Guardians of the Wild (2017) s02e01 Episode Script

1
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
NARRATOR: This is Musolole,
a four-year-old male
African elephant.
And this is Zambezi,
he's about the same age.
Zambezi and
Musolole aren't related,
but they've become brothers.
They're orphans,
each rescued when
just a few months old,
and cared for by some
very dedicated keepers.
Life at this elephant
nurseryhas been good.
But there's a problem,
they've grown up.
It's time to move
up to big school.
So they're embarking on the
biggest adventure of their
lives.
[TRUMPETS]
It's going to be challenging,
a long journey across Zambia
[LIGHTNING CRACKLING]
to a new facility
deep in the bush.
And when they get there
they'll be confronted by
some much bigger elephants.
Leaving home has
never been so tough.
[TRUMPETING]
[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]
NARRATOR: This is
Lilayi Elephant Nursery.
Home to four orphans, who
are enjoying a walk in the bush.
Musolole is the oldest.
He's self-assured and
the dominant leader.
Zambezi is single-minded
and independent.
He likes to do
things his own way.
Nkala is a year
and a half younger
and relies on the older two
for comfort and reassurance.
Muchichili is the
baby of the herd.
[TRUMPETS]
The two biggest elephants,
dominant Musolole and
single-minded Zambezi,
have outgrown the
orphanage nursery.
Now, Zambezi and Musolole
have really reached an age
where they need to start
becoming more independent,
and the focus of our
program is to release these
elephants back into the wild,
so we want to ensure that
they're out in the wild as early
as possible.
NARRATOR: These two orphans
had a very tough start to life.
Zambezi was just one month old
when he was found alone and
exhausted in a swimming pool
in a safari camp on
the Lower Zambezi.
NARRATOR: No-one knows what
happened to Zambezi's mother or
his herd.
Musolole's story
is very different
RACHEL MURTON: Musolole's
rescue wasa very traumatic one.
He was found in Sioma
Ngwezi National Park,
which is on the west side
of Zambia near Namibia,
and when the wildlife police
officers had heard gunshot
inside the national
park they responded.
When they entered the park, they
actually came across Musolole
at five months old with his
mother, who had been shot dead,
and the poachers were still on
her body hacking out her tusks.
As soon as those poacherssaw
the officers, theyopened up fire
straightaway
and tragically, Officer
Sitali Musololewas killed.
And when we arrived we
found some very, very
traumatised wildlife police
officers
who were mourning
the loss of their friend
and had very much become
attached to the baby elephant,
and felt that their friend's
spirit could live on through
him.
NARRATOR: Thanks to the
dedication of the elephant
keepers,
Musolole and Zambezi are
now healthy four-year-olds,
each with their own character.
While Zambezi likes
to rile his playmate,
Musolole knows when
to put him in his place.
Big, boisterous and
increasingly unruly,
they need to leave
the orphanage.
On a practical level they're
making problems around the
nursery.
They will pull down structures,
they've already started to pull
the roof off of the building,
and here in Lusaka we're
actually in a small enclosed
game park,
which is probably not big enough
for a fully grown elephant
anyway.
NARRATOR: The ultimate goal
for all the rescued elephants is
release back to the wild.
But it has to be done in stages.
It's time for Zambezi and
Musolole to start the next
phase.
They're going to
elephant high school.
The Lilayi Elephant Orphanage
is situated in a small game park
very close to the
city of Lusaka,
the capital of Zambia
in Southern Africa.
Three-hundred and twenty
kilometres to the west lies
"elephant heaven",
the vast Kafue National Park,
the second-largest
park in Africa.
Its wide open spaces,
expansive bush
and plentiful water
make it the perfect place
for elephants to roam free.
In the heart of the
park lies Camp Phoenix,
the project's release facility,
where some older
orphanedelephants are already
adaptingto a life in the
wild.
Here, the orphans start
being weaned off milk
and spend more and
more time out in the bush.
It's the next step
towards freedom.
