40x03 - The Elephant and the Termite

[bunniefuu]

It's your first day
in the world,

your first step into a vast

and daunting landscape...

...full of possibilities...

wonder...

and peril.

You've just been born
in the Rockies,

an untamed wilderness
in the heart of North America.

And you have much to learn.

Each new challenge
will test your resolve.

Every new opportunity
will hone your skills.

You will need to grow up fast...

...if you hope to take
on the Rockies'

most formidable challenge...

your very first winter.

In the shadow of
the Teton Range,

summer is drawing to a close.

And one grizzly mother
and her four chubby cubs

are making their way
across the valley.

It's remarkable for
a mother grizzly

to still have four healthy cubs
this late in the season.

But she's no ordinary mother.

This is Grizzly 399,

the matriarch of
Grand Teton National Park.

Her cubs are playfully sparring
with each other

as they bound about.

But 399 is on a mission.

Her family is in a state
of hyperphagia,

driven by the need
to fatten up for winter.

During this time, she can easily
double her body weight.

Her cubs will pack it on,
as well.

Even as they'll rely on mom's
support for a few more years.

She huffs to collect her cubs

as she has done countless times
in her life.

For 399 isn't just a mother,

but a grandmother
many times over.

And at the age of 24,

she's one of the oldest living
wild grizzlies we know of.

And among the oldest
wild creatures

to call the Rockies their home.

The Rocky Mountains stretch
over 2,000 miles

across North America.

Bringing together some of the
most diverse and vital habitats

on the continent.

And for every creature
born in the Rockies,

this next crucial step
of growing up has its own speed

and path,
filled with the unexpected.

But one thing is for certain,
in just a few weeks,

these strangely
wild sanctuaries...

...will be plunged back
into winter once again.

Across the Teton Range,

sandhill cranes have already
begun the long journey south,

to their wintering grounds
in New Mexico.

Riding thermals across
high mountain passes,

cranes make their way across
Colorado's Rocky Mountains.

Here, the Rockies reach
their zenith with 58 peaks

above 14,000 feet,

the tallest mountains in the
entire stretch of the Rockies.

As the cranes continue south,

a magical transformation
is unfolding beneath them.

Green hillsides are turning gold
as vibrant autumn colors

wash across the Rockies
like ocean waves.

Trees are preparing for
the trials of winter

by entering a state of dormancy.

And many animals are preparing
for the scarcity of food

that comes with winter.

Squirrels are plucking off
the most promising pinecones

before they've dropped their
seeds to the forest floor.

They will cache as many cones
as they can

before snow covers the ground.

And while many
are preparing for winter,

bull elk have other things
on their minds.

It's mating season in
Rocky Mountain National Park.

Cows are preoccupied
with their young and grazing

before the snows comes.

But our bull is intent
on holding the reins tight

on his harem of 20 or so cows.

His bugle is a warning
to other males,

and it can be heard
for miles around.

It's a vocal display
of dominance

meant to ward off rivals
and attract mates.

There are plenty of other bulls
out there,

but so far,
his strategy is working.

This stretch of wilderness butts
up to the city of Estes Park.

So males will compete
on the golf course

while cows graze
on the putting greens.

But keeping ahold of your harem
is hardly that easy.

While some animals learn
to adapt to city life

using stealth,

for a thousand-pound bull elk,
it's more about brawn.

As the herd migrates
through the city,

he'll spend more time corralling
them away from traffic...

than from other males.

The bull has staked his claim
to this intersection,

and is trying hard
to keep his harem in check.

City dwellers everywhere
understand the trade-offs

of a lack of privacy.

But this group will stick
through it together,

all in the name of love.

Roughly 85% of Colorado's
population lives along

the Eastern edge
of the Rocky Mountains,

in some of the fastest
growing cities in the nation.

With increasingly
fragmented habitat,

city parks have become the new
home for some stealthy hunters.

It may not be the most ideal
place to make a living,

but there is opportunity here.

Hunting is a skill honed
over time, one-part instinct,

two parts, experience.

But holding on to your dinner

is just as important
as the hunt itself.

And that's what makes growing up
in the Rockies such a challenge

It's all about learning
what it takes to survive,

and that's not just about
catching your next meal.

It's about learning
the rules of your tribe...

finding a mate...

and ultimately,
successfully raising your young.

And as winter approaches,

all of those lessons
come more sharply into focus.

Childhood is a journey.

Sandhill cranes have
finally arrived

to Colorado's San Luis Valley.

Fields of wheat and barley

have become an important source
of food for the cranes,

especially with
an ever-dwindling wetlands.

