0:00:35 > 0:00:37The very centre of Africa.
0:00:42 > 0:00:47And the centre of two million square miles of dense tropical rain forest.
0:01:00 > 0:01:07At first glance it seems deserted and eerily still,
0:01:07 > 0:01:10not an easy place to live.
0:01:12 > 0:01:13MONKEY CHATTERS
0:01:20 > 0:01:25But in fact, there is a greater concentration of animals here
0:01:25 > 0:01:27than anywhere else in Africa.
0:01:33 > 0:01:37And in this world, they must grab every opportunity.
0:01:38 > 0:01:43Competition is intense and unrelenting.
0:01:43 > 0:01:44TREE CREAKS
0:01:46 > 0:01:51Even the forest itself fights its corner with spines
0:01:51 > 0:01:53and poisonous sap.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Here, every living thing must fight for its space.
0:02:20 > 0:02:21Such beauty.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27But the flower is self-serving,
0:02:27 > 0:02:31enticing animals into an unwitting alliance.
0:02:31 > 0:02:33Stingless bees.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35They have to work hard.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39The forest flowers make them do so by rationing their nectar,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42forcing each bee to visit and so pollinate
0:02:42 > 0:02:45at least a thousand blooms each day.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04For the bees, it's worth the effort.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08They need the nectar to make honey, which they store in pots.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12It's so precious, they keep it hidden beneath the bark of a tree.
0:03:25 > 0:03:26But their secret is out.
0:03:26 > 0:03:27MONKEY HOWLS
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Nothing is safe in this forest.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58Chimpanzees love honey.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12She seems oblivious to danger.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15A fall from up here could be fatal.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20But she does need a bigger stick.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50Only a chimp has the ability to break into a stingless bees'
0:04:50 > 0:04:52nest as well hidden as this.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00Chimps are extremely intelligent,
0:05:00 > 0:05:03but none is born with the skill to use a tool.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18Youngsters like this one must learn by watching.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51She uses special tools, one after another,
0:05:51 > 0:05:53to get all the honey she can,
0:05:53 > 0:05:58and in a few minutes, she destroys what took the bees years to build.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11In the rainforest, nothing is safe.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18MONKEY HOWLS
0:06:18 > 0:06:20Here in the Congo,
0:06:20 > 0:06:25there can be as many as 500 trees crammed into every acre.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28In the battle for space,
0:06:28 > 0:06:32some will rise to over 60 metres high in just a few decades.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40In a valley like this,
0:06:40 > 0:06:44there could be close on 1,000 different species of tree.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51Up here, the crowns barely touch.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55Each tree seems to respect its neighbour's space.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03When they germinate down on the forest floor, young trees
0:07:03 > 0:07:05and plants are less restrained.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11But every new generation fights it out,
0:07:11 > 0:07:14in battles we can see by accelerating time.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20They must get light if they are to survive and they squeeze,
0:07:20 > 0:07:26crush and even slash one another in order to reach it.
0:07:46 > 0:07:51Despite the thick canopy above, some sunlight does filter through
0:07:51 > 0:07:54and allows a few low-light specialists
0:07:54 > 0:07:56to bloom near the forest floor.
0:08:25 > 0:08:30Down here there are animals, too, that seek out the sunlight.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42The forest's largest predator.
0:08:45 > 0:08:47A female rock python.
0:08:50 > 0:08:55Her body is five metres long, weighs 100 kilos and has 4,000 muscles
0:08:55 > 0:09:00that she uses to crush the life out of her victims.
0:09:02 > 0:09:07But right now, her need is not for food. It's for warmth.
0:09:14 > 0:09:19She finds a rare patch where a shaft of sunlight strikes the ground
0:09:19 > 0:09:21and she begins to bask.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27She's cold-blooded,
0:09:27 > 0:09:31so this is the only way she can raise the temperature of her body.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38But now she's becoming very warm indeed,
0:09:38 > 0:09:42more than ten degrees hotter than usual.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46At 40 degrees centigrade, she's in danger of killing herself.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53Just in time, she moves off.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03She disappears below ground.
