The Hidden World of Africa

As African wildlife videos go, the big animals usually receive the lion's share of attention, and viewers rarely get much more than a glimpse of the tinier creatures of the Dark Continent's circle of life. Hosted and narrated by Grant Goodeve (Eight is Enough), The Hidden World of Africa, part of the Explore the Wildlife Kingdom series, features footage shot by filmmakers David and Carol Hughes in South Africa's Kruger National Park, focusing on the continent's smallest inhabitants, with some of the most compelling interaction occurring during the daily gathering of creatures at the waterhole. Not surprisingly, dung beetles are especially active here, battling each other for prize pieces of poop, which they move to other locations. From the praying mantis that looks like a twig (its natural camouflage helps land many yummy treats) to the fly that stealthily invades and takes over a carefully constructed baby wasp nursery, the little critters profiled here are uniformly fascinating (also, it's clear that the real-life African termite provided inspiration for the fictional monster queen in the Alien movies!). Other programs in the series include Lions: Kings of Africa, Cougar: Ghost of the Rockies, Dolphins: Tribes of the Sea, and Wildebeest: The Great African Migration. Highly recommended. Aud: P. (C. Block)