Original subtitles

NARRATOR: On the grasslands of Southern Africa lives a remarkable family,

a hyena clan, ruled by their queen.

(SQUEALING)

But their home is suffering an intense drought.

Prey is hard to find,

and the clan must travel vast distances in search of food.

In the harsh conditions, with young to feed, they face a tough decision,

do they leave their cubs and head north to hunt?

Or do they wait for the rains, and the herds, to come to them?

The clan must be bold...

Cunning...

And strong...

If they are to make it through the drought,

the toughest time of all.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)

Meet the north clan.

An extended family of 12 spotted hyenas.

This is the first meal they've had in almost a week.

They're hungry and it's only a tiny antelope.

They need a decent meal at least every three days.

There isn't enough to go around, and tensions rise.

(GROWLING)

(GROWLING, SQUEALING)

The clan is struggling.

Their queen has two cubs to feed.

A prince and princess

six weeks old,

and they'll rely almost entirely on her milk

for up to a year and a half.

Keeping them alive is her top priority.

Their home is an underground den

in the north of an area of wilderness

known as the Liuwa Plains.

The queen and her clan rule over a huge patch of the plains

extending 20 miles in every direction from their den.

Located in the far west of Zambia,

Liuwa Plains National Park is 1400 square miles

of open grassland.

There are only a handful of lions here,

and the queen and her clan have risen to the top of the food chain.

Here they are hunters, not scavengers.

In good years, there's plenty for the clan to eat.

Herds of zebra.

Small antelopes, called oribi.

And the clan's favorite prey, wildebeest

and their calves.

(GRUNTING)

(THUNDER ROLLING)

In the rainy season,

thousands of wildebeest normally converge on the plains,

in the center of the hyena's territory.

(MOOING, GRUNTING)

But this year the rains are more than a month late.

Not a single drop has fallen for more than six months

and Liuwa Plains is suffering a severe drought.

Without fresh green grass to attract them,

there are no wildebeest herds anywhere near the north clan's territory.

The herds are now scattered far to the north,

and the clan has to travel vast distances to find them.

Several weeks ago, a hunting party from the clan went north

and never returned,

leaving this small yearling an orphan.

(SQUEALING)

The clan has a strict hierarchy and the yearling's been pushed

to the bottom of the social pile.

(CHIRPING AND GROWLING)

Even the two young cubs take turns to boss her around.

(SQUEALING)

(GROWLING)

Born to a queen, they have high ranking in the clan.

For the orphan, without a mother to protect her and give her status,

life is a daily struggle.

(SQUEALING)

She needs to grow up fast and gain respect.

She is barely old enough to eat solid food and has no mother to provide milk.

Now she has little choice.

She must fight, even for a tiny scrap of the kill,

to keep herself alive.

And when the clan goes out hunting, she must follow,

otherwise she won't survive.

Like all hyenas, this clan is matriarchal.

Females are in charge.

They're as big and strong as male hyenas.

(GROWLING)

All of the adult females can potentially have cubs,

but they will usually only tolerate one adult male at the den.

And they use him for one purpose only...

Mating.

The clan females have unusually high levels of testosterone

and this results in the growth of external genitalia,

a pseudopenis, that looks almost identical to a male phallus.

It's very hard to tell them apart.

In a few years when the prince and princess grow up,

she'll stay with the clan but he'll be pushed out of the den

to fend for himself.

He might become a satellite male,

guarding the den from a distance.

Or he will leave his home and travel far to find a new clan.

For now though he's indulged,

and all the clan helps out with the cubs.

There's even a babysitter to watch over them

when the queen goes out hunting.

Or when she just needs to take a break.

(SQUEALING)

When the cubs are around 18 months old they will start to eat solid food.

But for now, their mother's milk gives them everything they need.

Hyena milk is some of the richest in the animal kingdom,

with the highest level of protein and fat of any African carnivore.

It's so rich, one feed can keep the cubs going for days at a time.

But when their mother goes hunting she can't be gone too long.

If left for more than a week, the cubs would die.

For the queen, producing such nutritious milk requires a lot of energy.

And she hasn't had a decent meal in over a week.

The clan begins to stir in anticipation of the cool of the night.

(SQUEALING)

They have conserved their energy for night-time, when they typically hunt.

Hyenas can hear sounds up to seven miles away and have excellent night vision.

They scour their home territory for food.

They can cover their entire range, walking 20 miles in one night.

The queen stays at the den to feed the cubs,

but listens out for any sound of the clan making a kill.

But even highly adapted senses are no help when there's so little to be found.

A lone African wildcat is the only creature they see.

They will continue the search until sunrise.

