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Hamza's Hidden Wild Isles Season 1 Episode 3
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FunTranscript
00:00My name is Hamze Yaseen. I am a wildlife cameraman and naturalist.
00:19And in this series, I'm going to show you the incredible hidden wildlife that we have here in the British Isles.
00:25These islands are full of wildlife and amazing spectacles, but some are so hidden they're not always easy to find.
00:36All you need to know is how and where to look.
00:40I'll be showing you animals so rare that we hardly ever see them.
00:44Tuna!
00:46I'll be taking you to places so remote that very few people visit.
00:52And uncovering wildlife hiding in plain sight in our towns and our cities.
00:59You legend! You legend!
01:02Whilst using the very latest technology to reveal a whole range of hard to find animals and behaviours.
01:10Look at that!
01:14What?
01:19This is phenomenal.
01:20This is a new look at Britain's hidden wildlife.
01:24Yes! Come on!
01:26Cresty and the Cairngorms.
01:27Cresty and the Cairngorms.
01:29Cresty and the Cairngorms.
01:31Autumn is one of my favourite times of the year.
01:54Across our woodlands, a beautiful transformation takes place as the days shorten and the leaves
02:05change colour.
02:13Our forests echo with the roar of rutting deer and thousands of migrants arrive to escape
02:23the harsh northern winter.
02:32One special autumn visitor has made a dramatic comeback and I'm super excited to try and film
02:39it for the very first time.
02:48I'm here to capture a creature that had disappeared from our waters and my team and I are going
02:55to throw everything at it to try and capture this apex predator.
02:59So let's give it a go.
03:04It's really quite extraordinary that this legendary creature has only just returned to our waters
03:10in the last ten years.
03:13They patrol these coasts every autumn, searching for their prey.
03:19Their hunting behaviour is truly remarkable and capturing this will be an enormous challenge.
03:25This exposed peninsula will offer us a 270 degree view across a vast expanse of ocean.
03:39I will need my entire crew to scan the horizon for any signs of action.
03:52In this vast ocean, I don't know where to point, but there is one little clue.
03:56Their prey fish sometimes break the surface, so if I can spot the prey fish, I can come
04:01in after them and hopefully focus in that area.
04:05The garfish are clearly panicked.
04:08They know their predators are hidden below.
04:10They know their predators are hidden below.
04:17Just up ahead, that's over cook.
04:28This is what I'm here for.
04:31Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
04:38Tuna!
04:43Yes!
04:45This is wicked.
04:47Come on!
04:52This is going to be such a good day.
04:58Tuna just up ahead.
04:59Yeah, I see exactly where it is.
05:02Got it!
05:03Oh, tuna!
05:05Tuna!
05:05Really close in.
05:09Oh, here we go.
05:09Here we go.
05:10Here we go.
05:11Whoa!
05:13That is amazing.
05:16This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me.
05:23Atlantic Bluefin Tuna are enormous.
05:26They can weigh over 600 kilos and are up to three metres long, the size of a small car.
05:37They're not just big, they're also very fast.
05:42They can reach a top speed of 43 miles per hour.
05:45By chasing the garfish to the surface, their prey have nowhere to go, and then they breach.
05:53These fish are so powerful.
06:00But they have this really beautiful mechanism where only the tail moves and the head stays absolutely still.
06:08And that's because they're locked onto their prey.
06:10They want to be able to see their prey and fly at it.
06:13First time ever I've filmed tuna.
06:27I've seen them all around the world.
06:28But in British waters, that's the phenomenal thing.
06:32All but extinct in our waters until 2014, it's wonderful to see bluefin back in good numbers, following drastic changes in international fishing practices.
06:46Their numbers have further been boosted here in the UK, as warming sea temperatures have led to an increase in their prey.
07:01We must do what we can to protect these iconic animals and support their population recovery, even as our oceans change.
07:10We got them, the bluefin tuna, the Atlantic bluefin tuna has been captured by my team and I.
07:24To be able to think that these animals were extinct from our waters, and now they're back, and not only back, they're back with a vengeance, is just music to my ears.
07:34Filming tuna was ever so lucky, and a total first for me.
07:47But my next challenge is an animal, which as a naturalist, I really should have seen by now.
07:55It's one of the nation's favourites.
07:58It's not rare.
07:59It's common.
08:01And yet, most people have never seen one.
08:04Surprisingly small, and incredibly quick, at best, we might see a flash of blue.
08:19It's the Kingfisher.
08:25You might think the best place for me to film them would be the countryside, but I've come to London.
