Original subtitles

[ APES GIBBERING ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING]

[ APES SCREAMING ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

[ APES ROARING ]

[ APE ROARING ]

--Captions by VITAC-- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

[ INDISTINCT CHATTER ]

Watts: THE FIRST TIME I CAME HERE WAS 1993,

THE SUMMER OF 1993.

I REALLY HAD NO IDEA WHAT TO EXPECT.

I DIDN'T ANTICIPATE HOW EXTRAORDINARY THIS PLACE

WOULD BE,

HOW PHENOMENAL IT WOULD BE.

♪♪

BUT EVEN IN MY FIRST COUPLE OF MONTHS HERE,

I REALIZED THAT CLEARLY THIS PLACE WAS UNUSUAL.

[ ANIMAL SQUEALS ]

♪♪

I DECIDED I WANT TO GET A GOOD DOCUMENTARY RECORD FOR MYSELF.

AND I COULD EASILY FIT A VIDEO CAMERA IN MY BACKPACK

AND CARRY IT AROUND WITH ME,

SO I JUST STARTED.

WHEN I FIRST CAME, I COULDN'T FOLLOW THEM VERY WELL,

COULDN'T YET RECOGNIZE MUCH OF ANYONE.

AND I WANTED TO BE ABLE TO FOLLOW THEM

WITHOUT THEM BEING DISTURBED

AND TRYING TO GET OUT OF SIGHT.

SO, IN 1995, I SPENT SEVEN MONTHS HERE,

♪♪

AND THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT JOHN MITANI CAME.

HE CAME FOR THE SUMMER.

Mitani: WHEREVER PEOPLE HAVE STUDIED CHIMPS IN THE WILD,

THEY'RE VERY DIFFICULT TO HABITUATE TO HUMAN PRESENCE,

AND IT TAKES FOUR OR FIVE YEARS.

IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO, 22 YEARS AGO.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

IT WAS A CHALLENGE.

[ GIBBERING CONTINUES ]

SO THE FIRST SUMMER I WAS HERE, I WAS JUST CHASING CHIMPS.

WE WOULD HEAR THEM CALL, AND WE WOULD GO LOOK FOR THEM,

COULDN'T FIND THEM.

Mitani: CHASING THEM OVER HILL, VALLEY, SWAMP.

WE'D MOVE OFF, AND WE'D HEAR THEM SOMEWHERE ELSE.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

IT WAS IN THE SECOND SUMMER.

I'LL NEVER FORGET AUGUST OF 1996.

IT WAS A BIG GROUP.

THEY CAME DOWN.

I THOUGHT, AS USUAL, WHAT THEY'D DO IS RUN AWAY

AS THEY HAD BEEN DOING FOR THE PAST YEAR.

BUT ONE INDIVIDUAL, A MALE WE CALL HARE,

INSTEAD OF BOLTING FROM ME,

JUST SORT OF AMBLED OFF,

YOU KNOW, AT A REASONABLE PACE INTO THE FOREST,

AND I STARTED TO FOLLOW HIM.

I REMEMBER CONSTANTLY THINKING, "WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO RUN?

WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO RUN?"

BUT WE WENT, YOU KNOW, OVER HALF A KILOMETER.

I FINALLY REALIZED, "GOD, HE'S NOT GOING TO RUN."

YOU KNOW, THEY HAD BEEN RUNNING AWAY FOR SO LONG.

I THINK I ALMOST STARTED TO CRY.

AFTER ALL THAT HARD WORK,

FINALLY SOMEBODY, YOU KNOW,

PERMITTING ME TO BE WITH THEM.

♪♪

I SOMETIMES WONDER IF THEY, TOO,

HAVE THOSE RECOLLECTIONS OR REMEMBRANCES

OF ME CHASING THEM IN THE OLD DAYS.

OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS,

ONE INDIVIDUAL AFTER ANOTHER PERMITTING US

TO SEE THINGS MORE CLEARLY.

[ BIRDS SINGING ]

Watts: WE WERE BECOMING AWARE

THERE REALLY WERE A LOT OF CHIMPS HERE.

MY BEST ESTIMATE AT THE TIME WAS MORE THAN 140 CHIMPS,

WHICH WAS FAR MORE THAN THE LARGEST

PREVIOUSLY KNOWN COMMUNITY ANYWHERE.

MOST CHIMPS LIVE IN GROUPS OF ABOUT 40 TO 50 INDIVIDUALS.

IT BECAME QUITE CLEAR THAT SOMETHING VERY STRANGE

AND UNUSUAL WAS HAPPENING HERE.

THERE WERE A LOT OF CHIMPS.

Watts: WE STARTED TO WORRY THAT THIS COMMUNITY IS SO BIG,

IT'S NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO STAY TOGETHER.

IT'S GOING TO DIVIDE BEFORE WE EVER REALLY UNDERSTAND

WHAT'S GOING ON HERE.

Mitani: INITIALLY, EVERYBODY HAD DOUBTS...

THEY DIDN'T THINK THAT WAS POSSIBLE.

...WHETHER THE COMMUNITY IS THIS BIG.

BUT IT'S HAPPENING IN NGOGO.

OUR COLLEAGUES WERE TELLING US, "WELL, IF THE COMMUNITY

IS AS LARGE AS YOU THINK IT IS,

THEN WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IS,

INEVITABLY, IS THAT THEY'VE GOT TO SPLIT."

♪♪

BUT NOW, AS I LOOK BACK ON THE SITUATION

AND THINK ABOUT MATTERS,

I THINK THAT WAS EXACTLY THE WRONG THING TO BE ASKING.

I THINK THE QUESTION SHOULD HAVE BEEN,

"WHAT'S KEEPING THEM TOGETHER?"

THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS ENTIRELY

NOT OBVIOUS AT THE BEGINNING.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

CHIMPANZEE SOCIETY IS VERY MALE-DOMINATED.

TO UNDERSTAND CHIMPS AND CHIMP LIFE,

ONE HAS TO UNDERSTAND THE SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS,

YOU KNOW, THE SOCIAL BEHAVIOR OF MALE CHIMPS

BECAUSE THEY PRETTY MUCH RUN THE SHOW.

IT WAS QUITE OBVIOUS RIGHT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING

THAT THERE WAS A CLEAR ALPHA MALE,

HAS A CERTAIN WAY AND DEMEANOR.

THIS SORT OF SWAGGER.

Mitani: ONE ALPHA MALE WAS MWEYA.

HE WAS PRETTY CLEARLY THE ALPHA.

♪♪

THE CHIMPS GREET ALPHA MALES WITH THIS DISTINCTIVE CALL,

THE PANT GRUNT...

[ GRUNTING ]

...AS A FORMAL SIGNAL OF SUBMISSION.

EVERYBODY IS GOING UP TO GREET THE BIG GUY.

[ APES GRUNTING ]

[ GRUNTS ]

"YOU'RE DOMINANT OF ME. YOU'RE TOUGHER THAN ME.

I'M SAYING THIS TO YOU SO YOU WON'T BEAT ME UP."

[ GRUNTING ]

CHIMPANZEES TELL YOU WHO'S ON TOP

AND WHO'S ON THE BOTTOM.

NOT ONLY DO I KNOW THAT WHETHER I'M LOWER

OR HIGHER RANKING THAN THIS GUY.

I KNOW WHETHER THAT GUY IS HIGHER-

OR LOWER-RANKING THAN THAT GUY.

SO THEY HAVE A PICTURE IN THEIR HEAD OF THE WHOLE HIERARCHY.

BUT THE QUESTION IS, HOW EASY WILL IT BE FOR ONE MALE

TO CONTROL ALL THE OTHERS?

HOW EASY WILL IT BE FOR THAT ONE MALE TO CONTROL THE SITUATION?

ESPECIALLY IN A COMMUNITY LIKE NGOGO,

WHERE THERE'S SO MANY RIVALS,

THIS COMMUNITY IS SO BIG,

AND THERE'S SO MANY MALES.

AS THINGS TURN OUT, IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE

ALL THAT EASY FOR A SINGLE MALE.

BUT NOT ALL ALPHA MALE CHIMPANZEES ARE CREATED EQUAL.

THEY ALL PLAY THE GAME IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FASHION.

MWEYA WAS AN INTERESTING COMBINATION

BECAUSE HE WAS A VERY STRONG AND POWERFUL INDIVIDUAL.

