The Hunger Game World's Sneakiest Animals


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Meet the Steller's jay.

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What a bird!

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At the moment, he does have a bit of a problem.

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It's winter, and food is scarce.

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The garden bird table is a lifeline for this jay...

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..only dozens of other birds

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are making the most of this feast,

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so the food is not going to last very long.

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But our Steller's jay here has a very clever plan.

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In fact, I'd go so far as to say it was downright devious.

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A red-shouldered hawk -

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it's the neighbourhood's top predator.

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Just the sound of its distinctive call

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sends all these birds scattering.

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The jay knows this.

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And it's about to do something that I've never seen or heard before.

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JAY IMITATES HAWK

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One jay has learned to pull off a pitch-perfect copy

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of the hawk's call.

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With the other birds tricked,

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he's got all of the food to himself.

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Look at that!

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That's nature at its most devious.

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And it turns out, the sneaky Steller's jay

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isn't the only one tricking other animals to get itself a meal.

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All across the world, animals face the same dilemma -

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find food or die.

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It really is that simple.

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And of course, there's no guarantee

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of where their next meal is coming from.

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So what can animals do to tip the balance in their favour?

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Would they lie, cheat and deceive one another

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just to get an advantage, just to survive?

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Oh, come on.

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Of course they would.

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Join me as I meet the world's sneakiest animals,

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who'll do whatever it takes to grab themselves a meal.

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The rainforest...

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..where a supremely sneaky animal faces a real challenge.

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The one thing that's apparent in a rainforest like this

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is that you're surrounded by insects.

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Just listen. OVERLAPPING CHIRPING

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There's a vast diversity of these animals living here...

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..which would make you think that if you were an insect predator,

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you'd have things pretty much your own way.

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But I've got to tell you, that isn't necessarily so.

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Lightning-fast and agile, flying insects

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are some of the hardest things to catch on the planet.

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Though one thing is guaranteed to attract their attention...

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..flowers.

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They draw in insects from far and wide

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with their promise of nectar and pollen.

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And one predator exploits this to the full.

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Meet the mantis.

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Or to give it its full name,

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the orchid mantis.

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It's very aptly named, too.

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Look at it. Its whole body

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is the perfect mimic of a flower.

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To fool its prey, this entire animal's body

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is sculpted into a deceitful disguise.

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Combined with pin-sharp vision

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and a ninja-fast strike,

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it makes this mantis a very deadly ambush predator.

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But, you know, even with cover as good as this,

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the pressure is on.

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This mantis is sub-adult at the moment,

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which means that it's got to be right on top of its game.

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It's got to kill something every few days

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or it will simply starve to death.

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The problem is, the mantis relies on an insect visiting

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the specific flower that it's sitting on to make a strike.

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It's a waiting game which could take days.

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Ever since Victorian naturalists first discovered this insect,

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there's been a suspicion that there's something more going on.

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They suspected that the mantis was doing more than just waiting around

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in a clever disguise.

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The strike rate was just too high.

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So could the mantis somehow be attracting insects

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in its own right?

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James O'Hanlon is an expert in orchid mantis behaviour,

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and he's discovering there's far more to this predator

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than first meets the eye.

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We have a simple experiment set up.

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We have two posts in the ground.

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On our first post, we have a flower.

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Our second post, a small mantis.

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And what we're going to do is watch and see

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how many of the insects that are buzzing around here

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fly up and have a look at each of our posts.

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So which one do you want to watch?

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I'm going to gamble.

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I'm going to go with the mantis. Hit me with a notebook.

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BUZZING

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Hmm. The flower is certainly attracting attention.

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Come on, mantis!

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-That's a visit.

-Yeah.

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That was a visit. Excellent.

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Right. I'm off the mark.

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'After a slow start...' And another!

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'..the mantis is making headway.'

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FLUTTERING

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Oh! Did you see that?

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Fantastic.

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I've not been watching your flower, but the mantis is doing rather well.

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-Pretty impressive!

-It is!

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But aside from the count,

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we've already seen something absolutely remarkable.

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Because these bees are visiting the mantis, like that -

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and it's just caught another one!

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The mantis is attracting insects independently of your flower.

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It doesn't need your flower.

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Those bees that are coming up to it think that it's a flower.