08:3415 minutes from central London is Walthamstow wetlands.
08:46Made up of nine reservoirs, it supplies drinking water to 3.5 million Londoners.
08:53It's also an important haven for wildlife.
09:03I am joined on this beautiful autumn morning by Wildlife Trust ranger, Lira Valencia.
09:09What day is it today?
09:11Monday morning.
09:12It's Monday morning.
09:14It's Monday morning.
09:16People on the trains going to work, in those offices.
09:19We're at work.
09:20We're at work.
09:21How cool is that?
09:22So cool.
09:26This is like the hot spot on the reserve.
09:28Right here.
09:28Right here where we're standing.
09:29I always tell people, if you want to see the Kingfisher, go to your local river, your stream, that's step one.
09:36Step one.
09:37Step two, how to identify their call.
09:39They're really small, so you need to know what they sound like.
09:41Yeah.
09:42Step three also, so once you know you're on an area where you can find them, maybe looking out for branches in water that's quite shallow so they can see fish.
09:50We saw loads of gulls about.
09:51That indicates there's loads of fish there.
09:53What does it mean for you to be a birder? Because I am an out-and-out nerd.
09:59It's interesting because I didn't even know I was a birder until people started labelling me as a birder.
10:05Right.
10:05I was just a girl from Creighton who loved birds, got a pair of binoculars and wanted to get more into it.
10:10I think people get shocked when they know that I'm a ranger and I work in, you know, a reserve because there's this misconception you have to look or sound a certain way.
10:19But I'm kind of here to show that, you know, you can express your love for nature in different ways, in creative ways, in a way that suits you.
10:27Yeah.
10:27And that's what I do.
10:29Kingfishers aggressively protect their own fishing ground and Lyra knows there's a resident male defending this patch.
10:39Did you hear that?
10:43OK, get prepared, get ready, Hamza.
10:45It's nearby.
10:47Get ready.
10:47Oh, my God, there he is.
10:49There he is.
10:51He's on the perch.
10:52He's on the perch.
10:53He's on the perch.
10:54Come on.
10:56That was legendary.
10:58You legend.
11:01You legend.
11:03Have a look.
11:04Put it there.
11:05Put it there.
11:06Do you know, it's such a simple animal.
11:08I know.
11:09Because I've never seen it before and to be able to see what I've read in textbooks and watched in documentaries live, there's nothing like it.
11:20This is my bogey bird.
11:21I've waited 30 years to see that bird.
11:24What?
11:2530 years.
11:26Hamza.
11:27I know.
11:28That's bad.
11:29You should have called me last week.
11:30I could have showed you last week.
11:31I wish I called you 15 years ago.
11:34I'm so pleased.
11:37And it's just sat in plain view.
11:39He couldn't care less.
11:40And this is a good thing about urban wildlife.
11:42It's that most of the time they're so used to noise, to people, that actually they're quite tame.
11:47Most other places where I've seen a kingfisher is literally like a flash of blue.
11:51Yeah.
11:51But here, they're super chill.
11:53They are.
11:54I mean, Londoners, we are chill.
11:55It's just a vibe.
11:59Do people realise that there's kingfishers in the middle of London?
12:03No.
12:04All these people in these buildings, I guarantee you a lot of them don't know that this is a nature reserve you can visit.
12:08Why do you think that's the case?
12:11No one's really talking about nature.
12:12I mean, a lot of people in the streets can probably name every piece of clothing I'm wearing and the brands,
12:19but you tell them to name a kingfisher, they'll have trouble.
12:34So, look, if we zoom out now, it's incredible how he just melts in very quickly.
12:40And in that one frame, no-one will be able to find the kingfisher.
12:45That's how well-hidden it is.
12:47You wouldn't even know it's there.
12:50Kingfishers have extraordinary eyesight.
12:53They can pinpoint the exact position of their well-camouflaged prey, even through the surface of the water.
13:09I want to see it dive.
13:10Yeah, I would too as well.
13:11Oh, here we go.
13:20There we go.
13:28Oh, and he's caught a fish.
13:29He's caught a fish.
13:30This is super cool.
13:40He's smacking it.
13:41He's smacking it.
13:43Go on.
13:44Go on, big man.
13:49This is cool.
13:51This is super cool.
13:54To be able to see my first ever kingfisher and capture it on camera in the middle of London,
14:07if you told me that, I would say you're absolutely lying.
14:11It's not going to happen.
14:12When I was in school, I was never told about the amazing urban wildlife that I could find.