0:10:13 > 0:10:19This is her nest and it's full of giant eggs.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26It's critical for the eggs development
0:10:26 > 0:10:28that they stay above 30 degrees.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38Here in this special filming burrow, she gently wraps her super-heated
0:10:38 > 0:10:43body around the eggs, passing onto them the warmth of the sun.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53She has done this every day for three months.
0:10:54 > 0:10:59The repeated heat stress on her body is so great it could be lethal,
0:10:59 > 0:11:03and at the very least, it will take three years for her to
0:11:03 > 0:11:07recover from incubating this one clutch of eggs.
0:11:29 > 0:11:34Her parchment-shelled eggs carry the pressed imprint of her scales -
0:11:34 > 0:11:38an indication of the strength of her embrace.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49At last, her efforts are rewarded.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11But the babies can't stay here. They must leave their sanctuary
0:12:11 > 0:12:14and find food in the tangled world above.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47They're over 60 centimetres long, already big enough to be
0:12:47 > 0:12:50a threat to the smaller inhabitants of the forest.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55But they are themselves vulnerable.
0:12:58 > 0:13:00Particularly to other snakes.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06But this one is their mother.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08Unusually for snakes,
0:13:08 > 0:13:12her maternal instincts continue for days after her eggs hatch.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27Even so, the forest is such a dangerous place that only
0:13:27 > 0:13:31one in 100 of her youngsters is likely to reach adulthood.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41Just occasionally,, the competition eases.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47A tree suddenly produces fruit.
0:13:51 > 0:13:55It's a magnet for the creatures of the canopy, and they, in turn,
0:13:55 > 0:13:59as they feed, create a bonanza for those on the ground below.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09CHIMP SNORTS
0:14:21 > 0:14:23A mob of red river hogs.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25HOGS SNORT AND SNIFF
0:14:26 > 0:14:30They have travelled over two miles through the thick undergrowth
0:14:30 > 0:14:32to get to this fall of fruit.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36But in the African forest, little comes for free.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42This feast is a bribe.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48The hogs will carry the seeds in their stomachs
0:14:48 > 0:14:51and deposit them far from the parent tree.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08Night falls.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14But one living community, which is neither animal nor plant
0:15:14 > 0:15:17continues its never ending work in the darkness.
0:15:24 > 0:15:29This ground is alive with fungi that digest all the litter
0:15:29 > 0:15:30discarded by the forest.
0:15:38 > 0:15:41Some rare fungi do so with enzymes that are luminous.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53The local people call them "chimpanzee fire."
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Without the fungi, the dead vegetation would pile so high
0:16:02 > 0:16:05the living trees would be submerged.
0:16:24 > 0:16:28Dawn, and a new day reveals just how much control the jungle
0:16:28 > 0:16:31has over its own environment.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38The forests of the Congo are the lungs of Africa.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41As they use the sunlight to build their tissues,
0:16:41 > 0:16:44so they release oxygen and water vapour into the air.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Each hectare of forest produces, as vapour,
0:16:54 > 0:16:57almost 190,000 litres of water a year.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03So much that it creates its own weather.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10Clouds blanket the forest, driving up the humidity and temperature.
0:17:12 > 0:17:14A storm is brewing.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21The Congo might be the richest part of Africa,
0:17:21 > 0:17:24but it's also the most violent.
0:17:39 > 0:17:40ROARING THUNDER
0:17:42 > 0:17:44BOOMING THUNDERCLAP
0:17:50 > 0:17:54Each year, as many as 100 million lightning bolts
0:17:54 > 0:17:55strike the forest.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58That's more than anywhere else in the world.
0:17:58 > 0:17:59BOOMING THUNDERCLAP
0:18:05 > 0:18:08And with the lightning comes the rain.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Up to 95% of the rain that falls here
0:18:20 > 0:18:22is generated by the forest itself.
