1 00:00:07,341 --> 00:00:09,841 Planet Earth is so spectacular, 2 00:00:10,636 --> 00:00:13,676 it's easy to miss the smaller things in life. 3 00:00:15,766 --> 00:00:17,636 But take a closer look... 4 00:00:18,143 --> 00:00:20,563 and there's a whole undiscovered world. 5 00:00:22,648 --> 00:00:24,978 A world where tiny heroes... 6 00:00:26,485 --> 00:00:27,815 and little monsters... 7 00:00:29,029 --> 00:00:31,409 need incredible superpowers... 8 00:00:34,618 --> 00:00:40,038 to help them triumph against giant odds. 9 00:00:55,347 --> 00:00:56,887 Life moves fast. 10 00:00:58,183 --> 00:00:59,813 Especially when you're small. 11 00:01:03,105 --> 00:01:05,515 This little chipmunk is barely a month old. 12 00:01:06,775 --> 00:01:09,065 But he'll be lucky to live longer than a year. 13 00:01:12,865 --> 00:01:14,905 There's so much to explore. 14 00:01:16,869 --> 00:01:18,289 And so little time. 15 00:01:23,292 --> 00:01:26,922 His patch of North American forest is about to burst into life. 16 00:01:31,258 --> 00:01:32,888 With little creatures... 17 00:01:33,635 --> 00:01:35,465 and big opportunities. 18 00:01:45,731 --> 00:01:49,941 But tiny lives can be over in the blink of an eye. 19 00:02:05,751 --> 00:02:06,961 No time to stand still. 20 00:02:18,639 --> 00:02:19,719 Move fast. 21 00:02:27,064 --> 00:02:28,074 Learn quickly. 22 00:02:32,402 --> 00:02:34,912 And you might just make it through the year. 23 00:02:55,092 --> 00:02:56,302 Early spring. 24 00:02:58,262 --> 00:03:00,352 And the forests of the Appalachians Mountains 25 00:03:00,430 --> 00:03:02,060 are just beginning to bloom. 26 00:03:11,567 --> 00:03:13,607 There's so much food here, 27 00:03:13,694 --> 00:03:17,414 a palm-sized chipmunk only needs half an acre to himself. 28 00:03:28,584 --> 00:03:30,254 Nuts are particularly abundant. 29 00:03:34,298 --> 00:03:36,928 They're the currency that drives this little world. 30 00:03:39,928 --> 00:03:44,138 And in autumn, when they're ripe, they'll provide a huge windfall. 31 00:03:48,478 --> 00:03:50,898 But before then, he has a lot to deal with. 32 00:03:59,740 --> 00:04:02,410 An older, stronger male already lives here. 33 00:04:06,955 --> 00:04:08,785 If the little chipmunk is going to make it, 34 00:04:09,249 --> 00:04:12,249 someday soon he'll need to stand up for himself. 35 00:04:15,088 --> 00:04:16,628 But fighting is risky. 36 00:04:18,841 --> 00:04:21,851 He can't afford to be injured so early in the season. 37 00:04:49,790 --> 00:04:51,500 He'll have to keep his head down... 38 00:04:52,292 --> 00:04:54,092 scratch out a living on the edges... 39 00:04:58,131 --> 00:05:00,181 until he's big enough to hold his ground. 40 00:05:06,849 --> 00:05:10,059 For most, spring's a time to get out and get eating. 41 00:05:14,147 --> 00:05:17,857 Small animals have fast metabolisms, so they must feed more often. 42 00:05:20,988 --> 00:05:22,818 The caterpillars are ravenous... 43 00:05:23,949 --> 00:05:25,909 and so are the birds. 44 00:05:32,583 --> 00:05:36,003 Sapsuckers drill hundreds of wells to reach the rising sap. 45 00:05:39,423 --> 00:05:42,633 And walnut-sized hummingbirds take full advantage. 46 00:05:48,473 --> 00:05:52,273 They fly almost 5,000 kilometers to get here. 47 00:05:54,438 --> 00:05:57,648 And arrive just in time for this seasonal sugar rush. 48 00:06:08,702 --> 00:06:10,912 While most of the forest is in overdrive... 49 00:06:12,539 --> 00:06:15,169 one resident is still fast asleep. 50 00:06:22,966 --> 00:06:25,586 Curled up in a space smaller than an egg cup, 51 00:06:26,053 --> 00:06:29,683 a jumping mouse has been hibernating for eight months. 52 00:06:35,354 --> 00:06:37,564 Now, she's in danger of never waking up. 53 00:06:44,530 --> 00:06:46,990 Sleep too long and she'll starve. 