This all you can eat buffet

is the perfect time
to socialize.

For young ones,
it's an opportunity

to practice your dance moves.

Sandhill cranes will spend years
learning to dance

before they're ready
to choose a life-long partner.

But these days of plenty
may not last.

Drought continues to plague
the west.

And the fate of both cranes
and farmers are linked.

All life here depends
on the snowpack

that accumulates
in the high mountain peaks

of the Southern Rockies.

But that snowpack is dwindling.

The sand dunes that lie
at the base

of the Sangre De Cristo
Mountains

are a stark reminder
of a much wetter past.

Sand from ancient lakes
that once covered the valley,

now form the tallest sand dunes
in North America.

Reaching over 740 feet
above the desert floor.

It's an ocean of sand,

shaped by the forces
of wind and water.

This is an environment
of extremes.

Surface temperatures can reach


and minus-25 degrees
on a winter's night.

And here, at the base
of the dunes,

one tiny creature
is just beginning his day.

It's a kangaroo rat.

Timid by nature, this nocturnal
rodent hops like a kangaroo

and has the appearance
of a rat, but he is neither.

He is, however, uniquely adapted
to desert life.

And this young kangaroo rat
is hunting for seeds

blown across the sand.

He's not eating the seeds,

but rather storing them
in his cheek pouches,

and bringing them back
to his burrow for safe keeping.

It's a complex burrow system
with separate chambers

for sleeping
and others for storing food.

And this underground home
is his castle,

which he'll vigorously defend
from any intruder.

Our young kangaroo rat
is back on the hunt for seed.

But his search takes him farther
and farther from his home.

And while he's away,
his curious neighbor,

drawn by the smell of seeds,
infiltrates his burrow.

Our young kangaroo rat finally
returns from his foray.

He doesn't know it yet, but
his neighbor is already inside.

He springs into action...

...chasing the intruder out
of his burrow

and into the night.

It's the end of a long night
for our kangaroo rat,

but now he's safely tucked away
inside his home.

As autumn comes to a close,

the cranes begin
the last leg of their journey.

They are following an ancient
flight path

to their wintering grounds
in New Mexico.

Sandhill cranes are as much
a part of the Rockies

as the stones themselves.

Unearthly sandstone formations
rise up

from the rolling badlands
of New Mexico.

The Navajo peoples
call these pillars

"De-Na-Zin",
meaning "Standing Crane".

A natural monument to
the North America's most

ancient bird.

In the Colorado Rockies,
winter is getting a head start.

The first snow flurries
of the season

leave behind a dusting of snow.

And by sunrise, the dunes
have been transformed.

For bighorn sheep the end
of autumn marks a turning point.

And for lambs,
it's their first introduction

to a hallmark event,
a time when they begin to see

what all this jockeying
for position is really about.

It's rutting season,
and males are competing

for the right to mate.

Rank is constantly reinforced
and often contested.

Their ultimate weapons are
their curled horns

that can weigh up to 30 pounds.

They are literal battering rams.

In spring, 2-week-old ram lambs

will begin to butt heads
in mock battles.

In the early development
of a social order

they will be part of
for the rest of their lives.

Most of the year these rams
live in bachelor groups

that adhere to a ridged
hierarchy largely determined

by age and size.

Their life has a singular focus,

and this is what they've been
preparing for all year long.

A male can determine if a female
is ready to mate,

simply by smelling her urine.

He takes in her scent by tilting
his head back so her pheromones

can reach a sense organ
in the roof of his mouth.

Females are in estrus
for just 48 hours.

And during this time, the
rule book rams have lived by

is thrown out the window.

A higher ranking male
is guarding this female.

But he's up against
a reckless youngster

willing to risk it all.

The lower ranking male knows
he can't win

in a head-to-head fight.

So his goal is to separate
the female

from the higher ranking male

just long enough to mate.

In these early years,
it may be his only chance.

As the late autumn sun slowly
begins to melt away the snow,

things are becoming heated.

For most young, it's the closest
they've been to

so many large males.

And for ram lambs,

it's a window into their future.

Rams are tuned into every
movement on this mountainside.

A distant clash of horns will
draw males from a mile away.

Half a dozen males are now
in pursuit of this female,

including the dominant ram.

With this many males
bearing down on her,

she makes a break
for the one place

that has always meant safety.

The cliffside.

Here, she has the advantage.

But the rams are relentless,
and weighing in at 300 pounds,

dangerous.

So, she makes a break
for the open field,

in an attempt to shake them.

The males are following
close behind,

knocking each other off course
as they try and gain ground.

