I'm Bill Bailey and I'm in Cape Town
to introduce you to three unique families of baboons.
The highway robbers of the Smitz troop.
The rustic rascals, the Tokai troop.
And finally, the urbanites of Da Gama.
We're inside the troop, giving us an opportunity
to witness the highs and lows of baboon family life.
And some of the challenges that occur
when man and beast live cheek by jowl.
This time, newcomer Clint is finally starting to make friends.
And the Smitz troop has a spot of bother
when a rival gang turn up on their doorstep.
There's more rivalry, politics and casual violence
than a British provincial town.
Life's not easy being a baboon.
The Cape baboons live here
on this narrow strip of land, which juts out into the Atlantic Ocean,
south of the sprawling city of Cape Town.
There's about one baboon per square kilometre,
which seems OK.
But such is the demand for new housing,
they're gradually being hemmed in.
Normally, baboons like to range over a wide area.
But as the space runs out, the different troops
are having to live in each other's pockets.
And that doesn't always lead to social harmony.
These pressures often lead to conflict, not just with humans,
but also between the baboons themselves.
Time to take a closer look.
Along the coast road, just south of Cape Town,
a troop of baboons takes up a fine vantage point.
They're sitting on the sign for Smitswinkel Bay,
but this is not the Smitz troop.
This is the ultimate insult to the resident baboons.
This the Plateau troop.
And they are trespassing on the Smitz' family turf.
Further along the coast road, oblivious to the interlopers
on their patch, the Smitz troop has had a busy morning,
creating havoc as they steal food from tourist cars, causing panic...
Oh!
(LAUGHTER) ..and hilarity.
Jimmy, the gangster, seems to have been accepted by the troop.
But there's one member of the clan that's keeping a close eye on him.
Jimmy is big enough to represent a threat to Fred's position
as alpha male.
For the time being, though, Fred tolerates Jimmy's presence.
He knows he could be useful in a fight
to protect his precious babies.
But there can only be one alpha male.
Today, another pair of hands could come in useful.
The Plateau troop is heading their way.
Fred may have to rely on Jimmy for backup.
But so far, he hasn't noticed the invasion.
He's far too interested into sneaking into cars
that tourists have forgotten to lock behind them.
(SCREAMING)
In theory, Jimmy and Fred have come to an understanding.
But at times, it looks like Jimmy might be testing the leader's authority.
And what better way to show who's boss than taking food?
He lunges at Fred, trying to steal his fruit salad.
Fred suddenly loses control - he doesn't like to be challenged -
and lashes out at a baboon monitor,
whose job it is to keep the peace.
This is the sort of unprovoked behaviour
that could get Fred into a lot of trouble,
even if it was Jimmy that started it.
He's been hurt in the scuffle,
but this is no time to be nursing wounds.
The Plateau gang has arrived.
Neighbouring troops do occasionally meet.
And it's not always hostile.
Infants from both troops rush to greet one another,
excited by the opportunity to find new playmates.
It's soon hard to know who's who.
The youngsters don't care about troop loyalty.
They just want to have fun.
The Plateau troop is larger than the Smitz,
and normally live further inland.
But not everyone's enjoying the party.
This is TK1, leader of the Plateau troop.
He's one of the biggest baboons on the Cape.
If TK1 is here to cause trouble,
will Fred be able to count on Jimmy's support?
I'm Bill Bailey and I'm on the Cape Peninsula
in Southern South Africa where the local baboon population
is running out of space.
They can't spread out and head for the mainland of Africa.
Their way is blocked by the city of Cape Town.
And this narrow strip of land that they inhabit
is being squeezed by human encroachment.
Researchers have started to notice that this cramping of the animals' style
has started to alter their behaviour.
Adult males reaching maturity, like Force and Rude Boy,
are still hanging around in their own troop - the Smitz -
when they should now really be thinking of heading out on their own.
If they don't, then the troop could suffer from a weaker gene pool
caused by inbreeding, leaving the troop vulnerable to disease.
The thing is, there's nowhere for these boys to go.
There's several other large troops a few miles in every direction.
And they too have a surplus of young males.
So all the daily struggles of baboon life -
fighting for territory, border skirmishes,
males fighting for mating rights -
all this competition has got more intense.
Right now on the Cape, it's a tough time to be a baboon.
Beyond the suburbs lies a band of forest
beneath Table Mountain.
This little haven is home to the Tokai troop,
one of the biggest local gangs, with over 60 members.
The trees offer a great playground for many youngsters.
Because land is so precious,
the baboons are usually fiercely territorial.
And none more so than split-nosed Danny, the alpha male.
