teeming with life.
But heading down to the buffet
means leaving Rocky
floating on the surface...
...alone.
Sea otters are the only marine mammals
that don't have blubber to keep them warm.
So each time Skye dives down,
the clock is ticking.
Rocky's body heat is dropping fast.
She should be eating
about 100 clams a day,
which could take hours.
Little Rocky doesn't have hours.
It's a delicate balancing act for Skye
to keep them both alive.
Around three-quarters of Vancouver Island
is covered in thick rainforest.
Here on the west coast,
there are still areas of old-growth forest
that have never been logged.
Some of the oldest trees
can soar to over 300 feet tall
in these perfect growing conditions.
The annual 20 feet of rainfall
makes it ideal
for all moisture-loving creatures.
Everywhere is damp.
But Dagger is searching for somewhere dry.
The pack's traditional birthing den
is a long-held sanctuary...
under the roots of this giant tree,
always reserved for the alpha female.
It's been nine months
since Dagger was last here,
so she's making sure
everything's in order.
Cedar isn't so lucky.
As a low-ranking young mother,
she's not a priority for the den.
She has to fight for everything she gets.
But an intense low-pressure system
is building offshore.
So, her luck might change.
Misty takes cover,
while Spiro tries to keep fishing.
In recent years,
storms have become more intense.
The sea wolves know if it's bad enough,
the ocean might even
do their hunting for them,
by forcing a sea otter ashore.
Rocky needs
full-on lifeguarding right now.
It's impossible to stay warm in this.
Even the adults
are seeking shelter ashore.
Skye needs to do the same
if she's going to save Rocky.
They're safe.
Finally, Skye is able to feed him
some nice, warm milk.
She's so exhausted,
she falls asleep almost instantly.
After the storm comes the calm.
Cedar is up bright and early,
seeing if the storm
has left her any offerings.
She smells fresh meat on the wind.
Overnight, a wolf killed a sea otter.
But she's not the only one
who's picked up the scent.
Jasper, the alpha, has come to claim it.
Robbing Cedar to feed Dagger.
This is all Cedar's getting.
By dragging the carcass into the forest,
Jasper is partaking
in the island's great exchange.
Every year,
predators carry hundreds of thousands
of tons of rich marine life
from the ocean inland.
When the carcasses break down,
they transfer nutrients
from the sea to the soil.
This massive nutrition infusion
helps the first spring flowers to bloom,
and the trees to grow tall.
One way or another,
the ocean
nurtures all life on this island.
Now that conditions
have settled back down,
the fish have moved closer to the surface.
An excellent time to go gift shopping.
Spiro is desperate to impress Misty.
She likes it.
She really likes it.
Spiro is officially impressive.
Now the pressure is on.
Misty will be ready to lay
in about ten days.
And to make healthy eggs,
she'll need a healthy diet.
Spiro gets straight back to work.
Skye is now feeding Rocky
his first solid food,
and he's getting big, fast.
Enough so, that he can
now bob around for hours without her help.
Which gives Skye more time to dive
for their favorite cuisine.
Clams.
She now needs to eat
half her body weight each day...
to feed herself and Rocky.
But some uninvited guests
just crashed the clam party.
Gray whales.
The first visitors of spring.
At the beginning of March, they stop by
en route from
their birthing grounds in Mexico,
to their summer feeding in Alaska.
They stir up the mud in the shallows
and sift out huge mouthfuls
of crustaceans and shrimp.
They've taken over Skye's clam beds.
And what's she going to do about it?
Chase them off?
She has to find some other feeding spot.
This small cove is safe from the whales.
It's only got barnacles though.
And they're a lot more work to crack open.
But you've got to get
your protein where you can.
Rocky wants to tag along
on his mom's hunting dives.
It's just that his coat is so thick
and buoyant on his little body,
he can't stay under.
He's the otter equivalent of a toddler,
so, yeah, not that coordinated.
When grey whales are in town,
there's always trouble.
When they get between otter moms and pups,
they can separate them.
Their wake could pull
a drifting baby far out to sea.
Skye can't see Rocky...
...so she homes in on his cries.
Mom hands him
some nice, hard barnacle candy
and he's a happy pup again.
