The Magic Forest of Spain - Go Wild

There is a magical place full of life. A place in central Spain where everything is enveloped by an own forest and where every living being is essential to the harmony of the whole. Here, only 80 kilometers away from Madrid, everything revolves around these centenarian beings. Symbols of strength since antiquity. Palm oaks embrace one of the most fruitful ecosystems on the planet. From the deepest of its roots to the highest of its branches, everything is life. Life, which is conditioned by climatic variation, is usually a place of extremes. The winter, when temperatures drop below zero, forces many to sleep for months. And the summer, when temperatures can reach 43 degrees Celsius, can make some animals, especially the most genetically weak, succumb to the conditions if the rains weren't heavy enough. However, autumn and spring, with mild temperatures ranging from 14 to 24 degrees, are the true spark of life. After surviving the blazing summer, with autumn already well established, looking for food is easier for many animals. The oldest home oaks begin to drop their gifts. The acorns, which are rich in potassium, phosphorus and calcium, with 30% water, 52% carbohydrates and 9% fiber, are one of the most nutritious foods in the oak forest. For wild boars, it's the best time of the whole year. During this period, they walk ceaselessly in search of acorns, and sometimes they can cover 20 kilometers in just one night. Their weight can increase 15 kilograms in 10 days by eating only acorns. Although they carry out another essential role too. They are the forest's farmers. Their powerful snout is able to dig up the driest and hardest land. They stir up and mix the substratum under these big trees. As they tirelessly search for earthworms, larvae, scorpions. But above all, acorns are the main component of their diet. And that's teamwork. The home oaks supply the acorns and the boars drain their land. But they're not the only ones that benefit from this activity. That incessant movement of the earth, along with the boar's excrement, generates more life. Mushrooms. Humidity is the most important factor for the growth of mushrooms, which, like every living thing, want to spread their species. This is a generous time, with mild temperatures and steady humidity. In a way, it's a second spring. With the shift change, others start their night's work. They need to hurry to find the best bites to eat. 550 heartbeats a minute and frenetic activity make mice a little careless. The night is full of eyes. And claws. Moving in silence brings certain advantages. And eating acorns, certain risks. A sudden drop in temperature and the dark sky herald a major change. Winter's mantle has arrived in this Spanish oak forest. And to let them all know, it caresses the forest with white snow. Several days will pass before it melts. The water will slowly soak into the land and nourish the great oak forest and all its inhabitants. This year, water will be plentiful. After several days of rain, snow and sub-zero temperatures, some animals succumb to the weather conditions. Those that didn't eat well enough, the sick and the weak, will become part of others' energy. It's just a matter of waiting until the fog disappears. The vulture's stomach has evolved for centuries to allow them to kill most of the germs that they swallow and to survive the ones that stay in their digestive system. It is undoubtedly the toughest stomach on the planet. It's estimated that 76 species of microorganisms have successfully survived in this animal's intestines. So, it's a matter of symbiosis. Heavy precipitation has caused the big river that feeds the oak forest to spread its hands a little bit more than usual. Several areas have been flooded with water. For many species, this means a great opportunity. Black-tailed godwits, black-winged stilts, cattle egret, herons, habitual neighbors who share the same territories. The western swamp hen. Its extremely long toes, which are astonishingly prehensile, are a perfect tool. They help it to wander easily through the densest vegetation. But the most surprising thing is its ability to hold on to all sorts of stems, no matter what their size may be. This ability makes it unique. Some western swamp hens start their breeding season at the end of February, others in March. Their shy song reverberates in the reed beds until the last sunbeams fade away. It's the time when they all search for a safe place in the vegetation to sleep. The intense cold of the night tests the stomach of many animals. It's the need to eat and to survive. Among all the mustelids, the polecat may be one of those that walk the most. It can cover several kilometers in one day searching for food. It's an efficient hunter. However, some of its potential prey, like this black rat, are authentic masters of survival. Having lived longer helps the old rat to save its life. The young female polecat will have to keep searching. When April arrives, the homeoaks start to flower. That's when they open their soft and slightly yellow mantle. These are the male flowers. The female flowers are gathered in pairs or threes at the ends of the branches, hanging from a short stem. These big beings have been considered symbols of strength and purity for millennia. The oldest homeoaks can live up to 1,000 years. They are true living treasures. Spring in the oak forest is an explosion of life. Suddenly, everything is imbued with activity. Milder temperatures favored by our great star induce most species to multiply. The forest fills with colors. It's the moment which many birds were waiting for to breed. Insects, larvae and flowers make up their diets, which will make their clutches of chicks more numerous in generous years like this one. Many of these birds are strictly insectivorous. One of them, which is a great gregarious traveler, flies thousands of kilometers from Africa to settle in the large oak forest in order to breed. Its agility and speed while flying allow it to catch most of its prey in the air. But there's no doubt that its most surprising feature is its cave-dwelling behavior. After choosing its mate, together they dig a tunnel in a slope of soft soil which can reach a length of 2 meters and which ends in a larger chamber where they lay their eggs. With the aid of their beaks, they dig little by little. Pushing out the loose earth with their small legs. It's a titanic effort for this little digger, which can move up to 8 kilograms of soil while building its nest. When dusk's red mantle spreads over the oak forest, many species start to wake up. Among all the night's allies, only one lets its call be heard from many kilometers away. Eurasian eagle owls mark their territory from the highest places. Marking limits is important so as to avoid conflict. Some 56,000 light-sensitive retinal rods inside its pupils provide the eagle owl with one of the animal world's best examples of night vision. Which means that others must be very careful. Rabbits make up 80% of their diet. Although some individuals specialize in other species, such as ducks, pigeons and even hedgehogs. After locating its prey, it measures the distance by means of slight movements of its head. And then it launches its attack. After the first two years of their lives, eagle owls fail on only 2% of their attacks. A ravenous predator runs through the grass. It weighs just 2.5 grams, but every day it needs to eat 2.9 grams of food. This gives us an idea of its high metabolic rate. Its heart beats 1,200 times a minute, which means 20 beats per second. It's a shrew. Its diet mainly comprises all sorts of insects. Larvae, beetles, earthworms and sometimes even small reptiles. Nonetheless, one of these small reptiles has developed a unique defense system. The common wall gecko is a small, mainly nocturnal lizard. Which, like the shrew, eats insects that it usually catches in high places, such as rocks or tree trunks. But sometimes it climbs down to the ground, and this makes it more vulnerable. When it's attacked by the shrew, the wall gecko emits a strident sound that scares the voracious little predator. Prudence is the better part of valor. And there are many insects out there. With the first rays of sunlight, a mother fox watches over her territory from her den. She's nervous. Very nervous. She's given birth to her first kits, and she has to stay on the alert. Her mate will stay with them for a few more days, but after that, he'll leave them. Although she'll still have neighbors. Neighbors that are a little noisy. This pair of Iberian magpies has also had offspring. They're quite responsible parents. Their gregarious character is only interrupted during the breeding season. The little fox kits need milk. During their first week, they'll nurse small quantities up to 15 times a day. This rate shrinks as they grow up. The little magpies also need food, so their parents constantly bring them all kinds of insects, earthworms, lizards. And here in central Spain, when the sun gets too hot, their parents cover them with their wings like a feathered parasol. The days grow longer and longer, and the temperature gradually rises with each passing day. In the great oak forest, it's also a good time for hedgehogs to search for a mate. Their sense of smell is very acute, and it helps them to find other hedgehogs. Although this time, they're two males in search of a female. After making friends, a drink always feels good. An extraordinary, shy and elusive bird lives in the deepest part of the oak forest. It always frequents the most hidden places, where the vegetation is densest. It's in these places where it always decides to breed. And this time, it has chosen a centenarian home-moat to build its nest. The little goshawks have already hatched. Their parents, always staying close to the big home-moat, continuously bring them prey. Their appetite is insatiable in the first few weeks. Normally, daddy goshawk is in charge of the hunting, while mama goshawk takes on the job of distributing the food in the nest. Evolution has supplied them with a long tail and short wings to fly perfectly, even in those areas with the thickest vegetation. From his usual hunting perch, he controls all his territory. He patiently prepares his ambush. Pigeons are easy prey after drinking. So he'll take advantage of their blind spot, and with the sun at his back, he'll launch his attack. Flying at ground level so as not to be detected, it's an almost infallible technique. Only 30% of young goshawks survive their first year of life, because they too are easy prey for other predators. Having survived the year, they become part of the great oak forest. The change of season is just around the corner. It's time for many species to get ready, and some of them need to spend a lot of time in the sun. At this time of year, sunny days are much more frequent, and the oscillated lizard knows very well how to make the most of this. After leaving its refuge, it begins to regulate