0:00:02 > 0:00:07All across the world an extraordinary group of people
0:00:07 > 0:00:12are on a mission to save some of our most critically endangered animals.
0:00:15 > 0:00:17We're going to meet those people,
0:00:17 > 0:00:20and the animals they love.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Good, be fierce. That's what you need to be.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27I'm Martin Hughes-Games.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31I trained as a zoologist and I've spent the last 30 years making wildlife films.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35You've eaten my microphone again!
0:00:35 > 0:00:40I've seen with my own eyes the challenges that are facing our natural world.
0:00:40 > 0:00:45I'm going to take you on a journey around the world to discover the courage, the commitment,
0:00:45 > 0:00:50the sheer blood, sweat and tears that it takes to drag a species
0:00:50 > 0:00:56back from the edge of extinction, to create nature's miracle babies.
0:01:11 > 0:01:16In this show we'll follow the personal struggles of three animal mums to be.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20These mums are trying to give birth to some of the rarest babies on the planet.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23So you could say the stakes are fairly high.
0:01:24 > 0:01:29Gentle giant Behan, has to endure a gruelling two day labour.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32We are starting to get concerned with her.
0:01:34 > 0:01:39And feisty tamarin Eulalia may attack her own newborns.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42We're very worried about the babies when they come out.
0:01:46 > 0:01:51We start with a species famous for being fiendishly hard to get pregnant.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54And to meet it, I've come to central China
0:01:54 > 0:01:59the last stronghold of one of the world's most iconic species.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02It's charismatic, it's controversial,
0:02:02 > 0:02:07it's a puzzle, but it's also extremely beautiful.
0:02:07 > 0:02:08It's the giant panda.
0:02:08 > 0:02:15This city, Chengdu, is the nexus, the hub, the worldwide centre
0:02:15 > 0:02:19of panda reproduction and basically, nobody does it better.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26There are nearly 100 pandas living in Chengdu.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30And it's here that scientists have pioneered ground breaking techniques
0:02:30 > 0:02:34to make baby pandas. And now they're just beginning
0:02:34 > 0:02:37to share their secrets with the rest of the world.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43I've never met a baby panda before.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46I can't really believe this is happening!
0:02:46 > 0:02:50It's breakfast time, and apparently I'm serving the morning milk.
0:02:52 > 0:02:53- HE GASPS - Wow!
0:02:56 > 0:03:01I never ever thought I'd be allowed to do this.
0:03:02 > 0:03:03Look at this.
0:03:03 > 0:03:04This one?
0:03:09 > 0:03:11You are utterly gorgeous.
0:03:16 > 0:03:21Not long ago it really looked as though giant pandas might become extinct.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26So the Chinese government established this breeding centre to try to turn things round.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30These days things are looking brighter for the panda.
0:03:30 > 0:03:36Increasing protection's being given to the forests where small wild populations still cling on.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38And here in Chengdu
0:03:38 > 0:03:42they really seem to have cracked the technique for making baby pandas.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45You funny little bear.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47Are you feeling relaxed?
0:03:47 > 0:03:51These are last year's little babies
0:03:51 > 0:03:54although they're a lot bigger than I thought they were going to be.
0:03:54 > 0:03:58And they're certainly fairly relaxed I'd say.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05It's been a hard day already.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11They're getting a lot more lively now.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16These little characters are irresistibly cute
0:04:16 > 0:04:19but don't be fooled by that cuddly facade, these are bears -
0:04:19 > 0:04:23that means teeth, claws and attitude!
0:04:24 > 0:04:28I'm being ganged up on!
0:04:28 > 0:04:32I'm going to be covered in cuts and bruises.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Still, as long as you have your fun,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37that's all that matters!
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Oh, what's the point?!
0:04:45 > 0:04:49So what are the secrets of their success for producing healthy, strong little bears?
0:04:49 > 0:04:51Got me.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55Well, along with a few million dollars, you need hundreds
0:04:55 > 0:04:58of highly trained staff working round the clock.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01And it's in the nursery for the newborns where you really
0:05:01 > 0:05:06get to understand the skill it takes to make baby pandas.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11So this is Yuan Yuan,
0:05:11 > 0:05:15this is Xiang Bo who's her keeper.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18And she obviously knows him very, very well
0:05:18 > 0:05:22and totally, totally trusts him.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Xiang is having to help her feed
0:05:25 > 0:05:29because all the time she's got one hand full,
0:05:29 > 0:05:34curved around that tiny, tiny little cub.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37Would you put your hand on her tummy like that?
0:05:41 > 0:05:43There's a lot of trust here.
0:05:44 > 0:05:50Yuan Yuan is four times heavier and four times stronger than the youngsters I've already met.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53Just imagine the damage she could do if she chose to.
0:05:53 > 0:05:58There has to be absolute trust between her and her keeper Xiang Bo.
0:05:58 > 0:06:03In the wild a mother panda would never let a newborn baby out of her arms,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05not for a second.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11Xiang Bo is pushing the trust between them to the limit.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22- WHISPERS:- How does that work?
0:06:30 > 0:06:34She just let him take her tiny baby.
0:06:34 > 0:06:35Not a murmur!
0:06:35 > 0:06:38But she doesn't look terribly distressed about it, does she?
0:06:38 > 0:06:40HE CHUCKLES
0:06:40 > 0:06:44So why are they going to the trouble of separating mum from her baby?
0:06:45 > 0:06:51Now mother's care is best, of course, and Yuan Yuan is an excellent mum,
0:06:51 > 0:06:54but here in Chengdu, they like to give mother nature
0:06:54 > 0:06:57a little bit of extra help
0:06:57 > 0:06:59in the panda nursery.
0:07:04 > 0:07:06All the baby pandas here at Chengdu,
0:07:06 > 0:07:09they spend most of the time with mum.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12But at least once a day they come in here to the nursery.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14And it's a sort of insurance policy.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18They can weigh them and give them a full sort of health check
0:07:18 > 0:07:21and make sure they're thriving 100% OK.
0:07:21 > 0:07:26And of course it gives mum a bit of a well-deserved break as well.
0:07:27 > 0:07:33And if they find that the baby's maybe not putting on as much weight as they'd like
0:07:33 > 0:07:38or there's any problems, they can give it a supplementary feed and bulk it up a bit.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47It's actually taken them years to get these incubators right,
0:07:47 > 0:07:51because of course they've got to mimic mum exactly
0:07:51 > 0:07:54and that's quite tricky. The temperature for instance,
0:07:54 > 0:07:58the temperature changes as the cub gets bigger and bigger,
0:07:58 > 0:08:02it needs a different temperature, so that's got to be monitored all the time.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Then there's the humidity too, imagine -
0:08:05 > 0:08:08the cub's held in tight to mum's fur and it's very humid down there,
0:08:08 > 0:08:11so you've got to get that exactly right.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15And it's this sort of attention to the fine detail
0:08:15 > 0:08:19that's made Chengdu such an incredible success.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23As you can see, it's a very contented little panda.
0:08:27 > 0:08:32These incubators are great but you can't beat a cuddle with mum,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34so it's time to reunite mother and baby.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38But there's a surprise twist, and it's one of the cornerstones
0:08:38 > 0:08:42of Chengdu's incredible success with the pandas.
