Lions vs. Elephants - Life on the Edge | Free Documentary Nature

[Music] hmm nightfall in africa can be a time of terror when the roar of lions fills the air in a place called savuti the lions have formed a giant pride 40 strong even elephants can't withstand the onslaught the nighttime attacks are sudden and ferocious [Music] not even size can guarantee an elephant's safety this is the story of lions and giants and how here in savuti both predator and prey are living on the edge [Music] it seems impossible that even a large lion could hunt an animal as huge as an elephant but lions work together and are smart [Music] these lions live in savuti in northwest botswana here in the dry season all animals gather at the few remaining waterholes cevuti is also home to the serendella elephant herd who recently experienced the trauma of having their matriarch killed by the lions her young daughter nomsa is left an orphan and must somehow cope lies within a magnificent national park called chobi named after the chobi river which flows along its northern boundary [Music] this park is famous for having the world's largest population of elephants over a hundred and twenty thousand on chobi's southeastern boundary are the open grasslands of savuti here the serendella herd spends the wet season grazing on lush grasses the little orphan nomsa the playful one is only seven months old fortunately she won't remain an orphan for long jabu and his mother have taken on little nomsa as their own [Music] jabu the happy one is like an older brother norms is quick to respond to his invitation to play their play isn't the same rough and tumble as their older cousins but nomsa is learning the new matriarch tandy is jabu's mother she takes her duties seriously she not only has a new calf to care for but is now responsible for the safety of the entire serendella herd nomsa is enamored with jabu and he dotes on her like a real sister [Music] they are inseparable so but the days of endless play are coming to an end the dry season approaches and with the end of the reigns the burning sun turns savuti's lush green grass to dust water becomes scarce and elephants must search further and further to find it savuti becomes a veritable desert the thirsty elephants have no choice but to move into lion territory where the few remaining waterholes lie tensions run high but the savuti lions do not back down easily the elephants seem invincible but the vultures know better these lions have made hunting elephants their speciality killing over 30 in the past year the savuti pride has 40 members they are the most formidable lion pride in africa for the past 10 years in duna the chief has ruled the pride and fought off every rival with so many females his pride is coveted by younger stronger males indoner needs his younger brother to help keep control siva a young lioness has not yet hunted elephant but she is now old enough and will soon be hunting with the rest of the pride siva and her two sisters have a close bond with their mother who is pregnant again within dunas cubs uh a large pride means there are many eyes to look out for any opportunity especially elephants this year is exceptionally dry the few remaining water holes are becoming overcrowded tempers rise as the water level drops and it's not just the lions who are a threat new elephant herds arrive at the largest waterhole throughout the day desperate to drink jostling for position when the serendella herd arrives it's pandemonium they've walked the entire day almost 32 kilometers and need water especially the youngsters nomsa and jabu are desperately thirsty and are quickly spotted the herd takes charge of the waterhole through sheer numbers it's even more overcrowded now but there's always room for a baby elephant [Music] [Music] jabu drinks his fill little nomsa is after a different drink and moves to suckle tandy who is still producing milk it's rare but not unknown for female elephants to feed an orphaned calf one young elephant is in trouble with an injured leg a calf in gauzy he was trampled under adults fleeing the marauding lions when namsa's mother was killed he too will be watched there's only one reason he's made it this far the rest of the herd who help him every step of the way [Music] support from an older sibling helps him along ngozi's prospects are slim but with the help and support of the herd he has a chance another herd arrives at the waterfall the serendella herd will be forced to make space instinctively nomsa knows when to stay out of trouble the waterhole cannot sustain so many elephants [Music] it's times like this when calves must be extra cautious jabu searches for nomsa who is already taking cover under tandy's legs inkosi didn't reach the water but he can get all he needs from his mother's milk [Music] with the lion approaching in gauzy's family moves to shield him the herd is on high alert [Music] tundy gives the signal and the herd moves away from the waterhole nomsa and jabu sense the urgency [Music] tandy gives the lions a warning the lions are patient and will bide their time [Music] they know the drought will work in their favor