March of the Dinosaurs

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A summer's day, 70 million years ago.

The Arctic. But not

the barren, icy landscape we know.

The Earth is a much warmer place

and in summer, round-the-clock sunlight

supercharges the forest vegetation.

A fertile feast for some of the planet's

biggest and hungriest creatures.

Dinosaurs.

There are thousands of vegetarians here,

all making the most

of the boundless food.

A spiky Ankylosaur.

She likes to feed alone.

Others are more sociable -

herd animals, who eat together,

like these Edmontosaurus.

This is one of the youngest members

of the herd.

We'll call him Scar,

a name he'll earn soon enough.

Since he hatched in the spring,

the sun hasn't stopped shining.

There's plenty to eat

and he has the company and protection

of his extended family.

Life is pretty good... for now.

But this will all change for Scar.

The 24-hour daylight will soon fade...

..and 24-hour night will take its place.

There are already signs

that summer is letting go.

The dark times are coming.

For everyone.

Patch is a young male Troodon.

This carnivore has feasted all summer

on baby Edmontosaurus.

Unfortunately for him, his favourite

food is now bigger than he is.

So Patch must look for other game.

As dinosaurs go, Troodon are clever,

born to hunt and kill.

So Patch has natural talent but, as yet,

not much clue how to use it.

What goes in must come out.

That much, Patch gets.

But he hasn't learnt

to cover all the exits.

Thanks to the bigger Troodon,

this is one meal that's gone begging.

A hungry and frustrated Patch

needs to get his act together,

and quickly.

The sun is weakening.

Winter is approaching fast.

Scar now has to deal with

something completely alien, unexpected

and very, very dangerous.

Something he has never seen before.

Nightfall.

Caught out,

Scar can't see danger coming.

He's in the dark, at the mercy

of whatever is out there.

This is no time

to be away from the herd.

Here in the Arctic, the first night

of autumn lasts just a moment.

Danger fades with the dawn.

But the encounter has left its mark.

Scar is wounded, but at least now

he's safely back in the herd.

But the coming winter will steal

a little more light from every day.

Soon, the sun will disappear completely.

Then the herd must leave

on a great march south

to find enough food and light

to survive the winter.

As the weeks pass,

the forest begins to wither and die.

This is no longer a land of plenty.

The competition for what food is left

is about to get much tougher.

The Edmontosaurus males

bellow a warning.

Something is coming.

Another dinosaur is here in force.

This is a herd of Pachyrhinosaurus.

Two-tonne headbangers.

The brains inside these thick skulls

are no bigger than a bird's,

but their reinforced heads

make excellent battering rams,

which they'll use against anything

that gets between them and their food.

For the first time in his life,

Scar is hungry.

The same goes for Patch.

While he is well equipped

to survive a cold, dark winter,

he still has to eat.

A Troodon's brain

is wired for high-speed pursuit.

His reactions are so fast,

it's as if he sees in slow motion.

But some meals

are still too quick for him.

Time is running out.

If he doesn't get the hang of this soon,

he'll starve.

With the cupboard bare, Scar must hunt

out every last scrap of nourishment.

The Ankylosaur is doing the same.

An experienced old hand at survival,

she's taken to eating rotten wood -

..the grubs and insect larvae inside

providing a little extra protein to keep

this three-tonne vegetarian on the move.

Scar, reared on a diet

of soft leaves and plants,

must develop a taste

for this new, harsher diet.

The warm summer paradise

is a distant memory.

It will soon be time to leave.

As every night

stretches longer than the last...

..it's the predators

that have the upper hand.

The adults corral their young,

using their own bodies as a last line

of defense against the night stalkers.

They know their enemies prowl

out there in the darkness.

After his terrifying narrow escape,

Scar is wary.

Nothing will entice him

to venture beyond the herd's protection.

Nothing, except perhaps a scrap of food.

Fear finally holds Scar back.

But for one young female,

the compulsion to eat

is more than she can bear.

Gorgosaurus.

At 30 foot long and two tonnes,

this is the T-rex of the North Pole.

Equipped

with highly sensitive night vision,

he is the consummate nocturnal killer.

The young dinosaur never stood a chance.

For Scar and the herd,

their summer playground

has become a winter killing field.

Their only hope...

..exodus.

The ever-shortening day

finally signals to the herd

the onset of the great annual migration.

It's time to head south towards the sun

in a grueling 1,000-mile trek

to find food, light and safety.

Only the herd's dead will remain -

life-giving sustenance for the predators

who will stay here

throughout the Arctic winter.

The three-month odyssey

will lead Scar and the other youngsters

through perilous terrain.

But with the herd to guide them,

many will see it through.

Across the Arctic,

Edmontosaurus hear the call,

coming together for safety in numbers.

Even rival herds of Pachyrhinosaurus

join the jostling masses.

The march of the dinosaurs...

has begun.

This is the start of a journey

which will take the migrating dinosaurs

through what is now northwestern Canada

to the fertile coast of the inland sea

that divides North America.

They will face perils every bit

as daunting as those they leave behind.

Many of them will not survive.

But not every herbivore

is making the journey.

Our female Ankylosaur

is too cumbersome and heavy

for the 2,000-mile round trip.

She will tough it out here at the Pole

and endure

the ravages of the Arctic winter.

Troodon are well adapted

to survive the winter.

But Patch must still learn how.

Feeding from the Gorgosaurus' kill

is a risky business.

But this could be

their last decent meal for months,

so it's a risk they need to take.

Patch knows

he's well down the pecking order...

..hoping for a few scraps at best.

But maybe it's better for him

to stay out of the firing line for now.

Because the king of the forest...

..will not stand for

anyone stealing his food.

In summer, the Troodon

would never fight a Gorgosaurus.

But in winter, a fresh carcass is

worth putting your life on the line for.

A reckless Troodon

inflicts a savage bite.

But he that strikes the king

must strike to kill

or pay the price.

Patch will stay hungry...

..as Gorgosaurus

reclaims what is rightfully his.

After one week, the migrating herds

have reached

the edge of the Arctic forest.

So far, Scar is keeping up.

But this open landscape

is a hostile, new world.

They're exposed to the elements

beneath a sky

that holds unfamiliar threats.

Scavengers...

..who know that this journey

will take its toll.

And soon

there's another surprise from above.

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