0:08:42 > 0:08:47Now, this is the really clever thing that they developed here in Chengdu,
0:08:47 > 0:08:50because this baby that's just come back is not the same baby.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52It's its twin!
0:08:52 > 0:08:55And pandas very often give birth to twins
0:08:55 > 0:08:59and sadly one of them often dies, but not here.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03Because they'll take away one of the babies look after it,
0:09:03 > 0:09:06put it in an incubator, give it extra food,
0:09:06 > 0:09:07swap it with the other one.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11So by keeping swapping the babies backwards and forwards
0:09:11 > 0:09:13both the twins survive.
0:09:15 > 0:09:22But that only could happen because of this extraordinary relationship that they have with the keepers.
0:09:28 > 0:09:30What I've learnt from Chengdu
0:09:30 > 0:09:34is the enormous amount of trust, money and skill you need
0:09:34 > 0:09:37when you're in the business of breeding endangered animals.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43But then, when the future of an entire species is at stake,
0:09:43 > 0:09:45nothing but total commitment will do.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50There have been seven births in Chengdu this year alone,
0:09:50 > 0:09:53and their expertise, and their pandas,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56are now being exported around the world.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06I'm off to meet one of these ex-pats
0:10:06 > 0:10:09to find out more about the challenges of panda breeding.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13I'm heading for the USA and the Southern state of Georgia.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20Here, the team at Zoo Atlanta are on a mission
0:10:20 > 0:10:24to get their female panda Lun Lun pregnant.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27But can they possibly be as successful as the Chinese?
0:10:28 > 0:10:30- Hi.- How's it going.- Are you Ken?
0:10:30 > 0:10:32Ken, I'm Martin Nice to meet you.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34- You're big.- Sorry.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41Ken - a big man with an even bigger responsibility.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44Lun Lun is on loan from Chengdu.
0:10:44 > 0:10:49I say on loan, but, and this was news to me, you never own a panda,
0:10:49 > 0:10:50you just rent them from China,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54and the rental is one million dollars per year.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58Can this million dollar mum have a million dollar baby?
0:11:01 > 0:11:05The first challenge Ken faces is knowing exactly when
0:11:05 > 0:11:10his pampered panda Lun Lun is in season and is able to fall pregnant.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14In zoos the females are only receptive about two days,
0:11:14 > 0:11:1836 hours to 48 hours out of the year. That's it!
0:11:18 > 0:11:23That's incredible that they have such a tiny, tiny window of opportunity
0:11:23 > 0:11:27and if you're going to be successful you have to capture that moment.
0:11:27 > 0:11:28Exactly.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32A lot of our efforts are geared to finding that exact 36 hours.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35You miss that 36 hours, you wait another year.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38But I guess some of those signs are probably quite subtle, Ken,
0:11:38 > 0:11:41and it's down to you to know her well enough
0:11:41 > 0:11:45- to be able to tell when that moment is about to arrive.- Yes.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48And if I've got this right and we time it right,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50she IS about to come into season.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54- Yes.- We hope. - Hopefully within the next week or so.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57You've got to know your animals!
0:11:57 > 0:12:01Getting Lun Lun pregnant is important for the panda population
0:12:01 > 0:12:05and for the zoo, who've invested millions of dollars.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10At 36 hours, that window of opportunity is horribly small,
0:12:10 > 0:12:13so no wonder a large chunk of Ken's working life
0:12:13 > 0:12:16is devoted to getting his panda pregnant.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19And by the sound of it, this isn't going to be that easy.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Now, meet a gentle giant.
0:12:24 > 0:12:28She's not waiting to get pregnant, she's waiting to give birth.
0:12:29 > 0:12:30This is Behan,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34a one-and-a-half tonne, Indian rhino at Whipsnade Zoo.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38She may look intimidating but Behan is a sweetie.
0:12:41 > 0:12:47It's hard to imagine, but recently this big girl's actually been putting on weight.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49She's expecting a baby,
0:12:49 > 0:12:53and she's been pregnant for almost a year-and-a-half.
0:12:53 > 0:12:59At birth, Behan's baby will weigh as much as a fully grown man.
0:12:59 > 0:13:03Cue Veronica, her adoring and very patient keeper.
0:13:05 > 0:13:06Good girl.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09'Every day we check her udder.' Let's have a look, good girl.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11If she was getting really close
0:13:11 > 0:13:15it wouldn't take a lot to stimulate the milk to start flowing,
0:13:15 > 0:13:17which it isn't at the moment.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21- Good girl.- Veronica has known Behan since she was a baby.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24She came to Whipsnade as a one-year-old calf
0:13:24 > 0:13:27and Veronica has been a constant companion for 13 years.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30She's very curious.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33Yeah, she always likes to know what's going on
0:13:33 > 0:13:36and if there's anything happening around the area,
0:13:36 > 0:13:38she'll always be up there, trying to see what it is.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41But she's very friendly, very friendly.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44There's such a strong relationship between them
0:13:44 > 0:13:47it's no wonder that Veronica is concerned about mum and baby.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51It's been a 16 month wait and there are no guarantees.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54It is nerve wracking but very exciting at the same time.
0:13:54 > 0:13:59You never can be 100% sure. As with all animals, they're very unpredictable.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03Some of them can have them very quickly and some of them have a very long labour.
0:14:03 > 0:14:04Good girlie.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07Hello. Are you going to give me a kiss?
0:14:07 > 0:14:10Indian rhinos have been around for some ten million years.
0:14:10 > 0:14:16But hunters relentlessly shot them for sport in such numbers
0:14:16 > 0:14:19they were very nearly extinct by 1900.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22And now, although protected by park rangers,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26they're targeted by poachers for their horns.
0:14:26 > 0:14:31Over 70% of the entire world population is in one park in India,
0:14:31 > 0:14:36and if that park got hit by disease, flooding, civil war, it could be disastrous.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40And if that happened, captive bred rhinos like Behan's baby
0:14:40 > 0:14:43could offer a crucial safety net.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47There's a lot at stake and nothing is being left to chance.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52Behan is monitored night and day by CCTV
0:14:52 > 0:14:57so Veronica can keep watch without disturbing her.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01Very often, if animals know that they're being watched
0:15:01 > 0:15:03it will inhibit their birth.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07So it means we can do it without them even knowing we're there watching.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11And it means we can always be on hand
0:15:11 > 0:15:16should the need arise for us to go in and assist her for whatever reason.
0:15:16 > 0:15:22But then it's just nice to be able to be there as well to actually watch the birth.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27So now the end game begins.
0:15:29 > 0:15:34Behan's baby will be just the third Indian rhino born in captivity this year.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39Right now there's nothing Veronica can do but wait.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50I'm back at Zoo Atlanta with Big Ken,
0:15:50 > 0:15:55whose patience is being tried by his delightful diva Lun Lun.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59You spend eight to ten hours a day with them...
0:15:59 > 0:16:03- You do.- ..five to six days a week you tend to learn them.- Pick up.
0:16:04 > 0:16:09Every year she has just one very short window of 36 hours when she can get pregnant.
0:16:09 > 0:16:14And the trick for Ken is to know exactly when that moment arrives.
0:16:14 > 0:16:20He has to carry out daily health checks to assess her condition.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22Now just watch this.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24I find this almost unbelievable.
0:16:26 > 0:16:32Now we're going to get a really close look at Lun Lun the female here.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34I don't know how he's going to do it though.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37HE BLOWS A WHISTLE Paw.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39This is amazing.
