Policeman following w, fire made for mines. Ah aah surging up from the ocean stats in the heart of the south atlantic, lies an otherworldly drop of land that offers a window into the past riches of our planet. Located 2000 kilometers from the nearest land mass. Midway between africa and south america, the volcanic island of st. Helena is unique, not only for its extreme isolation, but also for the diversity of its exceptional flora and fauna. This by thought jewel is home to a multitude of micro ecosystems, each with its own endemic species. But the discovery of the island by europeans in the 16th century resulted in the systematic exploitation of resources and introduction of alien species destabilizing its fragile balance. Yet to day the people of st. Helena have come together to save their Natural Heritage and achieve what many would consider impossible, ah. Shaped by thousands of years of volcanic eruptions, the Central Ridge of st. Helena dominate the horizon. Rising more than 800 meters above sea level, its 3 misty peaks are home to a unique ecosystem. The cloud forest of dianas peak park is the beating heart of the island. And the reason why st. Helena was so important to european ships, fresh water. Within these 81 hectors survived the relics of a tropical rain forest. That once covered the entire island cut off from the rest of the world. The plant life here has evolved over millions of years. And simple friends and daisies have become trees. But isolation came at a price in the absence of natural predators. The endemic plants never evolved. The ability to rapidly regenerate leaving them defenseless, against the ravenous appetites of the domestic animals, introduced by passing ships left to rome. The island in just a few short years, the goats had decimated the islands. Ancient forests. Having exhausted their resources, the herbivores seal to their own fate. And the once 1000 strong hides, have now disappeared. Although cattle are no longer a danger to the endemic flora. Invasive plants now pose a serious threat to their survival. St. Helena redwoods, ebenezer, and tree funds are struggling to maintain their foot home and their future now lies entirely in human hands. Satar vargo, the terrestrial conservation officer is part of the small Team Dedicated to the ambitious restoration of this exceptional forest. Dianas peak park is very unique because it holds quite a high proportion of endemic vegetation anna vertebrates. The word endemic means that its very unique, its found nowhere else in the world. So there is quite a large number on st, alina because we have the highest endemic biodiversity off the u. K. And all the services territory, the endemic plans, they are really good at intercepting miss. So the island doesnt receive a high proportion of rainfall, but we do get quite a lot of cloud cover coming over this high Central Ridge. So they actually have their leads adapted to intercept commerce, and then they fall to those water down into the p d soils. And then they trickle out to the catch my ears unless we collect our drinking water. The parks endemic vegetation provides more than a 3rd of the islands drinking water, making the teams conservation work essential to the local inhabitants. And it all starts here at the foot of dianas peak. Ah, propagation in the nursery start from feed. So we go out into the wall and we collect seeds from the last remaining individuals. And then from there we would clean the seed, sought it, then we would plant them. We wait for them to germinate this a few stages of putting out until we can actually produce a plant that is very strong and durable and ready for planting back into our fights. After months of care in the nursery, the pressure saplings are now Strong Enough to join the cloud forest. The recently cleared patch of land that will be their new home. Is it the highest point of the park . And there is only one way to get there. Is always go crazy and troys off off throws all rounds of forgivable poses roses. Youre a good so what we do on dianas pickpockets, habitat restoration. And theyre actually involves propagating endemic, supplant, back into sites. But before we can do that, we do quite a lot of in base of clearance. Hopefully in the future, i would like to see banners pick completely vegetated in endemic habitat and supporting very high populations of and elegant benefits as well. Although there is still a long way to go, the colossal work carried out by the terrestrial Conservation Team has been a real success tree fans and black cabbage trees now dominate the parks ridge there. Canopy shading the forest floor limiting the growth of the invasive plants. Many endemic invertebrates, like the blushing snail, find refuge in the newly rehabilitated flora. Much to the delight of the entomologists. Natasha stevens and liza fowler. Selina was quite loving in research on i laboratory because the has been expeditions going back rate from like the 1800s. Even Charles Darwin himself came he, at one point to documenting a lot of i read our breads from spiders to beatles to true bugs. So a wide range of it. So the cloud far as of diana speak, national pop is the highest habitat for invertebrates. So they whole like 100. 00 in 20, endemic species on average. So was very unique here. On st, alina, we have over 400. 00 endemic species. And although we have all those, we are actually discovering more early time. Oh, another spike, e. Lets hear another one. There is a bristling with bright yellow spines. This tiny armored creature hides in the forests, most inaccessible corners. This is the spiky yellow woodhouse. And it is one of the worlds rarest. I suppose. By the yellow wood lays is not like you average with lace because it tend to live in trees underneath the tree. First, weve been quite lucky here to have a dedicated project to the spike yellow with lowes. Why are fortunately the spiky, they dont do much. So i think it in like a ph. D student or something they be out need to come down and actually like stadium fully for a whole year to know and be out in the field every day. Sort of thing to actually see what they really active. But it is nice that we have touched on a little off them the population and a little off the ecology. And its also helping with the conservation as well. A recent Population Survey across the spike is known habitat, has identified between 10200 individuals within dianas peak park. Due to the research and conservation work for this minuscule creature. The spikey, yellow wood louse, is considered to be an umbrella species. So by protecting it all the flora and fauna with which it says its home are also protected, like walk up along a veritable eden for the minute. St. Helena is home to 25. 