This is where Musolole
and Zambezi need to be.
An elephant's childhood
is just as long as our own.
[LOW TRUMPETING]
In the wild, elephants need this
time to learn how to survive.
And, just like us, they
learnhow to behave with others
oftheir own kind.
Back at the Lilayi orphanage,
the elephants have
human surrogate mothers.
The elephant keepers have
tended to their every need,
and give them a milk bottle
every three hours, night and
day.
But Musolole and
Zambezi, the two oldest,
haven't had an older
elephant to look up to
since they were just
a few months old.
That's about to change.
If they don't knowhow to
behave withthe bigger elephants
at Kafue,
they could get
into real trouble.
It's going to take
some adjustment.
But Rachel has more
immediate concerns.
So tomorrow we're planning to
move Musolole and Zambezi out to
a release facility
and we are very aware
that even in doing so
it will be a very traumatic
experience for them.
Erm, they will be loaded into a
truck and driven for up to 15
hours,
so it's not going to be,
you know, a comfortable day for
them.
NARRATOR: But at least their
"mums" will be going with them.
NARRATOR: Aaron has been an
adoptive mother to free-spirited
Zambezi
since the elephant
was just a month old.
NARRATOR: Getting single-minded
Zambezi, and herd-leader
Musolole,
into a vehicle will be
tomorrow's first challenge,
so they're about
to get a trial run.
The transport truck
has just arrived,
and the keepers want it to
beas welcoming as possible.
If you lead the elephants inside
you have to be able to
jump out through that hatch,
in case it gets too
busy to get back.
Can you do that? Show me.
[MEN LAUGHING]
I need to see that you're both
able to do it before I let you
do it!
MAN: Have to jump.
RACHEL: You have
to be able to jump up.
[MEN CHATTERING INDISTINCTLY]
RACHEL: Paul was
very nimble, well done!
[MEN LAUGHING]
That was good. OK.
You passed the test!
[MAN SPEAKS OTHER LANGUAGE]
NARRATOR: The elephants know
it's time for their bottles of
milk,
they've spotted the
keepers up on the ridge.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
NARRATOR: Each
elephant has its own bottle.
The plan is to only allow them
to drink once inside the truck.
The elephants don't
understand this new rule.
There's only room
for one at a time
And even confident Musolole
is very suspicious of the dark
metal box.
So this is the first time
they've gotten to see the
transport vehicle.
We've loaded it with browse,
the guys are holding milk
bottles to encourage the
elephants to go inside,
just to get them used
to it so that we know
that they will go inside before
we try tomorrow morning.
Success so far
Not so much!
[LAUGHS] Erm, no-one's
actually been fully inside,
but I'm pretty hopeful
that given some patience
and some time and some more
food then they will go inside.
NARRATOR: In the wild,
African elephants are used to
wide open spaces.
They're typically on the
movefor 18 hours a day.
Small confined spaces are
very alien to these huge nomads.
It's perhaps no wonder that
the orphans are wary of entering
a metal box.
But there may be another
reason for their reluctance.
All the elephants except
the youngest, Muchichili,
have in fact seen
this truck once before,
and maybe the memory
is not a good one.
Two years ago, there
were five elephants at Lilayi
and they all visited
this very same vehicle.
But the next day,
as far as Musolole and
Zambezi were concerned, the two
oldest elephants vanished.
Those two, Maramba and
Kavala, were trailblazers,
the first elephants to be
relocated from Lilayi to Kafue
National Park.
An elephant never forgets.
Musolole and Zambezi know
this truck was the precursor
to their friends'
disappearance from Lilayi.
Elvis attempts to lure in
Muchichili, the youngest,
who wasn't here two years ago.
But dominant Musolole
is getting frustrated.
[SPEAKS OTHER LANGUAGE]
He's the strongest of
the eles, and their leader,
but that doesn't mean
he's not cautious.
[SPEAKING OTHER LANGUAGE]
NARRATOR: He wants that bottle
but he just can't
shake the fear.
