01x01 - Heart of the Emperors

[bunniefuu]

[Narrator] 65 million

years ago when the world

was a different place,

one brave

bird gave up wings

for flippers and

has never looked back

18 species of penguin

have gone on

to become masters

of sea and land.

[squawking]

Now from the greatest

penguin colonies on

earth new science reveals

there's more to them

than we ever imagined.

-Here's good, here's good.

[Narrator] Their "bird brains"

might be brilliant.

-No way, they're

working as a team!

That's one of the

best things I've ever

seen in nature.

[Narrator] Bravery,

their superpower.

And here in Antarctica

-Here we go.

[wind howling]

[Narrator] The coldest

place on earth

-Good luck

little penguins!

[Narrator] As the emperor

penguins' world melts

beneath their feet

[Bertie] Come on little chick.

[Narrator] The untold

story of a new generation

of chicks reveals

how their bonds with

family, and friends

-Surely they're not

thinking of going off there!

[Narrator] shape

their destiny.

[ dramatic music playing]

[wind howling]

[ uplifting music playing]

[Narrator] Every year

when winter begins,

the sea around

Antarctica freezes over

creating a

vast platform of ice.

Here, 20,000 emperor

penguins come ashore

to raise a family.

[ peaceful music playing]

Emperor chicks are the

only animals who grow up

through the coldest,

darkest winter on the planet.

But that's just the

beginning of their story

[chirping]

[squawking]

Winter's over and this

chick is now 5 months old.

Her parents have kept

her safe and well-fed,

but now they must leave,

returning to the ocean

to eat and gain strength,

to do it all again,

next year.

National Geographic Explorer

and award-winning

cinematographer,

Bertie Gregory,

is living with the

colony and documenting how

this year's chicks will

face this defining milestone.

[Bertie] Oh yum!

Make the most of

that meal buddy,

cause the next one you're

going to have to get yourself.

Poor chick.

I mean, imagine being

fed your entire life by

Mom and Dad, and

then all of a sudden, they say,

"Now we're

going to stop,

and by the way your next

meal is 30 miles that way,

in the middle

of the ocean.

You're on your own."

[Narrator] She doesn't yet

know they won't be coming back

but she seems to

sense something's up.

[chirping]

[squawking]

[chirping]

Although she'll likely

never see her parents again,

they've prepared

her for this,

from the beginning.

[Bertie] It's the biggest

moment in their young lives.

Together, they're going

to have to figure out how

to get to the sea, how

to hunt for themselves,

how to be a penguin.

And that's becoming

harder every year.

Oh.

[chirping]

There's an absolute

little tiddler just here.

[chirping]

It's teeny tiny,

it's so much smaller

than the other chicks.

I'm actually surprised

a chick that small has

been left alone, maybe

his parents didn't make it

back from an

earlier fishing trip.

And while he is very, very

cute because he's so small

I'm really worried because

there's a big storm that's

forecast to roll in,

and he's so much more

vulnerable than

the bigger chicks.

It makes my heart hurt.

[wind howling]

[wind howling]

[squawking]

This wind's

starting to crank up.

It is getting really cold.

I've lost that

tiny little chick.

I don't know

where it's gone.

[Narrator] Adults survive

storms by huddling

together to keep warm.

But most are gone.

And the chicks

are spread out,

rapidly losing body

heat into the air.

They'll make it

through if they remember,

they need to move

and help each other.

[wind howling]

[wind howling]

[cries]

[ uplifting music playing]

[Bertie]It's really

interesting,

as this wind

starts to build,

a lot of the chicks

that before were just

kind of scattered around,

and as the wind builds,

they're all

gravitating together.

[uplifting music playing]

They're just like

their parents,

the chicks are forming

their very own huddle.

[dramatic music playing]

I've spotted the

teeny tiny little chick,

on his own on the

edge of the group.

Come on little chick.

[dramatic music playing]

[chirping]

Well done.

Well, he's managed

to get himself surrounded

by some bigger chicks.

His parents

might have gone,

but his friends

are standing by him.

[wind howling]

I just hope this

rookie huddle is going

to be enough to

keep them all alive.

[wind howling]

Yeah, this is getting

dangerous for us now.

Good luck little penguins.

[wind howling]

[wind howling]

[zipper]

Oh, I really hope that

little chick's ok.

[wind howling]

[uplifting music playing]

[Bertie] Oh no.

No.

Poor little thing.

Oh.

That is heartbreaking.

Looking at the size this

one does look a little bigger

than that really

small one.

Must have just been

stuck out here alone.

Uh, it's just so sad

not just for the chick but,

you know, the parents,

the amount of effort that

goes into raising

each of these chicks.

Oh.

