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  • 5/31/2025

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00:00Satsang with Mooji
00:30This is the first of an annual event
00:41in which the BBC Natural History Unit
00:43will push back the frontiers of wildlife filming.
00:47In this first programme,
00:49by combining the most up-to-date filming techniques
00:52with the most recent scientific knowledge,
00:55we're going to reveal something of the life
00:57of one of the least-known and most awe-inspiring creatures in the ocean.
01:02You may feel that you already know something of this animal
01:05because replicas of it have been the focus of several cinema films.
01:10But the real living animal has only been seldom glimpsed
01:14and it's only been filmed from inside the protection of underwater cages.
01:19In this film, we're going to venture beyond those cages
01:22to reveal something of the life of the great white shark.
01:27Yeah,漂亮.
01:30That's now it is.
01:34Oh, come on.
01:37Oh, come on.
01:50Oh, come on.
01:51Oh, my God.
02:21Oh, my God.
02:51The animal glides dreamlike through its watery world and into our subconscious.
03:09It's one of the last great predators to roam free on the planet, a creature of fearful
03:24cemetery.
03:54This is the great white shark of myth and legend.
04:06No carnivore in the sea or on land has the power to strike such deep terror in our souls.
04:13Yet the white shark is not a lone, bloodthirsty killer, but a selective and skillful hunter
04:28with a complex social life.
04:30We are about to follow the shark into its own element, the open ocean, to reveal its natural
04:40behavior as never before captured on film.
04:43The great white shark's range extends through all of the world's seas, but it's often found
04:54in cool temperate waters near its favorite feeding grounds.
04:58This is the Cape Coast at the southernmost tip of South Africa, the convergence of two great
05:09oceans, the Indian and the Atlantic.
05:12known to early navigators as the Cape of Storms, this rugged coastline is dotted with the skeletal
05:21hulls of shipwrecked vessels.
05:23The Cape coast swarms with wildlife.
05:39Among the most abundant and lively inhabitants are the Cape fur seals.
05:43It's early spring and the seals are here to breed on the many small islands.
06:13along the coast.
06:14In a channel protected from the outside surf, a large raft of seals congregates.
06:26Here in these sheltered waters occurs a primeval contest.
06:31The destinies of the seal and the great white shark have evolved together for millions of
06:36years, an intricate partnership of hunted and hunter.
06:40Like the lion and the antelope, the shark and the seal coexist in a relationship both harmonious
06:54and violent.
06:55And violent.
06:56And violent.
06:57And violent.
07:01And violent.
07:02And violent.
07:03And violent.
07:05And violent.
07:07So if you weren't were theick and peeking around in that trail, you centrally?
07:08Because a wide as a cave within the Untie Sun was merged into their application.
07:10Green fim.
07:12Oh, my God.
07:42This small pup was lucky, possibly because the shark had already eaten its fill.
07:56On Dyer Island, the Cape Fir seals breed all at the same time, and produce such a large number of offspring that many will escape the white shark.
08:06But the shark is not the main agent of death for the seal.
08:09Disease, starvation and other causes also take a heavy toll.
08:13One of the most crucial lessons that a pup must learn is how to survive in the sea, and sometimes his first lesson catches him off guard.
08:28Suddenly, the pup is surrounded by adults in the middle of a large seal raft.
08:50The seals keep tightly together, close to the shoreline, and stay well away from the open waters of the channel.
09:02The raft is a highly effective system of communal defence, not unlike gazelles seeking protection from a cheetah by grazing in a large herd.
09:10But the inexperienced pup strays away from the safety of the raft.
09:19The Pretty Coast, particularly, per here in나� ominous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmailous airmail.
10:09The white shark is the largest predatory fish in the sea.
10:16Even at birth, it's three to five feet long.
10:19These sharks hunting in the channel are eight to 14 feet in length and weigh hundreds of pounds.
10:25Amazingly, they are still juveniles.
10:28These young sharks have a diverse diet that includes fish, squid and even other sharks.
10:34At this time of year, there is no richer hunting ground for them than Dire Island.
