BBC Documentary-Wolf Battlefield

you this is a story about one of nature's top predators and how it uses its stamina intelligence and tenacity to survive for the first time you'll have an extraordinary view of the wolf and the wolves world through the eyes of its leaders and their family the pack you'll witness the stress and success of their life as a team and see how the events in the PAC's life take place here in their territory a place that's worth protecting in any way they can you'll join them in their constant search for food food big enough to fight back and watch as they battle their bitterest enemies their neighbors and their other fierce rival the grisly encounters that threaten their future this is a story but everything you're about to see is based on fact the strength of the wolf is the pad but is this pad up to the challenges of life on the wolf battlefield the Rocky Mountains of North America home to hundreds of wolves a wilderness that stretches for thousands of square kilometres with special technology we can analyze the Wolf's world in a way that ordinary cameras cannot show creating a virtual reality from this view we can focus in on just 200 square kilometers our pax domain revealing the key zones within it lowland Plains with ridges above for lookout points a river that flows all year round dense forested slopes for cover and all this flanked by towering mountain peaks prime wolf territory currently occupied by our battlefield pack the Jets this tightly knit team of seven wolves is led by the Alpha pair a big silver male and his smaller black mate the alphas are mother and father two for adolescence all born just under two years ago the 7th war an adult male is an outsider and pack underdog all the wolves are expert hunters they need to be it's January and on the face of it the wolf's world looks lifeless there's deep snow on the high slopes and it's minus 20 degrees Celsius most small mammals are hibernating and are off the menu only larger prey like buffalo and elk are awake and available but they're too big for a single wolf to tackle and they're always on the move to find enough to eat so the Jets must stick together and be nomadic two wolves are built for long-distance travel their long legs big lungs and hearts give them a cruising speed of 8 miles per hour they can average 50 kilometers a day and clock up three laps of their territory a week but how do they find their way around such a large area and where do they start looking for food it's always one of the alpha wolves who leads the way the alphas have held this territory for almost three years experience has taught them that the herds don't move randomly they visit favorite feeding areas at certain times of year and they always follow the same routes wolves don't move randomly either which suggests they have a mental map of their territory an inbuilt route planner that helps them visualize where they are and which path to take to intercept their prey a wolf's brain is 30% bigger than the dogs and it's this extra brain power that helps the wolf navigate so effectively the packs trails make up a closed circuit inside their territory but some routes connect with their neighbors trails creating a huge network of wolf highways for thousands of square kilometers with so many other wolves in this area it's vital our pack has exclusive rights to its territory and food supply somehow the wolves must protect what's theirs because next door they have the neighbors from hell in just four years this rival pack has grown unusually large there are 22 of them the big packs alpha wolves have raised many youngsters and none of them have left home yet there are problems with a pack this size they can't afford a day without a kill and to find enough food they need a big territory this makes the big pack dangerous sooner or later they could invade the jetés living space our packs best defense is to engage in chemical warfare the agent they use is sent it's a clear warning to outsiders to keep out a signal all Wolves recognize and ignore at their peril wolves leave a scent mark every hundred metres or so along their trails and boundaries these signposts are unmissable and they last for weeks ideal for animals constantly on the move and the source material is portable and easy to produce as the urine spreads and evaporates it releases the Wolves personal perfume scent marking is the responsibility of the two pack leaders all they need to do is refresh each mark as they travel leaving a trail of reassuringly familiar smelly hot spots a wolf has more than 200 million scent receptors in its nose making its sense of smell ten thousand times more sensitive than ours along its territorial boundaries each pack goes into overdrive responding to the threatening smell of its neighbors the stakes are so high here that wolves use droppings as well as urine as a double deterrent to intruders the alphas encounter and produce a scent signal every two minutes by doggedly reinforcing their front line they try to keep their territory secure leaving them time to relax and socialize the pack social life revolves around the alpha wolves they dominate more by strength of personality