The dominant ram tries to keep
the others at bay

while maintaining his lead.

But the competition is fierce.

She's exhausted
and surrounded once again.

She makes one last attempt
to flee,

but this youngster
seizes an opening.

In the end, it is
the higher ranking males

that have the greatest success.

Her offspring,
will likely be from him.

The winter solstice marks
the shortest day of the year

and the official
beginning of winter.

But across most of
the Northern Rockies,

winter is well underway.

A deep freeze has settled in,

and it's here to stay.

The first big storm
of the season

is building
over Yellowstone Valley.

Our bison herd is heading across
their range, into the storm.

Bison, unlike cattle,
face storms head on,

knowing they will pass
through it quicker.

But that doesn't make winter
any less brutal.

The Rockies are clearly
living up to their reputation.

It's our young calf's
first winter,

and he already seems
out of his depth

as he struggles
to keep up with mom.

It's a serious time of year,

and mom is completely focused
on the task at hand,

using her head like a plow
to uncover grasses

beneath the snow.

But the storm is making
that task more difficult,

burying the grasses
the minute she's uncovered them.

She'll need every morsel
she can dig up.

She's not only nursing the calf,

but like many of the females in
the herd, she's also pregnant.

The calf is learning,

but he still lacks the broad
head needed to plow snow,

so he relies on the adults
to help unearth grasses.

As difficult as his first
winter may be,

he is not alone

and will rely on the strength
of the herd to support him.

Others must endure winter
on their own.

It's this young fox's
first winter,

and it's already proven
to be a difficult one.

Foxes must grow up fast,
from childhood to adulthood

in the span of just six months.

His winter coat will keep him
warm enough in the storm,

but it won't keep him fed.

Foxes use their ears to detect
their prey under the snow.

But now, with the storm
bearing down on him,

that's become impossible.

He seems unwilling to give up
just yet.

But conditions
are getting worse.

Every minute he spends
stalking prey in the storm

is energy spent.

It's a costly endeavor.

Finally, the fox decides
to give up the hunt.

The morning only brings
more snow,

and now our herd is buried.

December is among the coldest
months in Yellowstone,

with average temperatures
lingering well below freezing.

Bison are built for the cold.

Their winter coat is so thick,
snow accumulates on their back

without melting away.

Once the skies clear,
temperatures plummet.

It's so cold that water vapor

begins to crystalize in the air,

creating a magical phenomenon
known as Diamond Dust.

As we enter the frigid
depths of winter,

the landscape
appears eerily barren.

Most bears would have been
denned up long ago,

but in the shadow of the Tetons,

one legend has yet
to call it quits.

Grizzly 399
and her four chubby cubs

are wading through the deep snow
in the final days of December.

It's incredibly late
in the season for any bear

to still be out,

especially a mother
with four cubs.

But if anyone was going
to redefine

what it means to be a grizzly,

it would be 399.

She has beaten all the odds
and charted her own path.


Queen of the Tetons.

And who, after all,
would be foolish enough

to question a Queen's decision.

She pauses to take one last look
over her domain.

Now she's ready.



She's heading to her winter den.

Somewhere in the vastness
of the Teton range.

Farther north,
in the depths of Yellowstone,

our bison family has sought
refuge from the storm

among the thermal vents.

It's a welcome reprieve
for the herd,

especially our young bison.

These hot springs not only
provide warmth,

but less snow cover
and easier forage.

An important bit of knowledge

when you weigh in
at 2,000 pounds

and subsist
almost entirely on grasses.

Little by little, he's absorbing
an ancient reservoir

of knowledge passed down
from generation to generation.

For predators,
winter brings opportunity.

Coyotes evolved
alongside wolves.

And their canid cousin
helped shaped them

into the highly flexible
predator we know today.

A pack of coyotes has discovered
the remains of a bison carcass.

And they are picking the meat
clean from the bones.

During these cold winter months,
competition is fierce.

And any meal is meal
worth defending.

But perhaps the deadliest
predator of all

is winter itself.

A casualty of the most
recent storm

has now become
a feast for eagles.

While eagles may rule
the carcass by day...

the night belongs
to other predators.

A mountain lion has discovered
the carcass.

And it's not just one...

it's a family.

Mom settles down for a meal.

At about 6 years of age,
she's in the prime of her life.

Her kittens are fully grown now
and the same size as mom.

One of the kittens
attempts to join her.

But mother is reluctant
to share the carcass.

But, as always,
persistence pays off.

This will likely be the kittens
last winter travelling with mom.

By spring, they will be
on their own.