The whales bring a lot of drama,
but in the long run,
these giants actually
help the otters and other animals.
The nutrients they stir up in the silt
will fertilize the local kelp forest...
ultimately making
more seafood for everyone.
Tensions are starting
to mount on the island.
The residents are expecting
a huge annual feast to arrive.
But it's two weeks late...
and still no sign.
Without it, the island's breeding season
could be a disaster.
But then...
it begins.
Pacific herring arrive in their millions
to spawn in these shallow bays,
where their eggs will be protected
from the ocean surf.
Each female can lay 20,000 eggs,
attaching them to seaweed
and eelgrass, one egg at a time.
Their spawning
colors the coastline for miles.
For the thousands of waiting sea lions,
dinner is finally served.
This event is absolutely
life-sustaining for the island...
yet lasts only a few days.
The sea lions
charge the herring from below...
driving them up to where the eagles
can snatch them at the surface.
Spiro is so stuffed,
he can barely lift off from the shore.
But Misty's eggs
will surely be healthy now.
Most of the sea lions
have swallowed over 50 pounds of herring.
And this is only
the first day of herring fest.
There's always that guy
who had too much at the party.
In the quiet aftermath,
a different kind of visitor comes calling.
A family of killer whales.
The ocean's top predator.
And they're not here for the herring.
They specialize in hunting sea lions.
Nice, big, bloated, overfed, sleepy ones.
The wise matriarch
of the pod is 67 years old.
The largest is a 30-foot male
with a dorsal fin a full six feet tall.
Today, instead of using their stealth,
the killer whales announce their arrival.
Sending the entire colony of sea lions
into a very convenient panic.
They instinctively flee into the water...
...where they feel safer and move faster.
Exactly what the orcas wanted.
The sea lions are wary though
and don't stray too far from shore.
Then the matriarch leads her pod
away from the colony.
She's spotted something more promising.
A sea lion returning late
from the herring hunt, alone,
out in the open water.
Sea lions are fast,
but this one is surrounded, battered...
...and stunned by its attackers.
Killer whales are known
to share their kills among the group.
And by harassing
and killing off sea lions,
these top predators
actually protect the herring populations,
striking a balance
that helps to keep the island healthy.
After a few days,
the great shoals of herring
leave the island
and head back into the deep...
leaving behind the next generation.
The eggs attach to everything.
The beach becomes
a jewel-studded veil of new life...
up to half a million eggs per square foot.
The herring have left,
but there's more fare
for the locals than ever.
This once-a-year feast
even attracts creatures
from deep in the forest...
...the island's biggest land predator,
a male black bear.
Brutus just woke up
from five months of hibernation.
And he would kill for something
nice and juicy to fill up on.
Gobs of protein-rich herring eggs
are the perfect appetizer.
The king of the forest's
first meal of the year...
courtesy of the Pacific Ocean.
Its boundless generosity
has powered up the neighborhood residents
for a giant baby boom.
The next generation
of Vancouver Islanders is on its way.
Spiro and Misty
are already getting things rolling.
A sneaky raven
tries to lure them away from their eggs...
...so it can grab one.
Nice try, Raven.
One of them needs
to be guarding that nest at all times.
So when Misty needs to eat,
she has to trust Spiro to hold the fort.
And he's up for the challenge.
Misty's going to be so impressed.
April rolls into May.
And spring washes over the island.
The neighborhood
now welcomes new creatures of all stripes.
Dagger has spent
the last three weeks in her den.
She checks to make sure it's safe...
for newcomers.
Two tiny pups,
from under their special, old tree.
This is their first adventure
into the outside world.
They're still so wobbly and vulnerable...
that Dagger has to
stay with them day and night.
She doesn't need to leave,
she knows an alpha's food
will always be delivered.
Up in the spruce high-rise...
...the happy day has finally arrived.
Thanks to Spiro's hard work
and Misty's herring binge,
their chicks are strong and healthy.
And while she stays at the nest
to guard and feed them,
Spiro's eager to show off
his hunting chops again.
These mini raptors fight for every bite.
The competition is fierce.
Even at this age.
Usually, only one will survive.
If both chicks are to make it,
the ocean must keep giving.
But come summer,
there will be no guarantees.
