NAT GEO WILD OFFERS VIEWERS A PASSPORT TO THE PLANET FROM THE COMFORTS OF THEIR OWN HOME IN NEW EPISODES OF "DESTINATION WILD"

Actors Michelle Dockery and Cillian Murphy Lend Their Voices to Next Installment of Natural History Specials to Air on Nat Geo WILD

(Pasadena, CA - Jan. 6, 2016) Forget the long lines at the airport, don't bother with the excessive baggage fees and avoid the anguish of the dreaded middle seat. Instead, cuddle up at home with Nat Geo WILD for an epic, worldwide expedition to some of the most pristine locations on the planet.

Last year Nat Geo WILD transported viewers to exotic locales in the Sunday night series Destination Wild. In 2016, WILD continues this commitment to showcasing the very best in wildlife programming, rolling out all-new episodes of Destination Wild, including four impressive three-hour specials from esteemed production teams at the BBC Natural History Unit and other trailblazers in wildlife entertainment. Through unmatched cinematography from world-renowned filmmakers, these exciting specials will have viewers trading in their passports for a bowl of popcorn. For more information, visit natgeowild.com or our press site http://www.foxflash.com, or follow us on Twitter using @NGC_PR.

Nat Geo WILD's globetrotting adventure continues with all-new episodes of Destination Wild airing weekly through March. The three-hour specials include:

Destination Wild: Wild Sri Lanka

Premieres: Sunday, Feb. 14, from 8/7c to 11/10c

The three-hour special from the internationally acclaimed production team at Terra Mater Factual Films received nominations at the Greenscreen Festival and NaturVision Film Festival in 2015. Sri Lanka is smaller than the state of West Virginia, yet it's one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet. This film explores the unique tropical island in captivating detail. Daring camera shoots on land, above the trees and below the sea reveal an astonishing array of species endemic only to Sri Lanka, including the purple-faced leaf monkey, carnivorous plants and elephants with traits seen nowhere else in the world.

Destination Wild: Wild Japan *Narrated by Michelle Dockery

Premieres: Sunday, March 20, from 8/7c to 11/10c

Wild Japan, narrated by "Downton Abbey"'s Michelle Dockery is a wildlife masterpiece from the BBC Natural History Unit. Surprisingly, in Japan's crowded archipelago there are still places where nature thrives and vast ranges of pristine landscapes remain to be explored: from the far north of Hokkaido, where giant eagles walk on frozen seas, to the subtropical southern islands of Okinawa, with coral reefs and erupting volcanoes, and the mountainous central islands, home to picturesque cherry blossoms, macaques that have taken over a human spa and giant carp that help clean people's dishes!

Destination Wild: The Wild Atlantic *Narrated by Cillian Murphy

Premieres: 3Q16

Hitch a ride on underwater currents for a fast-paced, epic adventure across the Atlantic Ocean, from the Arctic to the Antarctic and from sun-drenched tropical reefs to crushing abyssal depths. Ferocious hurricanes and huge chains of undersea volcanoes make this dynamic ocean phenomenally rich in life, but only for species that can survive its challenges. Narrated by actor Cillian Murphy, the three-hour special from the BBC Natural History Unit follows humpback whales' 4,000-mile migration, travels along the world's most extensive underwater mountain range and explores the Caribbean's exotic coral reefs.

Destination Wild: Wild Indonesia

Premieres: 3Q16

Wild Indonesia, from the award-winning production company Off the Fence, celebrates the varied landscapes and impressive creatures that reside among the 17,000 islands that comprise the nation of Indonesia: from tropical forests that climb out of steamy lowlands and up the mountain slopes, to places where parched savanna thrives or coral reefs line thousands of tranquil atolls while relentless waves batter rocky cliffs. In Papua, the mountains reach so high that permanent ice caps top their peaks, surrounded by barren alpine tundra.

The full Destination Wild schedule is as follows:

Sun. Jan. 10 at 9/8c - Animal Dance Battles *2-hour special

Sun. Jan. 17 at 8/7c - DisneyNature Oceans

Sun. Jan. 17 at 10/9c - Wild Antarctica

Sun. Jan. 24 at 9 /8c - River Jaws: Monster Catfish

Sun. Jan. 31 at 9/*c - Mission Critical: Leopards at the Door Leopards at the Door

Sun. Feb. 14 at 8/7c - Wild Sri Lanka *3-hour special

Sun. Feb. 21 at 8/7c - Peru's Wild Kingdom

Sun. Feb. 21 at 9/8c - Amazon Underworld

Sun. Feb. 21 at 10/9c - Wild Colombia

Sun. Feb. 28 at 8/7c - National Parks: Everglades

Sun. Feb. 28 at 9/8c - National Parks: Gates of the Arctic

Sun. March 13 at 8/7c - Big Cats: An Amazing Animal Family (wt)*2-hour special

Sun. March 20 at 8/7c - Wild Japan *3-hour special

Sun. March 27 at 8/7c - Lion Queen (wt)

Sun. March 27 at 9/8c - Dark Side of Crocs (wt)