1x1 - The Infinite Variety

January 16, 1979

This episode explores the variety of nature as a whole, from the South American rainforest's to the shores of Australia.

1x2 - Building Bodies

January 23, 1979

This episode explores the various sea-living invertebrates, form the shores of Morocco to Delaware Bay.

1x3 - The First Forests

January 30, 1979

Over 400 million years ago, tiny plants began to invade the land, followed by the first animals - the ancestors of scorpions, millipedes and insects

1x4 - The Swarming Hordes

February 6, 1979

The role of a few of the millions of insect species, some of which have developed extremely close relationships with plants. Insects pollinate flowers and in some cases neither flower nor insect can survive without the other.

1x5 - Conquest of the Waters

February 13, 1979

A look at some of the 30,000 species of fish which exist in populations of billions. They can fly, produce electricity, survive in hot soda lakes or under the Antarctic ice. Some, like the salmon, even migrate across oceans and up waterfalls

1x6 - Invasion of the Land

February 20, 1979

Some 350 million years ago, evolution reached one of its most crucial stages when fish crawled from water onto the land and became amphibians. Today, newts, salamanders, toads and frogs still survive in great quantities, and there is even one species of frog where the male gives birth from its mouth!

1x7 - Victors of the Dry Land

February 27, 1979

A look at the history of reptiles, the first back-boned creatures to solve the problems of living high and dry on the land. Their waterproofed skin and sealed eggs enabled the mighty reptiles to rule the world

1x8 - Lords of the Air

March 6, 1979

We examine the uses and advantages of birds' unique possession - the feather. Feathers are insulators; they provide the surface of the most perfect aerofoils known - bird's wings; and they play a central role in courtship

1x9 - The Rise of the Mammals

March 13, 1979

A look at the evolution of mammals from reptiles 200 million years ago. This remarkable transition involved the development of mechanisms for regulating body temperature, for allowing the young to develop in the womb and for suckling newborns. Attenborough also explores the South American origins of marsupials and their colonization of Australia

1x10 - Theme and Variations

March 20, 1979

A look at some of the huge variety of mammals. Bats number over a thousand species, many hunt insects, some sip nectar, drink blood, and even catch fish. Contrast those which use sonar with the great whales that sing, the star-nosed mole and the giant anteater, and the potential variations become dramatically clear

1x11 - The Hunters and Hunted

March 27, 1979

Explore the eternal duel between the hunters and the hunted - one of the driving forces of evolution. As the hunters develop speed and cunning, the prey becomes increasingly fast and wary in order to stay alive. Nowhere is this seen better than on the plains of East Africa

1x12 - Life in the Trees

April 3, 1979

David Attenborough's now legendary encounter with young gorillas is featured in this episode as he looks at the history of primates, whose ancestors sought their fortune in the treetops. There they developed binocular vision for accurately judging distances, and the ability to grasp trees with a firm grip. The group includes dazzling gymnasts, deafening choristers and highly cultured monkeys

1x13 - The Compulsive Communicators

April 10, 1979

A look for crucial clues that help to explain how and why we have come to dominate life on Earth. He traces back the African origins of humans to nearly three million years ago, and along the way he goes into caves in Southern France where stone-age people created imaginative paintings of ice-age animals. He also travels to Papua New Guinea to find some hunter-gatherers who have never before set eyes on white people

David Attenborough

Narrator, Presenter