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The Philippine archipelago is made up of over 7,000 tropical islands and is a breeding ground for many rare animals. On the stunning island of Palawan, where craggy limestone cliffs poke out from the dense jungle, giant bugs roam the land. Predators line the edge of the forests, while rivers help carve one of the world’s most extensive cave systems, a subterranean cavernous world crowded with bats, whip scorpions, tarantulas, and other insects. This is the home of the mysterious bearcat, an animal that looks like a cross between a bear and a cat though related to neither and is as agile in the trees as a monkey.

Over in British Columbia, Canada, lies Vancouver Island, a vast and wild island with a backbone of jagged mountains running its length. The largest island off the west coast of North America, its glaciers fuel the flow of some of Canada’s tallest waterfalls and an endless network of rivers and creeks make it the ideal habitat for the Pacific salmon. Turkey vultures gather for the migration south as they head for warmer weather in winter.

Between the continents of North and South America is a tropical paradise: The Caribbean. This is an archipelago of over 7,000 islands and reefs, lying within the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean Sea. From just a few metres wide, to hundreds of kilometers across, every island is different, and each has its own unique wildlife. Under the cover of darkness, giant leatherback turtles visit Trinidad’s beaches to lay their eggs. Dominica’s volcanic heritage gives it fertile soils, making the island rich in flowering plants. These provide food for some of the Caribbean’s fastest movers: hummingbirds. The Caribbean’s coral reefs are one of its richest treasures. Many of the species that find shelter here are found nowhere else. These warm, calm waters provide sanctuary for ocean giants too. Humpback whales travel thousands of miles to raise their young in the Caribbean Sea.

Lying 40km off the east coast of Tanzania in Africa, the Zanzibar Archipelago has been labeled as the most exotic island chain in the world. Pristine sands and azure blue sea make it a much loved holiday destination, but bizarre creatures, many of enormous size also roam the islands. The world’s largest crab scales trees in search of coconuts, and clouds of giant bats fill the skies at dusk.

Lying just off the coast of West Scotland, the Hebrides archipelago is made up of more than 500 islands and islets. Over 35,000 Grey seals choose one small beach to give birth and do battle for breeding rights. On other isles, some of the world’s largest gatherings of sea birds engulf precipitous cliffs in a bid to raise their young. On the Isle of Rum, Britain’s largest land mammal, the red deer, prepares for the annual rut, while Golden eagles patrol the skies anticipating their next meal. For thousands of years, people have battled with the Hebridean elements – the most treacherous on the planet and the roar from the world’s third largest whirlpool can be heard up to 16 kilometres away

Explore the unique array of Asian and Arctic species that inhabit Japan, an expansive chain of 6,852 islands stretching over 2,400 kilometers and covering a range of wildly diverse climatic zones including snow-covered mountains and steamy mangroves. This is home to wildlife not found anywhere else on Earth, including some of the planet’s hardiest species. Winter in Japan’s central and northern islands can be savage. In bleak, inhospitable conditions in Honshu, snow monkeys or Japanese macaques endure the bitter cold of Hell’s Valley by basking in warm volcanic pools.