1 00:00:30,207 --> 00:00:32,641 This is the beginning of a perilous journey... 2 00:00:32,807 --> 00:00:35,844 to one of the most forbidding places on earth... 3 00:00:36,007 --> 00:00:38,362 the rainforests of the Congo. 4 00:00:49,327 --> 00:00:52,239 We're searching for one of our closest relatives... 5 00:00:52,407 --> 00:00:54,841 Africa's largest primate. 6 00:00:57,007 --> 00:00:59,680 This remarkable creature has, until now... 7 00:00:59,847 --> 00:01:02,361 remained unknown to us in the wild. 8 00:01:02,927 --> 00:01:07,603 Yet if we can discover its true character we may find vital clues... 9 00:01:07,767 --> 00:01:09,598 to our own human nature. 10 00:01:10,607 --> 00:01:13,838 We're here on the trail of King Kong. 11 00:01:34,607 --> 00:01:37,724 In the 1933 film classic, "King Kong"... 12 00:01:37,887 --> 00:01:42,119 is an aggressive brute who falls for the gorgeous Fay Wray... 13 00:01:42,727 --> 00:01:45,480 only to get cut down in his prime. 14 00:01:46,647 --> 00:01:48,717 The story was based on early accounts... 15 00:01:48,887 --> 00:01:53,324 of a supposedly vicious ape, but how true to life was it? 16 00:02:02,767 --> 00:02:07,158 Our Congo journey starts where King Kong's journey ended... 17 00:02:10,127 --> 00:02:13,915 In spite of appearances, I'm not in the heart of Africa. 18 00:02:16,607 --> 00:02:18,359 I'm in New York City. 19 00:02:26,367 --> 00:02:29,279 Nearly every gorilla in every zoo around the world... 20 00:02:29,447 --> 00:02:33,201 is a lowland gorilla brought from the Congo years ago... 21 00:02:33,367 --> 00:02:35,835 and now born and bred in captivity. 22 00:02:36,807 --> 00:02:40,197 The wonderful Bronx Zoo is probably the best home for gorillas... 23 00:02:40,367 --> 00:02:42,005 outside Africa. 24 00:02:43,887 --> 00:02:47,004 But it's a million miles from their true home. 25 00:02:47,487 --> 00:02:51,196 The amazing truth is that at the start of the 21st century... 26 00:02:51,367 --> 00:02:54,837 one of our nearest relatives is still a mystery to us... 27 00:02:55,007 --> 00:02:58,636 we've almost no idea how these creatures live in the wild... 28 00:02:58,807 --> 00:03:01,719 what they eat, what sort of families they have. 29 00:03:01,887 --> 00:03:04,606 We don't even know if they're hanging on to survival... 30 00:03:04,767 --> 00:03:07,565 in the dark wilderness that is the Congo. 31 00:03:10,247 --> 00:03:13,717 So near and yet so far. 32 00:03:14,807 --> 00:03:17,321 This is one of our closest relations... 33 00:03:17,567 --> 00:03:20,445 and yet, until comparatively recently... 34 00:03:21,007 --> 00:03:25,046 a complete stranger, but all that is now changing. 35 00:03:25,807 --> 00:03:30,676 Deep in the Congo forests, a group of remarkable naturalists... 36 00:03:31,287 --> 00:03:35,075 are discovering the true nature of the lowland gorilla. 37 00:03:36,927 --> 00:03:41,398 And that is our African adventure, a safari deep into the Congo... 38 00:03:41,567 --> 00:03:45,082 in search of King Kong's wild cousins. 39 00:03:53,367 --> 00:03:56,325 First stop is the Atlantic coast of Africa... 40 00:03:56,487 --> 00:03:58,398 Libreville, in Gabon. 41 00:03:58,607 --> 00:04:02,236 This is the safest route in to the Congo forests. 42 00:04:03,807 --> 00:04:06,526 The man charged with this toughest of filming ventures... 43 00:04:06,687 --> 00:04:10,566 is Gavin Thurston, with his assistants James and Ralph. 44 00:04:12,127 --> 00:04:14,357 I've been filming wildlife for 20 years.... 45 00:04:14,527 --> 00:04:18,406 but I reckon this project is going to be my biggest challenge so far... 46 00:04:18,567 --> 00:04:22,719 and to be honest I'm a bit wary, civil war, malaria... 47 00:04:23,087 --> 00:04:26,124 and we've all heard frightening stories about charging gorillas. 48 00:04:27,167 --> 00:04:31,001 Picking up supplies in the market there were some shocking signs... 49 00:04:31,167 --> 00:04:33,965 that the forests we're heading into are under threat. 50 00:04:35,727 --> 00:04:37,797 We're off into the unknown... 51 00:04:38,967 --> 00:04:42,004 deep into the most remote corners of the Congo. 52 00:04:49,487 --> 00:04:53,560 My first impression was like flying over the broccoli counter at Tescos. 53 00:04:55,687 --> 00:04:58,520 I was amazed at the sheer scale of it. 54 00:05:09,007 --> 00:05:11,646 Catching wild animals for meat may seem cruel... 55 00:05:11,807 --> 00:05:14,526 but they haven't got supermarkets out here. 56 00:05:19,407 --> 00:05:23,082 The Heart of Darkness got its name from shocking accounts and images... 57 00:05:23,247 --> 00:05:25,715 sent back by the first explorers. 58 00:05:26,967 --> 00:05:31,245 They told stories of "a hideous creature, half man, half beast... 59 00:05:31,607 --> 00:05:34,883 with an awful expression like a nightmare vision". 60 00:05:35,127 --> 00:05:38,915 They played up their heroic encounters with this vicious creature... 61 00:05:39,087 --> 00:05:41,920 a savage killer which must be tamed. 62 00:05:43,487 --> 00:05:47,162 And that is how the brutal King Kong was born. 63 00:05:54,167 --> 00:05:55,885 But very few lowland gorillas... 64 00:05:56,047 --> 00:05:58,686 have ever been seen alive in their natural home. 65 00:05:58,847 --> 00:06:03,125 Almost all we know has come from a handful of mountain gorillas... 66 00:06:03,287 --> 00:06:07,326 living on the hills and peaks along the eastern edges of the Congo. 67 00:06:10,807 --> 00:06:14,561 These are spectacular creatures, covered with long shaggy hair... 68 00:06:14,727 --> 00:06:18,037 that keeps them warm up here in their cold mountain home. 69 00:06:21,367 --> 00:06:24,165 They live on the ground, eating the leaves and shoots... 