White Birds of Winter
To farmers they are pests, to hunters they are quarry, but to many native Americans snow geese are the subject of myth and legend. For the Arctic peoples - the Koyukon and Inuit - they bring the spring, and for the Sioux, on the great plains of the Dakotas, they represent the cleansing power of the north wind.
This film, narrated by David Attenborough , follows the flocks, and in particular one pair, of geese on their 5,000km migration from the southern states of the USA to their breedinggrounds in the Arctic.
The timing has to be perfect and the chicks must hatch and fledge in six weeks before the cold winter returns and the new family makes its return journey.
Using modern techniques cameras fly alongside the geese and on the ground mix with massive flocks. The haunting music of the Navajo flute, played by native American composer Douglas Spotted Eagle, enhances the atmosphere. ProducerSteve Nicholls
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