14:16So, I never thought wildlife was for me.
14:18I thought I had to go somewhere away from the city, somewhere out there,
14:21when it was really, it's always been at my doorstep.
14:23So, I think it starts with education.
14:25My friends see what I do, and now they're starting to look out for things.
14:28They're not picking up binoculars yet, but they're taking photos of a bird.
14:31It could be like a wagtail.
14:32They'll be like, what's this?
14:33I've just seen this, you know, outside a chicken shop or outside the tube station,
14:36and they want me to ID it.
14:37So, we're getting there, little by little, step by step.
14:42I tell you what, next time I'm back in London, I'm coming to see you.
14:45Yeah, I hope so.
14:47I hope so, Hamza.
14:48I hope I've changed your mind on London.
14:50Yeah, a little bit.
14:51It's no secret I'm a country boy at heart,
14:59but Lyra has shown me cities can conceal hidden opportunities for special encounters.
15:16I've come to a remarkable Victorian cemetery.
15:20These places of peace and reflection offer some animals a unique opportunity for solitude.
15:36By day, they're often nervous.
15:46You can rarely get close.
15:48So, to film them, I'm going to have to work the night shift.
15:58And to be honest, I'm feeling a little spooked.
16:11These animals have long captured our imagination.
16:27They're haunting calls are the soundtrack of many autumn nights.
16:36If I hold my nerves, they may appear from the shadows.
16:40If I hold my nerve, they may appear from the shadows.
16:44I can hear their pitter-patter on the dry autumn leaves at the moment.
16:58But I can't see them just yet.
17:00There's one coming.
17:05There's one coming.
17:07There's one coming.
17:08There's one coming.
17:12There's one coming.
17:14There's a wall coming.
17:16There's a wall coming.
17:17But look at him.
17:19Look.
17:22Hello.
17:25Hello.
17:26How are you doing?
17:29You good?
17:31He's right there, he's right there.
17:46Hello.
18:01This is unbelievable, because where I am in Scotland, if I see a fox, it will be four,
18:13five hundred metres away, and as soon as it sees me, it will be off.
18:19So to have one just right in front of me, without a care in the world, allowing me to film
18:28it's just unbelievable.
18:31You may be used to seeing foxes raiding your bins, but this place offers a very different experience.
18:39In this cemetery, at night, when everyone's gone home, they are totally undisturbed and uniquely relaxed.
18:49Two of them.
18:53Right there.
18:55Two of them.
18:57I don't dare move my camera.
19:14They look beautiful, so healthy.
19:24In the wild, out in Scotland, for example, they'll have an area of around 4,000 hectares.
19:32One fox covering that territory.
19:35Here, in the city, it will be under 25 hectares.
19:41We humans provide urban foxes with an abundance of food.
19:46In this wooded cemetery, these foxes enjoy a varied and healthy diet.
19:51I feel such a great privilege that part of my job is sitting and waiting for wildlife to grace me with their presence.
20:04But you don't need a camera.
20:05But you don't need a camera.
20:06In fact, you don't need anything.
20:10If you go and sit outside, it doesn't have to be a spooky place like this.
20:14You find a green area, a local park or anywhere outside and enjoy the natural world right in front of you.
20:25These cubs are now fully grown and are about to take a big leap on their own.
20:37At this time of the year, the vixen, which is the mum, wants to kick all the babies out.
20:43Now, these guys are like teenagers. They're hanging around, being well-fed, looked after.
20:48They know the patch. Why would they leave?
20:51But she wants to kick them out and wait for the dog fox to mate.
20:56These cubs may be forced to spend a few years in the urban jungle.
21:01But hopefully, in time, they may return to this cemetery.
21:06A nocturnal sanctuary for generations of foxes.
21:12During the day, this is open to the public.
21:17But at night, it's their world.
21:20My next adventure is trying to see a species that is totally new to science.
21:33My next adventure is trying to see a species that is totally new to science.
21:47There's only one place in the British Isles where I have any chance of finding one.
21:54I'm going to need a hand from the people that helped discover it.
22:02For the past 50 years, Pam and Tim Fogg have explored some of the most dangerous and inaccessible places all around the world.
22:21I'm a total caving novice, and I'm nervous.
22:25In autumn, sudden rainstorms can totally flood a cave.
22:32How did you get into caving?
22:34When I was at school, we did field trips and we went into our first caves.
22:37And then you stopped at a point in the cave and you weren't allowed to go any further.
22:40And cavers walked past and stepped over the barrier and on they went.