HE WAS ALSO QUITE SMART, AND ANOTHER WAY MALE CHIMPANZEES

MAINTAIN THEMSELVES AT THE TOP

IS THROUGH BUILDING SOCIAL BONDS WITH OTHERS,

WHO WILL THEN TURN AROUND AND HELP PROP YOU UP IN THE SYSTEM.

IN FACT, ONE OF HIS PRIMARY COALITIONARY PARTNERS

IN THOSE EARLY DAYS WAS BARTOK.

DAVID AND I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT, RIGHT FROM THE GET-GO, YOU KNOW,

THAT THIS GUY WAS GOING TO RISE TO THE TOP.

BARTOK WAS MORE OF A POLITICAL TACTICIAN.

Mitani: STREET SAVVY AND SOCIALLY SMART.

AND HERE WE HAD MWEYA, WHO WAS OLDER, AND BARTOK,

WHO WAS A FAIR AMOUNT YOUNGER,

WHO HAD MADE HIMSELF INTO MWEYA'S ALLY.

HE WAS BEING GROOMED TO INHERIT THE TOP SPOT.

Watts: BARTOK HAD THAT KIND OF SELF-CONFIDENCE --

"THIS IS WHERE I SHOULD BE,

AND I SHOULD BE THE ALPHA MALE."

BUT THERE WAS YET ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL, LOFTY.

HE WAS MORE ABILITY.

LOFTY WAS IN REALLY GOOD PHYSICAL CONDITION,

VERY AGGRESSIVE.

[ APE SCREAMS ]

HE WAS NOT, IN CHIMPANZEE TERMS,

AN ASTUTE POLITICIAN.

HE HAD A VERY RAPID RISE IN THE DOMINANCE HIERARCHY.

[ APE SCREAMS ]

POWERED HIS WAY TO THE TOP

THROUGH SHEER BRUTE FORCE AS AN INDIVIDUAL.

♪♪

Watts: SO THERE'S A SERIOUS RIVALRY HERE.

♪♪

♪♪

Watts: CHIMPANZEES ARE FASCINATING ANIMALS

TO COMPARE OURSELVES TO.

WE SHARE A LOT IN COMMON BEHAVIORALLY, PSYCHOLOGICALLY.

THEY'RE MORE LIKE HUMANS THAN ANYTHING ELSE

ALIVE ON THE PLANET.

THEY ARE SO CLOSELY RELATED TO US THAT THERE'S SO MUCH

SORT OF HUMAN-LIKE NUANCE

THAT WE CAN PICK UP ON.

Langergraber: IT'S A WEIRD MIRROR OF HUMAN.

THEY'RE SO HUMAN-LIKE IN CERTAIN WAYS...

[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]

BUT THEN, IN OTHER WAYS, THEY'RE SO NOT HUMAN-LIKE.

AND THAT IS REALLY, I THINK,

WHAT DRIVES MY SCIENTIFIC INTEREST IN THEM

AND MAKES IT PERSONALLY A VERY WEIRD EXPERIENCE,

YOU KNOW, TO SEE THESE WEIRD SORT OF REFLECTIONS

AND DISTORTIONS OF REGULAR HUMANS.

Watts: SO WHAT DOES THIS TELL US ABOUT HUMAN EVOLUTION,

AND WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR HUMANS?

THOSE TWO QUESTIONS, TRYING TO ANSWER THEM,

REQUIRES THAT YOU HAVE A REALLY FIRM

UNDERSTANDING OF CHIMPANZEES FIRST.

IMAGINE YOU COME INTO THIS AS SOMEBODY

COMPLETELY BLIND TO THE SITUATION.

WE DIDN'T KNOW WHERE THEY WENT AND THE EXTENT

OF THEIR TERRITORIES.

WHERE DO THEY LIVE?

WHERE ARE THE BOUNDARIES?

YOU START TO SEE THINGS

AND TRYING TO PIECE A PUZZLE TOGETHER.

THAT ALL HAS TO BE SKETCHED IN ONLY AFTER YEARS OF OBSERVATION.

WE FOUND NGOGO CHIMPANZEES WERE USING A MORE

OR LESS CIRCULAR AREA ABOUT 28 SQUARE KILOMETERS.

IT JUST SO HAPPENS, FOR WHATEVER REASON,

THAT WE'RE LIVING HERE IN NGOGO

IN ESSENTIALLY CHIMP PARADISE.

THERE'S A TON OF FOOD HERE.

Watts: NGOGO HAS A NUMBER OF ENORMOUS FIG TREES

THAT CAN PRODUCE HUGE CROPS OF FIGS.

Mitani: THEY HAVE A REMARKABLE KNOWLEDGE OF, YOU KNOW,

THEIR OWN TERRITORY

AND WHERE THE FOOD IS AND WHERE IT ISN'T.

THEY ALSO SEEM TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE TERRITORIES

OF THEIR NEIGHBORS.

ONCE WE SORT OF REALIZED HOW FAR THE NGOGO CHIMPS

WENT IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS,

WE STARTED TO BECOME AWARE THAT,

WHEN WE HEARD CHIMPS FARTHER THAN THAT,

IT ALMOST CERTAINLY WASN'T NGOGO CHIMPANZEES.

THOSE ARE THE OTHERS.

♪♪

Mitani: WHO'S OUT THERE?

HOW MANY OF THEM?

I REMEMBER MY FIRST PATROL

OUT HERE TO THE NORTH ALONG LINE ZERO,

I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT,

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON WITH THESE GUYS?"

IT WAS HARE AND MWEYA, BARTOK, A FEW OTHERS.

THEY WERE ACTING VERY STRANGE.

♪♪

THEY'D MOVE ALL SINGLE-FILE FASHION INTO THE FOREST.

WHERE ARE THEY TAKING ME? WHY ARE THEY GOING THIS WAY?

♪♪

EVERYBODY FALLS COMPLETELY SILENT.

Watts: THEY ARE LOOKING FOR CHIMPANZEES WHO ARE THEIR NEIGHBORS,

WHO ARE STRANGERS AND WHO ARE THE ENEMY.

IF THEY'RE GOING TO DO THAT, AND IF THEY ARE SMART,

THEY'LL DO IT IN BIG GROUPS.

THERE ARE SOME BIG CHIMPANZEE

COMMUNITIES IN THIS PART OF THE FOREST.

IT'S NOT JUST NGOGO CHIMPANZEES.

Mitani: THEY'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE AND SOMEHOW,

SOME WAY COMMUNICATING TO EACH OTHER THAT,

"HEY, IT'S TIME.

WE'RE ABOUT TO GO."

BUT HOW THEY'RE COMMUNICATING AMONG THEMSELVES,

BETWEEN THEMSELVES IS A BIG BLACK HOLE.

THAT'S WHERE MAYBE NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION MIGHT BE INVOLVED.

FIFTY METERS, 100 METERS, A KILOMETER OR MORE,

UNTIL THEY REACH THE BOUNDARY OF THEIR TERRITORY.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

Watts: IF THEY HEAR A LOT OF VOICES,

THEY KNOW THERE ARE STRANGERS NEARBY,

AND IT'S RISKY.

[ GIBBERING CONTINUES ]

AND DEPENDING HOW MANY CHIMPANZEES

ARE PRESENT ON ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER,

IT MIGHT BE THE NGOGO CHIMPANZEES WHO RUN AWAY.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

THIS TIME, THEY'RE OUTNUMBERED,

AND THE BEST THING FOR THEM TO DO IS GET OUT OF THERE.

♪♪

THE LONG-TERM RAMIFICATIONS OF THIS BEHAVIOR

AND THE SUBSEQUENT KILLINGS THAT WE WOULD OBSERVE

WERE THE FARTHEST THINGS FROM MY MIND.

ALL OF THIS WAS ALL TRY TO PIECE THE PUZZLE TOGETHER.

AND IT WASN'T LONG AFTER WE STARTED TO SEE HUNTS.

♪♪

WHY DO THEY HUNT?

WELL, AND OLD IDEA IS THAT THEY HUNT

WHEN THEY'RE HUNGRY AND THERE ISN'T A LOT OF FRUIT AROUND.

BUT AS THINGS TURN OUT, IT'S EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE.

Watts: I VIVIDLY REMEMBER ONE TIME WHEN I DECIDED

I'M GOING TO FOLLOW A GROUP OF SOME OF THE MALES,

AND THEY HEARD RED COLOBUS MONKEYS.

