Relationships Ingenious Animals

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Millions of us love watching the world's wildlife behaving

in strange and wonderful ways.

But what lies at the heart of these extraordinary behaviours?

Can science explain what's really going on?

The latest research from all around the world is increasing

our understanding of animal emotions, relationships,

intelligence and communication...

ROARING ..faster than ever before.

ROARING

I'm Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and I've teamed up with wildlife experts

to travel the globe in search of the more surprising animal stories.

Whoa, whoa. There, there, there. Look at them.

Using the very latest camera technology,

we'll reveal how and why animals do such remarkable things.

And we'll meet the scientists... Let's go through here.

..who dedicate their lives to understanding these

extraordinary discoveries.

Tonight, we're exploring amazing stories about animal relationships.

We meet the people who, as a result of Africa's poaching crisis,

have struck up remarkable bonds

with one of the world's most endangered animals.

Biologist Patrick Aryee investigates our relationship with nature's most

infamous scavenger and finds out how vultures are saving lives.

I'm genuinely gobsmacked.

I'm in Costa Rica exploring why these capuchin monkeys have such a

fantastic team spirit.

Whoa!

OK, that's called branch breaking,

and that's definitely a sign of aggression.

Ooh-ooh. And zoologist Lucy Cooke is in Kentucky discovering the

medicine that may improve a rare pig's relationship problems.

But first, conservationist Giles Clarke is

in the rainforests of Thailand,

investigating how a clever matchmaking technique

could help save one of our most stunning big cats from extinction.

HORN HONKS

I've cared for lions, tigers and cheetahs since I was a teenager.

But there's one big cat that I've never worked with,

and that's the clouded leopard.

They were once common in the rainforests of Southeast Asia,

but today, as their habitat disappears,

only a few thousand remain in the wild,

and this elusive cat could soon be extinct.

The clouded leopard is one of the most difficult cats

to breed in captivity.

But I've come to a breeding project in Khao Kheow

to see how a revolutionary matchmaking programme

is improving the relationships between their captive cats.

'Project leader Bill Wood is giving me the chance

'to get up close to these incredibly beautiful animals.'

Ho-ho-ho!

They are just so agile, aren't they? Absolutely.

They're just amazing, so beautiful.

Named for its blotchy grey and cloud-like markings,

scientists have discovered that the clouded leopard is the evolutionary

link between small cats, like the lynx, and the big cat family.

They are supreme killing machines, with the longest canines

in proportion to skull size of any carnivore,

but luckily, they don't seem to see me as a threat.

Clouded leopards make this extraordinary noise

in exactly the same way as what a tiger does.

It's called a chuff or a prusten, and it's their way of greeting

and showing affection.

My tigers chuff to me as a greeting or when they need reassurance.

I often chuff back,

but let's see if I can chuff in clouded leopard.

HE CHUFFS

HE CHUCKLES Hello.

'They seem to like my chuffing

'because this head licking is also a sign of affection.'

Hey.

Just when you pat them you can feel just how immensely strong they are

and really these guys are perfectly adapted for a life in the trees.

Clouded leopards have one of the longest tails in the cat family,

giving them exceptional balance.

Short, strong legs means they have a low centre of gravity

and their broad powerful paws are perfectly suited to climbing.

You can see just how comfortable she is in the trees.

In fact, one of the things that allows her to do that

are these incredible back paws

and, in fact, clouded leopards are one of the only cats that can rotate

these back paws around,

which allows them to come face first down the trunk of a tree.

They are tailor-made for the rainforests,

but that forest has all but disappeared.

If we can't breed them in captivity,

there's a real danger we'll lose this majestic species for ever.

Clouded leopards in captivity are notoriously difficult to breed.

Why do you think that's the case?

One of the main problems is male aggression to the females.

Some cats like - you'll know - tigers, lions,

you can often leave them together and eventually they'll breed.

Institutions have tried this

and they've put clouded leopards together

and come back in, the next morning, the female's dead.

Because they are so elusive,

no-one has ever witnessed how clouded leopards breed in the wild.

In the past, attempts by other breeding programmes resulted

in serious injury to the females.

Bill's team is pioneering a new breeding technique,

and it's very simple.

Instead of introducing male and female leopards to each other

when they are sexually mature adults,

Bill plays matchmaker and brings them together as cubs.

When we introduce them at such a young age,

they get incredibly well bonded together

and, as they grow up, there seems to be no real aggression.

They love playing together.

Because they get on so well,

they go on to breed and not have that male aggression problem.

This technique of introducing unrelated male and female cubs

at a very young age is known as pair bonding.

This bond continues into adulthood,

reducing the likelihood of aggression

and increasing the chances of successful mating.

How successful is this technique of having cubs?

It is actually incredibly successful.

