Two Rivers

♪ NARRATOR: Colombia, a country of legends and breathtaking beauty.

For centuries, Spanish conquerors came here to search for El Dorado, the mythical city of gold.

However, Colombia'’s true treasures are the rainforests along the Amazon, the vast plains in the east, the majestic mountains of the Andes and the wild coasts of the Pacific Ocean.

♪ [birds squawking] ♪ [waves crashing] [whale blows] Colombia'’s natural riches, both above and below sea level, remained a well-kept secret for decades, fights between the army, militias and guerrilleros transformed the country into a warzone.

Now, safety and stability have returned to much of the country, and Colombia'’s breathtaking nature has emerged from behind the dark clouds of war.

Indigenous people that have inhabited the rainforests for thousands of years are finally free to move.

And one can travel to remote corners far from roads and settlements, and to areas inhabited by majestic beasts.

♪ [growling] A few lawless, dangerous places remain, but it is now possible to look beyond war and strife and explore a Colombia, Wild and Free.

♪ East of the Andes, Colombia is defined by two mighty rivers, the Amazon and the Orinoco.

[birds chirping] ♪ To the southeast lies the catchment area of the Amazon.

In the northeast, the waters of the vast plains flow into the Orinoco, which forms a natural border to Venezuela.

In Colombia alone, the two rivers cover an area of 216,000 square miles.

♪ At a length of more than 1200 miles, the Orinoco is one of the world'’s mightiest rivers.

Only the Amazon and the Congo rivers carry more water.

♪ Amazon river dolphins emerge from tributaries to hunt here.

♪ The Orinoco also attracts birds of prey and cormorants.

But the apparent tranquility is deceptive.

The Orinoco wetlands lie on the border between Colombia and Venezuela, a dangerous area of rebel activity and cross-border conflict.

[splashing] ♪ West of the river, away from the occasional fighting, vast grasslands intersected by rivers and floodplain forests stretch to the horizon.

♪ In Colombia, this region is known as Los Llanos, The Plains.

♪ Life and death in Los Llanos is a serious business, but the burrowing owl provides a little light relief.

[birds chirping] The owl'’s long legs are particularly suitable for all kinds of fun and games, particularly if young owlets are involved.

[footsteps] [rustling] ♪ These owls live in burrows, about three feet below the surface.

Several breeding pairs may join forces and establish loose colonies of twenty birds or more.

♪ [bird chirps] ♪ [wings flapping] ♪ The burrowing owls will often lay claim to the abandoned homes of rabbits and armadillos.

All the owls have to do is keep the entrance tidy, and engage in a little interior decorating.

[claws scratching] ♪ Life in Los Llanos is determined by the forces of the rainy and dry seasons.

Ponds, lakes and rivers attract geese, ducks, storks and ibises, as well as migratory birds from all over the world.

[birds chirping] At the peak of the dry season, the birds congregate around the few remaining pools of water.

[birds chirping] From black-bellied whistling ducks to scarlet ibises, birds come here to feast on the inexhaustible supply of insects, crabs and fish.

Wood storks and jabiru storks, with their distinctive neck pouches, are common here.

[birds squawking] The jabiru can grow to heights of more than four feet, and is among the largest flying birds on the Americas.

[footsteps in water] Bright spots of red shine out in the brown surroundings, the scarlet ibis and the roseate spoonbill.

The roseate spoonbill almost became extinct in the 19th century, as its feathers were in high demand for women'’s hats.

The black skimmer is one of the most elegant fish-hunters in the plains.

[wings flapping] [splashing] [splashing] During the dry season, the fish are trapped in ponds, easy prey for hungry birds.

[birds squawking] There is no escape for the fish, so there is no hurry for the predators.

[eyelid clicks] [chirping] The spectacled caiman can grow to lengths of up to eight feet and is a feared hunter.

[splashing] The caiman would appear to be drifting aimlessly, but the geese are not so easily deceived.

[wings flapping hurriedly] [birds screeching] Caimans are able to adapt to a range of habitats and are common throughout Los Llanos, unlike the larger, endangered Orinoco crocodile.

Just 250 of these animals remain in Colombia and Venezuela.

As well as birds and reptiles, the wetlands are home to very distinctive mammals, capybaras.