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I've done this experiment over and over again.

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More often than not, that little mantis is actually more attractive

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than the real flower.

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The mimic is better than the thing that it's mimicking.

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And that is absolutely astonishing.

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So what exactly is going on here?

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Well, we need to know how insects see the rainforest.

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Their eyes are highly sensitive to certain wavelengths of light,

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so to them, flowers glow like beacons in the jungle.

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James measured the brightness of these flowers

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and compared them to the mantis.

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And remarkably, he's discovered that this dazzling fake in the forest

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is a brighter stimulus than any flower.

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Tricked into visiting a deadly trap,

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there's no escape.

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The deception at work here is aggressive mimicry,

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in that the mantis is adopting a disguise, in this case a flower,

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to lure in its prey, and that is the key.

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It's the mantis and not the flower

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which is bringing in the insects which it can then predate.

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Not only is this creature exquisitely beautiful,

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it's remarkably ruthless,

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and in my opinion, totally amazing.

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BIRDSONG

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MUSIC: One Way Or Another by Blondie

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Across the world, animals have adapted their bodies in extreme ways

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to lure their prey.

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# I'm gonna get ya, get ya, get ya, get ya, one way or another

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# I'm gonna win ya

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# I'll get ya, I'll get ya... #

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In Hawaii,

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the carnivorous caterpillar has morphed into a predatory plant.

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# One way or another

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# I'm gonna get ya, I'll get ya

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# I'll get ya, get ya, get ya... #

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The bioluminescent bait of the deep-sea anglerfish

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tempts its prey.

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# One way or another

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# I'm gonna get ya, I'll get ya

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# I'll get ya, get ya, get ya... #

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And in caves in New Zealand,

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the glow worm, with its luminous tail and sticky secretions,

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has created a tantalising trap.

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# One way or another

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# I'm gonna get ya, I'll get ya

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# I'll get ya, get ya, get ya

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# One way or another... #

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This veritable rogues' gallery

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is the result of millions of years of artful adaptation,

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all in aid of catching the next meal.

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But changing the way you look isn't the only way of setting a trap.

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Out on the prairie, a new tenant

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has moved into a deserted den...

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..a burrowing owl...

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..and she has chicks just a few weeks old,

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and they are all hungry.

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They eat insects, and lots of them.

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CHICK CHIRPS

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The female spends every waking hour trying to find enough food.

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And the stakes, well, they're really high.

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You see, 96% of all chick deaths are down to starvation.

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CHICKS CHIRP

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But, luckily, there's a sneaky solution to this problem.

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Cattle graze across these grasslands.

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And what goes in...

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must come out.

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Baked by the sun, the cow dung is ready for collection.

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Could it really be dung for dinner?

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Of course not.

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But it could be considered a rather devious dinner party...

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..because the dung attracts some unsuspecting guests.

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Little do they know, it's them who are on the menu.

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CHIRPING

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And this is where it gets really clever,

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because little insects attract bigger prey.

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Superb.

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You see, instead of flying for miles to find food,

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now she just has to walk a few metres.

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And it's rich pickings for the whole family.

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All thanks to this very crafty trap.

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CHIRPING

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Autumn, and change is in the air.

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This time of year is also critical,

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as animals are preparing for the winter.

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And one species' survival is inextricably linked to these -

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conkers, sweet chestnuts, hazelnuts and acorns,

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because at the moment, they're quite literally going nuts for nuts.

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Meet the grey squirrel.

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This little nut is packed full of energy.

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Carbohydrate, fat, protein -

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all in all, there's somewhere between five and ten calories in here,

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which means that a cold, hungry squirrel

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will need about 20 of these to get through a winter's day.

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It's a very valuable commodity.

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So if you come along to a park where squirrels are used to people,

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you might be able to tempt them to take it out of your hand.

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Come on, then. Come on.

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Come on!

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Come on.

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HE CHUCKLES

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Magic.

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But that nut is not for eating today.

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Squirrels will cache around 3,000 nuts in different locations

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for the lean times ahead.

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And incredibly, they'll remember

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where up to 90% of them were buried.

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There's no denying that that is remarkable.

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But there's a problem, here in the park.

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You see, thieves are lurking.