22:43And I thought, I want to do that. And then I met Tim.
22:47And he took me into a real cave. And the rest is history.
22:50So is there still uncharted caves in the UK?
22:54Undoubtedly. There's going to be lots. I mean, it's very exciting.
22:58Although this is my first time here, Pam and Tim know this cave on their doorstep very well.
23:04Now it's not too slippery if we come in the water.
23:10Is it straight in the middle?
23:12Straight in the middle.
23:13Straight to the middle.
23:14Yes.
23:15In and the deep end, as they say.
23:16Yes.
23:17Oh, it's getting cold. Amazing.
23:27This cave system is one of hundreds, hidden right under the ground across the British Isles.
23:37The longest, in Yorkshire, boasts 55 miles of passageways.
23:44Whilst the deepest, in South Wales, reaches a depth of 308 metres.
23:53But this cave holds an incredible secret.
23:57One that is very small and easily missed.
24:00So to have any chance of finding it,
24:03I'll need Pam and Tim to guide me through this subterranean maze.
24:10This is incredible.
24:11It is.
24:12We're never bored looking around caves and finding new things.
24:17It's really exciting because you have no idea what you're going to see.
24:20Your light is the first light that's ever shone on what's going to be around that corner.
24:24And the thing is, we'll never know that we've found every cave.
24:29Because you can see every mountain from space, but you can't see caves.
24:33So apart from the deep ocean, caves are the only place left that you can have really true exploration.
24:39Wow.
24:40And it's cheaper than going to space.
24:42All you need is a pair of waders.
24:45A pair of waders.
24:46A pair of waders.
24:47A light.
24:48A light and a hard hat.
24:49Yeah.
24:50I like it.
24:51Caves like this are known as active caves due to the constant flow of water.
24:57After rainfall, they can sometimes flood right to the roof.
25:04So for our safety, Pam and Tim are constantly monitoring the water levels.
25:10How is this chamber formed?
25:17It's all done by water.
25:19We've got big peat bogs up in the mountain, full of acid water.
25:22And that's what's eaten this cave away.
25:25So over eons, it's created a tube by dissolving the rock, basically.
25:30Right.
25:31That's incredible.
25:32Once the water has dissolved the cave, it's full of dissolved limestone.
25:35Right.
25:36So when it comes through a crack, say in the ceiling here, it releases all that dissolved
25:41rock again in a pure form of calcite.
25:45And that gets redeposited in so many different ways.
25:51It looks so beautiful.
25:54And the texture is just phenomenal.
25:57This calcified rock takes many different forms.
26:04It's incredible to think that everything around me is formed by the flow of water.
26:12These stalactites can take thousands of years to grow.
26:20Believe it or not, hidden amongst these ancient formations is life.
26:30A lovely big spider sitting in there, a big Messamanardi.
26:35Oh, yeah.
26:36Oh, he's gorgeous.
26:38These cave spiders live in the twilight zone.
26:43Just beyond the reach of daylight, rarely leaving their underground lair.
26:53Their perfectly constructed egg sacs hang from the roof on a delicate strand of silk.
27:02And each sac can contain 300 spiderlings.
27:06The spiders are a sure sign that we're getting closer to finding this cave's best-kept secret.
27:15I think I've just seen over here, there's a really nice example of them.
27:24You see the legs of the spider coming out of the front of it.
27:26You are joking me.
27:28It's what's sometimes called a zombie fungus and it's taken over the body of the spider while it's still alive.
27:37Wow.
27:38It actually influences the behaviour of the spider and makes it actually crawl out of the cracks into a place where it's drafty.
27:45Yeah.
27:46And it kills the spider and produces its spores, which then blow about the cave and infect another spider.
27:51That's incredible.
27:54It's like something from a horror movie.
27:56This alien-like life form actually infiltrates the spider's nervous system.
28:03So this is now Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:07Jibalula?
28:08Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:10Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:11Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:12Named after the main man himself.
28:13Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:14Exactly.
28:15It's pretty good, isn't it, that you can still find stuff.
28:17I mean, this is really close to our home and we're finding new species.
28:20I mean, that's...
28:21Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:22That's not easy nowadays.
28:23Everything's kind of documented and named already.
28:26I'm going to write a book about those.
28:28The Zombie Spiders.
28:29Jibalula Attenboroughi.
28:30The Zombie Spiders with Pam and Tim.
28:32I saw you sniffing next to it there.
28:34It would probably take you home.
28:36Is that what's going to happen?
