Endangered uncontacted tribe to feature on Discovery Channel
April 15, 2011
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The Discovery Channel will show unique footage of an uncontacted tribe on Sunday, April 17 (9pm, ET and PT) in the Grasslands and Jungles episode of the new, groundbreaking show Human Planet.
The film shows an uncontacted tribe in the Brazilian Amazon, in never before seen detail. The BBC film crew used HD cameras and state-of-the-art techniques from a distance of over half a mile to capture the footage.
Movie star Gillian Anderson has launched Survival’s urgent campaign to protect uncontacted tribes from extinction, narrating an extraordinary film using the BBC footage.
Ms Anderson said, ‘What comes across very powerfully from this amazing footage is how healthy and confident these people appear. I hope they can be left alone – but that will only happen if the loggers are stopped.’
Watch the footage:
The tribe, who live near the Brazil-Peru border, are threatened by illegal logging on the Peruvian side.
More than two million people have already watched Survival’s film online. Photos of the tribe, released by Survival in January with the authorization of Brazil’s Indian Affairs Department, made newspaper headlines worldwide.
The Peruvian authorities have announced that they will work together with Brazil to curb illegal logging on the land of uncontacted tribes.
The film shows a thriving and healthy tribe, with baskets of manioc and papaya, banana plants and vegetable gardens. Men, women and children look curiously, but without panic, up to the plane.
They are one of many uncontacted tribes in the Amazon region. Illegal loggers, ranchers and oil companies are endangering the tribes through deforestation, and risk exposing them to diseases to which they have no immunity.
Tess Thackara, coordinator of Survival International USA, said today, ‘The beautiful, breathtaking Human Planet footage allows us a tiny window on the lives of an uncontacted tribe. Watching it is quite overwhelming, and amazing numbers of people who have seen it have been moved to take action to protect uncontacted tribes.’