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After all, why bother to find your own nuts and then hide them,

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when you could nick someone else's?

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Whilst our squirrel buries nuts essential for his survival,

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he's being watched.

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Nut safely stored, the squirrel departs the scene.

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And the onlooker moves in for the steal.

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Undeniably devious behaviour.

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So is there anything that these nut-hoarding squirrels can do

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to throw the thieves off of the scent?

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Well, it turns out that there is,

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because they've got some sneaky strategies of their own.

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Grey squirrels will dig up nuts they've already buried

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and then rebury them in a different place,

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throwing thieves off the scent.

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But I've got to tell you, it gets better,

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because there is one situation where our squirrel

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exhibits true deceptive genius.

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And it's something that will be familiar to anyone

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who's been in the audience with a street magician.

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You know the score.

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The ball goes into one cup.

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The other two are empty.

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The trick is to work out where the ball goes.

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The key to fooling his audience

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is timing and misdirection.

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Thanks very much, ladies and gentlemen.

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Just like the magician,

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the grey squirrel has mastered sleight of hand,

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so now it's time to see deception in action.

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OK. Here's our squirrel -

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nut in mouth, poised to bury.

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And here is the thief.

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He moves closer, for a better view.

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But look!

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Does our squirrel know that he's being watched?

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Either way, he carries on.

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From the thief's point of view,

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these are the actions of a squirrel burying a nut.

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But wait!

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It turns out that our squirrel has been faking it!

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When he spotted the thief, he opted for plan B - misdirection.

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The thief has only seen what our squirrel wanted him to see.

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He carried on digging,

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but he didn't deposit the nut -

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the ultimate sleight of hand.

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Oblivious to the trick,

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the thief heads towards the freshly dug hole, only to find...

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a freshly dug hole.

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Foiled!

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And with the coast clear,

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our squirrel is free to bury his nut in a new location,

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known only to him.

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For these squirrels, this park is a hotbed of theft and deception,

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and they're pulling every trick they can out of the book

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to find their nuts and then hide them.

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But here is the really interesting thing.

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They're not fooling another species -

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they're tricking one another.

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This is a case of deception and then counter-deception

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evolving at the same time.

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And the strategies that the hoarder and the pilferer have come up with

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make these little rodents

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one of THE most successful mammals on our planet.

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So that is not nuts.

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That's pure success.

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Sleight of hand helps sneaky squirrels get one up on each other.

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But there is one animal that uses devious and far darker tactics

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on the most vulnerable of their own kind.

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A millionaires' playground off the coast of California.

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And a male sea otter is cruising the harbour.

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To get his next meal, he's got a really despicable plan.

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It involves a female sea otter and her pup.

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The pup is just old enough to accompany her mother

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on foraging trips,

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giving the male an opportunity.

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He picks the perfect moment.

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Whilst the female is fishing,

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her precious pup is all alone at the surface,

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and vulnerable.

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When the mother surfaces...

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SHE SQUEAKS

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..she hears the cries of her youngster.

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SQUEAKING

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CALL-AND-RESPONSE SQUEAKING

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Our cunning male has kidnapped the baby.

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He knows the female will come to the rescue -

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and the ransom is always the same.

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In an underwater exchange,

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the female gives up the food she's just found to the male,

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and the pup is released unharmed.

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This is called "hostage behaviour", and it's surprisingly common.

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A deliberate manipulation of female otters,

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all to get food.

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Theft is sneaky, but ultimately, it's a successful strategy.

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But just how far are animals prepared to go?

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Now, it's one thing for animals to deceive,

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cheat and steal from one another to get themselves a decent meal,

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but I've heard about something else that might be even more remarkable.

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Oh, yes - they're cheating us humans.

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I give you the world's ultimate cheeky monkey...

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CLICKS

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..the long-tailed macaque.

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The Temple of Uluwatu...

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..home to a remarkable troop of these monkeys.

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With over 300 macaques here,

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they need a lot of food.

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But temple offerings and tourist scraps

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just aren't enough for these monkey mobsters.

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No, they've got their eyes on far more nutritious fare,

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and what they're doing to get it is downright criminal.

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There are plenty of monkeys about.

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But to see what they're getting up to, I need to blend in.

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I need to disguise myself...

