Original subtitles

NARRATOR: There's a bright new face

in a family of spotted hyenas.

She's a princess, daughter of the alpha female,

and destined to lead the Chimbwe clan.

But first, this little cub must prove herself.

She has to fight for her place

in a savagely competitive family.

Surrounded by bullies and killers...

(LION GROWLING) (HYENAS YELPING)

...she must use courage and cunning

to turn enemies into allies.

Has this little cub got what it takes to be a queen?

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)

Hidden beneath the trees, a young hyena is stirring.

It's the daughter of the Chimbwe clans' alpha female,

a cub called Spotty.

She has a promising future.

(ELEPHANTS GROWLING)

She's the heir apparent.

In hyena society,

the youngest daughter of the alpha

inherits a high status, and will become clan leader

if she reaches maturity.

Spotty's fate will be determined now.

At six months old,

she's got to assert her birth-rank,

or she may lose it.

The clock is ticking.

Female rank is fixed for life at adolescence,

around 18 months old.

She's one of two cubs. Her twin is a male.

(WARTHOG GRUNTING)

But hyenas are matriarchal.

He will never become leader.

(WARTHOG SQUEALING)

While she is destined for greatness, and he isn't,

they're still content to hang out together at home,

the converted warthog den.

But home alone, they're in danger.

Their mother has gone hunting.

She's been away all night.

They're desperately hungry,

and won't survive more than a day or two without her.

Three miles to the north,

the twins' mother, Amai, is leading a hunting party.

(WILDEBEEST GRUNTING) (BABOONS CHATTERING)

(HYENA YELPING)

They've killed an impala, and the queen has first pick.

In total, she's raised six cubs.

Two adult sons who have left the clan,

two older daughters, and now, the twins.

Amai dictates the pecking order

in her 20-strong clan.

No one dares challenge her.

Her closest ally is her aggressive,

high-ranking daughter,

called Mosi, meaning "first born".

Lower in the ranks is Amai's elder sister,

Ginger, on the right, named after her reddish mane.

Her life's tough.

Inferior to her younger sister, the queen,

she's also constantly dominated by her nieces.

(GINGER YELPING) (HYENAS LAUGHING)

Being bullied is part of her every day.

She'll be lucky to get much of this meal.

There are others in the clan worse off than Ginger,

unrelated females who only get scraps

and rarely have cubs.

And, at the very back of the food queue,

are the lowest of the low, the males.

Subordinate to all the females,

they're powerless, and often go hungry.

Amai and the sisterhood are 10% bigger than the males.

Each female is 130 pounds of pure brawn.

Size and strength aren't their only masculine features.

Shaped by male hormones in the womb,

and an unusual evolutionary twist,

female genitalia have morphed

into what's known as a pseudo-penis,

through which they urinate, give birth and mate.

It gives them total control of their sex lives.

If a male wants to mate,

it is entirely at the female's discretion.

Amai and her sisterhood are dominant for good reason.

Their cubs are semi-dependent for up to five years,

longer than any other carnivore,

and they won't survive

unless the females get priority over food.

These are the rules,

and the alpha ensures the Chimbwe clan

sticks to them.

Amai eats fast. She has got cubs waiting at home.

The twins are overdue a feed.

They have no choice but to wait for their mum.

It's a frightening forest without her.

Hyena fathers play no part in child care,

and other females in the clan

don't share suckling duties,

so the cubs' only lifeline is Amai.

Spotty's mother is also her role model.

She'll need Amai every step of the way

if she's to become the next clan leader

when she reaches maturity.

Right now, the twins' only concern is food.

At last, she's home.

Amai's milk is 30% fat and protein,

eight times richer than a human's.

The cubs have grown tenfold

since they were born six months ago,

and they've been battling each other from day one.

They're born with canine teeth,

and fight viciously in the den.

In 10% of litters, one twin kills the other,

mostly in lean times,

when there's not enough milk to share.