The young loner, Cedar,
has now also given birth.
But has to leave her pups
so she can eat and supply them with milk.
It's a lot harder finding food
without a pack to rely on.
And today, the ocean isn't helping her.
Cedar has to
find food somewhere, and soon.
It looks like she's made a decision.
She's heading for Dagger's den.
Wolves have been known
to raid a rival's den.
As food becomes ever more scarce,
it's not just Cedar who will be driven
to take desperate measures.
has been scouring the coast for days.
Looking for food.
Leftovers.
Anything.
Keep your eye on the scavengers.
They can lead you to food.
A carcass on a small island.
It's 400 yards from shore.
Beyond the reach of most wolves.
But Cedar is not an ordinary wolf.
She's a sea wolf.
Unique to the North Pacific.
Most other wolves would never
risk swimming this far in an ocean,
barely above freezing.
Cedar lives an extraordinary life...
in an extraordinary land.
Her home
is a vast outpost of volcanic rock,
creating a giant island
filled with wonders.
Surrounded by the North Pacific.
A cold but vibrant ocean...
...that batters its shores,
yet feeds life across its lands.
Where young bears
learn the ways of the forest.
And how to hunt its pristine rivers.
Bald eagles rule the skies...
...but dine on the sea.
While endangered marmots...
...hide out in their mountain fortresses...
sea otters float on the waves...
...and fight to survive the ocean extremes.
The shore lines between
are patrolled by sea wolves,
whose spirit is legend.
Each year, families here are
in a race to raise the next generation...
before winter sets in.
This is life on the edge.
It's life on Vancouver Island.
Almost 300 miles from top to bottom,
it's the largest island
on the west coast of North America.
And spring has just come knocking.
This should be a sweet time for Cedar.
Her pack coming together
in the warming weather
to hunt the coastline.
Instead, she finds herself
shunned by them.
Unable to share in their spoils.
Forced to swim offshore
to reach a washed-up seal carcass.
Her first meal in days.
And a badly needed one.
Because Cedar... is pregnant.
And that's a serious problem.
Because the pack's alpha female,
Dagger, is pregnant too.
The alpha male, Jasper,
will be father to both their litters.
Cedar is trapped
in a dangerous love triangle.
Now a rival to Dagger
and ostracized by the pack,
it'll be a battle
to find food for her growing pups.
Bald eagles are the island's
undisputed masters of aerial fishing.
Except for Spiro,
who is underperforming today.
He and his lifelong partner, Misty,
are having some problems back at the nest.
For bald eagles, good fishing
and a happy partner go hand in hand.
If they're to raise
nice strong chicks this year,
he'll need to bring home a lot of food.
So the last thing Spiro needs
is another pair of hungry eagles
muscling in on his turf.
A lousy fisherman, maybe,
but a pretty good scrapper.
Misty doesn't want a fighter though.
She wants food.
She expects him to
prove himself each year before they mate,
by bringing her tasty gifts
to show how well
he could provide for his family.
Misty is not impressed.
No luck fishing? There are other options.
Uh... Never order the crab.
This year's wooing
is off to a terrible start.
Misty wants results.
Every spring,
the island's flourishing waters
draw in distant travelers.
From all across the Pacific,
millions of creatures
travel north along the coast.
Some migrating thousands of miles.
It's one of the greatest
mass movements of life on the planet.
And when they get here,
this place is going to get wild.
But, for now,
the island sea is a peaceful haven
for a proud sea otter mom, Skye,
and her son, Rocky,
one of the first pups of spring.
Their floating pool chair vibe
is a central part of their lives.
But in truth,
their lives are hanging by a thread.
Just to keep warm
and produce enough milk for Rocky,
Skye must eat
at least 15 pounds of seafood every day.
Right beneath her, there's a huge, rich,
delicious kelp forest teeming with life.
But heading down to the buffet
means leaving Rocky
floating on the surface...
...alone.
Sea otters are the only marine mammals
that don't have blubber to keep them warm.
So each time Skye dives down,
the clock is ticking.
Rocky's body heat is dropping fast.
She should be eating
about 100 clams a day,
which could take hours.
Little Rocky doesn't have hours.
It's a delicate balancing act for Skye
to keep them both alive.
