Wolf Pack-Documentary

this is the story of the rise to power of the largest Wolfpack ever known going from strength to strength they're now at a turning point in their lives the balance of power is shifting within the pack the leaders face a takeover challenge from within their own family winter in Yellowstone is six months of temperatures below freezing it can look beautiful but the conditions are fierce this is a time when most animals struggle simply to survive but is also a time when one animal truly comes into its own this is the time of the wolf and wolves are back in Yellowstone National Park are for an absence of nearly 70 years American gray wolves are formidable predators they hunt in large packs and bring down prey far larger than themselves wolves have been nipping at the heels of elk for hundreds of thousands of years in the depths of winter there will always be the weak the old the injured once targeted the Wolfpack closes in the pack has its prey but the wolves won't be allowed to eat in peace as the Bisons stumble across the Wolves and their kill they panic extraordinary scenes like this disappeared entirely from the American West early last century millions of bison were exterminated and the wolf wasn't far behind it was treated as vermin by ranchers and park officials hunted poisoned and trapped the Yellowstone wolf was gone 1995 brought a change in fortune wolves were brought from the Canadian wilderness to be released back into the park after a 65 year absence right here Doug got to here Park biologist skep the wolves and pens to get them used to the new surroundings and they had their hands full from the start even after ten weeks the Canadian wolves still had a healthy disrespect for human company the plan to fit radio collars to monitor the Wolves progress in location proved the challenging but local officials had more serious worries once released with the wolves leave the park and start preying on livestock instead of the wildlife if they did the project was doomed as the date of the release is approached part biologists like Doug Smith really had no idea what would happen once the doors to the Pens were opened what's out many people were tearful the emotional burden that was lifted off of people's shoulders was tremendous now what was gonna happen would this take with the Wolves go back to Canada what are they gonna do in theory Yellowstone was perfect wolf habitat but no one really knew whether the Wolves would thrive starve will simply leave the park for biologist Doug Smith head of Yellowstone's wolf recovery program the releases marked the beginning of an epic seven-year scientific adventure I've been interested in world since I was a small boy I never dreamed that I would be in the position that I am today and for me this truly is a labor of love I love going to work every day I love trying to figure out what these animals are doing their stories their interactions with the other animals in Yellowstone is a wonderful opportunity that challenges me in every way to keep track of the walls Doug's team have fitted radio collars to about a third of the animals when the batteries run out the collars have to be replaced after trying several different recapture techniques darkus found darting from a helicopter to be the least traumatic for the Wolves we're trying to get fit here while the wolf is sedated Doug gives it a thorough examination and checks its health before replacing the collar the radio collars have given him an extraordinarily intimate glimpse into the secret lives of wolves I think it's good we've got here mine in sight the wolves he's come to know best were a pack released in the shadow of druid peak in 1996 the druid pack initially seemed to adjust well to Yellowstone but more than a year later they wandered out of the park and the pack leader was shot command of the seven wolves fell to his mate the alpha female a beautiful wolf but a violent one a coyote scavenging her kill was in serious trouble the first elf female was wolf number 40 she was very aggressive and she ruled with an iron fist led by this powerful Dark Queen the Druids developed a reputation for killing wolves from neighboring packs as well as coyotes a stranger from a rival pack a young male known as number 21 entered the druids territory he risked his life to court the dark queen his gamble paid off number 21 managed to win her over and became the alpha male of the druid pact the union of these two wolves did not go unnoticed the dark queen sister number 42 was watching known as the Cinderella wolf number 42 was in constant trouble with her sister she was never quite submissive enough to please her leader vicious put-downs were all too common and then one night everything changed the dark queen was dead probably killed by her own sister the next day the one slowly Cinderella wolf claimed the den of the dark queen for her own pups the druid pack had a new leader she took her sister's mate for herself and she raised her sister's pups as well as her own and a third litter as well they had 21 young mouths to feed the Druids took turns babysitting and feeding them all all but one of these pups from three litters grew into adults a remarkable achievement for the druid pack and a triumphant return of wolves to Yellowstone I didn't think that 20 out of 21 pups were