[splashing] [bird screeching] Fully-grown capybaras can reach heights of almost two feet and weight up to 150 pounds.

Capybaras are semiaquatic mammals.

Their eyes, ears and nose are located on the upper side of the head.

At rest, only these important organs can be seen poking out of the water.

Like their far smaller relatives the guinea pigs, capybaras live in small social groups.

During the dry season on the plains, up to 100 capybaras congregate around the few available watering holes.

[squeaking] [bird call] In the extinct Old Tupi language, capybara means grass-eater, which perfectly sums up their dietary habits.

[bird call] Arrau turtles congregate in shallow pools or in large groups to sunbathe.

[splashing] [birds chirping] White-tailed deer have also adapted to a variety of different habitats and are found across the American continent, from Alaska to northern Brazil.

Despite attracting the attentions of many dangerous predators.

♪ This young jaguar cub is merely a dangerous predator in training.

It will take some time before it learns to hunt as well as its mother.

Loved, hated and endangered, the jaguar is South America'’s most famous hunter.

♪ The mother keeps a close eye on her inquisitive offspring.

Playing at the edge of water can be particularly risky.

♪ [water lapping] ♪ Primarily because of the local anacondas.

These large snakes hunt throughout the rivers and lakes of Los Llanos.

Legend has it that some anacondas have reached lengths of up to thirty feet.

What is certain is that females reach lengths of up to 15 feet and weights of 220 pounds.

The snakes prefer to hunt birds but will sometimes attack smaller mammals, including capybaras.

A two-month-old jaguar cub would be easy prey.

[wind blows] Most females give birth to two offspring, but this female only has a single cub.

Perhaps the other one has already fallen victim to a predator.

[hissing] [wind rustles the grass] The young jaguar makes its leisurely escape.

[footsteps] [hissing] Fortunately, jaguars have few enemies in the animal kingdom.

The most dangerous adversaries they face are human beings.

♪ Los Llanos may be wild, but they are also among the largest grazing pastures in the world.

♪ Colombian cattle ranchers and cowboys, known colloquially as llaneros, spend much of their lives out here in the wilderness.

Losing the occasional animal to a jaguar is common.

[horse whinnying] However, if a jaguar becomes greedy and too many calves vanish, the predator will be hunted down with dogs and killed.

[cows mooing] Zebu cows make up most of the cattle here.

Millions of them graze Los Llanos largely unattended, giving birth among crocodiles, jaguars, and venomous snakes.

They live a wild existence, until the day they are gathered up and taken to the abattoir.

♪ ♪ [cows mooing] [wind blowing] Temperatures of up to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, hot wind and cloudless skies, during the dry season, the plains become an oven.

[grunt] [insect noises] The jaguar mother and cub spend the day in the shade of the trees and are never far from water.

[insect noises] The big cats are largely nocturnal and begin hunting at twilight, at the earliest.

Most of the animals that share the jaguar territory are therefore somewhat safe during the day.

During the dry season, most of the inhabitants of Los Llanos remain close to the watering holes, predators and prey alike.

Not far from the jaguars, a southern tamandua or collared anteater seeks out food.

[footsteps] As the name suggests, the anteater largely lives off ants and termites, using its powerful claws to tear open nests.

Southern tamanduas grow to lengths of up to three feet and weights of around nine pounds.

While the spotted cats sleep, the tamandua is hard at work.

[grass crunching] The anteater'’s tongue is an evolutionary masterpiece.

It is round, approximately 15 inches long, is covered in a sticky secretion and can emerge from the narrow mouth at speed when necessary.

[rustling] Tamanduas are competent climbers and are just as skilled at moving about on the ground, but they are unable to withdraw their claws and have to shuffle on the sides of their feet.

[footsteps] The southern tamandua has just three close relatives, the silky anteater, which lives in trees, and the giant anteater, which is so large that it remains on the ground at all times.

The northern tamandua, on the other hand, is similar to its southern cousin.

The anteater is comfortable on the ground, but prefers the safety of the trees, where it spends two thirds of its life.

[footsteps] ♪ An unexpected visitor surprises the jaguars, a deer approaches and begins grazing.

[birds chirping] ♪ Predator and prey are dangerously close to one another, but the jaguar is not ready to hunt just yet.

And the distance is too great.

♪ The name jaguar originated from the Guarani language and means he who kill with one leap.

Jaguars will creep up to their prey, then launch a surprise attack when they draw close enough.

[rustling] ♪ ♪ [bird chirping] ♪ The young jaguar is, without a doubt, a born hunter, but the cub lacks around 110 pounds of body mass and the necessary experience.

♪ ♪ [deer snorts] ♪ ♪ The deer make an unhurried escape.

It may have been a valuable learning experience for the young jaguar, but it doesn'’t matter, at just two months old, the cub is still nursed by its mother.

In eight weeks or so, it will slowly be introduced to meat.

[rustling] [water splashing] Capybaras often fall victim to jaguars.

Their survival strategy is to reproduce as enthusiastically as possible.

[splashing] Females give birth at least once and often twice a year.

Each litter contains an average of four animals, and the herd is soon established or replenished.

[splashing] [birds chirping] [splashing] Capybaras spend most of their time in the water but will regularly emerge to rest on land.

[birds chirping] Fortunately, the grasslands offer their very own cleaning service, provided by a young yellow-headed caracara.

[bird squawking] The birds of prey are related to falcons and largely consume carrion.

However, given the opportunity, caracaras will also eat parasites and enthusiastically pick ticks from the capybaras'’ fur.

[bird chirps] [footsteps] [bird chirps] There are eleven different species of caracara.

All but one are only found in South America.

[rustling] [birds chirping] Despite being related to falcons, the birds are by no means fast, elegant aerial hunters.

In fact, these opportunists are as comfortable scavenging in rubbish dumps as they are in Los Llanos.

[rustling] [birds chirping] [footsteps] It is a brief period of calm for the capybaras.

As the Sun goes down, the jaguar mother sets out to hunt.

The capybaras are on their guard.

[birds chirping] The capybaras will bathe late into the night, submerging themselves if a predator appears.

This is not always terribly effective, particularly if the pools are shallow.

[capybara screams] One capybara finds a deep spot and escapes.

A second capybara is less fortunate.

Its attempts to hide are unsuccessful.

[capybara screams] [splashing] [screeching] [splashing] ♪ Colombia'’s plains are shaped by the Orinoco, while the country'’s rainforests are part of the Amazon River'’s realm.

The watershed between the Amazon and Orinoco rivers is a barely visible area of higher ground, just north of the Amazon'’s catchment area.

The main body of the Amazon River lies in the southeast, where it forms the border to Peru and Brazil.

♪ This border region is home to an unusual forest known as the várzea.

During the rainy season, it vanishes almost completely below the floodwaters of the Amazon.

In May, when the rains cease, the water recedes, revealing a little more of the changed landscape every day.

The minerals in the soils dye the tributaries distinctive shades, and Amazon river dolphins appear and disappear like spirits.

♪ [splashing] This world is at the mercy of the river.

The only tierra firme or solid ground is to be found along the northern banks, where the rainforests lie at higher elevations.

♪ ♪ [birds chirping] The animal kingdom has adapted to the constant change in the várzea, like the brown-throated sloth.

The sloths are excellent swimmers, but they spend most of their lives in the trees, where they feel safe.

[forest noises] Now, when there is little rain, the sloths roam far and wide to find food.

Once the forests flood, they will cling to the trunks and branches of trees like shipwrecked sailors, often for weeks at a time.

[birds chirping] ♪ The most notable tree inhabitants here are often heard, but rarely seen, the primates.

But signs of their presence are everywhere.

These traces in the bark lead to a monkey notable for its size, it is the smallest monkey in the world.

[birds chirping] Pygmy marmosets grow to lengths of approximately five inches and weights of just three to four ounces.

The marmosets are among the world'’s smallest primates, and they know it.

[birds chirping] They are always primed to escape, constantly looking upwards to the lookout of the greatest danger they face, birds.

Even the smallest birds of prey pose a threat.

♪ Like the yellow -headed caracara.

At the first sign of danger, the marmoset group flees to the safety of the treetops.

Unlike other primates, pygmy marmosets don'’t have opposable thumbs, but they do have sharp claws to allow them to climb rapidly.

The monkeys live in small groups.