0:18:31 > 0:18:33ROLLING THUNDER
0:18:39 > 0:18:44With the deluge will come change to the animals and to the forest.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52It's certainly perfect weather for frogs.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59The big storm is the cue for the most important climb
0:18:59 > 0:19:00of this frog's life.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04It's a male in search of a mate.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12But if he is to find one, he has to get to the top.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49He needs to keep his wits about him,
0:19:49 > 0:19:51for the rain also brings out hunters.
0:20:07 > 0:20:08Easy does it.
0:20:17 > 0:20:18The top, at last.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22But he's late to the party.
0:20:26 > 0:20:28FROGS CHIRP
0:20:33 > 0:20:38The higher a male sits, the further his voice will carry,
0:20:38 > 0:20:40so the top slots are worth fighting for.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20And he's won.
0:21:20 > 0:21:21He has the top place.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27So now it's time to sing.
0:21:27 > 0:21:28FROG CHIRPS
0:21:35 > 0:21:36FROG CHIRPS
0:21:36 > 0:21:40And a white-bellied female responds.
0:21:49 > 0:21:51They join together to mate.
0:21:59 > 0:22:04The loser will have to wait for the next storm before he sings again.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13She lays her eggs on a blade of a long leaf.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16And he, using his back legs, folds it over
0:22:16 > 0:22:20and glues its two edges together, shutting the eggs inside.
0:22:31 > 0:22:36This sealed nest is the safest place these leaf-folding frogs
0:22:36 > 0:22:39can find to protect their precious brood.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55Within days, the eggs are developing.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58The timing is perfect.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11The rain washes away the glue and the tadpoles slip
0:23:11 > 0:23:14out of the leaves into the growing puddles below.
0:23:27 > 0:23:33The rainy season reaches its peak and the ground has been transformed.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49The forest is flooded.
0:23:49 > 0:23:50It's a new world.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Fish swim in from the swollen streams,
0:23:59 > 0:24:04exploiting this newly created space, snapping up the drowning insects.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12This is a butterfly fish.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20A Congo bichir.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28The hunter becomes the hunted.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49The butterfly fish is too quick and leaps out of danger.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25The floods gradually drain back into the established waterways
0:25:25 > 0:25:28that run through the forest like blood vessels.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35There is so much water flowing through the forest that even
0:25:35 > 0:25:40little rivulets can carve out the soil around an ancient boulder.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59This is the home of one forest creature that has lived
0:25:59 > 0:26:03here in the Congo for 44 million years.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08Picathartes.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19These birds mate for life,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23and the male reaffirms the bond by displaying to the female.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29They're building a mud nest on the underside of the boulder's
0:26:29 > 0:26:32overhang, where it'll be protected from the rain.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37The female takes the lead.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11The male doesn't seem quite so skilful.
0:27:15 > 0:27:16Oh, dear.
0:27:18 > 0:27:20Luckily, she can put things right.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29Now she's collecting the soft furnishings.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35He's brought some, too, but he still can't get it right.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47In the end, the female seems satisfied with the finish -
0:27:47 > 0:27:48and just in time.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56THUNDER
0:28:05 > 0:28:09It might look as if he has been banished into the rain,
0:28:09 > 0:28:11but in fact, they're a great team.
0:28:13 > 0:28:16They share the incubation,
0:28:16 > 0:28:2012 hours on, 12 hours off, for the next three weeks.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29In due course, there are mouths to feed,
0:28:29 > 0:28:32and now the male must prove his worth.
0:28:47 > 0:28:50Worms are a good start, and he's doing well.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54But the chicks are insatiable.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05Fortunately, other things are on the menu.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24He might be a poor nest-builder.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27But he is redeeming himself now.
0:29:30 > 0:29:32Domestic bliss!
