All language subtitles for Life Story (2014) 810p 6of6 Parenthood HDTV

So far in Life Story,

we have seen animals face
the challenges of childhood...

..grow up...

..find their place
in the adult world...

..and win a mate.

Now, in the final chapter
of Life Story,

animals become parents.

Their offspring will be
their legacy to the future

if they can raise them successfully.

There is no stronger bond in nature

than that between some parents
and their offspring.

Bonobos in the Congo rainforest.

They are our closest relatives.

This mother's youngster
is a lifelong commitment.

He will be totally dependent on her
until he's five years old.

And she will continue to support him
for the rest of her life.

Their relationship may last
30 years.

Although the length of her
commitment is longer

than for most animals,

she shares with many other parents
the same great challenge -

keeping her offspring healthy and
safe.

The bond between parents and young
will be tested in many ways,

some minor,
and some a matter of life or death.

And a parent's commitment
may begin long before birth.

The remote northern tip
of the Great Barrier Reef.

After over three decades at sea,

this female green turtle is
returning to the island

where she hatched.

It's time for her to lay eggs...

..but they will only hatch
on dry land.

She must leave the cool sea
and enter an alien world.

Without the support of water,

she feels the full force of gravity.

Her flippers,
so effective for swimming,

are almost useless on land.

But, nonetheless, she has to haul
her great weight up the beach

and get beyond
the reach of the tide.

Turtles time their arrival

so that their laborious journey
up the beach

is made in the cool of darkness.

On any one night,

3,000 female turtles may crowd
this island to dig their nests.

Now her compulsion to leave
offspring may cost her, her life.

The receding tide has exposed
the reef, a wall of jagged rock.

It looks
an almost impassable barrier

for an already exhausted turtle.

But she can't wait for the tide
to return

because soon the island,
under the blazing tropical sun,

will be intolerably hot.

Unless she can get over
this rocky wall,

she will be baked in her shell.

This lethal obstacle course claims
many victims every nesting season.

Just one slip could bring disaster.

She was so close.

But all may not be lost.

The tide is turning.

If she is completely wedged,
she will drown.

But there is a chance that the
rising water could lift her free.

For this breeding season,

her obligations as a mother
are over.

She will never see her babies.

They won't hatch for another
two months and, when they do,

they will have to survive
without any help from her.

Other parents have to remain close
to their young at all times

to protect them from danger.

A mother bison in Alberta, Canada.

Her calf is little more
than a week old.

Wolves, sensibly,
select the easiest targets.

The calves.

So bison mothers try to keep their
young in the centre of the herd

where they are safest.

But that is not always possible
when the herd is on the run.

The chase may continue
for 25km

as the wolves try to run
their targets to exhaustion.

The wolves make their choice.

She is on her own, but she's
fearless in protecting her calf.

By keeping her calf close,

she manages to hold off
both of her attackers.

But another wolf joins in
and she can't fight three.

Now the wolves work together
to wear her down.

The forest is not far off.

If mother and calf
can reach the trees,

they may be able to dodge the wolves
for long enough to re-join the herd.

But the attack is so unrelenting,

they can't make a dash for cover.

The wolves are beginning to tire.

She sees an opportunity
to make a break for it.

Once again,
she blocks the wolves' path.

And the wolves lose them
amongst the trees.

But the wolves remain
an ever-present threat.

HOWLING

And this is unlikely to be
the last time

that this mother will
have to fight for her calf.

The duties of parenthood
may seem to be instinctive,

but there are some skills
that have to be learned.

A troop of Hanuman langurs, 50
strong, living on a cliff in India.

This is one huge family,
with members of all ages.

But there is only one adult male.

His scarred face is
evidence of his violent past.

He is the father
of all these youngsters.

Fatherhood for Scarface
has few duties and many perks.

He gets plenty of attention
from the females...

..and takes a somewhat hands-off
approach to parenting.

But his protection gives his family

the safety and the space they need

to grow and learn.

The newest addition to the troop.

The baby is totally dependent
on his mother and she dotes on him.

But becoming a good mother
takes practice.

And a young female, a future parent,

is learning by playing mum
with someone else's baby.

She seems affectionate enough.

This is valuable experience
for the baby-sitter.

But now she starts to play with it.

And things get quickly out of hand.

BABY SQUEALS

She seems to want to
shake off the baby.

Rescue, it seems, is at hand.

But this isn't the baby's mother,

it's another learner with even
less of a clue than the last.

Eventually, the baby's real mother

decides that this game has
gone on long enough.

She rescues her baby and gives it
some proper motherly care.

Perhaps she tolerates the behaviour
of these would-be baby-sitters

because they're close relatives.

So many females gathered together
on this cliff inevitably attract

the attention of a rival adult male.

His aim is to defeat Scarface
and take over his females.

He leads a group of outcast
bachelors into battle.

Scarface spots them.

He has everything to lose because,
if the bachelors defeat him,

they won't just take his females,

they will kill his babies.

The bachelors try to reach the
high ground to launch their attack.