54 00:06:49,535 --> 00:06:51,655 Two-thirds of these mice do. 55 00:06:58,001 --> 00:07:01,171 Her neighbors, on the other hand, never rest. 56 00:07:04,383 --> 00:07:06,843 They've got hundreds of tiny mouths to feed. 57 00:07:15,102 --> 00:07:17,522 Like all ants, they are industrious. 58 00:07:18,105 --> 00:07:20,935 But what makes them unique is where they live. 59 00:07:26,780 --> 00:07:29,990 Only the size of a grain of sand, they're so small, 60 00:07:30,075 --> 00:07:34,495 their entire society fits inside an old acorn. 61 00:07:46,633 --> 00:07:48,473 It seems the perfect safe house. 62 00:07:51,054 --> 00:07:55,274 But maybe it's not such a good idea to build your home in someone else's food. 63 00:08:01,315 --> 00:08:03,145 Giants stalk this forest. 64 00:08:23,128 --> 00:08:24,338 Wild turkeys. 65 00:08:25,923 --> 00:08:28,593 Time to secure the grubs and hold on tight. 66 00:08:33,931 --> 00:08:35,721 This could be a rough ride. 67 00:08:44,358 --> 00:08:46,608 At least acorns make sturdy homes. 68 00:08:47,402 --> 00:08:49,702 And they're built to roll. 69 00:09:06,713 --> 00:09:08,923 Summer in the forest comes fast. 70 00:09:11,051 --> 00:09:12,681 It looks lush and bountiful. 71 00:09:18,225 --> 00:09:21,645 And yet, the little chipmunk is barely getting by. 72 00:09:25,399 --> 00:09:27,029 The acorns still aren't ripe. 73 00:09:34,032 --> 00:09:36,162 And, with no patch of his own, 74 00:09:36,660 --> 00:09:39,290 he's forced to forage in the older male's territory. 75 00:09:44,459 --> 00:09:46,089 Still not ready for that fight. 76 00:09:51,383 --> 00:09:52,633 He needs to bulk up. 77 00:10:02,394 --> 00:10:06,234 In desperate times, chipmunks will try almost anything. 78 00:10:09,443 --> 00:10:11,033 Maybe even a slug. 79 00:10:20,329 --> 00:10:21,539 Or maybe not. 80 00:10:23,540 --> 00:10:24,710 Can't stick around though. 81 00:10:28,420 --> 00:10:30,630 There's a deadly threat up above. 82 00:10:35,344 --> 00:10:37,184 And there'll be another soon. 83 00:10:49,274 --> 00:10:52,494 Right now, this baby goshawk can barely stand... 84 00:10:53,529 --> 00:10:54,739 let alone fly. 85 00:10:59,576 --> 00:11:02,076 It'll be a while before she's hunting chipmunks. 86 00:11:09,127 --> 00:11:12,207 Down below, something strange is hatching. 87 00:11:24,893 --> 00:11:26,733 After two years as a grub, 88 00:11:27,396 --> 00:11:31,396 a Hercules beetle the size of a golf ball is emerging. 89 00:11:43,579 --> 00:11:44,789 He's in a big hurry... 90 00:11:46,707 --> 00:11:49,707 to claim the high ground so he can secure a mate. 91 00:11:56,383 --> 00:11:57,473 But why walk... 92 00:11:59,761 --> 00:12:00,971 when you can fly? 93 00:12:31,210 --> 00:12:33,340 One of the world's heaviest insects, 94 00:12:33,962 --> 00:12:36,382 his wing muscles need to be fully warmed up 95 00:12:36,465 --> 00:12:38,045 before he can take to the air. 96 00:12:41,762 --> 00:12:43,392 It's safer to walk for now. 97 00:12:46,308 --> 00:12:50,728 But this Herculean task looks simple compared to an acorn weevil's. 98 00:12:51,897 --> 00:12:53,817 She's only a hundredth his size, 99 00:12:54,733 --> 00:12:57,693 but she has a thousand times further to go. 100 00:13:09,039 --> 00:13:10,419 She's on an epic journey... 101 00:13:14,294 --> 00:13:16,134 to reach the forest canopy. 102 00:13:32,354 --> 00:13:34,864 All in pursuit of precious acorns. 103 00:13:36,316 --> 00:13:37,726 They haven't matured yet. 104 00:13:40,612 --> 00:13:42,242 But she's not going to eat them. 105 00:13:45,659 --> 00:13:46,869 They're for her young. 106 00:13:56,336 --> 00:13:58,666 She can only bore into them while they're green. 107 00:14:06,138 --> 00:14:08,138 A lot of effort for just one egg. 108 00:14:13,187 --> 00:14:15,687 And she's got many more acorns to fill. 109 00:14:29,578 --> 00:14:32,998 On the forest floor, the jumping mouse is beginning to stir. 110 00:14:36,126 --> 00:14:37,836 She really must wake up soon. 111 00:14:40,631 --> 00:14:43,931 For now, she's blissfully unaware of the turning seasons... 