Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Programming note: 3rd annual Big Cat Week kicking off on Nat Geo Wild from Sunday 3 February at 19:00 with 5 nights of cat documentaries.


The third annual "Big Cat Week" programming strand returns to Nat Geo Wild (DStv 182) this Sunday 3 February at 19:00 with five nights of documentaries about big cats in the wilds - including the first-ever capture and release of an endangered snow leopard in Afghanistan.

Snow Leopard of Afghanistan on Sunday 3 February at 19:00 will take viewers behind the groundbreaking tracking, capture and release of a rare snow leopard by the expert big cat wrangler Boone Smith. Mounting an expedition in a war zone, he has to contend with faulty and missing equipment and sudden weather changes to try and find this elusive creature.

Cheetah: Fatal Instinct on Tuesday 5 February at 19:00 follows one cheetah mother as she struggles to teach her offspring to survive in one of the most cutthroat environments on Earth. High-speed cameras reveal every detail on how they hunt.

Phantom Cat on Friday 8 February at 19:00 travels to South America's Pantanal, one of the world's last natural paradises and the home of the jaguar. Christian Baumeister wants to film this elusive beast and wants to capture a jaguar on film as it goes up against the caiman reptile.  It's mammal versus reptile as these two super predators pit their strength, speed and stealth against each other.

Attack of Big Cats on Saturday 9 February at 19:00 focuses on the four in the big cat club: the lion, tiger, leopard and jaguar. In their world, nothing is small. What exactly makes a big cat a big cat? Take a look at their roar, teeth, claws, speed, size and hunting capabilities.