70 00:06:24,327 --> 00:06:27,876 of the plants which thrive in these high altitude forests. 71 00:06:35,967 --> 00:06:38,879 But in truth these are rare oddities... 72 00:06:39,047 --> 00:06:42,084 there are perhaps only four or five hundred mountain gorillas... 73 00:06:42,247 --> 00:06:45,364 left in the wild. And we know about them mainly... 74 00:06:45,527 --> 00:06:48,200 because they've been habituated to human presence. 75 00:06:48,367 --> 00:06:51,723 You can even take tourist trips to visit them. 76 00:06:56,847 --> 00:07:00,157 Beyond the mountains lies the great unknown. 77 00:07:01,287 --> 00:07:05,838 The Congo jungles are said to be home to thousands of lowland gorillas. 78 00:07:06,007 --> 00:07:10,046 But how many are left? And what sort of creatures are they? 79 00:07:12,767 --> 00:07:14,997 For three days Gavin and his crew... 80 00:07:15,167 --> 00:07:18,682 journey up the Mambili River into northern Congo. 81 00:07:18,967 --> 00:07:21,197 They're heading for a place called Odzala... 82 00:07:21,367 --> 00:07:24,165 unheard of until just a few years ago. 83 00:07:24,447 --> 00:07:27,962 Stories had been coming out of huge clearings in the forest there... 84 00:07:28,127 --> 00:07:32,245 full of forest animals. Will they find lowland gorillas? 85 00:07:38,527 --> 00:07:42,406 By now Ralph, James and Gavin are deep in the Congo. 86 00:07:43,527 --> 00:07:45,836 It's a hostile world. 87 00:07:52,687 --> 00:07:56,760 The Mambili River becomes narrower, and finally impassable. 88 00:07:57,727 --> 00:08:00,719 From here on it'll have to be on foot. 89 00:08:02,807 --> 00:08:05,879 The Congo forests are said to be full of elephants... 90 00:08:06,047 --> 00:08:08,003 antelopes and apes... 91 00:08:08,407 --> 00:08:11,444 but Gavin and his crew will be lucky to see anything... 92 00:08:11,607 --> 00:08:15,885 forest animals have incredibly sensitive sight, smell and hearing. 93 00:08:16,047 --> 00:08:19,084 And they won't hang around to see who the visitors are. 94 00:08:24,127 --> 00:08:29,281 Some of these animals are dangerous too. They'll charge without hesitation. 95 00:08:30,727 --> 00:08:33,480 Despite the fact that it's about 30 degrees... 96 00:08:33,767 --> 00:08:36,998 and 80 percent humidity... 97 00:08:37,767 --> 00:08:39,519 it's actually quite a pleasant walk. 98 00:08:39,687 --> 00:08:43,441 Shame we have to cart all this blooming film gear with us. 99 00:08:43,967 --> 00:08:45,605 The only difference really between here and England... 100 00:08:45,767 --> 00:08:48,486 apart from the heat and the humidity is here... 101 00:08:49,087 --> 00:08:53,365 at any moment we could run into some animals such... 102 00:08:53,727 --> 00:08:58,164 as elephant, buffalo or gorilla. 103 00:09:01,527 --> 00:09:04,360 After seven days travelling by plane, truck... 104 00:09:04,527 --> 00:09:06,245 canoe, and now on foot... 105 00:09:06,407 --> 00:09:09,479 finally we see a huge clearing in the forest. 106 00:09:22,527 --> 00:09:25,803 Amazingly we've seen our first silverback gorilla. 107 00:09:27,047 --> 00:09:29,242 It's encouraging to know that they're actually here... 108 00:09:29,407 --> 00:09:31,841 we've seen one within the first few minutes. 109 00:09:36,807 --> 00:09:41,005 This is Maya Nord, only discovered in 1992. 110 00:09:41,607 --> 00:09:45,043 In the Congo these natural clearing are called "bais"... 111 00:09:45,207 --> 00:09:47,118 literally a bay, or opening... 112 00:09:47,287 --> 00:09:50,996 and they seem to act like magnets for the forest creatures. 113 00:09:56,727 --> 00:10:00,879 Maya Nord is one of the great wildlife discoveries of recent times. 114 00:10:01,047 --> 00:10:03,607 A magical, mysterious place. 115 00:10:03,807 --> 00:10:07,846 A vast open arena in the midst of impenetrable jungle. 116 00:10:17,207 --> 00:10:20,677 Here there are forest elephants, sitatunga antelopes... 117 00:10:20,847 --> 00:10:23,156 buffalo, colobus monkeys... 118 00:10:23,887 --> 00:10:26,355 even giant forest hogs. 119 00:10:28,447 --> 00:10:31,723 They all seem to co-exist in perfect harmony. 120 00:10:35,367 --> 00:10:39,246 Even that most elusive of forest antelopes, the bongo... 121 00:10:39,447 --> 00:10:41,563 comes to Maya Nord. 122 00:10:45,727 --> 00:10:49,959 And there are lowland gorillas here too, in huge numbers. 123 00:10:57,207 --> 00:10:59,721 This is how I imagined the garden of Eden... 124 00:10:59,887 --> 00:11:02,924 a place where all the forest animals come together to eat, and play... 125 00:11:03,087 --> 00:11:04,645 and socialise. 126 00:11:07,287 --> 00:11:09,960 It seems there's never a dull moment. 127 00:11:35,447 --> 00:11:36,880 What a sight! 128 00:11:38,127 --> 00:11:41,403 As I settled in to start filming from a platform on the edge of the bai... 129 00:11:41,567 --> 00:11:44,604 I felt at last the journey had been worthwhile. 130 00:11:47,327 --> 00:11:50,524 I'd never expected to see so many lowland gorillas... 131 00:11:50,687 --> 00:11:53,247 and they look quite different from the mountain gorillas. 132 00:11:53,407 --> 00:11:55,921 The hair on their heads is chestnut coloured... 133 00:11:56,087 --> 00:11:59,636 they're much more brown, except the big male "silverbacks"... 134 00:11:59,807 --> 00:12:02,116 and they're much less hairy altogether. 135 00:12:06,407 --> 00:12:11,276 The trouble is that Maya Nord is a grassy swamp full of water pools... 