0:00:12 > 0:00:16From the African jungle, to the deserts of Arabia,
0:00:16 > 0:00:21and living from the snowy wastes of Russia to Indian farmland,
0:00:21 > 0:00:23are leopards.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31Whilst tigers are close to extinction,
0:00:31 > 0:00:33lion numbers are plummeting,
0:00:33 > 0:00:37leopards remain the great survivors.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44I'm Jonathan Scott. I love leopards.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47They're just such magical creatures.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00How does this beautiful and elusive animal
0:01:00 > 0:01:03survive where other big cats cannot?
0:01:14 > 0:01:17I went to Africa to find leopards.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20But in my first year there, I had only two glimpses.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25It's still very difficult.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27I've now spent 30 years
0:01:27 > 0:01:31photographing and writing books about leopards.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36Yet every moment with them I think of as such a gift.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Though leopards are hardly ever seen,
0:01:45 > 0:01:48they are the most numerous and widespread big cat.
0:01:48 > 0:01:53From fragments of their story, gathered by filmmakers, scientists
0:01:53 > 0:01:58and game rangers, we can begin to piece together leopards' lives.
0:01:58 > 0:02:03We start where our ancestors started, in the African jungle,
0:02:03 > 0:02:05several million years ago.
0:02:19 > 0:02:26A leopard is a perfectly camouflaged jungle cat, a tree cat, a night cat,
0:02:26 > 0:02:30a killer of snakes and bush pigs, monkeys and apes.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34It hunts on the ground and in the trees.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Nowhere is safe. The perfect predator.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46A leopard weighs than less a person,
0:02:46 > 0:02:48but it's so much faster and stronger.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52It could appear from nowhere, a flash of gold and black,
0:02:52 > 0:02:54kill you, and drag you off.
0:02:56 > 0:03:01Instead, a leopard would rather slink away, cautious and wise.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08A million years or so ago, East Africa dried,
0:03:08 > 0:03:10and the jungle shrank back.
0:03:10 > 0:03:15Now only remnants remain, often along ribbons of river.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47A leopard wakes now to a new world with big animals and strong hunters.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03A leopard lives alone. Here, her enemies outnumber her 20 to 1.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33Cheetahs evolved for the plains, athletic sprinters, and specialists.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47The leopard may be slower than the cheetah, and weaker than the lion.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50But she'll beat them all in the end.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01She carries her tail high. Gazelles know she's not hunting.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05It's as if she doesn't want to spread unnecessary alarm.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Using stories of different leopards, different lives,
0:05:19 > 0:05:20a single character emerges.
0:05:20 > 0:05:25It allows us to explore what it is to be a leopard,
0:05:25 > 0:05:28a mother, the perfect hunter.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40She stalks like the forest leopards, creeping down the gullies.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44She doesn't want anything to see her and raise the alarm.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51She notices when the gazelles are watching,
0:05:51 > 0:05:54and she thinks about what they might do next.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58She hunts with her wits, a very clever cat.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05Tommies have favourite crossing points.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08A perfect place for an ambush.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12Rivers makes them nervous, and with good reason.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17She sometimes doubles back, and works around from another angle.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20Leopards have a clear map in their heads.
0:06:39 > 0:06:44The gazelles encounter dangers in several rivers nearby.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56Another day at another river.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59The tommies are already nervous,
0:06:59 > 0:07:03and that gives leopards the edge.
0:08:17 > 0:08:18The gazelle is heavy.
0:08:18 > 0:08:23She's tired, and there's no easy tree to stash her kill.
0:08:33 > 0:08:38Lions and hyenas fight over their kills, and carry the scars.
0:08:38 > 0:08:39Better to hunt again.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Leopards live invisible lives.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56Only a handful of wild mothers have become used to vehicles
0:08:56 > 0:08:58and tolerate being followed.
0:09:00 > 0:09:04But when it comes to lions and hyenas, that's a different matter.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36Their eyes have just about opened.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38They're a few weeks old.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42However careful she is, they're incredibly vulnerable.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58Leopards are secretive hunters, but they're wary too,
0:09:58 > 0:10:00because they themselves are hunted.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06Hyenas, like other predators, kill their potential rivals
0:10:06 > 0:10:07if they possibly can.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21The hyena may return with back up.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23She has to move the cubs.
0:10:30 > 0:10:36She knows every cave along the gorge, and moves to one a few yards further down.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53Baboons can be as troublesome as hyenas.
