Last Feast of the Crocodiles! | Nature Documentary

[Applause] [Applause] this is the story of a pool and the animals that cannot live without it it's a place where hippos and crocodiles survive in mysterious harmony a crowded pool why predator and prey are drawn together where strange things happen would have rarely been seen before at this pool first will be dangerous and drinking becomes a deadly game of chance when the pool shrinks in an unrelenting drought there is a desperate fight for life [Music] while Becky takes over with only the fittest [Music] [Applause] here in strange communion hippos attend the last feast of the crocodiles a river in Africa it's known as the lava vowel or hippo River and where land and river meets there exists a rich concentration of animals [Music] acontece years this river has sustained life in the northern reaches of South Africa's Kruger National Park when good rains have fallen there is abundant water for all but this year little rain fell the river dwindled to a narrow channel and finally stopped flowing [Music] the pools that remain in the riverbed are life-sustaining Oasis and this which is one of the largest and deepest and has never been known to go dry is a favorite refuge for hippos and crocodiles for those who have to drink here each day the challenge is to drink and survive with over sixty crocodiles congregated here caution becomes the first rule wise in the ways of the pool oxpeckers on their floating islands drink safely and these unpredictable giants don't seem to mind the few extra ounces of their company but more extraordinary is this young crocodile is smallest in the pool who's become a regular passenger and is possibly safer basking on the surprisingly tolerant hippos and with its own kind wilee baboons have another strategy they dig pits at the pools edge and drink the seepage water rather than risk a croc attack in contrast this female Impala is so stressed by first she's beyond caution dazed and distracted she finally drinks in the worst possible place Crocs aren't the only problem here these Impala have run afoul of a white crown plopper whose eggs are in a depression in the sand these birds only nest near water and so when the river dries the fringe of the pool becomes prime real estate but it's also a busy and dangerous thoroughfare Crocs come here regularly to bask crocodiles lumbering up the bank are a major hazard for the fragile eggs but unlike the timid Impala the Crocs ignore the birds warning cries lucky this time and she settles down again to brood hippos spend their nights grazing often far from the pool and by day they too like to lie in the warm Sun a large wet snout applied with surprising gentleness seems all that's needed to clear some space on the crowded beach there's no hurry we're all relaxed and easy here and the great reptiles gradually respond to gentle nudges until all are accommodated to their liking another close call for the plumbers as the crocodile returns to the pool but it's all just part of the price for a good waterfront sight hippos are a nuisance for the plumbers they don't leave much space between them [Music] the rains that usually revive the river are late this year the water level in the pool drops rapidly fishing birds move in and find good pickings among the fish trapped in the shallows sometimes these water birds appear to live a charmed life and to be mysteriously immune from attack by crocodiles but bird and reptile understand each other well and the Crocs seem to know these birds are just too alert to be easily caught but not all birds are crocodile's smart Green pigeons don't often drink usually they get enough moisture from the fruits they eat but in the heat of this dry year the birds are forced to come to water and they're innocent of any danger [Music] [Music] [Applause] the sight of crocodiles spinning in a feeding frenzy is enough to frighten most animals away but as the Crocs tear apart a mini olive or something amazing happens a hippo moves in and begins to mouth and lick the bodies of the feeding Crocs hippos are strictly vegetarian she hasn't come for a share of the Spoils why she intrudes in this way is a mystery [Applause] she is more powerful than the Crocs and her dominance over them is absolute she prods and licks the face of the biggest croc in the pool even as it struggles to swallow the skull of the interval and then is it fair curiosity when satisfied she loses interest and leaves the process to their feast elephants don't have to worry about crocodiles when they drink but they still prefer the cleaner water in the pits and vigorously dig them out in the riverbank near the pool a large colony of nesting bees are feeding their young they must forage continually in the hot Sun to satisfy their needs to cool off every afternoon when they fly over the pool and dive for their drinks the odds are heavily in favor of the beauties and most survive the croc strikes a thirsty lioness comes to water if she tries a pit but finds it full of bees she decides to risk the pool in heat like this the Beasley water - Lions can go without water for a long time but this one is a nursing mother she must drink maybe the BEP it isn't so bad after all large flocks of qui Lea's are living area searching for seed and grain [Music] the monitor lizards is the scourge of both ground nesting birds and the egg-laying crocodiles it's a voracious predator particularly partial to eggs the feisty plover immediately declares war [Music] during