Despite their nocturnal efforts, the clan's hunters return

to the den empty-handed.

But the cubs are still pleased to see their family safe and well.

(BIRDS CHIRPING)

It's one of the worst droughts in decades.

By now, the rains should have come

and the clan would have thousands of wildebeest to hunt all around them.

But with no sign of rain or large wildebeest herds

on the horizon, the queen faces a tough decision.

Does she take a risk and lead another hunting party north

or does she wait and hope the herds come to her?

She makes a brave call and gathers the best hunters in the clan.

They could be gone for days,

so a babysitter stays behind to guard the cubs.

The lowly orphan has no option. She must join the hunters.

The cubs must wait patiently, without food, for their mother to return.

After a few hours, the hunting party is already 15 miles from the den.

They find a single wildebeest.

But no sign of the large herds with calves they're looking for.

Lone male wildebeest hold territories in this part of the plains year round.

When the rains return, bringing the big herds with females,

they'll be in prime position to breed.

They spend their days fighting with their

neighbors in a display of strength.

For the clan, attempting to bring down one of these aggressive beasts

is not worth the risk.

(GRUNTS)

They push on further to the north.

Another hour on and the temperature climbs to 100 degrees.

(GROANING)

Most of the hunters stop and rest.

So far, the orphan has managed to keep up.

It's been a tough trial and she's exhausted.

But the hungry queen pushes on further. Alone.

She eventually finds what she's looking for,

a small herd of wildebeest.

This time with more vulnerable mothers and calves.

Tired, thirsty, hungry and alone,

her odds of making a kill are next to none.

To hunt, hyenas usually rely on teamwork.

But the hyena queen has no option. She takes them on singlehanded.

To have any chance, she needs to find a vulnerable target,

the old, the young, the weak or the injured.

She sets the herd running and looks for any sign of weakness.

But a lone hunter presents no danger to these massive beasts.

Now the queen faces another challenge,

she must cool down.

There's not a single tree in sight.

With no shade, in the middle of the afternoon

the temperature is a baking 110 degrees.

Salivating and wetting her forelegs helps reduce her body temperature.

As the liquid evaporates, blood in the veins just below the skin cools down.

It's an ingenious system of thermoregulation, but a sign of desperation.

The queen has run all day in the heat without food or water.

Lowering her temperature could mean the difference between life and death.

Separated from the rest of the hunting party,

her day has gone from bad to worse.

(BIRD CHIRPING)

(CHIRPING)

The hunting party is five miles back.

They've slept through the worst of the heat.

Now rested, they turn their attention to finding water.

Dotted across the dry plains are tiny circles of green,

remnants of the last rains.

Waterholes.

The orphan is the first to find water and leads the hunters to drink.

It's a precious oasis in an otherwise parched land.

This is the only water source for miles around,

and is a magnet for all life.

The orphan and the hunters may not have found anything to eat,

but they've at least found somewhere to drink and keep cool.

It's welcome relief.

Even the elusive wildebeest come here to drink.

Drawing the attention of the hunting party.

A brave and thirsty wildebeest tests the waters.

It's understandably nervous.

(YELPS)

But the hyenas seem to barely acknowledge it's presence.

It's still too hot to hunt.

They'll take their chances after dark.

In the cool of the night, the queen has regained her strength

and travelled back to rejoin the hunting party.

More and more wildebeest are gathering at the waterhole.

But they aren't easy prey.

The wildebeest have strength in numbers

and a well organized defensive strategy.

They spread out in a line to avoid becoming surrounded.

But any stragglers are vulnerable.

And the hyenas keep watching, looking for a weak link.

The clan makes a successful kill.

The queen asserts her dominance

and has her choice of the meat.

She can eat one third of her bodyweight in just one sitting.

Shared between the hunting party,

the entire kill is gone in a matter of minutes.

(SQUEALING)

Finally, their bellies are full.

(HOWLING)

(CRICKETS CHIRPING)

Fifteen miles to the south, back at the den,

the prince and princess are getting hungrier.

But there'll be no relief until their mother returns to feed them.

In their mother's absence,

and blissfully unaware of any danger,

the cubs are starting to venture further afield.

Exploring their world is a vital part of growing up,

so there's no rest for the babysitter.

Every day left alone, they are becoming bolder.

She keeps a watchful eye and makes sure the cubs don't stray too far.

Far to the north, clouds build on the horizon.

The hunting party begins its long journey home.

The queen needs to get back to her cubs.

But progress is slow.

One of the clan was injured in last night's hunt and will have a tough time

making it back to the den.

These storm clouds hold false promise.