0:10:53 > 0:10:59A troop of baboons could overwhelm a mother, and try to kill the cubs.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27She's stronger than a single baboon.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29But better to hide, protect the cubs.
0:11:52 > 0:11:53In just a few days,
0:11:53 > 0:11:59a cub grows from a helpless bundle to an inquisitive explorer.
0:11:59 > 0:12:04It's starting to learn the layout of her world, and her concerns.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22Lions are a nightmare for any leopard.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25It's not just cubs, mothers are in danger too.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29Lions could sniff her out, and beat her in a fight.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34The hunter becomes the hunted.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51If they were to catch her, they'd kill her.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54She has to stay a step ahead,
0:12:54 > 0:12:57always out of sight, always on the move.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22A leopard's den is often deep within thorny bushes and among rocks.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08Many leopards share the landscape with the Maasai,
0:14:08 > 0:14:11nomadic herders of sheep and cattle.
0:14:11 > 0:14:15Warriors guard the livestock from predators.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17People are easy to avoid,
0:14:17 > 0:14:23yet she takes the danger seriously, and melts away into the rocks.
0:15:04 > 0:15:08Over the years, I've become fascinated by the relationship
0:15:08 > 0:15:10between leopards and man.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14We have been part of each other's lives for millions of years.
0:15:19 > 0:15:23Fire, and shelters, even the first societies and language
0:15:23 > 0:15:26evolved in part to defend us from leopards.
0:15:38 > 0:15:43The Maasai protect their cattle behind high thorn walls.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00Leopards have been prowling around villages for generations.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02People are part of their world.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07Yet attacks are rare.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19It's as though she is following an ancient compromise,
0:16:19 > 0:16:21a ritualised dance of old enemies
0:16:21 > 0:16:24who have learnt to tolerate each other.
0:16:41 > 0:16:47Her character is to slip like a shadow between different worlds,
0:16:47 > 0:16:49and for nobody even to notice.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58A leopard is unlike any other large predator.
0:16:58 > 0:17:04Is this, in part, the answer to how they colonised so much of our world
0:17:04 > 0:17:06within the last million years?
0:17:08 > 0:17:13Leopards moved north and east through Arabia and Persia,
0:17:13 > 0:17:14and on into India.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18They found a way around the Himalayas into China and Russia,
0:17:18 > 0:17:21and south towards Thailand and Malaysia.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Leopards cover nearly half the world now.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35Nobody knows how many secretive leopards there are.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39But we do know there are many more than all the lions,
0:17:39 > 0:17:42tigers and cheetahs added together.
0:17:43 > 0:17:49It's a leopard's thoughtful and careful character that enables it
0:17:49 > 0:17:52to survive in a new, strange world.
0:17:52 > 0:17:57Leopards in India are smaller, but equally adaptable and wary.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59They need to be.
0:17:59 > 0:18:05There are tigers, wolves and bears, hyenas and lions.
0:18:12 > 0:18:17Kipling's panther, Bagheera, is an Indian leopard in The Jungle Book.
0:18:17 > 0:18:22He's Mowgli's wise friend as they battle Shere Khan, the tiger.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29Bagheera the leopard still lives in India,
0:18:29 > 0:18:33outwitting Shere Khan and Baloo the bear whenever he can.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36Tigers and lions used to rule here.
0:18:36 > 0:18:42Increasingly they're rare relics from the past, unable to adapt.
0:18:50 > 0:18:55India is more crowded, its wildlife reserves smaller than Africa's.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58Some leopards live near farms and villages.
0:19:01 > 0:19:06Here in Northern India, traditional life takes leopards into account.
0:19:06 > 0:19:12Sheep and goats are brought into the villages from the hillsides.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Children are sent to bed at twilight.
0:19:14 > 0:19:19Livestock is protected by high walls of thorns, as in Africa.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Houses are guarded by dogs and peacocks.
0:19:38 > 0:19:44For a few nights, this village has been wired up with starlight cameras
0:19:44 > 0:19:47that use invisible infrared light.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07There are few large predators able to live so close to us.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09Some places have hungry bears.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13And there are coyotes in America and urban foxes in Europe.
0:20:13 > 0:20:18But leopards also live with people, largely unnoticed.