136 00:12:11,847 --> 00:12:14,361 and the gorillas are miles away. 137 00:12:15,407 --> 00:12:18,604 Gavin's never going to get intimate shots of them from here. 138 00:12:18,767 --> 00:12:22,203 He's going to have to find a way of getting a bit closer. 139 00:12:28,767 --> 00:12:32,237 Around the edges of Maya Nord are some smaller bais. 140 00:12:32,807 --> 00:12:34,286 Gavin, James and Ralph... 141 00:12:34,447 --> 00:12:36,881 set up a filming hide on the edge of one of them... 142 00:12:37,047 --> 00:12:39,242 much closer to the gorillas. 143 00:12:42,367 --> 00:12:46,565 The trouble is that commuting to work can involve a bit of traffic. 144 00:12:51,327 --> 00:12:55,366 We've got a slight problem that we've come to the little bai. 145 00:12:56,127 --> 00:12:58,721 I'm going to try and get into the hide... 146 00:12:59,127 --> 00:13:03,518 but there's a herd of about 15 buffalo just on the edge... 147 00:13:07,367 --> 00:13:09,722 There go some African Grey Parrots. 148 00:13:10,607 --> 00:13:13,121 The trouble is they're a bit dodgy to get close to... 149 00:13:13,287 --> 00:13:16,120 we're going to have to wait for them to drift further from the hide... 150 00:13:16,287 --> 00:13:18,482 before it's safe to go in there. 151 00:13:18,647 --> 00:13:22,162 We also want to make sure they don't come this way and us get trampled. 152 00:13:31,327 --> 00:13:34,842 And we can also smell that there's some gorilla here as well... 153 00:13:35,007 --> 00:13:37,043 just to add to the excitement. 154 00:13:44,487 --> 00:13:47,320 Finally I can settle in to my hide. 155 00:13:48,487 --> 00:13:50,318 It's like a steam room in here. 156 00:13:50,487 --> 00:13:53,604 But hopefully it'll get me closer to the gorillas. 157 00:13:56,287 --> 00:13:58,482 The gorillas spend their nights in the forest... 158 00:13:58,647 --> 00:14:00,763 only coming out here during the day. 159 00:14:01,047 --> 00:14:05,120 A huge silverback, an adult male weighing nearly 200 kilos... 160 00:14:05,287 --> 00:14:07,642 leads his family into the bai. 161 00:14:09,407 --> 00:14:13,685 He appears to have a harem of four females, each with their young. 162 00:14:17,047 --> 00:14:20,039 They've obviously come to feed, but on what? 163 00:14:22,127 --> 00:14:26,086 Do these plants provide nutrition they can't find in the forests? 164 00:14:27,887 --> 00:14:31,436 The youngsters seem to depend entirely on their mothers. 165 00:14:32,087 --> 00:14:35,443 Hitch-hiking on mum's back is standard travel. 166 00:14:36,807 --> 00:14:41,642 The silverback seems pretty laid back, not at all an offensive brute. 167 00:14:55,247 --> 00:14:58,478 The only sign of aggro here comes from two females... 168 00:14:58,647 --> 00:15:02,242 obviously in dispute over something. But what? 169 00:15:02,487 --> 00:15:05,877 Their rank in the pecking order? The care of young? 170 00:15:06,047 --> 00:15:09,437 A tussle over food? It's impossible to say. 171 00:15:11,607 --> 00:15:15,600 The gorillas are coming close, a bit too close for my liking. 172 00:15:16,287 --> 00:15:19,165 They seem to be noticing the reflection in my lens. 173 00:15:20,527 --> 00:15:22,882 Two hundred kilos of sheer muscle... 174 00:15:23,087 --> 00:15:25,521 The only thing between me and this silverback... 175 00:15:25,687 --> 00:15:27,598 is a thin sheet of nylon. 176 00:15:28,367 --> 00:15:30,323 And he's clearly not happy. 177 00:15:33,607 --> 00:15:35,677 The silverback gorilla that was in the bai... 178 00:15:35,847 --> 00:15:40,079 has just charged off into the forest and he was barking loudly. 179 00:15:45,407 --> 00:15:49,605 He's definitely wary of the hide, perhaps he sees it as a threat. 180 00:16:01,967 --> 00:16:06,757 Well amazingly, nothing's broken. But I was left well shaken. 181 00:16:13,127 --> 00:16:16,199 It's not called rainforest for nothing. 182 00:16:16,367 --> 00:16:19,643 At this time of year there's a downpour nearly every day. 183 00:16:19,807 --> 00:16:22,844 And the gorillas seem to understand that a wide open space... 184 00:16:23,007 --> 00:16:26,841 isn't a clever place to hang out during a thunderstorm. 185 00:16:32,207 --> 00:16:34,960 Odzala National Park is such a special place... 186 00:16:35,127 --> 00:16:38,642 that the European Commission itself has taken on the huge cost... 187 00:16:38,807 --> 00:16:43,517 of running and protecting it. And it's still largely a mystery. 188 00:16:43,967 --> 00:16:46,527 Nobody has yet studied these gorillas. 189 00:16:46,687 --> 00:16:50,282 It's like watching a soap opera with the sound turned down. 190 00:16:50,487 --> 00:16:54,765 Who's doing what to whom? We just don't know. 191 00:17:01,127 --> 00:17:05,484 But there are stories of a place deeper in the Congo forests... 192 00:17:05,927 --> 00:17:10,523 where two naturalists have started a study of gorilla family life. 193 00:17:11,727 --> 00:17:14,799 Gavin heads eastwards to investigate. 194 00:17:18,167 --> 00:17:21,921 Loggers have cut a wide road through this pristine forest... 195 00:17:22,447 --> 00:17:25,405 to reach some of the best timber in the world. 196 00:17:28,807 --> 00:17:32,163 Nearly every patch of forest in the Congo has been assigned... 197 00:17:32,327 --> 00:17:35,000 to some logging company somewhere. 198 00:17:39,047 --> 00:17:41,607 Some of these trees are 800 years old. 199 00:17:42,407 --> 00:17:46,798 Each one is worth thousands of dollars just as raw wood. 200 00:17:51,967 --> 00:17:56,165 And for a poor African country it's tempting to cut it down... 201 00:17:56,327 --> 00:18:00,286 cash it in, but these are gorillas' homes. 