Virtually all the pairs that we've put together have gone on

and bred successfully.

One of Bill's most effective pairings is Zhou Lai and Maximus.

Really appreciating each other's company, clearly.

Since they were introduced as cubs nine years ago,

these two have parented no less than three litters.

Look at that, you can see how well that pair get on.

Just so affectionate towards one another. Yeah, yeah.

Before this centre was set up,

very few clouded leopards were born in captivity.

This pioneering programme alone has now produced 70 cubs.

About to get ambushed again.

Oh!

And these cubs have been sent to zoos all over the world to

strengthen the gene pool of this vulnerable species.

The goal now is to make sure they stay genetically stable,

and we have a healthy captive population as a safeguard.

So all this hard work is about trying to create

a sustainable population.

Yeah, look what's happened to some of the tiger subspecies

that are now extinct. Maybe if they'd had a core population

in captivity, there might be a chance of re-releasing

the Javan tiger or something like that,

but once they're gone... They're gone for good.

Hello. LEOPARD CHUFFS

HE GRUNTS Where did YOU come from?

'This is the most successful breeding programme

'for clouded leopards anywhere in the world,

'and it's such a privilege to see the results for myself.'

This is truly...

..the most amazing cat experience I've ever had.

With this technique of pair bonding,

what was once one of the world's most difficult breeding programmes

is starting to have results.

And thankfully, the future of this beautiful species

is looking a lot brighter.

For many animals,

being a good team player is vital for success and survival.

I'm 11,000 miles away in the forests of Costa Rica.

Here, some highly unusual behaviour within a troop of monkeys is leading

researchers to new theories about how primates maintain

their relationships.

CHATTERING

These are white-faced capuchins,

one of the most successful and most sociable monkey species

in this part of Central America.

Biologist Kyle Van Atta is part of a renowned research team

who've studied the behaviour of the capuchins here

almost continuously for 25 years.

Let's go through here, I think they're just

at the edge of the tree line.

Think we're close? Yeah.

'We're on the trail of a very special group of capuchins

'called the flake troop.'

Oh. There we have some monkeys. Some movement there.

It looks like Madison, it's pretty large. Oh, right. Yeah, I see him.

There's another one over here, a smaller one.

Winnie The Pooh. He's very pretty.

Before long, we've caught the attention of Kiote,

the alpha male of the troop.

His fur is almost more of a yellow than a white,

which is typical for alpha males. That's a lot of teeth he's showing.

Yeah, he's threatening us right now.

The monkeys are used to the researchers being around,

but Kiote is still keen to show newcomers who is boss.

He even calls in some backup.

CHATTERING

You see I'm looking at Madison. Oh, yeah. That is what we call

a head flag. He looked forward and looked back at the threat.

It's kind of like a call for help. KIOTE HISSES

Scientists know that capuchins are

one of the most socially co-operative animals.

Kiote has called in Madison and they start over-lording,

buddying up to intimidate their foes.

This two-headed monster will scare off most rivals.

The monkeys spend the day on the move,

foraging for fruits and acorns.

But it's not all work and no play.

It's fantastic watching these two playing.

Here comes number three.

That's R Kelly. R Kelly.

CRACKING Whoa.

OK, that's called branch breaking, and that's definitely a sign of

aggression. And that landed right on my head, thank you.

Hello. He's trying to break branches right on my head.

He is succeeding. R Kelly, what have I done?

Have I upset you?

I thought we were getting along so well.

CRACKING Whoa!

He's quite a good shot as well.

'Lobbing sticks at strangers is quite sophisticated behaviour,

'but these capuchins have been observed acting

'in a much more surprising way.'

What actually happens?

You'll have two monkeys facing each other and, for example,

one monkey will stick its finger in the other one's eye and they have

these massive nails... That sounds incredibly aggressive.

Yeah. But it's crazy, they almost go into like a trance

while they do it.

Researchers have been filming this trance-like behaviour

to help study and understand it.

They're both very calm and very calculated

and one of them will stick its finger in the other's eye

or perhaps its mouth or its nose.

This isn't just strange behaviour,

it's also quite dangerous.

Clearly, the monkeys risk being bitten

or having their eyes scratched.

Now researchers have a theory to explain it.

They believe these are social rituals devised by the capuchins

to reinforce relationships,

secure friendships and create trust within the group.

These behaviours are a method of bond testing,

it just gives them a means of assessing the relationship they have

cos that's a dangerous position to be in, if my finger's in your eye.

And in the process, do they actually thicken that bond?

I mean, if you can do this with another monkey repeatedly,

that bond strengthens as a result.

Yeah. The information they get from it says,

"I'm sitting well with this monkey,

"this monkey's going to back me up in a dangerous situation."

These bond-testing rituals haven't been seen in any other animal,

and I'm hoping to see this extraordinary behaviour for myself.