♪♪

[ MONKEY SCREAMS ]

[ APES CHATTER ]

♪♪

[ APES GIBBERING ]

[ MONKEY SCREAMING ]

THE MONKEY GETS OUT ON A SMALL BRANCH,

AND HE'S MOMENTARILY TRYING TO DECIDE WHAT TO DO.

ANOTHER CHIMPANZEE COMES FROM AN ADJACENT TREE,

JUMPS ONTO THE OTHER END OF THE BOW,

RUNS AT THE MONKEY FROM BEHIND, GRABS HIM.

THEY'VE GOT ONE.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

I WAS STANDING MAYBE 15 FEET FROM THEM, WATCHING THIS.

THREE MALE CHIMPANZEES EACH TOOK AN ARM OR A LEG,

AND THEY LITERALLY STARTED DRAWING

AND QUARTERING THIS MONKEY.

HERE. HERE'S A LEG.

IT'S YOURS.

♪♪

MEAT SEAMS TO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE FORMATION

AND MAINTENANCE OF SOCIAL BONDS.

THEY SHARE MEAT, BUT THEY DON'T SHARE IT RANDOMLY.

YOU KNOW, THEY TEND TO SHARE IT WITH THEIR CLOSE ASSOCIATES.

Mitani: IT'S QUITE SELECTIVE, AND ONE OF THE THINGS

THAT BARTOK WOULD DO IS,

HE WOULD SELECTIVELY SHARE PIECES OF MEAT

WITH OTHER INDIVIDUALS, NOT EVERYBODY,

ONE OF HIS BUDDIES, ONE OF HIS FRIENDS.

HE'D DIVIDE A BIG MONKEY IN HALF,

AND THEN HE HANDS HALF OF IT TO HARE.

HARE WOULD LATER TURN AROUND AND HELP BARTOK.

BARTOK PLAYS THE GAME ACCORDING TO THOSE RULES

INSTEAD OF THE BRUTE FORCE GAME.

LOFTY JUST NEVER SEEMED TO BE ABLE TO PLAY

THE COALITIONARY GAME,

THE MEAT-SHARING AND GROOMING GAME

IN THE SAME FASHION THAT BARTOK DID.

HE WASN'T AS SOCIALLY SKILLFUL AS BARTOK.

EARLY 1999, WHEN I WAS HERE FOR A PRETTY EXTENDED FIELD SEASON

AND GOT TO WITNESS FOR THE FIRST TIME

HOW THINGS CHANGED AT THE TOP,

MWEYA WAS STILL THE ALPHA MALE,

BUT LOFTY DECIDED TO MAKE A BID.

HE WAS READY TO CHALLENGE.

THE ALPHA MALE REALLY DOES A LOT BETTER

THAN THE OTHER HIGH-RANKING MALES.

AND DOMINANCE RANK INDEED DOES HAVE A STRONG EFFECT

ON REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS.

[ APES CHATTER ]

[ APE GRUNTING ]

LOFTY, HE WAS A PHYSICAL SPECIMEN, VERY MUSCULAR.

HE FIRST HAD TO BEAT A FEW OTHER MALES, INCLUDING BARTOK,

WHO WAS STILL NUMBER TWO.

THERE WAS THIS CLIMATIC MOMENT.

LOFTY AND BARTOK WERE BOTH IN THIS DENSE VEGETATION

WHERE I COULDN'T SEE VERY WELL WHAT WAS GOING ON.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

AND THEN BARTOK EMERGED FROM THIS VEGETATION

WITH HIS SUPREME SELF-CONFIDENCE SHATTERED.

AFTER THAT, HE WAS NUMBER THREE.

LOFTY HAD JUST MADE HIMSELF NUMBER TWO.

HE THEN STARTED A CHALLENGE

OF MWEYA THAT TOOK SEVERAL MONTHS.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

LOFTY WAS A BULLY.

HE KIND OF BULLIED HIS WAY TO THE TOP INDIVIDUALLY,

AND HIS CHALLENGE TO MWEYA WAS HIM AGAINST MWEYA.

IT WASN'T HIM PLUS AN ALLY.

[ APES GIBBERING, SCREAMING ]

HE REALLY SHOOK MWEYA'S CONFIDENCE,

AND, FINALLY, MWEYA JUST STARTED TO GIVE WAY TO HIM.

I CAN REMEMBER THE FIRST DAY THAT I SAW

MWEYA PANT-GRUNT TO LOFTY.

AND, WHEN I SAW THAT, I THOUGHT, "OKAY. HE'S DONE IT.

HE'S THE ALPHA MALE NOW."

[ APE GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

Mitani: BUT YOU CAN'T LEAD IF NO ONE FOLLOWS YOU.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

HE'D RUN AROUND, BEAT UP EVERYBODY AND THEN TAKE OFF,

AND HE NEVER SEEMED VERY SECURE IN HIS POSITION,

YOU KNOW, FEEL COMFORTABLE BEING AROUND OTHERS

AND ACTING LIKE THE ALPHA MALE.

HE NEVER REALLY WAS ABLE TO BUILD THE KIND OF NETWORK

WITH OTHER ADULT MALES.

Watts: BARTOK SEEMED TO SIZE UP THE SITUATION,

"LOFTY JUST BEAT MWEYA.

I COULD DO THAT."

[ ANIMAL CALLING ]

Watts: WHEN MWEYA GAVE IN TO LOFTY,

BARTOK STARTED TO CHALLENGE MWEYA,

AND HE WON.

SO HE BECAME NUMBER TWO, AND MWEYA BECAME NUMBER THREE.

BUT MWEYA AND BARTOK STAYED ALLIES.

ONCE HE HAD BECOME NUMBER TWO, PRETTY QUICKLY JUST DECIDED,

"I SHOULD BE THE ALPHA MALE."

LOFTY WAS SOMEONE WHO KIND OF BULLIED HIS WAY TO THE TOP.

BARTOK WAS MORE OF A POLITICAL TACTICIAN.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Potts: HE'S NOT THE BIGGEST MALE.

YOU KNOW, HE WAS AMONG THE BIGGEST.

BUT BARTOK KNEW WHO TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH,

AND SO HE MADE FRIENDS WITH THE BIG GUYS,

AND THAT WORKED TO HIS ADVANTAGE.

♪♪

HE GROOMED SELECTIVELY WITH OTHERS

SORT OF TO BUILD THESE BONDS WITH THOSE OTHERS.

♪♪

Watts: HE DID THE SAME THING WITH HARE.

HE STILL HAD MWEYA, AND HE DID IT TO SOME

OTHER MALE CHIMPANZEES, TOO.

LOFTY NOW HAD THE PROBLEM THAT HE HAD THIS OTHER MALE

WHO WAS BUILDING THAT KIND OF ALLIANCE NETWORK,

SO IT WAS NOT JUST GOING TO BE HIM AGAINST BARTOK.

HE HAD MOSTLY JUST HIMSELF.

AND, AS A RESULT OF THAT, I THINK THAT HAD A LOT TO DO

WITH HIM HAVING SUCH A SHORT REIGN AT THE TOP.

♪♪

[ APES GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

Watts: BARTOK AND FOUR MALES...

[ GRUNTING, SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

...SHOWING THAT, "I'VE GOT HARE BEHIND ME.

I'VE GOT MWEYA BEHIND ME."

[ APES SCREAMING ]

SO MANY MALES JUMPED ON LOFTY

AND BEAT HIM UP.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

LOFTY REALLY GETS BEATEN BY THIS TEAM OF OTHERS MALES,

AND AFTER THAT, BARTOK WAS THE ALPHA MALE.

♪♪

[ GRUNTING ]

♪♪

WITHIN ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF OF WHEN LOFTY

HAD WON AGAINST MWEYA,

BARTOK WON AGAINST LOFTY AND BECAME THE ALPHA MALE.

WELL, YOU COULD TELL IT BECAUSE LOFTY WOULD

COME UP TO BARTOK AND PANT-GRUNT.

THOSE CHIMPS WHO PLAY THAT GAME OF JUST SHEER POWER

NEVER SEEM TO LAST VERY LONG AT THE TOP SPOT.

♪♪

IT'S THE GUYS WHO HAVE THE SOCIAL SMARTS

AND ARE ABLE TO DEVELOP,

YOU KNOW, THESE SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS

WITH OTHERS WHO TURN OUT TO LAST MUCH LONGER

IN THE ALPHA POSITION.

Potts: AND HE DID VERY, VERY WELL.

HE WAS A VERY LONG-TENURED ALPHA MALE.

