National Geographic's Wings Over the Serengeti [VHS]
In the heat-withered Serengeti, a hungry lioness spots her unsuspecting prey and springs into action.National Geographichas brought us this and similar scenes before, butWings over the Serengetireveals the complex aftermath of the kill. As the lioness struggles to drag her prize to safety, the smell of fresh meat instantly broadcasts across the plains, drawing a wave of scavengers who will move in for the next taste.While this film focuses primarily on the griffin vulture ("nature's undertaker"), it considers the role of all scavengers in this harsh ecosystem--generally despised as harbingers of death, they actually help maintain the health of the savanna by disposing of waste and returning nutrients to the soil. Insect larvae dissolve skeletons, and the bumbling dung beetle distributes its little nitrogen-rich packages evenly across the land. Lingering images of carnage are not for the faint of heart, but the film is an interesting study of the transformation from death to life.--Claire Campbell