National Geographic: Last Feast of the Crocodiles Page #2

---

are dry now

and they've had a long,

hot journey to get there.

One of the calves strikes out on its

own and is soon in dangerous company...

But these aren't

the biggest crocs in the pools

and the lucky calf quickly

returns to the herd.

The crocs intentions are clear enough

but before they can find

a small enough victim

the buffalo decide it's time to leave.

An irritated hippo helps them

on their way.

The drought and heat are now so severe

that some animals with small young

cannot supply enough milk, and thirsty

youngster follow their mothers to water

before they're weaned or wise enough

to know how to drink.

In an instant both croc

and fawn vanish into the pool...

leaving behind a bewildered mother.

Somewhere under the surface of the pool

the crocodile lies low with its prey,

waiting for an opportune moment

to eat without having to share.

The most carefree creature

in the pool is this baby hippo.

She frolics around her mother

in that special state

that belongs to all young things.

She is oblivious to the dangers

in her world.

The pool is steadily shrinking and is

already too small for so many animals.

But the hippos can't settle fights

caused by overcrowding.

There is no place else to go.

As usual now, the hippos subside

in an uneasy truce.

Subdued by the day's heat,

and temporarily at peace,

the baboons relax around the pool.

His peace is shattered by

a familiar cry of outrage.

He's innocent

but he's too close to the nest

and the plover has a good eye

for trouble...

...an young male baboons...

are especially targeted.

A sudden spat between rival crocs

send a ripple of panic through the pool.

It's small wonder that the plovers

are having trouble.

A fresh track shows that a crocodile

ploughed right over their eggs.

This is their third nest of the season

that's been lost to the crocodiles.

Starting again from scratch

the plovers perform the ritual of

selecting a site for a new nest.

The baby hippo is exploring her world.

The restraint of the crocodiles seems

out of character,

but with two tons of

devoted mother nearby...

...she is free to treat crocodiles

with the same bold familiarity

as the adult hippos do.

These great artist of violence

are obliged to hold a kindly pose

as the hippo child wanders

on her playground

of gently smiling dragons

and slobbers on their tails.

A yellow-billed kite checks pool for

an easy meal, and sights a dead fish.

The surrounding land is parched

and bare and each night the hippos,

must trek for miles to find grazing.

Other animals wander in the river-bed

in search of the few remaining pools.

But most now are little more than

reeking mud wallows,

full of dead and dying fish...

Even so, the impala would drink here,

but the pool is dominated by

a single croc,

the last of a group of more than

forty that were here a month ago.

The monkeys won't risk it - and drink,

instead, in deep footprints.

The fawn's attempt to drink

is a small disaster.

Now it's covered

with stinking mud.

The mother sniffs her offspring

but doesn't recognized it

in this foul disguise.

The crocodile that has held back

the drinkers suddenly leaves.

Perhaps there is no future for it

in this tiny pool.

The mother has made up her mind.

This is not the sweet smelling

youngster she came with.

But the fawn knows better.

The little impala is persistent.

Soon the mud will wear off

and the mother will again accept her.

The crocodile reappears,

covered in fresh red earth.

She thrusts her head into the mud

and swings it from side to side.

At first her peculiar behavior

is a puzzle.

And then her secret is revealed

as her muddy jaws open gently

to release the newly hatched babies

she has carried down

from her nest on the riverbank.

This is the reason she has remained

in the pool so long.

She would never desert her young...

she is their only protection.

But between predators

and the thick mud,

there is no chance

for the little crocs.

And all will die

within an hour.

Back in the big pool crocodiles writhe

and heave over another carcass.

And once again,

hippos are amidst the frenzy.

There's nothing for them to eat,

yet something attracts them here.

With jaws clamped tight on the carcass,

the croc spins until a piece breaks off.

The hippos seems content

to gently interrupt the spinning crocs

from time to time.

But no one knows why

they attend these terrible feasts.

For nine months little rain has fallen.

And the animals risk death for water.

The hippos calm is disturbed

by the violent arrival of

the croc's latest victim.

For this one there will be

no lucky escape.

The baby hippo is already wedged

deep among crocs

close to the impala carcass

and the biggest crocs in the pool.

The mother then does a strange thing.

Rousing herself

to investigate the scene,

she pushes her baby

almost on the impala,

and then retreats leaving her calf

between these jaws and the meal.

The mother's presence is enough

to ensure her safety...

Though the baby seems less certain.

But the mother knows

they wouldn't dare,

and she drifts back on top the secure

slumbers of the strong.

The pool has become so dangerous

that most animals prefer

to drink from the pits...

But a fierce comedy of survival results

when so many are desperate for water.

Large make baboons commandeer the pits

and drink every mouthful of

water that seeps in.

They can scare off most animals,

but sharp horns have the advantage and

the baboon reluctantly gives way.

Competition at the pits is so fierce

that those that can't cope with

a big baboon

have to take their chances

at the pool.

A nursing mother must have water,

but she takes a terrible risk

to get it.

The mother has torn herself free...

But the baboons can see that

another croc has her baby.

The croc will lose its prize to the

others unless it leaves the pool.

But when it does a big baboon

is waiting.

The croc drops the baby.

But the brave rescue is too late.

The drought continues.

It has become the worst

in living memory.

The pool has dwindled to a mud wallow

and many of the hippos have left

on a final quest for water.

But for an increasing crowd of animals

their only chance of salvation

lies here.

For the plovers, no eggs have survived

these cruel and chaotic conditions.

Every day an assemble of desperate

animals gathers around the pool.

These baboons,

who are seldom peaceable,

reach new levels of aggression

among themselves.

Even mothers with small babies do not

escape the brutal bullying.

Baboons still dominate the pits

but a female nyala,

driven by thirst,

is ready to fight for a drink.

Each day now a few baboons appear

with blood on their hands.

Their victims are impala fawns.

Some are orphans of the drought,

others, only temporarily lost and alone.

Trusting and totally defenseless,

they are easy prey

for a strong male baboon.

Unaware of the fate of her offspring,

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes