The largest human migration every year is probably the Chinese Spring Festival. Planes, high-speed trains, cars, motorcycles... From south to north, foreigners are eager to return home.
Compared with humans, the great migration of animals is more like a journey of nirvana and rebirth. Animals migrate long distances to reproduce or find the best feeding grounds. The length of the journey, the time it takes, the difficulty of the process, and the complexity of the form often exceed human imagination. There are even more thrilling and touching stories, which can be called epic.
"The Strange Journey of Creatures" poster
The documentary "The Journey of Creatures", jointly produced by National Geographic and Bilibili, follows the migration journey of animals to get a glimpse of the miracle of vitality and the infinite wisdom of survival and adaptation in nature. The Douban score is as high as 9.3.
The film has no amusing narration or artificially exaggerated dramatic plots. In the soothing and ethereal music, you can see millions of wild animals from the dense African savannah to the frozen polar regions, from the vast ocean to the vast sky, from the scorching desert to the thrilling rapids. They migrate around the world every day along paths that have been used for centuries.
This is an unpretentious record time after time. The 5,000-kilometer sea route, the 3,000-kilometer trek, the grand migration scenes and the adventurous and fearless spirit of animals will shock the hearts of children in front of the TV again and again.
"The Strange Journey of Creatures" poster
When I watched it with my child, the little guy kept his eyes wide open and held his breath.
"Did it come up?"
"Did it go through?"
"Has it found its mother?"
"Is it alive?"
…
Perhaps the data in a British children's encyclopedia will be more detailed and interesting than that in a documentary, but the feelings brought about by the footage of the documentary are more direct and immersive.
Screenshot of "The Journey of Creatures"
Humpback whale calves, green sea turtle babies, little red crabs, little penguins, children in nature participate in the great migration of thousands of miles after they are born. What should they do when faced with the difficulties and obstacles on the journey?
"Mom, it must be brave!" The son gave a firm answer. You see, children don’t actually need to be preached, they just need to see the power of an example, even if it’s a little crab crossing the road.
The documentary "The Journey of Creatures" is like a life education lesson from nature, full of positive energy. The creative team took three years to shoot, and gathered more than a hundred experts and scientists to participate in the production. The film crew traveled to seven continents and fifteen countries to finally create this ingenious work.
The English narration of "The Strange Journey" is Hollywood actor Jeremy Renner
The collaboration between director Anthony Pyper and narrator Jeremy Renner brings a unique perspective and in-depth interpretation to this documentary.
Through the eyes of scientists, we see not only the migration of animals, but also the complex and subtle interrelationships between ecosystems. The journey of these creatures is not only to find food and reproduce, but also an important part of maintaining the biodiversity and ecological balance of the earth.
In Tanzania's Serengeti, a newborn zebra calf is about to embark on the largest land migration on earth. In order not to get lost in the queue, it must first learn to identify its mother's scent and calls. At an age when walking is still unsteady, it must grow up quickly, learn to run, and closely follow in its mother's footsteps.
The lions of the Serengeti have long been hungry. They have excellent eyesight and can see their prey clearly in the mist. Aiming at the right moment and attacking quickly, the migrating zebra herd instantly fell into chaos. Zebra calves, protected by their parents, are usually able to escape the chaos. But for the lonely little zebras, there is only one way to die, and their journey is over before it even begins.
Screenshot of "The Journey of Creatures"
According to statistics, less than half of the cubs born each year survive, making this one of the cruelest migrations on earth. Even the zebras that escaped death face a more difficult journey. They have to endure a five-month marathon and travel thousands of kilometers to reach their destination - the Masai Mara, Kenya's rich pasture.
Lake Bogoria in Kenya is a paradise for flamingos despite its highly corrosive waters. There is a high-protein algae called spirulina in the lake, which is one of the flamingos’ favorite foods. To win a mate, they must double their weight, making themselves even larger and taller. Using their sieve-like beaks, flamingos can drink up to 300 liters of algae soup in this lake every day, strengthening their bodies and making their feathers shine. But this is only the first step. In order to find love, these flamingos must travel a long distance to Lake Elmenteta, which is more suitable for life.
Screenshot of "The Journey of Creatures"
After the cold winter is over, the largest flying bird on earth begins its journey back home. The albatross can fly more than 110,000 kilometers every year. It is a well-deserved flyer with the help of air currents. When spring comes, albatrosses usher in their breeding season, flying 5,000 kilometers across featureless seas. Despite the lack of landmarks, their navigation methods are a mystery and they always return to the island they call home.
Albatrosses are monogamous seabirds and wait for their mate after returning home after a year. At the same time, they are also very selective in their choice of partners. Usually albatross will choose to seek a mate after five to ten years of adulthood. The search takes another two to three years, and once two albatrosses are chosen, they become lifelong soul mates. During the annual breeding season, partners who are far apart from each other will return to the nest at the same time to live intimately and reproduce the next generation. With an average lifespan of 30 years, they spend 90% of their lives wandering at sea, so they particularly cherish the time they spend with their spouses.
There is a scene in the film that makes people cry.
A lone female humpback whale got lost. Because the fishing net entangled its mouth and prevented it from floating to the surface to breathe. At this time, a group of sharks were waiting for the opportunity, and the female humpback whale's life was in danger.
However, it is not alone. Its call can be carried far away, and a male humpback whale hears it. "What follows is something we've never seen before..." the narrator says.
The male whale taps his tail to drive the shark away, then swims under the female whale and slowly lifts her out of the water to let her breathe.
This was an extraordinary act of kindness. In the last moments of his life, this tired traveler had a companion.
In today's world where technology is active and internal friction surrounds us, the vivid stories brought by the beautiful creatures in nature are so healing!