Around three-quarters of Vancouver Island
is covered in thick rainforest.
Here on the west coast,
there are still areas of old-growth forest
that have never been logged.
Some of the oldest trees
can soar to over 300 feet tall
in these perfect growing conditions.
The annual 20 feet of rainfall
makes it ideal
for all moisture-loving creatures.
Everywhere is damp.
But Dagger is searching for somewhere dry.
The pack's traditional birthing den
is a long-held sanctuary...
under the roots of this giant tree,
always reserved for the alpha female.
It's been nine months
since Dagger was last here,
so she's making sure
everything's in order.
Cedar isn't so lucky.
As a low-ranking young mother,
she's not a priority for the den.
She has to fight for everything she gets.
But an intense low-pressure system
is building offshore.
So, her luck might change.
Misty takes cover,
while Spiro tries to keep fishing.
In recent years,
storms have become more intense.
The sea wolves know if it's bad enough,
the ocean might even
do their hunting for them,
by forcing a sea otter ashore.
Rocky needs
full-on lifeguarding right now.
It's impossible to stay warm in this.
Even the adults
are seeking shelter ashore.
Skye needs to do the same
if she's going to save Rocky.
They're safe.
Finally, Skye is able to feed him
some nice, warm milk.
She's so exhausted,
she falls asleep almost instantly.
After the storm comes the calm.
Cedar is up bright and early,
seeing if the storm
has left her any offerings.
She smells fresh meat on the wind.
Overnight, a wolf killed a sea otter.
But she's not the only one
who's picked up the scent.
Jasper, the alpha, has come to claim it.
Robbing Cedar to feed Dagger.
This is all Cedar's getting.
By dragging the carcass into the forest,
Jasper is partaking
in the island's great exchange.
Every year,
predators carry hundreds of thousands
of tons of rich marine life
from the ocean inland.
When the carcasses break down,
they transfer nutrients
from the sea to the soil.
This massive nutrition infusion
helps the first spring flowers to bloom,
and the trees to grow tall.
One way or another,
the ocean
nurtures all life on this island.
Now that conditions
have settled back down,
the fish have moved closer to the surface.
An excellent time to go gift shopping.
Spiro is desperate to impress Misty.
She likes it.
She really likes it.
Spiro is officially impressive.
Now the pressure is on.
Misty will be ready to lay
in about ten days.
And to make healthy eggs,
she'll need a healthy diet.
Spiro gets straight back to work.
Skye is now feeding Rocky
his first solid food,
and he's getting big, fast.
Enough so, that he can
now bob around for hours without her help.
Which gives Skye more time to dive
for their favorite cuisine.
Clams.
She now needs to eat
half her body weight each day...
to feed herself and Rocky.
But some uninvited guests
just crashed the clam party.
Gray whales.
The first visitors of spring.
At the beginning of March, they stop by
en route from
their birthing grounds in Mexico,
to their summer feeding in Alaska.
They stir up the mud in the shallows
and sift out huge mouthfuls
of crustaceans and shrimp.
They've taken over Skye's clam beds.
And what's she going to do about it?
Chase them off?
She has to find some other feeding spot.
This small cove is safe from the whales.
It's only got barnacles though.
And they're a lot more work to crack open.
But you've got to get
your protein where you can.
Rocky wants to tag along
on his mom's hunting dives.
It's just that his coat is so thick
and buoyant on his little body,
he can't stay under.
He's the otter equivalent of a toddler,
so, yeah, not that coordinated.
When grey whales are in town,
there's always trouble.
When they get between otter moms and pups,
they can separate them.
Their wake could pull
a drifting baby far out to sea.
Skye can't see Rocky...
...so she homes in on his cries.
Mom hands him
some nice, hard barnacle candy
and he's a happy pup again.
The whales bring a lot of drama,
but in the long run,
these giants actually
help the otters and other animals.
The nutrients they stir up in the silt
will fertilize the local kelp forest...
ultimately making
more seafood for everyone.
Tensions are starting
to mount on the island.
The residents are expecting
a huge annual feast to arrive.
But it's two weeks late...
and still no sign.
Without it, the island's breeding season
could be a disaster.
But then...
it begins.