the heat of the day the sand becomes unbearably hot and burns the skin between the impalas fools for the plovers on their nest this is when easy access to water pays off the bird is soaking its breast feathers until they are weighted with water [Music] it then hurries up the scorching sand to relieve its meat [Applause] [Music] the plumbers are brooding on sand that feels hot enough to fry an egg and by midday they are changing guard at the nest every ten minutes without the constant protection of their cool wet feathers the eggs could not survive the heat the sand is so hot it's a wonder she doesn't fly down ah these Buffalo have just one thing in mind the usual watering places are dry now and they've had a long hot journey to get here one of the calves strikes out in its own and is soon in dangerous company but these aren't the biggest Crocs in the pool and the lucky calf quickly returns to the herd the Crocs intentions are clear enough but before they can find a small enough victim the Buffalo decide it's time to leave [Music] an irritated hippo helps them on their way the drought and heat are now so severe that some animals with small young cannot supply enough milk and thirsty youngsters follow their mothers to water before they're weaned or wise enough to know how to drink in an instant both croc and fawn vanish into the pool leaving behind two bewildered mother somewhere under the surface of the pool the crocodile lies low with its prey waiting for an opportune moment to eat without having to share the most carefree creature in the pool is this baby hippo she frolic surround her mother in that special state that belongs to all young things she is oblivious to the dangers in her world [Music] the food is steadily shrinking and is already too small for so many animals [Applause] but the hippos can't settle fights caused by overcrowding there is no place else to go as usual now the hippos subside in an uneasy truce subdued by the day's heats and temporarily at peace the babble rooms relax around the pool [Music] [Music] his species shatters by a familiar trial outrage he's innocent but he's too close to the nest and the plumber has a good eye for trouble and young male baboons are especially targeted [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] a sudden spat between rival Crocs sends a ripple of panic through the pool it's small wonder that the plumbers are having trouble a fresh track shows that a crocodile plowed right over their eggs this is their third nest of the season that's been lost to the crocodiles starting again from scratch the plumbers perform the ritual of selecting a site for a new nest the baby hippo is exploring her world the restraint of the crocodile seems out of character but with two tons of devoted mother nearby she's free to treat crocodiles with the same bold familiarity as the adult hippos do [Music] these great artists of violence are obliged to hold a kindly pose as the hippo child wanders in her playground of gently smiling dragons and slobbers on their tails [Applause] a yellow-billed kite checks the pool for an easy meal and sights a dead fish the surrounding land is parched and bare and each night the hippos must trek for miles to find grazie other animals wander in the riverbed in search of the few remaining pools but most now a little more than wreaking mud wallows full of dead and dying fish even so the Impala would drink here but the pool is dominated by a single croc the last of a group of more than 40 that were here a month ago the monkeys won't risk it and drink instead in deep footprints the fawns attempt to drink is a small disaster now it's covered with stinking mud the mother sniffs her offspring but doesn't recognize it in this foul disguise the crocodile that is held back the bankers suddenly leaves perhaps there is no future for it in this tiny pool the mother has made up her mind this is not the sweet-smelling youngster she came with but the fawn knows better [Music] the little Impala is persistent soon the mud will wear off and the mother will again accept her the crocodile reappears covered in fresh red birth [Applause] she thrusts her head into the mud and smoothes it from side to side at first her peculiar behavior is a puzzle and then her secret is revealed as her muddy jaws open gently to release the newly hatched babies she has carried down from her nest on the riverbank this is the reason she has remained on the pool so long she would never desert her young she is their only protection [Applause] but between predators and the thick mud there is no chance for the little Crocs and all will die within an hour back in the big pool crocodiles rise and heave over another carcass and once again hippos are amidst the frenzy there's nothing for him to eat yet something attracts them here the jaws clamped tight on the carcass the truck spins until a piece breaks off the hippos seem content to gently interrupt the spinning Crocs from time to time but no one knows why they attend these terrible feasts [Applause] or nine months little rain has fallen and the animals risk death for water the hippos calm is disturbed by the violent arrival of the Crocs latest victim for this one there will be no lucky escape [Applause] the baby hippo is already wedged deep among Kronk's close to the Impala carcass and the biggest Crocs in the pool the mother then does a strange thing rousing herself to investigate the scene she pushes her baby almost onto the Impala and then retreats