Animal Journeys

Stock nature footage from the BBC is fashioned here into a two-part series of five-minute segments intended to portray wildlife that cover great distances during their lifecycles. These are not necessarily migrations (witness the lengthy meanderings of the rattlesnake in its quest for food), and, despite the title, not all the wanderers are animals. One segment focuses on plants whose seeds are designed to ride on the air or in the water, or hitchhike on the fur of passersby. Other chapters address the incredible odysseys of monarch butterflies, the movements of wildebeest herds, the long flights of snow geese, and the ocean/river treks made by eels and salmon (a most obvious omission is the emperor penguin, star of March of the Penguins). While the short, pithy chapters are suitable for basic classroom use, educators might want to note the possible titter-inducing inclusion of sea turtle sex. Informative and beautifully lensed, this nature program is recommended. Aud: H, P. (C. Cassady)