After following the monkeys for another couple of hours,

'we approach a small clearing, and Kyle thinks he's spotted something.'

It's two other members of the troop,

Winnie The Pooh and Young Jeezy,

and it looks like they're performing the ritual.

I've been watching this session between these two...

..and several times I've seen them put fingers in each other's mouths

and finger sniffing.

And there's no question that this is a version of the bonding behaviour,

the bonding tests that Kyle has been telling me about.

I didn't think I'd actually get to see this.

It's a real privilege.

For capuchin monkeys,

knowing who you can trust is absolutely essential

because they need to work together to find food,

to raise each other's babies and to defend the troop from rival monkeys

and predators.

The forest would be full of dangers if they acted alone and weren't

watching out for each other.

The scientists think that the capuchins perform

these bond-testing rituals

because they have a greater need to reinforce their friendships than

many other species.

This is because teamwork is critical to every aspect of their survival...

..making them one of the most socially co-operative primates

on the planet.

Just spending time here with these amazing capuchin monkeys suggests

to me that they've got what it takes to do well here,

whatever comes their way.

They're incredibly intelligent

and these fantastic social bonds they have knit the whole troop

together in a way that suggests that they should thrive here

for generations to come.

8,000 miles away in the South African bush,

scientists have discovered a very unexpected animal interaction.

Remote cameras at the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park

in KwaZulu-Natal have captured footage

that's amazing not just researchers at the park,

but the online community all over the world.

The internet went wild, our website crashed,

we got so many views and so many comments on it.

A research camera in the park had captured images of a genet -

a small catlike predator - riding on the back of a rhino and a buffalo.

This genet has been such an internet sensation,

we have nicknamed it Genet Jackson.

Wow. That's with the new cameras.

Yeah, that's the new site. You should try and look at the...

The first to spot Genet Jackson's antics,

researchers Taryn Gilroy and Dave Druse have been trying

to work out what's behind these strange relationships.

The genet's bizarre behaviour goes against everything we know about

these animals.

They belong to a unique group of small and medium-sized catlike

animals. They are nocturnal, timid and solitary

and wouldn't normally be seen near buffalos and rhinos.

A small predator like the genet always try to avoid conflict

and bumping into other animals that can injure them and squash them.

So you would think that they'd try to avoid each other.

For example, if a rhino was coming down a path

and the genet was on the path,

the genet would just get out the way as quickly as possible.

Very strange that they're even together.

And it's not just a one-off.

By studying their different markings,

the team have realised that at least three genets have been recorded

behaving in this way.

The clarity is amazing.

Determined to find out more, Dave and Taryn set up additional cameras

and finally managed to capture the genet's acrobatics on video.

Once again, in the middle of the night,

a genet is recorded hitching a ride on a rhino.

THEY LAUGH

Just hold on. That's amazing.

This video holds vital clues about what the genet is actually doing,

and it's rather ingenious.

I'd probably go for the theory that it's catching something

as it's coming past the rhino.

This genet leans down and appears to grab an insect.

The rhino's disturbed that the genet has just gone down

and caught it with its mouth.

As the rhino eats from the bush,

he flushes out insects that the genet swoops down and catches.

Then the rhino gets a fright from this stall camera that flashed,

and all the while, the genet holding on to the back of the rhino

in the darkness.

These genets seemed to have worked out that riding on the back of large

herbivores is a brilliant new way of grabbing a meal.

Animals don't do things without a reason.

I think the genets figured out this is a good way of getting food every

now and again and it's just exploiting that.

These images show a highly unusual example

of one mammal taking advantage of another without harming it.

Dave and Taryn are now installing more cameras

to find out how many other genets are doing this,

and establish just how widespread this intriguing

and previously unknown relationship really is.

Next, zoologist Lucy Cooke is heading to Kentucky in the US.

She's finding out if alternative medicine could help a rare pig with

relationship issues.

The patient I'm on my way to see in Louisville Zoo has been suffering

from sore knees.

He's a six-year-old male called Albus,

and he's one of the world's most unusual animals.

Albus is a babirusa.

This is Albus.

LUCY LAUGHS Wow!

Hello. My first-ever babirusa, nothing like I expected him.

Hello, nice to meet you, sir.

You really are an extraordinary-looking animal.

Babirusas are probably the oddest looking pigs on the planet,

and one of its rarest.

They originate from Indonesia, but deforestation

and over-hunting has decimated the wild population.

They are now an endangered species with only 5,000 left in the wild,

which is why Jane Anne Franklin, curator of mammals,

is keen for Albus to breed.

Can I handfeed him? Mm-hm. I can handfeed you. Ooh-ooh!

Remember to let go of the peanut.

This is the way to a babirusa's heart, handfeeding peanuts.

