Review: BBC Earth’s ‘Mysterious Islands of the Pacific’
By James C. Pearce
BBC Earth documentaries are often a must-see. There is something oddly soothing and comforting in Sir David Attenborough’s commentary on our planet’s biggest wow moments. Not only that, but lions fighting off hyenas is some easy-watching TV gold.
However, this particular title went for a different approach, opting for a more serious, yet hopeful message for the Pacific. From coconut-eating crabs in Vanuatu to hammerhead flies literally butting heads with long tongues, BBC Earth lived up to the mysterious label. It was really hard to guess what might come next because evolution took a spectacular turn on the isolated Pacific islands.
So how did the ancestors of Hawaii's meat-eating caterpillars survive after being washed up? Making it to the Pacific’s 1 percent of land, the documentary notes, was nothing short of pure good luck. Those species that owe their existence to the birds that made it to Tahiti, of course, were among the luckiest. Seedlings, insects and other forms of life stuck to their feathers and fell off during mating season. Others found themselves on patches of landfill and rubble that detached, setting sail into the great unknown.
As much as 75 percent of the Pacific’s plants arrived with birds that can stay in the air for up to four years at a time. Lizards and rodents became marooned and thrived on the islands. They can survive cyclones, long-sea passages and one female is enough to start an entire population.
Humans, too, took their fair share of nature across the Pacific, sometimes on purpose but often by accident.
Geckos were very good at hitching rides on boats and bananas. Once they arrived, Mother Nature had a bit of fun. The farther south one goes, the more bizarre Pacific wildlife gets. The Kagu birds of New Caledonia could be something out of Sesame Street, and their mating rituals, a South Park gag.
The documentary lives up to its mysterious name. Crabs attacking baby birds were not what most viewers looked for or expected, nor were underwater caves literally in the middle of nowhere.
Of course, with any such documentaries, they do get a little tiring. The calming soundtrack and narration are enough to send one to sleep. David Attenborough is always a missed presence to liven things up a bit. While certainly educational, it was hardly entertaining.
But the documentary has been successful for other reasons. Its biggest message is one of fragility. The Pacific is susceptible to trends, currents, weather and just about anything else.
Whale species with strong kinship can easily drown by following another member into the shallows. Fish are also drowning due to climate change, with some spots of the Pacific Ocean now uninhabitable. Only humans could figure out how to drown fish.
Without making the case explicitly, the BBC laid bare how much human intervention is necessary for the general survival of the Pacific region and its ecosystem. But humans may also be what causes the next mass extinction.
As the documentary shows, humans are finally going to great lengths to replant corals and bring back life. Community-owned reefs use profits to regrow the ecosystem and protect sharks – which the first Fijians revered as protectorate gods and used to feed, not harm.
It is certainly possible. But if the global temperatures continue to rise, it will not matter. If governments do not do their part to protect endangered species that have thrived for centuries, they will disappear within a matter of decades.
The BBC also struggled to balance a nature documentary with journalistic reporting on noble human efforts. More viewers will expect something closer to Planet Earth than a spotlight on conservation. Indeed, one can see on YouTube that these segments were the least viewed and that may be detrimental in the long run.
However, what most viewers want in nature documentaries is action-packed segments of animal battles. There was some of that, as well as good old-fashioned shark attacks, but living up to leopards fighting crocodiles is hard.
The BBC was right to make the documentary publicly available worldwide. Let’s hope it makes a bigger long-term splash.
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