Life in the Undergrowth

2005 • BBC

5.0

23 reviews

Eligible

Season 1 episodes (5)

1 Invasion of the Land

11/23/05

David Attenborough presents a spectacular feast of natural history as he burrows into the unseen world of the invertebrates, utilising cutting-edge technology to shed new light on a miniature universe never before shown on television. Since they left the seas to move onto land just over 400 million years ago, the invertebrates have become the most successful group of animals, conquering every corner of our planet. From the common leopard slug to the nightmarish amblypygid, for every one of us, there are 200 million of them.

2 Taking to the Air

11/30/05

Behold the stunning aerobatics of earth's largest damselfly in Costa Rica and the mass migration of Purple crow butterflies in Taiwan. David Attenborough tells the tale of how animals first took flight. The mayfly sheds light on the evolution of wings, and the lightning-quick reactions of hoverflies are captured on one of the world's fastest cameras.

3 The Silk Spinners

12/7/05

David Attenborough reveals the extraordinary uses to which insects put silk, from the protective stalks of lacewing eggs, to the hanging threads of glow-worms. Even arachnophobes will be charmed by wolf spiders spinning delicate capsules to carry their eggs and baby spiders floating up into the air on strands of silk.

4 Intimate Relations

12/14/05

David Attenborough explores the fascinating relationships invertebrates share with plants and other animals. Meet the world's smallest insect - a fairy wasp just 0.25mm long, which flies underwater to lay its brood in a stranger's eggs - and the ants that use their own weed-killer to poison trees that don't provide them with a home. Then there's the blue butterfly caterpillar, one of the greatest con-artists of the insect world.

5 Supersocieties

12/21/05

It's easy to be dismissive of invertebrates because they are so small, but many of these societies are so fine-tuned in the way they operate its as if they are a 'super-organism', says David Attenborough. And by working together they can achieve great things. African termite mounds act as huge ventilation systems and are so sophisticated in their structure, we are just starting to unravel how in they work. But not all insect societies are shining examples of co-operative Utopias.

About this show

Open your eyes to the bizarre, ferocious and surprisingly beautiful world of the invertebrates! Join David Attenborough on his groundbreaking exploration of a spectacular miniature universe never normally seen, but teeming all around us. Not just bugs and beetles, but exotic cicadas, neon glow worms, intricate silk-weaving spiders and iridescent dragonflies. Thanks to technical innovations in lighting, optics and computerised motion control, this turbulent, super-organised world is finally revealed from the perspective of its extraordinary inhabitants. These beasts may be miniscule, but they live life on a truly grand scale.

Ratings and reviews

5.0

23 reviews

Stephen

July 18, 2016

I could watch this man for days and days and never get bored of his amazing knowledge and narration. What a true legend of the planet 🌍 Earth.

Jenna Louise

March 20, 2020

Highly recommended 👍👏🤯

Rate this show

Tell us what you think.