What makes babirusas so extraordinary is

that they are the only animal

with teeth that grow up out of the roof of their mouth.

'These upper canines never stop growing.

'In the wild they've been known to impale the skull,

'which is why Albus's have been partially removed.

'They also resemble antlers and that combined with their dainty legs has

'earned the name pig deer.'

You are extraordinary-looking.

I don't mean that in a rude way, Albus, I think you're gorgeous.

'With his penchant for peanuts and his plump posture,

'I've fallen for this peculiar porker.'

Albus has already stolen my heart. He steals everybody's heart.

Jane Anne doesn't just want this toothy stud to wow the crowds,

it's essential that he captures the attention of Patrice,

the resident female.

He's got an important job to do, he needs to help save his species.

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Albus is in the SSP, which is a species survival plan,

so he is an important member of that population

and he needed to reproduce.

However, two years ago,

Jane discovered that Albus was not the fighting-fit boar she needed.

He had issues with those dainty legs.

They've been causing him problems, right? Yes.

About a year and a half, two years ago,

he started having some issues and we started to investigate,

and we found that he had a patella that slipped.

As in his kneecap? Yes.

That sounds painful. Yes.

The pain was clear to see.

Albus was limping badly and it was affecting his chances of forming a

productive relationship.

Being able to be up on his hind legs and have some stamina to mount

the female was very important,

so that was one of the things we were really looking to fix,

was to be able to allow him to breed and breed comfortably.

When you've got an animal like that,

that's in pain, what do you normally do?

We could have corrected it with surgery

and that would have been the easiest part.

The post-operative care would have been very difficult

because he would have had to have stayed off his leg

for probably six to eight weeks.

And he would have had to have a bandage,

and just managing a wild animal in that situation,

it just didn't seem like a viable way for us to go,

so we looked into alternatives.

They turned, surprisingly, to acupuncture.

Doctor Kari McManus, a local vet, had successfully used it on

other animals that were suffering from inflamed joints and arthritis

and was convinced that this alternative treatment

could help Albus.

Needles are carefully placed into the skin,

where it's thought they trigger a tiny response that relieves pain and

stimulates the healing process.

Kari's been treating Albus every fortnight for the last 11 months,

and today is his latest session.

Stacey, if you would let Albus in.

Albus.

He clearly trusts Kari in spite of her needles because he takes no

time to assume the position.

Good boy.

When Kari inserts the first needle into Albus, he becomes motionless.

KARI: I just insert a little bit and then we can now push the needle

in a little bit more. Once it's seated, what we call needle grab,

then I'll twist it both directions,

which allows the underlying cells to grab the needle.

This has got to be one of the most peculiar things I have ever seen.

It's like he's aware that something's happening,

but it doesn't look like he's in any kind of pain.

He gets this kind of quiet, still look in his eyes,

and he seems to be happy.

Kari doesn't just treat Albus as a piggy pincushion,

she knows precisely where to put each needle.

So, I basically did a lot of research online,

trying to map out his anatomy

and physiology of where vessels run, nerves run,

how his muscles actually go,

so that I could actually adjust the acupuncture points

to best fit his anatomy.

Good boy, Albus, well done.

Albus has just made a smell.

Yeah. Yes, he has. A lot of his back points will also stimulate

not only treating muscle pain, but they will stimulate his colon

and large intestinal tract.

Woo... Definitely. He is opening up those bowels, aren't you, Albus?

Kari leaves ten needles in for 20 minutes.

Albus, shift.

And when the treatment is over, Albus emerges seemingly pain-free.

He's such a good patient.

Two months ago, the ultimate proof

that Kari's acupuncture was working came into the world.

Want a peanut?

'And I'm lucky enough to be meeting her.

'Her name is Babs.'

You probably wouldn't be here if Albus hadn't had the acupuncture.

'The future of the captive babirusa population is looking very healthy,

'if a little mischievous.'

What are you doing down there?

It's biting my bum,

look, it's biting my bum.

I know, she doesn't have any manners!

How does it make you feel to see them here today?

It's awesome, it's very rewarding,

it's the highlight of my career to have these guys here

and to be able to share them with everybody

and to be able to show them off, so to speak.

What would you say to people who are sceptical about acupuncture?

Don't knock it till you try it.

Albus doesn't know that it's acupuncture.

And it works for him, so...

And he's not the only one.

Kari is also using acupuncture to treat animals at the zoo

of all sizes, from an Indian elephant to a pygmy goat.

Some species never seem to get good press.

But over in Africa, biologist Patrick Aryee

is finding out why we may need to rethink the relationship

between humans and vultures -

since they are, in fact, saving our lives.

Vultures are the most notorious of scavengers.

They're one of very few animals to feed on the carcasses of the dead,

and this is why scientists think they play a crucial role

in the environment, a role that is protecting us from disease.

I've come to South Africa's largest vulture sanctuary

'and research centre to join vulture expert Kerri Wolter.'

I want to find out why our relationship with vultures

'has become so important.'

'But first, Kerri wants me to meet a very special,'

tame vulture.

You're going to meet PJ, which stands for Percy Junior.

Percy Junior? Percy Junior. Right.

Two-year-old PJ broke one of his wings when he was just a baby.

He'll never be able to fly,

so has become a permanent resident here at the sanctuary.

He's sitting on his own, actually. Ah.

Yeah, he looks quite big up close in person. HE LAUGHS

Wow. A little daunting. Yeah, daunting.

I'm just very aware of his presence.

This is quite intimidating.

He probably can sense that.

Which is not a good thing.

So if you want to, and if you're brave enough,

you can close your fist. OK. OK.

And if you want to, just pull away from you, you know,

if it gets too hard, just pull away.

Oh-oh. Getting nipped by a vulture. KERRI LAUGHS

Ha-ha, very quick. KERRI LAUGHS

And he wants the attention.

Like mischievous children.

Always wanting to play, always inquisitive. Absolutely.

If you want, you can take your cap off and hold it,

hold it. That's it. KERRI LAUGHS

And then he'll try and put his head into your cap.

PATRICK LAUGHS Yes, look! He's messing around.

Look at that!

PJ's wearing my hat.

So that's very much like what they would do in a carcass.

It is really interesting, look.

Everything about PJ's anatomy makes him the perfect scavenger.

His bald neck and head aren't a fashion statement,

but instead help him stay clean as he digs into a carcass.

His large beak is uniquely shaped.

You can see how he uses the tip of his beak to rip things.

It's just like a hook. It's just the tip there.

And that is for hooking onto flesh and yanking it.

And even his tongue is specially adapted for the task at hand.

The tongue has razor-sharp edges, almost like sandpaper,

and it strips the bone.

Nothing about these birds has been left to chance,

even down to their strangely flat feet.

The reason why they're flat is they're not predatory at all,

they're 100% scavengers,

so their feet are only good for putting their full weight

on the carcass, so they can actually rip it open.

Vultures cannot kill at all.

But surely they can kill small rodents or, you know...

They can't kill at all? No.

They don't have that ability to.

But it's the way a vulture consumes its food that's most interesting

'to Kerri and it's making us rethink

'how important our relationship is with them.

'The best way of seeing this is to invite 200 vultures to lunch.'

We've come to the centre's viewing hide.

On today's menu - a carcass of a cow that's died from natural causes

donated by a local farmer.

And we've rigged it with cameras.

The idea is to lure wild vultures and watch them feed.

We can see them circling.

It's taken just an hour for the vultures to begin to gather.

How do they find this food?

Vultures have incredibly good eyesight.

They can see about 6km away from them.

You will have, for example, the vulture in the front

and he'll be thermalling and he'll find the site.

That triggers the vulture behind him to go,

"Oh, hang on, there must be something where that vulture is."

So it works as a chain reaction,

so eventually you have, like, 200 vultures

that have followed the first vulture to the feeding site.

That's incredible.

After circling for 30 minutes, the first vulture lands

and it soon has backup.

But nothing happens.

For me, that's really surprising,

I thought that as soon as there's a dead carcass or an animal

that even LOOKS like it's on the way out,

that the vultures would be circling and just maybe coming down

and pecking them whilst they're still alive,

but that's not the case at all.

No, it's what Disney likes us to believe,

but it's not the case at all.

They've got to make sure it's REALLY dead, and it's kind of past dead.

Surprisingly, it's another hour before one vulture

tentatively makes its move.

One just landed straight on top.

Is there some sort of order in terms of which vulture comes in first?

It's normally a female. Females are by far more dominant than males.

She, basically, wants to just dominate the entire area.

OK, now they're all coming in. Yeah.

But look how many of them there are, that's just incredible.

Wow.

The images from our cameras give us a unique vulture's-eye view.

I can see how they're using those beaks so effectively.

Kerri, this is the first time you've seen how they feed from this angle.

It's spectacular, it's amazing.

And you can see with the long necks, how they adapt to really dig inside.

You see how they're using just their weight to kind of push themselves

and kind of lean against the carcass? Hm.

Our camera's getting completely swamped.

There we go. Our camera's...

Wow.

Kerri's research has shown that the way vultures devour carcasses

is crucial to our health.

Unlike other animals, vultures can safely consume meat

contaminated with infectious diseases

like rabies, cholera and even anthrax.

And it's all thanks to the strength of their stomach acid.

We've got this acid here,

so why don't we actually put that to the test?

So, if you grab those glasses, I'll grab these ones.

