Original subtitles

So far on Life Story,

we've seen animals learn

the lessons of childhood...

..enter the adult world...

..and find a safe home.

Now they must battle for dominance.

CHIMPS SCREAM

Because those with power get privileges.

The best food, the best territory...

..and the chance to beat rivals for a mate.

But only a lucky few will ever reach the top.

BIRDS CHIRP

Senegal, West Africa.

A forest water hole offers this group of chimpanzees

a rare respite from the heat of the day.

They are the lowliest members of their 30-strong troop.

Advanced age has robbed this old male of the standing

he once enjoyed.

CHIMP HOWLS

And the youngsters are not old enough to really

worry about status while still protected by their mothers.

But this teenage male is too old to play with the babies any more.

CHIMP GRUNTS

The time has come for him to leave them behind

and try to break into the ranks of the powerful adult males.

This is particularly hard for a young male,

because competition for top spots is so intense.

And worse, he's an orphan, without friends, protection or guidance.

These males are the troop leaders.

They hold all the power here.

Joining them is every young male's ambition.

To be accepted into this elite is the path to privilege,

but it's a dangerous journey.

CHIMPS GRUNT

The youngster decides to follow.

At first, he has enough sense to keep his distance.

These males are twice his size.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM WILDLY

The low-ranking chimps retreat

before the troop leaders arrive at the water hole.

Dominant males have a highly stressful life,

as they constantly squabble to protect their position.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM

The youngster can't take his eyes off them.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM

This is his chance to get himself noticed.

If he can impress even one of the big males with

a show of strength, he might just be accepted into their ranks.

His best attempt at a macho display has certainly

caught their attention.

CHIMP HOWLS

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM

But they are not impressed.

CHIMPS BEAT ON WOOD

In fact, this drumming means they're getting rather angry.

And they attack.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM

The youngster is not quick enough.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SCREAM WILDLY

He gets a short, sharp lesson about how hard it can be

to break into this close-knit gang.

CHIMPS BARK

He's lucky to escape with just an injured hand.

CHIMP WHINES

For the moment, he's neither big enough nor strong enough

to be taken seriously by the troop leaders.

Without status, he will never enjoy the privileges of the best

food or the attention of females.

But aggression may not be the only route for a youngster to gain power.

Being at the bottom of the pile doesn't just mean a lack of status.

For some, it can mean the difference between life and death.

By midwinter, several hundred Alaskan bald eagles

have gathered on the Chilkat River.

They're here because it is the only source of food for miles around.

This river holds the last of the year's spawning salmon.

Battles amongst adult eagles establish who holds the power,

and here, power means who gets food and who doesn't.

EAGLES SQUAWK

EAGLES SQUAWK

EAGLES SQUAWK AND CHIRP

So, what can a low ranking, powerless juvenile do

if she isn't going to starve?

She must grab any opportunity that presents itself

before adults stake their claim.

EAGLE CALLS

She tries to sneak in, unnoticed by the adults.

But she's been spotted.

EAGLE SQUAWKS

The juvenile has done all the hard work.

But her success is short-lived.

CHIRPING AND SQUAWKING

EAGLE SQUAWKS

She can't afford to give up just yet.

EAGLE CHIRPS

The youngster may not be strong enough to fight for her fish.

But other adults will.

The adult's power games might just help her.

Now is her chance.

EAGLE CAWS

The squabble rapidly escalates into a full-blown fight.

FRANTIC CHIRPING

This isn't about the fish any more.

This is about one adult enforcing dominance over another.

The reclaimed fish is enough to keep the juvenile alive

for at least a few more days.

But there's a long, hard winter ahead.

Dawn in Africa's Kalahari Desert.

In meerkat society,

the success of the troop depends on decisions made by the leader.

Where to feed, where to sleep

and how to deal with danger.

MEERKAT CHATTERS

No individual can hope to climb the hierarchy

unless it accumulates knowledge.

MEERKAT CHATTERS

MEERKAT CHATTERS

As the others wake up and emerge,

this young meerkat is already up and on his way to his lookout post.

Being on watch is an excellent time

to learn about the complexity of the troop's world.

Where they forage...

..and who is friends with who.

MEERKATS CHATTER

But it's important not to lose concentration.

A quick scramble back into position before anybody notices.

Scanning the skies is a lookout's most important task,

because the troop is vulnerable to aerial attack by birds of prey.

BIRDS CHATTER

Youngsters quickly learn that weaverbirds are no danger.

The more he watches, the more he learns,

and the easier it becomes to distinguish friend from foe.

Or plain nuisance.

But there's only so much even a keen student can take in

at one sitting, especially on an empty stomach.

So, this watcher abandons his post and heads off to feed.

