Animal (2021) s02e01 Episode Script
Apes
1
[unsettling music plays.]
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
[Andy Serkis.]
Our own animal family.
[screeching.]
Smart.
[uplifting music plays.]
[squealing.]
Sensitive.
The more we get to know our wild cousins [squealing.]
the more we learn how extraordinary they are.
[grunting.]
[uplifting music continues.]
[screeching.]
Apes have not only mastered the game of survival, they've redefined the way it's played.
[uplifting music fades.]
The jungle.
Birthplace of the ape family and the domain of all wild apes alive today.
And where this baby boy, less than two years old, is learning to survive.
[groans.]
[groans.]
He's a chimpanzee, our closest animal relative.
[grunts.]
What he discovers in the coming months will shape his whole life.
Living in a community of more than 150 chimps, he has little to fear from other animals.
His greatest challenge will come from his own kind.
Like us, chimps have distinct personalities.
[quiet uplifting music plays.]
He needs to know who to trust.
[uplifting music continues.]
Mom's friends are supportive and kind.
And some of the bigger kids are fun to hang out with.
It's adult males he must be most wary of.
These two older guys, they're always together and have always been good to him.
[screeching.]
But this one is a bully.
[dramatic music plays.]
[screeching.]
[dramatic music continues.]
[grunting.]
He's trying to gain status [screeching.]
through a campaign of intimidation.
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[grunting.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
For chimps, violence is a part of life.
But there's more to these power struggles than mere savagery.
And the baby is about to witness something remarkable.
[distant grunting.]
Neither of the two older males is as big as the bully.
[screeching.]
Even so, they refuse to submit.
[quiet tense music plays.]
[tense music intensifies.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
The bully is too strong, so the first male retreats.
But his buddy piles in.
[screeching.]
And now the first is back.
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
The bully can't beat them both.
Time to get out while he can.
One of the pair has been injured.
But he won't suffer alone.
[tranquil music plays.]
In this animal society you don't need to be the biggest or most aggressive.
[tranquil music continues.]
You need friends.
The more allies, the better.
But how you make them depends on your personality.
A baby must find its own way to become a successful member of the ape family.
[screeching.]
[squealing.]
A family that includes the most sophisticated animals in the world.
First, there are the great apes.
The chimpanzee, the bonobo, three orangutan species two kinds of gorilla, and one species of human.
We all share some unique features.
Thanks to a special shoulder joint, we can hang by our arms and reach fruit at the tips of branches.
And we can swing.
[upbeat music plays.]
No monkey in all Africa or Asia can do this.
Tails don't help with balance when you're swinging, so apes don't have them.
The true kings of swing are the gibbons.
[squealing.]
Known as "lesser apes," at least 18 different species live in the jungles of Asia.
[upbeat music continues.]
They're more monkey-sized and very agile.
[squealing.]
[upbeat music continues.]
[squealing.]
Apes have bigger brains and bodies than most monkeys.
[uplifting music plays.]
And the great apes have taken size to a whole new level.
[uplifting music continues.]
Which can be a bit of a problem.
[branches crack.]
Orangutans are the largest of all tree-living animals.
Mature males weigh around 77 kilos, similar to an adult human.
Imagine your dad doing this.
This young orangutan is still perfecting his climbing technique.
Orangs evolved alongside tigers.
[grumbles.]
So they developed a unique way of keeping off the ground.
[tense drumbeat.]
Pole vaulting requires very little effort and makes the most of being such a heavyweight.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
But scaling jungle giants is more strenuous and more risky.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
These trees are higher than a 20-story building.
And often, the best fruit is way up in the canopy.
Even orangutans make mistakes.
Many have healed fractures, the legacy of previous falls.
[tense music plays.]
But orangutans are good learners.
They not only remember where to find the best food [uplifting music plays.]
they build three-dimensional mental maps of the safest routes to get there.
[uplifting music continues.]
[uplifting music fades.]
Brainpower is a game changer.
And when it's focused on teamwork, the results are formidable.
Mom and baby are following a group of male chimps.
They're looking for food.
But this is no normal feeding foray.