0:16:39 > 0:16:43Lun Lun has learnt to respond to a whistle and food rewards,
0:16:43 > 0:16:45and now she has few secrets from Ken.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50Good girl. Target, Target, Paw, Hold.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54We do a lot of different behaviours that help us with
0:16:54 > 0:16:57just the daily checks of the pandas for the vet staff and for us.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59Eye.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01Good girl, hold it.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06So, what's this got to do with her getting pregnant?
0:17:06 > 0:17:08Never seen anything like this.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13She's allowing Ken to see if she's coming into season.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17What did you see then, you were looking for some swelling.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19We were looking at her vulva for swelling.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23As she progresses through oestrus, that will indicate that she's ready.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25Ah, she's not quite ready yet.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Tail down, paw.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33Tail down. Good girl.
0:17:33 > 0:17:34With the clock ticking,
0:17:34 > 0:17:37and Lun Lun showing no signs of coming into season,
0:17:37 > 0:17:42Ken has called in some hi-tech help from zoo vet Dr Sam Rivera.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44He's going to use ultrasound,
0:17:44 > 0:17:50just like we humans use, to take a look inside Lun Lun's womb.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Now in line.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Lun Lun's getting quite excited by all the attention
0:17:56 > 0:17:58but she seems to have developed a bit of a fetish
0:17:58 > 0:18:00for the lubricant.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04She likes the gel,
0:18:04 > 0:18:08don't know what she's doing with it, but she likes it!
0:18:10 > 0:18:14- She's just covering herself in it. - Yup, I think it smells wonderful!
0:18:16 > 0:18:18Lun Lun may look like a giant teddy bear,
0:18:18 > 0:18:22but in reality she's an immensely powerful animal
0:18:22 > 0:18:26with an incredible bite and razor sharp claws.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29So one of the keepers has to look out for Sam during the procedure.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Heather, you keep your hand there
0:18:32 > 0:18:34over Dr Sam's just in case, just to remove his arm?
0:18:34 > 0:18:38He can't watch her and the ultrasound at the same time, that's why I'm here.
0:18:38 > 0:18:42- So you just take his hand out of the way if she gets up.- Exactly.- Right.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46Lun Lun. Lun Lun! Lun Lun!
0:18:46 > 0:18:48It's a little bit tense actually!
0:18:48 > 0:18:53We're looking at the normal anatomy of the uterus when it's non pregnant.
0:18:53 > 0:18:57Ok, so this is like a base line. So you can see exactly what it's like when she's not pregnant
0:18:57 > 0:19:00- and then when she is you can see the difference.- Exactly.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04What impresses me, you can do it all without having to knock her out.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08She's a willing participant in the whole process that's great.
0:19:08 > 0:19:13Thanks to the keepers, the time that they spend, because they make it seem easy,
0:19:13 > 0:19:18but it takes a long time to get them trained, to get them comfortable with these procedures.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21- It's amazing to watch.- Oh, yes, it is. It's amazing to do too.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Now the team are watching Lun Lun's every move
0:19:33 > 0:19:35to see if she's coming into season
0:19:35 > 0:19:37and there are lots of very subtle clues,
0:19:37 > 0:19:41like does she move around more than she usually does,
0:19:41 > 0:19:46and they even check on how the male next door, how he's reacting to her.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48So far... nothing.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52She seems to be stuck in this pre-oestrus stage, they call it.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56So it's a very high stakes waiting game.
0:20:03 > 0:20:09Endless patience is the name of the game when you're trying to make a miracle baby.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13Heavily pregnant rhino Behan at Whipsnade Zoo,
0:20:13 > 0:20:17is now carrying a baby weighing at least ten stone, maybe more!
0:20:17 > 0:20:19Just looking, just looking.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22It's been 16 months
0:20:22 > 0:20:24but Veronica is so tuned in to Behan
0:20:24 > 0:20:28she's noticed a subtle change in her behaviour.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33I came in first thing this morning and checked her first thing and she was acting pretty normally then.
0:20:33 > 0:20:38Then as the morning went on, she started to prefer to go back indoors
0:20:38 > 0:20:41and then she was spending a lot of time laying down
0:20:41 > 0:20:45and just sort of moving around and getting more comfortable.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48That was a pretty good indication that things were possibly starting to happen.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52Veronica's lonely vigil is coming to an end.
0:20:52 > 0:20:54Behan is in early labour
0:20:54 > 0:20:57and 24 hours and one sleepless night later,
0:20:57 > 0:21:03Veronica lets everyone know that Behan may be getting close to giving birth.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07A supportive and excited group of female keepers gathers for a sleepover.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10This is going to be the ultimate girls' night in.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Everything is assembled, sleeping bags, mobile phones,
0:21:13 > 0:21:17plenty of supplies, but instead of the usual rom-com chick flick,
0:21:17 > 0:21:21they're going to be watching a rhino give birth.
0:21:21 > 0:21:22I can't wait.
0:21:22 > 0:21:26Literally I can't wait. I've got belly bubbles thinking about it.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28Well, whatever turns you on.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32Come on Behan.
0:21:34 > 0:21:36As the night wears on with no sign of a baby,
0:21:36 > 0:21:41poor old Behan is trying to keep herself busy with a bit of housework.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43As you can see at the moment,
0:21:43 > 0:21:47she's doing her nesting instinct
0:21:47 > 0:21:53and just re-strawing up her stable
0:21:53 > 0:21:59and it is just because she's feeling very uncomfortable, she doesn't really know what to do with herself.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS
0:22:22 > 0:22:24By the morning, nothing,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27and Veronica is starting to fret!
0:22:27 > 0:22:33It's coming up now for a 48 hours since we first saw the early stages of labour starting.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36So as she's now reaching the end of that time,
0:22:36 > 0:22:39we're going to ask the vet to come down and have a look at her
0:22:39 > 0:22:42and see what advice he can give us.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45It's as if Behan knows the vet is on his way...
0:22:45 > 0:22:49We were just giving up on her really cos she's had such a bad night.
0:22:49 > 0:22:53..as almost immediately her waters break and she starts to push.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57- See, you didn't have to worry. - I was worried!
0:22:57 > 0:23:00We told her you were coming!
0:23:00 > 0:23:02She's pushing really hard as well.
0:23:07 > 0:23:08Cross my legs!
0:23:08 > 0:23:15To get her miracle baby out, Behan just needs to give one more almighty rhino-sized push.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17It's time.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19BEHAN GRUNTS
0:23:22 > 0:23:23Yay! She did it!
0:23:23 > 0:23:26Well done, Auntie!
0:23:29 > 0:23:31It's a big, healthy boy.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33It's all been worth while now, yes.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37Just, everything, you know.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41All those sleepless nights have now faded, forgotten about those.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48The calf looks really good, he's a really good size.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51Looks quite strong. He's already trying to stand up.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54Mum looks absolutely exhausted.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00After a 16 month pregnancy
0:24:00 > 0:24:04and a 50 hour labour, Behan is taking a well earned rest.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07He's a bit wobbly just now,
0:24:07 > 0:24:10but when he grows up this little leviathan
0:24:10 > 0:24:15is destined to weigh in at a colossal three tonnes!
