Siberia.
The largest wilderness on Earth.
Endless forests, untamed mountain streams,
and the oldest lake on Earth.
Russia's largest area of unspoiled nature is at the same time
a largely unknown world.
Siberia begins just beyond the Ural Mountains,
the border between Europe and Asia.
Geographers regard just under half of Russia as belonging to this gigantic region.
In the south, close to the Mongolian border
lies the legendary Lake Baikal 600 kilometers long.
February.
A meter thick sheet of ice covers Lake Baikal.
Open water can be found at only one spot
where the Angara River flows from the lake
and deep water rises to the surface.
For the Goldeneye ducks it is a refuge in hard times.
On the edge of the ice they dive for food in large groups.
The face of Siberia is characterized by the taiga,
the northern coniferous forest,
the largest uninterrupted area of woodlands in the world.
To survive here you have to withstand the long cold winters.
A deerwith vampire fangs, the Musk deer.
These shy forest dwellers mainly feed on lichen from tree trunks,
hard to digest but still accessible when the snow is especially deep.
The males have been hunted for centuries for their musk glands,
an important ingredient in perfume production.
Frozen food.
These ravens have found some carrion.
But it's not the birds that are making the musk deer nervous.
The real owners of the carrion have returned.
Wolves do not hibernate and thus have to keep hunting
even when it is bitterly cold.
Their survival depends on hunting in packs.
There is always disagreement when dividing up the spoils.
Meanwhile, the ravens while away the time doing sideward rolls.
One of them hasn't quite got the hang of it yet.
It does get it right in the end,
even though its recovery is not exactly graceful.
Siberia's cold pole lies in Russia's largest republic,
Yakutia,
where temperatures below -70 degrees have been registered.
The coldest regularly inhabited area on Earth.
It is March.
The mares of the incredibly resilient Yakutian horses
are in the last stages of pregnancy.
They have never seen the inside of a stable.
For thousands of years these horses have been bred in the open.
The animals paw the snow to uncover last year's grass.
Their diet is meager
at a time when they should really be eating for two.
Not all of them will see the end of this Siberian winter.
A village on Lake Baikal.
Wood is one of Siberia's great riches
and is exported all over the world, especially to neighboring China.
Here, as almost everywhere in Siberia,
various ethnic groups coexist peacefully.
Late winter.
The growing strength of the sun causes the first cracks in the ice.
Even in this wide wasteland there is life.
Baikal seals.
Four weeks ago the females bore their young in snow holes.
In the meantime the protective roof has melted
and the pup is thus lying in the open near the water hole,
waiting for his mother.
She only comes once or twice a day to suckle her young.
Baikal seals are unique, they exist only here,
further from the sea than any other species of seal.
They number about a 130, 000.
If the pup survives the hard first year,
it can live to the age of 50.
Thanks to his thick layer of fat the young seal is impervious to the chilly water.
As if weightless, it swoops from one air hole to the next
in a fairytale world of ice.
The Verkhoyansk Mountains north of the lake.
1, 000 kilometers long and more than 2, 000 meters high,
they extend from the middle reaches of the Lena River
almost to the Arctic Sea.
One morning at the end of March.
Yakutian reindeer herdsmen
catch their strongest animals
and harness them to the sleighs.
Yakutians and reindeer have lived side by side in Siberia for millennia.
This is probably what enabled humans to survive in such a cold environment
the whole year round.
Now the men have to find their main herds,
which are currently roaming the snowy taiga,
and round them up.
In a few days they will set off for their summer quarters.
They are running out of time,
because travelling in Yakutia is only possible as long as there is frost.
After the thaw the herdsmen will be cut off from the rest of the world
by impassable swamps.
With its nose close to the ground
a wolf searches for food.
In the winter mice are very active beneath the snow cover.
Only a small snack perhaps, but better than nothing.
This is no mouse.
Still, the wolf wouldn't say no to this finely furred fellow.
A sable.
Its fur once adorned tsars and kings.
Attracted by rich pickings herds of hunters came out here to trap the little marten.
Today, as the demand for fur recedes,
predators are more of a threat than humans.
This time the wolf will go hungry.
After a two hour ride
the herdsmen have reached their destination.
The herd is about 1, 000 strong,
so the roundup is no easy task.
In the northern regions reindeer are not only the basic food stuff,
providers of pelts and draft animals,
people also ride them.
The herdsman feeds salt to the reindeer,
a rare delicacy.
Thanks to his years of experience
he can negotiate the forest of antlers.
2, 000 kilometers to the southwest
close to the Mongolian border.
A hint of Africa accompanies herds of Goitered Gazelles
as they cross the Southern Siberian steppes.
Their squawking and chortling enables the group to stick together.
The animals are only short-term visitors
to the South Siberian steppes.
The gazelles jump the fence separating them from Mongolia.
Nature knows no political boundaries.