202 00:18:08,327 --> 00:18:12,240 Great mechanical caravans carry the timber away... 203 00:18:12,407 --> 00:18:15,922 siphoned out of the Congo by truck and train. 204 00:18:19,207 --> 00:18:22,802 But Gavin is heading the other way. To a wild-looking place... 205 00:18:22,967 --> 00:18:25,686 even the loggers have not yet reached. 206 00:18:31,007 --> 00:18:35,444 This is the Ndoki, one of Congo's most remote regions. 207 00:18:36,807 --> 00:18:39,958 The only way through these dark forests and tangled swamps... 208 00:18:40,127 --> 00:18:43,961 is by pirogue, canoes carved from tree-trunks. 209 00:18:49,007 --> 00:18:52,682 The Ndoki River leads to the tiny Mbeli stream... 210 00:18:52,847 --> 00:18:56,283 the only route to another remarkable bai... 211 00:18:56,967 --> 00:18:58,320 Mbeli. 212 00:19:03,247 --> 00:19:06,956 For the last three years Mbeli bai has been base camp... 213 00:19:07,127 --> 00:19:10,403 for two intrepid young men intent on discovering the truth... 214 00:19:10,567 --> 00:19:13,843 about family life among the lowland gorillas. 215 00:19:17,607 --> 00:19:21,282 Ten hours a day, seven days a week, come rain come shine... 216 00:19:21,447 --> 00:19:24,962 Richard Parnell from England and Dave Morgan from Florida... 217 00:19:25,127 --> 00:19:27,322 come to their platform. 218 00:19:28,767 --> 00:19:31,486 Armed with telescopes, cameras and notebooks... 219 00:19:31,647 --> 00:19:36,004 they record the comings and goings here at "gorilla junction". 220 00:19:39,727 --> 00:19:41,763 Dave and Richard are incredible. 221 00:19:41,927 --> 00:19:46,159 They've identified over 130 gorillas who come to the bai. 222 00:19:46,407 --> 00:19:49,240 At this stage, they all look the same to me. 223 00:19:56,287 --> 00:19:58,960 The first arrival of the day. Who is it? 224 00:19:59,567 --> 00:20:02,639 Which family is it? Are they all there? 225 00:20:03,087 --> 00:20:06,796 Dave and Richard reckon about 1 4 families come here regularly... 226 00:20:06,967 --> 00:20:09,527 plus quite a few lone silverbacks. 227 00:20:12,127 --> 00:20:16,325 But why do they come? Is this a giant salad bar... 228 00:20:16,607 --> 00:20:19,075 or just a place to socialise? 229 00:20:19,247 --> 00:20:22,239 Is it a pick-up joint for the lone silverbacks? 230 00:20:24,287 --> 00:20:28,075 Looks like Clive is moving across but... 231 00:20:28,367 --> 00:20:30,323 he seemed a little bit alert to me. 232 00:20:31,687 --> 00:20:34,326 Clive leads his family into the open... 233 00:20:34,487 --> 00:20:37,638 followed by his three females and their young. 234 00:20:38,047 --> 00:20:41,801 Out here, the normal "rules of engagement" are ignored. 235 00:20:42,567 --> 00:20:46,355 Massive silverbacks, usually fiercely protective of their groups... 236 00:20:46,527 --> 00:20:50,645 pass within a few metres of each other without any sign of anger... 237 00:20:50,927 --> 00:20:55,159 though if they do come too close, a gentle water splash says... 238 00:20:55,327 --> 00:20:57,158 "That's close enough!" 239 00:21:01,567 --> 00:21:06,357 It's astonishing to see gorillas up to their waists in the swampy marsh. 240 00:21:06,527 --> 00:21:09,485 It used to be thought gorillas didn't like water at all... 241 00:21:09,647 --> 00:21:13,037 and would avoid crossing rivers or streams for fear of it... 242 00:21:13,247 --> 00:21:16,444 but they're perfectly at home out here in the marshes. 243 00:21:17,207 --> 00:21:20,165 These truly are "amphibious apes". 244 00:21:24,607 --> 00:21:27,485 In the deeper streams the gorillas walk on their hind legs... 245 00:21:27,647 --> 00:21:30,081 to keep their heads above water. 246 00:21:31,007 --> 00:21:34,522 Is this how we first learned to walk upright too? 247 00:21:36,687 --> 00:21:38,996 It's easy to imagine that once upon a time... 248 00:21:39,167 --> 00:21:42,159 our own early ancestors moved like this... 249 00:21:42,327 --> 00:21:46,206 taking their first tentative steps to bipedalism. 250 00:21:52,047 --> 00:21:55,084 Crossing water is easier if you're standing upright... 251 00:21:55,247 --> 00:21:59,399 and you also have a better chance of spotting distant predators... 252 00:22:01,567 --> 00:22:05,685 Though its rare for a leopard to attack an adult gorilla. 253 00:22:10,047 --> 00:22:12,880 It's the floating mats of vegetation which attract them. 254 00:22:13,047 --> 00:22:15,641 Gorillas love to eat fruit when it's available... 255 00:22:15,807 --> 00:22:20,562 but out here there are always vast quantities of juicy stems and leaves. 256 00:22:21,087 --> 00:22:22,645 With amazing dexterity... 257 00:22:22,807 --> 00:22:25,321 they strip off the outer layers of the stems... 258 00:22:25,487 --> 00:22:28,126 to get at the tastier shoots within. 259 00:22:34,687 --> 00:22:36,564 Their hands are huge. 260 00:22:38,047 --> 00:22:41,198 Out here in the open there's bright sunlight and copious water... 261 00:22:41,367 --> 00:22:43,676 the perfect recipe for green growth... 262 00:22:43,847 --> 00:22:47,726 endless food for gorillas, especially sedges and water lilies. 263 00:22:49,607 --> 00:22:54,158 The gorillas stay on average for about two hours' intensive munching. 264 00:22:55,767 --> 00:22:59,442 They come from far and wide, to this salad oasis... 265 00:22:59,607 --> 00:23:01,643 in the midst of the forest. 266 00:23:05,967 --> 00:23:10,643 Yet another surprise is to see lowland gorillas washing their food. 267 00:23:11,047 --> 00:23:13,242 After pulling up a handful of "hydrocharis"... 268 00:23:13,407 --> 00:23:16,046 they give the roots a quick swish through the water... 