SPY CAMERAS CAPTURE THE REMARKABLE BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL IN ANIMAL PLANET'S UPCOMING SPECIAL "POLAR BEAR: SPY ON THE ICE"

Intimate One-Hour Special Premieres on Thursday, March 10 at 10 PM ET/PT

(New York, New York, February 28, 2011) - Award winning filmmaker John Downer (ELEPHANTS: SPY IN THE HERD, TIGER: SPY IN THE JUNGLE), who revolutionized natural history filmmaking by pioneering the use of spy cameras to capture animal's most intimate moments, has created a new team of spy cams to film polar bears in Norway. Now, on Thursday, March 10 at 10 PM ET/PT, one of the world's most dangerous predators will be seen in an engaging new perspective in the special POLAR BEAR: SPY ON THE ICE.

POLAR BEAR: SPY ON THE ICE follows polar bear mothers Aesa and Svanna as they lead their cubs on a journey across frozen land in arctic Norway. Their destination: sea ice on the edge of the polar ice cap surrounding the North Pole - the ultimate hunting grounds for life sustaining seals. It's an expedition that will take months and the perils will be especially great, with brand new cubs in tow. Each mother will need endurance, ingenuity, and steadfast determination to safely make it through this incredible journey alive.

Narrated by Novella Nelson (The Last Airbender, 30 Rock) and composed by Will Gregory of the pop group Goldfrapp and Richard Fiocca of the miniseries Life, POLAR BEAR: SPY ON THE ICE presents viewers with an enchanting look at the daily life of two very special polar bear families and the other bears they encounter along their journey - all while focusing on the innate curiosity of these extraordinary animals. To capture this personal perspective, in one of the most barren and harshest environments on earth, the special utilizes an impressive photographic arsenal of devices created especially to infiltrate the world of the polar bear:

* Snow-cam: Disguised as a clump of snow that can trundle across both land and ice using 4-wheel drive and tundra wheels.

* Blizzard-cam: A mobile unit powered by propellers that can travel up to 37 miles an hour.

* Iceberg-cam: Sculpted to look like a mass of ice, this camera maneuvers through the water in between sheets of ice and even captures swimming bears beneath the icy surface.

POLAR BEAR: SPY ON THE ICE is directed by John Downer. Mick Kaczorowski is the executive producer for Animal Planet.

Animal Planet Media (APM), a multi-media business unit of Discovery Communications, is the world's only entertainment brand that immerses viewers in the full range of life in the animal kingdom with rich, deep content via multiple platforms and offers animal lovers and pet owners access to a centralized online, television and mobile community for immersive, engaging, high-quality entertainment, information and enrichment. APM consists of the Animal Planet television network, available in more than 97 million homes in the US; online assets www.animalplanet.com, the ultimate online destination for all things animal; the 24/7 broadband channel, Animal Planet Beyond; Petfinder.com, the #1 pet-related Web property globally that facilitates pet adoption; and other media platforms including a robust Video-on-Demand (VOD) service; mobile content; and merchandising extensions.