MEERKAT SCREECHES

A cobra.

There is no greater test for a young meerkat

than how it deals with danger like this face to face.

In the next few minutes, he's going to get the most important

lesson of his young life.

BIRDS CRY

For kangaroos,

the greatest challenges come from within their own society.

For a male, there's only really one key lesson to learn in his life.

To get to the top, he must become a fighter.

The battles are so brutal that males need years of training to prepare.

The effort is worth it,

because a champion fighter wins privileged access to the females.

This meadow is a boot camp for aspiring boxers.

Training starts as soon as a youngster is out of the pouch.

Its mother is a handy opponent for a young joey learning the basics.

But he's soon off in search of more sparring partners.

The other grown-ups are not so tolerant of this lightweight.

This male alone rules the meadow.

He stands eight feet tall,

his muscles hardened by years of sparring.

Today, a challenger for his title has come forward.

Full-blown fights are so dangerous, they're not entered into lightly.

But when two males square up, it's time to clear the arena.

Anything goes in these power struggles.

Eye gouging is entirely within the rules.

So is kicking below the belt.

The dominant male's skill is already telling.

The stakes are high.

They risk broken bones and internal injuries.

Suddenly...

..it's all over.

The champion has beaten off the challenger, at least for now.

Only a few of the youngsters looking on will ever reach the top.

And they've just seen exactly what it takes to get there.

This young meerkat is facing a much more immediate and pressing test.

Nothing can really prepare a youngster for such a moment.

Should he attack or run?

COBRA HISSES AND MEERKAT GROWLS

For the good of the troop, there is only one right choice.

He sounds the alarm to summon help.

MEERKAT SCREECHES FRANTICALLY

The rest of the clan, some 20 strong, rush to the scene.

MEERKATS BARK AND SCREECH

COBRA HISSES

MEERKAT GROWLS

Once these reinforcements arrive,

the confrontation becomes completely one-sided.

MEERKATS GROWL

MEERKATS GROWL AND BARK

COBRA HISSES

The cobra is fast,

but meerkats are faster.

MEERKATS GROWL AND BARK

COBRA HISSES

A clash like this is not as dangerous as it might appear.

COBRA HISSES

MEERKATS BARK

The cobra is on the defensive,

and is now simply trying to get away from the baying hordes.

The situation quickly turns into an open-air lesson, as the adults

show the youngsters how to deal with a snake.

Danger averted,

the older meerkats drift away to resume feeding.

Meeting a cobra for the first time is a valuable lesson,

which leaves a young meerkat a good deal wiser!

MEERKAT CHIRPS

In Senegal, it's been several weeks since the young chimp made

his disastrous attempt to break into the elite group of dominant males.

He's still at the bottom of the hierarchy, and alone.

He uses a stick to winkle out a few termites for his lunch.

While he feeds, he's being watched.

It's another subordinate male, larger and a few years older.

He doesn't appear threatening or aggressive.

This male seems keen for the youngster to follow him.

The older chimp leads the way up into the canopy.

The youngster hesitates.

Perhaps his last encounter with older chimps is still

fresh in his memory.

Does he follow or turn his back on what may be an opportunity?

Finally, he climbs up towards the older chimp.

One false move could lead to another beating.

He makes an appeasing smile.

It seems to be accepted.

Emboldened, he takes a big risk and moves closer

and reaches out to the older male.

His instinct was right.

Grooming is a sign of acceptance and trust.

The youngster has made a friend and perhaps gained a mentor.

Now he has someone he can learn from, someone to look out for him.

With this new-found partnership, the orphaned youngster has taken

that crucial step onto the social ladder.

For the first time, he has some status within the troop.

It will change his life.

Among Asian archerfish, it's the biggest that gets the most food.

And they have an extraordinary method of catching prey.

They fire a powerful jet of water at their target.

The best shooters will grow quickest.

With food scarce,

there's a race among small fish to master the water-jet technique.

But it's difficult to perfect.

A fish must adjust its jet based on the prey's size and distance,

and then compensate for the way light bends as it passes

through the water surface.

Getting it right can take hundreds of attempts.

But there is a way to shortcut the learning process.

A youngster can seek out a larger archerfish.

It'll stick close to the sharpshooter, spending its days

studying the master's technique.

When they part company,

the young fish will resume his search for food.

Somehow, in a way not yet understood,

a young fish can imitate the adult's aiming and firing technique

and shortcut the need to practise.

Unfortunately, becoming a sharpshooter is only half the story.

There's another reason why big fish get the lion's share.

They're bullies.

But, armed with this newfound skill,

a young fish's future will be brighter.

THUNDER RUMBLES

In Arizona, a desert storm triggers a ruthless campaign for dominance.

A honey ant queen digs into the sand

before the sun bakes it hard again.

She needs to make a nest, but she can't manage to do that alone.

Another queen appears,

and in a rare example of cooperation,

they start digging together.

A third queen.

Soon, a number of royals are working together,

but such harmony will be short-lived.

When the nest is ready, they seal themselves in.

None of the queens will ever see sunlight again.

This bunker is a nursery.

Each queen begins to lay hundreds of tiny eggs, no bigger than a pinhead.

In a matter of weeks, the first cycle is complete.

Tiny, pale workers emerge from the cocoons.

Their arrival signals the end of all regal cooperation.

This colony can only have one ruler.

After helping create this army of workers,

the queens have served their purpose

and they are now expendable.

And it's the workers that do the dirty work.

The queens are captured,

stretched and dismembered.

It's a brutal assassination.

But one queen remains unharmed

whilst the purge continues around her,

until all competition is eliminated.

The royal carcasses don't go to waste.

The workers feed them to the larvae.

Now one queen reigns supreme

and the army of workers answer only to her.

She has manoeuvred her way to power.

Now she will set about establishing an empire.

THUNDER RUMBLES

In Senegal, the wet season has arrived.

The chimps' home is transformed.

The young male and his new friend have become constant companions.

The chimps have been starved of protein

during the long, dry season and are now desperate for meat.

The young chimp's mentor knows where to look for it.

There may be something hiding deep inside this hollow tree trunk.

And the older chimp has a remarkable skill that enables him to find out.

Stripping the twigs off a branch,

he fashions it into what looks like a spear.

He then does something that takes hunting with tools to a new level,

as he probes the hollow trunk.

He checks the point for any signs of blood,

then tries again.

He flushes out a small mammal - a galago -

and quickly despatches it.

This is the first real meat he's had for several months

but his success will test

the growing friendship between the two males.

Being willing to share meat

reflects the strength of the bond between individual chimps.

He hands a morsel to the younger male.

With this decision, the older chimp has sealed an alliance

that one day may make them strong enough

to challenge the troop's dominant males.

This growing partnership has not gone unnoticed

by some of the other chimps.

The young male's status in the troop is most definitely on the rise.

In the Arizona desert, the honey ant queen has been busy.

In her underground kingdom,

this queen now commands thousands of workers.

They can carve out a huge network of interlinked tunnels and chambers

that may extend to a depth of nine feet.

Some of her subjects have become living storage barrels

with their bodies grossly distorted as they're filled with honey,

fuel for her growing army.

In the quest for total domination, an army of workers

is constantly on the offensive, eliminating any competition.

They especially target rival honey ant colonies.

Underground in one chamber,

the queen has been carefully nurturing a very special brood.

Hundreds of winged sons and daughters

all carrying her genes and all waiting for the right moment.

On a warm, still evening, they march to the surface,

to a specially prepared launch pad

from where they will take flight.

They mate on the wing, then the females spread out

across the desert, each carrying their queen's bloodline.

Many perish...

..but each that succeeds in establishing her own colony

is spreading their queen's power further across this land.

In an individual's climb towards power and privilege,

there comes a point

when the ultimate rewards are finally within reach.

It's the time to find out

if you really have what it takes to make the last step.

It's winter in Montana.

Mature male sharp-tailed grouse are getting in some pre-season training.

Here, on their traditional display grounds

they're practising their courtship dancing

and staking a claim to the best spots

on what will become their stage.

But the real show begins with the arrival of spring.

The females are looking for the perfect partner,

choosing those males who are not just good dancers

but who can fight for and hold the best spots on the dance floor.

This young male is big enough to enter the contest

for the first time.

There is only one way to find out

whether he's got what it takes.

GROUSE CALLS

He must go out there and dance.

But his debut performance appears to have stopped the show.

In fact, none of the others have noticed him at all.

They've spotted approaching danger.

A short-eared owl.

BIRD CALLS OUT

When the threat has passed, they can all pick up where they left off.

But this youngster has now strayed into another male's space.

He's about to find out whether he really has what it takes.

It's a close-run thing, but the younger male is finally driven away.

If he is ever to claim one of the top spots and attract a female,

he will have to fight again and again

until he is victorious.

The young chimp has already learnt the dangers

of having to fight for power,

and has discovered that there may be a subtler path to privilege.

He's back with the nursery group,

but his attitude is now very different.

Playing with youngsters is not a backward step for him.

On the contrary, this is part of a plan.

Because where there are babies, there are mother chimps.

And they're now starting to take notice of him for the first time.

With his growing status within the troop, he's becoming

an attractive proposition...

And that will one day prove critical

because in nature, the ultimate expression of power is to win a mate

and so have the chance to leave a legacy in the form of offspring.

