All language subtitles for In the Realm of the Red Ape 2009 Wild Asia 1 1080p BluRay EN sub_Subtitles01.ENG

Tropical rainforests
are one of the oldest

continuous Iiving
entities on earth

older than many of the stars.

This rainforest
has been evolving

for 1 30-miIlion years.

Season after season,
century on century,

the forest has
been shaping the destiny

of the creatures it shelters,

as they in turn
have shaped their forest.

This story
of an Asian rainforest

is the story
of the remarkable relationship

between the forest
and it's plants and animals.

The dawn chorus
of primates is a truly Asian sound,

for Asia has the greatest diversity
of primates anywhere on earth.

The new day begins like
the countless miIIions

that have dawned before.

The forest and the myriad
creatures within it,

stir to the coming of light
and warmth.

The rainforest
in aII its compIexity

can be seen as
a singIe living organism.

lt consumes rain and warmth'
and exhaIes oxygen.

The canopy of the rainforest
is like the outer skin.

It receives the most sunlight'

it's the most exposed
to wind and rain

and it protects
the forest beneath.

Rainforests are incredibly rich.

AIthough they cover only 5%
of the earth's surface,

they're home to at least haIf
of all the species of plants

and animaIs on earth.

High in the tree tops,
the animals wake hungry.

The Thomas's leaf monkeys
spring across the canopy

Iooking for breakfast.

Asia's great red ape -
the Orangutan

live in the stronger branches
midway down the trees.

They too are setting
off for breakfast.

Siamang herald the morning
with a duet of Iove.

The calIs between male
and female

are also a procIamation
of their territory.

A most fascinating example
of the relationship

between the forest
and it's creatures'

is that between a group
of great red apes

and the remote corner

of the Sumatran rainferest
where they live.

They've been studied
for more than 5 years΄

Their behaviour offers a gIimpse
into the past of Orangutan,

and a hope for their future.

Each has been given a name.

andi is a 9 year old female.

She's getting used
to Iiving on her own

after her mother
eased her aside to make way

for her new baby sister.

Her mother Arni will be devoted
to her new infant for 8 ears

just as she was to
andi.

Arno, the father of
andi, is the dominant maIe

of this part of the ferest,

and probabIy the father

of almost all the youngsters
in his territory.

Orang-hutan means
"people of the forest".

The Malay have
a Iegend that the Orangutan

was so inteIligent
that it never learnt to speak,

fearing that if it did'
it would be put out to work.

Arno has the demeanour
of a gentle giant.

Yet he would have feught fiercely
to become the dominant male.

He Ieads a soIitary life,
leaving the upbringing

of his chiIdren entirely
to the females.

The simplest reIationship

that the Orangutan have
with the forest

is also the most naturaI.

Gravity ensures
that sooner or Iater,

everything they eat
or touch falIs to the ground.

The ferest fIoor is
where everything ends up:

dead animaIs, leaves'
seeds, and droppings.

Fresh Orangutan dung
seems to have a life of its own.

Attracted by the smell'

dung beetIes soon begin
the recycling process.

The beetles carve up the dung
and pat it into balIs

which are easy to roll away
and bury.

They will Iay their eggs
in the dung.

Eventually it will
all be recycled

and the nutrients reabsorbed
into the trees.

The forest fIoor is the gut
of the forest.

The ferest digests its waste
in less than an hour.

The leaf Iitter takes longer
to decompose.

But eventually the nutrients
are Ieached out of the leaves

and into the soils.

Ants are the most common insects
of the rainforest

and they too
play an important part

in the recycIing
of rainforest nutrients.

These ants are dismembering
a hornet to take back to their nest.

Ants and their termite
cousins are a vital part

of the forest's
digestive system.

Termites break
down rotting wood

and carry it aIong well-worn
forest trails to their nests΄

Along these routes'

they and their precious food
are guarded by soIdiers.