0:24:15 > 0:24:17Well, it's all been worthwhile now, yes.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22And maybe one day, his descendants could go back to the wild,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26the holy grail of breeding programmes around the world.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31Like Whipsnade, zoos across the planet are trying to create
0:24:31 > 0:24:33a captive ark - a safety net,
0:24:33 > 0:24:38that could be a crucial insurance policy against extinction.
0:24:38 > 0:24:40And I'm on my way to meet a creature facing
0:24:40 > 0:24:44the kind of pressure that could easily wipe them out in the wild.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47This is a tamarin.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50And what exactly is a tamarin?
0:24:50 > 0:24:54In fact, they're primates like you or I - and that means
0:24:54 > 0:24:59they're highly intelligent, very sociable, amazing little animals.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Also extremely beautiful, but
0:25:04 > 0:25:09these particular tamarins are in big trouble.
0:25:12 > 0:25:17To understand exactly why this particular animal is struggling so much,
0:25:17 > 0:25:22I'm travelling to their native Brazil and a city called Manaus on the banks of the Amazon.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30Here the growing economy has led to a rapidly expanding city,
0:25:30 > 0:25:34and the habitat of the pied tamarins is being gobbled up by concrete.
0:25:34 > 0:25:38I'm joining one of the world's leading tamarin experts,
0:25:38 > 0:25:42Dom Wormell from Jersey Zoo, on a fact finding mission.
0:25:42 > 0:25:48Dom was the first to really try to save these highly intelligent little monkeys.
0:25:48 > 0:25:53It's only from the air that you get the true picture of what's happening to them.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56Wow, Dom, you can really see there, can't you?
0:25:56 > 0:25:59There's just like a line's been drawn here.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03It is, it's like zero bio-diversity one side,
0:26:03 > 0:26:05huge bio-diversity the other side.
0:26:05 > 0:26:11The tamarins are in there. At the moment that is one of their safe havens.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14What Dom is particularly concerned about are the little slithers
0:26:14 > 0:26:18of forest, which have become like islands dotted amongst the concrete.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22Small populations of pied tamarins have become marooned here,
0:26:22 > 0:26:25unable to reach the safety of the open forest.
0:26:25 > 0:26:31With local biologist Marcello Gordo we're visiting a small group of tamarins,
0:26:31 > 0:26:34just managing to hang on in a fragment of forest,
0:26:34 > 0:26:37relying on the help of some local families.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40I think they're coming. They've been spotted.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43- They're coming, they're coming. - Just on the right.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47- There, there, there. - You can see them?- There! There!
0:26:47 > 0:26:50- Look!- Yes, yes, yes. Look at that!
0:26:50 > 0:26:53Look, look! They're being fed. Can you see they're being fed.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55Come out here. Some of the local kids.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58- Look at that.- That's amazing.
0:26:58 > 0:27:00The whole troupe.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04So, Dom it's not sustainable.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08These wild populations, they can't live here forever.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12No, what we see here is not going to stay.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16All the time it's getting gnawed away, it's getting less and less.
0:27:16 > 0:27:18These tamarins are safe... for now.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23But Marcello's trying to relocate the most vulnerable populations
0:27:23 > 0:27:27to safer places. When that's not possible, to carefully selected
0:27:27 > 0:27:30Brazilian zoos where they can become part of a breeding programme.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34This is the front line, this is what's happening.
0:27:34 > 0:27:39- We can literally hear bulldozers taking down the forest around us. - Yeah, they're coming.
0:27:39 > 0:27:43Seeing all this destruction is utterly heartbreaking.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46But Dom will never give up.
0:27:46 > 0:27:50He's one of the most committed conservationists I've ever met.
0:27:50 > 0:27:52He's set up a breeding programme of his own
0:27:52 > 0:27:54as an insurance policy for the wild population.
0:27:56 > 0:28:01So we're off to Jersey Zoo in the Channel Islands to see how that's going.
0:28:04 > 0:28:08The good news is that one of his tamarins is pregnant.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10But Dom is deeply concerned.
0:28:10 > 0:28:14This is Eulalia. She's the expectant Mum.
0:28:14 > 0:28:19You can just see here really quite swollen abdomen.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23Feisty Eulalia was hand reared after her own mum attacked her.
0:28:23 > 0:28:26She's a very emotionally damaged animal.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29We're very worried about the babies when they come out
0:28:29 > 0:28:35because last time she rejected them and actually killed one of them.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39So we're all on standby to actually do a hand rearing episode.
0:28:41 > 0:28:43If Eulalia's past record's anything to go by,
0:28:43 > 0:28:46I think Dom has some sleepless nights ahead!
0:28:46 > 0:28:50But when you're trying to pull a species back from the edge of extinction,
0:28:50 > 0:28:52sleepless nights go with the job.
0:28:55 > 0:28:58At least Eulalia's managed to conceive.
0:29:04 > 0:29:07In Atlanta, things are not so black and white.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13Their giant panda Lun Lun is still playing the diva
0:29:13 > 0:29:16and stubbornly refusing to come into season.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19They're still waiting for that elusive 36 hour window
0:29:19 > 0:29:21when she's receptive to mating.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23Strictly between you and me,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27I'm beginning to think it's just not going to happen this year.
0:29:27 > 0:29:29But no-one's giving up around here,
0:29:29 > 0:29:32especially Big Ken her long suffering keeper
0:29:32 > 0:29:36who's still working tirelessly to keep her in peak condition.
0:29:36 > 0:29:39We monitor all this on a daily basis.
0:29:39 > 0:29:43We monitor her behaviour daily to see what she's doing differently.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46She'll start acting differently. Walking differently.
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Eating differently, doing everything differently.
0:29:48 > 0:29:53The male will start acting differently, they'll start getting interested in one another
0:29:53 > 0:29:57whereas the rest of the year they pretty much don't care about one another.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00I guess it's also true that to have any chance of breeding,
0:30:00 > 0:30:02you have to have a happy and healthy panda.
0:30:02 > 0:30:07Yes, that's the biggest part of our job and the best thing that we can do for them.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14'So how exactly is Ken managing to keep this furry diva happy?
0:30:14 > 0:30:17'Flowers and chocs aren't going to cut the mustard,
0:30:17 > 0:30:22'but Ken is very experienced in the mysterious ways of pandering to pandas
0:30:22 > 0:30:26'and he's set aside a whole room devoted to pleasing her!'
0:30:26 > 0:30:29- Wow!- This is our bamboo cooler.
0:30:29 > 0:30:31Where on earth do you get all this from?!
0:30:31 > 0:30:35Well, the zoo has a team of bamboo cutters.
0:30:38 > 0:30:42Luckily all sorts of bamboo grows well in Georgia's climate
0:30:42 > 0:30:46so the public can ring in and donate it to the pampered pandas.
0:30:46 > 0:30:50- And this, what we're looking at now. - What does that say?- Sorry, it says
0:30:50 > 0:30:5420, almost exactly. This is enough for...?
0:30:56 > 0:30:58- For this morning.- This morning?
0:30:58 > 0:31:01What we saw in the cooler is about half a day's worth.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04That's an awful lot of bamboo!
0:31:04 > 0:31:05Here it is breakfast.
0:31:05 > 0:31:09So, Ken, if you didn't have the bamboo, you'd be in trouble.
0:31:09 > 0:31:12- What would you do?- With pandas, you'd be in a lot of trouble -
0:31:12 > 0:31:15they don't tend to eat much of anything else.