But thanks to their well-fed mother,

these two have both survived.

If Spotty's to be a successful alpha like Amai,

she must learn to dominate not just her brother,

but the whole clan.

She must secure her status, or she'll slip down in rank,

face a lifetime of bullying,

and, ultimately, raise fewer cubs of her own.

It's not going to be easy

with the competition multiplying.

Many clan females have given birth,

including the alpha's lower-ranking sister, Ginger.

She has newborns hidden underground,

as well as bigger yearling cubs.

At the moment, Spotty is protected by her mother,

but if she's left alone, these older cubs

will try to bully her.

They've inherited Ginger's lowly status,

but they could still fight their way to the top.

Amai's eldest daughter, Mosi,

is waiting for her baby to emerge.

As a first-time mum, she's had a difficult birth,

but the new arrival looks very healthy.

At three weeks old, her little cub's all black.

Born an only child, she gets as much milk as she likes.

Life is good, and it shows,

in her chubby waistline and her playful nature.

As Spotty's cousin, she's a potential ally.

The den is the epicenter of the Chimbwe clan's world.

Their 100 square-mile territory

borders the Luangwa River, which meanders

through Zambia's South Luangwa National Park.

There's a rich diversity of prey species living here,

so it's a good spot for predators.

The clan shares its territory with several leopards.

These solitary hunters

are capable of killing a hyena.

There's also the Hot Springs Pack,

a family of wild dogs.

One on one, a hyena could tear a dog apart,

but, working as a team, the pack has the upper hand.

The clan's greatest nemeses are lions.

The local Nsefu Pride is a mixed blessing.

They compete for the same prey,

but sometimes provide a free meal.

Hyenas have an undeserved reputation as thieves.

Only a small proportion of their food

is stolen from others.

More often than not,

it's the lions who take the hyenas' kills.

Lions are a mortal danger

Spotty will one day have to face,

but at eight months old,

she's exploring closer to home.

She's adventurous,

leading her brother out to meet the neighbors.

(BABOON YELPS) (HYENAS LAUGHING)

But they aren't very friendly.

She's braver than her twin,

but the baboons know better than to mingle with a killer.

(BABOON YELPS)

(BABOON YELPS) (HYENAS LAUGHING)

Spotty is growing in confidence.

She'd love to play,

but the baboons keep their distance.

There are strict ground rules.

Primates don't make friends with predators.

She's failed to assert herself with the baboons,

but might have more luck

showing her brother who is boss.

The den is littered with scraps

brought back by their mum for the twins to chew on.

It gives them a taste for solid food,

but Spotty won't share.

(SPOTTY GROWLS)

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

It's a small, but significant, victory.

She's learning how to pull rank with her brother,

but as an alpha, she'll have bigger battles to fight.

Spotty's best chance of understanding

how to dominate the clan,

is to watch her mother in action.

Amai also has a yearling daughter,

who was attacked as a cub by an aggressive low-ranker.

Against the odds, she survived

and maintained her status.

Her leg is now rigid.

She can't join her mother on the hunt,

so Amai brings food to the den,

but the carcass quickly turns the clan's home

into a battleground.

(HYENA SQUEALING)

The low-rankers crowd in,

hoping to steal the yearling's food.

Amai tries to protect her injured daughter,

but even as alpha,

she can't control her hungry clan alone.

She needs the help of her number one ally,

her eldest daughter, Mosi, who stands guard beside her.

Thanks to these powerful protectors

the injured yearling gets a meal.

This is how the ruling class survives,

closing ranks, and dominating the rest of the clan.

(MOSI GROWLS)

One subordinate female

has found another bit of the carcass.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

She's desperate to hang on to it,

but Amai's daughter, Mosi, gives chase.

It's dangerous to steal from the top table.

(LAUGHING CONTINUES)

Tensions are running high,

and clan members turn on each other.

They even vent frustration on a passing elephant.

