Awesome Animals (2020) s01e10 Episode Script
Super Pride
1
NARRATOR A group of
lions stand above all
others on the plains of
the African Serengeti.
They're expert hunters
Defenders
And mothers
It's a
perfect storm of conditions
that allows these
awesome animals to become,
the lion super pride.
This is the
Serengeti in East Africa.
Its name
means "endless plains."
Covering almost
6,000 square miles,
it's one of the world's
great wildlife refuges.
Life here hasn't changed
much in a million years.
The plains
teem with giant predators.
Nile crocs
patrol the rivers.
Leopards
stalk the woods.
And cheetahs
hunt the open plains.
But of all these
great hunters, none
compare to the lion.
Weighing up to
550 pounds, it's the
largest cat in all of Africa.
A full-grown male can
stand four feet high at the
shoulder and stretch 11 feet
from nose to tail.
These big fellas are
built to intimidate.
But oddly
enough, their large manes
make them easier to spot.
Which means
males leave most of
the hunting to their
sleek, female companions.
Females are leaner, weighing
about half that of males.
But they make up for
their smaller size
in power and speed.
Sprinting up to 35 miles per
hour, the lioness is queen
of the Serengeti.
Alone, there's no doubt
they're powerful predators
But add a little teamwork into
the mix, and prey, beware!
Lions are
the only big cats that
live together in what
are called prides.
The Serengeti is home
to about 3,500 lions
living in 300 prides,
one of the largest lion
populations in all of Africa.
The average pride has
four lionesses, a few
cubs and two males.
But one pride, in
the middle of the Serengeti,
is an exception,
they are
what's called a super pride.
They number 22 in all!
8 adult females,
2 males,
and 12 young ones.
Super prides are
exceedingly rare.
The perfect set of
conditions has to be present.
Prey has to be plentiful.
Lions live
exclusively on meat,
and an adult lion needs
12 pounds a day.
A typical pride
might only need to kill big
prey every couple of days.
But in the super
pride, with 22 members.
They must hunt nearly
every day to survive.
Zebras are a
plentiful delicacy.
But zebras aren't as
dainty as they look.
They use their powerful
rear legs to kick
friend and foe alike.
Like lions, zebras can sprint
up to 35 miles per hour.
But the zebra
can outlast the lion.
The lioness
combines power and speed,
but she lacks endurance.
She can only
run at her top speed
for about 300 feet.
For success she must
get close and use the
element of surprise.
May arrives
on the Serengeti plains.
And the rains begin.
But these big cats
don't mind a little rain.
Water means new grass,
and grass brings over
a million wildebeest
and zebra to their
hunting grounds.
This is the largest
mammal migration on Earth.
The herds leave
the southeastern Serengeti
and travel north,
following the rains
and the new grass.
Their annual
300-mile round trip takes them
right into the heart of the
super pride's territory.
The 20-square-mile
territory is smaller than
that of other prides.
But quality
matters more than sheer size.
Every square mile
here contains more food than
other, bigger territories.
And with plentiful
food, each lioness stalks
alone this time.
The more
lions per kill, the
smaller the portions.
They will cooperate to
take down bigger prey.
But
this is solo work.
The adult wildebeest
outweighs the lioness by over
a hundred pounds.
But what the
lioness lacks in size,
she makes up for in skill.
She grasps her prey
with powerful shoulder muscles.
Inch-long claws
act like hooks.
And four
canine teeth penetrate
two inches deep,
anchoring her to
the twisting prey.
Normally she
would kill the wildebeest
by knocking it down
and clamping its throat closed.
But this time the
lioness has to employ
another technique.
Hanging on to her victim she
covers its mouth with hers.
Huge nostrils allow
her to breathe, while the
wildebeest suffocates.
The herds spill into
the super pride's territory.
They will stay
remain as long as the rains
fall and grass grows.
It seems like an all-you-can
eat buffet for the 22 lions.
But
the migration means
more than just a big feast.
More meat means healthier,
more robust and more
well-fed lions.
Preparing the
females for the exra
demands of pregnancy
and motherhood.