00 times more endemic species per square kilometer than the famous galapagos islands. However, as in many places around the world, this unique foreigner faces multiple threats. Among the most worrying are habitat, los Climate Change, and invasive species. In the dry land, south of the park near high peak sasha laser and natasha are setting out to visit a particularly special part of the ridge. At the edge of a steep cliff cling 6 unobtrusive trees. The value of these false gum woods is immeasurable, despite their modest appearance. They are the last wild survivors of their species. Here are quite a few endemic invertebrates that is associated with plans. The false gum would leaf harbor is associated with the false gamblers and hence the name. It is not unique and it is very sad at the same time. There is habitat has declined to about such trees the left in the while. And if these trees go, the leaf harbours will go in like its spray off. On 2 of the 6 trees, the entomologists have made a disturbing discovery. Some of the leaf hoppers appear to be covered in a strange whitish film. They have been infected by a fungus that has devoured them from the inside. Out invertebrates play a vital role in any ego systems throughout the well. They help with the compose and plant manta, who did things really and recycle it back into the as long as the restoration of the heavy task, keep going, then it will be safe. Gotten on better for us. So all that work, all the effort that everyone is putting into conservation is it will help in the long term and it still needs to continue way off. I go from the striking spike in yellow wood lice for dazzling golden sail spiders. The cloud covered heart of st. Helena is a treasure trove of biodiversity, precious and fragile thanks to the Conservation Teams work. The cloud forest is gradually being restored to its former glory and one day its borders. Me once again reach the coastline. The water captured by the cloud forest trickles down from the Central Ridge, feeding thousands of mango trees as it meanders through sharks bonnie to the sea. But the island is natural. Riches are not confined to its flush peaks. Testament to this or the raucous colony of red build tropic buds that populate the colossal wall of great stone. Driven to the fringes of the island by the hungry tax and routes that arrived with the 1st settlers. Many sea birds now find refuge on these inaccessible cliffs and the surrounding islets. Ah ah he had recently, many of the once threatened populations have begun to show signs of recovery and some species like the tropic birds and white ferry tons have become particularly fond of the rocky slopes that surround the islands, capital, james town. The elegant turns, have even become somewhat of an avenue fixture, and frequently raise their young here for the next 2 months, the young tech will need his parents full attention. As they take turns to feed him, he will have to wait for his adult plumage to grow before he can leave the comfort on his balcony and enjoy a freshly caught fish. If he survives until in a short distance from the city knows a small islet reserved that is home to some curious cannon. Ears aptly named egg island. Hundreds of brown and black ne soti turns madeira and storm petals and topic birds have taken up residence here to lay their eggs, which will once highly prized by the markers. To day the glamorous islet bleached white by centuries of bird droppings is a true sanctuary. So he turns and brown nodded. Nest side by side, and in order to avoid competition for food, the 2 species have separate foraging grounds and hunt different species. But this understanding does nothing to prevent the incessant quarrelling at home. And each parent ferociously defending fair offsprings living face. Limits to the public. Egg island is the ideal place to monitor population health. A project run by the government through its Environmental Management division. Lee and henry, a Marine Conservation officer managers this vital work the abundance of sea birds on the island is evidence to the exceptional richness of its waters. And in 2006, the 200 nautical miles around st. Helena were classified as a marine protected area since then, Numerous Research programs have been put in place, many of which are run by lee ann and her team. In 2012, we started the darling finer project. It was an habitat and abundance survey, with a view to making a marine manage. And then because then it had never had a marine mansion before. Was something that we were laughing to was i think are damaged is very important because if we list them, yes, there is no way of getting back on us back. And because 70 new, so oh, we have quite a few and damage. So its just time and distance that may be same special and if they go then you know the. 9 well, his last and watch to that Congress Passed out if james and i needed to use some of the think most people on the sea. Yes just. But its the same that happened on the one of the things that you can see that makes all the different. Mm. Ah ah ah ah ah ah, with such a striking array of species, saint helene as marine life represents a level of ecosystem health, but few other regions in the world still possess from underwater caves to great spies of ancient lava life flourish is here as it has done for centuries. Ah ah, this crossroads of the atlantic is a key stump of point for many pelagic species. Make the trillion devil re who effortlessly meander through the large coast to show fish before returning to the open ocean. Ah, ah, every year new species are discovered and the ongoing Scientific Research is helping us to understand how to better protect them