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as a tourist.

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My camera is absolutely de rigueur.

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Sunglasses.

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What about this?

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Everyone seems to be using these things.

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Just not me, though.

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Think I'll just stick to the old mobile phone.

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HE SIGHS

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No, going too far.

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'Attention to the visitors,

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'please be careful in bringing sunglasses,

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'hats, jewellery and other valuables that can be taken by the monkeys.

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'Thank you for your attention.'

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These monkeys are expert thieves.

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Here we go, here we go, here we go.

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Oh, and there you go.

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Brazen, audacious,

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they've worked out exactly how to get what they want.

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Oh, dear, oh, dear.

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It's like taking candy from children, it really is.

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You're a bit of a gangster, aren't you?

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You fancy yourself as a bit of a...

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sunglasses hit man?

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Look at him, look! Here he goes. Here he goes!

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I've been undercover for about an hour.

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The monkeys have been stealing all sorts of stuff, flip-flops,

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sunglasses... I managed to hang on to my own. People's hats.

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I'm told they even nick their iPhones.

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The interesting thing is, though, they're taking all of this stuff

0:29:340:29:37

which is valuable to us humans, but they're not taking any food.

0:29:370:29:41

MONKEY SCREECHES

0:29:460:29:49

Well, obviously I spoke too soon about MY sunglasses.

0:29:490:29:52

But this daylight robbery is still all about food,

0:29:550:30:00

just not in the way that you'd ever expect.

0:30:000:30:03

So, to understand what they're up to,

0:30:070:30:10

I am giving them an irresistible opportunity.

0:30:100:30:13

Oh! PEOPLE GASP

0:30:190:30:21

You see, these monkeys want something in return for my phone.

0:30:230:30:29

They're notorious for one thing...

0:30:290:30:32

holding people to ransom.

0:30:320:30:35

OK, he's got my phone.

0:30:350:30:37

And there is a system by which I may be able to do this - bartering.

0:30:370:30:40

OK, that's what it thinks of peanuts.

0:30:450:30:47

Let's try something a little bit more valuable to it.

0:30:470:30:50

Maybe a bag of bananas?

0:30:500:30:52

It doesn't seem particularly interested in the bananas either,

0:30:520:30:56

does he? The last prize that I have is this...

0:30:560:30:58

protein in the form of eggs.

0:30:580:31:00

If anything is going to get my phone back, it's this.

0:31:000:31:04

Yes! HE LAUGHS

0:31:130:31:16

Ah!

0:31:160:31:18

HE SIGHS WITH RELIEF

0:31:180:31:20

Yes, yes, yes!

0:31:220:31:23

This is absolutely incredible.

0:31:250:31:27

You see, these monkeys are stealing the valuables that they know

0:31:270:31:32

that we want back.

0:31:320:31:34

And they're using them to barter with us for food.

0:31:340:31:37

They won't give up their loot,

0:31:420:31:44

not until they're offered the specific food that they want,

0:31:440:31:48

often the fare with the highest nutritional value.

0:31:480:31:52

As negotiation and bartering are so extraordinary in the animal world,

0:31:530:31:59

Jean-Baptiste and his research team

0:31:590:32:01

are studying how this complex deception develops.

0:32:010:32:05

But this bartering is very, very rare. It occurs only here,

0:32:050:32:08

perhaps another couple of places on Earth.

0:32:080:32:10

Why here and nowhere else?

0:32:100:32:12

Well, the main hypothesis with this group is that it might have

0:32:120:32:16

emerged from an inventor.

0:32:160:32:19

-That's usually...

-One animal?

-Probably.

0:32:190:32:21

Probably, that's how behavioural traditions typically emerge.

0:32:210:32:25

It's obviously nutritionally beneficial,

0:32:250:32:28

they get really something out of it.

0:32:280:32:30

So, in this particular population, it spread.

0:32:300:32:34

So young monkeys here are able to learn by looking at their elders,

0:32:340:32:37

particularly the older males, which are the most proficient at this?

0:32:370:32:40

With adult males, the entire procedure becomes very fast,

0:32:400:32:44

very successful on both sides

0:32:440:32:46

and, of course, the monkey gets its favourite food and the token,

0:32:460:32:51

the item, is returned generally in good condition, but not always.

0:32:510:32:55

Not always.

0:32:550:32:57

Yeah, one of them, I have to say, ate my sunglasses, it chewed them up.

0:32:570:33:01

But that was a youngster and it took them off my head

0:33:050:33:07

without me even noticing.

0:33:070:33:09

So very adept at stealing, but then it dashed up a tree and ate them.

0:33:090:33:12

So it hadn't learned to barter yet.

0:33:120:33:14

It takes time and practice to become a good player

0:33:140:33:18

at this particular game, definitely.

0:33:180:33:20

When it comes to getting food,

0:33:210:33:24

these monkeys have got it all sewn up.

0:33:240:33:27

Superb. Absolutely superb.

0:33:290:33:33

This has to be one of the most fascinating

0:33:330:33:36

and complex pieces of deceitful behaviour that we've seen.

0:33:360:33:40

Oi!

0:33:400:33:41

And you know what I really like about it?

0:33:410:33:44

For once, these cheeky monkeys have turned the tables on us humans.

0:33:440:33:48

It's us that's being held to ransom.

0:33:480:33:51

Of course, we love their anarchic behaviour,

0:33:530:33:55

even, EVEN, when we're the victims ourselves.

0:33:550:33:58

It really is quite wonderful.

0:33:580:34:00

In the case of this remarkable monkey heist,

0:34:080:34:11

we are willing to be part of the deception.

0:34:110:34:13

Yet most animals wouldn't tolerate being tricked

0:34:170:34:20

time and time again for their food.

0:34:200:34:23

That's certainly a problem that animals that practise deception face,

0:34:250:34:30

because if they want their con to work in the long-term,

0:34:300:34:33

they need to control it, to regulate it, to ensure that the victim

0:34:330:34:38

is blissfully unaware that it's ever been had.

0:34:380:34:41

Sounds simple, but it's not.

0:34:410:34:43

It's something that is very, very difficult to do.

0:34:430:34:47

But there is one animal that has perfected the art.

0:34:470:34:50

Here in South Africa, there's an animal that uses

0:35:020:35:06

the most extraordinary trick that I've ever heard of

0:35:060:35:09

to get itself a meal.

0:35:090:35:11

I give you the one and the only drongo.

0:35:110:35:15

The ultimate hustler in the hunger games.

0:35:170:35:21

He's one brazen bird.

0:35:210:35:23

Now, it might look warm and sunny here,

0:35:270:35:30

but it's winter and times are tough.

0:35:300:35:33

The flying insects that the drongo usually eats

0:35:350:35:38

just aren't around in these low temperatures.

0:35:380:35:41

The only grubs and insects here live underground.

0:35:420:35:45

And other animals are far better equipped to dig them up

0:35:470:35:50

than our drongo.

0:35:500:35:51

So how is he going to get this food?

0:35:540:35:58

This exquisite bird has evolved a very devious strategy

0:36:000:36:05

to deal with just this problem.

0:36:050:36:08

You see, its very survival rests on a knife edge,

0:36:080:36:12

so it's turned to a life of crime.

0:36:120:36:15

And although it may not look it, the drongo here...

0:36:170:36:21

..is a con artist of the highest order.

0:36:220:36:25

In the world of the con, an elaborate hustle plays out

0:36:270:36:31

between the player...

0:36:310:36:33

..the drongo...

0:36:340:36:36

..and the victim of the con, the mark.

0:36:370:36:41

And the mark, in this case, is another species of bird,

0:36:420:36:46

a sociable weaver.

0:36:460:36:49

And they feed on the ground, using their large powerful bills

0:36:490:36:52

to dig up the food.

0:36:520:36:54

But out in the open, they are vulnerable to predators.

0:36:540:36:58

And that's where the drongo comes in.

0:37:040:37:07

So what is the drongo offering the weaver?

0:37:070:37:11

It's offering it something that is the singularly most important

0:37:110:37:15

thing for a small bird like this...

0:37:150:37:18

protection.

0:37:180:37:20

When trouble looms, the drongo lets the weavers know about it.

0:37:290:37:34

DRONGO CALLS

0:37:340:37:36

..with an alarm call.

0:37:360:37:38

When the danger is gone...

0:37:410:37:43

DRONGO WHISTLES

0:37:450:37:47

..he gives them an all-clear call.

0:37:470:37:49

It looks to me as if the first stage of the con has been established,

0:37:580:38:03

in the sense that they are clearly trusting the drongo's call.

0:38:030:38:07

So far, so good.

0:38:100:38:11

But now let's see how this hustle actually plays out.

0:38:140:38:17

With the drongo on lookout duty, the weavers spend less time

0:38:210:38:25

worrying about predators and more time foraging...

0:38:250:38:28

..digging up that vital food.

0:38:310:38:33

DRONGO CALLS

0:38:400:38:42

The drongo's alarm call...

0:38:420:38:44

and that means danger.

0:38:440:38:46

But all is not what it seems.

0:38:480:38:50

That alarm call was, in fact, a fake.

0:38:520:38:56

There is no predator.

0:38:560:38:58

DRONGO CALLS

0:38:580:38:59

And with the weavers gone,

0:39:190:39:21

the drongo eats all the food they just dug up.

0:39:210:39:24

And then he gives the all-clear call.

0:39:340:39:38

DRONGO WHISTLES

0:39:380:39:40

Within minutes,

0:39:430:39:44

the drongo is back on duty and the weavers are none the wiser.

0:39:440:39:49

Now, he's got to keep his side of the bargain.

0:39:530:39:56

He's got to protect them from real predators...

0:39:560:39:59

..or they'll get wise to his protection racket.

0:40:000:40:03

But, in fact, the drongos' con gets much more sophisticated than this.

0:40:050:40:10

The drongos' con routine is actually so effective that they've learned

0:40:150:40:20

to employ it upon many other species of animal, including these guys...

0:40:200:40:26

..meerkats.

0:40:280:40:29

They're much smarter than the weavers,

0:40:340:40:36

so the drongo needs to raise his game.

0:40:360:40:39

Meerkats have their own lookout.

0:40:440:40:46

It's one that they entrust with their lives.

0:40:460:40:49

Yet, if there are predators about,

0:40:510:40:53

a second pair of eyes is always very useful.

0:40:530:40:57

And the drongo can exploit this.

0:40:570:40:59

That food has caught his eye.

0:41:010:41:03

DRONGO CALLS

0:41:030:41:05

He makes a fake alarm call.

0:41:050:41:08

It should send them running...

0:41:090:41:11

MEERKAT BARKS

0:41:130:41:15

But no, the meerkats aren't fooled that easily.

0:41:150:41:19

He needs another plan.

0:41:190:41:22

And what the drongo does now is really sneaky.

0:41:290:41:33

BARKING

0:41:390:41:41

From out of the blue, it's the sound of a meerkat alarm call.

0:41:410:41:46

But that was no meerkat.

0:41:470:41:49

DRONGO MIMICS A MEERKAT

0:41:500:41:52

BARKING

0:41:520:41:54

No, that was our drongo.

0:41:540:41:57

The sneaky devil has switched tactics

0:42:020:42:05

and, by mimicking the meerkats' own alarm call,

0:42:050:42:08

he tricks them completely

0:42:080:42:10

and gets all the food for himself.

0:42:100:42:13

The drongo is the ultimate con artist.

0:42:170:42:21

Depending on the situation,

0:42:210:42:24

he decides which of his repertoire of fake calls to use.

0:42:240:42:29

And this means his targets never get wise to his tricks.

0:42:290:42:34

When it comes to finding food,

0:42:350:42:37

this little bird has pulled off the most phenomenal con,

0:42:370:42:41

to the extent that, if it thinks for just a moment that the mark is going

0:42:410:42:46

to figure out the trick, it changes it to guarantee success.

0:42:460:42:50

That, you've got to admit, is remarkable

0:42:500:42:54

and surely makes this one of the most devious animals on our planet.

0:42:540:42:59

And I, for one, have developed a real admiration for the drongo.

0:42:590:43:04

What a bird...what a bird!

0:43:040:43:06

So, we've met the extraordinary animals that will lie,

0:43:110:43:15

cheat and steal their way to their next meal...

0:43:150:43:19

..sneaky strategies that ensure that they'll live to see another day.

0:43:220:43:27

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