The Life of Birds

E1. To Fly or Not to Fly?

The first episode looks at how birds first took to the skies in the wake of the insects. It begins in Mexico, where Attenborough observes bats being outmaneuvered by a red-tailed hawk.

E2. The Mastery of Flight

The second programme deals with the mechanics of flight. Getting into the air is by far the most exhausting of a bird's activities, and Attenborough observes shearwaters in Japan that have taken to climbing trees to give them a good jumping-off point.

E3. The Insatiable Appetite

A look at the constant need to feed necessitated by the demands of flight in species from sap suckers and crows, to robins and geese.

E4. Meat-Eaters

This epsiode looks at those birds that have become strictlt meat eaters from eagles and hawks to owls and vultures.

E5. Fishing for a Living

A look at those birds that look to fishing as their main food source. From gulls and ducks to cormorants and cranes.

E6. Signals and Songs

A look at the way birds communicate. The program shows us how calls of warning can unite a community of birds against a larger predator and how other calls may be used to attract mates.