Their territory is limited to an area of just a few thousand square feet, containing trees that produce resin, latex or gum they eat.

The holes they make are immediately evident.

[monkey licking] Around eighty percent of their diet consists of nutritious sap and gum.

Blossoms and insects are little more than side dishes, or snacks.

[birds chirping] [marmoset squeaks] Their diminutive size attracts bullies, even among members of their own family.

Escape is the only solution.

Like the pygmy marmosets, the common squirrel monkeys are true Amazon natives.

They spend much of their time during the day looking for insects halfway up the trees.

Moving along the ground is only possible during dry periods.

[trees rustling] A few ants give this female monkey the energy to continue on her journey.

[bird squawking] The tiny squirrel monkeys are monogamous and live in family groups that include two or three generations of their offspring.

As is often the case among primates, grooming helps to increase social cohesion within the group, resolve conflict and establish hierarchy.

The pygmy marmosets may be small, but their offspring are almost invisible, particularly when they hide in their parents'’ dense fur.

Males and older siblings all help the mother to look after the newest arrival to the family.

These periods of tranquility are rare and short.

A momentary lapse of attention could prove fatal.

♪ The monkeys are nervous.

♪ The forests are home to numerous black vultures, which are both enthusiastic scavengers and skilled hunters.

Time to take the high ground.

♪ Fortunately, raptors with a taste for marmoset only make up a small part of Colombia'’s spectacular range of birds.

[chirping] ♪ In fact, this region is home to more birds than anywhere else on the planet, an estimated 1800 different species.

Most of them inhabit the Amazon rainforests.

These stunning black -and-gold birds are members of the "Icterid" or "New World blackbird" family.

The distinctive, varied call of the males can be heard for miles.

Yellow-rumped caciques build their hanging nests in tall trees and will often live in colonies consisting of several hundred birds.

[birds chirping] The hanging nests are only used during the breeding period, when they provide protection for the eggs.

[birds chirping] ♪ [birds chirping] Along riverbanks and in clearings, birds are easy to see.

In the depths of the forest, however, a sense of adventure and attentive listening are required to find some of the most colorful inhabitants.

This male wire-tailed manakin is looking for a mate.

Wire-tailed manakins are renowned for their courtship rituals and keep a particular branch free of leaves for their athletic displays.

[bird pecking] Nearby, a rival is also preparing to put his best foot forward.

[birds chirping] ♪ ♪ ♪ This time, however, the dance fails to have the desired effect, the female is nowhere to be seen.

♪ The dense forests and many wild animals make it easy to forget that the Amazon is by no means devoid of humans.

The unusual rock formation of the Serranía de la Lindosa, in the northwest Amazon basin, are a testimony to millennia of human habitation here.

♪ These rock paintings are at least 12,000 years old.

Although the rock faces are battered by wind and weather, the earthen colors look as though they may have been applied only yesterday.

This region was controlled by FARC, Colombia'’s largest guerrilla army, for decades.

Scientists were unable to examine the rock paintings until 2016, when a peace treaty was signed between the rebels and the government.

♪ One of the largest areas of untouched Amazon rainforest lies southeast of Serranía de la Lindosa.

Around 20,000 square miles of the forest is in Colombian territory.

♪ The Río Caquetá, is one of the largest tributaries of the Amazon River.

♪ The descendants of the mysterious ancient rock artists, the Muinane people, continue to live here, surrounded by wilderness.

♪ [drums banging] Everyday life is determined by an ancient rhythm.

The drums continue to carry messages from village to village.

[drums banging] The people who have live along the Río Caquetá have survived being enslaved by rubber collectors and the brutality of gold prospectors and drug dealers.

Despite these difficulties, they have managed to preserve their culture to the present day.

The women remove the seeds from the fruit of the peach palm, known here as chontaduro.

The fruit contains starch and high levels of protein, and is used to make oil, stews and beer.

The chontaduro is just one of hundreds of fruits harvested by the Muinane in the rainforest.

They include açaí berries, which are marketed as superfood, in the Western world, due to their unsaturated fats and vitamins.

Harvesting the berries requires climbing the palms, something that men do whenever they notice that the berries are ripe.

[crunching] Wild fruits like açaí and cassava are an important source of nourishment here, as are fish.