The Lena, Siberia's mightiest river
flowing 4, 400 kilometers
from the Baikal Mountains to the Arctic Sea.
On the hillside above a sea of blooms, siberian pasque flowers.
Mid-May.
The Yakutian horses have survived the winter
and born their foals.
They've developed well
and are now enjoying their first rays of sunlight.
The mares have to graze constantly
to provide sufficient milk for their foals.
The mares are showing signs of emaciation,
and there is still nothing green and nourishing to eat,
only the previous year's dead grass.
The Sayan Mountains
stretch for 2, 000 kilometers
along the border between Russia and Mongolia.
Peaks over 3, 000 meters high.
The snow melts earlier lower down the southern slopes.
Home to an extraordinary amphibian.
The Siberian salamander.
Of all the amphibians on Earth, this is probably the least sensitive to cold.
The salamander's mating ritual and spawning takes place in open water.
Why the animals mate this early in the year in such cold water
is a mystery.
Flowing water and lush greenery
as far as the eye can see.
Spring comes to Siberia at last.
Impetuously the young river rushes through canyons
into the vast lowland planes,
where its water is formed into huge rivers,
that fill the pearl of Siberia,
Lake Baikal.
The deepest lake in the world,
storing 20% of the planet's fresh water.
Lake Baikal is finally ice-free.
Seals have lived in Lake Baikal for thousands of years.
How they got here is something of a mystery.
Scientists believe that about 500, 000 years ago
ringed seals swam up the Yenisei River
from the Arctic Ocean and into Lake Baikal.
Over millennia of isolation
they evolved into a new species.
In the summer many Baikal seal can be found near the Ushkan Islands.
The dry spots on the rocks are highly sought after.
The water temperature in the lake rarely rises above 8 degrees centigrade,
and as a result the seals spend hours warming up.
The most popular places are quickly taken.
Baikal seals are excellent divers
and can stay underwater for up to half an hour.
The best spots in bel etage are obviously still occupied.
The damp basement will have to suffice.
Still, there are others even worse off.
Baikal seals live exclusively on fish,
diving down hundreds of meters in their search for food.
The under waterworld is unique.
Coral-like Baikal sponges project like fingers.
The underwater slopes in the lake
fall away to a depth of 1, 600 meters.
More than 2/3 of all the lake dwellers are only to be found here,
like this amphipod.
Its body length of 10 centimeters
make it a giant compared to many of his relatives.
The grayling is one of many fishes that inhabit the cold
nutrient-filled waters of Lake Baikal.
The rocky beaches attract other animals too.
Brown bears leave the shelter of the dark taiga
and come to the lakeside which is sunnier and drier,
and thus a source of herbs that do not grow in the shady woods.
Oil-rich aromatic plants like aniseed, caraway and fennel
are especially popular with bears.
An unexpected sight:
a bear grazing like a cow.
After the meal the young male heads for the water.
This part of the shoreline is known as the bear coast.
Cautiously, the bear checks a surroundings in all directions.
Even here in the Baikal-Lena nature reserve
it has to be on the lookout for poaches.
The coast is several hundred kilometers long
and cannot be covered completely by the reserve's rangers.
Today everything seems ok.
But now danger looks from the land side.
A large adult bear approaches.
For a younger animal a potentially threatening situation.
Escape is the only chance of avoiding a fight with a stronger rival.
Summer in the Sayan Mountains.
Pikas live above the tree line.
The guinea pig sized rodents graze incessantly,
because the winter returns very soon
at 1, 700 meters.
The young female boast sleek well-primed fur,
while the older male looks somewhat tousled.
The Irish Heather seems to be the male pika's favorite food.
The pikas only rarely take breaks from eating,
but what could be better than snoozing in the sun?
Snow still cups the summit of the nearly 3, 500 meters high mount Munku-Sardyk
on the Russian-Mongolian border.
Further up Siberian Ibex search for food.
The high wire artists of the animal kingdom can scale the most inaccessible mountainsides
and get by on sparse food.
Siberia is wolf territory.
About 40, 000 of them inhabit the taiga.
In the middle of the last century there were five times as many.
This morning sees a rare encounter.
A lone wolf does not usually pick a fight with the bear.
The situation would be quite different, if the wolfwere in the pack.
The bear has made unmistakably clear who is boss of the swamp.
It is now June and summer has reached all of Siberia.
For a few weeks there is an explosion of growth.
The larch woods are bedecked with Rhododendrons.
The real rulers of the Siberian forests are neither bear nor wolf,
but red wood ants.
They act as both hunters and gatherers,
killing up to 10, 000 insects a day.
This longhorn beetle is taking a big risk.
In a lightning attack the ants overpower the beetle
and kill it with their acid,
which permeates the thin synovial tissue of the heavily armored pray and poisons it.
Back to the Baikal,
not only the deepest lake in the world,
but also the oldest.
Geologists put its age at over 20 million years.
A deep trench formed
where two continental plates drifted apart.