[tense music plays.]
Chimps relish meat.
[tense music continues.]
It contains nutrients not found in their usual vegetarian diet.
[tense music continues.]
Mom and baby are hoping for a share.
[tense music fades.]
Red colobus are hard to catch.
But working together, the chimps increase their chances.
[tense music plays.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
These two are blockers.
They move to cut off the escape routes.
Another goes ahead to set the ambush.
Now the chaser can make his move.
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[tense music fades.]
[whimpering.]
This extraordinary teamwork leads to an 80% hit rate.
Far better than any big cat.
But these chimps are such prolific hunters, they've decimated the local monkey population.
Humans are not the only ape capable of excess.
Now meat is harder to get, it is even more precious.
If you don't have it, you must beg.
And you must do so politely.
[squealing.]
Meat is more than food.
It is social currency.
Becoming a good hunter is another way to climb the social ladder.
A male ape's success often depends on his ability to provide.
[distant screeching.]
[screeching.]
[gibbon sings.]
Lar gibbons.
[gibbons sing.]
Like many of us, they live in couples.
[gibbons sing.]
Every day, they sing their love for each other.
[gibbon sings.]
But as we well know, relationships can be complicated.
[tense drumbeat.]
A dark four-year-old youngster and his blonde older brother.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
They recently lost their dad.
To him.
In many animal families, new stepdads neglect, bully, or even kill existing youngsters in favor of raising their own.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
But right now, these siblings need help, and their stepfather is the only option.
[squealing.]
At this time of year, few trees are in fruit.
There's only one available.
On the edge of their territory, right next to their enemies.
The family approach with caution.
[tense music plays.]
[screeching.]
The male from the neighboring group.
[tense drumbeat.]
[gibbon sings.]
He's blocking their route.
[screeching.]
Stepdad tries to intimidate his enemy with calls.
But his neighbor holds his ground.
[tense drumbeat.]
[screeching.]
Stepdad attacks.
[tense drumbeat.]
His enemy panics.
[tense drumbeat intensifies.]
[squealing.]
[squealing.]
[tense drumbeat fades.]
[tense drumbeat resumes.]
[squealing.]
Stepdad closes in.
[squealing.]
[tense drumbeat continues.]
He risks a final, desperate assault.
[tense drumbeat crescendos.]
[squealing.]
[squeaking.]
Stepdad's secured a vital meal for his new family.
Perhaps he's not so bad after all.
Gibbons often show surprising tenderness to their stepchildren.
Who knows? One day, he might need their support too.
It pays to play the long game.
Most apes live well into their forties.
And family life can get complicated.
Especially for the largest ape of all.
A mountain gorilla.
He's a silverback and head of his family.
And what a family.
Four wives three adolescents two infants and a grumpy granddad.
[grumbles.]
[uplifting music plays.]
Dad is a 200-kilo hunk armed with massive canines.
Yet he is a surprisingly gentle giant, almost 100% vegetarian.
It's the easy option in this forest.
Whenever you're hungry, all you have to do is reach.
It's like living in a salad bowl.
But if you eat this much veg, you need time to digest it.
Mountain gorillas spend at least a third of the day resting.
Or trying to.
[squealing.]
[gorilla grunts.]
The flies are a nuisance, and the kids are even worse.
[quiet grunting.]
[grumbling.]
[squealing.]
- [grunting.]
- [squealing.]
[grunting.]
Despite his tough-guy image, dad's a softy at heart.
But every now and then, he must fight for what he loves.
And that's when size really matters.
A rival and his troop.
[tense music plays.]
[grunting.]
[tense music continues.]
[grunting.]
Dad has so much to lose.
His wives may be stolen, his children killed.
A fight could even cost him his life.
- [grunting.]
- [rustling branches.]
[tense music plays.]
Sometimes, a show of strength is enough to deter enemies.
[dramatic music plays.]
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
[dramatic music fades.]
Dad tries to drive them away.
[screeching.]
But the rival has backup.
His entire family.
[screeching.]
[roaring.]
The rival charges.
[tense music plays.]
Dad can't afford to show any sign of weakness.
[tense music crescendos.]
[grunting.]
The rival retreats.
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
Dad can return to the family life he loves.
[groans.]
[tranquil music plays.]
A love best expressed through touch.
Grooming is the glue that holds ape society together.
[tranquil music continues.]
It can be exchanged for friendship and favors.
[tranquil music continues.]
Done with great care and attention it provokes a rush of feel-good hormones.
Apes crave it and the companionship it creates.
So it's surprising that one ape spends much of its life alone.
A Bornean orangutan.
Only fully mature males have these cheek flanges.
They are thought to help direct the long call.
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
He reaches out to other orangutans scattered throughout the forest.
[low screech.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[low screeching.]
Some scientists believe orangutans once lived close together, like gorillas, with these flanged males guarding a small group of females, as silverbacks do.
Then, around four million years ago, the climate changed.
The trees no longer grew fruit every year.
Many animals faced starvation.
To find enough food, orangutan families split up and spread out.
[uplifting music plays.]
They now live alone.
[uplifting music fades.]
Though not entirely.
This baby is just one month old.
She will stay with mom for eight years the longest childhood of any ape, except us.
[tranquil music plays.]
It takes a long time to teach all the secrets of survival.
[tranquil music continues.]
Which flowers are good to eat.
[tranquil music continues.]
How to get termites out of rotten wood.
[tranquil music continues.]
And where to find fruiting trees during hard times.
[tranquil music continues.]
- [tranquil music fades.]
- [grunting.]
The male's call is unanswered.
He may go for days, even weeks, without encountering another orangutan.
[melancholy music plays.]
No one really knows how he feels.
But maybe once in a while, from somewhere deep in his ape DNA, he longs for the touch of a companion.
[melancholy music continues.]
There are times, however, when even the most social apes choose to be alone.
[melancholy music fades.]
Today, mom and baby have found a little peace and quiet, close to the edge of their territory.
Far from the stresses of chimpanzee society.
[tense music plays.]
A border patrol.
Males from the neighboring group.
[tense music fades.]
Alert.
Silent.
[tense music plays.]
They're on a mission to take control of more fruiting trees.
And to achieve this, they will kill.
[tense music continues.]
Infants are not spared.
[whimpering.]
Mom knows something's wrong.
Best to remain silent.
[leaves rustle quietly.]
[branches snap.]
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
[tense music fades.]
[squealing.]
[grunting.]
A close call.
War is as much a part of chimpanzee life as it is of ours.
But not all of our closest relatives are so violent.
[screeching.]
Just over the Congo River, there's another ape that shares almost 99% of our DNA.
[tranquil music plays.]
Like chimpanzees, bonobos live in big communities.
Bonobo males also use displays of strength to intimidate others.
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
This guy is really throwing his weight around.
[tense music continues.]
[squealing.]
And the females have had enough.
[squealing.]
[dramatic music plays.]
[squealing.]
[dramatic music fades.]
[squealing.]
Amongst bonobos, they form the strongest alliances.
[squealing.]
And this gives them power.
[tranquil music plays.]
Unlike female chimps, they are not dominated by males.
This bonobo baby will be protected from bullies by his mom.
[tranquil music continues.]
And he's unlikely to experience war.
Meetings between bonobo communities are nearly always peaceful.
[tranquil music continues.]
So different from chimpanzees.
And nobody really knows why.
[tranquil music plays.]
As this baby chimp grows, he'll face risks young bonobos never need worry about.
[tranquil music continues.]
But in true ape fashion, he is doing the best he can.
[tranquil music continues.]
Who knows? This could be the start of a beautiful friendship lasting for decades.
[tranquil music fades.]
But their future, and that of the entire family, is in the hands of the most powerful ape of all.
[suspenseful music plays.]
We kill our wild cousins.
We cage them.
We destroy their homes.
[suspenseful music continues.]
Yet even in the face of such adversity, apes still have the ability to astound us.
[suspenseful music continues.]
Surrounded by human settlements, an isolated patch of forest barely a dozen football pitches wide.