269 00:23:16,207 --> 00:23:18,323 to clean off mud and debris. 270 00:23:20,447 --> 00:23:24,565 Lowland gorillas are more intelligent than we had assumed. 271 00:23:27,447 --> 00:23:30,996 With so much food around, and with Dad in relaxed mood... 272 00:23:31,167 --> 00:23:34,125 the bai is a playground for youngsters. 273 00:23:34,327 --> 00:23:36,795 A rare opportunity to meet long lost cousins... 274 00:23:36,967 --> 00:23:40,164 and maybe even make a few new friends. 275 00:23:40,687 --> 00:23:43,724 It's not unlike a primary school playground. 276 00:24:53,567 --> 00:24:56,798 The bai may seem a picture of calm co-existence... 277 00:24:56,967 --> 00:24:59,561 but all is not quite as it appears. 278 00:25:01,527 --> 00:25:05,566 And it's the black-back males that are likely to disrupt things. 279 00:25:05,727 --> 00:25:07,558 Between 8 and 12 years old... 280 00:25:07,727 --> 00:25:11,436 the young males become the spotty teenagers of the gorilla world... 281 00:25:11,607 --> 00:25:14,758 the ones most worried about rank and appearances. 282 00:25:17,607 --> 00:25:20,280 These guys have got something to prove. 283 00:25:25,287 --> 00:25:29,519 These bruisers can't resist the temptation to show off to the girls... 284 00:25:29,687 --> 00:25:33,521 have a pop at a rival male, prove who's number one. 285 00:25:34,887 --> 00:25:37,720 Without getting hurt, if possible. 286 00:25:39,447 --> 00:25:41,597 But this is serious stuff. 287 00:25:41,767 --> 00:25:45,043 If these young thugs are ever to become adult silverbacks... 288 00:25:45,207 --> 00:25:48,324 they'll have to fight for a female, defend their young... 289 00:25:48,487 --> 00:25:50,318 protect their patch. 290 00:25:51,527 --> 00:25:55,759 The bai may be a playground, but it's also a jousting arena... 291 00:25:56,007 --> 00:25:57,565 a boxing ring. 292 00:26:11,607 --> 00:26:15,486 Sometimes the rough-housing rouses the real silverbacks. 293 00:26:16,087 --> 00:26:18,043 A splash display. 294 00:26:19,367 --> 00:26:22,882 This is when gorillas are most like King Kong. 295 00:26:43,247 --> 00:26:46,239 These forests are so remote, so vast... 296 00:26:46,447 --> 00:26:49,723 that they're a refuge for many thousands of lowland gorillas. 297 00:26:49,887 --> 00:26:53,766 A fabulous natural treasure that's only just been discovered. 298 00:27:01,367 --> 00:27:05,246 Richard and Dave are not even trying to get any closer to these gorillas. 299 00:27:05,407 --> 00:27:09,116 They want to observe them without affecting their natural behaviour. 300 00:27:09,647 --> 00:27:13,925 Yet even from this distance, they've got to know the gorillas intimately. 301 00:27:16,407 --> 00:27:20,320 Within moments of a new arrival Dave tells me who it is. 302 00:27:20,567 --> 00:27:23,365 This is Clive's group and we recognise Clive... 303 00:27:23,527 --> 00:27:27,679 by the marking above his right nostril... 304 00:27:28,247 --> 00:27:30,442 and his very straight brow ridge... 305 00:27:30,887 --> 00:27:33,606 and very well kept hair... 306 00:27:33,767 --> 00:27:36,440 especially on top of his crest. 307 00:27:38,087 --> 00:27:40,476 The family settle down to feed. 308 00:27:40,887 --> 00:27:43,879 Clive's a young silverback with three females. 309 00:27:44,047 --> 00:27:48,120 Winona and Jody both have young infants, Wendy and Lyle. 310 00:27:49,087 --> 00:27:51,806 But this is a gorilla family with problems. 311 00:27:52,207 --> 00:27:54,926 Clive was in a fight with another silverback a few years ago... 312 00:27:55,087 --> 00:27:56,884 and lost all his females. 313 00:27:57,047 --> 00:27:59,163 He always seems edgy now. 314 00:28:00,447 --> 00:28:04,360 Meanwhile, it looks like trouble is brewing between Winona and Jody. 315 00:28:09,447 --> 00:28:13,599 Clive has noticed the strain between them. How will he react? 316 00:28:13,967 --> 00:28:18,324 There's some tension building between those two females. 317 00:28:18,487 --> 00:28:20,637 -That's Jody? -Yes. 318 00:28:20,807 --> 00:28:23,640 Clive's spotted it, he's checking them out. 319 00:28:33,047 --> 00:28:35,038 Jody's vocalising now. 320 00:28:35,207 --> 00:28:39,041 Clive's coming, he's spotted there's some trouble going on. 321 00:28:40,287 --> 00:28:41,800 Those females are going at it... 322 00:28:41,967 --> 00:28:45,642 Man, look, they're there. Here come the infants. 323 00:28:46,407 --> 00:28:49,399 -They're really going at it... -Here comes Clive as well. 324 00:28:49,887 --> 00:28:52,560 He's sorting it out. Is that Jody's he's chasing? 325 00:28:52,727 --> 00:28:56,686 He's got Jody. Clive's really got her pinned down. 326 00:28:57,127 --> 00:28:59,118 He just stormed in there. 327 00:29:02,287 --> 00:29:04,926 He looks like he's really hurting her. 328 00:29:06,647 --> 00:29:08,478 He won't let her up at all. 329 00:29:09,047 --> 00:29:11,402 -Is she under there now? -Yes. 330 00:29:16,327 --> 00:29:18,602 The youngsters are clearly distressed. 331 00:29:18,767 --> 00:29:20,564 He's letting her go. 332 00:29:20,927 --> 00:29:23,316 -I think she's up. -He's backing off. 333 00:29:24,607 --> 00:29:27,679 Clive seems to realise he's over-reacted. 334 00:29:28,087 --> 00:29:31,363 As quickly as the row flares up, it subsides. 335 00:29:31,567 --> 00:29:33,478 Peace is restored. 336 00:29:34,007 --> 00:29:37,522 Jody nurses her bruises and is comforted by her son Lyle. 337 00:29:42,087 --> 00:29:44,362 Poor thing. That's what you get if you... 338 00:29:45,087 --> 00:29:47,840 start biting your fellow females, I guess. 339 00:29:56,807 --> 00:30:00,482 Young gorillas are mama's boys, and girls. 