All language subtitles for b7d711aeb6b648d89d735c24b1d6639c_Track03

Africa's grasslands are home
to a variety of mammals.

But none are as well-known

As the continent's five
safari superstars;

Lion,

Rhinoceros,

Leopard,

Buffalo

And elephant.

They are the celebrated
"big five".

But it's not easy
being big in the wild.

In the constant struggle
to succeed

In africa's dynamic ecosystems,

The big five
must work hard to survive.

Few animals in the world
inspire such awe

As a male lion in his prime.

His confident yellow eyes,

Huge head and lush golden mane
command respect.

He is the largest
of all africa's carnivores,

Powerfully built and beautiful.

It's shocking then
for many to imagine

Killing such a noble beast.

But colonial hunters
who came to africa

Considered tracking
and shooting lions

As one of their
highest achievements.

Along with four other

Of the continent's most powerful
and impressive animals .

In time this group became known
as the "big five".

Each revered by hunters
as dangerous adversaries

And thus sought-after trophies.

As each of the five could easily
kill an unwary hunter.

In modern times

Thankfully trophy hunting
is far less popular

And many
of these majestic animals

Now live in protected
wildlife parks and reserves

Around africa.

But they still face the brutal
challenges of the natural world,

Where their survival
is by no means secure.

Each animal must use
its unique combinations of size,

Strength,

Stealth

And power in
numbers to persevere.

Lions the biggest
of africa's cats,

With males standing
4 feet tall at the shoulder

And weighing 420 pounds.

While lionesses are smaller
at 290 pounds.

They are the only
truly social big cats,

Living together in groups
known as prides.

Their ability to hunt as a team
gives them the edge

And allows them to bring down
prey well over twice their size.

By weight, lions are responsible
for 65 percent of the prey

Killed on the savanna.

And these lions
specialize in hunting

One of their fellow big five.

Buffalos are
no easy target though.

Because these huge herbivores

Have one special weapon
against predators:

Power in numbers.

Herds like this one

Are made up mostly
of females and their young

And can have
several hundred members.

Within such a big group,
organization is needed.

And buffalos have
a well-ordered herd structure,

With smaller family units
sticking together.

This mother had her first calf
at around five years old.

The youngster will be weaned
at seven months,

And from there on will subsist
on grass like his mum.

If conditions are good,

The mother will have a new calf
every fifteen months.

She, like all buffalo cows,

Won't move far
from her relatives in the herd.

But the bulls
must look further afield

If they're to find a mate.

Before they can breed

They have to fight their way up
the herd's hierarchy.

This means going head to head
with other bulls.

Two 1700 pound bulls
slamming into each other

Has the equivalent force

Of a car hitting a wall
at 31 miles per hour.

To protect their brains
and absorb the impact,

Males have a thick helmet
of horn called a boss.

It takes eight years of battling
for a buffalo bull

To get high enough
on the pecking order

To be eligible for breeding.

Dominance in these mega herds
has other benefits too.

The highest-ranking buffalos
take up position

At front and centre of the herd.

Giving them first access
to the best food -

And minimizing their chances
of becoming prey.

But not all buffalo
enjoy the safety of the herd.

Bulls leave when they get too
old to fight for dominance

Or keep up with the group -

Alone they are far more
vulnerable to lions

And more dangerous to man.

Legends of these old bulls

Trampling
and goring hunters to death

Struck fear
into the hearts of men,

And earned buffalo a place
in the big five.

Unlike rhino and elephant,
buffalo weigh less than a ton.

Making them small enough
to be killed by lions.

Mostly the mega-herders
have the edge,

And a united front
of horned heads

Can drive away
a whole pride of lions.

Such large congregations

Not only offer
protection from predators,

They also play a crucial role

In maintaining
the savanna ecosystem.

Buffalo are bulk grazers,
using wide rows of incisors

To crop large quantities
of long grass.

As they feed

They clear access to shorter
more nutritious shoots below,

For selective grazers
like rhino.

It's the buffalos' ability
to work as a herd

And to survive
on low quality food

That has allowed them to thrive

In the face
of nature's challenges.

With population
estimates ranging

From 500,000 to a million

They are the most numerous
of any of the big five.