0:31:15 > 0:31:18If you feed them just biscuits or fruit,
0:31:18 > 0:31:22their digestive tract goes quite awry really quickly.
0:31:22 > 0:31:26'Lun Lun is strictly a salad girl, but as any dieter knows,
0:31:26 > 0:31:29'it's not the most energy rich diet,
0:31:29 > 0:31:33'so what it lacks in quality has to be made up for with quantity.
0:31:33 > 0:31:39'Lun Lun eats a gut busting 10 kilos of bamboo every day.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42'So it's a matter of eating till stuffed,
0:31:42 > 0:31:44'take a nap and eat some more.
0:31:44 > 0:31:48'How on earth did a bear end up living on bamboo?! Weird!
0:31:49 > 0:31:52'But for Ken, all this eating provides yet another layer
0:31:52 > 0:31:56'of detail for checking she is in peak condition.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59'Ken is collecting Lun Lun's leftovers.'
0:32:03 > 0:32:048.62.
0:32:04 > 0:32:07That's before we get onto the poo!
0:32:07 > 0:32:09He's taking individual leaves out of their poo!
0:32:11 > 0:32:12Nothing to it.
0:32:12 > 0:32:17'The devil really is in the detail, and Ken leaves no stool unturned.
0:32:17 > 0:32:20'Sorry! Couldn't resist it!'
0:32:20 > 0:32:22- What do we do with the poo now? - Weigh it.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26- We're going to weigh the poo? - Yeah. MORE detail!
0:32:26 > 0:32:27How much?
0:32:27 > 0:32:30It says 12.52 kilos,
0:32:30 > 0:32:33so she ate about 10 kilos of bamboo overnight.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35And you do this every day?
0:32:35 > 0:32:38- Every day.- Every day.
0:32:38 > 0:32:43'We've done the poo, now for the wee because Ken needs to check her hormones.'
0:32:45 > 0:32:49What we need to do is collect some urine from Lun Lun here
0:32:49 > 0:32:52from overnight. As she gets closer,
0:32:52 > 0:32:55we'll test it several times a day, so we can pinpoint the exact hour.
0:32:57 > 0:33:02- Our urine freezer, we have a few samples in here collected. - Oh, my goodness!
0:33:02 > 0:33:06'A freezer full of panda pee?
0:33:06 > 0:33:10'I'm starting to feel a bit sorry for Ken, because despite everything,
0:33:10 > 0:33:14'all the effort, there's still no sign of Lun Lun becoming ready.
0:33:14 > 0:33:18'Lun Lun kept me waiting for another five days,
0:33:18 > 0:33:21'but eventually I just had to leave Ken to it.'
0:33:23 > 0:33:26Panda breeding is clearly not for the fainthearted
0:33:26 > 0:33:30or the easily bored, but Ken is not the type to give up.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38And the refusal to give up is one of the things that unites
0:33:38 > 0:33:43these amazing people in zoos and breeding centres around the world.
0:33:46 > 0:33:50The ultimate dream for Ken in Atlanta,
0:33:50 > 0:33:53Veronica at Whipsnade, and Dom in Jersey
0:33:53 > 0:33:57is that one day the animals they care so passionately about
0:33:57 > 0:34:01can go back to the wild, which is where they belong.
0:34:02 > 0:34:07Back in Jersey, Dom's worst fears have been realised -
0:34:07 > 0:34:11Eulalia has given birth to triplets but she's attacked her own babies.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14Now the team are desperately trying to save them.
0:34:15 > 0:34:18Keeper Gale was first on the scene
0:34:18 > 0:34:20and managed to frighten Eulalia off,
0:34:20 > 0:34:25but not before she'd inflicted some terrible damage to one of the little males.
0:34:27 > 0:34:30Don't hold your breath, little monkey.
0:34:32 > 0:34:36Now she has to call Dom and tell him the full horror of what has happened.
0:34:37 > 0:34:41We got three babies, but only one dead, two survived at the moment.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44But one very badly injured.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47One baby was already on the floor that she'd attacked.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49Another baby screaming on the floor.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52The other one, she was biting on the platform,
0:34:52 > 0:34:57so the second baby that she had in her mouth when I got there
0:34:57 > 0:35:00she's bitten really deeply into its left wrist.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03Juliette? Can you hear me? She's stopped, oh...
0:35:03 > 0:35:07It's all right. Sorry, he just held his breath for a long time.
0:35:07 > 0:35:11- That's all right. Is he breathing more regularly now?- Yeah. He just stopped, sorry.
0:35:11 > 0:35:13Can you grab the X-ray?
0:35:13 > 0:35:18This tiny injured baby is now facing surgery on a badly bitten hand.
0:35:23 > 0:35:27I can't completely assess the extent of the damage.
0:35:27 > 0:35:31I think unfortunately only time will tell exactly how bad it is,
0:35:31 > 0:35:36but it's definitely worth giving it a shot and seeing if we can save his hand.
0:35:36 > 0:35:40Just minutes old and weighing only a few ounces,
0:35:40 > 0:35:45this baby boy is now fighting for life. It's not a great start.
0:35:47 > 0:35:50Surgery over and the little boy is reunited with his sister,
0:35:50 > 0:35:53the only one of Eulalia's babies to escape unharmed.
0:35:53 > 0:35:57But if they're going to survive, they'll need round-the-clock care and feeding.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03Eulalia herself seems unphased by the havoc she's created.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06But although she wants nothing more to do with her babies,
0:36:06 > 0:36:09she still has an important part to play.
0:36:10 > 0:36:15If the babies are to have the best possible chance of surviving, they need her milk.
0:36:18 > 0:36:23The problem is Eulalia would attack them if she saw them, so there's only one thing for it.
0:36:25 > 0:36:29The babies are safe in their incubator and Eulalia is now anaesthetised.
0:36:29 > 0:36:34It's time for perhaps the most important meal of their lives.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37Shall we get the little boy out?
0:36:37 > 0:36:40He's super grippy. Let go.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44He's still using that hand to hold mine.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47She's got milk on both sides.
0:36:47 > 0:36:51Good boy. Do you want me to put her on the other side?
0:36:53 > 0:36:55There you go...
0:36:58 > 0:37:02- She'd be angry if she knew! - She'd be furious!
0:37:02 > 0:37:04"You let them near me!"
0:37:04 > 0:37:08The first milk that primates produce is known as colostrum,
0:37:08 > 0:37:13a nutrient rich cocktail packed full of immunity-boosting antibodies
0:37:13 > 0:37:15which is almost impossible to replicate.
0:37:15 > 0:37:18Dom is relieved that at least this part
0:37:18 > 0:37:21of the process has gone to plan.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23Well done, little boy, and little girl.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27I think it's time to wake your mum up.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34Over the next few days, a round-the-clock feeding rota
0:37:34 > 0:37:37is established for the twins.
0:37:37 > 0:37:42And tonight, I'm going to see how Dom gets on with his first shift looking after the tiny tamarins.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51It's seven o'clock, the zoo's been shut for ages,
0:37:51 > 0:37:54but for Dom, the night's work has only just started.
0:38:00 > 0:38:03- Hi, Dom. Brilliant.- Hello!
0:38:03 > 0:38:05First night with them.
0:38:05 > 0:38:07With these two, yeah.
0:38:07 > 0:38:09There's been many before these!