going to survive Yellowstone was the ideal place for wolves to be and they weren't there and we reintroduced them and conditions were such that they could have three litters of pups in one pack and they could have 20 of 21 of those pups survive eventually the druid peak pack grew to 37 members almost certainly the largest wolf pack ever known with so many wolves the Druids became a force to be reckoned with they needed more territory and they're howling left no doubt they intended to take it by force the first thing that happened when the druid peacock grew was they had to get more territory they had to take over more land unfortunately all the land in the northern part of Yellowstone was occupied by other wolves so they had to take it aggressively from the nearest Park in the no-man's land between the Druids territory and their neighbors Duncan his team found grim evidence of fierce border skirmishes that's pretty big lots of blood territorial skirmishes between wolf packs can be ferocious in fact they can be so bad that wolves can die in these boundary skirmishes about who's going to control the different areas of the partner but this area right here is a major zone of tension between these two packs their territory boundaries pretty much abut here and three wolves have died in three years right along this boundary the Druids who most suddenly kill this wolf in pursuit of more prey and more territory but their gray fur shows the time is catching up with a druids alpha pair the once black Cinderella wolf and her dark partner have entered their twilight years I feel a lot of kinship with 42 and 21 because I'm watching them gray and I'm starting to pray along with them and so all this stuff pulls a lot of different weights so I'm bonding with the study subjects now 7 years old 42 and 21 the Alpha pear about lived most of their contemporaries but they won't be allowed to enjoy their golden years in peace trouble comes in the form of number 113 a powerful young male a lone wolf the unique thing about 113 is he's so big and how he referred to him was head big male wolf in the prime of his life number 113 has one thing on his mind a mate but druid turf is a dangerous place to come courting caution takes hold and the big male wolf has second thoughts about advancing further and it's 21 the old man of the Druids who chases him off you but the druid pack has young daughters and the powerful strangers presence hasn't gone unnoticed she's interested but nervous a meeting between wolves from different packs is a tense and dangerous affair these behaviors are quite ritualized the animal stands very stiffly facing the oncoming wolves it almost appears as if a wolf is highly nervous and moving in a very kind of mechanical way probably try not to do anything wrong because the slightest mistake could mean death for that wolf and that wolf knows that clearly the young druid ladies appear more amorous than aggressive not so their father trespassers are not tolerated by senior druids big number 113 is seen as trouble humbled and submissive one daughter comes crawling back to her father she may be young but she's a druid and the pack still howls as one for the moment as winter sets in the druid pack faces a dilemma hunting has been good but there are simply too many of them and they are constantly hungry they spotted an injured elk calf who seeks refuge in an icy stream this catch seems too easy to be true but it means getting drenched and the wolves are not sure it's worth it Wow they move on leaving the elk calf's fate to snow and ice winters in Yellowstone a merciless temperatures can drop to 50 below vast elk herds are gathering here in the Lamar Valley and the wolves are right behind them led by the veterans 21 and 40 - it's time for the pack to turn to the business of hunting this is prime wolf country full of elk a favorite prey and they know the local terrain which gives them an advantage wolves were the most important ways they hunt is by getting a good look at their prey so what the Drude Pete pack likes to do is use Lamar Valley and the wide-open space there to get the elk herds moving and in that way they can examine the elk 21 the alpha male of the druid peak pack is oftentimes the leader of the hunt he's the oldest most experienced arguably the wisest wolf in the pack and so he understands what L can be pursued but he might not necessarily be the most aggressive wolf in the hunts he allows some of those younger wolves and their enthusiasm come forward to take care of the initial stages of the hunt and he'll move in towards the end with so many wolves the druid park employs a scattergun tactic fanning out to break up the herd each wolf follows its own target but keeps an eye out in case a fellow druid is on the heels of an easier mark like an experienced general 21 oversees the attack leaving the hard work to the younger troops all it takes is a singing stumble the takedown is the most dangerous moment a frightened elk can easily deal a fatal blow with its sharp hooves but the Druids have experience on their side the prey is overwhelmed with so many hunters the carcass will be quickly stripped to the bone there will be little left for scavengers after a hunt it's time to restore order in the ranks the alpha female 42 demands submission from her daughters the success of the druids