[suspenseful music fades.]
It's home to an extraordinary group of chimpanzees.
Nearly every day, they must venture into our world.
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
We can only imagine how chimpanzees perceive us.
[tense music continues.]
They have every reason to be wary.
[machete swishes.]
[suspenseful music plays.]
But there are great rewards.
Cultivated fruits so rich in sugar must taste like heaven.
[tense music plays.]
These chimps have learned to be stealthy around humans and to make the most of this challenging new world.
Palm oil fruit.
The best bit is the kernel, packed with protein and calories.
Just one problem.
It's surrounded by a tough shell.
Getting to it takes ingenuity.
[thud.]
[thud.]
- [shell cracking.]
- [tranquil music plays.]
Nut cracking may seem simple to us, but in terms of animal behavior, it is revolutionary.
[tranquil music continues.]
Putting apes right at the top of an exclusive club of tool users.
Apes make nests.
- [uplifting music plays.]
- [thunder rumbles.]
Umbrellas.
Probes.
[uplifting music continues.]
Even spears.
[uplifting music continues.]
This group in Bossou is exceptional.
[uplifting music continues.]
They've developed more than one tool to exploit our crops.
As well as hammers and anvils, they have invented this.
[screeching.]
A pestle.
Used to mash up palm hearts so they're easier to eat.
A behavior unique to this community.
[uplifting music continues.]
They've even learned to deactivate poachers' snares that cause so much damage to other chimp populations.
[uplifting music fades.]
Yet despite these great achievements, they continue to dwindle.
Only seven Bossou chimps now remain.
A youngster.
The only one left in the group.
Desperate for playmates.
[grunts.]
Pascal Goumi is a local, but he's not a threat.
As a field researcher, he's known this chimp since he was born.
It's fair to say they've become friends.
Friendship is so crucial to ape success, it can even transcend species boundaries.
But humans now dominate the planet.
We've left little room for our fellow apes.
And we've forgotten that we have a duty of care.
After all, this is our family too.
[dramatic music plays.]
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
[Andy Serkis.]
Our own animal family.
[screeching.]
Smart.
[uplifting music plays.]
[squealing.]
Sensitive.
The more we get to know our wild cousins [squealing.]
the more we learn how extraordinary they are.
[grunting.]
[uplifting music continues.]
[screeching.]
Apes have not only mastered the game of survival, they've redefined the way it's played.
[uplifting music fades.]
The jungle.
Birthplace of the ape family and the domain of all wild apes alive today.
And where this baby boy, less than two years old, is learning to survive.
[groans.]
[groans.]
He's a chimpanzee, our closest animal relative.
[grunts.]
What he discovers in the coming months will shape his whole life.
Living in a community of more than 150 chimps, he has little to fear from other animals.
His greatest challenge will come from his own kind.
Like us, chimps have distinct personalities.
[quiet uplifting music plays.]
He needs to know who to trust.
[uplifting music continues.]
Mom's friends are supportive and kind.
And some of the bigger kids are fun to hang out with.
It's adult males he must be most wary of.
These two older guys, they're always together and have always been good to him.
[screeching.]
But this one is a bully.
[dramatic music plays.]
[screeching.]
[dramatic music continues.]
[grunting.]
He's trying to gain status [screeching.]
through a campaign of intimidation.
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[grunting.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
For chimps, violence is a part of life.
But there's more to these power struggles than mere savagery.
And the baby is about to witness something remarkable.
[distant grunting.]
Neither of the two older males is as big as the bully.
[screeching.]
Even so, they refuse to submit.
[quiet tense music plays.]
[tense music intensifies.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
The bully is too strong, so the first male retreats.
But his buddy piles in.
[screeching.]
And now the first is back.
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
The bully can't beat them both.
Time to get out while he can.
One of the pair has been injured.
But he won't suffer alone.
[tranquil music plays.]
In this animal society you don't need to be the biggest or most aggressive.
[tranquil music continues.]
You need friends.
The more allies, the better.
But how you make them depends on your personality.
A baby must find its own way to become a successful member of the ape family.
[screeching.]
[squealing.]
