Cheetahs: Fastest Hunters in Africa | Free Documentary Nature

cheaters high-speed hunters of the Savannah [Music] few dare to take on larger prey but then a group emerges that turns all concepts upside down five males unite and become the antelopes worst nightmare [Music] this coalition enjoys whole new possibilities but they also have to face unexpected conflicts [Music] [Music] the northern Serengeti is home to around 100 cheetahs they share this habitat with countless antelopes and give fascinating and new insights into the way the slim hunters live let's follow some of them and experience their struggle for survival a young female has hidden her four cubs in a bush they are just a few days old and completely helpless in these first weeks the mother cannot leave them alone for longer spells of time another family is resting nearby the experienced tree mayor has raised many young her two sons are almost adults and consumed look after themselves they are well nourished and play around with self-confidence many challenges lay ahead of them daily training is essential many battles will have to be fought in order to eventually secure a personal territory a few dozen kilometers away an unusual concentration of cheaters five males the largest coalition ever seen normally brothers form alliances to defend a territory every now and again loners join them and sometimes three cats call one territory their own five males are quite a novelty even for scientists they were first seen together at the end of 2016 they comprised two strong mavericks and three younger males of two different brothers quite a wild mixture but this coalition raises questions as it contradicts everything we have ever learned about cheetahs why were the three youngsters accept it as partners by the strong males weaker animals are usually attacked and chased away perhaps the five came together when the two elders had not yet a territory of their own which would explain why they didn't display any aggressive defense behavior beginners are not necessarily a reinforcement they're certainly no lack of commitment impatiently one of the new ones makes ready for the hunt [Music] but in the decisive moment he doesn't dare to go the whole hog meaning lunch is off the itinerary [Music] one should never miss promising opportunities such as these but this seems to be easy prey once again one of the young males is impatient he stops from a great distance [Music] the topi calf is just a few days old and is hardly challenging [Music] but the wildebeests unsettle him it takes him too long to pass them by the mother intervenes in the very last moment the result five hungry hunters it wouldn't have been a problem for a single experienced cheetah their merger remains a mystery just as strange is the fact that they still remain together the mother with the four babies has left her bush hiding place like all cheetah females she roams freely without a territory always after prey the first day is moving from place to place a very exhausting for the little ones she has to be extremely careful that comes however pay little heed to the countless dangers of the Savannah the female cheetah has to produce a lot of milk and is therefore almost always hungry it's not easy to go hunting with babies by her side she also searches for food the next day but she is not the only Huntress in the area dense shrubbery lies in front of the Cheetahs difficult to pass for the Cubs she carefully masters the area as she fears surprises may lurk the lioness has discovered the young family carnivores know no mercy among themselves [Music] for the Lyoness it would be a chance to get rid of future competition [Music] in desperation the mother tries to distract the attacker [Music] our courage and commitment give the cops precious seconds [Music] [Music] she spends the entire afternoon searching for her little ones did they get lost or did the lioness manage to get hold of some of them just one cub resurfaces the lioness were successful in as much as she was able to harm a rival [Music] [Music] the two sons of the old female have already been through this critical phase but even adult cheetahs should steer clear of encounters with lions the family has other concerns they are in need of food Thomson gazelles are a welcome prey for cheaters nonetheless the female hesitates age has crept up on her on open terrain she has no chance of reaching gazelles with a bit of luck she can sometimes get close enough to the gazelles without cover before they realize the danger off she goes and indeed she successfully shortens the distance until the gazelles react now it's an open race as Thomson gazelles can move almost as fast as cheetahs [Music] in the field cheetahs rarely run faster than 70 km/h in open country like this they might reach 90 km/h sir can the gazelles the mother is feeling worse for we're at the grand old age of 12 when hunting wildebeest on the other hand it's not just about speed but they're heavy animals have tough opponents cheetahs can only bring down calves and this is a task that just a few cheetah females take on but this one does with time she has become a specialist for wildebeests patiently she waits until the herd approaches her meter from meter the wildebeests are not aware of the danger until the very last moment but it's hardly a piece of cake for the experienced female either the calf is just as heavy as the attacker and the pointed horns can be lethal the sons have great respect for prey like this they make themselves useful by keeping the Otherworld at least so busy [Music] [Music] while female cheetahs roam in pursuit of prey adult males try to settle down and conquer a territory the coalition on the other hand doesn't even attempt to settle down during their initial few months together they traversed a huge area much larger than hitherto assumed when examining groups the male's also have a problem with the speedy Thomson's gazelles they are bigger and heavier than the females and thus slower their goal is also wildebeest calves the gazelle phones should go and hide they can't run fast enough yet and inconspicuous Li stooped down the cheetah sees the right moment but the adult Angelo's skillfully shield