10:59Come on.
11:03Beautiful.
11:04This is the first and the last time we'll ever see a white shark.
11:34These high school students from Cape Town are developing a new attitude towards the
11:38shark as a result of a very special educational programme sponsored by the White Shark Research
11:44Unit.
11:51The lion has no hook, so the shark decides whether it stays around or not.
11:56South Africa was the first country in the world to fully realise the importance of the white
12:17shark as a top predator and the first to declare it a protected species.
12:34But it wasn't always this way.
12:39Not long ago, white sharks were hunted, like the big cats of Africa, as trophies.
12:43The only good shark, according to the prevailing attitude, was a dead shark.
12:56To vanquish the most feared monster in the sea, Carcharodon Carcharias, the jagged tooth
13:01one, was proof of masculinity.
13:04And the bigger the monster, the bigger the psychological kick from killing it.
13:10During this period, the largest sharks were virtually fished out.
13:24Only when dead and without water to support its immense bulk does the white shark look so grotesque.
13:37But the living white shark, in its own natural element, is a different matter entirely.
13:42A majestic creature, of ideal hydrodynamic design, the white shark glides through the sea with
13:49minimum effort and perfect grace.
13:58Once worshipped by early cultures, the shark's form has become an archetypal image of the raw
14:04primal power of nature.
14:11Today, in South Africa, white sharks are still hunted, but not for lifeless trophies.
14:18Craig Ferreira, of the White Shark Research Unit, assists scientists studying the white shark
14:23population along this coastline.
14:26With him is Greg Marshall, of the National Geographic Society.
14:30It's quite simple.
14:31It's a widely used procedure, this.
14:34Except that we're not going to hook the shark or anything.
14:37We're just going to wait for him to come up and bang it in.
14:39Right.
14:40The shark takes off.
14:41The tail will come loose.
14:43Take the tagging pole away and that will be left in the animal.
14:47Now, they wait for a shark to come to the bait.
14:50The popular belief that white sharks will attack anything resembling food turns out to be
14:55a myth.
14:56In reality, the white shark is often suspicious and even timid.
15:01Craig's task is to lure the shark as close to the boat as possible and plant the tag just
15:06below the dorsal fin.
15:08So close.
15:09Each shark reacts differently to the bait.
15:19While some are shy, others are very aggressive.
15:22This pugnacious individual sneaks in and snatches the bait.
15:26It's not willing to give it up without a tug of war.
15:29All right.
15:30Okay.
15:31There.
15:32There.
15:33Go on.
15:34Okay.
15:35Okay.
15:36Pull in.
15:37Slowly.
15:38Slowly.
15:39Hang on.
15:40Oh, she's got a tag.
15:41She's got a tag.
15:42Pull the bait away.
15:43Get the bait away.
15:44What number is it?
15:45What is it?
15:46A-D.
15:47Looks like A-D.
15:48A-D.
15:49A-D.
15:50A-D.
15:51This shark was tagged a few weeks ago.
15:52Its return to the boat will provide valuable information on its movements since last
15:55seen.
15:56But most white sharks are tagged and are never seen again, confirming their nomadic habits.
16:07Here comes another shark.
16:09This one has no tag.
16:17Got it?
16:18Got it?
16:19That's easy.
16:20Okay.
16:21Here's your chance.
16:22Whoa, whoa, whoa.
16:23Out.
16:24Whoa, whoa.
16:25Nice.
16:26Get it.
16:27Please.
16:28Despite the taggings, we still don't know how many sharks are out there or where they
16:33go.
16:35To try and find out where they do go, Greg Marshall will attempt something never done before.
16:40Attach a video camera called a critter cam to a white shark.
16:45It's always nerve wracking to make a deployment.
16:46Lots of things are possible.
16:47It's an incredibly powerful animal.
16:48As a result, it can do damage to the camera if it wants it to.
17:01We don't know enough about the animal's behavior.
17:04We've had a couple of cases where the shark came and rammed against the boat.