0:20:23 > 0:20:27The sheep and goats seem not to smell or hear a thing.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30The leopard patrols the village as if it owns it,
0:20:30 > 0:20:32stopping only for a drink.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Maybe that's why it came.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39Leopards may prefer to be secret,
0:20:39 > 0:20:43yet there's a curiosity and courage here too.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Perhaps leopards find that to avoid bigger predators like lions,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00it's wise to keep track of them, to learn about their enemies.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07What keeps the leopard alive is knowledge.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Much of this begins when they're cubs, with their mother.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18Back in Africa, there is a leopard that trusts people enough
0:21:18 > 0:21:21to allow them to follow her and her two cubs.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25Once again, different families contribute their part to our story.
0:21:40 > 0:21:42The cubs are three or four months old.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46They hide, and only emerge when she returns.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55The gully is a thoroughfare through the drying plain.
0:21:55 > 0:22:01Baboons are regular visitors. Time to leave.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Sometimes, a cub will struggle to follow its mother to safety.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35It is crucial a baboon doesn't see or hear a thing.
0:22:37 > 0:22:41It may be too late to fetch the cub without being seen.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51Leopard mothers must make hard decisions.
0:22:51 > 0:22:53She melts away into the bushes.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02A leopard cub knows to hide, without any fuss, or calling for mum.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05A lion or cheetah cub might not be so calm.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26A baboon stops right by the cub's hiding place.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38UNDERGROWTH RUSTLES
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Nothing stirs.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00Eventually, the baboons leave.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Mother leopards may wait hours before returning to a missing cub.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15The remaining cub follows.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48It's not unheard of to lose a cub to baboons.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52The majority of leopard cubs die a violent death.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07But sometimes, a cub does emerge, unhurt,
0:25:07 > 0:25:10many hours, or even a day later.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39It's extraordinary, a leopard cub already knows the rules.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44Keep your head down, hide for hours, let nobody see you.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48That's what makes watching this so special.
0:25:56 > 0:26:01The cubs learn how to hunt, practising on any passing insect.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16The cub's mother is always careful.
0:26:16 > 0:26:20Like a cat with a kitty litter, she buries any evidence near the den.
0:26:20 > 0:26:24It's not hard to imagine a family of leopards
0:26:24 > 0:26:27remaining undiscovered anywhere.
0:26:29 > 0:26:33But how leopard families survive change and hard times
0:26:33 > 0:26:36is the next part of our story.
0:26:43 > 0:26:48The plains are drying, and most of the large animals migrate away,
0:26:48 > 0:26:50searching for green grass.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58Some predators can follow, but most are tied to territories.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Leopards fight hard for their patch.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23Why leave?
0:27:25 > 0:27:29But as the cover dies back, it's trickier to move without being seen.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34The local Maasai are traditionally nomadic,
0:27:34 > 0:27:38gathering up their livestock, and moving on as well.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41They too must find fresh grass and water.
0:27:44 > 0:27:49People can move, but territorial hyenas and lions must tough it out.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53Competition over food intensifies.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56This is when they really struggle.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17For leopards, tree-lined gullies and forest edges are a refuge.
0:28:17 > 0:28:19Leopards can take advantage
0:28:19 > 0:28:23of living on the frontiers of two worlds.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40This dry landscape may seem extreme for a leopard,
0:28:40 > 0:28:41but they adapt easily,
0:28:41 > 0:28:48able to change their habits in a way most animals rarely can.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54Out there, only the tough guys remain.
0:29:02 > 0:29:04Warthogs survive by digging up roots.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15Warthog adults are fearless, with lethal tusks.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25This is a lucky leopard.
0:29:29 > 0:29:34There's a familiarity to many of the animals that the leopards now hunt.
0:29:34 > 0:29:36Wart hogs are like bush pigs,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40and guinea fowl are similar to ground dwelling forest birds.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43Dik-dik are like small forest antelope,
0:29:43 > 0:29:45and, of course, there are monkeys.
0:29:54 > 0:29:59Lizards, mice, dung beetles. There is no other predator in the world
0:29:59 > 0:30:01that eats such a range of prey.
0:30:12 > 0:30:15Her character adapts as quickly as the landscape changes.
0:30:21 > 0:30:24Oman, in the Middle East.
0:30:25 > 0:30:29The landscape looks barren, just scrub and rock.
0:30:32 > 0:30:37The leopard researchers here never SEE the rare wild leopards.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40They track them with radio transmitters and camera traps.