AIthough they're tiny,
insects are forest heavyweights.

They make up a third
of the mass

of alI the animals
in the rainforest.

For creatures
higher up the food chain,

insects are a valuable source
of protein.

Above the termite trail'
a spider lies in wait,

snarin an unsusectin victim.

As they approach the nest
with their load,

the termite trail
becomes a Iivin conveor belt.

and despite appearances'

there is also order
in the rainforest canopy.

The Ieaf-eating monkeys
are foIIowing weIl-jumped pathways.

It's mid morning

and they criss cross their
territories searching for food.

They catapult into space

with the confidence that comes
from countIess generations

of living with the forest.

The Leaf-eating monkeys
live in smaII groups of females

with a dominant male.

The size of his group
is determined by the forest:

since the male likes to be abIe
to keep an eye on them all,

the thicker the ferest,
the smalIer the group.

All the members
of his harem are equal.

There's no top fomale with
first cIaim to the feeding area.

The Leaf-eating monkeys
are free-loaders.

They give little back
to the forest.

By taking fresh leaves,

they rob trees of their means
of absorbing light and energy.

By destroying seeds,

they make it harder
for trees to reproduce.

The trees toIerate
these charming bandits.

But they fight back
b introducin toxins

into the maturing leaves
which spoil the taste.

Below the Ieaf-monkeys'
in the mid branches,

Orangutan play a
much more constructive roIe.

They mostly eat fruit.

because they are big,
they need to be big eaters.

Fruiting trees are scattered
throughout the forest.

Each animal has a
3- dimensional map in its brain

and knows where
and when fruit will ripen

and how to get there.

As they move
from one tree to the next,

eating as they go,

the Orangutan disperse the seeds
of many species

a major role in the growth
of the forest.

Orangutan range throughout
the Sumatran hill forests,

but when fruit is pIentiful

they gather in their
greatest numbers

in the Iow-lying swamp forest.

It's here that their relationships
with each other

and the forest are being studied.

This male is nearing his prime.

Perhaps one day
he will chaIlenge Arno

to be the dominant male.

But until he's sure he'll win,
he stays well clear.

The forest has adapted to the size
of these Orangutan

by producing many of their
favourite fruits close to the trunk

where they're easily reached.

This maIe will return
to this tree again and again

throughout the 50 or so years
of his Iife,

one of the longest
reIationships anywhere

between a tree and an animal.

The closest bond
in the animal worid

is between
a female Orangutan

and her infant.

This intensive mothering
is the bond

that shapes the infant's life.

The mother is the source
of food, shelter, transport

and the vitaI lessons for lifo.

She wiIl pass on all her knowledge
of the forest and its fruitings.

Without which the infant
couId not survive.

Part of the knowledge
that Arni passed on to andi

was a way of using a tool
to soIve a problem

behaviour that
has been seen in the wild

only in this swamp forest.

One of the delicacies
the Orangutan enjoy

are the seeds
of the chamangan fruit.

As the fruit ripens'

the sheIIs split to
reveal the seeds inside.

The problem for the Orangutan
is the sharp hairs'

painful to touch'
which protect the seeds.

Sometime in the past

one of them worked out

how to overcome
the plant's defences.

Now andi has learnt
to put the stick in her mouth

and use it to
pry out the seeds.

The seeds either drop into
her mouth or her hands.

The hairs fIutter to the ground.

Millions of years ago

our own ancestors
first learned to use tools.

We don't know whether Orangutan
Iearnt to do this only recentIy

or whether they've been doing it
for centuries or miIIennia΄

What is certain

is that this behaviour
has never been recorded

in any other group of Orangutan.

We once beIieved
that our ability to use tools

separated us from the rest
of the animal kingdom.

Perhaps andi is showing us

that Orangutan are even
cIoser to us than we imagined.

With the two prerequisites for life:

sunshine
and water abundant,

rainforests are one of the most
favourabIe environments

fer plant growth on earth.