[MEN SPEAKING OTHER LANGUAGE]
[LOW GROWLING]
NARRATOR: All the
elephants take a turn
But none of them
will enter the crate.
Eventually, it's the
smallest elephant
who proves to have
the greatest courage.
Or is it just that Muchichiliis
the most motivated by food?
RACHEL: Did Muchichili
go inside? MAN: Mmm-hmm.
Oh, Muchichili's
inside. RACHEL: Yay!
NARRATOR: No-one else
follows Muchichili's lead.
It doesn't bode
well for tomorrow.
The big day has arrived.
This will be onlythe second
time that elephantshave been
moved from Lilayi,
and Rachel is concerned.
The difference we
have is that last time
the elephants went in on the
trial run first time, no worries
and yesterday these
elephants wouldn't go in,
so I'm just a bit anxious about
how they're going to go in.
But I think the success will be
more with the bottles at this
point,
so people inside
with the bottles.
And then I think, what
I noticed yesterday,
which is important, is to
encourage the elephants,
to talk to them,
to reassure them.
You know, to touch them,
you put your hands on them,
they're used to you doing that.
You remember,
that you're the mum.
NARRATOR: For
any mum it's a big day
when your babies
finally leave home.
The elephants just
want their morning bottle.
They didn't get their
night feeds, either.
The keepers want them
hungry for the task ahead.
[SHUTTER CLICKING]
The two youngsters,
Nkala and Muchichili are kept
in their stables, unaware of the
big changes ahead.
[MAN WHISTLING]
While Musolole and Zambezi
follow their keepers out in
search of breakfast.
They spot their bottles.
Milk is a treat that they're
used to getting every three
hours.
They haven't had any
now for more than twelve.
Spurred on by hunger, they
follow the keepers straight
inside
[WHISTLING] [TRUMPETING]
or maybe not.
[WHISTLING CONTINUES]
NARRATOR: It's the start
to the day that Rachel feared.
And if the bottle won't
entice them in, what will?
[SPEAKING OTHER LANGUAGE]
For the next hour
it's a battle of wills
[LOW TRUMPETING]
Independent Zambezi loses interest.
But self-assured Musolole
still wants his bottle
[SPEAKING OTHER LANGUAGE]
NARRATOR: Just one more step
Success!
But there's a
keeper still inside.
It's dangerous to be locked
inwith a panicking elephant.
[TRUMPETS]
Now for part two.
A sliding partition secures
Musolole in the back.
He shakes and
clatters the truck
Zambezi has seen enough.
He still wants that bottle,
but there's a line
he won't cross,
so it's time for Plan B
[BOTH WHISTLING]
NARRATOR: A light sedative
should make him woozy enough to
be led inside.
But it doesn't go to plan.
[TRUMPETING]
Musolole's streaming
temples reveal he's stressed,
they need to get on the road.
But Zambezi is
going nowhere fast.
RACHEL: Once you wake him up,
that's it, we can't do it again.
[ALL SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
NARRATOR: Subdued,
but no less obstinate
He's a half-tonne beast
[TRUMPETS]
made of muscle, and a
mind that won't be persuaded.
[ALL STRAINING AND
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
NARRATOR: It takes 16 people
to move one young elephant,
but eventually they succeed.
Now I'm feeling pretty
good cos they're in there,
they both look healthy,
they're both drinking milk,
they're both eating browse
[SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY]
which means that you know,
they're stressed but they're not
in too bad a situation
otherwise they would be
refusing food and drink,
so it's really just a case of
getting going as soon as we can
because it's going to be
a really long day for them.
Erm, but yeah, it's really a big
relief to see them both inside
so For a moment I didn't
think it was going to happen
today! [CHUCKLES]
NARRATOR: It's 9:00 a.m.
There's nine hours
of daylight ahead,
but the journey will
be at least 12 hours.
It's 320 kilometres from Lilayi
on the outskirts of Lusaka
to Camp Phoenix in
Kafue National Park,
much of it on unsealed roads.