♪♪

A LOT OF THESE REALLY BIG-BODIED MALES,

WHO WERE REALLY THE MOST AGGRESSIVE ONES

OUT THERE AT THE TIME,

HELPED HIM MAINTAIN HIS ALPHA STATUS.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

AND THOSE WERE THE GUYS WHO ENSURED HE STAYED IN POWER.

[ APE HOWLS ]

REALLY, I THINK IT WAS SOME OF THESE OTHER MALES

WHO WERE MORE KEEN ON HUNTING

AND PATROLLING THAN BARTOK WAS.

♪♪

ELLINGTON WAS AN AMAZING CHARACTER.

Langergraber: HE DIDN'T SEEM TOO CONCERNED

WITH BEING NUMBER ONE IN THE HIERARCHY,

BUT ALL THE OTHER CHIMPS SEEMED TO REALLY LIKE HIM.

HE WAS REALLY WELL-RESPECTED.

THERE'D BE, YOU KNOW, 20 CHIMPS SITTING AROUND,

GROOMING ONE ANOTHER, RELAXING.

AND THEN ONE CHIMPANZEE WILL GET UP

AND START WALKING IN THAT DIRECTION.

THAT CHIMPANZEE WAS ELLINGTON.

AND THEN THIS WOULD BE A DOMINO EFFECT.

PRETTY SOON THEN, ALL OF THE CHIMPANZEES

ARE FOLLOWING ELLINGTON,

GOING IN A BEELINE FOR THE EDGE OF THEIR TERRITORY.

ELLINGTON PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN LEADING PATROLS AND DECIDING

WHEN IT WAS TIME TO GET MOVING AND,

"LET'S GO DO SOMETHING."

THE COMMANDER, THAT'S WHAT WE CALLED HIM.

Mitani: YOU KNOW, THE STRANGE THING ABOUT ELLINGTON, ALTHOUGH HE,

TOO WAS A VERY STRONG AND POWERFUL MALE,

HE NEVER ROSE TO THE ABSOLUTE TOP

AND TO THE ALPHA POSITION.

HE DIDN'T CARE THAT MUCH ABOUT BEING ALPHA MALE.

IT WAS MORE LIKE, "OH, WELL. OKAY, BARTOK, OR WHOEVER,

IF YOU INSIST THAT I MUST PANT-GRUNT

TO YOU, I WILL DO SO.

NOW, PLEASE, CAN WE GO LOOK FOR OTHER CHIMPS TO KILL?"

♪♪

THE FIRST TIME THAT ANYONE HERE SAW A FATAL ATTACK

ON A CHIMPANZEE

WHO WAS A MEMBER OF ANOTHER COMMUNITY

WAS ACTUALLY GODFREY,

ONE OF OUR FIELD ASSISTANTS.

I SAW EVERYTHING.

ELLINGTON LED A PATROL, AND THEY WENT OFF TO THE EAST

AND A BIT NORTH

TO WHAT WAS UNDOUBTEDLY

THAT COMMUNITY'S TERRITORY.

THEN I FOLLOWED THEM. I KNEW THERE WAS SOMETHING.

I MEAN, THEY ARE AFTER SOMETHING.

AND THEY FOUND A MALE CHIMPANZEE,

AND THEY SURROUNDED HIM.

AND, FOR A MOMENT THERE WAS THIS STANDOFF,

AND THEN ELLINGTON LAUNCHED AN ATTACK ON HIM.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Mbabazi: AND THEY CAUGHT IT,

BITING, BIT THE EARS,

THEN REMOVED THE TESTICLES.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

THEN THEY KILLED IT.

♪♪

Potts: IT'S NECESSARY.

THEY HAVE TO BE AGGRESSIVE TOWARDS NEIGHBORS

IF THEY'RE GOING TO MAINTAIN THEIR TERRITORY,

BUT THEY ALSO HAVE TO BE PEACEFUL

AND COOPERATIVE AT OTHER TIMES.

Watts: ELLINGTON AND HARE HAD A VERY STRONG SOCIAL BOND

WITH EACH OTHER.

THEY SPENT A LOT OF TIME TOGETHER.

THEY GROOMED WITH EACH OTHER A LOT.

THEY JUST HAD A GOOD RELATIONSHIP.

WE COULD CALL CHIMPANZEES MALE-BONDED.

THEY COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER.

THEY'RE RIVALS, BUT THEY ALSO

JUST GET ALONG WITH EACH OTHER IN WAYS

THAT ARE REALLY RARE IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

BUT THAT ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF HUMANS, TOO.

ONE MORNING, I WENT OUT AND FOUND HARE AND ELLINGTON

NOT WITH ANYONE ELSE.

AND I DECIDED, "OKAY, I'LL JUST FOLLOW THEM, SEE WHO THEY MEET."

WELL, THEY DIDN'T MEET ANYONE ELSE.

SO I SPENT THE DAY JUST WITH THE TWO OF THEM.

AND IT WAS NOT UNCOMMON THAT THE TWO OF THEM

WOULD BE TOGETHER ALL DAY LONG.

THE FACT THAT THESE KILLERS

CAN ALSO BE VERY PEACEFUL,

VERY TRANQUIL, VERY COOPERATIVE,

I THINK IT JUST SHOWS HOW COMPLEX THESE ANIMALS ARE

AND REALLY HOW SIMILAR THEY ARE TO HUMANS.

Watts: HUMANS ARE THE ONLY PRIMATES IN WHICH THE WHITES

OF THE EYES ARE VISIBLE.

YOU CAN TELL AT A DISTANCE WITH ANOTHER PERSON

WHERE THEY ARE LOOKING.

YOU CAN SEE THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE DARKER COLOR

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE EYE AND THE WHITES OF THE EYES.

IN HUMANS, THAT CAME TO HAVE

SOME SOCIAL IMPORTANCE IN COMMUNICATION.

WELL, YOU'RE NOT LISTENING TO ME ANYMORE.

YOU'RE LOOKING OVER THERE. I'VE LOST YOUR ATTENTION.

AND WE'RE HIGHLY AWARE OF IT AND SENSITIZED

TO PEOPLE'S EYES AND WHERE THEY'RE LOOKING.

IT'S HOW WE RESPOND TO EACH OTHER,

HOW WE INTERPRET EACH OTHER'S PURPOSE, YOU KNOW?

WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO DO NEXT?

OTHER PRIMATES, INCLUDING CHIMPANZEES,

YOU JUST LOOK AT THEM AND SEE BROWN EYES.

AND THAT DOES APPLY TO MOST CHIMPANZEES,

BUT NOT ALL OF THEM.

♪♪

YOU COULD ALWAYS SEE WHERE PINCER WAS LOOKING

AS HE LOOKS TO THE RIGHT OR HE LOOKS TO THE LEFT.

Mitani: IT WAS QUITE OBVIOUS WHEN PINCER WAS LOOKING AT YOU,

A BIT UNNERVING.

HIS EYES WERE LIKE A PERSON'S EYES.

Potts: YOU KNOW, IF YOU WATCH PINCER IN THE BIG GROUP OF MALES,

IF HE MAKES EVEN A VERY SUBTLE MOVE...

LET'S SAY HE TURNS HIS HEAD

TO LOOK AT SOMETHING THAT HE HEARD.

ALMOST AS SOON AS HE DOES THAT,

EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE GROUP LOOKS IN THE SAME DIRECTION.

♪♪

Mitani: WHAT'S SURPRISING ABOUT PINCER'S STORY

IS THAT HE WAS NEVER A PARTICULARLY HIGH-RANKING MALE.

HE WAS JUST PLAYING AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT GAME THAN,

YOU KNOW, YOUR CLASSIC STORY

OF WHAT MALE CHIMPANZEES ARE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING.

ONE OF THE STRANGE THINGS ABOUT NGOGO CHIMPANZEES

IS THAT MANY OF THEM

DO HAVE THE SCLERA OR WHITES

TO THEIR EYES FOR REASONS THAT I'M NOT SURE WE UNDERSTAND.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Watts: IT HAD BECOME WELL KNOWN THAT THE COMMUNITY HERE

WAS REALLY BIG,

AND THE HUNTING, IN PARTICULAR, CAUGHT PEOPLE'S ATTENTION.

Wallauer: I HAVE SPENT MOST OF MY ADULT LIFE

FOLLOWING CHIMPS WITH A CAMERA.

SINCE FEBRUARY 1993, THAT'S WHAT I'VE DEDICATED MY LIFE TO DO.

