Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine

DAVID ATl'EN BOROUGH: Lions are the very image of majesty.

And indeed 0f Africa itself'.

Their strength lies in the power 0f the pride.

They're a tight-knit family.

Lions have ruled the sa vannas for millennia.

And yet, within the last 20 years or so,

the numbers have fallen by almost half.

Our team has spent two years

following perhaps the most famous lion family of all.

The Marsh Pride of Kenya's Maasai Mara.

As wejo/n them, the very survival of this great dynasty is under threat

Their future depends entirely on the strength and determination

of one extraordinary leader.

Perhaps the most powerful in the history 0f the Marsh Pride.

A lioness known as Charm.

The Maasai Mara.

The pride have always thrived here,

through an alliance between powerful alpha males to protect the family,

and experienced females to raise the cubs.

But for the first time in the pride 's history,

this alliance has been shattered.

The family has been abandoned by all the adult males.

The survival of the pride now rests upon the shoulders of Charm

and her cousin Siena,

the only remaining adults.

If their young are to reach adulthood

and the dynasty return to full strength,

they must now bath protect and feed the whole family.

August.

Following the recent raing it's a time of plenty.

The lions are surrounded by wiidebeesz' on their annual migration.

A quarter-tonne bull would make a good meal for all 70 of the pride.

Buz' even though Charm is an experienced hunter,

most attempts end in failure.

Charm uses her hind legs to knock the wildebeest off balance.

The smallest cubs won't be able to catch food

for themselves for another 72 months.

Their ever-growing appetites mean that

Charm and Siena have t0 hunt around the doc/c

The females are often forced to head out alone.

Tonight, if? S/ena 3 turn.

Sunrise.

Siena is seriously injured.

She's too weak to move.

A [one lion is always at risk of attack by buffalo, h yenas,

even other lion prides.

It's e vening.

And Siena hasn 't returned to her family.

Now, everything depends 0n Charm.

As n/yhz' falls, Charm has no choice but to head out to hum',

leaving the vulnerable cubs alone.

She 3 being trailed.

Hyenas.

They'll attack the lions if they get a chance

to steal any kill they make.

Charm must work fast before they find her.

- They've tracked her down. - (HYENAS LAUGHING)

On her own, she couldn't hold them 0ft'.

But another of the pride has been following Charm.

Her three-year-old daughter, Ya ya.

The resz' 0f the pride arrive to eat.

Ya ya has stepped up to help defend the pride

and feed her family.

Daughters stay with their mothers for life,

and may eventually have cubs 0f their own.

Yaya is n01' yet an adult,

but as Charm 's eldest daughter, she 's next in line to lead the pride.

Charm also has a three-year-ola' son, Tatu.

The beginnings 0f an impressive mane

are a sign of his approaching adulthood.

like e very adolescent,

Tatu can 't resist the chance t0 test his growing strength.

Even against a two-tonne h/ppo.

But he's not the only young male in this pride.

His cousin, Red.

Over the last few monthg the two of them

have begun to forge an alliance.

But even together, they're not real! y going t0 worry an angry hippo.

Unlike their sisters, sons always leave their family

when they reach adulthood.

Their growing bond may enable them to leave as a powerful partnership.

Eventually, they'll fight other male;

to try and take over a pride 0f their own.

But for the time being,

they still need Charm to look after them.

It's been four days since Siena was attacked.

She 3 back 0n her feez',

but she 's in urgent need of a meal.

She simply doesn 't have the strength.

As they mature, young males begin to explore the boundaries

of the pride 's territory.

Red has ventured out alone.

And landed straight into the middle of the hyena clan.

He 3 trapped, by over 200f them.

The pack tries to wear him down.

This number of hyenas could kill him.

It's impossible z'0 fig/n' them all at once.

He can '2' keep them az' bay for much longer.

He 3 tiring fast.

His ally, Tatu, has heard the commotion.

Now, the odds have changed.

Even for 20 h yenag

a pair of male lions is too much to take 0n.

Red is lucky.

Tatu has saved his cousin 's life.

After weeks 0f feeding 0n scrap;

Siena has grown strong enough

to fry and rejoin her family.

She greets Charm first.

Even after being aparz' for so long,

the bond between them is still strong.

Ya ya also welcomes Siena back into the pride.

A z' last, Charm 's family are back together.

Charm noz' only has her hunting partner back,

but another hunter is emerging.

Ya ya is becoming a powerful lioness.

She 's learned how to stalk.

Stay low.

Approach silently,

and from downwind.

But the key to a successful ambush

is not being noticed.

Now it's seen her, the wildebeesz' with its sharp horns

has the advantage.

But Ya ya is learning.

Mother and daughter are starting t0 develop their partnership.

It's October.

The great wildebeesz' migration ne ver stops.

And now, they're leaving the Maasai Mara.

For Charm and her family,

food is about f0 become much more difficult to find.

The plains are empty, and in search of fooofl

Charm leads the pride t0 the edge of their range.

Here she finds another kind 0f prey.

Cattle, illegally brought into the lions ' territory to graze.

And opportunity t0 feed her hungry family.

But hunting cattle can lead to disaster.

T 0 protect their livestock,

herdsmen sometimes put out poison bait.

Lions can 't tell when a meal is toxic.

A week latel; Charm 3 one-year-old son

is so ill, he can hardly stand.

The whole pride are showing the signs of poisoning.

And Siena is missing once again.

As the temperature climbg the pride heads off to find shade.

But the struggling cub is too weak to follow.

Charm needs to stay with the rest of the pride.

Hours later, the cub still hash 't caught up with his mother.

And there 's no sign 0f Siena either.

The nexz' day, Charm returns t0 her son 's side.

He 3 still very unsteady.

But his mother can '1' abandon the rest 0f the pride.

MkvCage. ws

MkvCage. ws

For the sake of the pride,

Charm abandons her young cub.

The others are waiting for /1er.

They need her now, more than ever.

She will never see her son, or Siena, alive again.

Despite her losseg

there may still be a future for Charm and her dynasty.

Her eldest cubs Ya ya and Tatu, have survived the poisoning.

Charm keeps the pride moving in a constant search for prey.

Catching enough food is harofl

even with Ya ya's help.

But Charm is relentless.

The younger members of the pride try to follow her example.

Even with little to hum',

and the constant harassment 0f h yenag

Charm 's skill and experience as a leader

is keeping the pride alive.

A few wee/rs later, her efforts begin to be rewarded.

Tatu and Red are now over four years old,

ready to take the final step to adulthood.

It's time for them to leave the pride.

For Charm, this is success.

:

to battle other maleg

to win a pride 0f their own,

and continue the family's bloodline elsewhere.

But Charm still needs t0 get the remaining four female cubs

safely to adulthood.