A family that includes the most sophisticated animals in the world.
First, there are the great apes.
The chimpanzee, the bonobo, three orangutan species two kinds of gorilla, and one species of human.
We all share some unique features.
Thanks to a special shoulder joint, we can hang by our arms and reach fruit at the tips of branches.
And we can swing.
[upbeat music plays.]
No monkey in all Africa or Asia can do this.
Tails don't help with balance when you're swinging, so apes don't have them.
The true kings of swing are the gibbons.
[squealing.]
Known as "lesser apes," at least 18 different species live in the jungles of Asia.
[upbeat music continues.]
They're more monkey-sized and very agile.
[squealing.]
[upbeat music continues.]
[squealing.]
Apes have bigger brains and bodies than most monkeys.
[uplifting music plays.]
And the great apes have taken size to a whole new level.
[uplifting music continues.]
Which can be a bit of a problem.
[branches crack.]
Orangutans are the largest of all tree-living animals.
Mature males weigh around 77 kilos, similar to an adult human.
Imagine your dad doing this.
This young orangutan is still perfecting his climbing technique.
Orangs evolved alongside tigers.
[grumbles.]
So they developed a unique way of keeping off the ground.
[tense drumbeat.]
Pole vaulting requires very little effort and makes the most of being such a heavyweight.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
But scaling jungle giants is more strenuous and more risky.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
These trees are higher than a 20-story building.
And often, the best fruit is way up in the canopy.
Even orangutans make mistakes.
Many have healed fractures, the legacy of previous falls.
[tense music plays.]
But orangutans are good learners.
They not only remember where to find the best food [uplifting music plays.]
they build three-dimensional mental maps of the safest routes to get there.
[uplifting music continues.]
[uplifting music fades.]
Brainpower is a game changer.
And when it's focused on teamwork, the results are formidable.
Mom and baby are following a group of male chimps.
They're looking for food.
But this is no normal feeding foray.
[tense music plays.]
Chimps relish meat.
[tense music continues.]
It contains nutrients not found in their usual vegetarian diet.
[tense music continues.]
Mom and baby are hoping for a share.
[tense music fades.]
Red colobus are hard to catch.
But working together, the chimps increase their chances.
[tense music plays.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
These two are blockers.
They move to cut off the escape routes.
Another goes ahead to set the ambush.
Now the chaser can make his move.
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[screeching.]
[tense music continues.]
[tense music fades.]
[whimpering.]
This extraordinary teamwork leads to an 80% hit rate.
Far better than any big cat.
But these chimps are such prolific hunters, they've decimated the local monkey population.
Humans are not the only ape capable of excess.
Now meat is harder to get, it is even more precious.
If you don't have it, you must beg.
And you must do so politely.
[squealing.]
Meat is more than food.
It is social currency.
Becoming a good hunter is another way to climb the social ladder.
A male ape's success often depends on his ability to provide.
[distant screeching.]
[screeching.]
[gibbon sings.]
Lar gibbons.
[gibbons sing.]
Like many of us, they live in couples.
[gibbons sing.]
Every day, they sing their love for each other.
[gibbon sings.]
But as we well know, relationships can be complicated.
[tense drumbeat.]
A dark four-year-old youngster and his blonde older brother.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
They recently lost their dad.
To him.
In many animal families, new stepdads neglect, bully, or even kill existing youngsters in favor of raising their own.
[tense drumbeat continues.]
But right now, these siblings need help, and their stepfather is the only option.
[squealing.]
At this time of year, few trees are in fruit.
There's only one available.
On the edge of their territory, right next to their enemies.
The family approach with caution.
[tense music plays.]
[screeching.]
The male from the neighboring group.
[tense drumbeat.]
[gibbon sings.]
He's blocking their route.
[screeching.]
Stepdad tries to intimidate his enemy with calls.
But his neighbor holds his ground.
[tense drumbeat.]
[screeching.]
Stepdad attacks.
[tense drumbeat.]
His enemy panics.
[tense drumbeat intensifies.]
[squealing.]
[squealing.]
[tense drumbeat fades.]