This is a new, and
potentiallyfrightening
experience
for the two jumbo passengers,
rattling along in a metal box.
They will get a break every
two hours for food and water,
but the first stop is
an unscheduled one.
[TIRES SCREECHING]
A major blow-out almost
caused the truck to roll.
Luckily, Musolole and
Zambezi are both OK.
It's a further delay and the
truck is heating up in the
morning sun.
RACHEL: It's a
bit of a nightmare.
So the elephants seem to be
doing OK for right now, which is
good, but obviously it's not
ideal,
we want to just have
a smooth journey
and to get there
as soon as possible
so there's less stress for them.
And they've already
had a stressful start
and now this has
just added to it,
but the main thing is they're OK
so we'll just keep monitoring
them and do what we can.
[CLICKS TONGUE]
NARRATOR: The elephants needto
keep eating to stay strong.
And they need to keep cool.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
In the wild,
an elephant's life can
revolve around finding enough
food and water.
An adult can eat 300
kilograms of browse a day.
They also drink up
to 200 litres of water,
and will often travel
long distances to find it.
It's more than just
hydratingand cooling down,
a scarcity of hair means
thatelephants can get sunburnt.
The mud and dirt
act as a sunscreen.
Even elephants must
take care of their skin,
especially under
the fierce African sun.
NARRATOR: It takes the best
part of two hours to change the
tyre
But at last, the elephants
and their convoy are good to
continue.
It's not the hottest of days,
which is good for the elephants,
and at last things are looking
up for Zambezi and Musolole.
They've just drunk
two litres of milk each
and now two litres
of electrolytes each
and in-between that they've
eaten browse, which is a really
great sign.
So they're obviously not,
you know, hugely stressed,
but also really, really
important to get them hydrated
and have them drink
fluid so that's really good.
So yeah, I'm really pleased.
A rocky start, but now
things are looking quite good.
NARRATOR: They reach the
edgeof Kafue National Park,
but they're still not even
halfway into their journey
as the roads here
get a lot slower.
The truck continues
to stop every two hours
and both Zambezi and
Musololeare very keen to eat and
drinkat every opportunity.
It's a good sign they're
handling the journey well.
But their biggest
challenge is still to come
Young elephants need to learn
their place in the hierarchy of
a herd.
Any boisterous youngsters
that overstep the mark
and fail to show the
right amount of respect
to their elders are
swiftly put in their place.
New additions to the Kafue herd
will need to mind their manners
if they are to integrate safely.
It's getting late
The road is painfully slow
And the weather is changing.
[LIGHTNING CRACKLING]
There's no possibility
of stopping for the night
with the elephants
still loaded in the truck.
It's almost midnight when they
finally make it to Camp Phoenix,
the elephant release facility.
The Kafue elephants are
either asleep in their barns or
out in the park.
The priority is to get Musolole
and Zambezi out of the truck,
and into a stable
where they can rest.
[MEN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Let's quiet down, eh?
NARRATOR: Nobody knows quite how
the two elephants will
reactafter such a long
confinement.
[WHISTLING]
Bezi, Bezi, Bezi
[SNAPPING FINGERS]
Come on, Bezi. Come on.
NARRATOR: Zambezi is first out.
Keep the bottles in their bags.
NARRATOR: He's
no fight left in him.
It's been a long and tiring day.
Good boy.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
RACHEL: Well done, guys.
That was very calm, very smooth.
NARRATOR: Musolole
is equally subdued.
Muso [WHISTLES]
Muso.
Yeah!
[BOTH SPEAKING OTHER LANGUAGE]
NARRATOR: It's
the day of reckoning.
Zambezi and Musolole
will meet the Kafue herd.
True to form, independent
Zambezi has escaped from his
stable,
but he seems a little
unsure what to do next.
He's not been spotted
by the resident eles
who are waiting to
be let out into the bush.
So as you know, we've got a
very exciting moment coming up.
Obviously we want the
elephants to meet each other,
so we need to try and encourage
them towards each other.