after 30 or so known and demick species that inhabit these Crystal Clear waters. The st. Helena butterfly fish is its undisputed ambassador present in vast numbers all along the coast. They hover in thick clouds over the sunken ships that toleta the sea floor. Scrawled file fish, damsel fish, and st. Tilley, no white sea bream. Black bar, so to fish and trumpet fish, all take advantage of the haven offered by these steel caucuses. The butterfly fish play a major role in the coastal ecosystem of st. Helena. And every year, a sudden and spectacular phenomenon takes over the coast. Ah, for just a few days, a magnificent white storm swirled through the sea, millions of juveniles gathering the shallow waters, seeming to fill the entire ocean. The coastline explodes with life. And this impressive bloom attracts numerous creditors from the open sea to take advantage of the great bounty. Ah ah, ah. A true oasis of life in the vastness of the atlantic st. Helena is far from having revealed all its secrets. The islands isolation which allowed its unique wildlife to evolve, has now become a hindrance to its preservation far from the borrower, trees and universities. The conservationists often lack the human and Financial Resources needed to carry out their research. Yet, despite these difficulties, they tirelessly push on. Sometimes even late into the night ah ah, ah, emboldened by the darkness the islands, more cryptic inhabitants begin to imagine amongst the via did fire worms and fung twos moray eels. Large almond anthropologists begin their day brown, spiny and red slipper lobsters. The latter endemic to st. Helena take advantage of the dark to move around in safety. Gregarious and sedentary species, these pre historic looking creatures are the focus of a new tagging program or by monitoring the population. The research is hoped to shed light on their life cycle and behavior and determine if they can be sustainably faced with only the narrow beam of their torches, each lobster is caught by hand and given a tag, which will identify it if it is recaptured. After carefully recording the information needed, the docile crustaceans are released back into the darkness to continue their enigmatic lives. Anticipating a dramatic inc, centuries on the island is in a race to obtain baseline information on its natural resources. To understand how much can be taken without compromising the populations health. If this is still possible, when you start putting all those pieces together, you look at how many. And then when you look at the, the amounts and the quantities and stuff like that. So, i mean its green environment is quite rational and even if you look at like a fishing, you know, weve always had po 9 fishing f one fish. One hope im not. So things like that. If you put all that together then, yes, it does make that the marine capillaries baffled centers. Small face thing, apartment, larger picture when it comes with it for 4 years, maybe 5 now weve been doing work to mostly gather lens weights of the the fish dash berlin. And weve been doing some tagging been tag in the small of fish. You release them and a fee they grow and then when you fishermen started catcher sooner, then you start to get information back on how they move around the island of fishermen on san lina. They will have more information on what they should or should not catch in order to make their staff more sustainable in order to make sure that they can keep catching fish into the future. St helene as fish stocks are closely monitored and the islanders know how precious they are. But these bountiful waters im much more than a well stocked larder. They are of global importance in the field of Marine Biology and perhaps hold the key to unlocking the mysteries of the Worlds Largest fish, the well shark up to 18 meters long and weighing 20 tons. This colossus leads a discreet and often solitary life. A great nomad, the whale shark, regularly travels to use and deaths, rarely entering into shallow coastal waters. This makes it a particularly difficult animal to study despite its imposing size and much about its life is still unknown. Between its long eyes, this gentle giant sometimes visits the surface to feed on plankton warm up and perhaps even mate. But no one in the world has ever observed well sharks in the full throes of love. No one except here at st. Helena, the islands waters are the only known place where adult males and females aggregate in equal numbers as the most likely known breeding ground for well sharks. St. Helena plays a vital role in understanding and safeguarding this globally endangered animal. But for the st. The whale shark is also an indicator species, meaning that the population directly reflects the health of the island and slaughters well known by the locals for their acrobatics. The friendly pan tropical spotted dolphins are not the only species that can be found diving among the waves. After a long fishing trip, this masked ruby is making its way home. This charismatic species has settled on the rocky ledges of sandy bay to mate and raise their offspring ah, preferring to forage in deep waters. They journey far from these barren cliffs to find enough resources for this crucial period. Perhaps long every 6 hours. So parents take turns to fish and look after their chick until it is old enough to be independent. Low the parents raise only one infant. The female generally lays 2 eggs in order to strengthen its chances of survival. The eldest shake is Strong Enough. It pushes its sibling out of the nest. The parents then fail to recognize the asteroid youngster as their own. And it is left to starve. Yet despite all efforts to survive, some appetites seem insatiable. Ah ah, their parents attention may be constant, but the harsh combination of heat, hunger and relentless wind is too much for some the masked movies only returned to st helene as sure as a few years ago once present in large numbers across the island. It to suffered with the arrival of the 1st settlers in the 17th century, a disastrous cocktail of hunting habitat, modification, and intensive predation by rats and cat quickly led to the decline of the islands entire by population. And almost all