Nowhere else on earth is the power of water to create, shape and sustain life as dazzlingly evident as on the island of Sri Lanka. Rising from the waves, it is a land where not one, but two monsoons mark time each year.

A world where rains pour down, clouds swell, rivers flow and mists dance across the skies – where frosts dust the highlands and thousands of man-made lakes form a curious wonderland, filled with a wildlife that is strange, beautiful and utterly unique.

This three-part series delves into a land that harbours spectacular creatures – from the largest mammal on earth, the blue whale, to tiny ants that swarm through the rainforest.

We discover how – from the moment Sri Lanka fractured from the primeval supercontinent Gondwana and drifted to its present position – this island has been ruled by one unstoppable force: water.

Until recently, a quarter of a century of civil war isolated Sri Lanka’s wildlife from the world. But now that war is over – and Sri Lanka’s once-troubled waters are parting to reveal unseen ecological riches for the very first time.