The first of five episodes this week on the natural history of the Pacific Polynesian islands. This programme looks at the tropical paradise of Tahiti, one of the first regions of Polynesia to become inhabited..
Far to the west of Tahiti, on the edge of the open Pacific, lie the islands of Fiji. The people who first came here more than 3000 years ago discovered ancient tropical forests. The azure-blue lagoons of Fiji's 400 islands harboured spectacular underwater coral gardens nurtured by rich water rising six miles from the ocean depths. But who were the first Fijians and why did they come to these untamed islands? In the shifting sands of Fiji's largest island lie clues to the origins of the Polynesians.
When Fletcher Christian discovered the remote Pitcairn Island, he and his crew literally burnt their boat and became castaways on this speck of land for the rest of their lives. The plants and animals of the South Sea islands, similarly isolated, adapted in unique ways, such as the chicken bird of Henderson Island, which gave up the power of flight a long time ago. And on the mysterious Easter Island, the most lonely place in the Pacific, the extraordinary way of life of its statue-worshipping inhabitants eventually led to the degradation of the land.
The great migrations of the Polynesian people to the remote islands of Hawaii and New Zealand were their most ambitious. In the volcanic islands of Hawaii the settlers became experts at horticulture and fish farming, and developed a distinctive culture with hula dancing and masked warriors. In New Zealand the migrants had to adapt to a cooler climate.
The Maori had inhabited New Zealand for more than 1,000 years before the outside world discovered the wealth of the land, its wildlife and natural resources. In the wake of the explorers came whalers and timbermen to plunder the wildlife. The story was the same in Hawaii and Tahiti. Today, there are reassuring signs of a revival in the fortunes of the people and wildlife of Polynesia.