weakening the elephants singling out the vulnerable [Music] ten weeks into the dry season the waterhole has dried up [Music] [Music] this is one of the worst droughts the serendella herd has ever experienced [Music] elephants need plenty of water they have no choice they will have to leave safuti to search for water [Music] it's already too late for ngozi he is too weak to follow them nomsa stays by his side tandy and jabu wait patiently finally nomsa is called away and the drought claims its first victim from the serendella herd [Music] the departing herd is watched closely by the young lioness siva soon it will be her turn to hunt elephants ever since she was a young cub siva has feasted on elephant she was raised in a time of plenty [Music] with so many hunters in the pride barely a week went by without a new elephant kill [Music] in this pride young cubs learn to view elephants as prey but the cevoti pride is about to face its greatest crisis duna has disappeared his brother's desperate calls go unanswered he could have been driven out or even killed by the two rivals who are now moving in from the mubabi plains west of savuti territory [Music] his brother is not strong enough to defend the pride by himself his voice weakens with his resolve the mobabi lions are spoiling for a fight but the brother opts for a quick and silent retreat [Music] [Music] so this is mobabi turf now and the new males waste no time marking their victory [Music] the females watch them warily [Music] they have little choice but to accept the new leadership [Music] the lions are determined to make their presence felt across savuti [Music] the sudden takeover is a major crisis because the new leaders have one more gruesome task to kill all the cubs siva's mother is pregnant within doona's cubs by killing them when they're born the new males will ensure she is soon ready to mate again [Music] if her unborn cubs are to survive she must go she has no choice but to leave savuti taking siva and her sisters with her [Music] together they will form a new pride [Music] the serendella herd has one last task as they leave cevutie they say goodbye to one of their own their old matriarch nomsa's mother killed by lions [Music] it's a ritual only the adults take part in it's as if they are searching for one last memory to help guide their way it's time to leave their fallen friend tandy will lead the herd north along a route she hasn't taken for 20 years but still remembers her destination is the chobi river 200 kilometers away to get there they must cross the harsh baron interior this is nomsa and jabu's first experience of drought it's not something they understand the adults set the pace 40 kilometers a day [Music] the pace is particularly hard on the youngsters but the leaders know to stop is to die [Music] [Applause] [Music] siva and her family are also taking this journey north they stay close to the herd they are unwelcome companions keeping their food supply close after five days travelling the serendella herd smells the water well before they see it nomsa can almost taste the sweetness thing's for sure she's never seen this much water before [Music] there's no holding back the cooling chobe waters are a lifesaver nomsa stays close to shore but jabu ventures deeper to join his [Music] mother [Music] [Applause] soon enough nomsa takes the plunge and for the first time experiences water she can actually submerge herself in [Applause] the adults enjoy the water immensely and soon put the hardships of their journey behind them nomsa and jabu share the fun [Music] it seems amazing that in the middle of a mighty drought these waters don't dry up that's because the chubby river is fed from sources further north [Music] with so much water the chobi can support a huge abundance and variety of life [Music] it is home to over 450 species of birds [Music] alone [Music] and where there's water there's mud an elephant's favorite sunscreen [Music] the sheer delight of rolling in the mud captures their attention [Music] that they must be vigilant the herd is being watched siva moves in to check out the elephant carves [Music] but she too is being stalked tandy won't allow siva to get any closer she's quick to warn siva [Music] her alarm call alerts the others to the danger it's time to move siva's opportunity for surprise is over she with her mother pregnant siva must now take on the hunting duties elephants may be out of reach but there are many more prey to choose from [Music] her equally inexperienced sisters join her [Music] their first hunt [Music] they spy a large sable buck siva makes the first move [Music] she has a perfect approach but her younger sister is impatient and spotted next attempt an ambush [Music] better try something smaller next time like warthog but not much cover the other sister moves in from the right it's the classic pincer move [Music] so and once again baby sister's timing is all wrong now their ambitions are way too big [Music] another failure it's been a full day of hunting and siva is still hungry it was much easier when there were 40 hunting partners even when their prey were elephants [Music] so