17:07The great white shark is the animal, I think, that is in some way in our subconscious.
17:25We know that this is an animal that can take us out.
17:29We're curious.
17:30We're fascinated.
17:31We're terrified of that possibility.
17:34I would rather face my terror and try to understand that.
17:40I want to know this beast.
17:42Beautiful.
17:43One, Adam.
17:48If Greg's unique camera works, it will allow us to travel into the white shark's world
17:53for the very first time.
17:55And when the shark swam away with it, I saw the camera actually take and start to fly
18:13behind the animal as it's supposed to do, and fly in the right orientation as she moved
18:18away.
18:19It was really very exciting.
18:20It was a great feeling.
18:25And now we take an incredible ride.
18:30The shark patrols just below the surface, then veers towards the bottom in a long, purposeful
18:36descent.
18:37She spends most of her time either near the surface or at the bottom, but not in between.
18:47The high dorsal fin is surprisingly flexible, and like the keel of a boat, serves to stabilize
18:53and prevent roll.
19:00She reaches the bottom.
19:02The grayish black hide on her back provides excellent camouflage as she cruises along the
19:07sea floor.
19:08The critter cam can show us exactly where the shark likes to hunt, and when it makes an attack.
19:13There.
19:14Suddenly, a fish appears.
19:15The shark takes off after it.
19:16There.
19:17Suddenly, a fish appears.
19:18The shark takes off after it.
19:20The critter cam has a bumpy ride as she strikes out again.
19:34Here, she's clearly fed.
19:43A piece of her meal dangles from her mouth.
19:49We catch a glimpse of another white shark.
19:56Great whites may not be the lone rogues we once thought they were.
20:00In the hunting channel at Dire Island, they appear to move in groups.
20:08Another shark passes by, and she veers towards it.
20:11The critter cam may be revealing some social interaction taking place among the sharks.
20:16The camera has a link that dissolves in seawater.
20:22After two hours, the camera should pop off.
20:26But anything can happen.
20:36The shark encounters another shark, and the camera is dislodged and floats to the surface.
20:46The shark, ever curious, circles and inspects the alien object that had hitched a ride on her back.
21:04Floating on the surface, critter cam emits a radio signal so that Greg Marshall can find it and retrieve the valuable videotape.
21:12It's gotta be right along this line.
21:13Okay.
21:16Okay, I think that's it, right out there.
21:19Yeah, I got it.
21:20As a remote video, critter cam records images without human intrusion,
21:24and allows us to experience events that we wouldn't ordinarily see.
21:28It may lead to a more complete understanding of the great whites' behavior.
21:32Okay.
21:33Got it.
21:34Yay!
21:35Man!
21:36Damn!
21:37Pretty baby.
21:38Other new remote technology would reveal that the relationship of white shark and seals is far more fascinating and complicated than previously imagined.
21:55Back on Dire Island, it's February, and there are no more young pups to make easy meals for the white sharks.
22:13The sharks must now hunt adult seals, and they are incredibly swift, agile, and alert.
22:23Here, the shark can't use stealth.
22:25A bolder strategy is called for.
22:27It cruises in plain sight.
22:31The seals respond by porpoising.
22:34Like birds mobbing an enemy or gazelles following a cheetah, the seals swim behind the shark.
22:48Why?
22:49Perhaps to keep watch on the enemy, or distract it, or simply to discover whether it's hungry.
22:55The trick is to avoid becoming a meal in the process.
23:18The white shark's strategy in the game is to appear uninterested, but it's always looking for a straggler.
23:38Their behavior resembles an old children's game.
23:43What time is it, Mr. Wolf?
23:46Three o'clock.
23:49What time is it now, Mr. Wolf?
23:51Four o'clock.
23:54What time is it now, Mr. Wolf?
23:56It's supper time.
24:16The mortally injured seal floats to the surface.
24:27The shark returns immediately.
24:29The vigorous side-to-side thrashing powers the saw-edged teeth and enables the shark to devour the carcass bite by bite.
24:41Here, the shark has coped with an elaborate communal defense.