its body temperature. It stays out in the sun until it reaches a temperature between 21.2 and 34.5 degrees Celsius. Below that range, some of its bodily functions, such as digestion, slow down or may even stop altogether. Above that range, thermal shock could kill it quite quickly. Some ants take advantage of the lizard's immobility to look for a morsel to eat. The lizard doesn't seem to mind. There are benefits for both. In the highest part of the great oak forest, others prefer to take another kind of bath. Up here, the sun's rays are much stronger. Temperatures sometimes surpass 40 degrees Celsius. And if in addition their feathers are black, it can get sweltering. This western jackdaw likes to frequent this spot. It easily finds food to gobble down. And it can also take a refreshing bath. After making sure that no one is spying on it at its toilet, it takes its time. The large granite stones keep the rainwater quite well. And these small pools are put to very good use. Jackdaws can bathe up to six times in a single day. They take their plumage's cleanliness very seriously. It's indispensable for them. Any feather in poor condition might hinder their flight. And hawks and goshawks can take advantage of this. A handicapped jackdaw is easy prey. Afterwards, the sun and the wind take care of drying it off. In the areas where the humidity is higher, and where soil and sediment replace the large granite stones, a shy and elusive mustelid makes its home. The European badger's range usually covers 10 to 15 square kilometers. It never wanders very far from its lair. The small tamarisk forests are often frequented by badgers. There, the ground is soft and easy to dig up in search of larvae and other insects. It's so easy to find food. Although this time, there is something which attracts this male's attention even more. He has found an old poplar trunk, and it seems there's something inside it that grabs his attention. He won't stop until he finds what he is looking for. Badgers have lived on our planet since ancient times. Paleontologists have discovered that they had the same characteristics four million years ago as now. The badger's only feature that has clearly evolved is their ability to eat meat, plants, earthworms, and insects, because when the species was young, their diet was entirely composed of fresh meat. They can weigh up to 15 kilos, especially the oldest males. Badgers have a boundless passion for honey, and it seems that what this male is looking for is precisely that – honey. They can easily detect a hive and won't hesitate to smash it in order to get to its treasure. Although this time it's not a beehive, certain wasps also build hives, but instead of honey, their hives are full of larvae, which are another delicacy. They're worth the price of getting stung a few times. Birds are the descendants of dinosaurs, and the birds of prey are the most directly related to those ancient reptiles. One of these birds of prey has undoubtedly become the king of the skies. It's the most powerful of all birds of prey. It can weigh up to 7 kilos, and its wingspan can reach 2 meters and 40 centimeters. The golden eagle is the only bird of prey which has successfully colonized four continents – Europe, Asia, North America, and the northern part of Africa. Over the centuries, this formidable bird of prey has been a symbol of strength and bravery because of its fascinating natural attributes. Its prodigious sense of sight enlarges the image two and a half times, and it can see seven times more detail than a human can. Golden eagles can see prey from four kilometers away. Thanks to evolution, their prey have also had to change their shape and habits. In the deepest depths of the Great Oak Forest, where calm and tranquility reign, animals feel more secure. Golden eagles constantly search for this peace, especially when they want to set up their home. This little prince hatched ten days ago in the deepest parts of a ravine. His father stays with him all day long. He won't stop protecting him. This time, his mother will be responsible for supplying the food. The previous day, his father caught a big hare, which will be the little eagle's first meal today. The eagle's powerful talons allow them to capture prey weighing 6 or 7 kilos without too much effort, although they prefer prey between 600 grams and 5 kilos, such as rabbits, hares, partridges, pigeons, ravens, and even foxes and small roe deer. It looks like the mother is coming back to the nest with prey. This time it's a partridge. It will be a good injection of energy for the little eagle, although she must keep hunting, this time for herself. A mother eagle needs between 290 and 330 grams of meat every day, which means that an adult rabbit can provide her with enough energy for about three days. Her technique is infallible. First, she climbs up close to the clouds. Then, from up high, her prodigious sight helps her to locate her prey. And finally, she takes advantage of the height to descend in a nosedive to surprise it. Unfortunately, the deterioration of the environment is the main reason for the golden eagle's dwindling numbers. This pair has been living in the Great Oak Forest for 17 springs. By respecting the Great Forest and considering it a part of our own existence, everything around us will be filled with life and will flow. In that way, each and every one of the beings that populate this planet will vibrate towards a common good, the common good of all. The common good of life.