That is the next challenge to be faced in Life Story.

COCKEREL CROWS

Senegal, West Africa.

The Life Story team are setting out to film

a unique hunting behaviour in chimpanzees.

For director Emma Napper,

the chance to meet these chimps has been a long time coming.

SHE WHISPERS: We first heard about this about nine months ago.

So I know the chimps' names, I've seen little videos of them,

I've seen pictures of them.

I've just now got to wait until it's light

and I'll be able to see them. It's really...

I can hear them in the trees. It's really cool.

Field researcher Michel Sadiakhou

has been tracking the chimps for the last four years.

CHIMPS HOWL AND SQUEAL

Oh, my God. They're so loud!

But for Emma and cameraman Richard Jones,

this is the first time they've been so close to wild chimpanzees.

These first encounters can be risky.

Humans and chimps are so closely related

that the crew could introduce disease into the troop.

There's a group about ten metres away from us

in the tree, which is why we've got to wear the facemasks.

CHIMPS HOWL

There are 30 chimps in the troop.

What? Joff.

That's Joff? OK.

And Dawson. Dawson.

Michel can not only recognise and name them,

but he knows their histories and social status too.

Making sense of this chaotic family

is going to be key to the success of the shoot.

And that means winning the troop's trust.

Researcher Jill Pruetz has been studying the troop for ten years.

And she knows that the key to earning their trust

is adopting the right etiquette.

It's not like with gorillas either, where you can't

look them in the eye or anything like that. Oh, really?

It's basically the same way you would look at a person.

If you look too hard at a person, it's going to be rude.

The same with the chimps.

Over the next few weeks,

the crew has to track the troop all over the forest.

This means gruelling 18-hour days

in temperatures above 40 degrees centigrade.

The chimps are a volatile bunch, always squabbling among themselves.

CHIMP SQUEALS

Emma starts to pick out some of the characters.

Looks like a lot of teenage boys I used to know,

and they act like them too.

A young male called Dawson

particularly catches the crew's attention.

We decided to follow Dawson

because he's at an interesting point in his life because he is

junior amongst the males here.

So he's really trying to fight

to get the respect of the other males and to climb the hierarchy.

By concentrating on Dawson,

the crew may be able to film a much richer story than they had expected.

It's the low-ranking chimps like Dawson that use spears to hunt.

It's such an unusual behaviour that many researchers

couldn't believe it was true when Jill first reported it.

Capturing it on film would be a real coup for the team.

The crew have spent nearly 300 hours in the forest

and covered hundreds of miles,

before the more dominant chimps accept them.

But to gain the acceptance of the shyer chimps will take more time,

and Emma is starting to get to grips with the family.

When we first came here, Michel was saying, "Dumbo,

"that's the one with the big ears,

"David, that's the one that's really black."

And you're sitting there thinking,

"Oh, the black chimp with the big ears?

"Well, they've all got big ears, they're all black."

But a couple of weeks later it's different.

You can see really see the differences.

They act different, they look different.

It's just a matter of getting to know them.

Finally, Dawson walks directly towards the crew.

A sign of trust at last.

They're able to film the critical moment

when he makes friends with a chimp called Lupin.

This friendship will bring about a change of fortune for Dawson

and for the film crew too.

THUNDER RUMBLES

After six long weeks in the bush, there's a change in the weather.

It's what the crew have been waiting for.

MICHEL LAUGHS

The only times Michel has ever seen spear hunting

is immediately after a downpour.

And rainstorms are rare in this forest.

The chimps' mood changes with the weather.

Suddenly, they seem more serious and focused.

It's a good sign.

With the noise and the rain, it's hard to keep up,

but it's vital that the crew stick close to Dawson.

As the rain subsides,

the chimps behave in a way the crew have not seen before.

The youngsters probe inside hollow trees with sticks.

Then suddenly Lupin starts to make a full-sized spear.

Dawson watches from the sidelines.

It's a remarkable moment.

That's what we were hoping for,

but it looks more deliberate than I could have ever imagined.

That's absolutely amazing.

Being able to capture this behaviour

is the result of a decade of study by Jill and her team,

and by the crew spending over 700 hours tracking the troop.

Yet the hunt lasted just three minutes.

It's hardly surprising only a handful of people

have ever witnessed this before.

When I still see it, I get really excited, you know.

I still... Like, that newness of it hasn't worn off, that's for sure.

The Life Story team have filmed more than they ever hoped -

both the moving story of Dawson's climb to power

and a remarkable new behaviour.

In the next stage of Life Story,

we will see animals attempt to win a mate.

There'll be glamour...

..naked aggression...

..remarkable dance moves...

..and extraordinary artistry.

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