Q4 2024

There is a six-banded and armor protected armadillo who will dig underground dens to avoid becoming a predator’s lunch. But we have captured them too - before they have snuck off to hide! And there is an extraordinary looking tapir, with a trunk-like nose – he is an ice-age survivor. This planteater uses its long dual-purpose trunk nose to sniff out predators and grasp food. He’s a big mammal in this ecosystem, but still fears the jaguar -sometimes taking to swimming underwater to avoid being detected, so we feel lucky we have managed to capture him before he dives away!

There is more to the predators of South America than just blood lust though. Spend an evening with the beasts of its forests and you’ll find that life here has all the ingredients of a blockbuster Hollywood epic – love, action, and horror. South America has small and deadly animals like the mantis. It also has the more traditional hunters being home to the big cat predator that sends shivers down spines – the jaguar. Famed for having the strongest bite of all big cats, the jaguar is the undisputed boss of South America’s Pantanal wetlands.

Many animals are strange or extreme versions of something familiar, like the maned wolf. It looks like a wolf on small stilts. It’s evolved to be the tallest species of wolf in the world, so it can see over the grassland savannah it inhabits. And we have footage from the Galapagos islands where a group of reptiles use their brains to solve a food riddle with marine iguanas having adapted to feed off the algae that grows along the island shores. There’s one problem -the really juicy stuff is grown on the reefs, and they are cold blooded animals that aren’t supposed to swim in cold waters. But the big males still swim deep down to the reef beds to graze, and, after a couple of hours they leave these cold waters and sunbathe on the black rocks to bring their body temperature back up. Their local giant tortoises really live up to their names too!

South America is a rich and diverse land. Stunning landscapes harbor elusive critters that have evolved to thrive here. And South America’s savannahs and wetlands are home to some serious heavy weights too. The 7-foot-long giant anteater stalks the termite mounds of the Cerrado; meanwhile, in the wetlands of Brazil, the world’s largest rodent, the semi-aquatic capybara – tipping the scales at 200 pounds - are wallowing. They’re basically the hippos of South America!

We have added to our extensive collection of global bird clips as well with giant South American birds, such as the toco toucan and hyacinth macaw, the world’s largest parrot. Both have unusual beaks that are key to their survival. The toco’s incredibly large and colorful beak, acts a radiator in reverse efficiently releasing heat when needed, whilst the giant macaw has an incredibly strong beak that can crack open the largest nuts, and tunnel out hollows in trees. 

And don’t forget our recent additions from the mythical seascapes of the Pacific Ocean highlighted in our previous newsletter, adding to our 15,000+ hours of specialist footage and 50,000+ online clips, shot around the globe.
 
Our site continues to grow its natural history content offering, so check out these new collections at footage.nhnz.tv, or contact our team directly by email at images@nhnz.tv. Our renowned, personalized service is offered by our experienced team of researchers and content specialists, led by senior archivist Jamie Thorp.
 
NHNZ Worldwide’s digital library offers specialist stock footage, sourcing and delivering premium factual content to editorial and creative producers, worldwide.  NHNZ Worldwide makes licensing easy with per second rates, no minimums, free research and screener downloads. The company is a globally-renowned production house with more than 350 international awards, including two Emmy Awards, the Wildscreen Panda Award, and winner of the recent NZ Television Awards for Best Camerawork for Our Big Blue Backyard.