0:30:43 > 0:30:46The Arabian leopards and their cubs are half the size.
0:30:46 > 0:30:49Paler, but otherwise very similar.
0:30:49 > 0:30:55They hide in caves, and eat gerbils, hares, small gazelles, anything.
0:31:01 > 0:31:05People have taken over the desert oases, forcing leopards out.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08They've been shot, poisoned, collected,
0:31:08 > 0:31:11and now they're critically endangered.
0:31:14 > 0:31:17Leopards live more often in extremes,
0:31:17 > 0:31:19in mountains as well as deserts.
0:31:21 > 0:31:26The rarest live on the other side of the Himalayas, beyond China,
0:31:26 > 0:31:30in the Russian tundra around Vladivostok.
0:31:30 > 0:31:34Amur leopards face freezing Siberian winters.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Their thick coats make them look like Snow Leopards
0:31:42 > 0:31:45found in the Himalayas, a very different species.
0:31:45 > 0:31:48In fact, Amur leopards are the same species
0:31:48 > 0:31:53as African and Arabian leopards, with only superficial adaptations.
0:31:55 > 0:32:00Their prey is different. Deer, wild boar, and badgers.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03Once, they competed here with tigers and bears.
0:32:05 > 0:32:11Now, less than 50 remain, cut off from other leopards,
0:32:11 > 0:32:13poached for their fur and bone.
0:32:13 > 0:32:16Food is disappearing, the forest felled.
0:32:19 > 0:32:22There is a limit to leopard survival.
0:32:22 > 0:32:27They have an extraordinary talent to adapt to our changing world,
0:32:27 > 0:32:31but it's not always enough.
0:32:31 > 0:32:34This is the end of where leopards can live.
0:32:44 > 0:32:50Further south, rice paddies and plantations stretch to the equator.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53Most of the wilderness has gone, but leopards hold out.
0:32:53 > 0:32:55It seems they've become
0:32:55 > 0:32:59the most widespread large land predator species left.
0:32:59 > 0:33:01Except for us.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10The survivors move between tiny refuges,
0:33:10 > 0:33:15woods or hilltops, within hundreds of square miles of farmland.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25Black leopards, panthers, are seen here.
0:33:27 > 0:33:32The black colour is just a recessive gene, like red hair.
0:33:32 > 0:33:36Many were captured for the pet trade for the West,
0:33:36 > 0:33:40until keeping leopards as pets was banned.
0:33:40 > 0:33:44They hunt any small wildlife, like ducks or rats.
0:33:47 > 0:33:51Farmers claim they also eat a lot of livestock,
0:33:51 > 0:33:54and persecute them as pests.
0:33:54 > 0:33:57But most people never even see the leopards that they live with.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03The leopards stay one step ahead, hear people coming, and hide.
0:34:06 > 0:34:10Leopards always try to avoid giving themselves away.
0:34:13 > 0:34:18Most intriguing of all, are the leopards even deeper in our world.
0:34:21 > 0:34:26There are the rumours in Beijing, Mumbai, and Jakarta,
0:34:26 > 0:34:29of city leopards fleetingly glimpsed.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35They seem to be eating stray pets and rats and rubbish.
0:34:37 > 0:34:42But why not just eat us, surely the easiest prey on the planet?
0:34:48 > 0:34:52Perhaps the answer may be traced back to where the story started -
0:34:52 > 0:34:54the rainforest in Africa.
0:35:00 > 0:35:04In the rainforest there were never lions or hyenas.
0:35:04 > 0:35:06Leopards are the top predator.
0:35:08 > 0:35:13Leopards sometimes are found in the trees as well as on the flat ground.
0:35:13 > 0:35:18Their powerful claws, strong flexible bodies, smaller size
0:35:18 > 0:35:21and balancing tails mean they can venture
0:35:21 > 0:35:23into a three-dimensional world.
0:35:27 > 0:35:33But despite their awesome talents, they are still wary, and elusive.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36Who are they afraid of finding them?
0:35:38 > 0:35:44Monkeys, guenons, mangabeys and colobus form noisy gangs
0:35:44 > 0:35:47to protect themselves, like the jungle police.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54One of the calls they all understand is "Leopard!"
0:35:56 > 0:35:59SHRIEKING AND SCREECHING
0:36:00 > 0:36:05Once noticed, a leopard must move on. It can't hunt here.
0:36:09 > 0:36:11The monkeys have pioneered language
0:36:11 > 0:36:14to coordinate the neighbourhood watch.
0:36:14 > 0:36:18They can add information, "Leopard nearby", or "in a tree".
0:36:18 > 0:36:22It's no wonder leopards learned to be invisible, or nocturnal.
0:36:25 > 0:36:30But does it explain why leopards generally fear people?
0:36:30 > 0:36:33Perhaps there's something else leopards are afraid of.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49Chimpanzees are leopard size.
0:36:49 > 0:36:52A gang of male chimps becomes very focused
0:36:52 > 0:36:54if they hear of a leopard nearby.
0:36:54 > 0:36:58Their hair stands on end and their senses strain
0:36:58 > 0:37:02as they systematically set out to terrorise the cat.
0:37:18 > 0:37:22CALLS AND RESPONSES
0:37:25 > 0:37:29AGGRESSIVE CALLING AND POUNDING
0:37:43 > 0:37:45Chimpanzees probably frighten leopards
0:37:45 > 0:37:49at least as much as lions, tigers or hyenas do.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56Two million years ago, we think our ancestors here had fire,
0:37:56 > 0:37:59better weapons, and were well organised.
0:37:59 > 0:38:03It's easy to imagine prehistoric people terrifying leopards.
0:38:03 > 0:38:07Even today, leopards are still persecuted.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12It's no wonder they're instinctively afraid of us.
0:38:16 > 0:38:21Leopards' jungle ancestry gives them a unique legacy of skills.
0:38:21 > 0:38:25They've learned to live with many dangers.
0:38:25 > 0:38:28But what about the threat from another leopard?
0:38:43 > 0:38:47Back in East Africa, how leopards cope with other leopards
0:38:47 > 0:38:49is the next part of the story.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59Elements of a leopard's life are easy to see.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02The changing seasons, and their food.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05Their enemies - lions and hyenas - are violent and obvious.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13But what about the invisible, their relationship with each other?
0:39:22 > 0:39:26Our story continues with a mother with two cubs,
0:39:26 > 0:39:28over a year old - teenagers.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35Their mother could be looking for a mate soon, but she's distracted.
0:39:35 > 0:39:38The herds of wildebeest are back in her territory.
0:39:51 > 0:39:54The mother leaves the two cubs alone for most of the day.
0:40:03 > 0:40:06The cubs clearly know about lions and hyenas,
0:40:06 > 0:40:09and wait in the safety of a tree.
0:40:18 > 0:40:22A leopard's first concern isn't always food.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25Most leopards spend a lot of time patrolling their territory,
0:40:25 > 0:40:29and checking for clues of other leopards.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32Leopards cover many miles each day,
0:40:32 > 0:40:37checking trees, renewing scent and claw marks.
0:40:37 > 0:40:39It's like a notice board
0:40:39 > 0:40:43and any leopard can add a message that will last for weeks.
0:40:46 > 0:40:50She can also spray a more detailed and pungent signal,
0:40:50 > 0:40:53revealing if she's ready for a mate.
0:40:54 > 0:40:55Where leopards are rare,
0:40:55 > 0:41:00with huge territories, this system, and their rasping calls, is crucial.
0:41:00 > 0:41:04It allows leopards that want to breed to find each other.
0:41:09 > 0:41:14It is often hard to piece together what's going on.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16A male might be on patrol, checking,
0:41:16 > 0:41:19feeding in the area for a while first.
0:41:24 > 0:41:28A male's life is all about breeding.
0:41:28 > 0:41:32She's unlikely to be receptive if her cubs are under a year old.
0:41:32 > 0:41:34But she must be cautious,
0:41:34 > 0:41:37as new males often kill cubs.
0:42:09 > 0:42:13A leopard's life is ruled by the invisible,
0:42:13 > 0:42:15dictated by secret messages,
0:42:15 > 0:42:20long distance communication and rare meetings.
0:42:23 > 0:42:25It seems perhaps she's not ready to mate.
0:42:25 > 0:42:31She has cubs. Her focus must be to look after them and feed them.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42The herds have many eyes, and scare easily.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44She has different strategies.
0:42:47 > 0:42:50She charges in, like a lion.
0:42:50 > 0:42:55Leopards have learned new tricks for hunting here on the plains.
