Dawn comes to the African plain.
And a lethal beauty comes stalking out of the shadows.
As they have for generations, the hunter confronts the hunted.
This is the story of two lives bound together
in tooth and blood.
Leopard and warthog, predator and prey
Ever opposed, ever entwined.
They share but one struggle
to survive each new day in a harsh land.
The warthog has been called
"the most astonishing object to ever disgrace nature."
Yet for all its comic bumps and bulges
it has managed to hold its own in the realm of the leopard.
The domain of the cat stretches
across the eastern Transvaal of South Africa,
where the Sand River snakes
through the Kruger National Park
and the Mala Mala Game Reserve.
Here flourishes a remarkable community of animals...
a world where day by day,
the same individuals cross paths time and again.
Among them is a female leopard. This is her home.
And she's not shy about
letting others of her kind know it.
She is beautiful, elegant, and deadly.
The leopard comes cloaked in mystery, elusive and intense.
Even in mating, she is wound ever so tight.
Of all the great cats, this surely is the wildest.
By contrast, consider the courtship of the warthog.
Chin to rump, he pleads his case.
But even a suitor's best-laid plans can go awry.
The warthog's a plodder, a herbivore.
But one thing no warthog will stand
for during this delicate time is an intruding male.
Night belongs to the leopard.
And with the sunset,
the male and female come together once more to mate.
As mating, this is almost predatory.
In time, our leopard becomes a mother.
She has two newborn cubs...
sisters.
Her offspring need her care and protection.
Here, the threats are all around.
One of the deadliest is the hyena.
Once hyenas become aware of the den site,
she must take immediate action
to safeguard her two little cubs.
Awaiting them is a less vulnerable home
Nearby, in the remains of a termite mound,
another birth is about to take place.
The infant warthogs come struggling out of the womb.
Barely five minutes into the world
and he's already trying to stand.
From the outset, even at their first feeding,
the warthogs' true character can be seen.
They may start off looking old before their time...
but they are feisty, rambunctious,
above all, tenacious.
And they will need to be, for daunting days lie ahead.
Both the newborn warthogs and month-old leopards are
about to set off on parallel journeys
through the seasons of the veld.
Slowly, tentatively,
the cubs leave behind the safety of their refuge.
Outside, a new world awaits them.
And there are many dangers they know nothing about.
For two baby sisters, the lessons start small,
like how to subdue their mother's tail
This early roughhousing will teach the cubs crucial skills
like how to pin down prey and deliver a killing bite.
And right from the start,
it's clear the firstborn learns fast.
Shy and solitary, the leopard is a creature of the shadows.
Even upside down, the leopard won't let go of her prey.
Suffocation brings an end
that's ruthless, but mercifully efficient.
But she'll never have a chance to enjoy this meal.
The jaws of a hyena can pulverize bone
The mother leopard can't risk a battle
not with two cubs relying on her.
Lightning is an awesome spectacle
to the cubs seeing it for the first time.
Down in their burrow,
the little piglets are just as scared
of the crashing and the fire in the sky.
But nothing will stop the hungry hyenas
from their feasting.
As the deluge intensifies,
the mother warthog tries to shore up her burrow.
But it's a losing battle.
With the water seeping in,
the young warthogs take refuge the only place they can
on their mother's back.
For the bedraggled piglets, this is life threatening.
Because of their sparse hair covering,
many young warthogs will die
of exposure within the first weeks of life.
When finally the night clears,
her firstborn cub ventures forth.
Unlike her warthog neighbors,
she's hardly the worse for wear.
The mother leopard keeps her cubs close
There's far more than rain to protect them from.
Still in the calm after the storm,
there's always time for a nuzzle or two.
With sunrise, the terrors of the night drift away.
The warthog family is thriving now.
Unlike the leopards,
the gregarious animals ban together.
It's an extended family, and it means more security
for the young cousins and more fun too.
First some rivalries must be sorted
out with a little bumping and pushing.
And then, it's playtime.
One warthog is a bit bolder
and bouncier than the rest who follow in his wake.
But there's method in this apparent madness.
One day their lives will depend on their speed.
A little strenuous exercise deserves a good long drink,
a pick-me-up of piglets,
mother's milk
Up a shady maroela tree,
the mother leopard is on the lookout for prey.
As the heat of the day builds,
the warthogs head down to the water hole for a real treat a good wallow.
But they're not the only ones going that way.
