Watch:
Availability:
Sorry, this programme is not available to watch again. (why?)
Last broadcast on Sun, 23 Aug 2009, 23:00 on BBC HD (see all broadcasts).
Synopsis
The South Pacific islands - the most remote in the world - are home to some of the most curious, surprising and precarious examples of life found anywhere on Earth, from giant crabs that tear open coconuts, to flesh-eating caterpillars that impale their prey on dagger-like claws.
Human culture is different here, too. The men of Pentecost Island celebrate their annual harvest by leaping from 20-metre-high scaffolds, with only forest vines to break their fall. And on the tiny island of Anuta, possibly the most remote community of people on the planet, the locals survive entirely on what they can grow and catch.
The South Pacific's innumerable islands look like pieces of paradise, but the reality of life here is sometimes very different, with waves the size of buildings, brutal tropical storms and, in the far south, even blizzards. This is the real South Pacific.
Vanuatu
Huw Cordey travels to a remote speck in the South Pacific in search of a giant. A crab so big that its pincers can carve up coconuts.
Credits
- Presenter
- Benedict Cumberbatch
- Producer
- Huw Cordey
- Executive Producer
- Fiona Pitcher
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~04~RS~){kind=small}