340 00:30:00,887 --> 00:30:03,481 They're very clingy for the first two or three years... 341 00:30:03,647 --> 00:30:07,196 and learn nearly everything from their mothers by example. 342 00:30:07,447 --> 00:30:11,326 Water's harmless. That's good to eat. 343 00:30:11,887 --> 00:30:14,959 This is how you strip the root and clean it. 344 00:30:19,767 --> 00:30:23,282 It seems an idyllic life, apart from leopards... 345 00:30:23,447 --> 00:30:25,802 there are few creatures to fear. 346 00:30:26,807 --> 00:30:28,877 Gorillas seem at home with their neighbours... 347 00:30:29,047 --> 00:30:31,277 the other animals of the forest. 348 00:31:00,647 --> 00:31:04,322 An enormous silverback creeps into the bai. 349 00:31:04,847 --> 00:31:07,964 It's Bear, a known troublemaker. 350 00:31:09,207 --> 00:31:12,563 Clive stops eating, aware that he's not alone. 351 00:31:15,687 --> 00:31:20,317 Winona and Jody have noticed Bear too, it's them he's interested in. 352 00:31:24,247 --> 00:31:27,284 Clive's authority's being challenged again. 353 00:31:27,487 --> 00:31:30,559 How will he react to Bear the bully? 354 00:31:31,167 --> 00:31:35,319 Bear approaches closer, but Clive's not about to back down. 355 00:31:43,967 --> 00:31:46,925 There, Clive's doing a splash display. 356 00:31:47,087 --> 00:31:48,679 So is Bear. 357 00:31:49,247 --> 00:31:52,603 Another one from Clive, a two handed splash display. 358 00:31:52,767 --> 00:31:54,325 He's really mad. 359 00:31:58,327 --> 00:32:00,636 They're still fifty metres apart. 360 00:32:00,807 --> 00:32:03,958 Yet Bear decides not to press his threat. 361 00:32:06,287 --> 00:32:10,041 To young Lyle's delight, Dad wins the day. 362 00:32:10,527 --> 00:32:14,076 Bear retreats. As usual, it's all bluff. 363 00:32:14,447 --> 00:32:17,007 Gorillas are not like King Kong. 364 00:32:17,327 --> 00:32:20,637 If they can settle things without getting hurt, they will. 365 00:32:23,647 --> 00:32:27,242 Richard and Dave are pioneers of lowland gorilla behaviour... 366 00:32:27,407 --> 00:32:31,480 but, as they admit, there's still a huge gap in their knowledge. 367 00:32:31,767 --> 00:32:34,645 These gorillas spend nearly all their time in the forest... 368 00:32:34,807 --> 00:32:36,957 not out here in the open. 369 00:32:40,327 --> 00:32:42,887 Each evening we'd watch the gorillas leave the bai... 370 00:32:43,047 --> 00:32:46,323 and we'd wonder what they get up to in the forest. 371 00:32:46,887 --> 00:32:49,560 Can such a large animal really climb these trees? 372 00:32:54,487 --> 00:32:58,526 Filming gorillas in the forest was obviously crucial to the story... 373 00:32:58,727 --> 00:33:01,082 yet it seemed an impossible dream. 374 00:33:05,327 --> 00:33:08,046 A few months later we heard stories of a Spanish couple... 375 00:33:08,207 --> 00:33:11,244 who'd ventured deep into the forests at a place called Lossi... 376 00:33:11,407 --> 00:33:13,159 two hundred miles away. 377 00:33:13,487 --> 00:33:15,876 They were attempting the impossible... 378 00:33:16,047 --> 00:33:20,165 getting close to lowland gorillas in the heart of the jungle. 379 00:33:21,407 --> 00:33:24,160 But just getting there was another adventure. 380 00:33:40,927 --> 00:33:44,681 The forests at Lossi are open at the high canopy level... 381 00:33:44,847 --> 00:33:47,486 but incredibly dense down near the ground... 382 00:33:47,647 --> 00:33:52,163 making travel extremely difficult and sometimes nearly impossible. 383 00:33:54,807 --> 00:33:58,004 This is home to some pretty unpleasant creatures. 384 00:33:58,167 --> 00:34:01,796 Scorpions and centipedes, spiders and snakes. 385 00:34:03,247 --> 00:34:08,037 The rhinoceros viper has a venom so powerful it can kill you in minutes. 386 00:34:09,687 --> 00:34:12,884 Plus of course the usual array of nasty bugs... 387 00:34:13,047 --> 00:34:15,686 like filaria flies and mosquitoes. 388 00:34:16,487 --> 00:34:20,799 There are times when the Congo does seem like Africa's Dark Heart. 389 00:34:24,207 --> 00:34:27,165 Here, with the help of some astonishing trackers... 390 00:34:27,327 --> 00:34:31,923 Magdalena Bermejo has spent 6 years following several gorilla families... 391 00:34:32,087 --> 00:34:36,603 on foot through the undergrowth, along with her partner German. 392 00:34:42,367 --> 00:34:44,642 The dense jungle's littered with signals... 393 00:34:44,807 --> 00:34:46,877 which help them track the gorillas. 394 00:34:47,047 --> 00:34:49,959 A half-chewed brown fruit is a vital clue. 395 00:34:50,567 --> 00:34:53,445 -It's gone brown? -Yes, this is a fruit... 396 00:34:53,687 --> 00:34:57,965 that was thrown down quickly, 2 hours, something like that. 397 00:34:58,487 --> 00:35:01,285 So we're at least two hours behind them then, are we? 398 00:35:02,447 --> 00:35:06,440 Zepherin leads the way. He used to be a skilled hunter. 399 00:35:06,967 --> 00:35:08,685 Can he use his expertise... 400 00:35:08,847 --> 00:35:11,566 to get me close to the gorillas with the camera? 401 00:35:13,527 --> 00:35:16,405 One step at a time, in complete silence... 402 00:35:16,567 --> 00:35:19,001 we creep through the Marantaceae stems. 403 00:35:21,647 --> 00:35:23,877 Finally, I get my first glimpse. 404 00:35:24,047 --> 00:35:27,722 It's exciting, but they're still far off in the trees. 405 00:35:29,927 --> 00:35:33,442 It'll take another half an hour to cut a path closer to them. 406 00:35:34,967 --> 00:35:37,401 Magda's patience is astonishing. 407 00:35:41,327 --> 00:35:42,806 She snips her way gently... 