siva's attention is drawn back to the serendella herd a calf wanders off alone [Music] this is good fortune [Music] she moves towards it but her smell gives her away [Music] tandy has some unfinished business with siva [Music] now she's really angry [Music] she's determined to drive off all the lions [Music] [Music] this time size wins out [Music] next day another hunt buffalo siva searches for a weak animal but large bulls a standing guard she has a calf in sight [Music] but her cover could be blown by an observant jackal siva uses the long grass to creep forward they've chosen a large adult female it seems these lions are conditioned to hunt only the largest of animals but sensing their difficulties the buffalo herd now turns on them another hunting failure but suddenly siva surprises a baby lechway antelope a first kill and an important lesson for her sisters think big but start small this is no more than a snack but much needed as much receivers confidence as for her [Music] stomach [Music] the dry winter months pass and the serendella herd thrives in its new home [Music] siva and her sisters are succeeding too they still haven't killed a buffalo but they've honed their hunting skills and are ready to try again they now know that hunting requires tactics and stealth and sheer ferocity siva has become an expert hunter [Applause] the approach of the first summer storms charges the air who now sports the beginning of shiny new tusks are oblivious to the coming storm the adults are nervous and siva's presence only makes it worse [Music] there is also a newborn calf to protect siva senses this is the time to hunt elephants she calls her sisters the approaching lions make tandy furious the herd quickly shields the newborn now tunde moves to drive off the lions the lions fall back to await the storm [Music] [Music] nomsa sticks close to jabu the elephants can only protect themselves if they don't panic the lions make their move charging into the herd jabu is separated and attacked after a night of terror the serendella herd regroups one is missing [Music] they begin their search for the missing [Music] calf the vultures are the first to discover the remains of the previous knights victims [Music] they will feast long on an elephant's carcass but which elephant is this [Music] the smell is like a beacon to the herd confirming a dead elephant [Music] [Music] the herd approaches with grim determination [Music] and then they make their discovery this is not jabu but another elephant from another herd probably killed by the storm [Music] the serendella herd moves on to continue the search they fan out across the plane but still don't find him five kilometers away a young injured elephant has found its way to water it's jabu he's tired and he's thirsty he escaped the lions but not without injury [Music] a leg injury is preventing him from searching for the others and a serious head wound has disorientated him [Music] he needs to drink [Music] but can't control his trunk his head injury must be serious [Music] it could help if he moves to deeper [Music] water [Music] he tries to eat but it's impossible he's lost the coordination in his trunk [Music] [Music] fortunately there are no lions here to harass him [Music] eventually he gets further in [Music] he needs to take the weight off his injured leg for a short time the water is cooling and relaxing [Music] but jabu is too weak to get back up [Music] [Music] [Music] and now the water ebbs away his life [Music] [Music] finally the struggling is over as the hours pass into days the serendella herd gives up its search for jabu and they return to the chubby river siva and her family have settled close by [Music] her mother gave birth to five cubs already they show the skills of becoming great hunters perhaps even elephant hunters siva and her sisters will train them [Music] well [Music] siva was raised an elephant hunter and these animals will always have a special place in her life it seems hard to imagine the serendella and for the elephants the cycle of life continues too [Music] tandy has given birth to another boy nature's way of replacing what it has taken away [Music] nomsa is now sprouting tusks and just as jabu cared for her she will care for this little one [Music] nomsa will stay by tandy's side and perhaps one day she will become the serendellas matriarch the serendella herd suffered many hardships but they stuck together and endured the worst nature threw at them [Music] [Applause] [Music] and wherever the herd may roam you will always find a lioness close by [Music] [Applause] wow [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary - Nature

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), nature documentary, Free Documentary Nature, Wildlife, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Documentary 2021, Animals, Animal Documentary, Lions, Lion, Lion Documentary, Africa, Botswana, Southern Africa, chobe national park, Elephants, African Elephant, lions vs elephant, elephant baby, elephant documentary, HD, Lion King, Circle of Life

Id: 9vwJ5tYucgM

Length: 50min 3sec (3003 seconds)

Published: Fri Jan 15 2021