0:29:35 > 0:29:39Rocky overhangs are the only place where Picathartes
0:29:39 > 0:29:40will build their nest,
0:29:40 > 0:29:44so they owe their home to the stream that revealed
0:29:44 > 0:29:46the flank of the giant boulder.
0:29:52 > 0:29:55This stream and countless others like it
0:29:55 > 0:29:58merge to form the great rivers of Central Africa.
0:30:10 > 0:30:15More than 450 billion litres of rainwater,
0:30:15 > 0:30:18travelling down thousands of rivers, are heading west.
0:30:23 > 0:30:26The waters pick up speed as the rivers spill over the edge
0:30:26 > 0:30:31of the central plateau and create giant cascades of white water.
0:30:58 > 0:31:02The Kongou forces its way through the wildest, most untouched
0:31:02 > 0:31:05forest in the whole of Africa.
0:31:48 > 0:31:53The Congo river system drains an area the size of India,
0:31:53 > 0:31:56carrying the waters westwards towards the Atlantic.
0:31:58 > 0:32:01But before it reaches the coast, the rivers broaden,
0:32:01 > 0:32:03forcing back the forest.
0:32:08 > 0:32:11And here for the first time, there is space.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15Wide, flat and safe.
0:32:18 > 0:32:22These stretches of sand attract visitors from the coast.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27Skimmers searching for somewhere safe to settle.
0:32:39 > 0:32:44The lower mandible of their beaks is greatly elongated.
0:32:44 > 0:32:49They slice it through the surface of the water at ten metres a second.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56If and when it hits a tiny fish, it'll snap shut.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07But why come up river to these open sand flats?
0:33:13 > 0:33:15This is the answer.
0:33:15 > 0:33:16BABY BIRD CHIRPS
0:33:25 > 0:33:29But this nursery will not exist for long.
0:33:29 > 0:33:33Four weeks from now, it'll be under ten metres of water.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38If by then these chicks can't fly, they will drown.
0:33:43 > 0:33:47The problem for young skimmers is that when they hatch,
0:33:47 > 0:33:50the lower part of their beaks is the same size as the upper.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55While they wait for it to grow,
0:33:55 > 0:33:58they do their best to learn the skimming technique.
0:34:50 > 0:34:51THUNDER
0:35:05 > 0:35:08Open spaces may be safe,
0:35:08 > 0:35:11but they give no protection against the driving rain.
0:35:27 > 0:35:31These storms are a warning that the skimmers must soon leave.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36The river is already rising.
0:35:50 > 0:35:52This year the chicks get away in time.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17It's not just water that has the power to clear a way
0:36:17 > 0:36:18through the forest.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23There are animals that could do that too.
0:36:27 > 0:36:30They have created a network of pathways that criss-cross
0:36:30 > 0:36:33the lowland forest and run for thousands of miles
0:36:33 > 0:36:34in all directions.
0:36:37 > 0:36:39CACOPHONY OF ANIMAL SOUNDS
0:36:59 > 0:37:01These path-makers are surprisingly stealthy.
0:37:03 > 0:37:09But as night falls, there's a chance of catching a glimpse of them.
0:37:09 > 0:37:10ROAR
0:37:20 > 0:37:21ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:37:22 > 0:37:23ELEPHANT ROARS
0:37:27 > 0:37:30Forest elephants are very social creatures,
0:37:30 > 0:37:34but in dense jungle it's hard for them to find one another.
0:37:41 > 0:37:43These elephants are lucky.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49Here in the Congo, there is one special place
0:37:49 > 0:37:51where they can meet and mingle.
0:37:54 > 0:37:58A place that the elephants have created for themselves.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03And this is it.
0:38:11 > 0:38:12ROARING
0:38:18 > 0:38:23Dzanga-Bai, the legendary "village of elephants".
0:38:25 > 0:38:27BABY ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:38:30 > 0:38:32ELEPHANTS ROAR AND TRUMPET
0:38:39 > 0:38:44As well as being a place where they can enjoy one another's company,
0:38:44 > 0:38:49this great clearing satisfies another craving...