112 00:14:44,635 --> 00:14:47,965 and of the battle brewing right above her head. 113 00:14:54,811 --> 00:14:57,651 The Hercules beetle has made it to the top of the log. 114 00:15:04,321 --> 00:15:05,951 But there's no time to rest. 115 00:15:08,742 --> 00:15:11,162 The competition is close behind. 116 00:15:22,047 --> 00:15:24,377 Some of the strongest beetles on the planet. 117 00:15:26,844 --> 00:15:29,854 Each can lift 100 times their own weight. 118 00:15:35,602 --> 00:15:38,862 The goal is to pick up and throw your opponent from the log. 119 00:15:41,149 --> 00:15:43,529 The sumo wrestlers of the insect world. 120 00:16:41,210 --> 00:16:42,840 The log is his. 121 00:16:45,297 --> 00:16:48,007 And with it comes the chance to mate. 122 00:17:00,020 --> 00:17:03,270 The young goshawk's vision is already twice as good as ours. 123 00:17:05,901 --> 00:17:08,531 At four weeks old, she's almost fully grown. 124 00:17:17,037 --> 00:17:18,867 Most of her feathers are now through. 125 00:17:24,377 --> 00:17:25,837 Soon she'll be able to fly. 126 00:17:30,425 --> 00:17:33,045 Until then, the little chipmunk can rest easy. 127 00:17:39,893 --> 00:17:41,103 Not too easy though. 128 00:17:43,105 --> 00:17:47,105 It's still some time until autumn, and those acorns are finally ripe. 129 00:17:57,327 --> 00:17:59,157 When midsummer nights fall, 130 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:01,500 there's magic in the air. 131 00:18:14,052 --> 00:18:18,642 Thousands of tiny fireflies dancing in the darkness. 132 00:18:29,526 --> 00:18:32,776 Inside her log, the little jumping mouse is finally awake. 133 00:18:37,868 --> 00:18:40,698 But now, close to starving to death. 134 00:18:41,830 --> 00:18:44,000 She needs to find food. 135 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:49,920 And that means braving the night. 136 00:18:59,556 --> 00:19:02,766 Strange things are stirring on the forest floor. 137 00:19:07,147 --> 00:19:11,237 And one of nature's weirdest spectacles is about to unfold. 138 00:19:15,197 --> 00:19:18,407 After 17 years feeding underground as grubs, 139 00:19:18,992 --> 00:19:21,202 cicadas are finally surfacing. 140 00:19:24,206 --> 00:19:27,576 And now, they have just days to live. 141 00:19:30,462 --> 00:19:31,842 The race is on. 142 00:19:38,679 --> 00:19:40,679 After a lifetime alone underground, 143 00:19:41,265 --> 00:19:46,725 millions of thumb-sized cicadas have timed their emergence for this moment. 144 00:19:51,859 --> 00:19:54,489 It's one of the biggest migrations on Earth. 145 00:19:57,239 --> 00:20:00,529 Tonight, they transform from nymphs to adults. 146 00:20:10,711 --> 00:20:14,461 Tomorrow, they'll mate, and then they'll die. 147 00:20:24,141 --> 00:20:25,891 Many won't even last the night. 148 00:20:32,357 --> 00:20:36,567 But sheer numbers ensure most will survive long enough to reproduce. 149 00:20:37,863 --> 00:20:39,913 And the forest still gets a feast. 150 00:20:46,163 --> 00:20:48,753 But the jumping mouse is more of a vegetarian. 151 00:20:52,377 --> 00:20:55,377 She's on the hunt for small seeds and fungi. 152 00:21:06,892 --> 00:21:09,652 Timber rattlesnakes can go months without feeding. 153 00:21:18,403 --> 00:21:22,373 Right now, something mouse-sized would go down perfectly. 154 00:21:29,039 --> 00:21:31,249 Foraging in the dark is risky business... 155 00:21:35,504 --> 00:21:36,594 unless you've got... 156 00:21:39,842 --> 00:21:41,182 secret superpowers. 157 00:21:49,726 --> 00:21:53,556 Seemingly defying gravity, she can jump two meters high. 158 00:22:03,365 --> 00:22:07,825 Oversized tendons in her feet and legs, combined with her tiny size... 159 00:22:08,912 --> 00:22:11,922 allow her to leap from danger lurking in the forest. 160 00:22:29,183 --> 00:22:32,313 And hopefully onto safer feeding grounds. 161 00:22:46,950 --> 00:22:48,740 As summer turns to fall, 162 00:22:50,495 --> 00:22:53,365 the forest enters a magical golden period. 163 00:22:59,004 --> 00:23:01,804 But with it comes a new threat. 164 00:23:11,225 --> 00:23:13,265 The young goshawk has fledged... 165 00:23:19,858 --> 00:23:21,688 from scraggly little chick... 166 00:23:28,450 --> 00:23:29,870 to aerial assassin. 167 00:23:34,957 --> 00:23:36,577 Her wingspan over a meter. 168 00:23:38,126 --> 00:23:42,046 And she's capable of speeds up to 60 kilometers per hour. 169 00:23:57,479 --> 00:23:59,939 Small animals best keep an eye on the sky. 170 00:24:07,364 --> 00:24:08,874 And not just for hawks. 171 00:24:17,624 --> 00:24:20,044 The moment the little chipmunk has been waiting for. 172 00:24:26,550 --> 00:24:28,050 Ripe acorns. 173 00:24:31,555 --> 00:24:35,635 This windfall only lasts a week or two, so time to stock up. 174 00:24:40,814 --> 00:24:44,324 He can cram multiple nuts in those supersized cheeks. 175 00:24:49,740 --> 00:24:53,370 A valuable skill when you need hundreds to survive the winter. 176 00:24:59,416 --> 00:25:02,416 But his stockpile doesn't seem to be building fast enough. 177 00:25:09,092 --> 00:25:11,512 Someone has been raiding his stash. 178 00:25:14,389 --> 00:25:15,599 The older male. 179 00:25:23,106 --> 00:25:24,936 The more this little guy stores... 180 00:25:29,571 --> 00:25:31,621 the more his neighbor steals. 181 00:25:38,705 --> 00:25:39,915 And to cap it all off... 182 00:25:43,252 --> 00:25:46,172 many of the nuts nearby are worthless. 183 00:25:52,344 --> 00:25:55,104 The acorn weevil's larva has been growing inside. 184 00:25:58,892 --> 00:26:03,112 Now the size of a jelly bean, it's time to escape the nursery. 185 00:26:07,818 --> 00:26:09,648 Much easier said than done. 186 00:26:19,913 --> 00:26:22,003 Even empty nuts don't go to waste though. 187 00:26:26,295 --> 00:26:30,125 A new home for a new generation of acorn ants. 188 00:26:41,810 --> 00:26:43,480 Over in her cozy log, 189 00:26:45,689 --> 00:26:48,689 the jumping mouse is already preparing her bed. 190 00:26:51,987 --> 00:26:54,237 She's only been awake for a few months. 191 00:26:55,032 --> 00:26:57,662 Now it's time for another big sleep. 192 00:27:03,123 --> 00:27:04,963 No rest for the little chipmunk though. 193 00:27:06,835 --> 00:27:08,295 Autumn is almost over, 194 00:27:08,378 --> 00:27:11,218 and his chances of surviving winter are looking bleak. 195 00:27:16,345 --> 00:27:17,675 He needs more nuts. 196 00:27:19,389 --> 00:27:20,889 And there's only one solution. 197 00:27:27,606 --> 00:27:29,816 Time to venture into enemy territory. 198 00:27:39,993 --> 00:27:42,043 The older male may be willing to steal... 199 00:27:47,584 --> 00:27:49,804 but he certainly isn't willing to share. 200 00:28:06,478 --> 00:28:09,108 The young chipmunk has been caught red-handed. 201 00:28:14,319 --> 00:28:17,199 This patch of forest isn't big enough for the both of them. 202 00:28:30,127 --> 00:28:31,797 But he can't run forever. 203 00:28:34,256 --> 00:28:35,876 It's time to fight. 204 00:29:06,997 --> 00:29:09,917 Scarred and beaten, the older male turns tail. 205 00:29:18,842 --> 00:29:21,802 And it looks like he won't be back anytime soon. 206 00:29:32,606 --> 00:29:35,226 Sometimes when you're small, life can be painfully short. 207 00:29:40,113 --> 00:29:42,533 But this little chipmunk is making the most of it. 208 00:29:45,077 --> 00:29:46,907 He's secured a territory of his own, 209 00:29:47,746 --> 00:29:49,456 an enormous haul of nuts... 210 00:29:51,250 --> 00:29:54,380 and overcome the challenges of being tiny... 211 00:29:55,295 --> 00:29:57,255 in a big, wild wood. 212 00:29:59,466 --> 00:30:01,836 With everything he needs to see him through winter... 213 00:30:04,429 --> 00:30:06,519 finally, he can rest... 214 00:30:08,392 --> 00:30:10,812 and dream of another spring.