Institut für den wissenschaftlichen Film (IWF)

Bonobos show a particularly pronounced sexual activity and an extraordinarily broad spectrum of sexual contacts for primates. These also extend to non-reproductive life phases and partner combinations. For example, homosexual contacts and sexual contacts between young animals or with adults are frequent, and females are ready to mate throughout the menstrual cycle. Bonobos use sexual contacts not only for reproductive purposes, but also in the context of social conflicts, where they have a clear tension-reducing or peacemaking function.

Short film on the mating behaviour of donkeys

Various amphibious pond dwellers, including grass frogs, tree frogs, common toads and other amphibians are shown moving around, feeding, mating, fertilizing and evolving. Also on display are natterjack and midwife toads, yellow-bellied toads and water frogs.

The three-spined stickleback is shown. Nest building, zigzag dance, fanning at the nest, sometimes following a female, also short mouth fights, the female swimming into the nest, spawning, the male poking at the rear end of the partner, inseminating the eggs in the nest after the female swims away.

Documentary on how the osprey catches its prey. The film shows the search for prey, the launch maneuvers, take-off maneuvers and the fights with the fish.

Short film about the movement patterns of protozoa

Short film about the life cycle of a moon jellyfish

Using gland regions on their heads, warthogs mark poles and other objects for self-orientation. Males often mark during the mating season. The male also sprays urine when searching for and inspecting sleeping cavities.

The courtship behavior of Great Bustards is studied. The male Great Bustard is considerably larger than the female. This impression is reinforced during courtship when the male dances in front of the female, showing the light undersides of its wings and inflating its throat pouch.

The arousal behavior of the warthog is shown. Also explained is the muzzle fight between boars and females.

Experiments on the crystallization of various inorganic substances: crystallization from solution, crystallization from melt and vapour phase, mixed crystal formation, oriented growth, change from a metastable into a stable phase.

During the ewing-period the shepherd has to take especially care of the flocks. He has to assist the ewes in ewing, to control the feeding of the lambs, and to switch orphaned and abandoned lambs to ewes that have lost their lamb. This is still done by the traditional method of skinning: The dead lamb's skin is slipped on the abandoned lamb to deceive the mother ewe. At this time the shepherd must also warm newly-born, supercooled lambs inside the house and feed them artificially.

The film documents the tobacco season of 1993/94 from the planting of the tobacco through the harvest and sale until the sowing for the next season - using some small planters from the villages around Schwedt on the Oder and a large farm, the former Agricultural Co-operative in Vierraden in an exemplary manner. It describes the transformation in the technical and agricultural fields. Different planters and representatives of the Tobacco Grower's Association discuss the situation of tobacco planting in the GDR compared to current conditions and answer questions on their self-organisation and on the future of tobacco cultivation in the Uckermark.

Before shearing, done with electric devices and hand shears, lambs are separated from the flock. The lambs are not yet shorn but dipped in a disinfectant, parasiticidal liquid prescribed by law. For the auction, held in autumn, the sheep for sale are loaded on special trucks and transported from the pasture to the public sale.

The film gives a survey on innate behaviour patterns of the grey-lag goose. The first part shows reproductive behaviour. In the second part some behaviour patterns of gosling being imprinted on their human foster parent are shown: following reaction, separation of two flocks according to their imprinting, response to the alarm call and landing "by order" of the flying young.

The film shows a single-row beet harvester in action during the sugar beet harvest. The topping of the beets is shown at normal speed. The test conditions used are explained.

A portrait of the German city of Ulm and it's social activities, fassades, court building. Also about the role of the district court during National Socialism.

The film shows open air shots of life in the colony of the sea lion. The following behaviours are shown: establishing territories and rivalry fights, courting and mating, feeding the young, play among young animals.

The film shows the spatial distribution and the behaviour of the Mediterranean demoiselle Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis on typical reproduction waters. The great importance of suitable perches becomes obvious. These perches, e. g. single rush stems, are used by immature, hunting individuals as well as by reproductive males that are controlling territories from these sites. The latter chase all other individuals, the result being a spatial segregation between immature and reproductive specimens during the day. Typical behaviour, such as threatening, courting, copulation, and oviposition is shown in different film speeds.

The film shows birds and mammals of Spitzbergen: The snow bunting, Phalaropus fulicarius, Stercorarius parasiticus, the red throated loon, the arctic gull, the puffin, the black guillemot, the loon and the common guillemot are photographed at the hatching place. In addition reindeer, arctic foxes and musk oxen are shown. The voices of seven kinds of animals are heard.