28:37Can you imagine? My dreadlocks are just all gonna fuse out and take over.
28:41Yes, the perfect place for the spores to grow on.
28:45That is so cool.
28:51I never thought I'll be lucky enough to see a new species in my lifetime.
28:57Never mind right here at home in the British Isles.
29:07It's a crisp autumn morning and I'm here at one of the largest reed beds in the UK.
29:28A haven for a really special little bird that most people have never seen.
29:39I'm wanting to capture a bird that I haven't seen in a couple of years.
29:44This bird is mischievous, it's cheeky, it's full of energy and it lives in there, in these reeds.
29:52Now, have a look, these reeds are so difficult to spot a bird, let alone try and capture it on camera.
29:59The bird that I want to film is the charming, yet elusive, beaded tit.
30:06In the autumn, a change in their diet draws them to the edge of the reeds, making them a lot easier to spot.
30:13As a result, hundreds of people flock to this part of Lancashire, keen to catch a glimpse of this enigmatic little reed bed specialist.
30:26It's not the sort of bird that you will see in your local park.
30:30You have to go and travel to see bearded tit.
30:33There's only about 600 pairs in the whole of the UK.
30:35To increase my chances of seeing this really rare bird, I have to tune in to their unique call.
30:42As it bounces around the cold still autumn air.
30:47Imagine mixing a stone chat call with a laser.
30:51So you get the pew pew from a laser and a tick tick tick tick from a stone chat.
30:56Mix those two together and that's kind of what it sounds like to me for a beaded tit.
31:00You can hear them. Do you hear that?
31:06You hear this pew pew pew pew pew pew.
31:13You hear them first.
31:15Then all of a sudden you see the reeds moving.
31:19And that kind of gives you a bit to pinpoint on.
31:24Tits are here, tits are here.
31:27Oh wow.
31:28Wonderful.
31:29Wonderful. Just absolutely wonderful.
31:31Gosh, look at him.
31:43To master their vertical world, they do the splits.
31:47It's their trademark move.
31:48This is phenomenal.
31:58They're so full of energy.
32:03Yeah, it's amazing.
32:06You can see exactly why beaded tits are so difficult to get a portrait image of.
32:10Because they're so fidgety, they don't sit still.
32:14So you've constantly got to follow them and refocus and refocus.
32:19And when they jump into the reeds, they actually become pretty difficult to spot.
32:23Right, let's get a really tight shot of his head.
32:26He's got that beautiful moustache, that dark colour going right from his eyes down to his chin.
32:32And that's where they get the name Bearded Tit from.
32:36They're kind of misnamed.
32:38With more of a moustache than a beard, their name can be confusing.
32:43And they're not actually a tit at all.
32:46They're known as a bearded reedling.
32:48These small birds are in a league of their own.
32:53They lack any close relatives and are the only species in their biological family.
32:59Now he's feeding on the little seeds at the top of the reeds and they look a little bit like dandelions
33:06because it's just like a little puff of seeds everywhere.
33:19Isn't that amazing?
33:22I've never been able to watch one feed. I've been coming for 20 years.
33:26You've never watched one feed?
33:27I've never been able to watch one feed like that.
33:30They normally flash you and engulf.
33:32You picked the right day.
33:34We've picked the right day.
33:36At this time of the year, the Bearded Tits have a very unusual ability to be able to switch their diets.
33:42They transition from insects to seeds, allowing them to survive in the reed beds all year round.
33:51However, in order to get the nutrients they need from the reeds, the birds also need to eat grit.
34:00As they eat the seed heads, they need to be able to break those seeds down.
34:05And they have this incredible bit called the crop. Chickens have it. Eagles have it. A few of the birds have it.
34:09They store food in their crop before it enters a stomach pouch called a gizzard.
34:15As they eat the seeds, they eat the grit as well.
34:18And that acts like a little beautiful grinding mill to be able to break down the seeds and then be able to digest the nutrients from those seeds.
34:26At Leighton Moss, trays of grit have been provided to help the birds.
34:31And this was the brainchild of an incredible man called John Wilson, who was the warden here in the 60s.
34:37And it just so happens he's here today.
34:41How does it make you feel knowing that you're the gentleman who cemented bearded tits here at Leighton Moss and now everybody's getting to see them because of all your hard work?
34:50I was absolutely thrilled.
34:52You thrilled? I think I'd be more than thrilled. They'll be over the moon.
34:55John observed the birds taking grit from the footpaths. By adding the trays on the edge of the reedbed, the birds could forage without disturbance from passing humans.