I FIRST HEARD ABOUT NGOGO THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE.

I JUMPED IN A CHARTER PLANE AND CAME TO NGOGO.

I JUST COULDN'T WAIT TO SEE IT.

I HAD NO IDEA WHAT TO EXPECT.

I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO VISUALIZE.

HUGE COMMUNITY, LOTS OF MALES, THEY GO ON HUNTING PATROLS.

THAT'S SOMETHING I HAD NEVER EVEN HEARD OF BEFORE.

[ TREES RUSTLING, BRANCHES SNAP ]

NICE.

AS IT UNFOLDS, THEY GET QUIETER AND QUIETER.

♪♪A

THEY SIT AND LISTEN.

THEY'RE LOOKING OFF CUES FROM EACH OTHER.

THEY MAKE EYE CONTACT, AND THEY LOOK IN THE DIRECTION.

AND THEN YOU START HEARING, WHOOSH,

WHOOSH IN THE VEGETATION.

[ TREES RUSTLING ]

AND HEAR THE COLOBUS START TO MOVE.

♪♪

♪♪

[ MONKEYS SCREAMING ]

THESE RED COLOBUS MONKEY MALES ARE HUGE,

AND THEY WILL COME DOWN THE TREE AT YOU.

AND THAT'S WHY ONLY THE BRAVEST ONES AND THE TOUGHEST ONES

ARE ABLE TO BREAK THROUGH THOSE LINES OF COLOBUS MALES.

♪♪

THEY CAN GO THROUGH THE CANOPY AT ALL-OUT PACE,

LIKE A FULL RUN CHASING THESE MONKEYS.

♪♪

[ MONKEY SCREAMING ]

17 HUNTS IN 10 DAYS.

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Mitani: IN 2002, ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE

IN TERMS OF NGOGO CHIMPANZEES KILLING MONKEYS.

MANY SUCCESSFUL HUNTS,

MANY DEAD RED COLOBUS.

THEY'RE PURSUIT PREDATORS OF THE RED COLOBUS.

YOU KNOW, THEY'LL JUST CONTINUE TO DRIVE AND RUN AFTER THEM.

[ APES GRUNTING ]

Mitani: THEY HUNTED ON AVERAGE ONCE EACH AND EVERY DAY.

♪♪

[ APES GIBBERING ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Watts: THE SINGLE-HUNT RECORD,

13 RED COLOBUS MONKEYS IN ONE HUNT.

THE MONKEYS SUFFERED QUITE SEVERELY, BADLY.

80 TO 90 PERCENT DECLINE IN THE RED COLOBUS NUMBERS.

WE USED TO MEET GROUPS OF RED COLOBUS

REGULARLY IN CERTAIN AREAS.

BACK IN THE DAY, THERE USED TO BE A GROUP OF RED COLOBUS

THAT LIVED JUST DOWN THE HILL HERE.

YOU WOULD SEE EVERY DAY.

THOSE GROUPS ARE JUST GONE.

♪♪

Mitani: WHAT CAN YOU DO?

WHAT WILL YOU DO IN THE SITUATION WHERE YOU HAVE

ONE HIGHLY ENDANGERED ANIMAL IMPACTING THE LIFE,

THE NUMBERS OF ANOTHER HIGHLY ENDANGERED ANIMAL

IN SUCH A NEGATIVE WAY?

SO IT'S BAD.

IT'S BAD FOR THE COLOBUS POPULATION.

THAT'S UNDENIABLY TRUE.

Watts: THEY EAT AS MUCH MEAT AS THEY CAN.

I MEAN, THEY REALLY JUST SATIATE THEMSELVES.

THAT'S ANOTHER CHARACTERISTIC THAT HUMANS

AND CHIMPS SHARE IN COMMON.

WE DON'T CONSERVE RESOURCES.

WE OVERHARVEST RESOURCES.

♪♪

THIS COMMUNITY IS GROWING EXTREMELY LARGE.

Watts: THE NUMBER OF FEMALES HAS GONE UP.

THE FEMALES HAVE KIDS.

THE NUMBER OF KIDS GO UP.

THE POPULATION HAS BEEN INCREASING.

IT'S NOT JUST THAT THIS IS THE LARGEST GROUP

THAT ANYONE KNOWS OF.

IT'S BY FAR THE LARGEST GROUP THAT ANYBODY KNOWS OF.

IT'S THREE TIMES LARGER THAN THE NEXT LARGEST.

♪♪

WHEN IS IT GOING TO LEVEL OFF?

AT THAT TIME, WE WERE UP TO MAYBE 170 INDIVIDUALS.

WE REALLY DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH FURTHER THEY CAN GO.

♪♪

Mitani: WE NOW HAVE A SITUATION WHERE THERE'S MANY MORE MALES

COMPETING FOR THE TOP SPOT.

SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE RAMIFICATIONS?

[ APES SCREAMING ]

MALE CHIMPANZEES SEEM TO LIVE, BREATHE AND EAT FOR DOMINANCE

AND STRIVE FOR STATUS.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

IT'S JUST PART OF THE GAME.

Watts: GRAPPELLI WAS JUST A PRETTY YOUNG MALE.

HE WAS ABOUT 20 YEARS OLD.

HE HAD A VERY PALE AND TANNED FACE.

HE WAS QUITE A GOOD-LOOKING CHIMP,

LITTLE BLACK MARKS UNDER HIS EYES.

MALES CAN RISE IN THE HIERARCHY REALLY FAST,

AND HE WAS OF THAT SORT OF LATE ADOLESCENT AGE

WHERE MALES OFTEN TRY TO MAKE THEIR MOVE

TO BECOME A POWER PLAYER IN THE MALE HIERARCHY.

RUNNING AROUND, BEHAVING AGGRESSIVELY,

[ APE SCREAMING ]

BEATING UP MOTHERS AND KIDS AND SMALLER,

LOWER-RANKING MALES.

♪♪

CHAOS.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

Watts: I HAD ACTUALLY THOUGHT OF PINCER AS MORE

OR LESS GRAPPELLI'S FRIEND,

AND THE SAME WITH BROWN FACE

BECAUSE GRAPPELLI SPENT

A LOT OF TIME OUT IN THE WEST.

AND, WHEN HE WAS THERE, HE WAS USUALLY WITH BROWN FACE

AND WITH PINCER.

BUT GRAPPELLI HAD WORKED HIS WAY UP IN THE HIERARCHY

TO BE ABOVE PINCER.

Langergraber: A BIG PART OF BEING A MALE CHIMPANZEE IS KNOWING

WHEN TO SHOW SUBMISSION

AND WHO TO SHOW SUBMISSION TO

AND WHEN TO CHARGE AROUND

AND INTIMIDATE OTHER CHIMPANZEES.

SO HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN DOING NOT ENOUGH FOR THE FORMER

AND TOO MUCH OF THE LATTER.

♪♪

Watts: IT WAS 2002, OCTOBER 29TH.

SOMETHING HAPPENED THAT I WOULD HAVE NEVER EXPECTED

IN THE CHIMP COMMUNITY,

WHETHER HERE OR IN GOMBE.

I JUST -- I'D NEVER HEARD OF THIS THING THAT I SAW HAPPENING.

BILL AND I WERE FOLLOWING ABOUT EIGHT OR SO OF THE MALES.

GROOMING IN A PATH, WE WERE WAY OUT TO THE WEST.

Watts: AND WE HEARD SOMEONE SCREAM.

[ APES SCREAMING IN DISTANCE ]

DAVID AND I, YOU KNOW, KIND OF LOOKED AT ONE ANOTHER

AND IT'S, LIKE, EXCITEMENT.

I BRIEFLY WAS THINKING, "WHY WERE THEY SO UPSET?

WHAT'S GOING ON?"

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

Wallauer: AND WE ARRIVED ON THIS SCENE.

THEY ACTUALLY ATTACKED ONE OF THEIR OWN.

BROWN FACE AND PINCER AND MOST, BUT NOT ALL,

OF THE NGOGO CHIMPANZEES

WERE ATTACKING SOMEONE.

[ APES GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

AND I QUICKLY REALIZED THEY WERE ATTACKING GRAPPELLI

AND THAT HE WAS IN REAL TROUBLE.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Wallauer: CHIMPS DON'T MAKE A NICE, CLEAN KILL.

THEY BITE AND HIT.

POP, POP, POP.