[tense drumbeat resumes.]
[squealing.]
Stepdad closes in.
[squealing.]
[tense drumbeat continues.]
He risks a final, desperate assault.
[tense drumbeat crescendos.]
[squealing.]
[squeaking.]
Stepdad's secured a vital meal for his new family.
Perhaps he's not so bad after all.
Gibbons often show surprising tenderness to their stepchildren.
Who knows? One day, he might need their support too.
It pays to play the long game.
Most apes live well into their forties.
And family life can get complicated.
Especially for the largest ape of all.
A mountain gorilla.
He's a silverback and head of his family.
And what a family.
Four wives three adolescents two infants and a grumpy granddad.
[grumbles.]
[uplifting music plays.]
Dad is a 200-kilo hunk armed with massive canines.
Yet he is a surprisingly gentle giant, almost 100% vegetarian.
It's the easy option in this forest.
Whenever you're hungry, all you have to do is reach.
It's like living in a salad bowl.
But if you eat this much veg, you need time to digest it.
Mountain gorillas spend at least a third of the day resting.
Or trying to.
[squealing.]
[gorilla grunts.]
The flies are a nuisance, and the kids are even worse.
[quiet grunting.]
[grumbling.]
[squealing.]
- [grunting.]
- [squealing.]
[grunting.]
Despite his tough-guy image, dad's a softy at heart.
But every now and then, he must fight for what he loves.
And that's when size really matters.
A rival and his troop.
[tense music plays.]
[grunting.]
[tense music continues.]
[grunting.]
Dad has so much to lose.
His wives may be stolen, his children killed.
A fight could even cost him his life.
- [grunting.]
- [rustling branches.]
[tense music plays.]
Sometimes, a show of strength is enough to deter enemies.
[dramatic music plays.]
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
[dramatic music fades.]
Dad tries to drive them away.
[screeching.]
But the rival has backup.
His entire family.
[screeching.]
[roaring.]
The rival charges.
[tense music plays.]
Dad can't afford to show any sign of weakness.
[tense music crescendos.]
[grunting.]
The rival retreats.
[grunting.]
[grunting.]
Dad can return to the family life he loves.
[groans.]
[tranquil music plays.]
A love best expressed through touch.
Grooming is the glue that holds ape society together.
[tranquil music continues.]
It can be exchanged for friendship and favors.
[tranquil music continues.]
Done with great care and attention it provokes a rush of feel-good hormones.
Apes crave it and the companionship it creates.
So it's surprising that one ape spends much of its life alone.
A Bornean orangutan.
Only fully mature males have these cheek flanges.
They are thought to help direct the long call.
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
He reaches out to other orangutans scattered throughout the forest.
[low screech.]
[screeching.]
[screeching.]
[low screeching.]
Some scientists believe orangutans once lived close together, like gorillas, with these flanged males guarding a small group of females, as silverbacks do.
Then, around four million years ago, the climate changed.
The trees no longer grew fruit every year.
Many animals faced starvation.
To find enough food, orangutan families split up and spread out.
[uplifting music plays.]
They now live alone.
[uplifting music fades.]
Though not entirely.
This baby is just one month old.
She will stay with mom for eight years the longest childhood of any ape, except us.
[tranquil music plays.]
It takes a long time to teach all the secrets of survival.
[tranquil music continues.]
Which flowers are good to eat.
[tranquil music continues.]
How to get termites out of rotten wood.
[tranquil music continues.]
And where to find fruiting trees during hard times.
[tranquil music continues.]
- [tranquil music fades.]
- [grunting.]
The male's call is unanswered.
He may go for days, even weeks, without encountering another orangutan.
[melancholy music plays.]
No one really knows how he feels.
But maybe once in a while, from somewhere deep in his ape DNA, he longs for the touch of a companion.
[melancholy music continues.]
There are times, however, when even the most social apes choose to be alone.
[melancholy music fades.]
Today, mom and baby have found a little peace and quiet, close to the edge of their territory.
Far from the stresses of chimpanzee society.
[tense music plays.]
A border patrol.
Males from the neighboring group.