35:07Oh, this is amazing.
35:16When you see the male and female like this, it's very, very easy to tell them apart.
35:21If you have a look at the female, she doesn't have that moustache like the male.
35:24And then you can see the male so beautifully coloured. Starts off at the top of the head with a light blue, then it turns to purple a little bit, then it goes to brown.
35:39You guys are so pretty.
35:46That was absolutely magical to be able to spend the morning with them like this, seeing them do the splits, feeding, going on to the grit trays.
35:54I've never really had that opportunity to film them up close and personal like that.
35:59I literally could not ask for anything more.
36:02Beaded tits are a bird that you should definitely have on your list.
36:06And if you get the chance, do come and see them.
36:11Seeing the tiny beaded tits emerging from the depth of the reedbed was wonderfully intimate.
36:17But this next spectacle will deliver a fully immersive wildlife experience.
36:29Autumn heralds one of the greatest gatherings to be found in the whole of the British Isles.
36:35Morecambe Bay, the largest expanse of mudflats in the UK, covering 120 square miles.
36:57Twice a day, when the tide goes out, the mud is exposed, turning this bay into one of the richest
37:04feeding grounds for wading birds in the British Isles.
37:09The trouble is, at low tide, there's miles between me and them.
37:14So to have any chance of getting a good shot, I'm going to have to wait for the tide to push the birds towards me.
37:23Migratory birds arrive each autumn, joining the residents to feast on the rich banquet hidden within the mud.
37:30In the mud.
37:33This caters for every single kind of bird.
37:36You name it, it's going to be there.
37:45Mother Nature's designed each bird to be feeding at a different depth.
37:50Everyone has a niche.
37:52Ring plovers have a really small beak.
37:55They'll be feeding on that first inch.
37:57Then you go to something like a red shank, and it's got about a two inch beak.
38:01They'll be feeding that much.
38:02And then you go to a curlew, which is one of the longest beaks we have as a wader.
38:07They'll be feeding quite a long way down.
38:09Up to a quarter of a million migratory birds come to the bay during autumn.
38:17It's a crucial service station for those en route to Africa.
38:21The tide is rushing in so quick.
38:31A spring tide is an especially high tide that occurs twice a month.
38:36The water rushes in so quickly that the bay is submerged within minutes.
38:54You can just see all the birds are beginning to kind of panic.
38:57All the birds are beginning to flush, and they don't know where to settle just yet.
39:19I've managed to get my other cameraman, Johnny, in that hide.
39:23And the birds have settled around him.
39:29Slightly surrounded by water.
39:32Lucky I have my willies on.
39:35But, loads of birds.
39:39Special.
39:41Happy boy.
39:43Morecambe Bay is globally important for oyster catchers.
39:47A 55,000 strong winter population.
39:50One of the largest concentrations in Britain.
39:56I've got to move back further again.
39:59Tide waits for no man, right?
40:03As soon as they land, they go back up again.
40:05And they're all getting agitated that the tide is not in their favour.
40:09So, every now and then, you'll get this big flourish, and they just all take off into the sky.
40:15And make these beautiful shapes.
40:17And then they land again.
40:18And then they go, no, I'm not comfortable.
40:19And one will take off, and then it will send all of them up into the sky.
40:22And then they'll just move around.
40:24It's a spectacle.
40:25The sky is just full of waders.
40:31Absolutely chock-a-blocked full of waders.
40:38Whoa, look at the birds coming through.
40:42That is amazing.
40:45That is so cool.
40:47You would sit in one place, and you're focused on just a group of oyster catchers.
40:54And all of a sudden, all of these waders come flying through.
40:57Look, like now, like now.
41:08They're all just beginning to land in the same place.
41:10And you can see it's getting tighter and tighter.
41:12They're like sardines in here.
41:14It might be a grey day in autumn.
41:30It's undeniably a really, really awesome spectacle.
41:36Yes, you're going to have to wrap up warm.
41:39Yes, you're probably going to have to get an umbrella.
41:41Yes, you're probably going to get cold.
41:42But if you see that, it will put a smile on your face.
41:53The cold, dark autumn days can tempt us to stay hidden away, tucked up indoors.
41:59But as I just experienced, stepping outdoors into nature rarely fails to lift your spirits.
42:10How are we?
42:11How are we?
42:12Just down the coast in Morecambe, there's a pioneering wellbeing project known as The Bay, harnessing the hidden power of nature.
42:22That's amazing. How have you all been?
