NATURE: Dracula's Hidden Kingdom

By Jennifer Robinson / Web Producer

Published October 28, 2024 at 2:48 PM PDT

Bran Castle is often called the lair of Vlad Dracul (Vlad the Impaler), a 15th Century warlord widely regarded as the inspiration for Dracula. However, Vlad barely visited the castle, if at all. Transylvania, Romania.

Premieres Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 at 8 p.m. on KPBS TV / PBS app + Encores Sunday, Nov. 3 at 3 p.m. on KPBS TV and 8 p.m.on KPBS 2

Discover Transylvania, one of Europe’s last true wildernesses in central Romania. It is a land of folklore and mythology shielded by the majestic Carpathian Mountains, where some of the biggest wolf packs on the continent roam.

NATURE: Preview of Dracula’s Hidden Kingdom

A sanctuary to vast ancient forests, the region is the realm of magnificent lynxes and brown bears. White storks, a symbol of good luck and fertility, nest in medieval village farms. Bats, winged creatures of the night, hunt and shelter in a 500-year-old church.

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A Grey wolf (Canis lupus) in the snow. Transylvania has some of Europe’s largest wolf packs.

"Dracula's Hidden Kingdom" is narrated by Jeremy Irons.

A European brown bear (Ursus arctos) mother and her two cubs silhouetted in the sun. Transylvania is home to almost half of Europe’s brown bears.

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NATURE: Meet the Bats of Dracula's Home

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A Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) standing in the snow.

NATURE: Dracula's Hidden Kingdom

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