Episode 5 Wild Tales

The world's full of animal families.

Tales of life and death happen every day.

For the youngest members, growing up is tough. Really tough.

These stories recreate their rollercoaster lives,

here on Wild Tales.

We're following three fantastic animal characters.

Cara, the caribou calf, is once again running for her life.

Hugh is trying out some Polar Bear hunting moves with his sister.

And Newky, the African wild dog pup, gets his first taste of adulthood.

So, where do we start?

First up is Northern Canada.

where Cara faces a snow covered world that's no winter wonderland.

HOWLING

The cold she can deal with...

..but there's something lurking in the woods...

with big eyes and big teeth.

Cara and her mum are on high alert.

The woods are alive with big bad wolves.

Caribou are their only prey at this time of year.

The wolves need the element of surprise to hunt.

But the caribou are wise to that game.

They've headed out over a frozen lake.

Out there they'll have plenty of time to spot danger approaching.

Cara sticks close to mum.

She knows better than to stray from the herd.

The wolves just look on from the sidelines. But they're hungry.

And they can't wait forever.

They're looking for older, slower adults

and young inexperienced calves.

Cara would make a perfect wolf-sized snack.

Although she's not about to give in so easily.

The wolves leave the woods.

But the caribou see them coming.

With a head start. They have the upper hand.

The caribou have the edge when it comes to speed.

The wolves just can't get close enough.

These guys literally run rings around them.

The wolves know when to call it a day.

And they skulk back to the woods.

Cara's safe out in the open.

But this place is lousy for finding food.

Lichen doesn't grow on frozen lakes.

Cara and the herd have a choice.

Protection out on the lake.

Or food over by the trees.

Where the advantage shifts... to the wolves.

Staying with the snow, it's over to the Arctic

where we left Hugh and his sister following mum out onto the sea ice

to face the long Arctic winter.

Now, with the days getting longer, that winter is finally behind them.

It's been tough for Hugh with no den to snuggle up in.

But he's made it.

It's spring.

And the seals are out on the ice again,

looking after their young.

Mum plans to take full advantage.

Hugh and his sister still have some growing up to do.

And they need to pack in as much food as they can right now.

There could be a long walk ahead.

But soon enough, Mum sniffs something out.

That nose of hers is a real life saver.

And it's not long before they find the remains of a seal.

Hugh and his sister dive straight in.

But mum seems a little unsure.

She starts eating.

But she's still not convinced.

After all, if she's found the kill,

a male could just as easily sniff it out.

And they won't be play-fighting now that they're out on the ice.

They'll try to take whatever they find.

Hugh had better keep an eye out.

There could be trouble ahead.

It's the Okavango next,

where we left Newky heading out on his first proper hunt.

When they found the impala, the adults went in for the chase.

But Newky only got to watch.

It's all changed in the wild dog pack.

Time has really moved on.

Newky is now a year old. A young adult.

And his life is about to get a lot tougher.

He's already proved he can run with the pack.

But up until this point he's only been a spectator on the hunts.

Now he'll need to run up front and actually take down the prey.

It's a whole new responsibility.

And it's not the only one.

The pack has a new litter of tiny pups.

Newky's younger brothers and sisters.

They're only just out of the den.

The latest additions to the family.

And the new focus of attention.

You have to admit these guys are cute.

Running around just like Newky was at that age.

With bags of energy.

Like all pups, they're tied to the den,

reliant on the adults for food.

And Newky's now got a whole new role ahead of him.

He's no longer a carefree rabble-rouser.

He's a responsible adult.

Will he live up to the challenges ahead

to take down the prey on his first proper hunt

and bring home the bacon?

Cara and the herd are still out on the ice.

The wolves are back amongst the trees.

Biding their time.

For the caribou, the ice has been a real life-saver.

And the herd stay out as long as they can.

But there's no food out here.

So in the end they're forced to choose with their stomachs.

And Cara heads closer to the trees.

Closer to the wolves.

Cara finally gets to feed on a patch of freshly dug lichen.

And with her head stuck in a hole, the wolves get closer.

And closer.

Snow flies in every direction as the chase begins.

Cara is once again running for her life.

She heads out over the lake.

But it won't save her now.

The caribou have lost their head start

and the wolves are closing in.

One of these guys is coming down.

Surely it can't be Cara?

Hugh's family are still busy tucking into the leftovers.

And if they're not careful, they're gonna mess up

that nice white fur of theirs.

Gulls are standing close by,

waiting to step in as soon as the bears leave.

Hugh and his sister are making the most of their meal.

But Mum is still on high alert.

These two have grown up a lot

and they're far bigger than they used to be.

But they're still nowhere near big enough to cope

with a full grown adult male.

Even a juvenile, like this one.

Attracted in by the smell.

This guy's only young, but that's as close as Mum's willing to get.

For Hugh, it's a vision of his own future as Mum leads them away,

giving up without a fight.

The male won't bother following when food is there for the taking.

And mum can't afford to fight over it.

If she gets injured, Hugh wouldn't stand a chance...yet.

They need to get as far away from the male as possible.

That could have been a close call for Hugh.

Newky and the pack have left the pups at the den with mum

and they're heading out on the hunt.

Newky is keeping up with the older dogs.

But he'll have to do a lot more than that to prove himself as an adult.

This time he'll need to take part in the chase,

right up to the kill.

It's not long before the dogs spot the prey.

A group of impala.

These antelopes are familiar to Newky and he knows the drill.

Stay quiet...

..and get into position until... it kicks off!

Newky's now right up front. A real team player.

He's running faster than he's ever run before.

An impala is singled out.

And the team closes ranks.

The dogs have piled in.

They've got no table manners.

They eat quickly, clearing away the kill

before it attracts other predators.

Newky's made his first ever kill.

But before he gets a chance to really take it all in...

..there's a gatecrasher to the party.

Man, that's quick. Let's see it again.

That's one bold hyena.

And he's cleared away a good chunk of the kill.

That was food that would have fed the adults.

And the pups.

Will these guys have enough food left?

And will that Hyena be back to steal more?

For Hugh and his sister, the coast is clear.

And with the male busy eating at the kill,

they get a chance for some after dinner play in the snow.

Even Mum gets to take it easy.

But it's not all just fun and games.

It's time for Hugh to try out a bit of seal hunting.

Along with his sister.

They haven't quite got the hang of it yet.

But Mum's keen to see how well they cope on their own.

Hugh could do with a little more practice.

Oh, dear!

For a couple of hot-headed bears, this is a good way to cool off.

And they don't seem to be taking it very seriously.

But even with all this messing about, they are learning.

After all, they'll soon be doing this for real.

Cara's up there with the herd. Once again, she's running for her life.

The wolves are in hot pursuit.

Cara may be slightly faster on her feet.

But the wolves are no slouches.

This time they caught the caribou by surprise.

And they work together to hunt.

They're trying to single out the easiest prey

and separate it from the rest of the herd.

Divide and conquer is their game.

And Cara knows not to fall into that trap.

She stays with the others. No matter what.

Eventually, an older adult takes a wrong turn.

The rest of the herd escapes.

As the wolves won't need to hunt again for several days,

Cara gets a chance to rest.

She's been lucky...this time.

But the caribou wintering grounds are never truly safe.

The wolves need to eat,

and they won't leave the herd alone.

Cara had better get used to them.

Back at the kill, Newky is eating food with the other one year olds.

They're not pups any more, but as the youngest ones out here,

they still get first stab at the food.

Dad keeps the older adults back.

They're on the lookout for trouble after that surprise hyena attack.

They've already lost part of the kill,

and with new pups back at the den, they can't afford to lose any more.

The hyena is still hungry.

The dogs opt to stand their ground.

One hyena versus the whole pack

should put the odds in the dogs' favour.

Newky's right in there, biting away with Dad and the older adults.

With a Hyena's jaws powerful enough to bite through bone,

it pays to attack at the other end.

Man, that's gotta hurt.

Between them, they start to push the hyena away.

The dogs get another chance to eat,

with Newky bolting down as much as he can.

But not for long.

The hyena's still not giving up, sneaking in closer and closer.

These guys know they can take it now

and a few more bites to the bum should send it packing.

Who's laughing now?

In the end, dogged determination pays off.

The hyena is gone, and Dad now takes his turn at the table.

Newky sits it out.

He's had his chance to eat.

The other adults push in when they can.

But the dogs can't stay for long.

They need to finish the kill and get back to the pups

before that Hyena comes back.

Cara's survived for the whole winter.

And the worst of the weather is now behind her.

It's spring, and she's now almost the same size as the adults.

Mum's got another calf growing inside her now.

But Cara won't be getting a new brother or sister to play with.

She'll be travelling with the other first year calves from now on.

No more mum by her side.

Just another female in the herd.

They're all on the brink of their migration north

to the summer grounds.

It's a long journey, with plenty of tough times ahead.

But after what Cara's been through, she's used to that.

In the Arctic, After getting thoroughly soaked,

Hugh and his sister are rubbing against the ice

to soak up all the water from their fur.

Using it like a piece of blotting paper.

They've still got some growing up to do.

But they've learnt a lot.

And in six months, maybe a year,

they'll leave mum's side for good.

And Hugh will end up trudging across the sea ice on his own.

But until then, there's still time for a little more of mum's milk.

If you're gonna spend the rest of your life alone,

you may as well cram in as many home comforts as you can.

Newky and the rest of the adults

are heading back to the pups after finishing off the kill.

That hyena didn't come back.

And Newky proved he's got what it takes to be an adult wild dog.

He helped take down the kill

and was willing to get stuck in when the chips were down.

Now, as he wanders back into the den,

he gets to experience another side to adult life.

The pups run up to greet him and beg for food.

It wasn't that long ago that Newky was doing the same thing.

But now he's the one throwing up food for them to eat.

OK, the pups are now the centre of attention,

but at least Newky's alive.

And to be honest, he's done well to get that far.

They've all survived. And as these Wild Tales come to an end...

..it's worth taking another look at how these guys got here.

It's not been easy.

They've all have had some pretty hard times to deal with.

But it's certainly been one rollercoaster of a ride.

It's hard to believe they all started out so small.

It was a big old world for Hugh, with such short legs.

And travelling caused them all problems.

Although, for Newky, staying at home was hardly any better.

And Cara's problems went from big...

to very small.

They've all had problems.

But it's how they've dealt with them that matters.

And they've certainly learnt a lot along the way.

Learning what to eat was a good start.

Newky had a second-hand diet.

While Cara had to dig through the snow to find food.

And Hugh just sat back and watched Mum in action.

In fact, watching adults was a big help for all of them.

Although in the end, it was about staying safe

and sticking together.

These guys have all got very different futures ahead of them.

But one things for sure -

growing up has probably been the hardest thing they'll ever do.

And let's not forget, they've had plenty of fun along the way.

It's finally time to say goodbye...

to Newky...

Cara...

And Hugh.

Hopefully, they'll have long futures ahead of them.

But now, we've got to leave them.

Because the world's a big place.

And there are plenty more Wild Tales to tell.