has had an impact not only on the elk but on the wolf's cousin the coyote continually harassed by wolves its numbers have fallen by half in the Lamar Valley once the Druids were infamous for killing coyotes but no longer this young wolf wants a playmate however reluctant the two creatures understand a common body language the coyote knows that this is a game and not game over although the druid pups are 10 months old nearly full-grown they're puppyish curiosity and appetite for play are still very much alive play let's young wolves establish their status in the pack a constantly shifting power struggle but while it pops play there is trouble starring the Packers reached a critical size it can no longer feed everyone it's time for the yearlings to strike out on their own and the rest of the pack can't emphasize the point strongly enough shunned by his own family this outcast will have to make his own way in the wilderness if he's lucky he'll find a young female and start a new pack if he's unlucky he may be killed by a rival pack or starve in the late afternoon one of the druid daughters is restless and with good reason 113 the lone male is back again and looking for a mate in this moment the first steps in the formation of a new alliance have been taken and as day gives way tonight there is a clear declaration that a new pact is born under cover of darkness another druid female approaches the big male stranger and then an adolescent male a new force is gathering but it's still on druid territory the morning finds old 21 the alpha-male leading the remaining druids on border patrol this is not a good time for the new pack to be caught out in the open and a very bad time to be caught for mating mother and father suspect nothing as yet the new gang spots the Patrol it's definitely time to leave at the top of the ridge a team of druid seals off an escape route the big male stranger takes no chances he leads his band of recruits into no-man's land on the way out of the valley he's joined by several more druid deserters traveling along the disputed border between rival wolf packs the young gang of six heads south further into the heart of the park to try their fortunes there the loyal druids reaffirm their ownership of this part of Yellowstone to follow the Wolves of the interior Doug and his team are also headed deep into the backwoods of the park far off the beaten path deep in the heart of Yellowstone is where winter hits hardest there is no comfort to be found in these parts during their study the scientists have observed the predator and prey actually communicate with each other during a hunt over countless numbers of years elk have developed signals that advertise their strength and fitness to wolves and wolves have developed the ability to guess when the elk are cheating these elk is signalling that they're strong by energetic and exaggerated trotting it's a tactic to say then bother chasing me because I can outrun you sometimes the Wolves will call their bluff and continue to chase the elk it won't be long before any weakness will be found out elk and wolf are much more evenly matched than might appear and standing its ground when surrounded by a pack of hungry wolves turns out to be a winning strategy if the elk can hold its nerve wolves can be killed by their prey and we've had six wolves die in Yellowstone because of their prey five by elk one by a moose so wolves have to be very very careful at what they kill standoffs like these can go on for hours if the elk can resist the urge to make a break for it the wolves will often give up the wolf's strength lies in killing animals that are already running a passing group of bison is too tempting to resist the Yellowstone winter finally loosens its grip and gives way slowly to spring the winter has cold the weak and the old only the fittest have survived today Duggars out with David Mitch and Rolf Peterson both veterans of Wolfe research they're looking for a bison carcass that was spotted from the air maybe even longer than that I didn't see this big mud boggin doctor and his team meticulously document every wolf kill they find and conduct a death scene forensic investigation okay wow that's got an extra toe darling right there right yeah extra and impacted and infected tooth may have caused this animals downfall wolves may be able to sniff out a K in a rotting tooth oh yeah that stuff smells actually so da and if wolves can detect abnormalities by smell they could sure smell that couldn't he but the researchers suspect more than just a toothache as the cause of the Bisons death by sawing apart one of its bones they can examine the condition of the marrow oh boy Wow look at that there's no fat in there whatever he's yeah I mean there's water yeah this water is no fat in the marrow means the animal was starving prevent dirt even if even if the Wolves had killed him that it could've gone anywhere yeah wolves did a favor the spring thaw has thinned the ice the Bison will find escape impossible Ravens are the first to discover a carcass coyotes are far behind he's earned the right to have the first go at the soggy carcass not that it's going to be that easy this is not all of his better days springtime in Yellowstone is fickle in the Lamar Valley the blink of an eye and winter is back again a mother grizzly and a carp