![]() ![]() "We are pioneering breaking new territories, and we were the first people in history to dive in a manned submersible to the very depths of Antarctica. "I think it's just redefining people's preconceptions of what these creatures are truly capable of." Mark Brownlow And we were able to film them, not only feeding on lanternfish, these great squadrons of 2-meter long Humboldt squid - when they run out of lanternfish they would turn on each other, and we were able to film cannibalistic behavior." So, for instance, we filmed Humboldt squid feeding at 800 meters off the coast Chile, and they don't like white light, so we had to film with infrared light. So if they weren't going to play ball with our lights, we'd have to rethink our strategy. But typically, you know, again, we don't want to just film portraits, we want to film behavior. "But, for instance, in the deep, we did have to use lights because we were 1,000 meters underwater, and sometimes fish would sort of stare a bit mesmerized. So it's with the rebreather we can sit in silence and observe week after week and gain the trust of this tuskfish, that we could open new filming opportunities. What's ingenious about that is that it's a demonstration that a fish can use a tool. So we can sit underwater - for instance, off the Great Barrier Reef in Australia - for 4 1/2 hours and wait in silence, for a tuskfish, which is a remarkable reef fish that has found a way to get at the soft meat in clams by smashing it against the side of a particular piece of coral reef. What's been amazing is with the advent of rebreathers, which are these underwater breathing that enables you to recycle your air so you don't exhale like with scuba, it does two things: It means you can dive in silence and you can dive for longer. "If the animal is impacted by your presence, you can't film natural behavior, and we're all about filming unique natural behaviors. On how the presence of humans changes animal behavior Scientists have recently discovered that many fish on the reef rely on sound at key stages in their life - and that man-made noise is interfering with this. ![]() We could never have done that 10 years ago, let alone five years ago, so it's huge advances in camera technology that open up new filming opportunities." Scientist Steve Simpson uses a multi-directional hydrophone to record the sounds of the coral reef. Now, that was only possible to film two years ago because camera sensor low-light technology was good enough to actually capture the light of these flashes. For instance, off the Sea of Cortez, mobula rays at night come in to feed on shoals of plankton, that, as they disturb them, light up in bioluminescence. "What new technology did was open up new opportunities. So there's just incredible information and new understanding of ocean life, of its complexities, its intricacy, and so it really was time to combine those three ingredients to make a brand-new 'Blue Planet' series." ![]() And 17 years on, we have huge advancements in camera technology, diving technology - but more than that it's an era of ocean exploration, the last decade. ![]() "That series was a seminal underwater series that captured the imagination of a generation of ocean-lovers. On making a follow-up to the first "Blue Planet" "I think, for many of us, the oceans are remote worlds, alien worlds - we even fear it - filled with slippery, cold creatures," says "Blue Planet II" series producer Mark Brownlow ( "And we tried really hard to show a different side of marine creatures and really reveal their true complexity and intelligence." Interview Highlights Seventeen years after the first "Blue Planet" series, the BBC returns with " Planet Earth: Blue Planet II," which uses cutting-edge technology to film in the oceans and capture the animals and creatures that live there. ![]()
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