I think, probably Zambezi
and Musolole will be a bit shy.
They're not really
knowing where they are,
they don't know the routine
to walk up to the gate,
so we're going to have to
help them find each other,
so we can see what's
going to happen.
OK? But you know
the elephants best,
so we're actually
going to watch you guys,
er, work with them.
NARRATOR: Aaron and Victor have
joined the resident Kafue
keepers
and are going to stay here
until the two new eles have
settled in.
They let Musolole
out of his stable.
And suddenly, the herd
spots the new arrivals.
[TRUMPETING]
[TRUMPETING CONTINUES]
Will Musolole and Zambezi
know how to behave?
[TRUMPETING]
Musolole, not quite
his confident self,
decides it's safest to
stay behind the fence.
Some of the Kafue orphans are
even smaller than the newcomers.
Musolole meets their
curiosity with his own.
But Zambezi prefers to be alone.
Thankfully, there's
no aggression.
One of the smallest eles
ventures around behind the
fence.
Musolole is getting
his confidence back
But when he follows
the little one out,
he comes
face-to-face with Tafika,
one of the biggest
elephants here.
This is when it could get ugly.
Musolole is used
to being the boss.
Tafika backs off and
Musolole doesn't push his luck.
Zambezi is still
keeping to himself.
Musolole meets
Tafika once again
But this time, he
does the right thing.
Presenting his backside, and
even backing into Tafika is a
sign of submission,
and all tension is diffused.
We've seen that
Musolole is very social,
and he's interacted really
nicely with the other elephants.
But Zambezi's really avoiding
everybody, and being difficult.
[LAUGHS] What a surprise!
He kind of was more interested
in the browse than the other
elephants,
which I think is just
a tactic for avoidance.
Erm, he's probably
very interested
but he doesn't know quite
how to handle himself.
NARRATOR: It's
time to leave the boma.
Zambezi would rather
stay here on his own.
But that's why Aaron is here.
Like a mother holding the
hand of a reluctant toddler,
he leads Zambezi
to join the others.
At last, they head
out from the enclosure
and into the wilds of
Kafue National Park.
Zambezi and Musolole
stand out from the crowd,
their skin stained by
the red earth of Lilayi,
where they've just come from.
This is a new
environment for them.
They're no longer in the
safety of the Lilayi game park.
Kafue National Park is home
to lions, buffalo and all sorts
of other dangers.
Zambezi and Musolole almost
certainly wouldn't survive
if simply left to
fend for themselves.
In the wild, young elephants
enjoy the protection of the
herd.
A pride of lions could
easilybring down a young
elephant,
even elephants the size
of Zambezi and Musolole.
[TRUMPETING]
These two adults know it.
[TRUMPETING]
But the lions are blocking
their path to water,
and when it to comes
to size and strength,
the adult elephants
have the upper hand.
[TRUMPETING]
As long as the young
elephantsare protected by their
elders,
they'll come to no harm.
[GRUNTING]
Zambezi and Musolole have
the protection of their keepers,
who are accompanied here
in Kafue by armed guards.
[LAUGHING]
NARRATOR: But if they're
to survive here long-term,
and live truly wild lives,
they need to be adopted
by bigger, wiser elephants.
Two emerge from the bush.
There are 2,000 wild
elephantsin this national park,
but these two are graduates of
the orphan release programme.
They're part of the
Kafue orphan herd.
They're old enough to spend
their nights alone in the wild.
Chamilandu is ten years old,
and she's the eldest of the
Kafue orphans.
She greets the two
newcomers from Lilayi,
who seem a little intimidated.
[LOW TRUMPETING]
Chamilandu and her
companion Batoka
have been spending weeks
at a time out in the bush
without the keepers or guards.
Musolole and Zambezi
couldlearn a lot if these two
takethem under their wing.
In the wild, elephant
herds are led by a matriarch,
typically the oldest and
most experienced female.
Her knowledge is critical
to the survival of the herd.
She's the one who decides
when to move and where to feed.