There's not much to this meal,

especially for
three grown lions.

They try to drag
the carcass away,

but end up in a game
of tug of w*r.

This thin strip of hide
is not much of a prize.

Our young fox
is back on the hunt.

And this time,
the weather is on his side.

He learned the basics
of stalking and pouncing

when he was just a pup.

But the real trick to this hunt
is finding your prey.

How do you hunt an animal
you cannot see?

The fox's quarry lies deep
under the snow.

It's a meadow vole.

And this snow cave
is it's igloo.

The snow forms
an insulating layer,

protecting the vole from
the harshest winter weather

and keeping him safe
from predators.

Well, almost.

Although he may lack experience,

this fox has all
the tools he needs.

Foxes have incredible hearing

and can detect prey under more
than 3 feet of snow.

The tiniest movement
can set the fox in motion.

He's located the vole.

And with a pounce, he strikes.

A miss.

This technique
is called mousing,

and it's something foxes
are supremely good at.

The rest is just practice.

But there's far more going
on here than meets the eye.

It's believed that foxes
can see magnetic north.

And by aligning their prey
in a northward direction,

along with the sound
of the prey...

...they can triangulate
the precise distance

of their attack.

He's off to a good start,

but he'll need more than
a single vole to keep him fed.

It's just before dawn in Western
Montana's Bitterroot Valley.

A lioness is taking a familiar
path through the forest.

But she's not on the hunt.

She's already caught her quarry,

and managed to take down
a cow elk and her calf.

A meal that should last her
several weeks.

The lioness has covered her k*ll
in a pile of sticks and grass

to conceal it from scavengers.

And there are plenty
lurking in this forest.

A pine martin eagerly
awaits his turn.

The lioness has had her fill
for the day,

but she'll return soon enough.

Night envelops the forest.

A fox has discovered the k*ll.

A carcass like this
a pretty big score

when you've been subsisting
on tiny rodents.

A young mountain lion
has discovered the carcass.

It's her first winter
on her own,

and this is a welcome meal.

But now the owner has returned.

Yet instead of chasing her off,

the older lion shares the k*ll
with the youngster.

These two lions are only
distantly related,

yet the older female
tolerates this youngster.

This kind of resource
sharing was once thought

improbable among solitary
predators like mountain lions.

But now it seems
these solitary cats

are far more social
than previously imagined.

Over the coming weeks,
the young lion returns

to these kills again and again.

This freezer full of meat

has proven
to be a vital source of food

and will help this young lioness
get through the winter.

And because of this experience,
our young lioness is far more

likely to share one of
her own kills in the future.

With the last big storm
of winter now upon her...

snow is quickly burying
the carcass.

But she is reluctant
to concede her meal

in the middle of this storm.

This young lioness is lucky.

She has made her home
in a protected area

of Western Montana,

free from development
and safe from hunting.

This land, once a working ranch,

has now been returned
to the wild.

And this kind of re-wilding

is happening across
Western Montana.

After decades of logging,
forests, now protected,

have become home to lynx...

and wolverine.

The last days of winter
have finally arrived.

Rivers and lakes once again
flow free.

With the return of
warm sunny days,

western painted turtles clamber

to sun themselves
on floating logs.

And a family of bears,

escaping from the heat
of the day,

cool off in their
favorite swimming hole.

Many of the families that now
call this forest home are drawn

by the opportunities
this restored habitat provides.

And it appears our lone fox
has found a mate

and now has a thriving family
of his own.

Across the Rockies,
new families are taking

their first tentative steps
into the world.

And in the heart of
Grand Teton National Park,

crowds gather in anticipation

of the Rockies'
most famous bear.

Everyone is holding
their breath.

And they don't have
long to wait.

This remarkable bear has defied
the odds once again

and triumphantly wades out
into a sea of adoring fans

with all four cubs.


in the northern portion

of Grand Teton National Park.

And spends much of the spring
close to the road.

It's one reason why this family
has become so famous.

But that's not the only reason.

At least 22 grizzlies

are the direct descendants
of 399.

And the fact that they are here
at all is remarkable in itself.

Just decades ago, there were
fewer than 1,000 grizzlies

left in the lower 48, in just


Today, thanks to grizzly bear
recovery efforts,

those numbers
have more than doubled.


of grizzly bear recovery.

And shows us what is possible

when we provide the minimal
protection for wildlife.

And it provides
a glimmer of hope

that we can undo some of
the damage we have done.

We can provide a safe home

for all our
Rocky Mountain families.

To learn more
about what you've seen

on this "Nature" program,

visit pbs.org.