Pacific herring arrive in their millions
to spawn in these shallow bays,
where their eggs will be protected
from the ocean surf.
Each female can lay 20,000 eggs,
attaching them to seaweed
and eelgrass, one egg at a time.
Their spawning
colors the coastline for miles.
For the thousands of waiting sea lions,
dinner is finally served.
This event is absolutely
life-sustaining for the island...
yet lasts only a few days.
The sea lions
charge the herring from below...
driving them up to where the eagles
can snatch them at the surface.
Spiro is so stuffed,
he can barely lift off from the shore.
But Misty's eggs
will surely be healthy now.
Most of the sea lions
have swallowed over 50 pounds of herring.
And this is only
the first day of herring fest.
There's always that guy
who had too much at the party.
In the quiet aftermath,
a different kind of visitor comes calling.
A family of killer whales.
The ocean's top predator.
And they're not here for the herring.
They specialize in hunting sea lions.
Nice, big, bloated, overfed, sleepy ones.
The wise matriarch
of the pod is 67 years old.
The largest is a 30-foot male
with a dorsal fin a full six feet tall.
Today, instead of using their stealth,
the killer whales announce their arrival.
Sending the entire colony of sea lions
into a very convenient panic.
They instinctively flee into the water...
...where they feel safer and move faster.
Exactly what the orcas wanted.
The sea lions are wary though
and don't stray too far from shore.
Then the matriarch leads her pod
away from the colony.
She's spotted something more promising.
A sea lion returning late
from the herring hunt, alone,
out in the open water.
Sea lions are fast,
but this one is surrounded, battered...
...and stunned by its attackers.
Killer whales are known
to share their kills among the group.
And by harassing
and killing off sea lions,
these top predators
actually protect the herring populations,
striking a balance
that helps to keep the island healthy.
After a few days,
the great shoals of herring
leave the island
and head back into the deep...
leaving behind the next generation.
The eggs attach to everything.
The beach becomes
a jewel-studded veil of new life...
up to half a million eggs per square foot.
The herring have left,
but there's more fare
for the locals than ever.
This once-a-year feast
even attracts creatures
from deep in the forest...
...the island's biggest land predator,
a male black bear.
Brutus just woke up
from five months of hibernation.
And he would kill for something
nice and juicy to fill up on.
Gobs of protein-rich herring eggs
are the perfect appetizer.
The king of the forest's
first meal of the year...
courtesy of the Pacific Ocean.
Its boundless generosity
has powered up the neighborhood residents
for a giant baby boom.
The next generation
of Vancouver Islanders is on its way.
Spiro and Misty
are already getting things rolling.
A sneaky raven
tries to lure them away from their eggs...
...so it can grab one.
Nice try, Raven.
One of them needs
to be guarding that nest at all times.
So when Misty needs to eat,
she has to trust Spiro to hold the fort.
And he's up for the challenge.
Misty's going to be so impressed.
April rolls into May.
And spring washes over the island.
The neighborhood
now welcomes new creatures of all stripes.
Dagger has spent
the last three weeks in her den.
She checks to make sure it's safe...
for newcomers.
Two tiny pups,
from under their special, old tree.
This is their first adventure
into the outside world.
They're still so wobbly and vulnerable...
that Dagger has to
stay with them day and night.
She doesn't need to leave,
she knows an alpha's food
will always be delivered.
Up in the spruce high-rise...
...the happy day has finally arrived.
Thanks to Spiro's hard work
and Misty's herring binge,
their chicks are strong and healthy.
And while she stays at the nest
to guard and feed them,
Spiro's eager to show off
his hunting chops again.
These mini raptors fight for every bite.
The competition is fierce.
Even at this age.
Usually, only one will survive.
If both chicks are to make it,
the ocean must keep giving.
But come summer,
there will be no guarantees.
The young loner, Cedar,
has now also given birth.
But has to leave her pups
so she can eat and supply them with milk.
It's a lot harder finding food
without a pack to rely on.
And today, the ocean isn't helping her.
Cedar has to
find food somewhere, and soon.
It looks like she's made a decision.
She's heading for Dagger's den.
Wolves have been known
to raid a rival's den.
As food becomes ever more scarce,
it's not just Cedar who will be driven
to take desperate measures.