[dramatic orchestral music playing] [male narrator] All the millions
of animal species on Earth... are armed with
a weapon of some kind. Deployed to catch their prey... evade a hunter... or secure a mate. This weaponry gives animals
the edge they need to endure. Finely-tuned over
millions of years of evolution, only the strongest
contenders remain fighting, in the battle for survival. [dramatic music continues] Nowhere else are animals
more exposed in their struggle... Than on vast open plains
and blistering deserts. Out here there is nowhere to hide. From the elements... and from each other. The arena of some
of nature’s biggest battles... And fiercest competitors... In the world’s great animal arms race. -[insects trill]
-[bird chirps] [ethereal music playing] [grunts] A female cheetah on the prowl. Her weapon is extreme speed. With a slight build, flexible spine,
long legs and huge heart and lungs... her top speed is
93 kilometres per hour. The fastest hunter on land. Yet out in the open even
she has little hope of success. [bird screeches] Her home is the vast plains
of the African savannah. Here, prey is plentiful but they
can detect threats from miles away. And are either equipped
to fight, or built to flee. Predators cannot rely
on physical prowess alone. They also need a game plan. [ethereal music continues playing] First, the cheetah uses the tall,
summer grass as cover. Her target is a nearby
herd of Thomson’s gazelle... Her favourite prey. Yet the gazelle are in an open patch. Armed with acute hearing and sharp noses,
they’re on the lookout for trouble. If spooked, they can take off at
speeds up to 77 kilometres an hour. Slower than a cheetah,
but only over a short distance. The hunter can maintain her
top speed for just ten seconds. So she must inch closer. Fifty metres out from the gazelle,
she enters the strike zone. [dramatic music playing] Not even close. More weapons are deployed for
the battles between predator and prey, than for any other event
in the natural world, but one side always has to lose. And surprisingly,
it's usually the hunters. Soon the cheetah will be desperate... because she has a new
generation of warriors to feed. Her cubs are only three weeks old,
and still completely dependent on her. It will take two years to fully train
them up to competent hunters. A huge investment that will
take its toll on their mother. Many predators put extraordinary
amounts of time and energy, into preparing their
young for the battlefield. The animals they prey on, however, must be ready to run for their
lives in a matter of minutes. [ethereal music playing] Within an hour of birth,
all hoofed animals are up and walking. The urge to keep up
with the herd is strong, for on the African plains there
is always safety in numbers. It's a defensive strategy, which drives some of the largest
gatherings of animals on the planet. A herd creates confusion
during an ambush, and minimises the risk of any
one individual coming under attack. Even elephants, the largest land
animals in the world, form groups. Especially to protect their young. Zebra foals are raised
in tightly-knit herds, fiercely protected
by a dominant stallion. Armed with bone-crushing kicks... and a ferocious bite... stallions will not hesitate to attack
hyenas and other threats to their harem. These pre-emptive strikes are
often the best form of defence. However, hyenas are not the most
formidable hunters on the open plains. [ethereal music playing] A lioness, the undisputed queen
of the African savannah. Weighing in at 180 kilos she’s not
only the largest African carnivore, she has one weapon that
makes her almost unstoppable. [sinister music playing] She hunts in a group. Lions are the only big cats
to consistently hunt in teams. As a unit, they saunter across the plains
provoking fear amongst the enemy ranks. [zebras barking] The zebra pull together. A shield wall of hooves and
strong teeth protecting a foal. [dramatic music playing] But they must hold their nerve. This is why lions hunt as a team...
to intimidate. With the herd spooked,
the lions separate. One will lead the final charge while the
others form a cordon around the target. [dramatic music intensifies] -[lion roars]
-[zebra yelps] [growls softly] Lions succeed due to a combination
of brute force and teamwork. The whole pride comes
together to share the spoils. They can gorge on up to a quarter their
own body weight if left undisturbed, so they share food grudgingly. [ethereal music playing] Far from the bounties
of Africa's rich plains, is the world's driest continent
outside of Antarctica... Australia. Its vast arid interior,
known as the outback, covers a land mass larger than
the entire European union. There is little food
on these open plains. Only one mammal is able to survive
here as a top predator... the dingo. They often hunt in packs, but this juvenile male has been
pushed out of his childhood den, and must now search
for his food alone. Using a highly
sophisticated sense of smell, he can trail targets from
hundreds of metres away. Prey is so sparse the dingo has been
weaponised as a long distance hunter. Today his nose has led
him to a hefty prize... a small herd of feral pigs. [pigs grunting] The adults are large
and have strong teeth. They could easily rip open a dingo. Especially an inexperienced one. There a few piglets,
but they are well-protected. He needs to separate them. -[dramatic music playing]
-[pigs squeal] He flushes the pigs out into the open. On the run, the herd might
leave a piglet behind. The adults guard their young... but dingoes are armed
with incredible stamina. They can keep up a high speed
chase for over four kilometres. Few predators have such endurance. One female and her piglet finally
pull away from the group, and the dingo is in hot pursuit. He’s not strong enough to
tackle his prey to the ground, so instead he must snap
at the foot to try injure a leg. A near miss.
