Great Lakes: The Big Freeze explores wintertime in the Great Lakes when animals must deal with extreme temperatures and brutal blizzards. Snow and ice have shaped life in this region, starting with the coming and going of the Laurentide ice sheet thousands of years ago.
On a single breath under a foot of ice, two free divers explore the largest body of fresh water on earth and experience a beautiful and volatile world of living ice. Where they swim was once a colossal ice sheet grinding into the bedrock of North America. When it melted, five giant lakes were left behind. But each year the ice returns, forcing all life to adapt to the powerful and dangerous forces at work.
A powerful jet stream creates an extreme range of weather conditions such as huge ice storms, the world’s largest freshwater waves, and Lake Effect snow. The region is infamous for its difficult winter weather, boasting the deepest snowfalls in eastern North America. But life doesn’t stop when the temperatures drop below zero. Intrepid surfer Sonia Jafaar rides the icy waves while free-diving river otters frolic beneath the surface of Lake Huron and search for ice-free areas to hunt.
A new phenomenon, the polar vortex, creates cold snaps that paralyze gizzard shad and goldeneye ducks, attracting dozens of hungry bald eagles from Lake Michigan. Ravens use their problem-solving intelligence to lead predators like the grey wolf to a white-tailed deer trapped by a frozen lake. Baby black bears use snow as insulation while ruffed grouse use it as camouflage. A Canadian lynx reveals how it is perfectly adapted to deep snow with its huge paws. Giant freshwater cod sing and mate in the frigid waters. In the forests bordering Lake Ontario, amazing nighttime footage reveals flying squirrels using their ultra-violet fur to communicate and avoid predators while avoiding snow and conserving energy. Ice drifts on the wind create weird formations in Lake Erie and shifting ice produce a mysterious singing sound.
But some creatures are suffering greatly due to the shorter and warmer winters. Biologist Matt Scafford studies a rare breed of wolverine threatened by the warming climate. Conservationist Poe Dechampes works to protect Great Lakes moose who are now declining in large numbers due to a rising number of ticks.
Ice and snow created North America’s Great Lakes and over time, the species who depend on the lakes have evolved to survive the harsh elements. The inhabitants of the Great Lakes have evolved over time to live in these harsh, unforgiving conditions, but things are moving quickly in a warming world. The future of life in the Great Lakes will be shaped by one species – us.