She knows where the
water will be flowing.
The rest of the herd
wouldstruggle without her
guidance.
At midday, the herd
returns to the boma
and Chamilandu, the oldest
female orphan, goes with them.
[TRUMPETS]
The younger
elephants get a bottle.
Musolole and Zambezi needthis
comfort and reassurance.
But then Victor and Aaron
head off with the other keepers
for their lunch
Leaving the elephants alone.
And Musolole doesn't like it.
[TRUMPETING]
Chamilandu is the
self-appointed matriarch
of this close-knit herd
of unrelated orphans.
She's ready to comfort Musolole
but he's used to
being the leader
[TRUMPETS]
and isn't keen to mingle yet.
He needs to learn to fit in.
At least Zambezi is
becoming a little more sociable.
And they're not alone for long.
A couple of the elephants
have been unwell,
and so the vet who travelled
from Lilayi has some work to do.
[RIFLE FIRES] [TRUMPETING]
It's safest to anaesthetise
them from a distance.
[RIFLE FIRES]
Matriarch Chamilandu
isn't a target
but she's immediately
aware something's going on.
The drug takesa few
minutes to take effect.
Musolole is sticking
close to Victor,
unaware that behind the
boma, an elephant is down.
The veterinary team needs the
rest of the herd safely out of
the way,
but Chamilandu is demonstrating
her protective
motherly instincts.
[INDISTINCT] Move!
What about pellets? Someone
grab a bucket of pellets.
NARRATOR: Pellets for these
elephants are like a bag of
sweets for a child,
and the team uses them
todraw the other elephants away.
The unconscious
elephant must be kept cool.
Under sedation, he's less able
to regulate his own temperature
and could overheat.
The vets need to work fast,
but can't do anything with
Chamilandu being so protective.
The other darted
elephant is getting woozy
and Zambezi appears concerned.
The pellets arrive, but still
Chamilandu is caught in two
minds.
A small stick keeps
the airway open,
and eventually the vets
can get on with their task.
[ELECTRONIC BEEPING]
They suspect a
parasite infection.
The other elephant goes down
and Chamilandu is getting
increasingly agitated.
She may not be very experienced,
but she's behaving
just like a matriarch,
very protective of her herd.
[SNORTING]
Musolole and Zambezi are
lucky to be joining this
elephant family.
[TRUMPETS SOFTLY]
The first elephant wakes up.
[TRUMPETS]
And his rumbles bringChamilandu
rushing back over.
Rachel knows to
keep well out the way.
Every herd needs a matriarch,
and Zambezi and Musolole's
integration into this herd,
and their ultimate
return to the wild,
will depend heavily
on Chamilandu.
It will be several years
before Zambezi and Musolole
have the confidence
of Chamilandu,
staying out all
night in the bush.
For now, they have
the security of the boma.
It's been an exhausting day.
Back at the Lilayi orphanage,
on the outskirts of Lusaka,
the two youngest elephants,
Nkala and Muchichili,
have begun to adjust to
life without their elders.
[SPEAKING IN
NARRATOR: Nkala came to
Lilayi when he was just three
months old
and has looked up to Musolole
and Zambezi throughout his time
here.
NARRATOR: And it won't be
longbefore these two make the
moveto Camp Phoenix,
where they will be reunited
with their brothers Zambezi and
Musolole.
A few days in, and
Musolole and Zambezi
are already starting to
look like part of the herd.
Journey completed! Erm
Zambezi and Musolole are now in
a national park, which is
amazing.
Erm, and they're in
amongst eight other elephants
who've been here for some time,
and we can see them now,
erm, you know, foraging
peacefully side by side
so it's a really good indication
that they're already going
to be settling in very quickly.
It's a huge milestone
in the release process,
a step towards
living in the wild,
and yeah, and this is
going to be their new home!
NARRATOR: With Chamilandu
and the other older and more
experienced elephants to guide
them, there's a bright future
ahead for these two elephant
Musolole and Zambezi.