But still
buffalo must stay vigilant -

Because lions are also experts
at working together.

Which is no doubt how this
buffalo became a meal.

Male lions are more powerful
than the females, and eat first.

Once this big male has had
the proverbial 'lion's share',

The rest will eat.

The pride is at home in
the dense cover of the bushveld,

Using the cloak of foliage
to remain unseen -

And protect their newest
and most vulnerable members.

The young lions
are barely 6 weeks old,

And have only just left the den

Where they spent
their first weeks of life.

Still they're too
young and vulnerable

To be out in the open -

And for now
mum keeps them out of sight.

Despite the close-knit
family system,

Lion prides
are relatively fluid.

Members come and go

Within a territory
of about 15 square miles.

Not far away
the cubs' older siblings

Are enjoying a hunting success
of their own.

This lioness was born
in a litter of five

And spends much of her time with
her sister and three brothers.

At 18 months,
they're old enough

To be completely independent
of their mother.

Working together they have
become proficient hunters

And brought down a buffalo calf.

It may be hidden
from other lions and hyenas

In the tangle of bushes

But it attracts the attention

Of africa's
biggest aerial scavengers.

The lions don't appreciate
uninvited lunch guests.

But at midday
it's too hot to eat,

So one of the brothers tries
to move the kill out of view.

But it's too much effort.

He'll have
to stand guard for now.

The vultures won't try anything
while the lion's still around.

This kill is a promising sign
for the young lions.

Honing their hunting skills now,
before they have to leave

The comfort and familiarity
of the pride, is important.

Soon the males
will have to seek

A territory and pride of their
own, which will require

Fighting ferocious battles

With other big males.

But the brothers
are at an advantage.

They will leave together,

Cooperating
in their coalition of three

To hunt and challenge for
control over another pride.

As night falls,
temperatures drop

And the young
lions are ready to eat.

Dinner time in a lion family
can be a noisy affair.

And after the first course
they relax under the stars,

But the smell of the kill
attracts an unlikely visitor.

A female leopard.

The big five's more elusive cat
does scavenge sometimes -

But she knows better than
to intrude on a lions feast.

If the lions caught her hanging
around, they would kill her,

And beating a hasty retreat
is a wise decision.

When food
is available in abundance,

Lions will gorge themselves.

The males eat up to 88 pounds

And the females
around 44 at a time.

That's about five times
their daily food requirement.

This much food is a luxury
of a successful pride.

Not all are so lucky.

Despite their cooperative
hunting behavior,

Lions generally only have
a 30 percent kill rate.

That means
70 percent of the time

They go away without any dinner,

And when prey is scarce
or the pride is inexperienced,

Hunger quickly
gives way to starvation.

With ribs and hip bones showing,

It's clear that this young pride
hasn't eaten in many days.

It's a stark contrast

To the bloated bellies
of the more successful pride

And telling evidence that
although lions are thought of

As africa's
most ferocious killers,

Their lives
are by no means easy.

The lions that do survive

Are the strongest
and most skilled hunters,

Taking top spot
on the food chain

And eating most of the savanna's
big herbivores.

But not all of them.

This is one of the last
black rhinos left in africa.

They may be too big
to fall prey to lions -

But they are no match for man.

Before intensive poaching
by humans,

Black rhinos were the most
numerous and widespread

Of the five species
of rhino in the world.

The decrease in their numbers
from 65,000 in the wild in 1970

To just over 5000 now,

Represents one of the fastest
declines of any large mammal

In recorded history.

This bull, like all male rhinos,
is a solitary browser,

Eating more than 200 species
of trees and bushes.

His prehensile hooked lip
pulls foliage into his mouth.

The reason he is immune
to being eaten

Is because he weighs
more than 2,500 pounds.

By exceeding one ton in weight

He's above
the predation threshold,

Making him too big
for lions to kill.

For this mother lion,
hunting is far from a priority.

Her main concern
is keeping her cubs safe

And staying cool
in the heat of the day.

But this isn't easy for her.

Because lions cannot sweat.

Without sufficient sweat glands

They resort to panting
to expel excess heat.

Along with
sticking to the shade,

This makes
the scorching climate bearable.

Even heat cannot dull one of
the cub's most driving urges;

To feed.