[sliding] An apparently endless wilderness begins on the village'’s doorstep.

[animal noises] This wilderness is still home to the rare giant otter.

[splashing] These six-foot-long animals are diurnal and spend the mornings hunting for fish.

Giant otters are among the most endangered mammals in South America.

Whereas they were once hunted for their fur, these days the greatest risk they face is the destruction of their habitat.

[footsteps] Finding a common woolly monkey requires an expedition deep into the forest.

Woolly monkeys are shy, easy-going creatures and skilled climbers, using their strong tails to grip branches and tree trunks.

[rustling] The rainforest that provides refuge to the otters and woolly monkeys is well-protected.

The Muinane have joined forces with neighboring tribes and the administration of a nearby national park to divide thousands of square miles of forest into clearly delineated zones.

What animals may be hunted where and when is carefully regulated.

This sounds like modern eco-management but is in fact based on an ancient tradition.

Without it, the rainforests and their inhabitants would not have survived tens of thousands of years of human settlement.

[rustling] [animal noises] The woolly monkeys are safe along the Río Caquetá.

Elsewhere, young monkeys often end up in cages.

The illegal animal trade is flourishing in the Amazon region.

[chirping] One plant, above all, dominates the lives of the men here, Erythroxylum coca, the coca plant.

The plants are grown at the edge of the village and harvested regularly.

[rustling] [rustling] These leaves may not look like much, but they have ruined innumerable human lives and given Colombia a very dark reputation.

[rustling] They are used to produce cocaine in illegal laboratories throughout the Amazon region.

Cocaine is a Western invention, but coca leaves are an integral part of Muinane culture.

The leaves are processed in the maloca, a communal building in the village.

[people chattering] A number of steps are necessary to turn the leaves into powder.

[people chattering] The leaves of another plant are burned and the ash is collected to make mambe.

[fire crackling] Processing coca leaves is a ritual along the Río Caquetá and throughout the Andes and Amazon regions.

[rustling] The Muinane grow the coca plants for their own use.

Elsewhere in Colombia, sacks of the leaves are sold to drug dealers.

For many poor farmers, growing these particular crops is the only source of income.

Many in the Muinane community find it hard to believe that owning or selling coca leaves is illegal in almost every country in the world.

Once the leaves are dry, they are mixed with the ash and crushed to a powder using a large mortar and pestle.

Mambe is considered sacred, but it is stored in all-too-worldly plastic cups.

Consuming mambe requires some practice.

The powder is passed back and forth from cheek to cheek until it forms a paste.

The substance is invigorating, like coffee or black tea, which makes it particularly popular with older men.

The powder is spiritually significant, but it is now consumed by men at almost every available opportunity.

The women tend to avoid mambe, and the ensuing hours of rambling conversation.

The maloca is also the local dining room, where the villagers cook and eat together.

[scraping sounds] Women were once prohibited from visiting the gathering area, but these ancient rules and taboos are no longer as relevant as they once were.

[people chattering] ♪ The surrounding nature, however, remains as relevant as ever.

♪ The rapids along the Río Caquetá prevented shipping routes being established here, saving the wilderness from large-scale human interference.

As a result, the river continues to provide rich pickings for brave local fishermen.

[water crashing] During the rainy season, the strong currents become a raging torrent.

[water rushing] [water rushing] People who fall in are rarely seen again.

[water crashing] Despite the dangers, fishermen of the Witoto people have built structures here that are anything but safe.

[water crashing] The mighty river is full of large, powerful fish.

The men will often spend hours on the lookout for their preferred prey, the tasty dorado.

[water crashing] Sometimes, they wait along the Río Caquetá all night and into the next morning.

Finally, their patience is rewarded and a dorado is speared.

Along the banks, others fish using nets.

[splashing] At the beginning of the rainy season, there is an abundance of food.

At this time of the year, the catfish travel up the river to their spawning grounds.

A barred sorubim is pulled from the net, followed by a zebra catfish.

[water rushing] An hour downstream by boat, a Muinane villager fishes in far calmer waters.

[birds chirping] [splashing] He has his sights set on palometas, the speckled piranha, which feeds on fruit that falls into the rivers from bushes and trees.

The fisherman therefore uses fruit as bait.