leaving her calf between these jaws and the meal the mother's presence is enough to ensure her safety though baby seems less certain but the mother knows they wouldn't dare and she drifts back into the secure slumbers of the strong the pool has become so dangerous that most animals prefer to drink from the pits but a fuse comedy of survival results when so many are desperate for water large male baboons commandeer the pits and drink every mouthful of water that seeps in they can scare off most animals but sharp horns have the advantage and the baboon reluctantly gives way competition at the pits is so fierce that those that can't cope with a big baboon have to take their chances at the pool a nursing mother must have water but she takes a terrible risk to get it the mother has found herself free if the bubblers can see that another croc has her baited the proper leaves its prize to the others unless it leaves the food [Applause] the croc drops the baby but the brave rescue is too late [Music] [Music] [Music] the droughts continues it has become the worst in living memory [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] the pool has dwindled to a mud wallow and many of the hippos have left on a final quest for water but for an increasing crowd of animals their only chance of salvation lies here for the clubbers no eggs have survived these cruel and chaotic conditions every day an assembly of desperate animals gathers around the pool these baboons who are seldom peaceable reach new levels of aggression among themselves even mothers with small babies do not escape reproof or bullying baboon still dominate the pits but a female in Yaga driven by thirst is ready to fight for a drink each day now a few baboons appear with blood on their hands their victims are Impala fawns some are orphans of the droughts others only temporarily lost and alone trusting and totally defenseless they are easy prey for a strong male baboon [Applause] [Music] [Applause] unaware of the fate of her offspring the mothers ranges up and down the pool calling a hungry warthog routes around for choice pieces of rotting catfish while a kudu heedless of the Crocs drinks the mud the baboon didn't keep his killed himself yet the contest seems to be as much about male dominance as leadership of the carcass meanwhile the warthog seeds afford opportunity she's a little slow and no match for a natural baboon [Music] as their pool dives around them the hippos and Crocs lie marooned in the mud like creatures made of clay half formed and waiting for their creator to complete them a baboon risks all on a thin crust of mud as she searches for puddles on the surface while all around her lie more than a hundred crocodiles indistinguishable from the mud the mother is brave but the life-and-death struggle is between these two ifs baboons have nightmares this is surely one of them torn between terror and wanting to help the mother is unable to rally any support she has escaped with muddy legs a sore face and possibly a haunting memory right now she needs some hands-on grooming but there is none to be had just a curious stare when everything seems to have reach the end of endurance the sky fills with clouds and relief seems at hand [Applause] the spell of the drought is broken the Crocs returned to life and begin immediately to devour the ripe romaine with some old feasts it was locked in the mud but the rain was just a fleeting reminder of better times it does not break the drought the withering heat returns and draws all remaining moisture from the pool the last hippo has moved on and will probably die in a hopeless search for water only one old crocodile is left he was the largest the dominant croc he shows no signs of leaving he remains at his empty pool like a stranded nightmare [Music] the other Crocs have taken shelter from the scorching Sun and the vegetation around the pool they lie motionless in the shade surviving on their last reserves the old male croc only pushes deeper into the mud covering himself with the remains of his pool [Music] six weeks later in the center of the pool at the place where the water was deepest lies the skeleton of the big male croc dominant to the end close by are the bodies of more than 30 baboons who succumbed when temperatures reached nearly a hundred and twenty degrees that in the surrounding bush where they had sheltered from the Sun are the desiccated remains of the crocodiles [Music] but there are survivors in holes dug deep into the riverbanks there are a few Crocs entombed in the cool dark they're able to conserve moisture and wait for the return of their River for some day beyond the distant hills where the weather is made it will rain again and the end of the droughts will come trickling down the riverbed [Music] no wild calls will welcome this circuit but as the river surges and flows deep enough to swim in who's to say that the crocodiles won't rejoice and the birds won't revolution that's first flutter in make sure there are a few happy endings instead there is a continuum when the river returns survivors will replenish its banks and the great cycle of life and renewal will begin again [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: DANGER TV

Views: 865,726

Rating: 4.7262959 out of 5

Keywords: Nature Documentary, crocodiles, last feast, documentaries, documentary films, life, danger, dangertv, nature, africa, predators, prey, rivers

Id: a-wL_CBioyM

Length: 51min 56sec (3116 seconds)

Published: Wed Dec 04 2019