Life - with David Attenborough

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Life features extraordinary footage of some of the most unusual creatures, and behaviour, on the planet.

• Find out how to study biology with The Open University

• Copyright: Rupert Barrington

  

  Life: Video extras

  More from David Attenborough's exploration of Life across the planet - with exclusive extra footage

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  Article

  Level: 1 Introductory

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  Tree of Life

  Follow evolution and explore the variety of life on the planet with the Tree of Life.

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  Activity

  Level: 1 Introductory

• Copyright: Hugh Miller

  

  OU on the BBC: Life: About the series

  A new series from the BBC and The Open University explores just how astonishing the natural world can be.

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  Article

  Level: 1 Introductory

• Copyright: The Open University

  

  More Darwin from the OU

  See how you'd look if you "devolve" yourself and discover more Darwin from the OU.

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First broadcast: Monday 19 Oct 2009 on BBC ONE. Life has been repeated across the BBC, and can also be seen on the subscription channels Eden and Yesterday.

Episode Guide

Challenges Of Life

In nature, living long enough to breed is a monumental struggle. Many animals and plants go to extremes to give themselves a chance.

Uniquely, three brother cheetahs band together to bring down a huge ostrich. Aerial photography reveals how bottle-nosed dolphins trap fish in a ring of mud, and time-lapse cameras show how the Venus flytrap ensnares insect victims.

The strawberry frog carries a tadpole high into a tree and drops it in a water-filled bromeliad. The frog must climb back from the ground every day to feed it.

Fledgling chinstrap penguins undertake a heroic and tragic journey through the broken ice to get out to sea. Many can barely swim and the formidable leopard seal lies in wait.

Episodes in this series