Swamp Cats
Film about a family of lions living in the swamps of the Okavango delta, seen through the eyes of a cub born just before the annual flood.
Film about a family of lions living in the swamps of the Okavango delta, seen through the eyes of a cub born just before the annual flood.
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AnimalsTranscript
00:00In the heart of a great African wilderness, a tiny lion gub, her eyes still closed and just a few
00:25days old, is carried by her mother to a new place of safety. With luck and the help of
00:33her family, she will grow up to be a very special lion, part of a pride who live a very
00:39unusual existence in an extraordinary place. These lions live in the Okavango Delta in Botswana,
00:48and they spend more than half the year in a swamp.
00:55This remarkable pride does things very differently from their savannah or woodland living cousins.
01:12Living here means tackling the unique challenges of being a swamp cat.
01:22It's the beginning of winter in the Okavango, the driest time of the year.
01:40There's been no rain for months, and most of the Okavango is dry, wind-blown and layered in dust.
01:49But despite this, a great gathering is taking place. From miles around, thousands of buffalo have begun to assemble in preparation for a great march.
02:04For them there is almost no grazing here, and little to drink.
02:11Elephants gather here too, treading ancient pathways to the few remaining water holes. Before long, even this precious water is churned to mud.
02:18Yet the buffalo appear to be moving even deeper into the parched floodplains.
02:25Because they know a dramatic change is on its way.
02:32a dramatic change is on its way.
02:39It arrives as tiny tendrils of life.
02:46a precious annual floodplains that will turn the arid plains into a massive swamp land.
02:53rain that's fallen in the highlands of Angola, a thousand miles away, has taken four months to reach the Okavango.
03:00It starts slowly, as trickles of water creeping over the land, filling a web of dusty pathways.
03:10It starts slowly, as trickles of water creeping over the land, filling a web of dusty pathways.
03:17sheeting out across the plains, spreading into the land of the land of the swamp cats.
03:40Somewhere here, in a secluded woodland, one of the female swamp cats has hidden her newborn cubs.
03:48This is Fulani, the most mischievous and playful of three sisters.
04:02As most lionesses do, Fulani's mother left the main pride and hid herself in a safe place,
04:09away from male lions and predators, while she gave birth.
04:17She and her sister will spend the next few weeks here, raising Fulani and her two siblings.
04:34All around them, their home is about to change.
04:37In a matter of days, thousands of square miles of dusty grasslands transform.
04:52Muddy waterholes become glistening lagoons, and the vast dry floodplains take on the polished sheen of crystal-clear water.
05:02Almost overnight, Fulani's sanctuary has become an island.
05:06They are now separated by miles of water from their extended family.
05:11The swamp cat pride.
05:13They roam a hundred square miles of this wetland.
05:17They are one of the few prides that have learnt to survive the tough conditions of the swamp.
05:22Sixteen hundred lions live in the Okavango region.
05:25Most of them live the life typical of savannah lions, and avoid the flooded areas.
05:32This pride does things differently.
05:35At the head of the family are the grandmothers, with years of swampland experience.
05:41With their older daughters, they form the nucleus of the swamp cat pride.
05:47A formidable sisterhood, bound together by blood ties.
05:52The swamp pride is lorded over by a great Kalahari male and his two brothers.
05:59While savannah males spend a lot of time away on territorial patrol,
06:03these swamp males show unusually high devotion to the pride, spending much of their time with the females.
06:10In summer, availability of food drops by 80% as prey animals disperse.
06:26The pride survives this lean season by splintering into smaller groups.
06:31But now, as the flood arrives, they all begin to reunite.
06:37But they're still not up to full force.
06:41Fulani's mother and her new cubs are still in hiding, several miles away.
06:46Their sanctuary now surrounded by all manner of new life.
06:52Some antelope are in their element here.
06:54These are lechwe, aquatic grazers that have evolved to live in Africa's swamps.
07:03Surrounded by water, and with hungry mouths to feed,
07:06Fulani's mother is forced into the shallows in search for a meal.
07:09They have oily, waterproof coats and elongated hooves for running over waterlogged ground.
07:18Confident that no predator can match their speed in the water, they spend their time in the shallows, grazing new swamp grass.
07:35Fulani's mother knows that these lechwe are a tough choice for a meal.
07:48Though she also knows there are ways to increase her chances.
07:53Her best bet is to be bold, and to run an inexperienced young lechwe onto dry land.
08:11The best bet is to be bold, and to run an inexperienced young lechwe onto dry land.
08:15The best bet is to be bold, and to run an inexperienced young lechwe onto dry land.
08:18She has been lucky, but she is not going to be able to support her small family on such difficult prey.
08:38She's been lucky, but she's not going to be able to support her small family on such
08:47difficult prey.
08:57The waters of the Okavango never reach the sea.
09:01Instead, they spill out over 6,000 square miles of the ancient Kalahari Desert to form
09:07the largest inland delta on Earth.
09:13Desert turns to vibrant swamp, a temporary oasis created by the great winter flood.
09:37So, let's go.
10:15For little Fulani, it's a bewildering time.
10:23She's never seen water before.
10:27She's curious, but like every cat on earth, she has an instinctive hatred of water.
10:45Her mother is intent on getting the cubs into the shallows.
10:51Growing up here means that Fulani and her siblings will simply have to get their feet wet.
10:56Their very survival depends on it.
10:59The waters are rising, and if they are to join the main pride, their mother will need to move now.
11:09Most savannah lion cubs aren't faced with so many challenges early on.
11:13But these six-week-old cubs are straight in at the deep end.
11:26They will now have to make an arduous and exhausting journey across miles of cold, flooded grasslands.
11:33The icy water makes progress slow and tiring.
11:58Lions are not designed for this environment.
12:01Only minutes into their journey, the lioness has become uneasy.
12:21They are being followed.
12:37This unknown nomadic male poses a serious threat to the cubs.
12:42For little Fulani and her siblings, there's no rest.
12:49The shortest routes are through the deepest channels.
12:52And with only their noses above water, the risks of drowning at hypothermia are high.
13:02Still, their mother urges them on.
13:06The unfamiliar male shadows them until dusk.
13:09Now Fulani's group is within striking distance of the main pride.
13:15One last, fast-flowing channel separates them from home ground.
13:30The moment they cross this natural boundary, the male loses confidence and abandons his pursuit.
13:37Winter nights in the Okavango can plummet below freezing.
13:50And at first light, the swamp is covered with frost.
13:54Tough conditions for tiny cubs.
13:55The soft contact calls of Fulani's mother drift across the dawn, letting the swamp pride know she's coming home.
14:10Fulani's first big challenge is over.
14:19Her mother cautiously leads the cubs towards the pride.
14:22She stops at a safe distance, to reassure them she is family and not foe.
14:32After several weeks apart, the sisters are reunited.
14:38Fulani is immediately at home in the company of cousins, large and small.
14:44She will be introduced to lion behaviour that is very different from traditional lion families.
14:53Lions elsewhere have very separate and rigidly enforced territories.
14:58Perhaps because of the unpredictable flood, and dry land being in short supply,
15:03lion prides in the swamp appear to be less aggressive towards each other.
15:07And they actually share the islands.
15:11Uniquely, the swamp pride's home range might overlap by as much as 80% with the neighbouring pride.
15:18So rather than patrolling borders and scrapping with the neighbours,
15:22the swamp pride males spend more time socialising with the rest of the family.
15:26The pride will need this level of cooperation if they are to make a success of life in the swamp.
15:35Under the watchful eye of the old grandmothers, Fulani already has a head start.
16:00And although this pride male may be a little daunting for Fulani now,
16:06one day she will form a bond as special with him as she has with her mother.
16:22Fulani is still dependent on her mother's milk.
16:25Soon she will start to eat meat,
16:27and that's when she will need the support of the extended family.
16:45The last two absent females,
16:48accompanied by a young male,
16:50head back towards the pride.
16:52For the entire summer,
16:56they've been on their own,
16:58trying to hunt down whatever they could find.
17:02But lions are far less effective in small groups,
17:05so they end up stealing much of their food from more successful hunters.
17:09Meanwhile,
17:34they do not get it.
17:35Hyenas are perhaps the most adaptable predators in the swamp.
17:43On the East African plains, it's the lions that tend to make the kills.
17:48But here, the lions are often cast in the role of scavengers.
18:05At full force, the swamp cat pride now has the muscle power to tackle extremely large prey,
18:23and they've brought down an adult giraffe during the night.
18:28Giraffe are one of the few large animals left in the flooded plains,
18:32yet incredibly, the swamp pride have worked out how to pull down this powerful animal.
18:41Fulani climbs in for her first tentative taste of meat alongside her father.
18:49Elsewhere, pride males rarely allow youngsters so close at the kill,
18:53but the swamp pride males show remarkable levels of tolerance.
19:02This feast is unusual, and will tide them over for a while.
19:19But the prey they really depend on has yet to arrive.
19:23As the flood continues to rise and spill out across the land,
19:38it reaches its highest level for 20 years, pushing out most of the grazing animals.
19:44After several weeks of trekking, the great herds of buffalo finally begin to appear in the swamp,
20:07streaming in sinuous lines across the flooded grasslands.
20:10Their goal is the new sweet grass, nourished by the floodwaters.
20:26These herds are constantly on the move across the swamp, searching out fresh grazing.
20:31And, keenly awaiting their return, are the swamp cats.
20:45After the hardships of the last few months, suddenly there is potential prey everywhere.
21:01But hunting these buffalo is not for the faint-hearted.
21:05Stalking belly-deep in the swamp is far more demanding than on dry land.
21:12And tackling the highly dangerous African buffalo is a task that only experience and weight of numbers can achieve.
21:22It will be a testing time for the lions, especially the youngest in the pride.
21:32From now on, the swamp cats will be constantly on the move to stay within range of the buffalo.
21:39And little Fulani and the other cubs will be forced to keep up, no matter how exhausting and treacherous the journey.
21:47In front are the wise old grandmothers, who are veterans of the game.
22:02How well they use their knowledge and experience will determine the survival of Fulani and the rest of the pride.
22:08The grandmothers maintain a relentless pace as they lead the pride from island to island on the trail of the buffalo.
22:33On a welcome patch of dry land, Fulani and her cousins take the rare opportunity to romp.
22:42A brief lapse in concentration that has serious consequences.
22:48Fulani become separated from the group.
22:53The pride, drawn by the distant sound of buffalo, presses on, unaware that Fulani is missing.
23:15Her yelps are muffled by the sounds of the swamp.
23:31And her mother's scent trail is lost in the water.
23:38Eventually, Fulani's mother hears a faint cry.
23:45Neither mother nor cub is sure of direction, and their paths diverge in the swamp.
23:53Fulani is in real danger.
24:15Small cubs, separated from the protection of the pride for even a short time, are killed by hyenas, crocodiles or leopards.
24:24Or simply succumb to cold and exhaustion.
24:28In the Okavango, more than half the cubs die before they are even twelve weeks old.
24:41Despite her frantic searching, Fulani's mother cannot find her lost cub.
24:56As dusk approaches, the rest of the pride stop trailing the buffalo and settle down to wait.
25:09Fulani's mother won't give up her search.
25:19The hours of darkness are the most dangerous for an unprotected lion cub, with many predators on the prowl.
25:26Fulani's mother also toes sakura, a
25:30little bekk, familias, the acontecernus off the the secret,
25:31a scissor, a lot of people.
25:33No one can show up.
25:35They're not extremely dangerous for anう.
25:37They've been Tutaj.
25:38They have a good one.
25:39They have a good one.
25:40They've been here to COMMER.
25:41You've been here to the wreck.
25:43You've been here to the wreck.
25:45We've been here to the wreck.
25:46You've been here to the wreck.
25:48See.
25:49There is snowmen and there's snowmen there.
25:51The little cub has survived the night.
26:16But she's frightened and confused.
26:21During the night, the pride has joined Filani's mother in the search, and now they can hear
26:47the cub's desperate calls.
26:53The cub's desperate calls.
26:59The cub's desperate calls.
27:05The cub's desperate calls.
27:09The cub's desperate calls.
27:11The cub's desperate calls.
27:17After crime essasions.
27:21The cub's desperate calls.
27:26Ow!
27:34Ow!
27:38Ow!
27:40Ow!
27:49Fulani's misadventure has cost the pride valuable time and energy.
27:54A day's gap has opened up between them and the buffalo.
27:58The herd is many islands and water crossings away.
28:02And the swamp pride needs to make up ground.
28:24When the exhausted cubs begin to slow the pride down, the females are forced to leave them.
28:31All lions leave small cubs alone while hunting, but it's a much tougher situation for Fulani and the other cubs.
28:37The swamp pride may be away for days tracking the buffalo.
28:43So the cubs must wait quietly for fear of attracting hyenas.
28:47Out on these flood plains, the swamp cats face far more hunting challenges than most lions.
29:01There is so little cover that an ambush is difficult to set up.
29:07Stalking low in the water is impossible.
29:12But they still need to rely on stealth and surprise.
29:15So the swamp cats have had to master the art of approaching quietly in water.
29:22Even if they can get close, the lion's main weapon, explosive speed, is severely hampered in the shallows.
29:30Buffalo are clever, powerful and dangerous.
29:33They are also strong swimmers.
29:36So the pride needs to employ special tactics.
29:40As the lions close in, the buffalo's own noisy progress through the water masks the sound of the lion's approach.
29:47These swamp specialists have learnt through bitter experience not to attempt an attack in the water.
30:04They carefully manoeuvre round the herd.
30:08Two females swim round to cut off any escape route.
30:11The pride inches into position, concentrating on a small group with a calf.
30:29They wait until the buffalo edge onto dry land, before springing the ambush.
30:41But the buffalo know exactly how to respond.
30:50By heading for deep water.
31:11They wait until the source of protests Ro who work for you very則.
31:12They might be ruined, though.
31:13No vibrations are 별로.
31:14They expected to leave to swear then.
31:15Handed Or could you呈, by every scare, on a small group with a cow.
31:16・・・farty fire when no resp誘.
31:18They teevelance...
31:20We are a loser, at a small group of 46 2.
31:22LoSE cima he is.
31:30They do not bring their rumored through.
31:32To protest Root.
31:33The beatkmale關 extraneous handling, become dangerous.
31:35Despite the size of the pride,
32:03most buffalo hunts and water end like this. Nine out of ten hunts fail. The
32:14swamp cats regroup and get back on the buffalo's trail. They will shadow the
32:19herd and wait for another chance.
32:33Each side understands the inevitable and ongoing contest.
32:40As the shadows lengthen, the lions settle down, prepared to play a waiting game.
32:50Darkness brings cover, and at night the buffalo tend to spend more time on dry
32:57islands than in the water, giving the swamp cats an edge.
33:17Hunting by moonlight, these two adversaries play out an ancient game of cat and mouse.
33:23Only this time, the mouse weighs nearly a ton and is heavily armed.
33:53All night long, the three males harassed the resilient buffalo herd.
34:00All night long, the three males harassed the resilient buffalo herd.
34:15When the dawn comes, there's no kill. But there is a victim.
34:36An old bull is down, exhausted by the lion's persistent attacks.
34:57Some of the buffalo cows have banded together and stand by him, presenting a united and
35:04intimidating front to the waiting lions.
35:06But eventually the cows recognize the old bull's time is up and abandon him to his fate.
35:12He rises to his feet in one last defiant stand.
35:31There's no rush. Both the hunters and the hunted sense that the outcome is now inevitable.
35:44It's inevitable.
35:45It's inevitable.
36:14It's inappropriate.
36:16There are five italics turned out, so they have a billion
36:33As the adults settle down to feed,
36:45Fulani's mother goes back to fetch all the junior members of the pride.
37:03This is Fulani's first taste of buffalo,
37:11and she joins in alongside the adults.
37:19All show remarkable tolerance towards each other.
37:29Fulani soon learns the tricky art of picking the bones clean.
37:34Because each buffalo is so hard-won,
37:36the swamp cats won't waste a thing.
37:39There will be nothing left for the vultures.
37:49An old female meticulously buries the entrails,
37:52disguising any smell that would carry on the wind and attract hyenas.
37:57Fulani watches and learns.
38:02But more importantly,
38:04the meal has bought the pride some time to relax.
38:08Lions are the only social big cats.
38:09And none are more sociable than the swamp cats.
38:11Playing is important for forming alliances,
38:13and the special cooperation that the pride need for killing dangerous animals like the buffalo.
38:18Fulani will need a little bit more weight,
38:19and tackling experience before she will be taken seriously.
38:23and tackling experience before she will be taken seriously.
38:24Fulani will need a little bit more weight.
38:25And tackling experience before she will be taken seriously.
38:26I'll answer some details.
38:27No way like you,
38:28No way like me,
38:29No way like you,
38:30No way like you,
38:31No way like you,
38:32I'm going to run the whole storm.
38:33But
38:34we'll be back to you.
38:35Yeah.
38:36What is it like you?
38:37Fulani will need a little bit more weight and tackling experience before she will be taken seriously.
38:58A few weeks later, at the height of the winter season,
39:01over 70% of the Swamp Pride's home range is underwater.
39:08The waterlogged land lies under a blanket of mist in the cold morning air.
39:27This is when the great Okavango is at its most spectacular.
39:37Emerald green grasses grow through the flood waters
39:40and the areas between the isolated islands are criss-crossed
39:44with a web of trails left by animals as they move through this complex wetland.
39:49The End
39:50The End
39:51The End
39:52The End
39:53The End
39:54The End
39:55The End
39:56The End
39:57The End
39:58The End
39:59The End
40:00The End
40:01The End
40:02The End
40:03The End
40:04The End
40:05The End
40:06The End
40:07The End
40:08The End
40:09The End
40:10The End
40:11The End
40:12The End
40:13The End
40:14The End
40:15The End
40:16The End
40:17The End
40:18The End
40:19The End
40:20The End
40:21The End
40:22The End
40:48The End
40:49The End
40:50One of the most intense periods of her young life is about to begin.
40:52The water is now so deep that the great buffalo herds break up into smaller groups and begin to disperse, making them harder to find.
41:05The swamp cat pride are so reliant on the buffalo to keep them in good shape that they must venture into the deeper swamp and take whatever opportunities they can.
41:17Only by being able to swim and follow the buffalo can the swamp cats survive here.
41:24The pressure is on for the cats because the season is drawing to an end.
41:30The buffalo begin to move out of the swamp cat's territory and soon they will be gone.
41:37Time is running out for the lions.
41:39Time is running out.
41:41Time is running out for the number of animals so that they came to the sea.
41:43The pH of the birds will fall without the sea.
41:45It is over.
41:46Time is running out for the birds.
41:47Time is running out for the birds as the sea.
41:48Do not take to pass the birds but they can't wait.
41:49The birds will not get them out for the birds, but they will be easily along the birds.
41:50The birds will pass and wait to get to the birds.
41:51The birds will be the birds.
41:52See them so they may be on the birds.
41:53Not the birds will come to the birds.
41:54Until they are still on the birds.
41:55Tali is this.
41:57The birds will be incredible.
41:59Felani and the other cubs will go with them.
42:01It will be her greatest challenge yet.
42:02Hours of swimming with the pride across the deepest part of the sea.
42:07with the pride across the deepest part of the swamp.
42:17Leading once again will be the Grandmothers.
42:21They remember the best places to cross deep, fast-flown channels.
42:26They can anticipate how to play the swamp to their advantage.
42:31And they know where these last isolated groups of buffalo might be found.
42:58Annie's ability to learn the tricks of being a swamp cat now will determine whether she
43:03will succeed or fail in years to come.
43:10She must learn to find safe crossings, how to stalk prey, the best ways to conserve heat
43:17and energy, where crocs will be lurking, how to take part in an ambush.
43:25In other words, the problems of being a cat that lives in water.
43:32The swamp cats have followed the last big herd to one of the large dry islands on the very
43:37edge of their home range.
43:39Now they prepare an ambush.
43:46The cubs are far too small to approach aggressive buffalo, who would kill them on sight.
43:52So they're left close by to watch and learn.
43:59Fulani has a grandstand view.
44:06Each lioness manoeuvres carefully into position.
44:13surrounding the buffalo.
44:33Each lioness manoeuvres carefully into position surrounding the buffalo.
44:40which includes spizzeria clock.
44:43Which one of them does to sustain their own head.
44:48So they clack my hip when never got ironed into position to move from the ground.
44:53Angel алler Samson.
44:55Some hide and patiently wait.
45:23Others begin a flanking movement to get behind the herd.
45:39Every cat moves closer, waiting for the buffalo to panic.
45:46All right.
45:48Let's go.
45:49All right.
45:50Let's go.
45:52Let's go.
46:19I don't know.
46:49I don't know.
47:19Soon the floodwaters will start to recede, and the delta will turn once more towards
47:37desert.
47:40In these summer months, Felani will become a young adult.
47:47During the dry season, the pride will split up, and Felani will shadow her mother, learning
47:53to hunt, honing her skills in the swamp.
47:57So that by the time the annual floodwaters arrive again, and the swamp pride reunites
48:03for the next great buffalo season, Felani will be an accomplished hunter and a successful
48:10swamp cat.
48:17For just a few weeks in every year, humpback whales migrate to a remote corner of the
48:27Caribbean to meet and greet, and BBC2 will be at the greatest whale-watching spectacle on
48:33the planet tomorrow at 6.40.
48:36Back to you tonight, and Gwyneth Paltrow takes on more romance than she can handle in Emma
48:41next.