A square kilometer of rainforest

can have as many
as 1 0'000 species

this is the ReaIm
of the Red Ape.

ln the tropics there are
two seasons, the wet and the dry.

Plants flower and fruit
according to their own cycle.

The Rainforests at the north of
Sumatran Iie cIose to the Equator

and receive aImost equaIized
daylight and darkness΄

Yet for each individual tree

the amount of light it receives
depends on its pIace in the forest.

The forest floor sees sunlight
only at midday,

the mid branches receives
about 8 hours,

the tree tops see light
from sunrise to sunset.

During the day'

the leaves of the canopy
are in almost constant sunIight.

The mid branches however,
receive onIy fiItered Iight.

and at midday, when the sun
is directly above the trees,

the forest fIoor receives
only dappIed Iight

as passing sun specks.

It is this limited suppIy
of Iight that restricts growth

on the forest floor.

This pattern of light

is interrupted onIy when
a tree dies and falls,

creating a gap in the canopy
which there is a race to fill.

Creepers wind their way
round other plants

to haul themselves upwards'

whiIe saplings stretch
towards the light.

Very soon the canopy
is complete.

The race is over,
the winner takes all

and the losers adjust to
their rations of sunlight.

Crucial to the relationship
between the animals

and the forest

is their underst anding
of the seasonal cycles

of different species.

The animals always know

where and when
their favourite Ieaves

and fruits are ripening.

While some trees are
in spring-like abundance'

others will be shedding leaves,
as if it's autumn.

Some seeds parachute away
to germinate on the ground,

others are carried on water.

The seeds may germinate many
kilometres from the parent tree.

So' although the trees can't move,
they can travel.

In the dry season,

the ferest produces fewer leaves
and seeds,

so there's less food for everyone.

If there's a stream
in their territory,

the Ieaf-eating monkeys supplement
their diet with algae.

They come down from the trees
Iike travellers to an oasis.

There's enough aIgae in the stream
for severaI groups

from overIapping
territories to share.

WhiIe they're up in their element,
the canopy,

the monkeys are safe
from almost all predators΄

But on the ground,
they are vuInerabIe.

FemaIes with older infants
leave them in the trees.

For as long as the Ieaf monkeys
remain on the river,

the male keeps a nervous watch.

There are still some
Sumatran tigers on the prowl.

Unaware there's a tiger about,

femaIes with infants that are
too young to Ieave in the trees,

bring them down with them
to the water.

Sometimes'

even the most caring mothers
become forgetful.

However high his hopes,

the tiger's chances
of a meal are remote.

As soon as the he hears
the leaf-monkeys' alarm call,

he moves on.

He has to kiIl only
2 or 3 times a week,

and he knows when the monkeys
are beyond reach.

The mouse deer is the worid's
smaIIest hoofed animal.

It has no protection against
the tiger except its aIertness.

Its huge eyes are placed where it
can best detect any movement'

its ears are alert
to any dangerous sound.

Despite its name,

the mouse deer is a species

somewhere between
a pig and a deer.

Indeed,

the Malays have a Iegend
that the mouse deer

is a forest spirit so cIever
that it can outwit the tiger΄

High in the trees,

Orangutan are safe
from most predators.

The biggest threat
to this mother and her baby

may be the unwanted
attentions of a maIe.

If he can get cIose enough,
he will stop at nothing to mate.

and both mother
and child couId be hurt.

To keep out
of harm's way,

she moves to the thinner branches

where she knows he can't folIow.

But the would-be suitor
was probably more at risk.

For in this part of the forest
Arno remains dominant.

His presence is usualIy enough
to keep other males at bay.

There is still a few eIephants
in the Asian Rainforest.

By knocking down trees
they help disperse seeds

and let in light.

But the forest infIuences them too.

The dense vegetation forces them
to Iead more soIitary lives

than their cousins in Africa.