0:38:09 > 0:38:14This little female, she's really rooting around now. She's really...
0:38:14 > 0:38:16I can see, yes, she is.
0:38:16 > 0:38:18"Give me some food now! Help."
0:38:18 > 0:38:21So here we go, you've got one mil.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23One mil, oh, God. Right specs on,
0:38:23 > 0:38:26- this is serious stuff. - Just put your thumb under her chin
0:38:26 > 0:38:32and then just let her latch on, now you're in control, you see, now.
0:38:32 > 0:38:34There you go, lovely.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36With my kids, Dom, it was a long time ago,
0:38:36 > 0:38:39but we just used to stuff it in until they stopped!
0:38:39 > 0:38:41HE LAUGHS
0:38:41 > 0:38:45Well, hopefully these guys in two weeks, three weeks' time
0:38:45 > 0:38:46they'll be crazy like that.
0:38:46 > 0:38:50Let's just let that go down a bit.
0:38:50 > 0:38:52It's amazing the way they just grip on like this.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57This is a really good sign you've got a strong baby.
0:38:57 > 0:39:00I don't know how you can do that, Dom!
0:39:00 > 0:39:02But it's got to hang on to Mum!
0:39:02 > 0:39:05- You want to go through the jungle. - At breakneck speed!
0:39:05 > 0:39:08- You've seen them, haven't you? - We've seen them doing it, yes.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11They don't hang about. She's got to hang on.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14And they are. If you try and take them off, they're like... ttccch.
0:39:14 > 0:39:18But he's got this bad paw so he's just that little bit more...
0:39:18 > 0:39:20Got to be a bit more careful with him.
0:39:20 > 0:39:25So, Dom, these little ones won't be going back to the wild,
0:39:25 > 0:39:30but hopefully their children or their children's children might one day go back to the rain forest.
0:39:30 > 0:39:31They might well.
0:39:31 > 0:39:36Let's hope there's still rainforest for them. That's what we're fighting for, like mad.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38When you take on a difficult species,
0:39:38 > 0:39:42you have to be there to help them every step of the way.
0:39:42 > 0:39:46'Every time I meet Dom, I'm amazed by his dedication,
0:39:46 > 0:39:49'his total commitment to trying to save
0:39:49 > 0:39:53'this one species from extinction. Dom is one of the good guys.'
0:40:00 > 0:40:04Now it's time to find out just how good the guys in Atlanta are.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07They've had to endure an impossibly long wait,
0:40:07 > 0:40:11but you know what, I should have kept the faith.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17At last they have the news that everyone's been waiting for -
0:40:17 > 0:40:21little diva Lun Lun has come into season.
0:40:22 > 0:40:27So now they have their chance to create their own miracle baby.
0:40:27 > 0:40:32But how? Well, living next door is Yang Yang, a male panda.
0:40:32 > 0:40:36Like wild pandas, they live separate lives most of the year,
0:40:36 > 0:40:39but all that changes when it's the mating season.
0:40:39 > 0:40:45Yang Yang knows something is up, he can smell that Lun Lun is ready to conceive.
0:40:45 > 0:40:48The team are hoping that if they put the two of them together,
0:40:48 > 0:40:51they will do what should come naturally.
0:40:53 > 0:40:58Yang Yang is waiting patiently for the girl of his dreams.
0:40:58 > 0:41:02It's been over a year - he's full of hope and testosterone.
0:41:02 > 0:41:05ROMANTIC MUSIC PLAYS
0:41:05 > 0:41:09She's in the mood, he's in the mood, what can possibly go wrong?
0:41:25 > 0:41:29Hmm, maybe having an audience is putting him off,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32but it seems Yang Yang needs to work on his technique,
0:41:32 > 0:41:36and Lun Lun is rapidly losing patience.
0:41:36 > 0:41:38RECORD SCRATCHES
0:41:44 > 0:41:47Nope! After a whole year of waiting,
0:41:47 > 0:41:50poor old Yang Yang has blown it
0:41:50 > 0:41:55and he's given his marching orders by a deeply unimpressed Lun Lun.
0:41:55 > 0:41:59It's all rather humiliating and he makes a reluctant exit.
0:42:11 > 0:42:12But in the wild,
0:42:12 > 0:42:17Lun Lun would have made a choice between a number of different potential mates,
0:42:17 > 0:42:22so perhaps it's not THAT surprising that it didn't work out with Yang Yang.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25So nature's way didn't deliver,
0:42:25 > 0:42:27but there is another way.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30One last chance for Lun Lun.
0:42:32 > 0:42:34The clock is ticking.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37Now remember, Lun Lun is only fertile for 36 hours
0:42:37 > 0:42:40and nearly half of that has been used up already.
0:42:40 > 0:42:43It's time for a well rehearsed plan B,
0:42:43 > 0:42:47and the carefully assembled team of experts swings into action.
0:42:48 > 0:42:51But what exactly IS plan B?
0:42:51 > 0:42:55AI, Artificial insemination
0:42:55 > 0:42:57using Yang Yang's sperm.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00Among the team are some Chinese scientists
0:43:00 > 0:43:03from Chengdu Panda Breeding Centre.
0:43:03 > 0:43:08They're here to lend their expertise and make sure nothing goes wrong.
0:43:12 > 0:43:16Yang Yang's sperm is being examined to make sure it's of a high enough
0:43:16 > 0:43:20quality for the hugely important job that it needs to do.
0:43:20 > 0:43:24- It's good.- It's good? Good for AI?
0:43:24 > 0:43:27- Look in.- For AI?- Yes, you see.
0:43:28 > 0:43:31It's show time for Lun Lun.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42Everyone is hoping that they've got the timing exactly right.
0:43:42 > 0:43:46Everything went really good, as well as can be expected.
0:43:46 > 0:43:47Keep our fingers crossed!
0:43:48 > 0:43:52Her ordeal over, Lun Lun heads back to her enclosure,
0:43:52 > 0:43:55blissfully unaware that she's carrying the hopes
0:43:55 > 0:43:58of a huge and dedicated team inside her.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01So how will they know if they've succeeded?
0:44:01 > 0:44:05There are no reliable tests for panda pregnancy.
0:44:05 > 0:44:09The baby bulge will be too small to show through all that fur,
0:44:09 > 0:44:11and to top it all, pandas have an unusual pregnancy
0:44:11 > 0:44:16which can last anything from three to six months!
0:44:16 > 0:44:19Looks like yet another agonising wait for Ken and the team
0:44:19 > 0:44:23because they will only know they've got it right
0:44:23 > 0:44:25if and when she produces the baby.
0:44:27 > 0:44:30At Whipsnade, the atmosphere couldn't be more different.
0:44:31 > 0:44:36After the relief of the successful birth, everyone is delighted
0:44:36 > 0:44:40as a little chap makes his first foray into the outside world.
0:44:40 > 0:44:45Everything's going really well at the moment, the calf's growing every day
0:44:45 > 0:44:47probably putting on about one or two kilos a day.
0:44:47 > 0:44:51Suckling well. Doing everything well.
0:44:51 > 0:44:54We've actually managed to weigh him
0:44:54 > 0:44:57and his weight was an incredible 83.9 kilos,
0:44:57 > 0:44:59which is over 13 stone!
0:44:59 > 0:45:03Which is massive, even as rhino calves go.