0:43:03 > 0:43:06She brings down a big yearling wildebeest
0:43:07 > 0:43:11and then lets it go free when she sees a more manageable one.
0:43:17 > 0:43:22Chaos in the herd can be a problem, attracting unwanted attention.
0:43:22 > 0:43:26Different ways of hunting carry different risks.
0:43:26 > 0:43:30Hunger could make her reckless enough to confront a thief,
0:43:30 > 0:43:32but it rarely does.
0:43:36 > 0:43:41Leopards are reluctant to fight over hard-won kills.
0:43:41 > 0:43:44Better a lioness has her lunch, than has her.
0:43:50 > 0:43:51Meanwhile, in the trees,
0:43:51 > 0:43:54the teenage cubs are testing each other's strength.
0:44:02 > 0:44:06The cubs are surrounded by food, temptation.
0:44:06 > 0:44:11They have a chance to practise hunting on the real thing.
0:44:11 > 0:44:15The approaching night is an opportunity to discover
0:44:15 > 0:44:17a whole new side to leopards.
0:44:21 > 0:44:24For us to see anything in the pitch dark,
0:44:24 > 0:44:26we have to switch to infrared cameras.
0:44:31 > 0:44:35They seem excited, but not yet ready to hunt.
0:44:41 > 0:44:43Leopards are mostly nocturnal,
0:44:43 > 0:44:46but here, with bigger predators out at night,
0:44:46 > 0:44:48it's a more dangerous time.
0:44:48 > 0:44:50THUNDER CRASHES
0:44:52 > 0:44:57Their mother, a distance away, is starting, very carefully, to hunt.
0:44:59 > 0:45:02Darkness is her cover now.
0:45:02 > 0:45:04She stalks out in the open.
0:45:19 > 0:45:22A moth wants to drink from her eye.
0:45:27 > 0:45:29She's determined to ignore it.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32Her concentration is total.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59Wildebeest calves aren't so vigilant,
0:45:59 > 0:46:02and the night offers all the help she needs.
0:46:12 > 0:46:16In a flash, she's up a tree with her prize.
0:46:16 > 0:46:20The stampeding herd will attract every lion and hyena nearby.
0:46:28 > 0:46:32Sure enough, a lioness finds her, and starts to climb.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48Lions are not good climbers.
0:46:48 > 0:46:51They're heavyweights, too cumbersome.
0:46:53 > 0:46:55The leopard's meal is safe,
0:46:55 > 0:46:59and the lioness is soon distracted by another opportunity.
0:47:02 > 0:47:04Able to leave the carcass in the tree,
0:47:04 > 0:47:07the mother can go to get her cubs.
0:47:16 > 0:47:19She soon discovers they're not where she left them.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28A hyena has found the cubs.
0:47:35 > 0:47:37One of them flees.
0:47:37 > 0:47:40Each of the twins has a very different character.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43The other stands its ground.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47LEOPARD CUB ROARS
0:47:57 > 0:48:01The feisty cub is now almost hyena size.
0:48:01 > 0:48:05These cubs know how to look after themselves.
0:48:05 > 0:48:09There's no food, so no point in starting a fight.
0:48:16 > 0:48:18The mother can hear nothing over the storm,
0:48:18 > 0:48:20but for the moment her cubs have shown
0:48:20 > 0:48:22they can look after themselves.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00Not all cubs are so fortunate.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11We don't know what killed this particular cub.
0:49:11 > 0:49:14Lions perhaps, or maybe a male leopard.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02When another of our mothers loses a cub,
0:50:02 > 0:50:05her adolescent son has her undivided attention.
0:50:05 > 0:50:07She is his whole world.
0:50:12 > 0:50:14Perhaps she should be finding a mate,
0:50:14 > 0:50:19preparing soon for another litter of cubs, encouraging him to move on.
0:50:19 > 0:50:21But, for the moment, she doesn't.
0:50:24 > 0:50:29Flexibility has always been at the heart of a leopard's success.
0:50:38 > 0:50:41She hunts, while he sleeps and eats. A typical teenager!
0:50:59 > 0:51:04A year later, he's bigger than his mother, two-and-a-quarter years old
0:51:04 > 0:51:06and still hanging around with Mum.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10While the herds are near,
0:51:10 > 0:51:14she concentrates on wildebeest and zebra for them to eat.