(ELEPHANT TRUMPETING)

The injured yearling can't chase,

but she attacks at close range.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

Mosi, ever loyal to her mother,

manages to retrieve half of the carcass.

But even now, the subordinate isn't allowed

what's left of her prize.

The yearlings have the best, and now she wants the rest.

She is small and weak,

but with high rank comes brazen confidence.

She's crippled, but not afraid to assert herself.

(HYENAS CONTINUE LAUGHING)

As soon as the thief releases her grip,

it's game over.

The yearling can't afford to share.

Her leg is a major handicap.

(HYENA YELPS)

If she wasn't Amai's daughter, she'd already be dead.

But because she is,

she is protected by a powerful team

of high-ranking female relatives.

Clan life is brutal and contradictory.

Each member of the family acts selfishly to survive,

but can only do so with the help of their allies.

It's an important lesson for Spotty.

She needs to wise up, become more aggressive,

and start building strong relationships

with other young, high-status females.

Amai is a successful clan leader.

With stability in the ranks, the family is growing.

But, with five more mouths to feed,

tensions are rising,

and the den is getting crowded.

Its cub-sized burrows,

which are too small for adults or predators to enter,

offer sanctuary for the youngsters.

But, after two months of occupancy,

the den's soiled and infested with ticks and fleas.

Rotting leftover food is attracting flies,

and vultures.

Carrion also attracts other predators.

The Hot Springs Pack is out hunting,

drawn in by the smell of dead meat.

Their arrival takes the Chimbwe clan by surprise.

Wild dogs are skilled hunters, but, like hyenas,

they'll steal if they get the chance.

(DOGS GROWLING)

The cubs bolt for safety.

It's a coordinated raid on the hyenas' turf.

While some dogs search for scraps,

others flush the hyenas out.

Before the hyenas know it, the den is overrun.

The dogs must move fast before the hyenas retaliate.

They seize the carcass,

and move on through.

The raid's over, but the damage is done.

The clan's home is no longer a safe refuge.

Next morning, Amai decides it's time

to move to another den.

She leads the way, encouraging her twins to follow.

They set off enthusiastically,

but then Spotty has second thoughts,

and turns for home,

followed by her brother.

It's a big upheaval.

The twins aren't ready to leave

their familiar playground.

Meanwhile, Mosi gets a firm hold on her chubby cub.

It will have no say in the matter.

Amai tries the same tactic, carrying Spotty by the scruff,

but she's heavy, and wants her own way.

Amai tries with her son,

but he's equally resistant.

The twins don't want to go anywhere.

(HYENA YELPING)

It's a battle of wills.

(HYENA GROWLING)

Eventually, Amai simply wanders away

and they follow.

Amai has dozens

of established dens throughout the clan territory.

She knows they've got a long journey ahead,

across a mile of open country

patrolled by lions and leopards.

But the twins don't understand the urgency.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

Soon, the whole clan's on the move,

heading for a favored den they use

for a couple of months every year.

It's a strange new world for Spotty.

Up until this point in her short life,

she's been mostly confined to the den.

This is a rare chance to glimpse beyond.

Amai has a mental map of her home range,

something her youngest daughter, the heir apparent, needs to learn.

But the twins are still lagging behind.

Straying too far from mum,

is a dangerous game.

Only her protection

will keep them alive.

(AMAI GROWLS)

(AMAI GROWLS)

(TWINS LAUGH)

Spotty's beginning to understand

that her alpha mum always knows best.

After a three-hour journey,

they finally reach their new den,

along with the rest of the clan.

An old termite mound is the main hub.

Low ranking males keep their distance.

The mound's reserved for the ruling class.

The chubby cub's in good spirits,

thanks to her mum, Mosi, who carried her all the way.

Ginger's arrived too, with her big cubs and her new-born twins.

After a good feed, Spotty's revived

and ready to take a look around.

(ELEPHANTS TRUMPETING)

Some of the neighbors seem familiar.