Watts: HARE HAD BEEN WITH US AT THE START,

BUT HE DIDN'T ATTACK GRAPPELLI.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

AND THEN EVERYONE LET GO OF HIM.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

AND THEN IT WAS BROWN FACE

WHO ACTUALLY GRABBED HIM AND BIT HIM IN THE SHOULDER,

AT WHICH POINT THE OTHERS PILED ON AGAIN.

Wallauer: BOTH DAVID AND I WERE IN SHOCK.

WE STOOD THERE SIDE BY SIDE,

AND I COULD HEAR HIM SAYING SOMETHING IN DISTRESS.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Watts: IN THIS CASE, I COULDN'T JUST NOT GO THERE BECAUSE,

FOR YEARS ALREADY,

I HAD BEEN FOLLOWING THIS CHIMP,

AND YOU KNOW, KNEW HIM AS AN INDIVIDUAL.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

Wallauer: FOLLOWING THE ATTACK, WHICH WAS BRUTAL,

GRAPPELLI CLIMBED A TREE.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

THE OTHERS, THEY WERE CHARGING AROUND,

DISPLAYING AND CALLING UNDERNEATH HIM.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

Wallauer: IN AGONY, BLEEDING

AND STRETCHED ACROSS THIS LIMB

WITH HIS PITIFUL MOANS.

[ APE GROANING ]

AND I JUST KEPT DOCUMENTING THE STORY IN AUTO MODE.

I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER IT, REALLY.

I JUST KNOW I'M SUPPOSED TO DO THIS,

AND I WAS SO CLOSE TO TEARS

THAT I COULD HARDLY SHOOT.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S NO WAY ANOTHER ANIMAL COULD SURVIVE THAT.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Watts: HARE CLIMBED UP NEAR GRAPPELLI,

AND HE STARTED SWAYING TO WHO EVER IT WAS

WHO WAS APPROACHING,

REALLY AS IF TO FEND HIM OFF, LIKE,

"I'M NOT GOING TO LET YOU COME CLOSER."

[ GROANING ]

HARE, HE WAS UPSET BY WHAT HAD HAPPENED,

AND HE WAS PROTECTING GRAPPELLI.

[ GROANS ]

IT'S AS IF HE HAD DECIDED THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG,

THAT HE DIDN'T LIKE WHAT HAD HAPPENED

AND THAT HE DIDN'T WANT ANY MORE OF IT.

[ GROANING ]

♪♪

GRAPPELLI CAME DOWN,

AND THE OTHER CHIMPS HAD GONE THAT WAY.

HE SLOWLY WALKED OFF THIS WAY.

AND I FOLLOWED HIM A WAY, AND THEN I THINK

I JUST DIDN'T WANT TO FOLLOW HIM ANYMORE.

HARE, LIKE, SEEMING TO REALLY CARE FOR GRAPPELLI

AND JUST GAVE HIM A LITTLE BIT OF COMPANY THERE AT THE END.

Watts: THAT WAS THE LAST THAT ANYONE ACTUALLY SAW HIM.

♪♪

IT WAS ABOUT 10 DAYS LATER THAT WE FOUND HIS SKELETON.

THE ANTS HAD FOUND THIS IMMENSE FEAST AND JUST MOVED IN

AND ESTABLISHED A COLONY

WHERE POOR GRAPPELLI HAD DIED AND BASICALLY EATEN HIM.

[ WIND BLOWING ]

Ndagizi: I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY KILLED HIM.

Watts: WHY DID IT HAPPEN?

HERE'S THIS YOUNG MALE WHO'S NOT VERY WELL INTEGRATED SOCIALLY,

BUT WHO SEEMS TO BE PRETTY AMBITIOUS,

WHO MAYBE SOME OF THEM SEE AS A RIVAL.

SUDDENLY HE'S OUTNUMBERED, AND THEY CAN REALLY HURT HIM,

SO THEY DO.

OF THE MALES WHO ACTUALLY PARTOOK, PINCER WAS THE ONLY ONE

WHO WAS LOWER-RANKING THAN HIM.

TO PINCER, HE WAS SOMEONE WHO WAS DEFINITELY A THREAT INSOFAR

AS IT REALLY MATTERED TO HAVE A FEW MORE PLACES

IN THE DOMINANCE HIERARCHY.

HE MIGHT, IN SOME WAY, HAVE DECIDED THAT,

"WELL, HERE'S THIS GUY WHO HAS WON AGAINST ME.

I'M SUBORDINATE TO HIM.

I HAVE A CHANCE TO CHANGE THAT,

AND I'LL BE DOMINANT TO HIM AND, IN FACT,

I'LL MAKE SURE THAT HE'S NOT GOING

TO CHALLENGE ME ANYTIME SOON,

AND MAYBE NEVER AGAIN."

Langergraber: WE HAVE SOME CERTAIN THINGS IN NGOGO

THAT ALMOST YOU COULD CALL LORE AT THIS POINT.

THEY'RE REALLY INTERESTING STORIES THAT HAVE HAPPENED,

THAT GET TOLD AGAIN

AND AGAIN AND GET PASSED ON.

EVEN THE GRADUATE STUDENTS NOW WILL BE LIKE,

"TELL ME THE STORY ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED TO HARE

WHEN ELLINGTON WENT MISSING."

SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE STUDY,

THEY'D BEEN VERY CLOSE ALLIES,

SPENDING A LOT OF THEIR TIME TOGETHER.

♪♪

WHENEVER THE STORY IS TOLD,

PEOPLE LIKE TO SPECULATE THAT ELLINGTON

WAS PROBABLY SOMEWHERE OUT IN THE EAST

AND THAT HE'D GO SORT OF TO THE EDGE OF THE TERRITORY

AND SIT ON A RIDGE, SORT OF SIT

AND QUIETLY LISTEN FOR NEIGHBORS, PROBABLY.

AND WE SUSPECTED THAT PROBABLY WAS HIS UNDOING.

YOU KNOW, HE PROBABLY WENT OFF LIKE THAT ONE TIME ON HIS OWN,

AND THE NEIGHBORS GOT HIM.

ELLINGTON DIED.

IT WAS A CONSPICUOUS ABSENCE.

[ BIRDS SINGING ]

HARE WAS PREVIOUSLY A VERY SOCIAL CHIMP

WHO LIKED TO HANG AROUND WITH THESE BIG GROUPS OF MALES.

BUT HARE WOULD JUST SHOW UP,

SEEM TO LOOK AROUND,

LOOK AT THE OTHER CHIMPS

AS IF HE WAS LOOKING FOR ELLINGTON,

BUT THEN NOT STAY FOR VERY LONG

AND GO ON HIS WAY.

♪♪

I WAS GETTING THE IMPRESSION THAT, YOU KNOW,

HARE WAS DEPRESSED,

DIDN'T WANT TO HANG OUT WITH OTHER CHIMPS,

AND THAT HE WAS REALLY, FOR A WHILE,

REALLY SEARCHING FOR HIS LONG-TIME FRIEND.

♪♪

Potts: WE KNOW THAT NGOGO IS SURROUNDED

BY A LOT OF OTHER CHIMPS,

SOME VERY BIG COMMUNITIES.

INTERCOMMUNITY FATALITIES ARE PROBABLY VERY HIGH.

BACK IN 2004, DAVID AND I WERE FOLLOWING

A BIG GROUP OF MALES WAY OUT WEST.

WE STARTED HEARING THESE ALARM VOCALIZATIONS UP AHEAD,

AND THE CHIMPS WE WERE WITH GOT REALLY EXCITED AND WORRIED,

AND THEY STARTED RUSHING AHEAD...

[ APES SCREAMING ]

...AND WE FOLLOWED THEM.

THEY WERE LOOKING AT SOMETHING.

WE REALIZED THEY WERE LOOKING AT A CHIMPANZEE

WHO WAS ALIVE BUT BARELY.

I THINK LAWRENCE WAS THE FIRST ONE TO REALIZE,

"THAT'S BRANFORD."

[ APES GIBBERING ]

THEY WERE ACTING IN A WAY THAT I HAD NEVER SEEN THEM ACT BEFORE.

IT WAS VERY DRAMATIC

BECAUSE I KNEW BRANFORD VERY WELL.

AND IN THAT MOMENT, I WONDERED IF THE CHIMPS

WERE FEELING THE SAME WAY.

♪♪

AND THEN WE STARTED HEARING MORE ALARM CALLS UP AHEAD...