408 00:35:42,967 --> 00:35:46,277 aware that the slightest noise may disrupt the gorillas. 409 00:35:46,447 --> 00:35:49,996 And, over the years, her patience has been rewarded. 410 00:35:54,967 --> 00:35:58,926 I too am within filming distance of lowland gorillas in the forest. 411 00:36:05,527 --> 00:36:08,997 Apollo's group have stopped at a Dyalium tree, in full fruit. 412 00:36:11,047 --> 00:36:13,197 The dominant adults stay near the centre... 413 00:36:13,367 --> 00:36:16,359 where strong branches easily support their weight. 414 00:36:17,007 --> 00:36:19,760 Meanwhile the lower ranking gorillas have to risk venturing... 415 00:36:19,927 --> 00:36:22,646 onto the thinner outer branches to find their food. 416 00:36:27,167 --> 00:36:30,682 The gorillas seem to know every fruiting tree in their patch. 417 00:36:30,847 --> 00:36:34,601 They make regular tours to check how each one is progressing. 418 00:36:41,927 --> 00:36:45,806 Apollo the silverback has found a wild mango tree. 419 00:36:45,967 --> 00:36:48,561 A prized fruit for many apes. 420 00:36:54,167 --> 00:36:58,285 It's now clear why gorillas spend much more time here in the forest... 421 00:36:58,607 --> 00:37:00,325 than out in the bais. 422 00:37:00,487 --> 00:37:04,162 This bounty of forest fruits and nuts is far more nutritious... 423 00:37:04,327 --> 00:37:07,478 than the weight-watcher's salad out in the swampy meadows. 424 00:37:17,007 --> 00:37:21,125 Wild figs are a favourite: the ripest ones are the reddest. 425 00:37:22,247 --> 00:37:26,877 Gorillas' huge stomachs are the result of this bulky forest diet. 426 00:37:27,127 --> 00:37:30,324 And gorilla flatulence is not unheard of... 427 00:37:41,247 --> 00:37:43,807 German has been documenting their research... 428 00:37:43,967 --> 00:37:47,437 with his own footage shot over five patient years. 429 00:37:47,607 --> 00:37:51,520 He's filmed some new and remarkable gorilla behaviours. 430 00:37:52,767 --> 00:37:57,158 He's filmed gorillas eating wood, which has never before been seen. 431 00:37:57,367 --> 00:38:00,086 Wood is composed almost entirely of cellulose... 432 00:38:00,247 --> 00:38:03,319 which can only be digested once it starts rotting. 433 00:38:03,487 --> 00:38:05,796 And it's also probably riddled with termites... 434 00:38:05,967 --> 00:38:08,800 which gorillas certainly enjoy eating. 435 00:38:10,927 --> 00:38:15,318 One day German witnessed some really astounding behaviour. 436 00:38:15,527 --> 00:38:18,678 This female couldn't reach the tasty wood high up on the trunk... 437 00:38:18,847 --> 00:38:22,726 she's rolled over a log nearby, and used it as a platform... 438 00:38:22,887 --> 00:38:25,037 so she could reach her meal. 439 00:38:25,247 --> 00:38:27,363 It seemed so easy, so natural... 440 00:38:27,527 --> 00:38:32,203 yet tool use like this has never before been seen among gorillas. 441 00:38:33,207 --> 00:38:34,845 The more we're finding out about them... 442 00:38:35,007 --> 00:38:38,886 the more sophisticated and intelligent they appear to be. 443 00:38:43,047 --> 00:38:44,799 As the heat of the day builds up... 444 00:38:44,967 --> 00:38:49,085 the humidity soars and life in the forest becomes really steamy. 445 00:38:49,967 --> 00:38:52,925 It's easy for the gorillas. They climb higher... 446 00:38:53,087 --> 00:38:55,601 and find a breeze blowing through the branches... 447 00:38:55,767 --> 00:38:59,919 but down on the ground sweat bees become a real nuisance. 448 00:39:00,167 --> 00:39:03,239 They're tiny things and luckily, they don't sting. 449 00:39:03,407 --> 00:39:05,637 But they can still drive you mad. 450 00:39:15,207 --> 00:39:18,438 It used to be thought gorillas didn't climb trees at all. 451 00:39:18,607 --> 00:39:21,360 Well, they do climb, and they also build nests... 452 00:39:21,527 --> 00:39:25,725 snapping leafy branches and folding them inwards to make a soft mattress. 453 00:39:32,047 --> 00:39:33,719 The importance of learning is obvious... 454 00:39:33,887 --> 00:39:36,879 from these first bungling attempts by the youngsters. 455 00:39:37,047 --> 00:39:39,436 They'll have to watch and practise more... 456 00:39:39,607 --> 00:39:42,405 to sleep soundly on beds like these. 457 00:39:49,207 --> 00:39:51,675 While they sleep, I suffer. 458 00:39:53,967 --> 00:39:57,482 There were moments when I wondered why I'd agreed to do this! 459 00:40:03,087 --> 00:40:05,555 Time to give it a rest for the day. 460 00:40:18,247 --> 00:40:20,442 Most days seemed to bring a storm. 461 00:40:20,607 --> 00:40:22,723 Sometimes the most deafening thunder... 462 00:40:22,887 --> 00:40:26,038 the most violent lightning I've ever encountered. 463 00:40:26,487 --> 00:40:28,557 The gorillas would cower from the onslaught... 464 00:40:28,727 --> 00:40:32,481 sheltering amongst foliage on the ground. We did the same. 465 00:40:37,167 --> 00:40:39,123 The film gear was suffering... 466 00:40:39,287 --> 00:40:42,040 one of the lenses had fungus growing on it. 467 00:40:42,367 --> 00:40:45,325 Everything we owned seemed permanently damp. 468 00:41:05,127 --> 00:41:07,766 After heavy rain the trail goes cold... 469 00:41:07,927 --> 00:41:10,122 the gorillas could be anywhere. 470 00:41:10,287 --> 00:41:14,758 Zepherin tracks down last night's nesting site to look for clues. 471 00:41:18,367 --> 00:41:21,962 Marantaceae leaves and stems make soft beds. 472 00:41:22,447 --> 00:41:27,202 Magda counts them all up: there are 16 members of Apollo's family. 473 00:41:33,807 --> 00:41:38,039 Zepherin can sometimes tell which bed belongs to which gorilla. 