Her growl is a clear enough
message - back off.

Even the starling,

Dressed in chic but
heat-absorbing purple feathers

Is getting too hot.

It also turns to panting
to keep cool.

As the afternoon passes,
temperatures drop

And the lioness has moved into
a more comfortable position.

The cubs are restless
in their bushy hide-out.

They're hungry,
but won't make a hasty move.

Mealtimes
are not on their terms.

They know to let
this sleeping lioness be.

When she rolls onto her back
it's like a sign saying

"the milk bar is open".

The bravest cub
approaches cautiously.

Mom consents. It's dinner time.

The cubs will get all their
nourishment from suckling

Until they're around
8 weeks old.

Once the lioness is satisfied
that the cubs are well fed,

She moves them back into
the safety of the undergrowth.

They have a lot of growing up to
do before they become africa's

Most powerful predators.

The cubs aren't
the only big five babies around.

This white rhino calf
is less than a year old

And his keratin horn
is not much more than a bump.

He's been eating grass
since he was 8 weeks old,

But he'll continue to suckle
from this mother

For several months.

Rhinos have poor eyesight

And he keeps close to mum,

As he's still vulnerable
to lions and hyenas.

With mothers protection he will
likely grow into a mature bull,

Weighing around 5,000 pounds.

But for now he's quite content
at his mothers' side,

And will
stay with her for 2 to 3 years,

Or until she has another calf.

The bond between mother and calf

Is extremely strong
in white rhinos.

More so than with black rhinos.

White and black rhino
are both grey

But they exhibit
certain differences, like size.

The white rhino
is almost a ton heavier.

The name 'white' derives
from a mistranslation

Of the afrikaans word "wyd",
meaning wide,

In reference
to its broad, square muzzle.

This defining characteristic
allows the white rhino

To feed on its choice of the
savanna's dense, short grasses.

But the grasses
often contain ticks

That get
into hard to reach places.

Luckily there are ox-peckers

Willing to offer
their cleaning services.

The birds feed on the ticks

And both parties benefit
from the arrangement.

White rhinos

Are the world's only
purely grazing rhino species.

And weighing in at two tons,

They are possibly the largest
pure grazers that ever lived.

White rhinos are considered
territorial and semi-social

As they do not form large herds.

Females however
are rarely found alone

And will congregate
in groups of up to six.

Like this group of two related
cows and a sub-adult calf.

Rhino cows often move
through many male territories.

And they've attracted
the attention of the bull

Who controls this area.

Adult bulls
are largely solitary,

Living in ranges
of a few square miles.

And this bull is eager
to get to know his visitors.

But the cows are not interested

And politely remove themselves.

While rhino bulls are somewhat
retreating in their courtship,

Another one of the big five
is more overt in his intentions.

Mature elephant bulls
weigh around five tons,

Making them
the world's biggest land animal.

They're two and a half times
larger than the white rhino.

This bull
may be particularly aggressive.

His weeping temporal glands
and frequent urination

Are a sure sign that he is in a
condition known as musth.

From the age of 25 years old

Musth occurs
sporadically in bulls,

Increasing their testosterone
to six times its normal levels.

Bulls in musth
dominate others in fights

And are left well alone by most.

Free to focus on finding cows
to mate with.

Although females are smaller,

They control the movement of
herds which are matriarchal,

Made up of related females
and young males,

All of whom
share close social ties.

Elephant families

Have the opposite
activity regime to lions,

Sleeping for only
four or five hours a day.

This large herd

Has been moving constantly
in search of food and water.

It's an exhausting existence
for youngsters.

This new-born elephant calf
already weighs 220 pounds.

Being on the move all day has
taken its toll on the youngster.

In elephant life
there is no bond stronger

Than that between
a mother and her offspring,

And this mum is rightly
concerned about her little one.

In the heat it's become
dehydrated and needs to rest.

Another youth
is also facing a tough time.

Like all bulls, at adolescence
he was ejected from the herd.

Sometimes the young bulls form
bachelor groups, like these two.

The older bull's missing tusk

Shows he's had
his share of battles.

The two are after
one of their favorite foods,

The nutritious pods
of a camelthorn tree.