[ APES SCREAMING ]

...AND GOT TO A PLACE

A FEW HUNDRED METERS FARTHER ON,

WHICH MUST HAVE BEEN WHERE THE ACTUAL ATTACK HAPPENED,

AND BRANFORD HAD MADE IT THAT FAR AWAY FROM THE SITE.

AND THERE'S WALLER.

THESE POOR NGOGO MALES WERE TRAPPED THERE

AND GREATLY OUTNUMBERED AND WERE KILLED.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

IT WAS VERY DISTURBING,

AND I STILL THINK ABOUT THAT DAY.

[ INSECTS BUZZING ]

SO DESPITE THE FACT THAT NGOGO IS THIS HUGE COMMUNITY

WITH ALL THESE MALES,

IF THOSE TWO MALES HAPPEN TO BE

ON THE PERIPHERY OF THEIR HOME RANGE AT THE WRONG TIME,

IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW LARGE THE COMMUNITY IS.

THEY'RE STILL IN TROUBLE.

THERE IS NO RELATIONSHIPS OUTSIDE THE NGOGO COMMUNITY.

EVERYBODY ELSE IS A STRANGER, AND THEY ARE HOSTILE TO ME,

AND I'M HOSTILE TO THEM.

Potts: THERE WERE A LOT OF BORDER PATROLS AT THAT TIME.

♪♪

[ APES GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

I WOULD NEVER HAVE ANTICIPATED FOR THE EVENTS

THAT SUBSEQUENTLY UNFOLDED TO HAVE UNFOLDED.

♪♪

Potts: CHIMPANZEE COMMUNITIES FIGHT OVER PARTICULAR AREAS

WITH RICH SETS OF RESOURCES,

AND THAT IS CERTAINLY SOMETHING

THAT WE SEE IN HUMANS.

♪♪

THERE ARE A LOT OF DISTURBING SIMILARITIES

BETWEEN HUMANS AND CHIMPANZEES

IN THE WAY THAT WE CARRY OUT WAR.

THEY'RE VERY MUCH IN MILITARY MODE.

♪♪

[ APES ROARING ]

Mosher: THEY MEAN BUSINESS WHEN THEY USE THEIR PATROL ROARS.

IT'S VERY DEEP.

YOU KNOW SOMEONE'S GOING TO GET HURT.

WE HAVE A HUGE CHIMP COMMUNITY, AND THEY'RE VERY SUCCESSFUL

AT KILLING FOR THAT REASON.

♪♪

[ APE GIBBERS ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

HARD TO WATCH,

IT'S BRUTAL AND DISTURBING.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

NGOGO STILL IS THE SITE THAT HAS ACCOUNTED

FOR THE MOST FATAL ATTACKS

OF ALL CHIMPANZEE STUDY SITES.

WHY? YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE PURPOSE?

WHAT'S THE FUNCTION?

WHAT'S THE POINT?

IN 2009, PART OF THE ANSWER UNFOLDED HERE

IN A QUITE DRAMATIC WAY.

♪♪

THE CHIMPS HERE IN NGOGO

STARTED TO MOVE UP TO AN AREA

TO THE NORTHEAST OF THEIR TERRITORY.

IT WAS A BIG GROUP WITH LOTS OF FEMALES AND KIDS.

THEY WEREN'T PATROLLING, LOOKING FOR NEIGHBORS.

[ APES GIBBERING ]

♪♪

SORT OF SCRATCHED MY HEAD

DURING THAT SUMMER THINKING ABOUT MATTERS,

AND I REALIZED THAT,

OF ALL THE KILLING EPISODES

THAT WE HAD WITNESSED PREVIOUS

TO THAT SUMMER OF 2009,

THAT A LOT OF THEM HAD HAPPENED UP THERE.

♪♪

[ APES GIBBERING ]

OVER THE COURSE OF 10 YEARS,

THEY HAD KILLED SO MANY MEMBERS

FROM THAT NEIGHBORING COMMUNITY

THAT THEY HAD REDUCED THE COALITIONARY STRENGTH

OF THAT NEIGHBORING GROUP TO AN EXTENT WHERE OUR CHIMPS

COULD SIMPLY MOVE IN AND MAKE THIS BIG LAND GRAB

AND EXPAND THEIR TERRITORY IN A QUITE SIGNIFICANT WAY.

♪♪

[ ANIMALS CALLING ]

♪♪

THERE'S A LOT OF TREES UP IN THAT AREA,

AND THAT'S WHAT THEY WERE GOING UP THERE TO EXPLOIT.

[ MONKEY SCREAMING ]

AN AREA THAT WAS FORBIDDEN IN THE PAST,

NOT ANYMORE.

♪♪

[ BIRDS SINGING ]

♪♪

AND THAT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE HEALTH OF FEMALES

AND OF THEIR INFANTS,

WHO ARE THE OFFSPRING OF THE MALES,

WHO ARE THE MAIN PARTICIPANTS IN THE AGGRESSION.

HE WAS THE PRESIDENT, THE HEAD OF THE CHIMPS, I THINK.

THE CHIMPS HERE AT NGOGO DONE A PRETTY GOOD JOB

OF KILLING OTHERS AND NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES.

I CAN'T HELP BUT THINK THAT, YOU KNOW,

THEY ARE GETTING AS GOOD AS THEY'VE GIVEN TO OTHERS.

♪♪

Langergraber: IN SPRING OF 2014,

SEVERAL PRIME ADULTS MALES

WHO WERE, YOU KNOW, HAD NO INDICATION

OF BEING SICK OR ILL OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, WENT MISSING.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

Potts: IN MOST CASES, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENS.

THEY JUST DISAPPEAR FOR AWHILE.

AND AFTER A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME, WE SAY, "ALL RIGHT.

THEY MUST BE DEAD."

BUT THEN, YEAH, YOU START THINKING, "WHAT DID HAPPEN?"

Watts: LOFTY DISAPPEARED AROUND THAT TIME.

PINCER DISAPPEARED AROUND THAT TIME.

♪♪

[ BIRDS SINGING ]

♪♪

SPEND ENOUGH TIME WITH THESE INDIVIDUALS.

THEY BECOME SORT OF LIKE FRIENDS.

WHEN I WAS HERE, FOR EXAMPLE, DOING MY DISSERTATION RESEARCH,

I SAW THOSE GUYS FAR MORE FREQUENTLY

THAN I SAW ANY PERSON. [ CHUCKLES ]

AND SO IT'S HARD NOT TO BECOME ATTACHED TO SOME OF THESE GUYS.

AND SO WHEN YOU HEAR ABOUT THEM GOING MISSING,

IT JUST KIND OF BREAKS MY HEART.

SO I GRIEVE FOR THEIR LOSS THE WAY I WOULD A FRIEND.

Mitani: LOFTY WAS AN AMAZING GUY.

HE WOULD ALWAYS LOOK UP INTO THE SKY.

I THOUGHT HE WAS PRAYING.

I HAVE THIS GREAT PICTURE OF HIM HOLDING A MONKEY,

GAZING UP INTO THE SKY.

I TELL PEOPLE IT'S THE FIRST SIGN HE'S PRAYING.

YOU KNOW? HE'S THANKING THE CHIMPANZEE

GODS IN THE SKY FOR THE BOUNTY THAT HE HAS BEEN GIVEN.

IT'S THE FIRST SIGN OF RELIGION WE HAVE IN CHIMPS.

IT DOES LOOK LIKE HE'S HOLDING UP THIS...

IT'S A GREAT PHOTO.

♪♪

PINCER WAS NEVER THE HIGHEST RANKING CHIMP

OR NEVER EVEN A VERY HIGH-RANKING CHIMP AT ALL.

HE WAS SORT OF A MID-RANKING GUY.

BUT DESPITE THAT, HE HAS MORE KIDS THAN ANY ALPHA MALE

WE'VE EVER HAD AT NGOGO SIRED,

SO FAR THAT WE KNOW, SEVEN KIDS.

♪♪

THERE'S A LOT OF PINCER'S GENES THAT ARE GOING TO LIVE ON HERE.

♪♪

Mitani: DURING THE PAST FEW YEARS, THE GROUP HAS EXPLODED IN SIZE,

AND THERE'S BEEN NEAR-EXPONENTIAL GROWTH.

IT WAS ALREADY BIG, AN ORDER OF MAGNITUDE BIGGER

THAN ANY OTHER CHIMPANZEE COMMUNITY

THAT'S BEEN STUDIED IN THE WORLD.

AND NOW, ALL OF A SUDDEN, IT'S GOTTEN EVEN BIGGER.