They bring only thunder and lightning.

But none of the rains that are so desperately needed.

With the plains tinder dry,

it's the perfect conditions for a deadly force of nature.

(THUNDER ROLLING)

Bushfires.

In a strong wind, flames can sweep across the plains at 50 miles per hour,

and reach temperatures of nearly 2000 degrees,

consuming everything in their path.

The fires are between the hunters and the den.

Cut off, the queen leads her hunting party around the flames.

They'll have to take the long route home,

adding a day to their journey.

Bad news for them, but a bonanza for others.

Swarms of insects flee the flames,

providing a feast for birdlife.

Pratincoles have flown 5000 miles,

all the way from Russia, to feed on these plains.

They are quick to take advantage of any food they can get.

The fires look destructive,

but they cleanse the grasslands,

converting dry vegetation to fertile ash.

All the land needs now is rain.

Three days after it set off, the hunting party finally returns to the den.

The pups greet their mother and the hunters.

Each time clan members reunite, they perform rituals,

nuzzling each other's genitals and scent marking.

This strengthens family bonds and reenforces hierarchies.

As a low status member of the clan, the babysitter initiates a greeting.

The orphan has grown up a lot on the hunting trip,

and is slowly starting to gain the respect of the clan.

For the cubs, who survive totally on their mother's milk,

the queen has arrived just in time.

And there is another welcome arrival for the clan.

(THUNDER ROLLING)

After months of drought and struggle, the rains finally arrive.

(THUNDER ROLLING)

In just a few hours, over a billion gallons of water flood the land.

In a matter of days, Liuwa transforms from

dry, dusty plains to green grassland.

Dry waterholes begin to fill, and some areas become a wetland paradise.

All creatures here have been waiting for this moment.

From the biggest,

to the smallest.

The first drops of rain trigger a remarkable event.

As the earth softens in the rain,

termites emerge in their thousands.

Filling the sky in a beautiful but brief breeding display.

It's the termites' once in a year chance to reproduce.

Winged queens and males fly out to establish new colonies.

In the air, females release pheromones

to attract males from neighboring mounds.

Pairs mate on the wing, then land to burrow

underground and begin a new colony,

only a few feet from where they started.

It's the first sign on the Liuwa Plains that a new cycle of life has begun.

And the new green grass prompts the long awaited return

of the great herds of wildebeest.

The herds know exactly where to go.

Walking for days to arrive just in time

for fresh green shoots to spring from the ground.

And traveling with them, are their young calves.

Their arrival in the clan's territory is a turning point for the family.

The hyenas are rested,

and with thousands of wildebeest now on their doorstep,

they should have more chance of success.

One by one, they test the herd by charging at them.

Hyenas are slower than wildebeest over short distances,

but they are patient, cunning hunters.

They appear to give up the chase,

but this is a deliberate ploy.

They watch the fleeing animals closely,

looking for any sign of weakness.

The commotion of the hunt draws the attention of other opportunists,

lappet faced vultures.

They can zero in on a potential meal from 20 miles away.

The clan sets the wildebeest and zebra running again and again.

It's a strategy of observation and persistence.

Success at last.

The vultures know exactly when a kill takes place

and gather on the sidelines, waiting for an opportunity

to steal a share of the spoils.

It's a welcome meal for the queen and her hunters.

There's plenty to go round,

but they still have to fend off the vultures.

When it comes to eating,

the clan, like all hyenas, are perfectly adapted carnivores.

They have an extraordinary anatomy and physiology.

With thick jawbones and powerfully developed muscles,

their bite force is immense,

one of the strongest in the animal kingdom.

Their teeth are specially designed to grind down even the toughest bone.

And they eat the entire carcass,

only hair and horns remain.

Their digestive system has strong acids to dissolve bone,

using up every part of the kill.

Stomachs finally full,

they lie down, allowing their gut to get to work.

This efficient eating is what's enabled them to survive on little food

during one of the toughest droughts on record.

It's the key to their success, and what's made

hyenas one of Africa's most abundant carnivores.

The orphan has had her fill.

Against the odds, without a mother to feed her,

she has established herself.

A huge achievement for a hyena just over a year old.

She's now proven herself to be a valuable member of the clan

and is growing in confidence.

She's no longer at the bottom of the pile.

The prince and princess are growing up fast.

They're digging themselves a new burrow at the back of the den.

An expansion is needed

to make space for the newest member of the family.

One of the other females has given birth

and is introducing her two-week-old cub to the clan.

Together, the hyenas have got through the toughest of droughts.

And the family is growing.

With wildebeest streaming down from the north,

there are good times ahead for these survivors of the plains.