0:45:03 > 0:45:06We've also given him a name, he's called Ajang,
0:45:06 > 0:45:10which means enormous in Nepalese, which is very appropriate for him.
0:45:10 > 0:45:15This is a massive event because there are so few of these animals.
0:45:15 > 0:45:17There's only about 150 in captivity.
0:45:18 > 0:45:22To have a new blood line and a new birth means..
0:45:23 > 0:45:26..we are increasing the numbers in captivity
0:45:26 > 0:45:30should anything happen to the wild population in the future.
0:45:31 > 0:45:35With his mum at his side, Ajang goes from strength to strength.
0:45:37 > 0:45:40But what about the two motherless baby tamarins in Jersey
0:45:40 > 0:45:43rejected and attacked by their real mum?
0:45:44 > 0:45:48Will the dedication of Dom, their human surrogate, be enough to secure their future?
0:45:51 > 0:45:56It's 10 days since the tamarins were born so it's time to catch up and see how they're doing.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59But it's also time to look into the future, to look forward,
0:45:59 > 0:46:00what's going to happen to them?
0:46:00 > 0:46:06They can't go back to their real mother because shockingly she'll probably kill them,
0:46:06 > 0:46:09but they also can't stay with their human minders for too long because
0:46:09 > 0:46:12they'll get confused and start to think they're little people!
0:46:12 > 0:46:15So here's the problem -
0:46:15 > 0:46:20how can these little babies turn into real tamarins?
0:46:26 > 0:46:29Fortunately, Dom has a plan.
0:46:30 > 0:46:34If these tiny orphans are going to make it, and eventually become part
0:46:34 > 0:46:38'of a larger breeding group they have to find a way to integrate them.'
0:46:38 > 0:46:39Just tiny!
0:46:39 > 0:46:42'Dom has attached a separate small cage
0:46:42 > 0:46:45'to the side of a larger group cage.'
0:46:45 > 0:46:49The babies can spend most of the day here and they can hear,
0:46:49 > 0:46:52and they can smell other tamarins,
0:46:52 > 0:46:55They've started to talk to each other already, which is fantastic.
0:46:55 > 0:47:00Enter prospective foster parents Elsa and Flash.
0:47:00 > 0:47:04Dom's hoping that eventually these two experienced parents
0:47:04 > 0:47:08will adopt the two tiny tamarins and raise them as their own.
0:47:08 > 0:47:10Incredibly, Elsa only has one arm,
0:47:10 > 0:47:13but she's managed to raise eight babies!
0:47:13 > 0:47:15She's a brilliant mum.
0:47:15 > 0:47:19Flash and Elsa have proven to be fantastic parents in the past
0:47:19 > 0:47:22so they are the ideal foster parents.
0:47:22 > 0:47:25It's important that they don't live a human life for the first few weeks.
0:47:25 > 0:47:29They'd start to think they were little humans?
0:47:29 > 0:47:31Yes, and we've taken away our care
0:47:31 > 0:47:34so that'll give them the best possibility to be normal tamarins.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47Dom and his team are keeping a very close eye on developments.
0:47:48 > 0:47:52The twins are growing fast and getting more and more active.
0:47:52 > 0:47:54In the wild, they'd still be clinging to Mum,
0:47:54 > 0:47:56so they've actually become independent
0:47:56 > 0:47:59much faster than normal tamarins.
0:47:59 > 0:48:03Now Dom's decided the twins are ready to face a crucial milestone.
0:48:03 > 0:48:07They've been interacting with their foster carers Flash and Elsa
0:48:07 > 0:48:11through the wire of the cage for long enough.
0:48:11 > 0:48:14Both sides seem very keen to get closer,
0:48:14 > 0:48:17so it's time to let them meet, in the flesh.
0:48:17 > 0:48:19So, this is the moment of truth.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22I'm just going to gently open this door and probably nothing
0:48:22 > 0:48:26will happen straight away, but we're all set ready to intervene.
0:48:26 > 0:48:30There's a chance the adults will attack them, so Dom and Gale have their fingers crossed.
0:48:35 > 0:48:40Interestingly it's foster dad Flash who's the first one in.
0:48:40 > 0:48:45He immediately tries to reassure the babies that he means no harm.
0:48:45 > 0:48:46The team are delighted.
0:48:46 > 0:48:51- They want to play with him, but... - Aw. Just touched the shoulder.
0:48:55 > 0:48:58He's doing movements now - he wants them to climb on to him.
0:48:58 > 0:49:03The kids are a bit worried because they don't want to be picked up.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06This is, you know, absolutely fantastic.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11A few minutes later and Elsa comes in.
0:49:11 > 0:49:14She too seems relaxed and happy with the babies.
0:49:16 > 0:49:22These brief visits will continue until Dom is confident that the babies are safe and happy.
0:49:27 > 0:49:30It's now been almost a month since the fostering process began
0:49:30 > 0:49:35and I'm back to see if the daily visits have been going well,
0:49:35 > 0:49:37and it turns out Dom has a surprise for me.
0:49:37 > 0:49:41The babies are now living with the adults full time,
0:49:41 > 0:49:44a fantastic result for everyone.
0:49:44 > 0:49:50It must have been an incredibly tense moment when you introduced the two little ones for the first time?
0:49:50 > 0:49:51Totally.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54It was very, very, very worrying.
0:49:54 > 0:49:57It's a moment it could all be finished then,
0:49:57 > 0:50:00all those hours could be gone in an instant.
0:50:00 > 0:50:04- Cos they could've attacked them? - Yeah. They could've acted the same as Eulalia.
0:50:04 > 0:50:08We monitor it really closely and when we opened the door,
0:50:08 > 0:50:11- Flash went in and it was fine, absolutely fine.- Immediately?
0:50:11 > 0:50:15Yeah, and he's been a fantastic foster dad
0:50:15 > 0:50:20and we know that tamarins' default setting is to care for babies.
0:50:20 > 0:50:22What are they called now? You've given them names.
0:50:22 > 0:50:25They are called Marcella and Jefferson.
0:50:25 > 0:50:28And they've got their own name tags now.
0:50:28 > 0:50:33Marcella and Jefferson. Now I can't help noticing, Dom,
0:50:33 > 0:50:35that they're a tiny bit scruffy!
0:50:35 > 0:50:39Is that just the way that tamarin teenagers are, or...?
0:50:39 > 0:50:43Not usually, these look like they've been dragged through a hedge,
0:50:43 > 0:50:46but it's because we're hands off now,
0:50:46 > 0:50:50we can't wash them like we did before, and the thing is they're not used
0:50:50 > 0:50:53to being groomed by adult tamarins, so they're a bit waaargh!
0:50:53 > 0:50:57If Elsa and Flash try to groom them, they're like,
0:50:57 > 0:50:58"Don't touch me!"
0:50:58 > 0:51:01What will the future now hold for these two,
0:51:01 > 0:51:03for Jefferson and Marcella?
0:51:03 > 0:51:07Hopefully they'll become fantastic parents, that's what we want them to be.
0:51:09 > 0:51:12You know, we know the situation in the wild is not looking too great,
0:51:12 > 0:51:17so we can't really start any sort of reintroduction programme yet.
0:51:17 > 0:51:20So we want these animals to successfully breed
0:51:20 > 0:51:23and be great rearing tamarins.
0:51:24 > 0:51:26So, as far as the tamarins are concerned,
0:51:26 > 0:51:29are you a happy man?
0:51:29 > 0:51:33I'm very, very happy. This has been a perfect result, absolutely perfect.
0:51:33 > 0:51:38These two tiny and rather tatty tamarins are proof of Dom's expertise.
0:51:41 > 0:51:45Pied tamarins are still the most threatened primates in South America,
0:51:45 > 0:51:48but Marcella and Jefferson are keeping hope alive.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55Well, it's December
0:51:55 > 0:51:58and it's been eight month since I was last here in Atlanta.
0:51:58 > 0:52:02And back then, I was hoping against hope that our panda,
0:52:02 > 0:52:06our female panda Lun Lun, would get pregnant.
0:52:06 > 0:52:11But we waited and waited and waited, it just wasn't happening
0:52:11 > 0:52:15and in the end the scientists, the vets, the keepers, all of us
0:52:15 > 0:52:18had pretty much given up hope
0:52:18 > 0:52:21that Lun Lun would have a baby this year.
0:52:21 > 0:52:26Turned out we were all completely wrong!
0:52:26 > 0:52:30True to form Lun Lun waited until she was good and ready
0:52:30 > 0:52:32and on November the 3rd,
0:52:32 > 0:52:35finally gave birth to an adorable little son!
0:52:42 > 0:52:46After all his work, I have just one question for Big Ken.
0:52:46 > 0:52:48Ken, I've got to ask you,
0:52:48 > 0:52:51were you present at the moment of birth?
0:52:51 > 0:52:54I was, sitting about five feet away from her while watching it all.
0:52:54 > 0:52:56Right here?
0:52:56 > 0:53:00Yeah, I was sitting right over here in this den adjacent to this one,
0:53:00 > 0:53:02sitting on the scales.
0:53:13 > 0:53:15When she goes through labour,
0:53:15 > 0:53:18she gets up, she goes down,
0:53:18 > 0:53:21but she usually has this one bleat sound that she makes
0:53:21 > 0:53:24that we recognise when she's getting close.
0:53:24 > 0:53:27PANDA BLEATS INTERMITTENTLY
0:53:32 > 0:53:37Then we heard her make it, and she walked around the den and we knew something was close.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40These guys gathered around the monitors and I was
0:53:40 > 0:53:43sitting in there. I didn't move once I heard her
0:53:43 > 0:53:47make the noise, then she stopped, and you started to see
0:53:47 > 0:53:50the contractions begin and you knew it was coming.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11PIERCING CRIES
0:54:12 > 0:54:16The piercing cries from the baby reassure an anxious Ken
0:54:16 > 0:54:18that it's alive and well.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25Healthy panda baby, Mummy taking care of it.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28Baby pandas are tiny -
0:54:28 > 0:54:32just six inches long and around five ounces at birth.
0:54:32 > 0:54:36And I suppose when the baby is born it's got to be kept warm.
0:54:36 > 0:54:39It can't regulate its own body temperature, it doesn't have any hair,
0:54:39 > 0:54:43so for about the first three weeks, she has to hold that baby tight at all times.
0:54:43 > 0:54:47She can't put it down for more than a minute or else it's going to get hypothermia.
0:54:47 > 0:54:49How long does she do that for?
0:54:49 > 0:54:53- Three weeks to a month she's got to hold that baby constantly.- She's doing it now.
0:54:53 > 0:54:56She's just never letting that baby go.
0:54:56 > 0:54:58For that first week,
0:54:58 > 0:55:00she doesn't eat, she doesn't drink.
0:55:00 > 0:55:04All her energy is spent taking care of that foetus.
0:55:04 > 0:55:05Just taking care of the foetus, wow.
0:55:05 > 0:55:07So is she being a good mum?
0:55:07 > 0:55:10- She looks pretty awesome to me. - She's a wonderful mum.
0:55:10 > 0:55:15We didn't have any hard feelings at all. She just picked up the baby and started doing her thing
0:55:15 > 0:55:19Dr Sam, do you actually... How can you actually check on the little one?
0:55:19 > 0:55:21Do you do that yourself?
0:55:21 > 0:55:26After Lun Lun starts leaving the cub by itself,
0:55:26 > 0:55:30when she goes to eat, we can actually close the den door
0:55:30 > 0:55:35and we can go in once a week, we get our hands on the cub.
0:55:35 > 0:55:39It's an opportunity for the team to take a whole series of measurements,
0:55:39 > 0:55:43including weight, growth rates, and so far so good.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48You're just checking that the cub is thriving, is doing well the whole time?
0:55:48 > 0:55:51- Once a week, you're just going to have that check?- Yes.
0:55:57 > 0:56:00A fantastic and very unexpected success story.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04- Absolutely, absolutely!- Fabulous.
0:56:06 > 0:56:08When I came here eight months ago,
0:56:08 > 0:56:11nothing had prepared me for the level of care,
0:56:11 > 0:56:16expertise, patience and attention to detail that it would take
0:56:16 > 0:56:18to create just one little panda.
0:56:18 > 0:56:22He's a real-life million-dollar baby.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30It's been a long, hard road,
0:56:30 > 0:56:35but they now know almost exactly how to make little panda babies.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38They worked out all the issues about artificial insemination
0:56:38 > 0:56:41and they know almost to the hour
0:56:41 > 0:56:44when a female panda's ready to conceive, and the little babies,
0:56:46 > 0:56:49..they know how to help them thrive and survive.
0:56:49 > 0:56:52And if a mother panda should give birth to twins,
0:56:52 > 0:56:57they've even worked out how to make absolutely certain both of the twins
0:56:57 > 0:56:58survive to adulthood.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01And also, they make sure pandas have plenty of fun.
0:57:03 > 0:57:07But there's one final question -
0:57:07 > 0:57:11will this little panda, or maybe some of his babies,
0:57:11 > 0:57:14ever go back to the wild?
0:57:14 > 0:57:17And the honest answer is nobody knows.
0:57:17 > 0:57:22That IS the ambition and it would be fantastic if it happened,
0:57:22 > 0:57:28because panda habitat would also be home to thousands upon thousands
0:57:28 > 0:57:30of other plants and animals.
0:57:31 > 0:57:33But one thing I do know...
0:57:35 > 0:57:41..if panda's went extinct in the wild and we hadn't worked out how to breed them in captivity,
0:57:41 > 0:57:46then no-one would even be talking about returning pandas to the wild
0:57:46 > 0:57:49because they wouldn't exist
0:57:49 > 0:57:52and that surely would be a shame.
0:57:56 > 0:58:02Lun Lun's baby boy, along with Ajang the Indian rhino
0:58:02 > 0:58:05and the twin Pied Tamarins Marcella and Jefferson,
0:58:05 > 0:58:10are just four additions to the modern day Ark being created around the world
0:58:10 > 0:58:19to offer a beacon of hope in the battle to safeguard the future of our endangered wildlife.
0:58:19 > 0:58:23Next time, I try to get a glimpse of the illusive Amur leopard,
0:58:23 > 0:58:27the rarest big cat on Earth. Meeting three lonely gorillas
0:58:27 > 0:58:29desperately seeking love,
0:58:29 > 0:58:33and journeying back to the wild with some orphaned baby elephants.
0:58:52 > 0:58:55Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:55 > 0:58:58E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk