Summary of Catástrofes Naturales: Cómo Sobreviven Animales y Plantas - DW Documental 10SET'22

00:00:00 - 00:50:00

This video discusses how animals and plants survive natural disasters, such as hurricanes and wildfires. It explains that some animals are able to sense impending disasters and are able to flee, while others are not able to and are thus more susceptible to the effects of the disasters.

• 00:00:00 The video discusses natural disasters, and how animals and plants react to them. Some animals may perceive a natural disaster as approaching, and take refuge, while others may have to fight for their lives. Stories of natural disasters from antiquity abound, in which animals either warned people in time, or were affected by the event themselves. In Sri Lanka, a popular tourist destination due to its scenic landscapes and diversity of ecosystems, the 2004 tsunami destroyed much of the country's wildlife. After the tsunami, fish populations were reduced, and many large fish banks were gone. Many animals were behaving unusually and even many marine mammals and reptiles had disappeared. Some locals believe that the animals sensed the approaching disaster and took refuge in time.
• 00:05:00 Doctor Martín Viclesky studies the behavior of goats living on the slopes of Mount Etna in Sicily, Italy, in order to understand how they react before and during eruptions. His research has found that all animals in the area increase their activity levels significantly prior to eruptions, and that goats are particularly good at predicting eruptions. He plans to apply his methodology to other animals in the future.
• 00:10:00 Since the 1980s, a scientist named Dr. Michael Hooter has been using sound waves and GPS to study marine animals in depth. In 2001, Hurricane Gabriel hit Florida, and one of Hooter's graduate students, Michelle Hypel, captured footage of a group of young white sharks living in deep waters near Tampa Bay. Three days later, Gabriel made landfall near Florida and quickly reached speeds of 110 kilometers per hour. The sharks in Hypel's study group had to flee their feeding ground as the storm approached, and were later spotted in deeper waters near the Gulf of Mexico. However, some of the sharks - those that were more experienced and had a better sense of hearing - responded quickly and retreated to deeper waters, while others took longer to decide. After 35 years of study, it's now clear that white sharks do not randomly disperse when faced with a storm; they react according to pressure changes in the water that are related to depth. This knowledge was crucial for Hooter's team, who in 2020 placed GPS transmitters on white sharks near New Scotia to study their movements. However, the sharks quickly avoided the area and remained out of sight. Two months after the transmitters were installed, Hurricane Teddy
• 00:15:00 In this video, Doctor Hooter and his team discuss how animals and plants survive natural disasters, such as earthquakes and hurricanes. They explain that some animals are able to sense impending disasters and are able to flee, while others are not able to and are thus more susceptible to the effects of the disasters. The island of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean is a tropical paradise, and lush tropical forests grow in the mountains thanks to frequent rains. This green labyrinth offers refuge to a variety of animals, both in the water or on land. Every year during hurricane season, the violent storms move from the Atlantic Ocean and devastate Puerto Rico. If a hurricane lands on the island, it falls into heavy rains within a short amount of time. The wildlife of the forest struggles against powerful floods that sweep through the area. Some animals, such as shrimp, escape the torrents by fleeing to rivers. When the climate calms down, the shrimp return to the water where the storm has provided them with a true feast. Small shrimp can consume enormous quantities of organic material, eliminating waste products deposited by the rainstorms. Without shrimp, the water currents in Puerto Rico would be muddy and turbid and would not provide suitable conditions for other aquatic life. Other animals are left vulnerable to sudden floods.
• 00:20:00 In this video, DW Documentary reveals how some animals and plants survive natural catastrophes by adapting to change. For example, a colorful raft of honeybees can float on water for several weeks, without dying if the water goes down or if they touch land. If the honeybees are invaded, their colony quickly mobilizes and builds a new home. A protective escort accompanies them and takes them to safety. Some animals have found a way to cope with hurricanes. For example, some birds instinctively avoid storms without realizing that their behavior contradicts conventional wisdom. However, recently it has been discovered that some bird populations have evolved different survival strategies. The delta population of the river Mackenzie in Alaska fly over colder waters where storms don't form, and avoid hurricanes. However, the population of the Bahía de Hudson in Canada fly directly into hurricanes, and suffer tremendously for the unnatural selection of human-made conditions. Both populations are declining, as they are threatened by a completely different danger: human-made volcanoes. The island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea is currently marked by active volcanism. When the Taburuga volcano erupted in 1994, the city of Raval located near the volcano was buried under lava and ashes. However, the city was
• 00:25:00 In this video, natural disasters are explored, including how animals and plants survive. Locals later moved to safer areas, but one animal became attracted to the apocalyptic landscape and founded its next generation. Normally, talegalos cover their eggs with a thick layer of vegetation, creating a natural incubator, but here they bury their eggs up to 2 meters deep in Volcanic Ash. Birds are not as successful at reproducing in this risky environment, with only a few eggs surviving to see their offspring. Trees that have been badly damaged provide little protection from falling lava bombs. Aboriginal people have been burning forests for centuries to control fire, and this practice has led to the attraction of birds of prey.
• 00:30:00 In this documentary, filmmaker Silvestre Mark travels to the north of Australia to document the unique behavior of birds during wildfires. He spends years following birds as they fly over the flames before swooping down to collect any insects that may be fleeing the fire. Some birds even dive head-first into the fire in order to collect burning objects before returning to their nests. Meanwhile, small mammals and reptiles also attempt to survive the fire by flying away and then returning to collect the hot ashes that have fallen to the ground. Mark spends weeks filming wildfire-related stories in an attempt to create a film, but unfortunately, no bird ever displayed the same behavior. However, one bird suddenly flew down to collect a burning stick--an act that astonished experts and amateurs alike. Apparently, the birds are trying to keep the fire burning by using sticks as obstacles. Wildfires in Australia are not a rare occurrence, but in recent years they have been increasing in severity without precedent. To better manage these mega-fires, the Australian government is interested in the traditional Native American practice of controlled wildfire. The island of Canguro, located close to the southern coast of Australia, is a refuge for unique animal and plant species. However, in 2019 and 2020, wildfires
• 00:35:00 In this video, natural disasters are shown how animals and plants survive. Termites are known to resist fire well, but if the forest fire spreads, workers immediately begin repairing the fort. The Australian eucalyptus tree, which is only found in Australia, is a monotreme and lays eggs that are deposited in a pouch inside the animal's stomach where they hatch and are ammased by the mother over a period of several days before they are deposited in a nest. When a forest fire is regular, the eucalyptus' bark peels off in a short time, but the fire spreads quickly and even though the trees lose some leaves and branches, the trunk and roots remain intact. After a forest fire, eucalyptus trees produce new shoots directly from the ground as well as larger ones from the trunk and branches. Many other plants also benefit from forest fires, part of the vegetation on the island of Canguro even depends on fire to germinate when it occurs. When a forest fire occurs, many plants open their shells and spread their seeds all around, creating a fertile ground for new plants to grow.
• 00:40:00 The video discusses the natural disasters that animals and plants can survive, such as wildfires. The animals that survive these disasters usually do so because their tree roots are below the ground and well protected from the hot flames. Some plant species that grow quickly after a fire are also found only on La Isla Canguro. The Santo Roque's flowers open in long, lance-shaped inflorescences that can reach 4 meters in height. Even though a fire is always a disaster, nature has demonstrated remarkable creativity to resist it. We have lost no single species, and our natural resiliency is incredible. A disaster can even trigger a period of abundance, something that is not exclusive to La Isla Canguro. Nepal is located on the line of failure between two tectonic plates, and earthquakes happen there more frequently than anywhere else in the world. Moderate earthquakes can devastate large territories and claim thousands of lives. Buildings can be destroyed and large areas of land can slide. Nevertheless, to us humans, a disaster seems like the end of the world. Primates on La Isla Canguro have been living with humans for a long time, and they have learned to take advantage of any opportunity. They are considered sacred in the Nepalese
• 00:45:00 The video discusses how animals and plants survive natural disasters by using their usual food sources, storing food for emergencies, and having a fat reserve to survive the damage with the least harm possible. In 1992, a hurricane called Hurricane Iniqui devastated the island and scattered these chickens all over. After that storm, we experienced an invasion of chickens. In the movie "Jurassic Park", dinosaurs escape from their enclosure during a violent storm and terrorize the island's inhabitants. In real life, the hurricane and Nikki liberated these domesticated chickens. However, this is not the first time chickens have colonized this island. Pollocks have spread to the mountains of Kawaii by mating with free-range chickens released by Hurricane Iniqui and Nikki. It is very rare for a population of domesticated animals to become wild again even more unusual than the wild chickens of Kawaii who have returned to the cities from the forests. Since the 1990s, there has been an increase in natural disasters. Gallinules have spread to all parts of the island due to this increase, and their population is growing exponentially. In the future, nothing will stop the population explosion of free-range gallinules on Kawaii.
• 00:50:00 The video discusses how climate change is likely to cause more intense storms, more prolonged droughts, and more intense rainfall. It also discusses how wildfires can be affected by climate change and how humans will have to adapt to new conditions if we are to have any hope of predicting these natural disasters.