[somber music playing]

Oh, wow, well, that little

chick sadly hasn't made it,

I'm very relieved that

most of them have.

And together these

chicks have overcome

that big challenge.

[chirping]

No way!

[laughs]

The little chick has

made it through the storm,

what an absolute

little trooper.

Those other, bigger

chicks huddling around

the little one

helped him get through.

Oh well done.

[uplifting music playing]

[Narrator] But

this isn't the only

relationship

they'll rely on.

Bertie and the team are

discovering the emperors'

entire existence

depends on their ability

to forge connections

and it all starts

with their parents.

[uplifting music playing]

[uplifting music playing]

At four years

old this young empress

is done growing up.

Now she's back home

and she's got nine months

to try and raise a

family before the platform

of ice melts away again.

She's equipped

for the challenge,

at four feet

emperors are the tallest

and strongest penguins.

But her success depends

on something deeper.

Emperors don't mate for

life but she'll still have

to form one of the

strongest bonds in nature.

And she's found

someone with potential.

[squawking]

Like some songbirds,

emperors can produce

two sounds at once.

[squawking]

Giving each a unique voice.

[squawking]

They're learning

each other's to

show they're serious.

[squawking]

But emperor couples

don't just communicate

with their voices.

They're playing copycat.

It's their way of saying,

"You can count on me."

[uplifting music playing]

The next stage of courtship

is a little less, graceful.

In just two weeks,

they'll face the

first big test of

their relationship.

[squawking]

[upbeat music playing]

[Narrator] Raising chicks

through the Antarctic winter is

so hard emperors only

lay one egg a year,

the size of a grapefruit.

And in this society,

it's the fathers who look

after them until they hatch.

Keeping the egg off the

ice in a featherless patch

called a brood pouch.

But getting it from

Mom to Dad tests their

collaboration and trust.

If the egg spends much more

than 60 seconds on the ice,

the chick inside will die.

For the young empress,

there's still

no sign of an egg

But as the couple waits,

the National Geographic

team captures behavior

never filmed before.

A clue to how emperors

master the handover.

They practice.

[upbeat music playing]

It's a sign of their

shared commitment to

getting this right,

if the real

thing does arrive.

[squawking]

[serene music playing]

[uplifting music playing]

Her first egg.

It's time for Dad to

step up so she can go eat.

He's got to read

her body language.

That means, "I'm ready.

Like, now."

[suspenseful music playing]

[uplifting music playing]

Practice pays off.

[squawking]

The life of their firstborn

is now in his hands

feet.

She must trust him with

their egg for two months

as she regains

her strength at sea.

[squawking]

When she returns the

resilience of their bond

will make or break

their family's future.

Until then, he'll rely

on a different alliance.

A ritual as ancient as

the emperors themselves.

[wind howling]

[wind howling]

[Narrator] For six weeks

the father-to-be hasn't

eaten or even

laid down to sleep,

protecting his

precious egg,

but now they face

their biggest challenge yet.

[wind howling]

As the wind rushes off the

ice shelf onto the sea ice,

it accelerates to 120

miles an hour creating

what's known as

katabatic storm.

[wind howling]

It's minus 54 degrees

and there's only one way

he and his unborn

chick will survive.

[squawking]

[wind howling]

He must join 5,000

other fathers in a huddle.

They've been practicing for

this since they were chicks

It's one of nature's

greatest spectacles,

but we're just

beginning to understand

its mysterious power.

They must stand as close

together as possible with

only the tips of

their feathers touching.

Each penguin's feathers

act like insulation,

trapping in a

layer of warm air.

If they press against each

other that warmth is lost.

But if they stand

just millimeters apart,

the heat is

shared between them.

The middle can

reach 99 degrees.

But it's the dynamics

of the huddle that reveal

an extraordinary truth

about emperor society.

The fathers move in waves

and they're not

pushing to the center

to keep themselves alive.

They're shuffling away

step by step,

so even late arrivals,

like Dad get their

turn in the warmth.

[uplifting music playing]

Because each takes

only what they need,

they all win.

It means these dads might

keep a whole generation

alive by sharing

through the coldest,

darkest winter

on the planet.

[serene music playing]

With the help of

the brotherhood,

the young emperor has

made it through the winter

[peaceful music playing]

And so has his daughter.

She could fit in a teacup.

[screeching]

With a voice that

would shatter one.

[screeching]

She needs food that

only her mother can deliver.

[distant squawking]

[upbeat music playing]

Exactly how is

still a mystery,

but after around

two months at sea,

a hormonal change

tells the emperor mothers

it's time to come home.

They return with a

meal within just days of

their chicks hatching.