24:56But in another ocean, the shark has to deal with a different defensive strategy.
25:13The northern elephant seal keeps close to the bottom, using stealth to avoid becoming prey to a shark.
25:25When he surfaces, he's most vulnerable to attack.
25:31He's looking for a place to haul out, but this sea lion rock won't do.
25:36The elephant seal is not yet mature.
25:48He's only two to three years old.
25:51He's managed to survive the hazards of life at sea.
26:06Now, he joins other young elephant seals who migrate every autumn to these shores.
26:12We're at the Ferrolons.
26:26An isolated cluster of islands in the Pacific Ocean, 27 miles off the coast of San Francisco, California.
26:33At this time of the year, the white sharks are here too.
26:40These are big ones.
26:42Mature adults.
26:43They haven't been fished out here.
26:45The sharks encircle the islands, hidden in the depths, waiting.
26:52The Ferrolon Islands are a national wildlife refuge run by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
27:02Off California, both seal and white shark are protected by law.
27:12Peter Pyle, a biologist for the Point Reyes Bird Observatory, manages this refuge.
27:17Our study is unique in that we don't bait.
27:22We don't put any blood or bait in the water.
27:25Therefore, everything that we see on the shark is what they're doing on their own in a natural setting.
27:32I've probably seen a couple hundred shark attacks by now.
27:47A shark attack off Indian Head, large pool of blood.
28:05Scott, you there?
28:06Yeah, Pete.
28:07Indian Head up.
28:08Yeah, it looks pretty good.
28:09Are you ready to go?
28:10I could be down the boat in just a few minutes.
28:12Karen, are you there?
28:13Yeah, I got you.
28:14I got you.
28:15I'll be down the boat in a minute.
28:40All right, you ready, Pete?
28:41Yeah.
28:42Is everything set here?
28:43Yep.
28:44You all set, Karen?
28:45Yep.
28:46Okay.
28:47Ready?
28:48Yeah.
28:49Up.
28:50Go up.
28:51Going up.
28:52Up.
28:53So where is it?
28:57It's a little bit on the moronga side, kind of in the lee, so...
29:00Uh-huh.
29:01Scott Anderson is the principal white shark biologist here.
29:04He and Peter race to arrive before the attack is over.
29:08Thanks, Karen.
29:09All right, Peter.
29:10Looks like we've still got a floater.
29:11It's floating a little bit off Indian Head there.
29:13A lot of blood.
29:14We're gonna get out there quick, eh?
29:15Okay, good.
29:16We'll be there in about a minute.
29:17Okay, great.
29:18What's the direction from where we're heading now?
29:19Okay, I got the birds now.
29:20We're on it.
29:21We're on it.
29:22Okay, great.
29:23We're on it.
29:24Okay, great.
29:25We're on it.
29:26Okay, great.
29:27What's the direction from where we're heading now?
29:29Okay, I got the birds now.
29:30We're on it.
29:31The sea is stained bright crimson with oxygen rich elephant seal blood.
29:54The seal was killed in a massive first hit.
29:57For some reason, the shark has vanished.
30:00But it'll be back.
30:27The shark is immense, the size of a minibus.
30:56It dwarfs the 14 foot boat.
31:26The kill provides food for others.
31:29A ravenous petrol shares the feast.
31:33This is a 400 pound seal, and it takes a while to finish it.
31:41The shark consumes its prey methodically, piece by piece.
31:46The powerful tailbeats assist the soaring action of the two-ton shark.
32:11Scott and Peter tried to keep up with the shark to observe the details of the shark.
32:16The feeding process.
32:17They must maneuver as close as possible without actually getting in the sea.
32:21the shark's way.
32:46Hawks way.
32:47Okay, she's going to hit us here.
32:53Okay, where is it?
33:10I can't see the car.
33:15Give her room, you guys.
33:26This is a big shark.
33:27Go in, Peter.
33:28She's about to take it.
33:33Pretty wild.
33:34That was great.
33:45Now there are two great whites circling below.
33:54In the only study of white sharks in their natural undisturbed state, Scott and Peter take photographs of each individual shark involved in the kill.
34:02Good like that.
34:03She's underneath you.
34:08Hey, that's a big one, isn't it?
34:10She's 18.
34:14The sharks are here because of the food, but they're interested in anything on the surface.
34:19They often bump the researcher's boat or mouth the motor.
34:23Whether from hunger, aggression or simple curiosity, no one knows.
34:28It's a big one, isn't it?
34:47It's a big one.
34:48Previously, it was thought that there is only one shark at each carcass.
34:56But we've since discovered that there are more.
34:58From three to five sharks arrive to investigate the kill.
35:02There is no feeding frenzy, and the carcass is approached in a cautious and controlled manner.
35:09Access to the food may be determined by a series of visual displays and postures.
35:14The white shark has a body language of its own, which we're only beginning to recognize.
35:32Two sharks swim side by side.
35:45With the pectoral fins held down, mouth slightly agape, the sharks move closer and closer to
35:51each other until one gives way.
36:02Size seems to be the determining factor in dominance.
36:19The larger sharks control the scene.
36:23A shark approaches the carcass hunched in full display posture.
36:36A larger shark rises up from below.
36:41The first one arches its body and quickly gives way.
36:48The bigger shark has established its right to feed first.
36:52The largest shark into week.
36:53Most devorants.
36:54It doesn't mean as people are winged at its own.
36:55It can be uncovered.
36:56The white shark fell down the window.
36:58Indeed, we can recognize ape plots and follow thehail, which sea IB or 71.
37:03The one of those lessons do be the most up SNных.
37:05The next star скажet, the world has transferred is subject to FROM DEFONります.
37:08I should've thought about it.
37:09Otherwise, there is nobody Nein, nor is white.
37:12The one of those who have come and why Herr Steneoich gets vehicles for the air.
37:16So can I project it değil as true?
37:19Of course, we have nonetheless.
37:21Now the feeding is finally over, and the sharks go back down to resume stalking.
37:35The countershading of the shark's hide, dark above, light below, makes them almost impossible to spot from above.
37:42The shark may spend from two weeks to a month stalking, waiting for that one opportunity that makes it worthwhile to return each year to the same hunting ground.
37:53The shark's strategy is to cruise along the bottom, watching for silhouettes above.
38:03Sea lions in a group are difficult to target and catch. The shark prefers a single target.
38:12Sea jóvenes are my best friends for theirland.
38:15Sea lions
38:34Scott Anderson studies the great whites in much the same way as the great whales have
38:44been studied. He attempts to get photos to identify individuals. First he has to lure
38:51the shark up by using a shape that resembles an elephant seal. A surfboard seems to work
38:56as well as anything. This is what Scott is after. Photos of the dorsal fin and tail.
39:26Okay, well these are the kind of bites that we see on various objects that we put out
39:31here, surfboard in this case. And you can see the upper teeth here lay down a nice crescent
39:37shaped bite and they actually cut away flesh and take away a piece of the animal, whereas
39:43the bottom teeth are much sharper in a point and actually pin the prey. So the two sets
39:52of jaws working together are very effective at removing large pieces of flesh. You can
39:57see here each set of teeth, so the shark's actually missing one tooth here. They can bite clear
40:05through something like this, but they probably, as soon as they get it in their mouth, sense
40:08that it's not a seal or a sea lion, which they're usually used to eating, it's much harder and
40:15probably just let go as soon as they feel it. This is just a shark feeling the board.
40:23The next challenge for Scott involves getting photos of the entire shark.
40:33The video board is a board with a video camera and a housing that would be durable enough to
40:38withstand the impact of an attack and also remain floating.
40:45Scott's decoy works. These were the first films of great whites underwater in California.
41:00Only rarely do they actually attack the surfboard. This inquisitive shark uses its
41:07potentially lethal jaws to gently explore the surfboard.
41:25Scar markings and differing colorations are clearly visible on these close views.
41:30Scott will use these kind of views to assist him in identifying individual sharks.