Water flowed into a huge abyss,
and Lake Baikal was born.
In the seal colony there is still a lot of jostling going on,
both above and below the surface.
The young seals have made huge strides
and are now almost indistinguishable from their elders.
Flipper slaps mean "stay away from me",
and when two disagree, the ensuing disharmony can spread to the whole group.
The elegant bodies glide through the water like torpedoes.
On land however, this grace is sadly lacking.
Early July.
Martagon, red Turk's Caps and yellow Daylilies decorate the steep banks
of the southern part of the lake.
Millions of anemones transform the nearby Tunka Valley
into a sea of blooms.
Olkhon Island in the middle of the Lake Baikal.
Here the last foothills of the Mongolian steppes
reach the sky-blue waters of the lake.
A place full of contrasts which has been enchanting people for thousands of years.
Always with an inquisitive eye for the world: gophers.
The siblings are just five weeks old
and have only just left their burrow.
While one keeps watch,
the others eat as much as they can.
Without a solid layer of fat they will not survive their eight month hibernation.
But there is always enough time to play.
All the same, they still have to take care.
Many predators from the fox to the golden eagle would love to get that close on them.
A close eye is also kept on the Dione Ratsnake,
even though it's not poisonous
and poses no threat.
The snake can grow up to one meter in length,
and their area of distribution spends from Turkey to Korea.
Russia is their most northerly habitat.
Dusk falls on Olkhon Island.
The gophers enjoy the sun's last warm rays.
They will spend the night in the safety of their burrows.
Fog on the bear cost.
There is tension in the air.
The animals are hungry
and waiting for something.
Early on morning an invasion begins
and a feast for the bears.
Millions of caddisflies emerge from the water
in which they have spent the last few years as larvae,
and the big bears begin their pursuit of the tiny insects.
Reaching dry land is no easy task for the flies,
again and again the lake pulls them back to the water,
yet they have to reach the bank.
It's the only way to achieve their purpose in life.
The flies mate between the stones,
an act that many males do not survive.
The females then return to the water
to lay their eggs.
The caddisflies hide underneath big rocks on the lakeside,
safe from bad weather and hungry birds,
but not from hungry bears.
These protein-rich insects are an important part of the bear's diet.
Prey doesn't have to be large,
there just has to be enough of it.
Ten days later
the feast ends as suddenly as it began.
In August the Siberian summer comes to an end.
For the bears, it's time to work up the layer of fat needed for winter.
The pair has settled who eats when,
but a lone wolf seems ignorant of the agreement.
It must be very hungry,
otherwise it wouldn't provoke a bear.
Again and again it challenges the larger predator.
Unsurprisingly, in the end the bigger animal wins.
Autumn has now also reached the villages.
Rural life is sparse.
Most villagers grown their own food.
The fertile black earth of the Tunka Valley
produces especially tasty potatoes.
The harvest is a communal activity.
Pictures as if from a bygone era.
Many of the old Soviet tractors are long broken down,
and there is no money to spare parts.
Happy the man with the good strong horse.
The taiga is home to a tree,
without which many animals could not survive,
the Siberian Pine.
A busy day begins for the chipmunk.
The delicious cones hang high up in the tree tops.
The activities of the chipmunk have long been observed by a neighbor.
The unsuspected chipmunk enjoys his feast of nuts.
But the cheeky neighbor is looking for trouble.
In the end the rightful owner returns.
Only when its burrow is filled with pine nuts,
can the chipmunk survive the long winter.
But first it's time to stuff its face again.
The Altay Mountains on the Mongolian border
in Southwest Siberia, craggy and hostile.
The first snows of winter cover the peaks.
Home to one of Siberia's shyest animals,
the Argali, the largest wild sheep in the world.
Now, in October, the bucks join the kids and the females.
It's the mating season, but so far everything is quiet.
Adult males grow to the size of ponies
and are magnetically attracted to the females.
The buck tastes the air with its tongue hanging out, so-called flehmen,
which tells him whether the female is ready to mate.
Right now the answer is obviously "No".
A rival appears.
Each buck will do anything to eliminate its opponent.
Two quarter tones of sheep crash into each other at full tilt.
Enormous forces act on the buck's skulls.
Such fights have been known
to leave Argalis unconscious.
The victor gets to mate with the majority of females.
Someway lower down large herds of Altay Marals roam the mountain steppes.
This subspecies of red deer
is also in mid breeding season.
Meanwhile the situation between the Argali bucks is escalating.
Two equally strong males are fighting.
The alpha-animal drives his herd away from the young pretender.
But the rival persists and closes the gap.
Now it's all or nothing.
This spectacular behavior has never been filmed before.
Eventually, the younger buck gives up
and the victor gathers his herd and moves on.
At Lake Baikal too, the winter is not far off.
Soon, the old sea will disappear for months under the ice.
And Siberia, the huge icy heart of Russia, will find peace again.