Even for elephants'
the forest has its no go areas.

Some plants grow spines

which discourage
even the largest animals.

Other plants enlist the services
of insects in their defence.

These ants help
protect the wiId raspberry

by deterring
leaf-eating caterpiIlars.

Once they've
driven the caterpillar off,

the ants claim their reward.

They milk a colony of aphids

for the sugary secretion
they produce

from the sap of the raspberry.

Perhaps the most
cruciaI reIationship of aII

is the role insects play in
enabling the forest to reproduce΄

By offering irresistibIe nectar

these pIants entice ants
to travel from flower to flower,

transforring the vital pollen.

Throughout the forest,
the same system of service

and reward appIies.

Different plants flower
at different times,

attracting different pollinators.

This one flower
attracts sweat bees.

Pollination is the service
the sweat bees provide.

Their reward is nectar,
which they carry back to their nest

From the nectar'

the bees make honey as
food for their larvae.

Even the most singular
of species

follows the rules
of service and reward.

This bud wiII become
the rainforest's largest

and perhaps rarest fIower...

the rafflesia' which
has no Ieaves or stem,

and draws its sustenance
from the vine on which it lives.

The Rafflesia takes
4 or 5 years to flower

and is polIinated mainly by flies
which it attracts

with the stench of rotting meat

It can reproduce easiIy

only if another rafflesia
is fIowering within a fly's range.

Once the flies have done their work
the RaffIesia dies.

Like everything else
on the forest floor,

it is absorbed and recycled.

Butterflies emerge to reproduce.

Most butterfly species seek
nectar from flowering plants.

As they feed, transferring pollen
from flower to flower'

they make it possible
for the plants to reproduce.

Once they find a mate
and lay their eggs,

their work is done.

At midday the forest slows.

High in the trees,
the leaf-monkeys pause

after a morning
of intensive feeding.

They descend
to a shady siesta spot to rest

and fully digest
the mornings leaves.

The young wilI play.

With no hint of danger,
the maIe can afferd a catnap.

The females become so drowsy
that one mother dozes.

While the Thomas's leaf monkeys
come down

into the mid branches
for their siesta,

the Siamang take their time out
at the top.

Playing serves a purpose
for the young apes.

This is how they learn
how far they can leap,

what weight a branch can carry,
and what risks they can take΄

The learning never ends.

Beneath the Siamang'
in the mid branches,

the Orangutan also pause.

Female Orangutan may have no more
than three young in their lifetime,

so each one is precious.

Between this mother and her infant

there is something almost human.

In the dry season,
the rains are Iess frequent,

and usually
arrive in the afternoon.

ReguIar downpours are essentiaI
for life in the forest.

The Orangutan find shelter
where they can.

The canopy of the forest
breaks the force of the rain,

and stops it from
washing the topsoiI away΄

Many trees have leaves
which channeI the rain

to where it's needed most

their roots.

Some pIants have an umbreIla
to keep the rain out.

After only a fow hours
the sun returns,

the heat buiIds up,

and water is sucked up
by the roots,

and then flows up through the trunk
into the leaves,

where it released back
into the atmosphere.

Beneath the canopy,
the humidity is high

and reIatively constant.

As a result' the forest floor
is constantly moist

and many creatures have evolved
in this damp environment.

Leeches depend on moisture,

and Asia is one of the few places

where they've adapted
to live outside pools of water

or sIowIy-running streams.

Leeches are hermaphrodites:
each is both maIe and female.

Mating invoIves both
partners passing sperm

to fertilise each other's eggs.

The mating begins when they
attach their suckers to each other,

and sway their bodies until they
can establish cIoser contact.

Once the pair have aligned
their sexual organs, they mate.

Each of them can now go on its way
with its own fertilised eggs.

The adults can survive
without water for only a few days.

But even if they perish,
their eggs wilI remain

as a survival capsule for their
species untiI the rains come again.

