Whales, seals, porpoises, dugongs, narwhals or dolphins: a large family of warm-blooded cousins called "Marine Mammals" which have conquered the world’s oceans. They brave storms, cold waters, isolation, predators...

Episodes in this serie

Springtime for the Weddell seals

Weddell seals live year round in Antarctica, where they must adapt to the harsh weather conditions of the coldest continent on earth. Being at ease on the ice banks and in the frozen waters beneath does not come easily, however. These web-footed marine mammals undergoe a difficult initiation process. On the surface of the ice and in the underwater labyrinths, the camera follows a young Weddell seal during the first few weeks of its life. Although their environment is quite inhospitable, it is of the most exquisite beauty.

Hunts of the Dolphin King

Dolphins, and in particular bottlenose dolphins like the one in "Flipper" , have always been considred friends to humans. But from a fish's perspective, dolphins are merciless killers. This fascinating documentary shows how dolphins lay down the law in lagoons and mangroves. They detect and unearth razor fish camouflaged in the sand, they knock out and send mullets flying into the air with the swing of a fin, they fight off sea-serpents with ease and can persuade sharks to keep a safe distance from their communitues. One of their techniques is to strand fish in shallow water, leaving them to dry out and die on the mudbanks. Their techniques are so efficient that dolphins can afford to spend only 10% of their time hunting for food. The rest of the time is devoted to their favorite passtime : surfing the waves.

Nose-no-Good the Grey Seal

In the Orkney Islands lives a male seal with a curious scar on his snout. What on earth could have caused it? Alongside the seal for six months, with the help of state-of-the-art technology, we journey into the grey seal's world from birth through to sexual maturity. While infra-red cameras demonstrate how the seal regulates his internal body temperature, underwater cameras take us along his underwater adventures of hunting, singing, and courtship which take place 225 meters below the surface. The mystery behind the scar is solved when the underwater cameraman surprises the seal mating. She was definitely not in the mood…

The Sea Elephants Beach

In the sub-Antarctic Island of Kerguelen, the end of winter reveals a barren beach abandonned to the penguins. Little by little, the beach begins to fill up with curious invaders and soon will be inhabited by several tens of thousands of sea elephants. The females give birth upon arrival while the males fight over their harems of over 100 females. Though death is never absent from their harsh existence, there is also an abundance of life : the beach is soon filled with thousands of youngsters.

The Fur Seal Nursery

Despite their mocking appearance and playful character, fur seals remain prey to a merciless natural selection. Thousands of them migrate every year to Amsterdam Island, lost in the vast Indian Ocean. They come to perpetuate the species in a place where only the fittest will survive. During the Austral spring, male fur seals with imposing manes protect their harems by biting intruders. The result is a blood bath. Under the protection of dominant males, females give birth and nurse their young. In order to produce their rich milk, females return frequently to the sea for nourishment. A nursery of abandoned youngsters anxiously await the return of their mothers. To pass the time, they play games, dream about surfing the breaking waves, and avoid the feared immature males. Young males spend eight years receiving blows from the dominant males. Then, after two years of reproduction, it becomes their turn to deal out the blows. Who's next?

The Dolphin Society

Can a dolphin separated from its group survive alone? To find out, there is nothing like a journey through the crystalline waters of the dolphin kingdom. We discover that dolphin society is quite organized and that their lives often depend upon the group. In the Bahamas, spotted dolphins must help one another to locate and surround fish in utter darkness. In the Marquesas Islands, the mysterious melon-headed whales (discovered in 1966!) jointly defend their young against sharks. Off the coast of the Rangiroa atoll, bottle nose dolphins mate and perpetuate the species. Not far from Scotland, a common dolphin gets separated from his group in the labyrinths of the Hebrides Islands. If he is not as lucky as the orphan spinner dolphin adopted by the hospitable Rangiroa bottle-nose dolphins, he could face death. Will he survive?

Kim and Roxie, the Sea Lionesses

On the shores of the Valdez Peninsula in Patagonia, two young inseparable sea lionesses, Kim and Roxie, take us through an incredible 24-hour underwater odyssey. As we journey through their aquatic kingdom we encounter prickly grouper fish, notorious killer whales, invasive parasites, and succulent anchovies which the sea lionesses must share with the dolphins.

White Whales and Narwhals, the Chattering of Ghosts

As the winter comes to an end in the Arctic, a beluga named Ayla leads her troop through the icy underwater labyrinths. As they struggle to survive in this hostile environment, these white dolphins unite with the elegant and mysterious narwhals. In a rare and unprecedented sequence, we discover that these Arctic blowers travel and protect their young with a group effort. Whales, mirages, phantom vessels, flatfish : these are just a few of the adventures of their breathtaking odyssey.

The Leopard Seal's Share

Leopard seals are, along with killer whales, the only major predators of the Antarctic Ocean. Each year at the end of the summer in the southern hemisphere, leopard seals reach the coastlines of Graham Land to hunt penguins gathered there in large numbers to raise their young. They hunt so aggressively that the gentoo and chinstrap penguins are systematically obliged to thwart the leopard seal's vigilance in order to get food. Each time that a group of penguins enters the water, some of them are necessarily sacrificed to this predator...it is "the leopard seal's share".

Marine Mammals: the Making Of

Five years of high-risk filming in all the world's oceans have resulted in rare and unprecedented images of the mysterious marine mammals. The "behind the scenes" of underwater wildlife documentary are finally revealed as the filmmakers at Saint Thomas Productions disclose their privileged experiences alongside marine mammals. Throughout five years of travels, the filmmaker-divers have gathered myriad accounts and testimonies filled with a thrilling combination of fear, captivation, and respect. Their varied experiences with bottlenosed dolphins, killer whales, humback whales, dugongs, leopard seals, and others have made a lasting contribution to the existing knowledge of marine mammal behavior. These expressive underwater creatures display spectacular play and rescue behavior. Come dive with our crew alongside our companions, the marine mammals.