Planet Earth II crew put every surviving baby turtle filmed for series finale back into the sea after viewers ask: ‘Why is no one helping them?’
Fans of Sir David Attenborough's stunning documentary were distressed by the scenes
THE series finale of Sir David Attenborough's Planet Earth II ended in tears last night when viewers feared BBC crew had failed to save the baby turtles facing certain death.
Millions held their breath as they watched the hatchlings narrowly miss being hit by cars on a busy Barbados road after being attracted by light pollution.
But instead of revealing their fate, the hit documentary ended - forcing BBC bosses to assure distressed viewers that crew had stepped in to save the turtles.
A BBC Earth spokesman tweeted: "Every turtle that was seen or filmed by the #PlanetEarth2 crew was collected and put back into the sea."
It's after baby turtles were filmed walking away from the sea after being distracted by the bright lights.
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Carly Rowena tweeted: "The turtles mistaking city light for the moon absolutely broke my heart. We need to be more aware of life around us."
Hannah Trott said: "The baby turtle story on #PlanetEarth this week has got to be the most brutal thing I've seen on TV recently."
"Just absolutely cried my eyes out at the baby turtles on last night's planet earth," said Beth Coulson.
Some turtles were filmed being caught by crabs, while others were seen falling down storm drains.
Others tried desperately to avoid the high-speed cars after they mistakenly ventured onto the road.
It was a tense ending to the six-part series which has been hailed by critics.
More then 12 million people are expected to have watched last night - making it the the most-watched natural history show of the past 15 years.
The stunning shots throughout the documentary were impressively captured by 22 cameramen and helped by more than 40 production staff.
Across 2,089 shooting days the Planet Earth team carried out 117 expeditions in 40 countries.
It ended with Sir David urging viewers to help save the planet, as he stood at the top of The Shard in London.
He expressed his dismay at humans’ inability to “build cities more in harmony with nature”, and insisted: “It doesn’t have to be like this.”
He added: “Only a small number of animals have managed to find ways of living alongside us. And every ten years an area the size of Britain disappears under a jungle of concrete. But it doesn’t have to be like this.
“Could it not be possible to build cities more in harmony with nature?
“Now over half of us live in an urban environment. My home too is here in the city of London.
Every ten years an area the size of Britain disappears under a jungle of concrete. But it doesn’t have to be like this.
Sir David Attenborough
“It’s also sobering. It reminds me of just how easy it is for us to lose our connection with the natural world.
“Yet it’s on this connection that the future of both humanity and the natural world depend. It’s surely our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us, but for all life on Earth.”
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