Just pop these gloves on.

'This is hydrochloric acid,

'which closely matches the strength of vulture stomach acid.

'Let's see what happens when I drop in a piece of metal.'

Let's see what happens. All righty. Ready? Go for it.

Bubbling a little bit.

That is... Wow!

Look at that, that is a very strong reaction!

If we replace the hydrochloric acid

with actual vulture stomach acid,

we'd see the exact same reaction?

Yeah. You're looking at a vulture's stomach

that's 100 times more acidic than what a human's stomach is.

So you can really see the power of that in action right here.

What we need to remember as well is, you know, that breaks down diseases,

any kind of bacteria, absolutely no issues for a vulture.

That is incredible.

It's taken just one hour

'for the vultures to strip the entire carcass

'along with any diseases'

that may have been present.

This is a completely different scene to how we left it.

Yeah, exactly. And do you also notice the smell's gone?

You're right, I can't really smell anything at all, really.

I am...I'm genuinely gobsmacked.

When we left this carcass here, it was smelling,

the belly was bloated and all the organs,

all the meat has been pecked right off those bones.

Those vultures have not only removed

those virulent strains of bacteria,

those dangerous strains of bacteria, but they also process it,

so it's completely eradicated from the ecosystem.

'And this is why we need to change the relationship we have with them.'

They're seen as the undertakers, and people don't actually understand

their importance.

The implications of losing the species is very real,

and the effect of that is catastrophic for me, for you,

for anyone, really.

Without vultures, the spread of fatal diseases to humans increases.

When India's vulture population plummeted by 99%

over a ten-year period, scientists found the result

was over 50,000 extra human deaths from rabies,

which brings home how important it is to rethink our relationship

with this life-saving species.

In the brief time that I've spent with Kerri's vultures,

I have to say that my impression of them has definitely changed.

Before, I saw them as mean,

aggressive animals, but the truth is they have a much gentler side.

The thing that impresses me the most is their role as protectors

of the ecosystem and in some ways, even us.

Without doubt, the animal with whom we form the oldest

and closest relationship is the dog.

And now, in Australia,

man's best friend is forging a new relationship that could help bring

another much-loved animal back from the brink.

Just off the south coast of the state of Victoria

is Middle Island.

It's uninhabited, but every summer it plays host

to a visiting colony of pint-sized guests.

To avoid predators,

they return to the island each night under cover of darkness.

And by morning, you wouldn't know that they're here at all.

See if there's anyone home.

CROONING

This is the little penguin, the world's smallest penguin,

averaging just 30 centimetres tall.

Yes, we've got an adult.

John Sutherland and Melanie Wells are part of a volunteer group

that monitors Middle Island's penguin population.

This one's already microchipped.

Hidden safely in underground burrows,

the colony is currently doing well...

13.2.

Righty-ho. ..but that wasn't always the case.

A few years ago, a nocturnal predator arrived on Middle Island.

Trapped in their burrows or exposed on the beach,

the little penguins never stood a chance.

It wasn't a very pretty sight,

there were just dead penguins everywhere.

All over the island, I'm talking 100 penguins.

The penguins were used to avoiding threats from the sea or the sky,

but this predator was different, it came from the land.

There were foxes on the mainland

that worked out how to get to the island.

They learnt how to swim.

One of the females even taught her pups to swim out here.

Night after night, red foxes swam across,

eating only a few, but slaughtering hundreds.

Soon, just four penguins out of over 300 remained.

Pretty much wiped out the colony.

The situation was bleak -

how do you save a penguin colony from the brink of total eradication?

PENGUIN CROONS

Local government, scientists and conservationists had no answer...

..until they got a visit from a chicken farmer.

CHICKENS CLUCK

Eh? Fearsome mongrels.

Local farmer Swampy Marsh keeps his chickens safe from foxes

using an Italian sheepdog breed known as the Maremma.

Big, bad dogs you are, yes.

Maremmas were bred to protect and live among livestock,

and they've been doing this for hundreds of years.

Because they're territorial,

they'll protect any animal that lives on their patch.

In Swampy's case - his chickens.

And they'll chase away anything perceived as a threat.

Their senses are amazing.

I've sat here with a spotlight and I can't see the fox,

but they know exactly where it is.

It's almost like they've got infrared vision.

After hearing about the massacre on Middle Island,

Swampy made a proposal -

why not use these dogs to guard the remaining penguins?

The conservation authorities were ready to try anything.

I knew they'd do it. As far as they're concerned,

penguins are just chooks in dinner suits.

It's no big deal.

And Maremmas have been patrolling Middle Island ever since.

Eight-year-old sisters Eudy and Tula are the current penguin guardians.

They stay on the island at night, and in the morning

Phil Root, their dedicated handler, comes to check on them.