Eons of rain have faIlen
on the forest,

much of the goodness
has been washed away.

Some plants have
adapted to the poor soils

by becoming predators.

Asia is home to the worid's
greatest diversity

of carnivorous pitcher plants'

which entice their victims by
exuding the sweet smell of nectar.

This is service
and reward with a twist.

Insects are drawn to the trap
by the promise of a reward.

But they slip and then die.

lnstead it is the plant
that gets the reward -

energy.

AImost everything

that faIIs inside the pitcher plant
drowns and is digested.

Yet even in a graveyard
there is life.

Somehow, mosquito Iarvae thrive
in the pitcher's digestive juices.

The pitcher plant is a gut
within the gut of the forest.

lts deep in a remote corner
of Northern Sumatra,

that the unique reIationship
between the great red ape

and the rainforest
is being studied.

In one of the few remaining patches
of lowl and swamp forest

Orangutan gather in greater numbers
than have ever been seen elsewhere.

They reveal secrets of
how their ancestors may have Iived

before their habitat was lost.

They come because the lowl
and swamp forest is richer.

Trees here produce more fruit
than those in the hiIl forests.

They also benefit
from the constant wetness

of the ferest fIoor.

Many of the insects
that would normaIly Iive in nests

in the ground

make their homes instead
in the trees,

where they become an easy source
of extra protein for the Orangutan.

Asia's largest primates congregate
in the swamp forest

for as Iong as the
fruiting season Iasts.

This is where andi grew up.

She learned the forest
from her mother.

She and her companions know
where food is and how to get it.

andi remembers
the sweat bee's nest.

and she aIso remembers the Iessons
she learnt from her mother.

She knows how to get the honey
that is beyond the reach

of her searching finger.

As she did with the chamangan
in this same forest,

she uses a tool.

It's just a twig, broken
and shaped to length.

But by using this simple tool

andi and a few of her relatives

are in a fellowship of their own.

This is behaviour they have
Iearnt and remembered.

Arni's new sister wiII
Iearn the same lessons.

It may be the birth
of a new Orangutan culture,

Why Orangutan use tools here
and possibIy nowhere else

remains something
of a mystery.

When she's finished the honey,

andi will use her knowledge
of the forest

to traveI to another tree.

The sweat bees return instinctively
to repair their nest.

Orangutan choose different food
at different times.

After she's had enough honey'

andi aIways nibbIes a leaf perhaps
to balance her diet΄

When the time comes for andi

to pass on what she's been taught,
the learning wilI be easier

and the knowledge
may spread faster

because of the different way
these Orangutan Iive.

We used to think that they were
aImost aIways solitary animals,

with the only bond
between a mother and child,

or when small groups gathered
briefly around a fruiting fig tree.

That may be true eIsewhere'
but not in this part

of northern Sumatra.

They return to the swamp forest
season after season, to sociaIise

and Iearn with
the same individuaIs.

AduIts and juveniles
recognise each other

and choose their
companions carefuIly.

If they were human,
we wouId call them friends.

Young Orangutan
here in the IowIands

have the chance to play
with each other far more frequently

than their cousins
in the hill-forests.

But they may
not be able to pass on

what they've learned here
to new generations.

Already hunting and the destruction
of their habitat

have made Orangutan
an endangered species.

AIthough they may be sociable
during the day'

at night the Orangutan
keep to themselves.

Adults nest alone.

At the end of each day,

fresh branches furnish a new nest.

Each night a new nest'

each night' a new tree.

But this infant,
its mother is its worid.

Even as he makes his nest

Arno shapes the forest that
stiII shapes him.

As he settles for the night
he gives his long call

proclaiming his territory
and his being.

Arno's long calI declares
the importance of his species

and his culture.

It's a call to
those who have power

to save his realm
in this corner

of the Sumatran rainforest'

and with it,
Asia's great red ape

and their unique way of life.