The mother warthog is alert, but she hasn't yet picked up the threat.
The water feels great.
The youngsters, including the bold and bouncy one,
are caught up in their discoveries.
They're finding out how useful the mud can be for those hard to reach spots.
A few feet more and she'll be in range
The predator must kill to survive.
The prey must escape.
Tails at full mast, the little warthog and his siblings stay close together.
They have just been given their first lesson in the virtues of speed.
It won't be their last.
Midday in the warmth of the African sun,
the leopard cubs are mastering another lesson: The art of the ambush
For the firstborn and her sister, these are crucial games.
As the day wears on, not everyone is playing.
The hyena pack is on the prowl.
Something has caught their eye a lioness with a broken leg.
She's unable to keep up with her pride
Not only is she crippled,
she's pregnant and close to giving birth.
The hyenas won't attack. Not yet.
The lioness is still too strong. But their time will come.
A long night is on its way.
The mother warthog and her piglets can retreat when the sun goes down
to the refuge of their burrow.
But for many others, as night descends
the plains are all too open, all too exposed.
Only the hunters walk without fear.
The mother leopard's stalk is triggered by a scent on the breeze...
a scrub hare.
But the little hare has a few tricks too,
and it'll try every one
until it's overwhelmed.
But this hare isn't just a meal, it's a lesson in hunting.
Rather than kill her prey outright, the mother brings it back for her cubs.
The firstborn is eager to practice,
unlike her timid sister.
She's not simply playing with her food
she's learning about the fine line between life and death.
It's knowledge her sister won't get watching from the sidelines.
Too nervous to enter into the fray,
she hangs back while her sister attacks
If character is destiny, an intrepid
spirit may make all the difference in the African night.
The precocious cub is rewarded with a meal.
Full moon on the African plain.
The cycle turns from death to fragile new life.
The crippled lioness has given birth.
But weak and wounded, she can never take care of this cub.
And at the first sound of danger, she limps away.
The baby's cries will attract the hyena pack.
With the terrible logic of survival,
she's forced to leave her youngster to protect herself.
Still she can't shake off the hyenas.
Too weary to go on, she braces herself for the coming battle.
Her growl is stronger than she is.
It's just enough to keep the mob at bay.
There's easier prey around.
The plaintive cries of the abandoned lion cub echo through the night.
And they attract a deadly visitor.
Normally, the mother leopard would kill this cub without thinking twice.
But she hesitates.
Perhaps it has aroused her maternal feelings.
And now, with her old antagonists closing in, she's got a dilemma.
Should she take it? Should she stay?
There is no choice. She could never raise this baby.
With her goes the little one's last chance.
Unaware of her baby's fate, the lioness is calling for her pride.
But they are no where to be found.
Her roars are heard, not by the pride,
but by rogue male lions, a pair of powerful nomads.
They come at a run.
Their intentions, like their movements a blur.
This behavior is highly unusual, but no less savage.
Their killer instinct is so strong,
their urge to attack an injured animal so powerful,
that they seemingly cannot stop.
In the dark hours, the young are more vulnerable than ever.
Left behind while their mother hunts,
their instinct is to explore.
Yet each time they do, they face greater risks.
This is when death stalks the savannah
The thieves are never far off.
Unlike the mother, the male leopard will stand his ground,
especially with this young hyena.
And when the scavenger retreats, the male savors his feast.
The mother has a much bigger worry.
Her cubs. They're not where she left them.
As her anxiety deepens, her mate,
high above the ground, senses a new threat.
So do the persistent hyenas below.
One's got his foot caught.
Looking for a meal, he may soon turn into a meal himself.
It's now or never.
The male leopard too must avoid being trapped by the lions.
Mounting the tree with surprising ease a lioness claims the abandoned carcass
Enticed, an adolescent male tries to follow.
But he's not much of a climber.
He's bitten off more than he can chew.
And right now, he's not chewing much of anything.
The smartest one's the female below.
Soon the inevitable happens.
And the lioness that did all the work is left to swing in the breeze.
Only the scraps are left.
A 20-foot drop barely fazes her.
Once more the leopards have provided a feast for their foes.
Although the lions might hear her,
the mother leopard is still calling into the empty night.
She's now desperate to find her cubs.
She searches through the tall grass,
seeking a familiar scent, a scent that might lead
does lead to her cub.
It's the little shy one, killed by the lions.
She never learned to fend for herself.