42:23Local people living with mental health issues, loneliness and isolation are being referred by their GPs to the Lancashire Wildlife Trust.
42:33The prescription is to spend time outdoors. Nature is the cure. And it's working.
42:43I'd been ill for about a year and I tried different things. I tried medication and I tried therapy and I tried just waiting and I tried everything that was advised to me and it wasn't making any difference.
42:57Really?
42:58Yeah, this is what made the biggest difference for me.
43:01That's wonderful. That's wonderful.
43:04Members of the group monitor the birds in the bay, take part in beach cleans and conduct citizen science, greatly adding to the knowledge that we hold on this area.
43:16I like the space of Morecambe Bay. It's so big, the expanse. I get quite claustrophobic and so this is the perfect antidote. The automatic mindfulness.
43:34I've just seen you just take a big deep breath.
43:37Yeah. It's the one place where I can just be me and it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter how I'm feeling, the birds don't care.
43:55So far 19,000 people have taken part in this project. Almost all of them have reported feeling happier and better connected, thanks to nature.
44:08When I do see like the birds, that really like stops me in my tracks and I'm just like in awe.
44:15Just being outside, it just lifts my morale even if it's just for half an hour. It stops me from sitting there and being inside my own head.
44:24You've got to come outside to appreciate it. You see life being renewed all the time and that does give you hope for the future that things are going to get better.
44:40It's been really humbling today to meet a group of people who have demonstrated with such courage, the healing power of reconnecting with nature.
44:53For most of the year, there is a whole natural kingdom that remains totally hidden.
45:07But every autumn, they make a spectacular reappearance from underground.
45:24The variety of fungi in our wild isles never fails to amaze me.
45:34Devil's fingers,
45:37Devil's fingers,
45:38Devil's fingers.
45:39Oopo,
45:43Let's go.
45:48Earth Star.
45:49And Flyer Garrig
45:50our gardens our homes even in the air we breathe because fungi come in all different shapes and
46:00sizes today i want to reveal one that is so small you can hardly see it with the naked eye
46:10i can't do it on my own it's a job for a real specialist so wildlife camera woman
46:16katie mayhew is offering me a master class to say there's an intimidating amount of kit
46:23is an understatement
46:35today we're going to have it quite simplified simplified yeah we got one two three four five
46:41six tripods with us simplified i could have a few more katie assures me the smaller the subject
46:49the more kit you need
46:53but i wasn't expecting to need it in a bramble patch
46:58underneath here you see all these black spots yeah and we can actually see the fruiting bodies
47:05of a fungus wow so should we have a look let's go yes please katie clamps the leaf into position
47:14and sets up a slider which allows the camera to move smoothly along a track normally we would control
47:22the focus on the lens but in macro you have to move the subject closer to the camera it's got extremely
47:30fine precision movement so i can move like micro millimeters right back and forth okay that allows
47:37us to bring our subject in and out of focus this is so cool katie do you want to have a go yeah
47:47i can see how difficult this is it's not easy to focus oh hamza what's going on now
47:53i don't want to touch it get the focus even more that's perfect that's perfect that'll do wouldn't
48:04it yeah that's perfect it doesn't look real it's vibrant isn't it i just love the colors and i'm just
48:12thinking see the sort of black residue around the fungal fruiting body that we can see yeah is that the
48:18spores i'm wondering if that's the spores yeah yeah it looks like it doesn't it yeah each autumn
48:24the bramble rust fungus produces spores that are carried by the wind or the rain and it infects other
48:31leaves katie's high-tech camera reveals an incredibly tiny hidden world there's there's a little tiny bug
48:40it looks like a springtail tell me a little bit more a little bit whoa oh we can see it and smidgen up
48:47there it is oh wait now who are you young man springtails are tiny bugs that eat fungi and help
48:54to transfer the spores to other plants no no no no there's one there and there's a really tiny one
49:02on the fruiting body you see him oh whoa how did you spot that i'm gonna get into macro you're obsessed
49:11now yeah i want to know i've never seen a see-through bug that bug was just incredible i literally can't
49:18see it with my eyes can you i can't see it
49:23should we up the magnification yes please yeah so we were at five times magnification
49:30now we're at ten times magnification okay it's interesting that even my movement on the floor here
49:36you can see is shaking everything quite badly this is delicate work this is
49:43not what i was expecting let's go up there's the big guy oh you saw it that's the big guy
49:51there he is he's in yes do you think yeah that's i promise you that's him wait hang on
49:57oh what have i done you've done it again i've done it again don't touch the equipment don't touch the