474 00:41:41,767 --> 00:41:45,680 This long white hair could only come from the silverback Apollo. 475 00:41:47,327 --> 00:41:50,319 The silverback is the only gorilla that has white hair. 476 00:41:50,487 --> 00:41:52,796 But which way did he go? 477 00:41:59,167 --> 00:42:02,318 By now I was getting better at tracking myself... 478 00:42:02,487 --> 00:42:05,445 the unmistakable knuckle prints of a gorilla. 479 00:42:06,247 --> 00:42:09,557 They're up ahead, on the move through the fruiting trees. 480 00:42:16,687 --> 00:42:19,838 Gorilla's have been stripping the bark from this tree-trunk. 481 00:42:20,807 --> 00:42:22,081 Gorilla. 482 00:42:26,167 --> 00:42:30,240 Finally we catch up with them, just as they're coming down to ground level. 483 00:42:33,447 --> 00:42:37,998 Gorillas are big animals: an adult female is 80 or 90 kilos. 484 00:42:38,167 --> 00:42:41,398 An adult male can be over 150 kilos. 485 00:42:42,127 --> 00:42:45,403 Clambering about in the treetops is a perilous business. 486 00:42:47,087 --> 00:42:50,523 Magda's noticed that it's usually the thinner branches and vines... 487 00:42:50,687 --> 00:42:54,362 they use for climbing, they can grasp them more easily... 488 00:42:54,527 --> 00:42:59,282 but they make sure of their footing with 3 of 4 limbs before moving on. 489 00:43:03,887 --> 00:43:07,766 But mistakes are made, youngsters sometimes falter... 490 00:43:10,847 --> 00:43:13,759 and it isn't always an elegant affair... 491 00:43:21,647 --> 00:43:24,878 The gorillas follow set routes up and down a tree. 492 00:43:25,047 --> 00:43:27,163 They climb down in a set order... 493 00:43:27,327 --> 00:43:30,046 perhaps reflecting rank or even safety... 494 00:43:30,207 --> 00:43:34,166 making sure they don't jump the queue or land on someone's head. 495 00:43:37,967 --> 00:43:41,323 They certainly make it look deceptively easy. 496 00:43:52,247 --> 00:43:54,715 I admit that crawling on hands and knees... 497 00:43:54,887 --> 00:43:58,846 with a huge silverback metres away, certainly keeps you alert. 498 00:44:00,767 --> 00:44:02,644 And it's not just gorillas. 499 00:44:02,807 --> 00:44:05,844 There's no shortage of beasties lurking in the undergrowth... 500 00:44:06,007 --> 00:44:08,396 all with teeth or stings. 501 00:44:15,487 --> 00:44:19,400 Magda's brought us both to within just a couple of metres of the gorillas. 502 00:44:21,687 --> 00:44:25,475 Over six years they've learned to recognise and trust Magda. 503 00:44:25,647 --> 00:44:27,126 For the first time... 504 00:44:27,287 --> 00:44:30,597 lowland gorillas have accepted a human among them. 505 00:44:33,687 --> 00:44:37,236 And this has led Magda to question some old wisdom. 506 00:44:37,407 --> 00:44:42,037 It was thought that chest-beating was simply a sign of aggression. 507 00:44:43,167 --> 00:44:46,762 But Magda thinks chest-beats have a whole range of meanings... 508 00:44:46,927 --> 00:44:51,125 from a simple greeting, "Hi!", to a questioning contact call... 509 00:44:51,287 --> 00:44:54,404 "Where are you?", and maybe even more. 510 00:44:58,567 --> 00:45:02,037 She marks out a rhythm of beats to the female Aphrodite... 511 00:45:02,207 --> 00:45:05,438 and Aphrodite seems to reply in kind. 512 00:45:12,567 --> 00:45:16,242 Is this some simple form of hand-beat language? 513 00:45:24,607 --> 00:45:27,724 Magda's convinced these creatures are capable of subtleties... 514 00:45:27,887 --> 00:45:30,845 we've not yet noticed, let alone understood. 515 00:45:31,007 --> 00:45:33,999 Far from being huge brutes thundering and strutting... 516 00:45:34,167 --> 00:45:37,955 their way through the forest, these are subtle and intimate creatures. 517 00:45:45,367 --> 00:45:48,916 One day I filmed a touching scene between two females. 518 00:45:50,087 --> 00:45:52,157 The younger one was obviously trying... 519 00:45:52,327 --> 00:45:56,559 to befriend her older sister with such intimate and caring gestures. 520 00:45:57,967 --> 00:46:00,686 I had no idea gorillas could be so gentle. 521 00:46:24,527 --> 00:46:27,325 As my time at Lossi drew to an end I began to feel... 522 00:46:27,487 --> 00:46:31,082 that I too had taken a step closer to these gorillas. 523 00:46:38,367 --> 00:46:42,645 Was young Orpheo saying hello to me? I imagined he was. 524 00:46:43,207 --> 00:46:46,005 But sadly it was my time to say goodbye. 525 00:46:46,567 --> 00:46:49,559 My precious two years on the trail of these magical animals... 526 00:46:49,727 --> 00:46:51,524 was coming to an end. 527 00:46:58,367 --> 00:47:02,042 Not King Kong. Not an angry ape at all... 528 00:47:02,247 --> 00:47:04,715 but more the gentle gorilla. 529 00:47:04,887 --> 00:47:06,286 Maybe we ought to hope... 530 00:47:06,447 --> 00:47:09,723 we are more like these sensitive creatures rather than less. 531 00:47:09,887 --> 00:47:12,355 Perhaps then there would be more hope for us. 532 00:47:12,527 --> 00:47:15,917 We might even start to treat these close relations of ours... 533 00:47:16,087 --> 00:47:18,965 with the love and respect they deserve. 534 00:47:25,287 --> 00:47:28,245 The Congo turns out to be a treasure chest... 535 00:47:28,407 --> 00:47:32,116 a vast wilderness that's still home to a remarkable array... 536 00:47:32,287 --> 00:47:34,596 and abundance of wildlife. 537 00:47:35,767 --> 00:47:38,235 There are tens of thousands of gorillas... 538 00:47:38,407 --> 00:47:41,683 living in the newly discovered sanctuaries of Odzala... 539 00:47:41,847 --> 00:47:44,077 Ndoki and Lossi. 540 00:47:48,807 --> 00:47:51,719 King Kong's cousins live on.