0:38:49 > 0:38:51for salts.
0:38:57 > 0:38:59ELEPHANTS TRUMPET
0:39:00 > 0:39:03The salts lie deep under the mud,
0:39:03 > 0:39:06so the elephants have got to mine for them,
0:39:06 > 0:39:10which they do with high pressure water jets from their trunks.
0:39:29 > 0:39:31The precious salts
0:39:31 > 0:39:36and the chance to socialise bring in elephants from far and wide.
0:39:40 > 0:39:46If an elephant is in the mood to mate, this is the place to be.
0:39:46 > 0:39:47ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:39:47 > 0:39:52This young bull is in a state of musth, a kind of sexual fury.
0:39:52 > 0:39:53ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:40:11 > 0:40:14He is so pumped up by hormones and the excitements of the crowd
0:40:14 > 0:40:17that he seems to have taken leave of his senses.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:40:41 > 0:40:44But will throwing his weight about impress the females?
0:40:44 > 0:40:46ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:40:47 > 0:40:51The cows only become fertile once every two years.
0:40:51 > 0:40:55So opportunities to encounter one at the right time are not common.
0:40:55 > 0:41:00This could well be the first chance this young male has had.
0:41:03 > 0:41:04He's lucky.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08And there are no older bulls around to put him in his place.
0:41:19 > 0:41:23Just for a moment, he is king of the bai.
0:41:33 > 0:41:34ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:41:53 > 0:41:56But his rule doesn't last for long.
0:41:57 > 0:41:59Enter another lusty bull.
0:42:02 > 0:42:04And a much bigger one.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17But the young bull is still charged up with testosterone.
0:42:18 > 0:42:21Bold or foolish, he's going into battle.
0:43:18 > 0:43:20He never really had a chance.
0:43:36 > 0:43:39Dzanga-bai is a huge clearing,
0:43:39 > 0:43:44but it's still just a speck in this vast expanse of green.
0:43:46 > 0:43:50Elephants might fell trees and carve pathways,
0:43:50 > 0:43:54but nothing natural can hold back this forest for ever.
0:43:57 > 0:44:00Nothing but the Atlantic Ocean.
0:44:18 > 0:44:22Loango Beach, on Africa's west coast -
0:44:22 > 0:44:25one of the last truly wild places
0:44:25 > 0:44:28where the Congo jungle meets the sea.
0:44:39 > 0:44:46Here, the forest gives way to sand, surf and fresh sea air.
0:44:46 > 0:44:53The cool breezes and warm sunlight
0:44:53 > 0:44:56entice creatures out of the dark forest.
0:44:56 > 0:44:58LOWING
0:44:58 > 0:45:00Forest buffalo appear first.
0:45:19 > 0:45:22And here in the surf...
0:45:22 > 0:45:23there are hippo.
0:45:32 > 0:45:37Spray blows in from the sea, making the grass salty.
0:45:51 > 0:45:55So here elephants can get their tasty salt
0:45:55 > 0:45:57without having to dig for it.
0:46:00 > 0:46:04This mother with her tiny baby can feel the sun on her back.
0:46:04 > 0:46:07Here, it's safe for her little one.
0:46:08 > 0:46:11They're free to eat in peace.
0:46:13 > 0:46:16The bulls have all the room they need.
0:46:16 > 0:46:18So there is less risk of a fight.
0:46:32 > 0:46:36Everyone, from gorillas to forest hogs,
0:46:36 > 0:46:39ventures out to relax on the beach.
0:46:39 > 0:46:41BOAR GRUNT
0:47:15 > 0:47:18But the forest creatures can't stay out here forever.
0:47:23 > 0:47:25Despite everything -
0:47:25 > 0:47:29the intense competition, the threats, the darkness -
0:47:29 > 0:47:35they need their forest, just as their forest needs them.
