Legendary nature presenter and veteran naturalist David Attenborough has revealed that he finally got to film a rare monkey for a new BBC series, an experience which he says has been more than 50 years in the making.
According to The Guardian , Attenborough has expressed his joy at capturing footage of the rare primate after decades spent attempting to film the elusive breed.
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Your favorite nature documentary narrator will be returning to screens this month with a brand new series.
Seven Worlds, One Planet will premiere on the BBC network this week with each episode featuring a different continent and its species, accompanied by Attenborough’s signature commentary.
The 93 year old recently appeared at the first screening of the forthcoming nature series where he was asked what the greatest treat will be for viewers.
In response, Attenborough revealed the series will feature footage of China’s golden snub-nosed monkey.
“I’d never seen film of it before,” he admitted to the screening audience. “I once read a scientific paper and thought: we must go and film that! But that was back in the 60s and we couldn’t get to China so in the end I dropped it. And then, blow me, this lot pop up and say ‘we’ve got it’.”
The gold snub-nosed monkey is an endangered species native to Southwestern China’s snowy forests.
Increased habitat loss is contributing to the species threat of extinction, with experts estimating there are only between 10,000 and 20,000 left in the wild.
This new series took four years to film and features a crew of more than 150 people.
A total of 81 expeditions were completed at around 41 countries, resulting in more than 2,000 hours of footage. But if don’t worry if you don’t have that much free time — the series will only be seven hours long.
As Attenborough explained, each continent featured in the series will highlight a different geological issue.
“They have different ways on how life has arrived there and how they survive in isolation,” he said. “Every one of our shows has one or two sequences that take my breath away and have never been seen before.
“I would like the audience to appreciate how beautiful these things are. But also how they integrate with others and how we are dependent on them.”
Seven Worlds, One Planet premieres October 25 on the BBC network.
h/t: The Guardian