the calf his colleague has discovered something completely different [Music] of the attack on the herd startled a little form the hunters appear to be doing their best not to cause it anyhow [Music] they play around with the little gazelle as if it were a Tony [Music] older animals wouldn't dwell on this for the beginners it's a good opportunity to gain more confidence in handling prey [Music] rival males have no chance against this coalition so for a long time they could move around as it pleased them without settling down in the meantime however they are concentrating on the northern area of the Maasai Mara reserve here they claim a territory of more than 400 square kilometers four times larger than any in the southern Serengeti a vast territory like this has many advantages when it comes to prey they will rarely have to go hungry the hunters can approach without cover the wildebeests don't recognize them as a danger as few cheetahs would try their luck against adult antelopes nonetheless the cats are making the herd nervous soon chaos breaks out some calves lose contact with their mothers this is what they've been waiting for [Music] meanwhile the five have made great progress even the younger ones now dare to tackle calves a throat bite seals the hand but this is still the job for the experienced cats soon it will be time for the old female to take leave of her two sons meanwhile the offspring are 18 months old and still have a lot to learn this is why the female now leaves much of the hunting to them eagerly they get to work but stalking isn't as simple as it looks they no longer lack speed but taking the decisive leap on their prey is another story cheetahs hunt at all times of the day lunch times - when the opportunity arises but it's significantly more pleasant in the shade but anyway zebras will be a touch too ambitious the two stallions are arguing over a mare Zephyrs don't have obvious weapons but their bites and hoof kicks can cause serious injury for the young cheetahs a great spectacle fascinating to watch the experienced female has chosen a good place to take some time out she knows that herds often journey through the valley and head here when thirsty as expected there are cows in the herd her trainees are committed to what they do and once again she lets her offspring take the lead a challenging task for beginners they would usually practice on much smaller gazelles [Music] [Music] the sons managed to surprise the antelopes [Music] unfortunately they've chose two different times one of the two loses sight of the prey in the thicket the mother arrives too late to intervene the second still has a chance [Music] but he hesitates at the decisive moment the outcome of the hunt is in favor of the calf in the afternoon a severe storm rose the two cheaters are not worried about the rain in fact they seem to be enjoying the flooded ground but then it becomes a bit too much of a good thing with so much water the ungulate search for higher ground when the rain eases up the youngsters seem a lot livelier mother has no time for games but this evening she certainly appears more adventurous than usual the herd is still far away but in the ring the ungulates can't hear very well at all [Music] this is a decisive advantage which the experienced Huntress uses for herself [Music] [Music] the wildebeests want to leave the wet Valley they still haven't noticed the proximity of the cats [Music] [Applause] [Music] when they do realize the danger it's far too late the female takes on the initiative this is not something for beginners [Music] the sons try their best to support her but the wildebeest mother remains undaunted returns to her calf she doesn't dare to attack the cat but if presence was enough the Huntress backs off and the calf comes free for the time being completely dazed it takes a few seconds before the calf regains its senses but now the Huntress reacts with fierce determination [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] the heavy rain caused the rivers to swell greatly in just a few hours this is an unexpected obstacle for the group until now there was nothing more than the trickle here they have often across the river with dry paws they were not expecting masses of water like this they are unsettled they don't know what lurks in the raging river but they have to reach the other side to move on [Music] cheaters are not exactly born swimmers one of the big males goes fast [Music] the others follow their union is stronger than their fear [Music] the last one makes it to more or less drive to the other side [Music] by the afternoon they've already put a lot of mileage behind them for this group having a big territory is not only full of advantages when females are ready to mate they move into territories that have been marked intensively by males these males don't have such a clearly advertised meeting place because their marks are spread over an Algerian they can mate with all females they come across but first they have to find them on their patrols they expect hundreds of marking trees and leave their own messages although they put in so much effort their success rate in gaining partners is not very high instead they are opening increasingly more hunting grounds there where their prey doesn't expect them to be even from afar the shrewd Thomson's gazelles have discovered the cats on alert they have nothing to fear one of the answers can't resist at least the chance to shake them up a bit but that's already been settled the tow fees also feel secure they can't keep up with the pace of cheetahs but then again the lightweight hunters rarely dare to even consider such large animals the carves stand well-guarded in the open terrain from where they can spot threats from great distances but the antelopes are not dealing with loners but rather with five fully grown males the ball is alone and totally relaxed [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] they didn't expect such fierce resistance his sharp homes are dangerously close out of breath the bull is unable to take his last chance [Music] the combined weight of the five keep him down and prevent any further escape cheaters don't have particularly long or strong teeth with which to inflict serious wounds so they must exhaust their prey once again it's the two strong males that decide the fights outcome under their throat bites the bull loses consciousness totally exhausted they look for shade but success like this makes them ever more confident the female that was ambushed by the lioness is now alone single very small young are often abandoned without offspring cheetah females are ready to mate every two to three weeks she wants a new litter to raise as many young as possible the wildebeest poles follow her out of curiosity they have nothing to fear from individual cheetahs the five males have found her trail attentively they search through their resting place and then follow her tracks it takes almost the whole day until they find the female the next morning the encounter appears ominous the male's attempt to intimidate her she is anything but impressed and defends herself as best she can the cats to have differences of opinion as to who is allowed to approach for female and who isn't after the initial excitement they check her smell intensively to ascertain a readiness to mate as inexperienced as they are they seem uncertain as to what to do next the female has been waiting for a moment like this and tries to flee but she is quickly surrounded from all sides again and literally as a backed of a war [Music] Cheeta mating behavior can appear to be quite rough the male is demonstrate their strength to the females competition is much fiercer between the farm than is the case in smaller groups so it's not only the female fighting back the males themselves are mainly busy with one another [Music] the male's lose a lot of fare on days like this but this is not the most frustrating thing they simply don't want to realize that they are flogging a dead horse the female is not yet able to conceive the noisy party has attracted a disagreeable neighbor usually they would simply give way now that cats are so inflamed that they would even snarl at a buffalo which he of course doesn't find amusing [Music] in the end they all leave frustrated [Music] the experienced cheetah Suns are still far from adventures like this they continue to practice their hunting techniques and gain much valuable experience on a daily basis like just how to deal with warthogs a piglet may be a tasty morsel but it's unwise to play around with its fully grown mother [Music] they begin optimistically a nasty surprise the angry mother turns the tables he has to have his wits about him to get out of this situation unscathed [Music] in doing so he keeps the path clear for his brother Egan squeezed by the other warthogs without them noticing [Music] while he has to worry about his health he shows what he has learned so far [Music] the rest is now routine tactically they have played the warthogs well [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] huge herds of wildebeest have been gathering for days in a wide river bed in the morning optimism is in the air The Gathering has not escaped the Cheetahs the trees on the riverbanks are an ideal source of food for giraffes unfazed they simply make their way through the center of the herd the antelopes goal is another they just want to cross the river the water is not too deep it looks like a good place but on the opposite bank traffic is piling up the last two meters dip sharply no chance of progressing from here before long the riverbed is full of wildebeests [Music] more and more animals turn around and climb the steep face from whence they just came [Music] just above the exhausted antelopes have to catch a breather the Cheetahs also lose track in the back-and-forth the two big cats leave their cover and attack of wildebeest ball directly [Music] the other cheaters are surprised they can't make out anything at all [Music] panic spreads among the ungulates the giraffes get nervous to a kick like this and easily crush a skull between the bushes the wildebeests can't see what has happened they can only hear the noise and sense the fear of the herd [Music] now the cavalry arrives in the shape of the other cheetahs and they are sorely needed [Music] their victim is a fully grown bored with his 200 kilograms he is four times the size of a cheetah and finds as best as he can for his life [Music] the giraffes try to flee the chaos the jostling unsettles them as they are not particularly agile all they want is to leave the crowd behind them the hunter that attacked first is gasping for breath and resting the others will have to do without him for a while they have never taken on a fully grown bull before and soon reach their limits [Music] [Music] they eventually managed to administer the decisive bite the wildebeest gradually loses consciousness they have finally made it a sworn alliance of determined warriors all for one and one for all even though they roll with one another every so often if they stay healthy they could rule the plains of the northern seven getti for many years to come no other cheetah would stand a chance for the sons of the old female this does not bode well they will have to fight far away for a place in the cheetah society the five have opened a new chapter about cheetahs but it remains to be seen whether they really benefit from this union that is whether all of them will reproduce more often than other cheetahs [Music] being in the shadow of this mighty coalition makes life for all the other males in the region tough [Music] after all the two brothers are better off together than having to make their way alone and perhaps they will find a partner to support their Brotherhood to overcome the enormous challenges that the Savannah demands of them [Music] [Music] you [Music]

Channel: Free Documentary - Nature

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), nature documentary, cheetah, cheetah documentary, africa, africa animals, africa cheetah, africa hunters, fastest animal, fastest animal africa, fastest animal in the world, Serengeti, Serengeti documentary, wild animals, african wildlife, wildlife documentary, cheetah (animal), animal planet, big cats

Id: psPj_hqxp0I

Length: 52min 5sec (3125 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 28 2020