0:47:37 > 0:47:38ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:48:03 > 0:48:05The Congo rainforest.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08A four-day journey to the heart of Africa.
0:48:11 > 0:48:14Once the plane leaves, you're on your own.
0:48:16 > 0:48:20This expedition planned to film two of the Congo's best-kept secrets.
0:48:20 > 0:48:22But to even find them,
0:48:22 > 0:48:26the crew would have to work very hard indeed.
0:48:26 > 0:48:28You might as well be on a different planet
0:48:28 > 0:48:30coming to a place like this, Planet Congo.
0:48:34 > 0:48:36Mysterious...
0:48:37 > 0:48:39..difficult...
0:48:39 > 0:48:41complex...
0:48:41 > 0:48:43challenging.
0:48:45 > 0:48:48'You know, everything's trying to bite you.'
0:48:49 > 0:48:50Suck your blood.
0:48:53 > 0:48:57It's like being tickled by a million feathers at the same time.
0:48:57 > 0:48:59HE LAUGHS
0:48:59 > 0:49:00HE SIGHS
0:49:06 > 0:49:10The insects might be torture, but that's the least of their worries.
0:49:13 > 0:49:17The only way to get deep into the jungle is to follow these trails.
0:49:18 > 0:49:22Trails made by dangerous forest elephants.
0:49:23 > 0:49:27'Well, the first thing you need to know about the forest elephant is,
0:49:27 > 0:49:29'you don't want to meet one.'
0:49:29 > 0:49:32Cos running away can elicit a charge,
0:49:32 > 0:49:35'and it could be exactly the wrong thing to do.'
0:49:36 > 0:49:40Our team are completely dependent on their Bayaka guides for safety.
0:49:44 > 0:49:46WHISPERS:
0:49:50 > 0:49:54But it's these same forest elephants that James has come to film.
0:49:54 > 0:49:56And just to make the challenge harder,
0:49:56 > 0:49:59he's here to film them in the dark.
0:50:01 > 0:50:04Nobody knows exactly what they get up to at night -
0:50:04 > 0:50:07they haven't been filmed like this before.
0:50:10 > 0:50:13I couldn't rig this place if the Bayaka weren't here.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16Watching my back, really.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19James needs to operate the remote cameras
0:50:19 > 0:50:21from somewhere out of the elephants' reach.
0:50:27 > 0:50:30A tree platform seems like the best option.
0:50:35 > 0:50:38Apparently, they have very big elephants round here.
0:50:38 > 0:50:41They want us to put it a bit higher, so...
0:50:41 > 0:50:42I think I'll do what they say.
0:50:44 > 0:50:46But no-one wants to stay out at night
0:50:46 > 0:50:48and help James with the filming.
0:50:58 > 0:51:01So James will be alone until morning.
0:51:01 > 0:51:04If anything goes wrong, he's on his own.
0:51:04 > 0:51:06If they really wanted to, they could push these trees over.
0:51:06 > 0:51:09I can't imagine that's going to be an issue.
0:51:11 > 0:51:13As James settled down for the night,
0:51:13 > 0:51:17he's got no idea of the trouble that's coming his way.
0:51:26 > 0:51:27What's going on?
0:51:27 > 0:51:3220 miles away, Mark MacEwen is also up in the middle of the night.
0:51:32 > 0:51:36The animal he's after is proving impossible to find.
0:51:36 > 0:51:37Ah...
0:51:38 > 0:51:43So we get up in the darkness and we walk through the jungle at night,
0:51:43 > 0:51:46hoping to hear the sound of cracking branches
0:51:46 > 0:51:49or leaves moving up in the trees.
0:51:49 > 0:51:52That means chimpanzees are stirring in the treetops,
0:51:52 > 0:51:55and Mark is here to film chimps hunting for honey.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00There's one chimp in particular he needs to find -
0:52:00 > 0:52:03a teenager with a very sweet tooth,
0:52:03 > 0:52:06known to go further in the pursuit of a bees' nest than any other.