I'll come out here each day, bring the dogs some fresh water,

bring them some food, feed them and water them

while I'm out here, bit of grooming.

And then I'll take the dogs for a walk around the island

to let the scent of these dogs in the air keep the foxes away.

Eudy and Tula were introduced to the penguins as puppies.

They formed a unique social bond with the birds

and an instinctive link with the island habitat.

These girls protect the space they're in,

protect their flock, protect their home.

As night falls,

the little penguins come ashore with a bellyful of fish

for their chicks.

Eudy and Tula are guarding their flock from invaders.

The project's been a fantastic success,

there hasn't been a single fox sighting on Middle Island

since the dogs were introduced.

And the colony, which was only one fox attack

away from total annihilation,

now has penguin numbers back at 130 individuals.

And it's all thanks to the special relationship

between the loyal Maremmas and these charming birds.

Man's best friend has become the penguin's protector.

Next, Giles Clarke is in Africa to witness

what could be one of the most emotional relationships

between a man and a wild animal anywhere on earth.

'Having hand-reared tigers in captivity,

'I really understand the emotional bond that develops

'between a keeper and their animals.

'But what's it like to care for the last remaining animal of its kind?'

I've come to Kenya to meet Zacharia Mutai,

who for the last six years has been looking after

an extremely important elderly rhino.

Sudan is the only male northern white rhino left on earth.

At 42 years old, he is the equivalent of an 80-year-old man.

I feel very close to Sudan.

He's my closest friend, we don't want him to get extinct,

so I really take very great care of him.

All the world's five species of rhino

are under threat from poachers,

but none more so than the northern white.

They are completely extinct in the wild,

with only three left in captivity...

..Sudan and two females.

These last survivors are highly protected

at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya.

On the black market, rhino horn is now more valuable than diamonds,

so the trio are under 24-hour armed guard.

This is Sudan.

I feel so humbled to be meeting such an endangered animal.

He is the last of his kind.

It must feel like an awful lot of responsibility taking care of Sudan.

We really love him very much.

So we really take care of him, just like elderly people.

He's the only one left on the planet,

and we don't want to lose him at any time.

Wild male rhinos can be aggressive,

but Sudan is used to his human protectors

and is very comfortable when Zacharia is nearby.

He knows you very well.

Yeah, rhinos, they have got very good sense of smell and hearing,

so they can recognise a keeper and a newcomer. OK.

So he knows the difference between us? Yes.

He's not quite sure of me yet, but you're definitely a friend. Yes.

That's what makes me feel happy, to be so close to Sudan.

The phrase, "the last chance to see" is often overused,

but in this case it really could be true.

Sudan spent most of his life in a Czech zoo.

He was part of a captive breeding programme,

including the two females, Najin and Fatu.

After nine years of failed breeding attempts,

in an ambitious last-ditch effort,

they were airlifted to Africa and returned

to their natural habitat in the hope that they would reproduce.

'Richard Vine is CEO of the Conservancy.'

All of them, their condition improved sort of almost overnight.

So their toenails got better

and stopped cracking, and their skin condition looked better,

so it was, obviously, something that suited them

about coming back to Africa.

'Sudan, the only one of the trio to have been born in the wild

'had a new lease of life amongst the other rhinos in the reserve.'

He established a territory, fought with other males

in the area when he first came here.

He's acted as a territorial male and he's mated,

but he's never successfully got females pregnant.

Over the next six years,

hopes that Sudan could help save his kind began to fade.

As he got older, the younger females began to bully him.

He was moved into a retirement paddock on his own,

where he now depends on Zacharia and his team for everything.

He's going blind in one eye, he's struggling to walk,

so his relationship with people like Zach and other keepers

is fundamentally important for his welfare.

He's old, he relies upon them for his food and for company.

It's enormously important.

Despite his ailments, Sudan is not in any pain and has all the food,

comfort, love and support an old man needs in his final years.

I better die first before Sudan,

because I don't want to lose him.

I'll feel so sad, I'll feel so sad.

It's completely obvious just what a remarkable bond

both Zach and Sudan have together, and that's really important.

Sudan's welfare, his psychological needs are being met

by this special friendship that he has and, in fact,

there's a chance that if he didn't have this relationship with Zach,

he might lose the will to live.

Tragically, at 42, Sudan's breeding days are now over.

As things stand, he will be the last

male northern white rhino to walk on earth.

It's so amazing, but so sad, because he's too old now,

but we still had hope that he can still exist.

He looks very healthy, he's in good condition,

so he might live after 50.

'However long Sudan has left,

'it's obvious he could not be more loved.

'It breaks my heart to know what lies ahead,

'so I'm thankful to spend some quality time

'with this gentle giant.'

There's a good boy.

Whoa. Look at the size of that mouth.