[screeching]

[distant squawking]

A voice he knows

[squawking]

[distant squawking]

hers.

[squawking]

But can she identify his?

[squawking]

She has the rare ability

to filter out the cacophony

of 20,000 voices

[distant squawking]

to isolate just one.

[squawking]

[squawking]

[chirping]

He has not let her down.

Her parents' partnership

has kept her alive,

but she won't be able

to rely on them forever.

And the team captures

a clue how they'll

prepare her for independence.

[squawking]

[uplifting music playing]

[chirping]

[Narrator] Scientists

believe it's possible that

at just two weeks old,

the chicks are already being

encouraged

to make friends.

[chirping]

Their mothers bring

them face to face.

Perhaps so they can

learn to communicate,

the emperor way.

Even seeming to mimic

each other as adults do.

[chirping]

It's a mommy and me

class and the empress has

brought her daughter.

She's a little shy,

but mom knows how

important this will be.

[chirping]

At a month old, she's

starting to stand on

her own two feet,

with a little

help from mom.

By two months,

she's ready for daycare.

She's making the

bonds she'll need for the

rest of her life.

They will stick together,

like it or not.

Winter is nearly over,

and soon she'll rely

on them to keep her alive.

[quiet squawk]

[serene music playing]

The chicks are

now five months old.

Their parents have

gone and they've begun

their own journey to

the sea in search of a meal.

[Bertie] Their drive

is unbelievable and

it's not just this lot.

there are groups of

chicks everywhere making

their way to the sea.

[Narrator] Bertie's been

tracking this tiny chick

and his friends since

they survived the storm.

[Bertie] The chicks

really are growing up fast.

They've started this

amazing transformation

where they molt.

You know that grey

fluffy coat is amazing for

keeping warm on the ice,

but it's completely

useless in the water.

They need to lose it

and get their adult

feathers ready

for their first swim.

[Narrator] They're

following the oldest,

and most confident

of the group.

An internal compass takes

their brave leader north.

[motor whirring]

But they've run

into trouble.

[squawking, chirping]

As our climate warms,

the sea ice is

breaking apart earlier,

melting beneath

them before they're ready.

If their baby

feathers get too wet,

they can drag the chicks

underwater and drown them.

[chirping, splashing]

[Bertie] This is really

difficult to watch.

They are fighting

for their lives.

Go on!

[Narrator] The only world

the leader's ever known is

crumbling beneath her.

[splashing, chirping]

Waiting for the tiny chick

is becoming dangerous.

He's struggling

to keep up.

With the ice

melting rapidly,

they're all at risk.

[squawk]

The leader does

something no emperor chick

should ever have to do.

[somber music playing]

Leave their friend behind.

[somber music playing]

The others make

it onto stable ice.

[uplifting music playing]

[somber music playing]

[upbeat music playing]

The little chick

isn't finished yet.

[uplifting music playing]

His friends are in sight.

[chirping, squawking]

[chirping]

Together again.

[Bertie] Just when I

think these penguins have

hit their limit.

They do something

extraordinary.

[Narrator] After three

more days of marching

most of the chicks

have reached the sea.

They've lost enough baby

feathers and they're ready

for their first swim.

But in the scramble

to reach solid ice,

the leader has

taken a wrong path

and other groups

have followed

[suspenseful music playing]

-What on earth

is going on here?

[Narrator] Hundreds of

chicks are stuck on a

towering shelf of ice.

[Bertie] That cliff has

got to be 40, 50 feet high.

[suspenseful music playing]

[chirping]

[spouting]

-What was that?

It's k*ller whales.

We've got k*ller whales!

[spouting]

[spouting]

Well fortunately

for these penguins,

the k*ller whales look

like they are moving on.

[Narrator] But now

the ice is cracking,

a huge crevasse is

opening up behind them.

[chirping]

One last time,

the leader

steps forward.

[upbeat music playing]

[splash]

[squawking]

[Bertie] I can't believe it,

she's made it.

[squawking, chirping]

[upbeat music playing]

[squawking, chirping]

[upbeat music playing]

[Bertie] You know, we've

seen that these chicks

stick together,

so I think a lot are

going to start to jump.

Here they go,

here they go!

[upbeat music playing]

[upbeat music playing]

[Bertie] Those first brave

jumpers are giving the rest

the confidence to follow.

Some of them are even

trying to flap their wings

I had no idea that

the chicks would be able

to make such a giant leap.

And then happily

swim off together into

the Southern Ocean.

I really hope

that tiny chick is

in there somewhere.

[Narrator] In a world

that's changing fast,

emperors face

an uncertain future.

They'll rely more

than ever on the bonds

they form with

family and friends.

[Bertie] Good luck

little penguins

[upbeat music playing]