Watch Journey of the Pelicans – An Australian Outback Mystery for free

The Australian “spectacled” pelican is a strange bird. Large (about 1.6 m), heavy (up to 10kg), with a huge beak and short legs, on land it looks clumsy, but in the air, it shows off its skills: it can fly for up to 24 hours at a time. And sometimes that is necessary. Actually, the “spectacled” pelican is at home in Australia’s coastal areas, where the waters teem with fish. But in some years, tens of thousands migrate inland to breed. An event that still puzzles scientists today. The inland desert has waterholes and lakes where fish live, but not enough for a massive breeding colony of pelicans. It is different in years with exceptional rainy periods. Dry rivers then turn into raging floods, wide depressions into huge lakes. Life explodes and the fish multiply extremely fast. But how do the pelicans know when to leave? Why is there suddenly so much fish here to feed the birds and their young? The film follows the pelicans on their journey to examine these questions. Endless dead straight roads cross the outback with its characteristic animals such as kangaroos, emus and cockatoos. Sunsets evoke the dream trails of the Australian aborigines, romantic campfires and Australian adventure. High above, the pelicans fly determinedly towards their destination: the nesting grounds in the middle of the desert. Once there, they breed on small islands where they also raise their young. Only in flood years are there enough fish for tens of thousands of them to feed and raise their chicks. The challenges are immense, and time is short because everything will soon dry up again. If the water holds for the four months it takes for the young to fledge, they all fly back together to their "normal" home, the abundant waters around Australia.