But he still has some energy in reserve. [dramatic music continues playing] [piglet squeals] [piglet squeals] A tiring, well-won victory. Stamina is a powerful
weapon for any hunter, and is wielded effectively by the
dingo even at this young age. [ethereal music playing] On such arid lands,
water is as hard to find as food. Drinking holes are
oases for thirsty travellers, like giant flocks of budgerigars
making their way over the plains. [screeching] Recent rains have boosted the population,
but drought has now returned, forcing tens of thousands of individuals to
congregate at one shrinking waterhole. [dramatic music playing] It’s the only water
for hundreds of kilometres. As the budgies descend,
brown falcons prepare for battle. Armed with a powerful hooked beak, they can sever the neck bones
of small birds with one bite. The budgerigars can see the danger,
but they must quench their thirst. The falcons move in,
hoping for an easy meal... but the budgerigars
don’t go down easily. [screeching] Like a shoal of fish
moving at high speed, the entire group suddenly
shifts and changes direction. The super flock presents
as an impenetrable wall. A confusing blur of bright
green and beating wings. Together the budgerigars are a daunting,
united force. [dramatic music continues] The falcons change tactics
and dive through the swarm. An attempt to generate panic. It’s psychological warfare, and frantic budgerigars collide in mid-air,
dropping from the sky like stones. The hunters swoop in on the fallout. Wave after wave of
budgerigars run the gauntlet. [dramatic music intensifies] While it seems like an unfair fight, thousands of budgerigars
will make it through. For them, sticking to the flock has
proven a winning defense strategy. The battle between prey and predator, is not the only threat animals
have to contend with. For some the dangers
are even closer to home. A female wedge-tailed eagle returns
to her nest after a successful hunt. Three days ago she
was feeding two chicks, but wedge-tailed eagles are born fighters,
and the battle begins in the nest. Chicks can devour half their
body weight each day. So to cut the competition, the first to hatch is driven
by instinct to kill off its siblings. As the first-born and largest of the chicks,
it usually succeeds. [chick chirps] For some the arms race
starts even within the family. [ethereal music playing] Further inland,
in the heart of Australia, temperatures can push
50 degrees centigrade. And even in a good year,
rain will only fall a couple of times. Such extreme conditions
require extreme weapons, like these cone-shaped pits
engineered by one desert dweller. With their perfectly angled slopes,
these craters are insect death traps... with an ambush predator at the centre. Ant lion larvae attack
with venomous pincers. However their striking distance is short. Passing ants just have
to stay out of reach. Armed with six long legs, if it were the size of human an ant
could clock 50 kilometres per hour. But the slopes are treacherous, and the ant’s feet begins
to slip in the fine sand. [dramatic music playing] It’s then the ant lion
opens up the catapults, raining volleys of boulders
down on its victim’s head. [dramatic music continues] The ant is done for. Death craters are not the only
dangers ants face in the desert. With such little food on offer,
many larger animals also hunt for insects. Australia’s aptly named thorny devil, looks as though he is truly
armed and ready for battle. [bright music playing] Although he feeds exclusively on ants. His short, sticky tongue can
lap up over a thousand a day. His impressive armour however
is used to face another foe... deadly thirst. Too tiny to travel
long distances to water, the thorny devil
instead harvests his own. When the desert is covered in dew, his spikes collect the water and funnel
it down grooves into his mouth. For some, the arms race is more
about surviving extreme conditions. Although the devil’s thorns
also help to deter predators. A good precaution, as more venomous hunters are found
here than anywhere else on planet. [sinister music playing] The deadly eastern brown. He preys on small rodents. Yet from his fangs flows venom that
would fell a human within minutes. So potent is his bite it seems a bit of
overkill for prey as small as a mouse. But rodents are quick, and snakes have no limbs or
strong jaws to restrain their quarry. They must kill with just one strike. [sinister music playing] He hunts actively,
patrolling the desert. Today, however,
it is he who needs to be cautious. A giant is on the prowl. A two-metre long,
venomous killing machine, and one of the largest
lizards on the planet... the perentie. [sinister music playing] Rodents are not enough
to fill such a beast. He is a cold-blooded snake killer. His forked tongue picks up a chemical
scent trail left by the eastern brown. Unlike the snake, he can also raise himself up on all four
legs to catch glimpses of fleeing prey. Both weapons arm the perentie
to chase down fast-moving targets, even when they go underground. It is not known whether perenties
are immune to venomous bites. Perhaps they are just brave. [sinister music playing] It takes one brute to take out another. [ethereal music playing] With such monsters on the prowl, some have changed their entire
existence in order to survive. Like the world’s ancient mammals, who once went underground to
escape the danger of the dinosaurs, they live under the cover of darkness. [owl hoots] The tiny, fat-tailed dunnart
comes out in the dead of night. Although just nine centimetres long, this marsupial is, surprisingly,
a ferocious hunter. [owl hoots] Her game of choice is insects. But how does she track them down at night
when they are so well-camouflaged? She has an astounding super power. One possessed by only
a handful of mammals... ultraviolet vision. Most leaves reflect ultraviolet,
but insects do not. So to a dunnart, the profile of a
grasshopper stands out like a black spot. An easy victory for a
predator with secret powers. [owl hoots] It is thought that dunnarts could belong
to an ancient order of mammals, for whom such abilities were common. A weapon she has retained in order to
survive in such a desolate landscape. Some animals of the plains have
to survive not the blistering heat, but the freezing cold. On the prairies of North America,
winter comes hard and fast. [wind howls] This coyote has spent the summer months
fattening up on an abundant supply of prey. Armed with keen vision,
a sharp sense of smell, and a top running speed
of 60 kilometres an hour, he is a formidable opponent. But soon the burrowing rodents he savours
will be locked away under metres of snow. The coyote’s entire range
has been blanketed. All that is left is a deafening silence. [wind howls] The vole makes snow and ice it’s shield. Burrowing deep beneath the surface, the family stays warm and
is close to its food stores. They smugly bunker down
for the cold months ahead. Above ground, the coyote is not deterred. [wind howls] With most of his weapons
rendered useless, He must rely on his precision hearing. [dramatic music playing] Timing is everything. Launch too soon and the vole escapes. He must wait until his radar
locks perfectly onto his target. The coyote is armed to exploit
even the silence of winter. [coyote howls] The change of the seasons always
brings with it new challenges. As snow begins to melt on the prairies,
bison come together in their thousands. Soon the males will fight in one of the
greatest pitched battles on the planet. Sheer bulk is their weapon of choice. Each weighs over a tonne.
The head alone is a massive 180 kilos. Swung by a powerful neck,
it becomes a terrifying battering ram. The enemy they face is not a predator,
but one another. In skirmishes that will determine
which males will be able to mate. [grunting] [dramatic music playing] [ethereal music playing] However the fighting has its costs. By the end of the rut,
the males will have fought so often, and so hard that they’ve lost
a quarter of their body weight. They emerge from the
season battered and starved. This juvenile male is so exhausted,
he couldn’t keep up with the herd, so he’s been left behind. As the largest animals on the
prairie and wielding fearsome horns, bison usually command
respect from predators, but one this weak draws attention. [sinister music playing] A gray wolf emerges from the woods. He sizes up his enemy. Even a frail, bison bull
is a formidable opponent, and could gore and kill a wolf. [wolf growls] The wolf however is
a highly discerning hunter. A predator whose most useful weapon, is the ability to assess quickly
the odds of overcoming its prey. If he has judged correctly,
the wolf will feed for days. However if he has miscalculated,
he is now risking his life. The bison is surprisingly agile. With most of its weight centred over
the front hooves, it can pivot quickly. The wolf's reaction speed is faster.
Only just. Keeping him millimetres
from the bull's deadly horns. [dramatic music playing] The pair duel for over four hours. [bison grunts] Finally, the bison succumbs to exhaustion. The wolf has chosen his target well. [ethereal music playing] Despite the dangers
of male-on-male combat, it’s an incredibly common
phenomenon across the world. And nowhere else is that more obvious
than on the fertile plains of Africa. While males are almost always ready
to mate, females are often unavailable. Either pregnant or with young at foot. With not enough
females to partner with, many males have developed
extraordinary weapons to fight for the right to reproduce. [dramatic music playing] Horns are the most popular choice. They come in a variety of shapes... But relative to the size of
the individuals who carry them, all of these weapons are massive. Males haul them around all year
to use them for just a few short weeks, when the in the rutting season,
their swords are finally unsheathed. [dramatic music continues] Competition on the African
plains can be so fierce, some prefer to just get above it all. Standing at over five metres high, giraffes are the tallest
living land mammal. And almost half their
length is in their neck. Most people assume this is so giraffes can
tower over other herbivores on the plains, to feed on tall trees
their rivals can’t get at. However long necks can
also be used for combat, and are put to use by male
giraffes with devastating effect. This young bachelor
will soon be in his prime. To establish his position,
he can’t just sit on his haunches. If the bachelor wants a hope of mating,
he must challenge another to a duel. Pushing and shoving
they size each other up. [pensive music playing] Then they begin
shelling out jabbing blows. With skulls as heavy as 13 kilos
and adorned with short horns, a well-targeted hit can shatter bone. Clashing their necks like swords,
each tries to land a knockout strike. [dramatic music playing] The bachelor’s rival begins to tire. He pauses... and without much fanfare moves away. The young bachelor is victorious. [ethereal music playing] Elsewhere, the ritual of male
combat gets even stranger. In Australia, female red kangaroos have spent
12 months rearing their young to maturity. Soon the joeys will
become independent, and that means their mothers
will be ready to mate again. In the off-season, the males have spent their time
building up their enormous biceps. Kangaroos are some of the most
muscular animals on the planet. Over half their body
weight is pure muscle. These bodybuilding
giants flex their chests to impress the females
and intimidate potential rivals. However, it’s not all just for show. When two evenly matched
competitors come face-to face, they assess each other’s ability
to throw dangerous punches... And powerful double-legged kicks. If neither is willing to back down,
it's game on. [dramatic music playing] The less dominant male
usually initiates the fight. Powered by his strong tail, he can unleash over ten kicks a
minute to destabilise the larger male. Heads are flung back out
of reach of razor-sharp claws. The larger male seems
willing to finish things off... but the aggressor keeps
the attacks coming. Not ready for another beating,
the larger male throws in the towel. Male competition produces the
largest weapons in the animal kingdom, but many females are
well-armed in different ways. [gentle piano music playing] In the Australian outback, a superb fairy
wren feeds her newly-hatched chicks. Their dashing father
is also devoted to them. Fairy wrens mate for life... but the female is not willing to
put all her eggs in one basket. She has the smarts to
attract more than one male. [chirps] [chirps] In total she has three young lovers,
all still sprouting their adult plumage. These bachelors
provide food for the family. It’s a successful covert operation
run by a motherly mastermind. With four males providing for her young,
their survival is almost guaranteed. [tweets] In return she mates with her lovers, mixing up the genetic
diversity of her chicks. Her dedicated mate doesn’t seem to mind,
because he also has romances on the side. In fact fairy wrens are so promiscuous, the majority of chicks aren’t
related to their father at all. The arrangement seems
to work for everyone, and ensures fairy wrens as a
species survive where others may fail. Not all relationships are so harmonious. It’s a sad fact that lying,
thievery and murder are successful strategies in the war
for survival that is the natural world. Strategies employed even by some
of the species we admire the most. [gentle piano music playing] The mother cheetah
has finally had some luck. She’s taken down
a young Thomson’s gazelle. She searches for a hidden spot
where she can feed in peace. She is cautious... and for good reason. A pride of hungry lions is on the prowl. As the largest predators in Africa, lions don’t need
to make all of their kills. They are partial to daylight robbery. Usually the cheetah avoids hunting when
these thieves are in the neighbourhood. On the open plains there
is nowhere to hide from them. But with cubs to provide for,
she’s taken a risk... and now she faces an ambush. [dramatic music playing] The thugs quickly take
possession of the carcass, and dig in for a feast. In close combat,
strength dominates over speed. As the sun soars over the plains,
the cheetah faces a new threat. [dramatic music playing] Fire is the most
indiscriminate killer of all. A grassland blaze can sweep across
the plains at twenty kilometres an hour. Devouring everything in its path. On the way back to her cubs,
the cheetah has been stopped in her tracks. She’ll have to wait it out. [dramatic music intensifies] [dramatic music ends] Hours later, the mother finally approaches
the thicket where she last left her cubs. She moves them every
day or so for safety. [melancholic music playing] She hears a sound... Something’s not right. The lionesses are lying in wait. The cheetah tries to circle around... provoking a charge from one of the lions. She backs off, but not too far. She won’t abandon her cubs. However her worst fears
have already come true. Her cubs are dead. Killed by the lions. The removal of future enemy soldiers
while they are still defenseless young is not uncommon. One out of every two cheetah
cubs are eliminated by lions. The mother can do nothing but watch. The battle is lost for the cheetahs,
but the war for survival goes on. [melancholic piano music continues] Usually those with the biggest
weapons systems succeed. Yet sometimes, somehow,
the underdogs manage to cling on. Hours later, the female cheetah hears
a sound in a nearby tangle of grass. [cub mews] A tiny survivor scrapes through. [uplifting music playing] Only by keeping her wits about her, will the cheetah be able
to protect her remaining cub. Even the fastest hunter over land
needs more than one weapon to thrive. Strategy is what will
determine her family’s survival, in the most exposed animal
arms race on the planet. [uplifting music continues]
