Asia is the largest continent on earth, stretching from the tropics to the Arctic circle, from the Mediterranean in the west to Alaska in the east. 

And the amazing BBC Natural History Unit has dedicated a new landmark series to the continent of Asia – which has been quite a challenge.  Many parts of the continent are very remote, unknown and sometimes off-limits.  And it’s wildlife is less well-studied, too, than Africa and the Americas.  So it’s no surprise that the production team have worked for four years to bring this series to us.

Crew from 30 different countries worked with the team in the field – this is hugely helpful as they share their knowledge of the local area.   There were over 2,500 days of filming

There are 7 episodes:

1. Beneath the waves (the seas surrounding Asia) – watch out for the sea slug, manta rays, the mudskipper fish
2. Above the clouds – elephants, red pandas and of course snow leopards
3. The Frozen North with red-crowned cranes, Himalayan wolves and polar bears
4. Tangled Worlds – tigers, pandas, rhinos and orangutans live in tropical jungles and temperate forests
5. Crowded continent – animals are making their homes in cities and villages and roadsides and in agricultural lands
6. The Arid Heart – deserts and dry grasslands are home to the Gobi bear, the Asiatic lion, and long-eared jerboa
7. The last episode is called Saving Asia and it follows conservation heroes in different parts of Asia, as they work to save wildlife, relocating bears in Malaysia, breeding highly endangered green magpies in Indonesia and tackling the illegal wildlife trade in Nepal