than like brute force they use facial expressions and body language to keep everyone in line and show how they feel dominance and Submission help keep the peace these tussles may look aggressive but they can simply be a way of reinforcing bonds and reassuring each wolf of its place in the pack the adolescents are almost full-grown but still too young to leave the pack for them free time is playtime company is vital for a wolf separation can lead to disaster last spring the alpha female was left alone with prey and very short supply the pack was forced to split up to search for food leaving her at the den to guard her pups after a week she faced a harsh choice leave her pups or starve even underground pups can be vulnerable but in the end the mother's hunger drove her to take the risk a grizzly sense of smell is as powerful as a wolf's and after a long winter without food it has a craving for protein this time the Wolves attack came too late with her pups dead the females only chance to breed last year was dashed teamwork is the key to Wolfe survival even if you're the underdog it's best to be one of the gang life on his own would be lonely in short operating as a pack is also the only way wolves can hunt big animals effectively and it's always the alpha wolves who take the lead the Jets haven't eaten for four days and now they're totally focused on finding food each wolf taps into its mental map which isn't just a three-dimensional route planner it's also a picture cast on a menu of prey animals available anyone is an attractive target but ranging in size from 50 to a thousand kilos none is easy meat bighorn sheep are fairly small but live in groups have big attitudes and serious headgear others like moose are solitary and roamed territories of their own every few weeks the Wolves check up on them to see if they've become sick or injured who to hunt and when our key to a successful kill and their mental Maps help them select animals that could offer the easiest pickings top of the menu today our elk and the Wolves must use their mental map to work out how to intercept them years of following migrating herds all through the changing seasons mean the wolves have memorized the Elks routine in January they can predict the elk are heading for the valleys to the east 40 kilometers away just getting here has taken seven hours now they find a vantage point to keep the elk under surveillance the best strategy for hunting big animals is to select the most vulnerable usually by mid winter with food harder to find some pregnant females will be struggling as well as being almost four months pregnant they have their seven-month-old cards with them the youngsters are weaned but still stay with their mothers for protection wolves are always interested in calves as they're more likely to make mistakes but so far this winter's been mild and food in this valley is still within easy reach the females look well fed and healthy and so do their cars as our pack come all this way for nothing and there's another problem the Jets are only four kilometres from their northern border there's a danger the elk will drift across into big pack territory from their position above the herd the wolves may be able to spot a weak animal after hours of waiting it's the alpha male who makes a move they've seen no obvious soft target so it's time to take a closer look they make no attempt to hide as they approach and the elk know they're there the wolf split up and assess the herd looking for the wounded the lame the weak weakness is easier to see if the elk are moving easier still of their right the alpha female has picked out a nervous car at this age it had little experience of wolves and its confidence can be easily shaken now the elk are forced to run but the older animals know what to do they run towards the front and in the middle of the herd furthest away from the chasing pack where they're less likely to be spotted if they're carrying an injury the Wolves can run as fast as elk but after going without food for several days will they have the stamina to keep up the elk head for a frozen river bed where drifting snow is deeper than on the slopes it's not a problem for the long-legged elk but it slows the wolves and saps their energy the Wolves clear the drift and accelerate to 40 miles per hour the herd tries a different strategy and heads for the worse they're much more sure-footed on the uneven surface of roots and hollows around the trees here the Wolves might find it tough to keep up and perhaps among the trees it's harder for them to single out a target but the wolves are still focused seeking to match their mental picture with a victim the elk now turn for high ground and use the slope to pick up speed shake off the wolf's that way invisible to them the herd runs straight through the packs territorial boundary marked by their scent but will the Wolves cross their own front line they don't hesitate the stakes are just too high they're in no-man's land now and just a kilometer from the border of the big packs territory even after five kilometres the world still push the elk the alpha females locked onto a target but the elk looks young and fit so what can she see that we can't in fact the Elks lame and by slowing down the action we can analyze her injury a right hind leg looks deformed and she can't fully extend it as she runs a hawk joint appears bigger than it should be inside there's a bony growth over the joint it's like arthritis but in such a young elk it's probably been caused by a kick or fracture and it's now become a life-threatening handicap the younger wolf is lighter and faster than her mother but the elk weighs three times their combined weight and it will take both of them to bring her down hamstringing is an option but it's not the quickest way to kill and one kick could be fatal for the Wolves you the Elks almost running on empty but a huge dose of adrenaline gives her a burst of incredible strength finally the elk loses the fight but our packs in alien territory and its presence hasn't gone unnoticed the big pack is just two kilometers away it too was shadowing for her and spotted the elf run howling helps the muster and delivers a spine-chilling warning to the Jets no time for squabbling over the best cuts now they rip into the rump and belly wolfing down as much meat as they can a wolf's stomach can store 15 kilos to digest later just as well because the big packs here in force our alpha male is his PAX chief protector but will he lead them to defend their killer outnumbered three to one they have a simple choice back off order after all our packs hard work it's their rivals who benefit the Jets retreat behind their front line but at least they're safe to hunt another day it's February and this is the first fresh snowfall for months the worsening conditions and deepening snow could make life harder for all the grazers but what's mad for the wolf spray could benefit the Wolves and right now our pack needs a boost in fortune the alpha female is ready to mate which means a new chance to expand the pack the Alpha pair spends most of her six weeks on heat together this close bond is vital she'll need his help to raise their pups wolves made for life and it's in the alphas interests to be the only breeding animals in the pack it guarantees that all food and attention are devoted to their pups at just under two the adolescents are still too young to breed when they're ready to start a family they'll have to leave the pack for all the wolves the breeding season is the most stressful time of year but it's only it kills that tension turns to open aggression to stay in peak condition both alphas need and demand the richest pickings the others must wait their turn both the Alpha wolves stress levels are at boiling point the male picks on his sons and his mate attacks her daughters these intense outbursts keep the Alfa's stress hormones sky-high but also keeps them on top and alpha aggression suppresses the other sex hormones making them even more subdued whatever happens the best thing to do is just grin and bear it if there was more than one breeding season a year they'd be constant antagonism within the pack and that would threaten everyone's survival it's late March the deep snow and freezing conditions of the last few weeks have increased pressure and all the wolves prey food is very hard to find and many animals are living off their fat reserves the weak are getting weaker and it's up to the Jets to find them but as always they have a battle plan they're heading south to a huge area of forest with its open river course this location offers both hiding places and food for one of the wolf's most daunting prey moose there are six moose living within our packs territory the wolves visit each one every few weeks to monitor their condition their decision to come to this forest isn't a random one last time they track the Moose that lives here they detected signs of meetings now they're back to see if there's any change they wouldn't stand a chance against a healthy moose but a sick animal is a different story and they've come more than 30 kilometres to find out you but first they've got to track it down the wolf hunts just as well by night as in the day to help them see in low-light wolves eyes are designed for night vision their eyes shine because a mirrored layer on the retina reflects all available light back into the eye the clear lens in the middle sharpens the image so to a wolf the forest doesn't look so impenetrable and it's peripheral vision is sensitive to any sudden movement the Wolves split up to search by sight and smell they can sniff out prey up to five kilometers away all it takes is a single molecule of moose sent in a quadrillion of air molecules to help them identify their target up ahead the solitary moose is looking for food it's over 2 meters tall and weighs 300 kilos a formidable opponent for a pack of wolves the Moose has selected its surroundings carefully the dense trees are of good protection against a wolf attack and it too has finely tuned senses but wherever the Moose goes it can't help leaving telltale clues which could help the Wolves build up a picture of their quarry millions of its hairs and skin cells constantly shower the ground every step creates a scent print from glands in its feet and thanks to its high fiber diet even traces of gas can linger just two kilometers away the Wolves walk into the Moose's scent for a short while they stand rigid and point in the direction of the incoming cent they take long deep sniffs to identify the smell now they're all locked on to their target a stalk of wind the first clue the depression in the snow where the Moose rested just an hour ago the alpha male investigates with quick short sniffs he inhales huge volumes of air straight up his nostrils and on to millions of scent receptors blowing hard back on the area dislodges even more scent particles mingled with hair and skin cells each one could betray its owner the heavy skin and hair loss indicates the Moose is badly invested with ticks and probably very weak a second clue the Moose's tracks the male's nose scans the footprint for the most concentrated odor this time as he exhales he blows air away from the scent through slits on the side of his nose so it isn't diluted by his breath there's a hint of pus suggesting the Moose is injured and may well be laying there attention shifts from the ground to the branches above they're looking for a trace of moose saliva this is it a foul stench suggests the moose had rotten teeth a sure sign that it's old if it can't chew properly may well be starving all the evidence confirms the Moose is an ideal target but the wolves need to get close enough before they strike but given all the clues this moose is all but dead on its feet it's late April and the wolf battlefield is changing rising temperatures stimulate new growth and release hibernating animals from their long sleep the Thor gives the wolf spray a welcome rest punch and offers the promise of fresh food but spring isn't always an easy time for wolves in the big pack there's mutant fighting like this not linked to the breeding season or a kill is very rare it's happening because the pack has grown too big the alphas sons and daughters are now old and bold enough to challenge their authority if they kill their parents one of the youngsters may get a chance to rule this territory but force alone isn't enough do any of them have the strength of character to be a leader the big packs in big trouble life couldn't be more different for the Jets the alpha female has produced three pups and this time she's got more support one of her daughters is on den duty after last year's tragedy her mother's chosen the den site carefully it's on a steep Ridge with excellent views and well inside the packs territory it's also 30 meters from a stream a vital resource for a nursing mother she needs plenty of fresh water to produce more milk the newborns induce a surge of puppy love in all the wolves male and female this makes the pack one to care for the pups and keeps them working as a team and right now all the other members of the team are ten kilometres away this spring there's plenty of large animals inside their territory after a hard winter some are too weak to offer much resistance to a hunting pad their job is to fill their bellies and take food back to the den for the alpha female and her daughter from now on they have to find enough to eat for everyone and keep the pups safe its survival at its simplest but on the wolf battlefield fortunes can quickly change just 40 kilometers from where the Jets are feeding on their kill this large river has washed up a meal for their neighbors but the wolves aren't alone and the young bears just as desperate for food these five young wolves are all that's left of the big pack there near starving and can't afford to lose their carcass but can they defend it as part of the big pag the wolves were efficient killers but now this small band of youngsters struggled to fend off a young bear if this is the best they can do these wolves will lose their battle to survive perhaps the big pack has finally had its day but on the wolf battlefield the seasons March on it's early August and the grazing animals are making the best of the rich menu available during the short Rocky Mountain summer both youngsters and adults will need to be in prime condition for the long winter ahead now three months old our packs pups are still the center of attention and old enough to leave the den already they're showing the tenacity and character they'll need to survive the Alpha pairs strong leadership has paid off and the packs teamwork has given the three pups the best start in life together they've got through the setbacks and challenges of the last year and started to lay the foundations for a bigger stronger path the pups are part of the team and ready to take on the world it's time for the wolves to return to their life on the moon and the pups can begin to learn the skills they'll need to play their part in killing for the pack the alpha female and her mate now have another generation to defend their future and with their neighbors spent ahead of our pack lies a land of opportunity on the wolf battlefield it's time for the Jets to draw a new frontline you

Channel: Garret Johnson

Views: 798,112

Rating: 4.4634571 out of 5

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Id: Cu11zh6bscg

Length: 49min 8sec (2948 seconds)

Published: Sun Nov 10 2013