The Future is Wild

Eine Welt entsteht

Welcome to the Future is the first episode in the documentary series The Future Is Wild. It shows what is to be featured in the coming episodes. It opens by discussing which animals (such as the big cats and bears) will disappear in a few thousand years and explains that evolution will continue. It is also the only episode to touch upon the absence of humans in the future. It does not, however, explain what happened to the human race. The creators said that it was up to the viewers to make their own assumptions about the fate of mankind. .

Die Rückkehr des Eises

Return of the Ice is set in Europe, 5,000,000 years into the future. The episode focuses on three species:- Shagrat - a descendant of the marmot that has grown in size and developed thicker fur to protect it from the cold. Snowstalker - a descendant of the wolverine that has evolved sabre-teeth and white fur for camouflage. Gannetwhale - a descendant of the gannet which has grown to immense size to replace the sea mammals. The episode follows the story of a female Snowstalker teaching her cubs to hunt, the Gannetwhale's breeding season and the mass migration to the south of the Shagrats.

Das Verschwundene Meer

The Vanished Sea is set in what was the Mediterranean sea in 5,000,000 years time. It features four species:- Cryptile - a descendant of the salt desert lizard with a sticky frill to catch flies which it can then lick off at its leisure. Scrofa - a descendant of the wild boar which has developed spindly legs to allow it to live on the rocky islands in the desert. Gryken - a descendant of the pine marten which hunts Scrofa in the cracked rocks of the landscape. Brine flies - these don't appear to have evolved too much but are the only animals around capable of drinking the salty water. Before this time in the future, the tip of Africa has collided with the southern tip of Spain, thus enclosing the Mediterranean inland. It has since dried up to become an enormous salt desert with a few lakes of ultra-saline water, as it was during the Messinian salinity crisis. The holiday islands that used to be in the sea are now mountains scattered throughout the desert.

Die Savannen Amazoniens

Prairies of Amazonia is set in South America where the Amazon used to stand in 5,000,000 years time. It features three species:- Carakiller - a descendant of the caracara which has evolved to replace land predators. Babookari - a descendant of the uakari which lives like baboons and has discovered how to catch fish. Rattleback - a descendant of the agouti or paca which has developed tough armour and can live through quickly-passing grass fires. This episode shows that due to the cooling of the planet, the Amazon rainforest has vanished and has been replaced by grassland. Most primates have died out but the Babookari has evolved to live on the plains. They have also become much cleverer and can now make nets out of twigs to catch fish. There is also the Rattleback, a heavily defended rodent which is somewhat fireproof and birdproof and lives on a diet of Carakiller eggs.

Die Kalte Wüste

Amerika in fünf Millionen Jahren: Der nordamerikanische Kontinent ist kalt und trocken. Die Eisschilde, die vom Nordpol bis zur einstigen amerikanisch-kanadischen Grenze hineinragen, bestimmen die eisige, feuchtigkeitsarme Luft. Die nordamerikanische Wüste ist so kalt wie die Wüste Gobi in Zentralasien und erstreckt sich über 2400 km nach Westen, bis sie auf die mit Gletschern übersäten Rocky Mountains trifft. Vor allem die kalten Winde beherrschen das öde Land. Sie entfesseln gefährliche Stürme und waschen jeden Krümel fruchtbarer Erde aus dem Sand. Der hohe Temperaturunterschied zwischen der Äquatorzone und dem Rand der Eiskappe führt zu instabilen Wetterbedingungen und verursacht gigantische, zerstörungswütige Tornados. Nur die zähesten Pflanzen und Tiere können sich in so einer Umgebung behaupten. Hier lebt der Wüstenrasselrücken. Ursprünglich aus der amazonischen Savanne stammend, ist er kleiner als sein südamerikanischer Vetter, aber sein geschuppter Panzer leistet ihm bei den starken Wüstenwinden ebenso guten Schutz. Der Vegetarier verschlingt jede Nahrung, die er entdeckt. Unter der Erde lebt die Maulwurfswachtel. Hier, in unendlichen Tunnelgängen, ist sie geschützt vor Wind, Sand und Staub. Einst war sie ein Vogel, aber ihre Flügel dienen ihr jetzt zum Graben. Der Film zeigt, wie Rasselrücken und Maulwurfswachtel den extremen Klimabedingungen trotzen. (Text: ZDFneo)

Die Bengalischen Sümpfe

Die Seichten Meere

Der Antarktische Regenwald

Das Große Plateau

Die Zentrale Wüste

Der Globale Ozean

Die Regenschattenwüste

Der Tentakelwald