0:52:11 > 0:52:15I've spent six days walking,
0:52:15 > 0:52:21probably the equivalent of a half marathon every day in 100% humidity,
0:52:21 > 0:52:24and about 95 degrees in the shade.
0:52:24 > 0:52:27And we just can't find our chimpanzee.
0:52:30 > 0:52:34Time is ticking away, and Mark is running out of filming days.
0:52:40 > 0:52:43At the moment, I just need some good luck.
0:52:43 > 0:52:45We've come an awfully long way to get this sequence.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48We've got probably 10, 12 days left.
0:52:50 > 0:52:51But it's hard work at the moment.
0:52:51 > 0:52:56All Mark can do is persevere, and hope for a break.
0:53:02 > 0:53:04But not all the forest creatures are so shy.
0:53:06 > 0:53:09Perched high in his tree, James Aldred is waiting patiently
0:53:09 > 0:53:11for the elephants to come in.
0:53:13 > 0:53:15GROWLING
0:53:16 > 0:53:19At last, the elephants are here,
0:53:19 > 0:53:21but they're behaving strangely.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32(He knows something's not quite right.)
0:53:32 > 0:53:36The elephants seem agitated.
0:53:43 > 0:53:45They just want to get rid of you.
0:53:47 > 0:53:49One begins to thump the tree with its head.
0:53:49 > 0:53:52CRASHING
0:53:52 > 0:53:54James has no option but to weather the attack.
0:53:57 > 0:53:59CRASHING
0:53:59 > 0:54:01"Let's lean forward and keep head-butting,
0:54:01 > 0:54:03"keep head-butting, keep head-butting."
0:54:06 > 0:54:08Suddenly, the cameras cut out.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13And James is left in complete darkness.
0:54:16 > 0:54:21After three weeks searching, Mark has lost nearly two stone in weight,
0:54:21 > 0:54:24but he hasn't given up.
0:54:24 > 0:54:27He can't afford to put down his camera for a second.
0:54:29 > 0:54:32Suddenly, the guide spots the honey hunter.
0:54:32 > 0:54:34This is it.
0:54:51 > 0:54:52(Where is she?)
0:54:52 > 0:54:54(She's inside the tree.)
0:54:59 > 0:55:02Just for some honey, she's risking her life.
0:55:02 > 0:55:03It's amazing.
0:55:23 > 0:55:25'Well, I think I just couldn't stop smiling'
0:55:25 > 0:55:29for several days after filming. The relief was just unbelievable.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42Back at the camera platform, James has had a long night.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48For over four hours, the elephant tried to shake him out of the tree.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56Got down this morning when the Bayaka came to collect me,
0:55:56 > 0:55:59went to look at the camera, and he'd pulled it out of the tree,
0:55:59 > 0:56:01and he'd chewed through the power cable.
0:56:02 > 0:56:06He must have gotten a bit of a shock, I mean only 12 volts, but...
0:56:06 > 0:56:09Serves him right, quite honestly. HE LAUGHS
0:56:09 > 0:56:13But at least we got a shot of him before he trashed the camera.
0:56:13 > 0:56:14HE LAUGHS
0:56:14 > 0:56:15Silver lining.
0:56:17 > 0:56:21Despite this bumpy start, the elephants soon got used to James,
0:56:21 > 0:56:24and James got used to the elephants.
0:56:24 > 0:56:28Filming here was never going to be easy,
0:56:28 > 0:56:32but we were soon able to reveal the night life of forest elephants
0:56:32 > 0:56:34like never before.
0:56:35 > 0:56:37GROWLING
0:56:51 > 0:56:55Next time, Africa's Great Cape.
0:56:58 > 0:57:03Where a land of mountains and deserts is flanked by two coasts.
0:57:07 > 0:57:13Only in this part of Africa do powerful oceanic forces combine
0:57:13 > 0:57:15in such a riotous explosion of life.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd