The Natural World, travels to India to meet a rare croc and search for an unidentified cat

BBC2's Natural World will travel to India to meet a rare breed of crocodile and search for an unidentified species of cat in two films from indie Icon Films.

Published in Broadcast 'BBC snaps up croc doc'

Crocodile Blues
Conservationist and reptile expert Romulus Whitaker battles to save the gharial, an ancient 20 foot fish-eating crocodilian, from extinction. Already critically endangered, the animal mysteriously started to die off last year and only 150 breeding individuals remain in the wild. Whitaker and his team struggle to solve the mystery behind the mysterious deaths and ensure some sort of future for the species by breeding gharial's in captivity.




The Mountains of the Monsoon follows Indian environmentalist and photographer Sandesh Kadur's journey through the Western Ghats mountain range in India.

Shot over the course of a year, the film follows Sandesh's quest to find a new unidentified species of cat - the pogeyon - following a chance sighting 10 years ago.

On his journey Sandesh documents the varied but fragile ecosystems of the mountains and reveals some of the unique life they contain, including several species new to science.


The 60-minute documentaries, produced and directed by Icon Films' chief executive officer Harry Marshall follow earlier commissions for the strand, King Cobra and I and The Last Lions of India.

Natural World commissioning editor Tim Martin said: "Icon Films continue to bring surprising new wildlife stories from India. These are beautifully crafted natural history films, but they also cast light on the growing conflict between development and conservation that impacts all India's animals. These films strike the balance between celebrating nature and highlighting environmental issues."

Author: Robin Parker.