David Attenborough Explores the 'Galapagos'

David Attenborough’s latest voyage into the natural world, the 3-part series ‘Galapagos’, shows the islands and wildlife in a stunning new format.
The 86-year-old naturalist travelled to Galapagos for the 3rd time to create the series, incorporating new research conducted on the archipelago famous for inspiring Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection. As Attenborough lends his encapsulating voice to Darwin’s theories his passion for the topic is infectious.
The program assumes little prior knowledge, employing the diversity of the Galapagos’ wildlife to illustrate the astonishing process of natural selection. For those familiar with natural selection many of the concepts will not be new. For instance the aquatic iguanas that look strangely out of place eating seaweed on the rocky bottom, or the uniquely evolved giant tortoises from which the archipelago gets it’s name.
There is enough originality however to maintain interest for most viewers, such as the evolution of the islands themselves. While knowledge of the geographic origins of the Galapagos is not new, Attenborough’s skill for making digestible content, combined with graphics of the islands own evolution make for fascinating viewing.
Research into the geographic and meteorological influences have shed new light on what affects the inhabitants of the islands and how they have adapted. For instance the weather patterns of El Niño wiping out the blue and green algae the Iguana generally feed on has a devastating affect on the population. As one of the researchers featured in the program explains, the Iguana can only feed on the brown algae that are left. The Iguanas are unable to absorb any nutrients from these algae however, and many of them die with stomachs full of useless seaweed. Recent studies explain how the Iguanas that survive do so in an incredible display of natural selection.
The DVD is available at ABC shops and online
.