Seeing in Colour
Using the latest camera technology, David Attenborough reveals the extraordinary ways in which animals use colour: to win a mate, to fight off rivals and to warn enemies.
The natural world is full of colours. For us, they are a source of beauty, but for animals they are a tool for survival. David Attenborough reveals the extraordinary ways in which animals use colour: to win a mate, to fight off rivals and to warn enemies. In India, peacocks dazzle females with magnificent tail feathers; a tiny hummingbird in the deserts of North America unfurls his spectacular headdress as he dances for a mate; and in the darkness of a rainforest, powerful mandrill baboons signal their status with red and blue face masks, while tiny frogs warn of deadly poisons with brilliant colours.
New camera technologies - some developed especially for this series – also allow us to see colours and patterns usually invisible to human eyes. Ultraviolet cameras reveal bright signals on a butterfly’s wings and facial markings on yellow damselfish that are used as secret communication channels. Some animals can also detect polarised light, and specialist cameras can now show us how fiddler crabs see the world, and how mantis shrimp have strange polarisation patterns on their bodies to signal to a mate or rival.
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Clips
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The hummingbird shows his colours
Duration: 01:34
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Poison dart frogs battle it out
Duration: 01:15
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What the colours of mandrill males reveal
Duration: 00:45
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Revealing extraordinary stories about life in colour
Duration: 02:02
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | David Attenborough |
Series Producer | Sharmila Choudhury |
Producer | Sally Thomson |
Production Company | Humble Bee Films |
Broadcasts
- Sun 28 Feb 2021 19:00
- Sun 7 Mar 2021 15:35´óÏó´«Ã½ One except Wales & Wales HD
- Thu 29 Apr 2021 08:00
- Sun 20 Mar 2022 17:05
- Sat 14 Oct 2023 16:25
- Sun 18 Aug 2024 15:30´óÏó´«Ã½ One except HD, Wales & Wales HD
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