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Plants

Episode 9 of 10

The nature series turns to plants and looks at the ingenious solutions that they employ to counter life's challenges, such as spring-loaded traps, suckers and claws.

Plants' solutions to life's challenges are as ingenious and manipulative as any animal's.

Innovative time-lapse photography opens up a parallel world where plants act like fly-paper, or spring-loaded traps, to catch insects. Vines develop suckers and claws to haul themselves into the rainforest canopy. Every peculiar shape proves to have a clever purpose. The dragon's blood tree is like an upturned umbrella to capture mist and shade its roots. The seed of a Bornean tree has wings so aerodynamic they inspired the design of early gliders. The barrel-shaped desert rose is full of water. The heliconia plant even enslaves a humming bird and turns it into an addict for its nectar.

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58 minutes

Audio described

On TV

Tue 15 Oct 2024 19:00

Clips

Music Played

  • Julee Cruise

    Questions In A World of Blue

Credits

Role Contributor
Narrator David Attenborough
Executive Producer Michael Gunton
Producer Neil Lucas

Broadcasts