WE NOW STAND OVER 200 CHIMPANZEES IN THIS COMMUNITY.

[ APES GRUNTING ]

YOU HAVE TO START WONDERING.

CAN THEY HOLD TOGETHER AT 200?

BECAUSE THIS IS JUST SO BIG.

[ APES SCREAMING ]

WE'RE STARTING TO SEE THESE AGGRESSIVE EPISODES

ERUPT BETWEEN MALES LIVING TOGETHER HERE.

Watts: MAKING THIS CALLS AS IF, "NO, WE DON'T KNOW YOU,

AND WE DON'T LIKE YOU,"

THEY ARE ACTING AS IF THIS IS THE ENEMY.

♪♪

Mitani: JUST WITHIN THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS,

I THINK WE'VE STARTED TO GAIN

ONLY THE FIRST GLIMMERINGS

OF SOME ANTAGONISM,

SOME AGGRESSIVENESS

BETWEEN MEMBERS LIVING WITHIN THIS ONE COMMUNITY.

Watts: IT'S JUST LIKE SOMETHING WE SAW YESTERDAY.

[ APE SCREAMS ]

♪♪

[ APES SCREAMING ]

♪♪

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

[ APES GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

[ APES ROARING ]

THAT IS A VOCALIZATION

THEY MAKE WHEN IT IS NEIGHBORS.

[ ROARING CONTINUES ]

THEY ARE ACTING AS IF THIS IS THE ENEMY.

Mosher: ARE THEY PART OF THEIR GROUP, OR ARE THEY THE ENEMY?

[ APES ROARING ]

[ ROARING CONTINUES ]

[ APE SCREAMS ]

[ TREES RUSTLING ]

Watts: WE'VE SEEN SOME THINGS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS,

DOING THESE DISPLAYS AND MAKING THESE CALLS

AS IF, "NO."

YOU KNOW? "WE DON'T KNOW YOU,

AND WE DON'T LIKE YOU."

♪♪

MAYBE THIS IS THE FIRST SORT OF HINT

THAT A SPLIT MIGHT BE ON THE HORIZON.

♪♪

Watts: IT GETS TO THE POINT WHERE THEY REALLY BECOME

DISTINCTIVE SOCIAL GROUPS.

THEN I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE, "I MAY REMEMBER WHO ARE,

BUT YOU'RE NOT MY FRIEND ANYMORE,"

AND THAT THEY'LL BE HOSTILE TO EACH OTHER.

WE'RE A LITTLE WORRIED THAT INSTEAD OF BEING, NOW,

THE FORMIDABLE NGOGO COMMUNITY,

THEY WOULD BE MORE VULNERABLE TO SOME OF THEIR NEIGHBORS,

AND WE DON'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN.

♪♪

Mitani: WHAT THE INEVITABLE RAMIFICATIONS

OF THE LEVEL OF ANTAGONISM

THAT'S BEING SHOWN WILL BE

IS GOING TO BE SOMETHING INTERESTING TO FOLLOW UP ON.

THAT'S A VERY GOOD POINT.

MAYBE NOT. I'VE HAD A GOOD RUN.

I'M SORT OF AT THE END OF MY TENURE HERE.

IT'S BEEN 22 YEARS.

I TURNED ABOUT 62 THE OTHER DAY.

♪♪

Watts: I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY MORE YEARS I'LL KEEP DOING IT...

PARTLY BECAUSE I'M WEARING MY KNEES OUT.

THE HILLS HERE ARE GETTING INCREASINGLY STEEPER.

[ CHUCKLES ]

IT HAS BEEN A LOT OF TIME, TOO, TO BE OFF IN THE FOREST

INSTEAD OF BACK IN MY OWN SOCIETY.

Mitani: IN A PERFECT WORLD, I'D BE HERE

UNTIL MY DYING DAY, BUT I'M QUITE SURE

THAT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.

THERE'S ANOTHER GENERATION TO TAKE OVER,

AND IT PROBABLY IS TIME TO STEP ASIDE SOONER OR LATER.

♪♪

Potts: IT'S BEEN REALLY INTERESTING WATCHING BARTOK

NOW THAT HE'S NO LONGER ALPHA MALE,

AND HE'S GETTING A LITTLE BIT OLDER.

I ALWAYS LIKE TO SAY THAT HE'S KIND OF ON

HIS RETIREMENT TOUR NOW

BECAUSE WHENEVER I SEE HIM IN THE FOREST,

HE OFTEN GOES OFF ON HIS OWN.

AND I'M LIKE, "HE'S DOING IT HERE."

AND HE'LL SLEEP MUCH OF THE DAY.

HE DOESN'T LIKE TO JOIN THE ACTION

QUITE AS MUCH AS HE USED TO.

HE'S STILL DOING OKAY.

YEAH, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I HAVE AS MUCH OPPORTUNITY

AS I CAN TO SEE HIM.

♪♪

Langergraber: MWEYA GOT A LOT GOING ON.

IN 2007, HE LOST HIS HAND TO A SNARE INJURY.

YOU KNOW, THAT WAS ALMOST 10 YEARS AGO WHEN THAT HAPPENED.

NOW, AGE IS REALLY STARTING TO CATCH UP WITH HIM,

AND YOU SEE HIM WALKING THROUGH THESE BIG MUCUSO TREES UP

ON HIGH WHERE HIS LEGS DON'T HAVE THE STRENGTH THEY USED TO.

HE'S GOT TO RELY ON SORT OF THE ONE HAND TO KEEP THE SUPPORT

ON THE TRUNK OF THE TREE,

BUT HE'S STILL HERE.

♪♪

NOWADAYS, YOU'LL FIND HARE IN THE SORT OF CENTRAL PART

OF THE NGOGO TERRITORY,

IS WHERE YOU FIND HIM MOST OFTEN.

NOW HE'S GOT THESE ORPHANS TRAILING HIM AROUND.

PEE-WEE AND ERROLL WILL FOLLOW HIM FOR DAYS ON END.

IT'S HIM AND THESE LITTLE KIDS WHO SEEM TO LOOK UP TO HIM

AS THE WISE OLD MAN OF NGOGO.

I COULD PROBABLY SUMMARIZE HARE BEST BY A QUOTE

FROM OUR LONGEST-TERM FIELD ASSISTANT, ALFRED.

"HARE IS THE NICEST PERSON AT NGOGO."

[ LAUGHS ]

♪♪

IT'S BEEN INTERESTING TO SEE THE CHANGES THAT HAVE OCCURRED

AS INDIVIDUALS HAVE BOTH GROWN UP

FROM YOUTH AND REACHED ADULTHOOD

AND ALSO THE CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED

TO THE INDIVIDUALS THAT WE STARTED OFF,

WHO WERE ALREADY ADULTS AND ARE NOW AGED.

♪♪

ONE OF THE THINGS I THOUGHT ABOUT FOR YEARS

IS THAT MAYBE WE JUST STEPPED INTO THIS SITUATION

AT AN OPPORTUNE TIME.

[ APES SCREAM ]

FOR WHATEVER REASON, WE HAVE THIS WHOLE COLLECTION

OF FAIRLY YOUNG, LATE-ADOLESCENT,

YOUNG ADULT MALES --

BARTOK, LOFTY, ELLINGTON, HARE,

THAT WHOLE GENERATION.

♪♪

Potts: AND THESE ARE INDIVIDUALS

WHO WILL NEVER LEAVE THE GROUP IN WHICH THEY WERE BORN.

SO THEY DO GROW UP TOGETHER.

THEY BRING WITH THEM THEIR OWN PERSONALITIES,

THEIR OWN SETS OF SKILLS.

♪♪

BUT THEY WERE ALLIES.

EACH WOULD BACK THE OTHER UP.

♪♪

US AGAINST THEM.

WE ARE REALLY PART OF ONE RATHER THAN BEING SEPARATE.

SO THERE IS THIS UNUSUAL DEMOGRAPHIC BLIP OF

ALL THESE MALES COMING INTO THEIR PRIME ALL AT ONCE.

♪♪

AND MAYBE IT WAS THAT...

[ APES GRUNTING, SCREAMING ]

THAT CREATED A SITUATION FOR ALL HELL TO BREAK LOOSE.

[ SCREAMING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

SO KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN, YOU KNOW?

LET THE CHIMPS TELL US THE STORY.

AND THAT'S THE GREAT THING ABOUT CHIMPS.

THEY'RE ALWAYS TELLING US

SOMETHING NEW AND DIFFERENT.

♪♪