Asia’s Wild Secrets

The Asian continent is home to some of the most iconic, strange, and recognisable animals on the planet.

Despite being the largest feline, tigers are also one of the hardest to spot. Most mammals, including a tiger’s favourite meals, are red-green blind. While they take on a brilliant orange hue to us, to its prey, tigers look as green as the foliage surrounding them.

The Giant Panda is very cute and very weird. Despite possessing the same types of teeth that other meat-eaters have, placing them in the order Carnivora, 99% of their diet is bamboo. This reliance on a single plant species makes them unbelievably vulnerable to environmental changes. Without humans managing their wildlife, they will go extinct.

In the Tiberian plateau, vultures are sacred creatures. Their featherless necks, a keen sense of smell and long wingspans allow them to glide for hours, patiently waiting till they detect a corpse. Their stomach acids are more acidic than any other animal, allowing them to feast on diseased flesh and animal waste without dying.

Discover more about these and many other amazing creatures who call Asia their home.

Sundays at 6 PM on National Geographic Wild (ch 221) from Sunday, 21 March