(SPOTTY LAUGHING)

Spotty can't contain her energy.

Her brother gives chase,

followed by the rest of the gang.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

But the boisterous behavior

irritates one member of the clan.

(HYENA GROWLING)

Their aunt, Ginger,

is protective of her new-born twins.

As a low-ranking mother, now with four cubs to feed,

she's under pressure,

and she's starting to throw her weight around.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

(HYENA SQUEALING)

(HYENA GROWLS)

It's a confusing, and dangerous time for Spotty.

In an effort to improve her own status and that of her cubs,

Ginger could bully, even kill, Spotty.

She's too small to defend herself.

Nightfall triggers a change in activity.

Now with 25 hungry mouths to feed,

it's time for the clan to come together

and hunt.

Amai leads the way.

Each adult needs to eat four pounds of meat a day,

but Ginger will go hungry.

With new-borns to suckle, she can't leave the den.

Adults don't share food,

but they do work as a team to tackle large prey.

With vision adapted for low light,

they see well in the dark.

Amai remembers where prey congregate.

She picks up a scent.

And her large ears detect a distant but promising sound.

(DISTANT GROWLING AND SQUEALING)

The Nsefu lion pride has taken a pair of warthogs.

The clan spots an opportunity for a steal.

Muscling in on the carcass is a dangerous strategy,

but desperately hungry, it's a risk worth taking.

Some of them try to distract the lions, so others can make a grab.

(LION GROWLS) (HYENA YELPS)

But when a juvenile lion breaks rank,

he becomes a target.

(LION GROWLING) (HYENAS LAUGHING)

They'll kill him if they can,

but the pride intervenes.

Be it bloodlust, or clever tactics, the clan's move pays off.

By drawing the pride off the kill,

they've managed to snag some leftovers.

With jaws that can crush bones,

the skeleton scraps are enough to satisfy the hunting party.

(GINGER GROWLS)

Back at the den, Ginger's hungry.

Drained by her suckling cubs,

she's on a short fuse.

(GROWLING)

She's defensive of her young twins.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

And aggressive, even to the chubby cub that wants to play.

(HYENA SQUEALS)

Babysitting alone isn't much fun,

but it does present an opportunity

to dominate the heir apparent,

Spotty.

(HYENAS GROWLING)

She's a prime target for the bully.

Spotty ranks higher than Ginger

but, without Amai here to defend her,

her status counts for nothing.

(SPOTTY LAUGHING)

(GINGER GROWLING)

Ginger could kill the little cub in a heartbeat.

(LAUGHING)

(GROWLING)

But Spotty's smart

and heads for the one place her attacker can't reach,

the predator-proof burrow.

The following morning,

the hunting party still hasn't returned.

It was a frightening night for Spotty.

She's still vulnerable so she makes a smart move.

Bravely approaching Ginger, she attempts to appease her.

Grooming is a way to repair relationships.

(HYENA LAUGHING) (GINGER GROWLING)

But Ginger is not interested in making friends

and neither are Ginger's older offspring.

(SPOTTY SQUEALING)

The big cousin knows Spotty's defenseless.

She plays nasty.

Even Ginger's new-born twins become aggressive,

picking on the chubby cub.

(HYENA GROWLING)

Spotty's high status can't protect her from the low-ranking gang.

(HYENAS GROWLING) (SPOTTY SQUEALING)

Their powerful jaws could do serious damage.

(SPOTTY YELPING)

Spotty's twin brother tries to help her,

eventually weighing the bully down.

With chaos in the ranks,

even her chubby little cousin tries to dominate her.

Spotty's struggling to defend her rank.

Just in time, the hunting party returns.

Everything changes

as Ginger and her family go into retreat.

Spotty's aggressor is suddenly submissive.

Mosi's dominant posture

reminds Ginger of her low status.

Amai's arrival has an instant effect

on Spotty's confidence, too.

(HYENA LAUGHS)

She puts her chubby cousin back in her place.