0:51:16 > 0:51:20She drags carcasses back for them.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22Meanwhile he sneaks out at night,
0:51:22 > 0:51:25then eats a quarter of his body weight for breakfast.
0:51:31 > 0:51:35Sometimes she might discover offerings he's brought back.
0:51:36 > 0:51:40Even a dead porcupine needs experienced handling.
0:51:49 > 0:51:53He's exploring his world by day too.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55He learns what is dangerous
0:51:55 > 0:51:59or too big to hunt.
0:52:09 > 0:52:13He stays mainly in the river gully, and practices hunting geese.
0:52:17 > 0:52:20He targets antelope and hares, hyrax or a mongoose.
0:52:20 > 0:52:24At times, most leopards hunt small prey,
0:52:24 > 0:52:28a talent that will keep them alive when food is scarce.
0:52:34 > 0:52:37Occasionally leopards get over-confident,
0:52:38 > 0:52:42but hyenas and lions soon teach them a lesson.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49He knows every step of this river, and has his escape routes ready.
0:53:10 > 0:53:15Whenever he runs into problems, he still has mum as back up.
0:53:19 > 0:53:26As he grows up, it's clear he's a cat slowly preparing for the future.
0:53:26 > 0:53:30Beyond protected areas, lions are looking increasingly precarious,
0:53:30 > 0:53:34but he has skills that a lion will never have.
0:53:39 > 0:53:42A while after most cubs would have left, his mother seems ready
0:53:42 > 0:53:44to ease her overgrown cub out.
0:53:46 > 0:53:51Leopardesses advertise their desire to mate, by calling more often.
0:54:16 > 0:54:18One morning, a month or so later,
0:54:18 > 0:54:23the mother leopard appears unwell, and hasn't hunted.
0:54:23 > 0:54:27The adult cub is there, waiting for food.
0:54:32 > 0:54:37He's spraying, ready to mark his own territory somewhere else.
0:54:39 > 0:54:42Inside perhaps, upsetting her chemistry,
0:54:42 > 0:54:44could be the next generation.
0:54:56 > 0:54:57Time to move on.
0:55:06 > 0:55:09Young males are forced to roam widely,
0:55:09 > 0:55:13avoiding territorial leopards, and searching for a home.
0:55:13 > 0:55:17Beyond the protected areas are towns, then cities.
0:55:32 > 0:55:35Leopards are part of a modern world.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45In Nairobi, people see them occasionally by the roads
0:55:45 > 0:55:47and on waste ground, at night.
0:55:47 > 0:55:49I've seen them too.
0:55:53 > 0:55:57Leopards have secret lives all over Africa and Asia,
0:55:57 > 0:56:01clinging on where we have encroached into their world.
0:56:13 > 0:56:19People call them vermin, problem leopards, and sometimes they are.
0:56:19 > 0:56:23But I prefer to think of a truly remarkable creature,
0:56:23 > 0:56:27battling to cope with problems we have created.
0:56:32 > 0:56:37May its ancient instincts, and all its mother taught it, protect it.
0:56:37 > 0:56:39Be adaptable,
0:56:39 > 0:56:41be clever,
0:56:41 > 0:56:44become an invisible shadow,
0:56:44 > 0:56:46and slip away.
0:56:53 > 0:56:58There is a final chapter, a piece of the puzzle still to put in place.
0:57:00 > 0:57:02This is England.
0:57:02 > 0:57:05Leopards aren't meant to live here.
0:57:05 > 0:57:07And yet, there are tales of black panthers
0:57:07 > 0:57:10roaming ancient woods and moors.
0:57:15 > 0:57:18Sightings have built up and some maintain that a few leopards
0:57:18 > 0:57:20are living wild in Britain.
0:57:28 > 0:57:30What we do know is leopards,
0:57:30 > 0:57:33among others, were kept in England as exotic pets.
0:57:33 > 0:57:36But about thirty years ago, the law changed.
0:57:36 > 0:57:39Some were put down, or sent to zoos,
0:57:39 > 0:57:43but some were released or escaped into the countryside.
0:57:45 > 0:57:49As sightings have increased, some people have quietly concluded
0:57:49 > 0:57:53that there are a few leopards living undercover.
0:57:57 > 0:58:00It sounds like a tall story to me.
0:58:00 > 0:58:03But knowing what I do about leopards,
0:58:03 > 0:58:07anything is possible.
0:58:18 > 0:58:21Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:21 > 0:58:24E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk