This rare tour through Europe’s natural wonders showcases a vibrant land flourishing with diverse wildlife. Discover the striking landscapes and exotic creatures that inhabit this spectacular region. Visit the great plains of France the foothills of the Ural Mountains, English hedgerows, the Danube flood plain, Hungary’s Horotobagy National Park, oceanic steppes of the Ukraine and more of Europe’s Wild Grasslands.
- Run with the oldest species of wild equines, Przewalski’s horses - Watch two fanged Orsini’s vipers face off in a vicious battle for mating rights - See red-footed falcons consume massive amounts of insects and frogs - Amazing footage details how a male great bustard attracts a female by turning its plumage inside out - See the steppe tarantula, Europe’s largest, stalk prey from underground
Wild Grasslands is part of Wild Europe, a stunningly filmed six-hour special by award-winning natural history filmmakers, Peter Jones and Nick Upton. Equal parts travel adventure and nature expedition, Wild Europe presents an untamed, unexpected experience that reveals Europe from a new, wilder perspective. You may have seen Europe. But never like this!
Collect the entire Wild Europe series: Wild Seas·Wild Mountains·Wild Grasslands·Wild Cities·Wild Origins·Wild Arctic
Customer Review: Superb Scenes of Natural Habitats: Central & Western Europe
This video has outstanding cinematography of the natural grasslands and prairies of Europe with highly informative narration explaining how cultivation changed the landscapes over the past several thousand years. It begins with a scene of cultivated wheat fields on hillsides and flatlands …as far as the eye can see. The history of the origin of wheat is a fascinating narration. It originated in the Middle East where grasses with the largest seeds were selected and grown, that later developed into our currently known cereal crops. Settlers who wandered into Europe introduced this plant which became our source of bread. Other highly memorable scenery are a herd of the Prezewalski wild horses grazing in the Ukraine and wild flowers where wild tulips and irises grow among the grass. The natural hillsides and fields of Hungary provide beautiful views of multi-colored flowers and insects all abuzz in the spring. Red poppies, daisies, blue, pink, and yellow flowers are scattered with bees extracting nectar as grasshoppers jump to their own innate rhythm.
The most impressive scenes and descriptions are of various bird species: skylarks, eagles, rooks, kestrals, falcons, the long-eared owl, cranes, the buzzard as it attracts a mate, and storks in their natural habitats. Film footage shows where they live in the wild and how they are forced to adapt when their homes are changed with mankind’s civilized invasion. Land animals such as the hedge hog and field mice are forced to adapt as their homelands are destroyed. We learn the forests and trees have been cut down in Europe for 8,000 years with no dire consequences. However now much of the land has been converted into croplands where high tech equipment and pesticides threaten the original inhabitants who have no escape route.
Much of this video shows beautiful scenery in Hungary: the wetlands along the Danube and its tributary the Tisza River which are home to many species of birds. The Hungarian Great Plain is viewed where Hungarian cowboys ride horseback much as their ancestors did. The Hortobagy National Park has been preserved along with an ancient species of sheep that has curled horns (Rocker sheep), also the long horned gray cattle, another ancient breed, is a given a protected home in the region. Even the water buffalo has been introduced to the area, to help break up the soil for better natural growth of the prairie. Lastly, the Wilkshire countryside in England is shown where a natural cultivation technique has proven outstanding benefits … ladybugs and other insects do the work of pesticides. When the land is not cultivated … it rests with fields of red poppies and wild pansies covering the landscape in an outstanding rainbow mosaic. Erika Borsos (erikab93)