Not even a mother's tender affection can make a difference now.
Still somewhere out there is her first-born.
And the culprits are still prowling nearby.
All she can do is call, over and over again.
Until...
hidden in the grass is her cub. Independent as ever, she has endured.
At last, mother and cub have found each other.
This must feel like joy.
One has died and one has survived.
The cub must now find other playmates, other playthings where she can.
She has made it through the toughest trial of her youth.
Soon enough, she will have to face the harsh world around her all by herself.
Death can't hold back the dawn.
In this hard land,
the passing of one little leopard is barely noticed.
As hesitantly pugnacious as ever, the warthogs emerge into the light.
Tucked away in their burrow, they have weathered this,
and many nights unlike the unfortunate little cub.
Even this small, dead body makes them nervous.
The upraised mane shows their wariness
They can't quite be sure the little leopard won't suddenly spring to life.
After all, it would be their worst
nightmare to run into this cub all grown up.
Yet a quick dig at an old enemy
is just too good an opportunity to pass up.
Then again, sometimes they just scare themselves.
A year goes by. Another spring comes to Mala Mala.
For the leopards, change is as inevitable
as the turning of the seasons.
At 20 months, the cub is coming into her own.
There's a new tension between mother and daughter.
One day soon they will be competitors.
Where once there was affection,
there is now indifference, even aggression.
It's a sad but inescapable moment
as the mother forces her youngster off into the world.
She's now completely alone.
The coming of the rainy season mirrors the melancholy transformation.
For the new generation of leopard and warthog,
zebra and hyena, the trials will be unending.
On the savannah, hunger must be faced each day, every day.
The first tests of a solo hunter start off simply enough.
But they're trickier than they look.
A hammerkop is simply the wrong prey.
And a turtle
it may be slower...
but it's not necessarily any easier.
How does this work?
Where exactly are the teeth supposed to go?
It's hard to believe that something so simple
to catch could be so difficult to eat.
It's really better as a toy than a meal.
The leopard is still half a cub.
She's still playing.
But soon she'll have to put away
her childish things and get down to the serious business of life.
You can only play so long.
What she needs is real prey
like impala some as young as she.
This is what she's been training for.
She's stalking well.
She's forgotten just one thing
a noisy tree squirrel.
The impala seem to mock her as they go
There are many frustrations for the novice hunter.
The road to knowledge is a hungry one.
For the inexperienced leopard,
everything must seem bigger and lonelier and scarier than ever before.
This evening, returning to their burrow,
the young warthog and his siblings discover something's wrong.
Their mother is giving them a not-so-subtle hint
It's time they were out on their own.
But being out on your own can be exhausting work.
Like the leopard, the warthog is now truly alone.
He needs to find a safe retreat for the evening.
But they're all taken.
And now the clock is ticking.
The warthog and the leopard have grown up side by side,
yet always at a comfortable distance.
But that gap is closing.
Then suddenly the leopard is under attack.
An empty burrow is an unexpected chance for safety.
The young leopard has tasted warthog blood and she's not ready to quit.
As for the hyena, he'll never give up. It's not in his nature.
And so they end the night leopard,
hyena and warthog locked in a three-way standoff.
The skirmish has left its mark on the young leopard.
Down below the warthog is shaken too.
It's been a rough time for all of them
But both animals can claim at least this victory
They have made it through the long night.
Battered and scarred,
the warthog is lucky to have survived the confrontation.
Like the ones that went before,
each new generation must earn its place on the savannah.
Over the coming months, the leopard gets bigger, stronger.
Yet one achievement continues to elude her.
She's still unable to outwit the adult impala.
They're better at this than she is.
In the midst of the impalas are the warthog and his siblings.
They use the impalas as an early warning system
protection against mutual enemies.
The leopard has arrived.
And this time she hasn't been detected.
The impalas sense danger,
but they're not sure where.
The leopard zeroes in on the warthog.
Once more they stand just yards apart.
The impalas scatter in panic.
But this time she's tackled the biggest prey a full-grown male.
But can she hold on to it?
Success.
And for the warthogs escape.
This is the leopard's grand moment her coming of age.
Over time, she will take many impalas into the trees.
Of course, her triumph brings two familiar foes.
But now she's learned to handle even them.
The hyenas are left to vent their frustration on each other.
Hunter and hunted
side by side
Each has mastered this world in its own way.
And each has but one reward
to guide the next generation into the African dawn.