It's a small step in the right direction

that won't go unnoticed by her passing mother.

(HYENA LAUGHS)

As night falls, a herd of antelope gathers close to the den.

Amai and the clan

seize the opportunity for a local hunt.

This time, followed by Ginger.

She can't leave her cubs for long,

but it could be a quick strike.

(ANTELOPES SNORTING)

A hyena's heart is extra-large,

giving it the stamina to exhaust prey.

(ANTELOPES SNORTING)

But the agile antelope are faster uphill

and escape to open ground.

(ANTELOPES SNORTING)

The hunters move on,

leaving the cubs home alone once more.

With only bats and other strange

nocturnal creatures for company,

night at the termite den is intriguing.

Spotty and her brother explore,

but it's dangerous to get distracted.

Ginger's big cubs aren't done with bullying.

(HYENAS GROWLING)

(HYENAS SQUEALING)

Spotty heads for the burrow, but they can follow her in.

Their attack on Spotty is relentless.

(SPOTTY YELPING)

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

(SPOTTY YELPING)

The struggle for dominance is taking its toll.

Spotty's beginning to slip down in rank.

Now 10 months old,

time's running out for her to assert herself.

The Nsefu Pride has made a kill

two miles from the den.

Amai and the rest of the clan

have been trailing them all night,

always ready to snatch and grab.

The lions know their game.

(LION GROWLING)

But Ginger hasn't eaten for days and is desperate.

(LION SNARLING)

One lioness still has something worth taking,

and Ginger homes in,

but she doesn't go unnoticed.

(LION ROARS) (GINGER YELPING)

Wounded by the body blow,

Ginger flees.

The lions aren't willing to share,

but they're wasteful,

leaving up to 40% of their kill behind.

Their loss is the hyenas' gain,

the meanest of scraps make a welcome meal.

It's taken Ginger hours to recover after the lion attack.

She's injured, and has been left behind by the rest of the clan.

At home, her cubs are waiting expectantly.

Finally, in the late afternoon,

Ginger makes it back to the den.

They suckle eagerly,

though she's had nothing to eat, herself.

There are blood stains on her thigh,

a puncture wound from a lion's claw.

She'll need time to heal before she can hunt again.

Until then, her big cubs will also go hungry.

With her bullying cousins subdued, Spotty has a chance

to start building positive relationships.

She and her chubby cousin are both high-ranking females.

They need to stop fighting each other

and come together as a team.

Spotty has learnt from Amai

that allies provide vital support to an alpha.

This could be the start of a lifelong friendship.

But Spotty also needs to confront her aggressors.

The opportunity is about to arise.

Spotty's found a warthog's tail.

It's the last piece of meat

from one of her mother's kills,

brought back to the den for her.

Her stomach acids digest anything

from bones, to teeth and hair,

so it's a valuable delicacy,

and a prized possession.

(HYENAS LAUGHING)

As the highest-ranking cub, it's hers by right,

but Ginger's starving cub is determined to steal.

(HYENA GROWLING)

(SPOTTY YELPING)

It's a painful bite,

but Spotty refuses to back down.

(SPOTTY YELPING)

She's fighting for her status.

It's only a scrap, but her future is at stake.

(SPOTTY YELPING)

Spotty grips tighter.

(SPOTTY SQUEALS)

To be an alpha, she has to be a winner.

(HYENA LAUGHING)

It's now or never.

At last, Spotty's asserted herself.

It may not look like much,

just a mouthful of bone and hair,

but this victory

is a defining moment in Spotty's life.

It's the first time she's stood up to a bigger hyena

and proved her dominance.

She's the youngest daughter of the alpha,

the heir apparent.

She's beginning to show it.

Life in the hyena clan is brutal.

The constant battle for status ensures only the toughest survive,

but this little, top-ranking hyena is smart and resilient,

with enough of a mean streak to hold her own.

Spotty's finally showing

that she's got what it takes

to be a leader.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)