The rainy season is approaching quickly.

As soon as the rains come, the vegetarian piranhas vanish into the depths of the Río Caquetá and become predators again.

Fish is by far the most important food for the Muinane people.

Once again, smoke rises from the maloca, but, this time, there are no coca leaves involved.

The maloca is more than just a communal meeting place, it is the center of the universe, built on wooden stilts.

Fish that are not eaten on the day they are caught are cleaned and smoked to preserve them.

[fire crackling] The Muinane are largely self-sufficient, thanks to the fruits of the forest and fish.

They will occasionally purchase a little rice or salt from local merchants, or chocolate for the children.

[birds chirping] The primary school is located at the edge of the rainforest.

Lessons only take place every two days.

They will eventually move on to the school in Leticia, the largest city in Colombia'’s Amazon region.

[speaking in foreign language] The villagers work closely with the Frankfurt Zoological Society to protect rare river turtles and increase their numbers.

This includes guarding the clutches of eggs on the sandbanks and collecting the young hatchlings to protect them from predators.

Three weeks after they hatch, the young turtles are released into the river.

Their shells have now hardened, offering some measure of protection from other river inhabitants.

♪ Despite ongoing problems, Colombia is very successful at protecting its indigenous peoples, unlike some neighboring countries.

For example, the environmentally damaging gold mining along the Río Caquetá was eventually stopped, and the locals administer their land autonomously.

This allows the Muinane and their neighbors to strike a balance between the old ways and modern life.

♪ The Amazon River network is home to a variety of different eco-systems.

Near the Río Caquetá, the forests thrive on coarse sandstone mountains.

Along the main body of the Amazon, parts of the forest actually grow out of the water.

♪ In these floodplain forests, the trees have developed complex survival strategies to weather the changes in water levels.

For now, the fig trees are safe on their small islands in the current.

[birds chirping] During the brief dry season, plants put down strong roots to withstand the force of the coming water.

Mushrooms flourish and distribute their spores.

The roots of the fig tree have a firm grip on another'’s tree'’s trunk.

[forest noises] The banyan fig is sometimes known as the walking tree.

Roots emerge from the branches and bury themselves in the soil, soon forming new trunks.

The tree originally starts life as a small plant that winds itself around another tree.

Once the aerial roots provide sufficient nourishment, the banyan fig begins to smother its host, eventually killing it.

The trees in the várzea, the seasonal floodplain forests along the Amazon, are ready for the annual floods.

Aerial root systems ensure that the trees remain sufficiently nourished during the rainy season.

♪ Lines on the trunk of the fig tree reveal the water levels of last year'’s floods.

It is hard to believe that before long, it will be possible to paddle among the treetops.

In July, the rainy season arrives in the vast Llanos plains, transforming the landscape into a strange, watery world.

[birds chirping] For many bird species like the great egret, this marks the beginning of breeding season.

Tens of thousands of birds settle along the banks.

[birds chirping] Within a short space of time, even the dry farmland becomes unrecognizable.

[cows mooing] ♪ Life is never easy for Colombia'’s cowboys, but the rainy season poses particular challenges for the llaneros.

♪ It is now hot and humid on the plains, and a brief dip in the water provides welcome relief.

♪ [cows mooing] The great rains sweep across Colombia, [thunder rumbling] Three months later, in November, moist air from the Andes collects above the Amazon basin.

[thunder rumbling] [rain pouring] The occasional rainfall now becomes a constant downpour.

[rain pouring] Colombia'’s border region along the great river vanishes, buried beneath mist and water.

[water rushes] [rain pouring] The Amazon River'’s water level rises by up to almost 40 feet.

[water rushes] [bird chirping] [water rushes] Sloths have layers of fur that store the rainwater.

This provides nourishment for the red and green algae that gives the fur its shimmering green appearance and the sloth some measure of camouflage.

When the first rays of sun appear, the sloths climb to the top of the trees to warm up.

♪ The large amounts of rain have transformed the river.

Entire groups of islands have vanished, taking vast areas of forest with them.

♪ The forest floor, with its young plants and fungi, now lies buried beneath several feet of water, reflections of the treetops dance on the surface of the Amazon, here, in Colombia'’s spectacular wilderness.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