have emerged from their winter den only to be greeted by driving snow and something more sinister Druids there is no love lost between Yellowstone's top predators wolves and Grizzlies have been known to kill each other's young you'd think an aggressively protective mother bear would be best left alone she could break a wolf's back with a single swipe of her palm but she can't risk straying more than a few yards from her cub finally the Druids lose interest in bear baiting and the mother and cub can go their own way after several full starts spring has taken winters place you with a cloak of winter lifted the Lamar Valley is barely recognizable there are newcomers here just getting to know the place the Druids have made it through the winter in fine form old 21 and 42 still at the helm at this time of year the pack splits up the Wolves won't need to hunt as a large team now their prey is elk calves and it's not just wolves every predator is drawn to them there may be competition between wolves and grizzly bears for elk calves but it's interesting because one day in Lamar Valley the spring our team observed two elk calves killed by wolves two killed by grizzly bears and two killed by coyotes black bears Cougars Eagles also take elk calves so then one of the next studies that we're trying to initiate is understanding predation on elk calves the cars are nimble and quick even at this young age the Grizzly is surprisingly fleet for its size it can reach a top speed of 30 miles an hour Grizzly's have young to feed too the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone though hasn't been welcomed by everyone local sports hunters for one don't like competing with the wolves but despite the return of a top predator to the park the scientists report alt numbers seem to be holding steady but the controversy has spread beyond the park nearly half of the Wolves now live outside Yellowstone where they're often not welcome local ranchers feared for the loss of their cattle but after seven years the true losses have been far lower than many ranchers have predicted the days are growing longer and the droids are away patrolling the furthest reaches of their territory Doug and his team used this opportunity to study the Druids vacated winter home den sites our treasures you get a view into the wolf's world you know it's just like going to your house after you've moved out can you see the main chamber at the end I can they found that females make dens in caves dig under tree roots and even take over beaver dams the narrow entryway for the big chamber at the end it might go at least 16 feet an entrance that probably grizzly bear couldn't get down but a chamber that was pretty roomy and comfortable the droids themselves are now long gone spending the summer to rendezvous site their 2 month-old pups stay here making the most of the lush period of sunshine while most of the pack hunts there are plenty of new sights and smells to investigate and an attentive babysitter nearby to make sure things don't get out of hand for the next few summer months the rendezvous site will be the focal point of air young lives though adults often go their separate ways to hunt they return to the rendezvous site to feed the pups and keep in contact with the rest of the pack a new litter of wolf pups is welcomed the Doug knows the time will soon come when there'll be some sad losses from the druid pack 42 has been there since the empty on the scene early they are the thread through that whole story and that thread is getting short and it could end soon it will be a sad day for me and it will be a sad day for the story of Yellowstone wolf the sadness of those should be balanced by the scale of the achievement I think the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone is one of the scientific opportunities of the century to be a part of this from the beginning and document how this system will change because of the reduction of a top carnivore that belongs here is a huge scientific opportunity that needs to be done and now a new chapter has opened in Yellowstone's history doug has been anxious to find out what happened to the big young wolf that ran off for the Druids adolescent daughters although number 113 has been colored his radio transmitter only works occasionally so he's been hard to track one day at the edge of the Druids territory Doug spots a group of pups he hasn't seen before and watching over them is 113 no longer a renegade wolf but a busy father with his young family with the arrival of the pups this group is now officially a pack in its own right and 113 is their alpha male a chapter is ending for the aging leaders of the Druids but it's just beginning for this pack too new to even have a name future skirmishes of a Yellowstone territory are inevitable as these young wolves face the future this is their battle cry next brucey and TAS look at the highlights of the new series of Strictly Come Dancing here on BBC 2 there's a chance to catch up with Robin Hood on BBC 3 and on BBC four captivating Natural History and spectacular scenery on planet Earth one member down over 800 miles to go

Channel: Garret Johnson

Views: 1,715,741

Rating: 4.6197915 out of 5

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Id: 0JzLFkLS8kg

Length: 49min 0sec (2940 seconds)

Published: Sun Oct 20 2013