[tense music fades.]
Alert.
Silent.
[tense music plays.]
They're on a mission to take control of more fruiting trees.
And to achieve this, they will kill.
[tense music continues.]
Infants are not spared.
[whimpering.]
Mom knows something's wrong.
Best to remain silent.
[leaves rustle quietly.]
[branches snap.]
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
[tense music fades.]
[squealing.]
[grunting.]
A close call.
War is as much a part of chimpanzee life as it is of ours.
But not all of our closest relatives are so violent.
[screeching.]
Just over the Congo River, there's another ape that shares almost 99% of our DNA.
[tranquil music plays.]
Like chimpanzees, bonobos live in big communities.
Bonobo males also use displays of strength to intimidate others.
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
This guy is really throwing his weight around.
[tense music continues.]
[squealing.]
And the females have had enough.
[squealing.]
[dramatic music plays.]
[squealing.]
[dramatic music fades.]
[squealing.]
Amongst bonobos, they form the strongest alliances.
[squealing.]
And this gives them power.
[tranquil music plays.]
Unlike female chimps, they are not dominated by males.
This bonobo baby will be protected from bullies by his mom.
[tranquil music continues.]
And he's unlikely to experience war.
Meetings between bonobo communities are nearly always peaceful.
[tranquil music continues.]
So different from chimpanzees.
And nobody really knows why.
[tranquil music plays.]
As this baby chimp grows, he'll face risks young bonobos never need worry about.
[tranquil music continues.]
But in true ape fashion, he is doing the best he can.
[tranquil music continues.]
Who knows? This could be the start of a beautiful friendship lasting for decades.
[tranquil music fades.]
But their future, and that of the entire family, is in the hands of the most powerful ape of all.
[suspenseful music plays.]
We kill our wild cousins.
We cage them.
We destroy their homes.
[suspenseful music continues.]
Yet even in the face of such adversity, apes still have the ability to astound us.
[suspenseful music continues.]
Surrounded by human settlements, an isolated patch of forest barely a dozen football pitches wide.
[suspenseful music fades.]
It's home to an extraordinary group of chimpanzees.
Nearly every day, they must venture into our world.
[tense music plays.]
[squealing.]
We can only imagine how chimpanzees perceive us.
[tense music continues.]
They have every reason to be wary.
[machete swishes.]
[suspenseful music plays.]
But there are great rewards.
Cultivated fruits so rich in sugar must taste like heaven.
[tense music plays.]
These chimps have learned to be stealthy around humans and to make the most of this challenging new world.
Palm oil fruit.
The best bit is the kernel, packed with protein and calories.
Just one problem.
It's surrounded by a tough shell.
Getting to it takes ingenuity.
[thud.]
[thud.]
- [shell cracking.]
- [tranquil music plays.]
Nut cracking may seem simple to us, but in terms of animal behavior, it is revolutionary.
[tranquil music continues.]
Putting apes right at the top of an exclusive club of tool users.
Apes make nests.
- [uplifting music plays.]
- [thunder rumbles.]
Umbrellas.
Probes.
[uplifting music continues.]
Even spears.
[uplifting music continues.]
This group in Bossou is exceptional.
[uplifting music continues.]
They've developed more than one tool to exploit our crops.
As well as hammers and anvils, they have invented this.
[screeching.]
A pestle.
Used to mash up palm hearts so they're easier to eat.
A behavior unique to this community.
[uplifting music continues.]
They've even learned to deactivate poachers' snares that cause so much damage to other chimp populations.
[uplifting music fades.]
Yet despite these great achievements, they continue to dwindle.
Only seven Bossou chimps now remain.
A youngster.
The only one left in the group.
Desperate for playmates.
[grunts.]
Pascal Goumi is a local, but he's not a threat.
As a field researcher, he's known this chimp since he was born.
It's fair to say they've become friends.
Friendship is so crucial to ape success, it can even transcend species boundaries.
But humans now dominate the planet.
We've left little room for our fellow apes.
And we've forgotten that we have a duty of care.
After all, this is our family too.
[dramatic music plays.]