Mississippi – The Wild North | NDR.de – television – broadcasts AZ

The Mississippi is a superlative river, a North American legend. The most water-rich and powerful river in the USA covers almost 4,000 kilometers from its source in Minnesota to its huge estuary near New Orleans. It crosses almost the entire state of the USA and flows through eight states. The two-parter follows the course of the great river, from the severe winter on the upper reaches to the flood of the century on the Gulf of Mexico.

Paradise for water birds and birds of prey

As early as autumn 2010, the Mississippi was carrying more water than normal. The summer was unusually wet. The river is filled to the brim when it flows into Lake Winnibigoshish about 170 kilometers from its source. For a short time, the Mississippi is transformed into a paradise for thousands of water birds that migrate from the increasingly colder north to southern regions. In Minnesota they encounter one of the largest wintering areas for the bald eagle, the heraldic animal of the USA. The mighty birds of prey take one coot after the next out of the water in daring flight maneuvers.

The forests are habitat for lynx and wolf

The bobcat lives a good 200 kilometers further south. The beautiful wild cat is only twice the size of a house cat and, like them, is an excellent hunter. In the snow, which is now high, even cottontail rabbits that hook perfectly have no chance of escaping it.

Wolves have survived in the forests of Minnesota thanks to strict protection. Once heavily hunted, there are now around 3,000 specimens again. This is bad for the sedate tree prick, and even with its spines, it can’t oppose an experienced wolf.

Driven hunt with snow groomers

The Mississippi is frozen in thick ice like seldom before. The frozen river has become a stable hiking trail for white-tailed deer or coyotes. Even people with heavy snowmobiles can easily drive on it. The men prepare a special fishing trip. They use chainsaws to cut holes in the ice and slide nets into the depths. Then the driven hunt begins: with noisy snow groomers they corner the frightened fish and pull them out of the water en masse.

Gradually the severe winter is coming to an end and the ice cover of the river is tearing open. Now all the precipitation of the past few months is melting within a short time. It is already foreseeable that in the coming spring a flood will drown villages and cities, landscapes and countless animals with its floods.

The second part shows the dramatic effects of the flood of the century in 2011 and how the animals manage to cope with the disaster.

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