50:02equipment see if it's not mine i don't know what to do with it oh my god you're right
50:09is that him it is little big fella little big fella there he is look at him he's kind of cute
50:19cute little eyes look at the antennae you can see the hairs on its back
50:24can you see that we can't see that animal with our naked eye and we're beginning to see the hairs
50:32on its back is that not blowing your mind like is that not just messing with your brain i love it
50:39to think that all those little tiny creatures that we're seeing are on the back of this leaf and this
50:46is just one leaf out of this whole forest having just shown me how macro photography reveals fungi so
50:55small you can hardly see it with the naked eye for her next trick katie wants to show me a completely
51:02different technique which will reveal even more she has set up another filming rig with a specialist low
51:11light camera and ultraviolet lights she's programmed to move on this fungi filled scene in daytime but
51:25when darkness falls these fungi will do something really magical earlier today we were looking at the
51:32tiny microscopic stuff yeah now i've kind of come out into the wider world of macro we need to wait for
51:39it to get dark we're going to use uv lights and we're hopefully going to pick up the fluorescence
51:46in the fungus and the plants oh i can't wait for this a little a little rave in the woods for you
51:52hopefully can i press a button at least absolutely not come on just maybe in a bit so all i've got to
51:58do is just sit and wait basically just be patient thankfully it's autumn and with shorter days
52:05we don't have to wait too long so we got our goggles goggles on indeed i'm quite nervous but i'm also
52:11really excited for you to see the colors okay i'm going to turn the light on right okay
52:21what look at that are you joking
52:26completely changed under the uv light from what we were seeing earlier today yeah
52:41we've got the candle snuffs coming out they're bright blue yeah yeah
52:45all the different mosses are a different shade of different colors that looks like someone has
52:56just put a glow stick right in the middle of the woods so actually uv light is being emitted from our
53:04torch it's exciting the molecules in the surface of all of this stuff going on here right and then
53:11it's being reflected as a visible light back to us which is what we're seeing which is the colors
53:16that we're interpreting you are joking me
53:27it's pretty special isn't it it is
53:35i've got much more of an appreciation for fungi
53:41it's still a mystery exactly what purpose biofluorescence serves
53:52but what we know for sure is that for the animals that can see it
53:57they have an entirely different view of the world around us
54:19for my last hidden gem in this autumn episode of mine i brought you here
54:25to this majestic dark sky
54:33now i'm lucky enough to live in the west coast of scotland where there isn't any light pollution
54:38and i am treated to this sort of sky most nights
54:47with dark sky reserves right across the uk
54:50we have the chance to enjoy the cosmos at its best
55:02even in our towns and cities some of the brightest stars are still visible
55:07in the west coast of scotland now as you look up one of the most famous constellations that we can
55:16see has got a few names what we call the great bear some people call it the dipper or the plow and if
55:23you follow those last two all the way up there the next shiny light is polaris that's the north star
55:30star now this star has been used by humans for millennia to navigate through the northern hemisphere
55:39but not just humans wildlife as well navigating their way south to avoid winter
55:45tonight there is a comet that has appeared and the last time it was seen was 80 000 years ago
55:59i am so fortunate this comet named a3 will only be visible for a couple of weeks
56:09but most of our night sky has remained unchanged for millennia
56:14i often think what our ancestors would see when they looked up into the night sky
56:21and i'll tell you what they saw they saw bears they saw wolves they saw dolphins eagles birds of paradise
56:28fish in fact out of the 88 constellations that have been named 40 of them are animals so when our
56:37ancestors looked up into the heavens they saw mother nature reflecting straight back at them
56:42and for me it's an honor and a privilege to be looking at that same sky
56:56next time winter i'm braving the harsh conditions to find wildlife in the far north
57:06just wonderful absolutely wonderful
57:08tracking down an iconic woodland resident which really steals the show just underneath that tree
57:18there yes yeah man that is wonderful and a good friend helps me film a bird i have never laid eyes
57:27on oh christy who's that christy yes yes yes yes come on christy in the cairngorms you legend my man you
57:37absolute legend the open university has produced a booklet and postcards exploring hidden nature
57:46across our wild isles to order your free copy call 0 300 303 2062 scan the qr code on the screen or visit
57:55bbc.co.uk forward slash hamza's hidden wild dials and follow the links to the open university
58:03to discover more about how to help the hidden nature near you just search hamza on the bbc website
58:19so
58:32so
58:39you
58:41you
58:43you
58:45you
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