All language subtitles for BBC.Dynasties.Series.1.1of5.Chimpanzee.1080p.HDTV.x264.AAC.MVGroup.org

The family is one of the most
powerful forces in nature.

Family life is full of wonder...

Beauty...

..and drama.

For the past four years,
we've been following some

of the most celebrated
and endangered species on Earth.

We followed their fortunes
from here on the plains of Zimbabwe,

to the jungles of India...

From the edge of the Sahara...

..to the frozen wastes of
Antarctica.

We join each family at a crucial
moment in their lives

when they are battling
against the odds.

Fighting for survival
against the elements...

..and against rivals.

We've got closer, and filmed
in greater length,

and in more detail, than we've ever
tried to do before.

In our modern world, ensuring the
survival of the next generation

is becoming ever more difficult.

For these families
to win against the odds

will be their greatest challenge.

This is Dynasties.

Senegal, West Africa.

Home to a remarkable
troupe of chimpanzees.

It gets so hot and dry here,
it's the very limit of where

they can survive.

This territory is ruled by one
strong and determined leader...

..an alpha male known as David.

His rule gets him
the best of everything.

CHIMPANZEES SCREECH

But, he can trust no-one.

He's surrounded by rivals prepared
to kill him for his crown.

This is a story of power,
politics and the fight for survival.

David's torn ears are testament
to the many battles he's fought

and won to protect his
status and his family.

He has ruled over his
troupe for three years.

Leaders here don't usually hold
power for much longer than this.

And now, as the dry season begins,
David's rivals are gathering again.

Successful alpha males normally
have many allies to support them.

But David is alone.

He has never been more vulnerable.

In the dry season,
these huge mounds of earth

are magnets for all 32 chimps
in the group.

The mounds are full of food,
rich in fat and protein...

..termites.

These chimps have learned to use
grass stems

as tools to fish out the insects.

As leader, David gets his pick
of the feeding spots.

But he is wary, as he must feed
alongside old enemies.

He knows two particularly
ambitious rivals.

David's toes begin to twitch,
a nervous tic he can't conceal.

This is Jumkin, who has long-sought
the top spot.

And this, Luthor...

..a tempestuous younger male
with an aggressive streak.

The troupe is together for the first
time in months and jostling

for good feeding spots
can easily lead to clashes.

It's vital that David keeps order,
and defuses the situation.

All eyes are on him.

THEY CALL TO EACH OTHER

His display shows he is in control.

But in chimp society,
strength alone is not enough.

David must be political
to hold on to power.

He needs to make an ally.

This is KL.

He's strong but grey-bearded
and past the age where he would

challenge for the role of alpha.

David makes an approach.

Grooming builds bonds
of friendship...

..buying support and giving
benefits in return.

You scratch my back,
and I'll scratch yours.

Only time will tell
if this new alliance will pay off.

Temperatures soar.

It's already 40 degrees.

The arid land might seem one giant
sandpit for the infants...

..but for the adults, existing
tensions are starting to surface.

And David has his eye on Jumkin.

Jumkin attacks an elderly female.

It is a display of his
aspirations for power.

David can't tolerate this...

..but KL steps in...

..and gives Jumkin a sharp lesson.

THEY SCREECH

It's swiftly followed by one
from David himself.

With a final, huge
lunge at his rival...

..Jumkin comes crashing down.

Together, David and KL are now
a force to be reckoned with.

Fires destroy three quarters
of the group's territory.

Much of their food
and shelter has gone.

And with temperatures
continuing to rise,

water is becoming perilously scarce.

The group must stick
together to survive.

Gathering in a dried out riverbed,
they use knowledge passed

down from generation to generation.

A hidden water source
under the parched earth.

For David, there is more than just
drought to worry about.

He can't avoid his rivals.

KL is proving to be
a loyal ally to David.

And David is going to need
him more than ever.

By rare coincidence,
three of the seven females

have become sexually
receptive at the same time.

Their swellings attract
the attention of all the males.

The females will try to mate
with as many males as possible.

David must control them all
to ensure he is the one who mates.

But some of the troupe,
like Luthor, have other ideas.

THEY SCREECH

All the other males see
this could be their chance.

There's never been a more
important moment for David

to assert his power.

He makes the first move.

His rivals respond with their own
display of strength

and start to close ranks.

David and KL seemed
to be outnumbered.

Everything turns to chaos.

SCREECHING

At some point during the night,
the younger males turned on David.

The females and their infants come
to his side to support him

and tend his wounds.

They can't stay here.

They and their young need water.

The whole group move
on to the nearest water hole.

Even KL has to leave
David behind.

It's a six mile trek
to the next source of water.

David is left for dead.

There is now a power vacuum
at the top

and Luthor sees an opportunity.

Creating fear within the group
is one way to become leader.

THEY SCREECH

AGGRESSIVE SCREECHING

He tries to intimidate the group,
but a bid for leadership

is never instant.

He'll have to keep
this up for many days.

Friendless and wounded,
David somehow musters the energy

to search for food.

He has to rejoined the group
before he's exiled for good.

But first, he must regain strength.

Time is running out.

Remarkably, one week
after the attack,

David makes the long journey to
find the group.

Luthor, meanwhile, has ramped
up his bid for leadership.

David has almost made it...

..but he's in no fit state to fight.

Luthor spots David's approach...

..and readies himself for battle.

David's only chance against Luthor
is to make himself look

as strong as possible.

SCREECHING

THEY CONTINUE TO SCREECH

Intimidated, Luthor has to run.

Without a blow being
struck, David is back!

David is finally reunited
with his comrade, KL.

Grooming each other reaffirms
their bonds of friendship.

For David, returning
is only half the battle.

Exhausted and fragile,
he's only hanging on to his

leadership by a thread.

Luthor appears defeated.

With a submissive gesture,
he seeks forgiveness from David.

But David is unwilling to accept.

Over the following weeks,
Luthor finds himself sidelined.

The other males now
gather around David.

And Luthor has no choice
but to step in line.

David has his group
around him once more,

but he doesn't show them
how weakened he really is.

His injuries haven't healed
and the males could turn on him

again at any moment.

For now, he seems
to be fooling them all.

He's buying himself time
to regain his strength

before another female
comes into season

when he will face
competition once again.

THUNDER ROARS

At last, rain-filled clouds bring
an end to the drought.

David's territory is transformed.

There is water everywhere
and a glut of food.

The pressure on the group is lifted.

Everyone can relax a little
after months of hardship.

David's strength appears
to be returning.

His displays in front of the group
become ever more assertive.

But in truth, he remains weaker
than he lets on to the others.

Whenever possible, he disappears to
gather extra food.

He gorges on everything
he can find...

..fruit...

..leaves...

..even ants.

He's almost back to full health.

But that alone might still
not be enough for him

to hold on to power.

Soon, another female
will be ready to mate.

Last time, one ally
was not enough for David.

He tries a new strategy.

He starts grooming other males.

First one...

..then another.

Slowly, over weeks,
he surrounds himself

with a band of allies.

An army of elders...

..experienced fighters, but too old
to steal his crown.

Now, he must wait and see
if he's done enough

to prevent a recurrence of
dissent in the ranks.

Sure enough, a female
has come into season.

Her swelling doesn't go unnoticed.

Last time, David was vulnerable.

This time, he has allies...

SCREECHING

..prepared to charge ahead
and clear his path.

Displaying his strength reminds
rivals to stay away.

If David has fully secured
his position as Alpha,

he will be the one who
mates with the female.

She catches his eye.

With a number of allies positioned
throughout the group,

none of his rivals
dare to challenge him.

This is David's time to mate.

Nine months later...

..a new baby boy!

David's reward for
maintaining power.

His rule and the future
of his dynasty is secure.

By being Alpha, David
will have sired

twice as many offspring as any other
member of the group.

And one day, one of his sons
might just have what it takes

to be a future leader.

David has become the most powerful,
longest reigning alpha,

this group has ever seen.

But there will always be another dry
season, and there will always be

rivals waiting for their chance.

The Dynasties crew spent two
years capturing the story

of these chimpanzees.

This is how every day begins.

Walking over 1,500 miles...

You know it's steep when the chimps
are being careful.

..carrying around 80 kilos each day
in some of the hottest

temperatures on Earth.

It's got to be 46,
47 degrees right now.

I think it's fair to say filming
a blazing fire,

when it's 40 degrees wasn't
probably my best idea.

BEES BUZZING

It's crazy, it's the second time
we've had to run away

from bees this morning.

I got stung, and as
you might be able to tell,

it's swollen up a little bit.

Oh, my God.

How stuck is it?

It's pretty stuck.

But the hardest challenge
of all is understanding

the complexities of
the lives of these chimps.

This is only possible thanks
to scientist Jill Pruetz

and her team, who have been studying
this troupe for nearly 20 years.

One of the reasons I think
I like to have people see the chimps

is, it is almost like a soap opera.

It really is this social group
that is not that different

from humans. So you have
relationships change

and you have
different personalities.

Jill's insights helped the team get
to know all the different characters

she has given names
to over the years.

But right from the start,
one chimp named David,

grabs everyone's attention.

We've only been here a few days
but immediately David stood out.

He's really recognisable.

He's a bit of a game player,
but also he's often on his own.

He's very, very charismatic.

He's got a real kind
of swagger to him.

He reminds me of Marlon Brando,
actually, he's got this real kind

of presence to him.

David is one of my favourite chimps.

I maybe a little biased,
I think he's quite clever.

I think of him as a very strong,
you know, strong willed chimp,

a very dominant chimp
and he was very ambitious

when he first became a young adult,
and he rose up the hierarchy

really quickly for his age.

So he became alpha, actually,
when he was a teenager.

He's constantly having to fend off
challenges from other younger males.

And it just goes to show
it's tough being alpha.

It's tough being at the top.

After following David
for so many months,

he seems almost like
family to the crew.

So when he's violently
attacked its a real shock.

Coming out this morning,
it's sort of heartbreaking to see

this chimp that was so powerful...

..just looking so weak.

Oh, he doesn't look good,
he's covered in flies.

And he's looking, looking
really bad, actually.

It's like a frail old man, suddenly.

Like he's ready to die, almost.

The following day
their concerns deepen.

We arrived at 5am and leave not
been able to find any of the chimps.

So we've no idea what condition
David's in,

and he's in a bad way already.

We wish him luck.

I'm sort of worried
about him, and his state.

I just really hope he's OK.

So we're still looking.

They check the remote camera
at the water hole,

where they hope David might have
gone to drink.

I've just gone from the beginning...

..and it looks like David hasn't
been to drink here.

Michelle has just found some tracks.

How he finds these things
I don't know, but there's a chance

we might catch up with him.
Good find, let's go.

Luckily, the tracks
do indeed lead to David.

We've been really worried
with the extent of his injuries,

we didn't know if he was alive,
or if he was ever coming back.

He came right back in and maintained
that alpha status.

David has been alpha for almost
double what we've seen

with other alphas.

He's been challenged a few times,
but he's been able to hold on.

We saw him, not only nearly
lose his position in the hierarchy,

but we saw him nearly lose his life.

The injuries he sustained
in the last coup,

would have been enough to kill me.

David has been able to overcome
the many challenges

that have come from within,

but there's a greater threat that he
and his group face.

In Senegal right now, I'd say the
main threat to chimpanzees

is the gold rush, which just
obliterates huge areas.

Less than a decade ago,
the prices of gold rose,

and people have intensified gold
mining, so that really has increased

the number of people here.

Chimps here have lived alongside
people for thousands of years.

David's group has so far adapted
to life alongside humans

in a remarkable way.

But, with such demand
for these minerals,

and ever more people searching
for gold in this region,

habitat destruction and poaching
is inevitable.

You know, there's not
that many chimpanzees left.

The West African chimp
here in Senegal,

and in west Africa in general, has
been upgraded

to critically endangered
because so many have been lost.

In Senegal, the number
of chimpanzees is now

just in the hundreds.

In the last 25 years,
80% of Western chimpanzees

have disappeared.

And in the future,
studies like Jill's

will become increasingly important
to help conservationists

and local governments protect
the surviving chimpanzees,

not only in Senegal,
but across the whole of Africa.

Next time...

A dynasty of thousands.

A great march into the frozen wastes
of Antarctica,

to face the coldest and
cruellest winter on earth.