Scarface warns them to keep
their distance,

but the bachelors
continue their advance.

HARSH BARKS

Scarface grinds his teeth to show
he means business.

But the bachelor leader
reaches the cliff top

and grinds his teeth in response.

If Scarface loses this battle,
he will lose his legacy.

Time to strike.

He targets the bachelor leader.

SCREECHING

Scarface has won.

And he returns to a hero's welcome.

But it's only a temporary respite.

For a male langur like Scarface,

parenthood is simple, but dangerous.

He has banished the bachelors
and saved his offspring,

for now at least.

Success for other parents requires
total dedication.

An African drongo.

She has to shade her three eggs
from the scorching heat of the sun.

As soon as the chicks hatch,

she will form an immediate bond
with them that is unbreakable,

whatever happens.

After hundreds of hours
of incubation...her first chick.

Now the hard work really begins

because the newly hatched
chick needs food.

It won't be long before one mouth
is joined by two more

and this chick will then have to
share what the female brings back.

Or will it?

The chick is getting rid of any
competition.

It wants its mother's sole
attention.

Feeding time.

Something has changed. But what?

FRANTIC CHIRRUPING

The sight of her chick's bright
orange mouth

demands that she brings more food.

The egg weighs
almost as much as the chick.

It's like pushing a boulder uphill.

The chick has a hollow in its back
that helps it manoeuvre its load.

The mother's brood has been reduced
to just this one chick

and it now has her total attention.

When she's not away gathering food,
she shades the chick.

And she responds instantly
whenever it demands to be fed.

Every day for over three weeks,

she brings it dozens of meals.

Her chick never seems to stop
eating, or stop growing.

There is another drongo's nest
nearby

and that has three chicks in it.

But they don't look quite
the same as hers.

That is because she is raising
an alien...

the chick of a cuckoo.

Cuckoos lay their eggs
in the nests of other birds

and leave the hard labour of rearing
the chick to someone else.

The cuckoo's egg matched
the drongo's egg so perfectly

that this foster mother
has been completely deceived.

Over at the other drongo nest,
the chicks are now fledging.

Their parents have succeeded

in producing their very own
next generation,

while she has raised a monster.

Her love is blind.

Back in the Congo,

the mother bonobo's long-term
commitment to her baby continues.

Today, she's demonstrating

the tricky art of making
a bed 30 feet above the ground,

in preparation for a midday siesta.

Lesson over,
she puts her handiwork to good use.

For a busy mother,
an extra nap is always welcome.

But Baby seems bored.

His mother is still
the centre of his world

and his favourite playmate.

She tries to ignore him,
but he won't be put off.

Eventually, she gives in.

The whole family is on the move.

In bonobo society,

knowledge is passed down
from one generation to the next.

The mothers are going to show
their youngsters

one of the most important places in
the forest.

A special pool
where water lilies grow.

Water lilies contain minerals
important for health,

and the bonobos can't get them
anywhere else.

Baby learns
what to eat by watching Mum.

And she shares
the lily stalks with him.

She's shown him where to get
an important supplement to his diet

and he didn't even
have to get his feet wet.

She will continue to help him
to learn about the forest

for another five years,
within the protection of his family.

But few youngsters are raised
in such a secure environment.

The land where this young zebra
was born is drying out.

Its mother must lead it across
the river to reach fresh grazing.

She faces a critical decision.

Where to cross.

The life of her six-week-old foal
hangs on her decision.

It's not just crocodiles
that pose a threat.

Crossing here is too dangerous.

Further downstream, perhaps
this is a better place to cross.

There are fewer predators,
but the river is fast

and has treacherous rapids.

It's a difficult decision.

Once a mother commits herself,
she commits her foal,

and there will be nothing
she can do to help it.

The current is so strong,
it carries them downstream

through the territory of
ill-tempered hippos...

..and towards the rapids.

STACCATO BARKING

The decision to cross here
has proved to be a good one,

but only just.

This mother has led her foal

through the most dangerous
moment of its young life.

By keeping her foal safe,

she has passed
this critical test of motherhood.

Dawn in Amboseli, East Africa.

A family of elephants.

The young are sleeping peacefully,

surrounded by a protective wall

of mothers and grandmothers.

Each morning brings the calves
a little closer to independence.

They may be successful parents,

but they still have trouble getting
the youngsters up in the morning.

There are three generations in this
herd, proof of the family's success.

They have found
the bones of an old female.

Even the babies are intrigued
by these relics of their ancestors.

We can't, of course,
know what they're thinking,

but there is a delicacy in the way
they touch these bones,

which suggests that they have some
special relevance.

Perhaps elephants have a sense
of a shared history.

The experience seems to bring them
even closer together.

Every animal in the herd belongs
to a family line

that stretches back through
numberless generations.

And each is here

because their ancestors were
all winners in the game of life.

An individual animal's
chance of success

varies according to its kind,

and to the care lavished upon it
by its parents.

Most young bonobos survive
childhood.

But, eventually, each will have
to find its own way in the world.

It may need allies to face
up to danger.

It will have to find its own
place in society.

It will play the mating game...

..become a parent...

..and eventually achieve
a form of immortality

by leaving its own offspring.

No two journeys through life
are ever the same...

..each is as unique as a
fingerprint.

This mother's life has been
a success.

But for each new generation, the
journey will begin all over again.

It's life's great story.

Bonobos live in the most
impenetrable forest on Earth -

the Congo.

Cameraman, Rolf Steinmann,

has worked in some of the world's
great open landscapes,

but never anywhere like this.

His hope is to film scenes
of the bonobos' lives

that have never been captured before

and perhaps gain a glimpse
into our own past.

Accompanied by camera assistant,
Ed Anderson,

they journey deep
into the African rainforest.

Despite a 16-mile walk to the
research camp,

Rolf's spirits are high.

It's really exciting and I think...

it's definitely the most remote
location I have ever walked to.

The LuiKotale research camp will be
their home for the next seven weeks.

They head out into the forest

wearing facemasks to protect
the bonobos from human diseases.

They hike over 12 miles
following the bonobos

and, eventually,
Rolf gets his first view.

It was a pretty special day,
I would say.

That was my first bonobo day.

It was absolutely breathtaking,

looking into their faces,

seeing the babies.

I mean, you can really feel
that they're close relatives to us.

I mean, it feels like you are
surrounded by very little humans.

But he quickly discovers
that such a good day isn't typical.

HE SIGHS HEAVILY

There is so much vegetation,
I can't get a clear view,

it's totally impossible.

And the very density of this forest
creates other filming problems.

We're walking back to
camp from the forest,

it's 3.30pm, this is not a camera
effect, it really is this dark.

When the sun isn't out,

it feels like the middle of the
night sometimes.

Ed and Rolf's difficulties
just continue to mount.

The bonobos went into the deepest,
densest part of the forest,

it's really hard to follow them.

The 90% humidity is causing
trouble for the camera.

And worse, they soon encounter some
of the other forest inhabitants.

It's all full of ants here.

I can't get through there with
the big backpack.

Ants are everywhere!

Ah, they're biting me everywhere.

They always want to
get to the flesh.

No, you don't get in there.

BLEEP! They are biting everywhere!

Ah, BLEEP! It's not really fun, it's
really painful. Go away. Ah. Oh, God.

I just have to get out of this.

Wow.

How should we get rid of
all these termites?

I mean, that is serious.

The heat and humidity,

the trekking and the insects
are worse than Rolf had feared.

But causing him most distress

is hardly ever being able to
film the bonobos.

90% of the things you see
you can't film.

It's so dark,
there's so much vegetation

and the animals are always
in the wrong spot.

It is pretty much as frustrating
as it gets, I think.

You really have to learn to deal
with all the frustration

and become some kind of Zen master
and suppress your emotions.

Otherwise you face a high risk here
to get insane.

I am the lucky cameraman.
I am the lucky cameraman.

I am the lucky cameraman.

Three weeks of trekking

and finally the bonobo family
appear, briefly, in the open.

(There the bonobos are on a log,
totally relaxed.

(I've got my best shots so far,
it's amazing!)

But the bonobos soon disappear again

and it's back
to the daily grind of forest life.

BUZZING

Ah, these sweat bees make me crazy.

The optimism with which they began
this shoot is long gone.

Today, we've already
walked 25km

through some of the densest,
thickest jungle so far.

We didn't get a single
shot of the bonobos.

Yeah, it sometimes
feels like a boot camp here.

Some days...you just want to forget.

The experience is simply exhausting.

Finally, the perfect moment.

Right when we get our first
nesting in the daytime,

really beautiful angle,
perfect position,

the camera stopped working

and now we have to go back to camp,
leaving the bonobos,

and hope that we can make
the camera work again.

Yeah, don't know really what to say.

By the time they've got
a new camera,

the bonobos have
completely disappeared.

Paul, Paul, Paul, this is Ed.
Paul, Paul, this is Ed.

Come in, Paul.

We can't hear them,

we can't find any tracks,

so it doesn't look very promising.

Rolf is hardened
to tough conditions,

but not the frustration of
so rarely getting a clear shot.

Four days later,

the bonobos have been located,

but they're on the move.

They're heading north

so there's a good chance that they
go into the swamps

and so we just speculate

and run towards the swamps

and perhaps we find them there.

After so much disappointment,

Rolf and Ed are determined
to find them.

Quite against the odds,

their determination pays off.

Rolf captures the first-ever images

of a family of bonobos
harvesting lilies.

A scene that feels much
like a glimpse into our own past.

It's everything Rolf had hoped for.

In this terrain, it's ridiculous that
we made it, that is ridiculous!

It's impossible to film that,

it's simply impossible
and we filmed it!

I can't believe it, it's so good!

Our lives may seem very different
from those of our closest relatives,

but beneath the surface,
we still share the same challenges

that every animal faces in its
own Life Story.

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