41:36The scars on the bodies of the Farallon sharks provide more clues to their social rituals.
41:43The postures and displays used to avoid direct combat do not always prevent contact.
41:50These big female sharks have what appear to be combat or perhaps mating scars.
41:55White sharks have never been observed mating, but it's likely that their sexual behavior is turbulent to say the least.
42:03One of the big questions is, are the same sharks coming back year after year?
42:15Everybody always thought that the sharks that were out here were the same sharks, but nobody had any evidence.
42:21It's different. Yeah, I went through this. Yeah, I went through this and it is different.
42:27It's either on the other side or it's further forward, more of a bite like that.
42:31Scott and Peter sift through the available evidence to attempt to catalogue all of the individual great whites
42:37that come to the Farallons each autumn.
42:40Videos, stills and sightings are all examined.
42:43Some suggest that hunting seals and sea lions can be dangerous for the shark.
42:49It looks like it could be a seal or a sea lion as, you know, bitten.
42:52It doesn't look like a shark. Yeah.
42:54There's four teeth. Yeah, two on the bottom and two on the top, which would be the two main, one of those, the canines.
43:00Over seven years of study, up to 40 individuals have been identified.
43:07The researchers have come to know some of these returning sharks very well and have even become fond of them.
43:13One of these is a massive 18-footer named Stumpy, so called because the tip of her tail is missing.
43:21We don't know where Stumpy is during most of the year, but we do know that she shows up here every autumn at the Farallons.
43:30What's more, she appears to come to the same spot to hunt.
43:38How do you know Stumpy is here? You set the board out and she lets you know.
43:51This is how a great white kills an elephant seal in the first hit.
44:10In one precise torpedo-like blow, the shark hits the prey from below.
44:15The stunning impact of the first lightning strike may incapacitate the seal.
44:21This strategy saves energy and may minimize the risk of injury to the shark.
44:30In the Farallons, no shark is more successful at this strategy than Stumpy.
44:36She's the only animal that we've recognized taking three different seals in one year.
44:42And that's pretty amazing when you think that it's been calculated that one seal should last a shark up to three months.
44:50She must be really building up a lot of fat and we suppose that's because she then goes down and breathes and probably doesn't eat very much during the time she's giving birth.
44:59Great white sharks are the ultimate predators.
45:08Highly complex and adaptive, they vary their strategies to suit different situations and to outwit exceptionally agile prey.
45:16Of all the great predators on the planet, white sharks are the only ones that cannot be caged or tamed.
45:32As images of fierce, uncontrolled nature, they have imprinted themselves indelibly upon our collective consciousness.
45:41Jaws and a lot of those other movies instilled this belief in humans that white sharks were these killing machines that wanted to jump into boats or grab humans and eat them.
46:00We've learned that this is really not the case at all. They're primarily interested in elephant seals.
46:09As the animal behind the myth is revealed, the great white shark remains no less formidable as a predator.
46:29Its fearful symmetry is not diminished.
46:35Perhaps we need to know that it still survives out there.
46:39Like the tiger in the forests of the night, the white shark is the essence of wildness.
47:02What time is it now, Mr. Wolf?
47:32Oh absolutely!
47:33Actually of course, negative interest in floating wings
47:35обнаружizes to abandon the distant somos of crates Jews.
47:38To avoid the correct Zus orhas away with her life, I can see them.
47:40If you think there must be higher and lower нем겠어요 about its primeLER or equal Nous at our artifact,
47:41The cup is falando that many other soldiers have no longer anonymity.
47:43I'veesten to reconsider.
47:44ItVE parks several niаемся in our lives with different factors.
47:47110- partout years and buried in flames as a Ronaldo and aside fromல
47:49We've animated ones in camino where you have to argue and Coral carrying dreams what will be possible in2017.
47:53It must be consideredπ con plataformas as a robot.
47:56So they call us as complete predators online.
47:59I blow this on a flabösy and Tell them as a слabotified.
48:00So they are all sorts of tahu bureaucracy that they will fish.