But the pods are too high up
to be picked.

One of the bulls knows how to
bring them down to his level.

And he has perfected
getting the pods into his mouth

With a deft flick of the trunk.

An elephant's trunk contains
an amazing 50,000 muscles.

The appendage is incredibly

Versatile and strong which is
one of the reasons

The elephant eats
the biggest variety of plants

Of any herbivore.

While feeding

This bull is doing a
cape glossy starling a favor.

He's rustling up insects
as he forages,

Which the opportunistic bird
picks off.

The use of their trunks,

Combined with immense
strength and intelligence

Means that elephants can survive

In some of africa's
harshest landscapes.

While the largest member
of the big five

Lives an extremely social life,

The smallest member
is the exact opposite.

The leopard
is renowned for its secrecy.

They are the most private
of africa's big cats.

Leopards are adapted
to a range of habitats

And are the most widespread
wild cats on the planet.

Dense vegetation like that
along the banks of this river

Provides them
with plenty of cover,

Vital for hunters
that rely primarily on stealth.

The ability to move unseen

Helps them escape the attention
of bigger competitors,

Another key to their success.

Because they can live
in almost any habitat

Offering enough cover
in which to hide,

Leopards reside inside
and outside of protected areas.

Their ability to avoid
human persecution

As well as their adaptability,

Has enabled them
to live across most of africa,

And beyond into asia.

This female is well established
in her territory

Of about 10 square miles.

It's prime hunting ground

And she has
successfully defended it

From other females
for many years.

Males are afforded access
only briefly to mate.

This is her only companionship
in an otherwise solitary life.

Like all females she is
slightly smaller than a male,

But is still powerfully built
and an effective hunter.

Leopards are masters of ambush.

Stalking silently

They get as close as possible
to unsuspecting victims

Like impala,

Before pouncing and killing them
swiftly with a strangling bite.

In areas
where other bigger predators

Like lion and hyena exist,

Leopards drag their kills
into the bows of trees

To avoid being hijacked.

Here the kill is relatively safe

And she can eat in peace.

But she has
to prepare her meal first.

This is done by carefully

Plucking the hair off the
carcass with her front teeth.

She then uses her powerful jaws
and large canines

To rip into the meat.

Above vultures circle, knowing
full well their time will come.

With no family members
to share the feast,

She can take her time feeding.

The kill not only provides
ample sustenance

But also most of the moisture
she needs in the form of blood.

Meaning leopards can go for long
periods without water.

Elephants however,
need to drink more regularly.

This little one has
arrived at water just in time.

Baby elephants are far more
susceptible than adults

To the potentially fatal risk
of dehydration.

Elephants use water for more
than just drinking.

Bathing is a favorite pastime

That fulfills an important
function for the elephants.

Their massive bodies

Generate as much as five
kilowatts of metabolic heat,

The equivalent of enough power
to run a microwave

For 5 hours.

And after a hot day
on the savanna

A swim prevents overheating.

With their
collective thirst quenched,

The herd can relax and enjoy
some grooming.

Rubbing against the river banks
helps remove parasites

And keep the elephants
clean and healthy.

Water is integral
to the elephant's life.

As it is for all of the big five
and those that live here.

The buffalos come down in herds

To sip together
at the shore's edge.

Rhino too arrive to quench
the thirst of a long day.

Even the lions are drinking.

But they do so discreetly,
at a small stream

Away from the hustle and bustle
of the waterhole.

In africa's
great savanna ecosystems

None of the famous five are
exempt from a reliance on water.

Each of the animals
in the big five

Is exceptional
in one way or another.

Whether in size,

Or strength,

Or social behavior.

These charismatic animals

Are recognized
in a class of their own.

The huge, solitary rhino,

With its armor-like skin
and lance-like horn.

The stealthy
and elusive leopard,

Moving unseen and unheard.

Mega-herding buffalo,

Rumbling through the bush
in throngs of thousands.

Ferocious lions,

Symbols of brute strength
and cunning cooperation.

And the enormous, social,

Resilient elephant.

Each uses its strengths to
thrive on the african savanna.

And together they capture
the imagination of the world;

As icons
of africa's wildlife riches.

They are and will always be

The big five,

Africa's pride.