It's amazing to be this close.

Such a handsome boy.

You've got no idea just how significant you are.

And it's an absolute tragedy to think that he's the last male

of his kind.

However, there is a glimmer of hope.

These rhinos are the focus

of a pioneering scientific endeavour,

which has been used successfully to help save the giant panda.

Frozen sperm from the northern white rhino

could still be used to save the species, but the clock is ticking.

Rhinos have existed for 40 million years,

but it's only in the last hundred years

that we have been responsible for their tragic demise.

If ever there was a symbol of the need for change,

then it's right there behind me, and although it might be too late

for the northern white rhino,

it's certainly not too late for their cousins.

2,000 miles away in a secret location in South Africa,

Patrick Aryee has some encouraging news about our relationship

with the southern white rhino.

This is Ike. He was left for dead after poachers attacked him

and removed his horn.

Vet Gerhard Steenkamp was first on the scene.

It was quite obvious that he was a fighter, he wanted to live.

And just like in humans, I think that makes a huge difference

if you have a patient that is willing to fight.

Since then, Gerhard and his team of vets have struck up a remarkable

relationship with Ike.

Their biggest challenge was making sure Ike's wound

did not get infected and healed as soon as possible.

So they needed a really heavy-duty dressing

that would stay on the rhino's face.

Eight days earlier, Gerhard sedated Ike

and attached a state-of-the-art fibreglass dressing to his wound.

'To get a closer look,

'I've joined Ranger Steve Dell

'to find out how the patient is doing.

'As we enter the enclosure, I can see Ike on the far side.

'And any fears that Steve had that Ike wasn't on the mend

'quickly disappear as his 2? ton bulk

'stirs from his slumber.'

We'll have to go out.

Steve's concerned about our safety,

so we make a rapid exit to the other side of the fence.

'Fighting fit, Ike seems to have made a speedy recovery.'

It's OK. You coming to say hello?

There's a good boy.

Easy, my boy.

Look at how magnificent he is, he's huge.

He's coming, he's coming.

And, finally, we manage to get a good look at

Gerhard's handiwork.

I can see it's fraying a little bit,

but it's still on, which is a good sign.

The longer it stays on, the better, in terms of the healing process.

He is going to be a survivor, for sure.

The dedication of Gerhard and his team has paid off,

but, tragically, Ike is unlikely to be their last patient.

The rhino poaching crisis has reached a tipping point.

This year, for the first time,

more rhinos are being killed than are being born.

'I've travelled to a secret location to meet some of the most recent'

casualties - PJ, Lizzy and Monty.

Tragically, some of their mums were killed,

but thanks to Amy Kooy, they still have a chance.

It's heartbreaking, and it makes me angry that we can't protect the

animals, that we cannot stop a young rhino from losing its mother,

it's terrible.

It makes you angry and it makes you sad at the same time.

I get very emotional, yeah.

Amy's plan is to raise them at her farm until they're old enough to get

the protection they need.

In the meantime, they seem pretty happy with their lot.

PJ, Monty, come, come.

Come. You want milk?

RHINO WHINES Come. Shh, shh, shh.

RHINO SQUEALS Come, let's go get milk. Come.

PATRICK LAUGHS Boys, come, come.

'Baby rhinos use high-pitched squeaks

'to communicate with their mum, and these ones don't hesitate

'to let their human mum know when they're peckish.

'The babies here drink 15 litres, twice a day.

'I've been given the awesome job of feeding four-month-old Lizzy.'

And do I have to squeeze it as she's suckling? No, she'll suck.

She'll suckle. All by herself.

Wow.

You are a hungry girl, aren't you?

RHINO SQUEALS

It's remarkable to think that this whole poaching crisis

comes down to this right here.

The rhino horn is made out of keratin,

the same material that horses' hooves are made out of,

and even our fingernails, so, really, it is worthless.

Thanks to Zacharia, Gerhard and Amy,

there are at least some rhinos that are safe for now.

But the plight of the rhino is a test of human resolve.

If we can save this iconic species,

then there may be hope for the many other endangered animals

with which we share the planet.

Next time, we'll be investigating the fascinating world

of animal communication.

I'll be in Austria, where scientists are interpreting

perhaps the most chilling call in the animal kingdom...

WOLVES HOWL

..and asking, "Do wolves

' "really deserve their big, bad reputation?" '

My heart rate's up just a little bit.

Lucy learns the communication skills needed

to teach a hand-reared penguin how to swim.

Hello, Charlotte.

Giles is in Australia to see how cutting-edge telecoms technology

could save one of the best-loved animals down under.

And Patrick's in South Africa to investigate

the seductive calls of a lovestruck lioness.

LIONS CALL AND MOAN

Unbelievable, that's so electric.

BEEPING

What exactly happened? No idea.