Lions elsewhere
in Africa give birth at
any time of year.
But oddly enough, not
here on the Serengeti.
Most of these females give
birth during the wet season.
The Serengeti
pride welcomes new cubs
to their super club.
Barely
two months old, they
emerge from their den.
Soon, other
cubs begin to appear.
They begin to learn
their place inside the pride.
But dad's discipline is
nothing compared to the
dangers that await them.
For now though,
ignorance is bliss.
Keeping the cubs alive
is the ultimate goal.
They'll pass on the
ruling lions' genes
across the Serengeti.
If they die,
the adult's efforts will
have been in vain.
Typically, only
a quarter of Serengeti lion
cubs make it to adulthood.
It is survival of the fittest.
Disease and
starvation can hit hard.
And predators can sneak up
when least expecting it.
To hyenas, a lion cub is
a mouth-watering treat.
There is strength
in numbers though.
Female lions join forces to
protect their cubs, forming
what's known as a crèche,
or nursey of sorts.
The mothers in a crèche share
the responsibility of feeding,
rearing and guarding
all the cubs.
Lions are the only
wild cats that raise
their young this way.
A clever solution by
some awesome animal mamas.
Time will pass and
about 18 months later,
the cubs will be
ready for the wide-open
African savannah,
all on their own.
But until then, they
depend on the creche
for food and protection.
It's not an easy
road to adulthood.
Sometimes a cub's greatest
threat comes from their own,
other lions.
The super pride's
20-square-mile territory is
surrounded by other prides.
They must defend
it ruthlessly.
Trespassers
cannot be tolerated.
At the edge of their
territory, the super pride
creche encounters two small
cubs from a neighboring pride.
While their mothers
hunted, the cubs wandered
off and accidentally
entered super pride territory.
Trespassing cubs are
often killed on sight.
But these mothers hesitate.
Nearby, a lioness
calls for her lost cubs.
She is likely
a former member of the
super pride, an outcast.
The super pride
needs about eight adult
females to defend its
territory against
other, smaller prides.
As they mature,
surplus females must leave.
Several
lionesses were driven
out by their mothers.
They formed what's called
a daughter pride, on the
edge of super pride territory.
They and other daughter
prides nearby share the
super pride's DNA.
The bonds between
mothers and exiled daughters
disappear over time.
The super pride mothers
seem to sense something
familiar about the cubs.
They
could be related.
The lost cubs'
mother picks up their
scent and follows the
trail into terrible danger.
The super pride may have
spared the cubs, but the
mother is not welcome.
♪
The cubs are led
away, lucky to have escaped
their ordeal alive.
And their
good fortune continues,
their mother brings
them to a fresh kill.
For the lionesses
of the super pride,
these border incursions
don't always end in violence.
Each territorial skirmish is
just one moment in a conflict
that lasts generations.
But one threat is met
with immediate force.
Wandering, nomadic males
are one of the greatest
dangers a super pride faces.
As young males mature,
they're seen by their
fathers as competitors,
and are kicked out
of their prides.
They are left to fend
for themselves in exile,
living on the fringes
of other prides' territories.
They face
harassment wherever they go.
A reliable
food source is hard to
come by without a pride
and a territory.
So many nomads
survive by following the
migrating herds.
But they're
secretly schemeing.
Watching and waiting
to make their move.
Their goal?
To take over another's pride.
The nomads'
main mission is to
spread their genes.
A lioness can't mate if
she already has cubs.
So the male's
solution is simple.
Kill the cubs off and
spread his own DNA.
With so many
lionesses, the super pride
presents a tempting target.
But first, the nomads
will have to get past
the pride's two males.
And that is no easy task,
even for a buff bachelor lion.
As night falls though,
the super pride's males
reveal their location.
They're much too
far away to stop intruders.
It's time to make their move.
The lionesses hear the roars
of potential cub-killers.
If this were a normal
pride, the mothers
might not stand a chance
against this group of nomads.
And the cubs
could be in mortal danger.
But the lionesses
of the super pride have
the power of numbers.
Now they issue
their own warning.
They will vigorously defend
their cubs and their turf.
The intruders
know they're outnumbered.
The powerful wall
of sound seems to deter the
nomads away before they can
even mount an invasion.
The super
pride males return at dawn.
The scent of the
intruders lingers everywhere.
The males refresh
their own scent-marks and
roar at full volume.
But the
danger has passed.
The females, and their
crèche, came to the rescue.
Saving their cubs
and ensuring the super
pride will live on,
at least, for now.
The wet
season draws to a close
and the plains
quickly begin to dry out.
A sea of hundreds
of thousands of wildebeest
and zebra resume their
annual journey to
greener pastures.
For the past two
months, they've helped
the super pride thrive.
Now, without them,
the pride faces much
bigger challenges.
The buffalo.
For the
super pride, a buffalo
is the ultimate prey.
It weighs up to 1500 pounds,
providing enough meat to
feed them all.
But
buffalo fight back.
These fierce animals
wound more lions than
any other prey species.
A herd is a fortress
of horns and hooves.
A loner like this
offers the best chance.
But even a single
buffalo demands respect.
Unlike other prides, the
lions of the super pride
have a special advantage:
there is strength in numbers.
♪
Bringing him
down requires the power
of one of the big males.
It'll take several
minutes to kill.
The lions must face the
buffalo for the next
nine months until
the wildebeest return.
It's a dangerous,
and deadly, proposition.
But the combination
of plentiful prey, strong
males and a large group of
powerful females
gives them a greater
than average chance.
But as mighty as it is,
one day change will come
to the super pride.
Like all great empires it
will fragment and fall.
The cubs will eventually
leave the comforts and
care of their family,
and forge new
prides of their own.
The young
females may form a
daughter pride nearby.
And one day, they may even
challenge their own mothers
for their territory.
The young males
though, will probably travel
much further from home.
They will continue
carrying the super pride's
genes across the Serengeti.
And someday form a new
super pride of their own,
to rule the Seregeti plains.
Captioned by Cotter
Captioning Services.
NARRATOR A group of
lions stand above all
others on the plains of
the African Serengeti.
They're expert hunters
Defenders
And mothers
It's a
perfect storm of conditions
that allows these
awesome animals to become,
the lion super pride.
This is the
Serengeti in East Africa.
Its name
means "endless plains."
Covering almost
6,000 square miles,
it's one of the world's
great wildlife refuges.
Life here hasn't changed
much in a million years.
The plains
teem with giant predators.
Nile crocs
patrol the rivers.
Leopards
stalk the woods.
And cheetahs
hunt the open plains.
But of all these
great hunters, none
compare to the lion.
Weighing up to
550 pounds, it's the
largest cat in all of Africa.
A full-grown male can
stand four feet high at the
shoulder and stretch 11 feet
from nose to tail.
These big fellas are
built to intimidate.
But oddly
enough, their large manes
make them easier to spot.
Which means
males leave most of
the hunting to their
sleek, female companions.
Females are leaner, weighing
about half that of males.
But they make up for
their smaller size
in power and speed.
Sprinting up to 35 miles per
hour, the lioness is queen
of the Serengeti.
Alone, there's no doubt
they're powerful predators
But add a little teamwork into
the mix, and prey, beware!
Lions are
the only big cats that
live together in what
are called prides.
The Serengeti is home
to about 3,500 lions
living in 300 prides,
one of the largest lion
populations in all of Africa.
The average pride has
four lionesses, a few
cubs and two males.
But one pride, in
the middle of the Serengeti,
is an exception,
they are
what's called a super pride.
They number 22 in all!
8 adult females,
2 males,
and 12 young ones.
Super prides are
exceedingly rare.
The perfect set of
conditions has to be present.
Prey has to be plentiful.
Lions live
exclusively on meat,
and an adult lion needs
12 pounds a day.
A typical pride
might only need to kill big
prey every couple of days.
But in the super
pride, with 22 members.
They must hunt nearly
every day to survive.
Zebras are a
plentiful delicacy.
But zebras aren't as
dainty as they look.
They use their powerful
rear legs to kick
friend and foe alike.
Like lions, zebras can sprint
up to 35 miles per hour.
But the zebra
can outlast the lion.
The lioness
combines power and speed,
but she lacks endurance.
She can only
run at her top speed
for about 300 feet.
For success she must
get close and use the
element of surprise.
May arrives
on the Serengeti plains.
And the rains begin.
But these big cats
don't mind a little rain.
Water means new grass,
and grass brings over
a million wildebeest
and zebra to their
hunting grounds.
This is the largest
mammal migration on Earth.
The herds leave
the southeastern Serengeti
and travel north,
following the rains
and the new grass.
Their annual
300-mile round trip takes them
right into the heart of the
super pride's territory.
The 20-square-mile
territory is smaller than
that of other prides.
But quality
matters more than sheer size.
Every square mile
here contains more food than
other, bigger territories.
And with plentiful
food, each lioness stalks
alone this time.
The more
lions per kill, the
smaller the portions.
They will cooperate to
take down bigger prey.
But
this is solo work.
The adult wildebeest
outweighs the lioness by over
a hundred pounds.
But what the
lioness lacks in size,
she makes up for in skill.
She grasps her prey
with powerful shoulder muscles.
Inch-long claws
act like hooks.
And four
canine teeth penetrate
two inches deep,
anchoring her to
the twisting prey.
Normally she
would kill the wildebeest
by knocking it down
and clamping its throat closed.
But this time the
lioness has to employ
another technique.
Hanging on to her victim she
covers its mouth with hers.
Huge nostrils allow
her to breathe, while the
wildebeest suffocates.
The herds spill into
the super pride's territory.
They will stay
remain as long as the rains
fall and grass grows.
It seems like an all-you-can
eat buffet for the 22 lions.
But
the migration means
more than just a big feast.
More meat means healthier,
more robust and more
well-fed lions.
Preparing the
females for the exra
demands of pregnancy
and motherhood.
Lions elsewhere
in Africa give birth at
any time of year.
But oddly enough, not
here on the Serengeti.
Most of these females give
birth during the wet season.
The Serengeti
pride welcomes new cubs
to their super club.
Barely
two months old, they
emerge from their den.
Soon, other
cubs begin to appear.
They begin to learn
their place inside the pride.
But dad's discipline is
nothing compared to the
dangers that await them.
For now though,
ignorance is bliss.
Keeping the cubs alive
is the ultimate goal.
They'll pass on the
ruling lions' genes
across the Serengeti.
If they die,
the adult's efforts will
have been in vain.
Typically, only
a quarter of Serengeti lion
cubs make it to adulthood.
It is survival of the fittest.
Disease and
starvation can hit hard.
And predators can sneak up
when least expecting it.
To hyenas, a lion cub is
a mouth-watering treat.
There is strength
in numbers though.
Female lions join forces to
protect their cubs, forming
what's known as a crèche,
or nursey of sorts.
The mothers in a crèche share
the responsibility of feeding,
rearing and guarding
all the cubs.
Lions are the only
wild cats that raise
their young this way.
A clever solution by
some awesome animal mamas.
Time will pass and
about 18 months later,
the cubs will be
ready for the wide-open
African savannah,
all on their own.
But until then, they
depend on the creche
for food and protection.
It's not an easy
road to adulthood.
Sometimes a cub's greatest
threat comes from their own,
other lions.
The super pride's
20-square-mile territory is
surrounded by other prides.
They must defend
it ruthlessly.
Trespassers
cannot be tolerated.
At the edge of their
territory, the super pride
creche encounters two small
cubs from a neighboring pride.
While their mothers
hunted, the cubs wandered
off and accidentally
entered super pride territory.
Trespassing cubs are
often killed on sight.
But these mothers hesitate.
Nearby, a lioness
calls for her lost cubs.
She is likely
a former member of the
super pride, an outcast.
The super pride
needs about eight adult
females to defend its
territory against
other, smaller prides.
As they mature,
surplus females must leave.
Several
lionesses were driven
out by their mothers.
They formed what's called
a daughter pride, on the
edge of super pride territory.
They and other daughter
prides nearby share the
super pride's DNA.
The bonds between
mothers and exiled daughters
disappear over time.
The super pride mothers
seem to sense something
familiar about the cubs.
They
could be related.
The lost cubs'
mother picks up their
scent and follows the
trail into terrible danger.
The super pride may have
spared the cubs, but the
mother is not welcome.
♪
The cubs are led
away, lucky to have escaped
their ordeal alive.
And their
good fortune continues,
their mother brings
them to a fresh kill.
For the lionesses
of the super pride,
these border incursions
don't always end in violence.
Each territorial skirmish is
just one moment in a conflict
that lasts generations.
But one threat is met
with immediate force.
Wandering, nomadic males
are one of the greatest
dangers a super pride faces.
As young males mature,
they're seen by their
fathers as competitors,
and are kicked out
of their prides.
They are left to fend
for themselves in exile,
living on the fringes
of other prides' territories.
They face
harassment wherever they go.
A reliable
food source is hard to
come by without a pride
and a territory.
So many nomads
survive by following the
migrating herds.
But they're
secretly schemeing.
Watching and waiting
to make their move.
Their goal?
To take over another's pride.
The nomads'
main mission is to
spread their genes.
A lioness can't mate if
she already has cubs.
So the male's
solution is simple.
Kill the cubs off and
spread his own DNA.
With so many
lionesses, the super pride
presents a tempting target.
But first, the nomads
will have to get past
the pride's two males.
And that is no easy task,
even for a buff bachelor lion.
As night falls though,
the super pride's males
reveal their location.
They're much too
far away to stop intruders.
It's time to make their move.
The lionesses hear the roars
of potential cub-killers.
If this were a normal
pride, the mothers
might not stand a chance
against this group of nomads.
And the cubs
could be in mortal danger.
But the lionesses
of the super pride have
the power of numbers.
Now they issue
their own warning.
They will vigorously defend
their cubs and their turf.
The intruders
know they're outnumbered.
The powerful wall
of sound seems to deter the
nomads away before they can
even mount an invasion.
The super
pride males return at dawn.
The scent of the
intruders lingers everywhere.
The males refresh
their own scent-marks and
roar at full volume.
But the
danger has passed.
The females, and their
crèche, came to the rescue.
Saving their cubs
and ensuring the super
pride will live on,
at least, for now.
The wet
season draws to a close
and the plains
quickly begin to dry out.
A sea of hundreds
of thousands of wildebeest
and zebra resume their
annual journey to
greener pastures.
For the past two
months, they've helped
the super pride thrive.
Now, without them,
the pride faces much
bigger challenges.
The buffalo.
For the
super pride, a buffalo
is the ultimate prey.
It weighs up to 1500 pounds,
providing enough meat to
feed them all.
But
buffalo fight back.
These fierce animals
wound more lions than
any other prey species.
A herd is a fortress
of horns and hooves.
A loner like this
offers the best chance.
But even a single
buffalo demands respect.
Unlike other prides, the
lions of the super pride
have a special advantage:
there is strength in numbers.
♪
Bringing him
down requires the power
of one of the big males.
It'll take several
minutes to kill.
The lions must face the
buffalo for the next
nine months until
the wildebeest return.
It's a dangerous,
and deadly, proposition.
But the combination
of plentiful prey, strong
males and a large group of
powerful females
gives them a greater
than average chance.
But as mighty as it is,
one day change will come
to the super pride.
Like all great empires it
will fragment and fall.
The cubs will eventually
leave the comforts and
care of their family,
and forge new
prides of their own.
The young
females may form a
daughter pride nearby.
And one day, they may even
challenge their own mothers
for their territory.
The young males
though, will probably travel
much further from home.
They will continue
carrying the super pride's
genes across the Serengeti.
And someday form a new
super pride of their own,
to rule the Seregeti plains.
Captioned by Cotter
Captioning Services.