But despite his fearsome reputation,
he seems to be tolerating the new arrival, Clint, a young male
that was kicked out of a neighbouring troop
and is looking for a new home.
Limping Whitey and Grandma Rat have always lived here.
Females stay with their families for life.
For that reason, the young males have to leave home
to avoid inbreeding with their relatives.
It's a bit like the West Country. No, I can't say that!
So as long as Clint is happy to acknowledge Danny's leadership,
he'll be welcomed into the troop by the alpha male.
In the long term, the troop needs fresh, new genes.
And Clint is starting to turn heads.
Well, he is a handsome chap.
A female, Harriet, approaches and offers her rump in greeting.
This is the first time a female has ventured close.
At five years, she's just approaching sexual maturity.
She's eager to groom the young male.
At the moment, Danny couldn't care less about this blossoming friendship,
but that will change once Harriet's in her most reproductive state.
Then, Danny will claim full mating rights.
But that doesn't mean this female won't sneak back to Clint.
Females often try to get new genes into the troop
right under the alpha's nose, or what's left of it.
Danny is relaxing with his old friend, Whitey,
the female with a limp, leaving Clint and Harriet in peace.
Clint's first girlfriend -
a sign that's he finally been accepted as part of the troop.
After a morning of foraging, these country cousins
can do what they do best - have fun.
A few houses are hidden away in the Tokai woods.
And they make the perfect recreation sites.
The porch, much underrated as a climbing frame.
And this venue comes complete with a swimming pool.
We all know how much the Tokai love a dip.
While the youngsters let their hair down,
the oldies in the troop can enjoy some peace and quiet under the shade of the trees.
10km from the forest, in the urban jungle,
the tower block flats of the naval base are surprisingly quiet.
The Da Gama gang were up early this morning.
Week after week, these baboons pick their way
through the never-ending supply of rubbish laid out across the town.
Ellie, the three-legged female, picks through the remains,
but the odd scrap hardly constitutes a breakfast.
So alpha male, Gundy, leads them in search
of a more substantial main course.
The 25 hungry troop members fall into line,
with old George bringing up the rear.
Though people can be pretty careless about leaving their rubbish outside,
the baboons know that there are even more rewards to be had
inside people's homes and gardens.
The troop skulks round the town.
Their keen eyes scoping for snack-based opportunities.
Most people in this neighbourhood are pretty baboon savvy,
so when these monkey scamps turn up, doors are closed.
But despite best efforts, we all sometimes forget to lock a door
or shut a window.
Gundy and the other gang members have amazing eyesight and keen senses.
They don't miss a trick.
An open door.
Tired of trash, the troop can finally cut out the middle man.
This food hasn't even been unwrapped.
As usual, Gundy, as alpha male, claims the lion's share.
It can't be much fun to encounter a baboon in your backyard,
stealing food right out of your kitchen.
Once Gundy's ordered the dish of the day,
everyone else squabbles over what's left.
Ellie fancies Italian.
Vets were unable to save her leg after she was shot.
And her injury meant she lost status in the troop.
But she's fought her way back to the top,
so after Gundy, she can take what she likes.
Raw pasta and rice may be a crunchy carbohydrate snack,
but these lazy baboons are damaging their health.
Normally, they would spend most of their waking hours
foraging in the hills for plants.
It's a bit tricky to carry food when you need all your remaining limbs to walk on.
So everywhere Ellie goes, she leaves a trail of spaghetti,
which is promptly devoured by the youngsters.
The whole troop seems to have developed a fondness for carbohydrates.
A good filling food fix. So much more energy reward than munching on a twig.
The kitchen looks like it's been burgled,
which, in fact, it has.
Before long, the good stuff's running low
and the troop are down to licking their wrappers.
Now that they enjoy an urban diet,
many of these food fiends are fighting the battle of the bulge.
When their own loot runs out,
these hungry hopefuls start to hang out with Gundy.
But he's not into sharing.
Though by the time that rice has swollen in his belly,
there'll be enough to feed a baboon army.
Not a moment too soon for the locals, the baboon monitors arrive.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING)
Every troop on the peninsula has them,
funded by the local authority.
And in Da Gama, their priority is to try and protect people's homes.
Gundy grabs the loot. It's a hit-and-run.
In the heat of the afternoon, the Tokai troop
are heading deep into the forest for a bit R&R.
During these gatherings, the youngest baboons
are allowed to stray from their mothers' sides to play.
Baboons don't have a fixed breeding season.
In a troop as big as this, there are always babies of all ages.
While Princess has the youngest baby,
and keeps the little one close to her body,
other mothers are trying to discourage close contact.
Hoping the wean their babies off milk.
The little boys seem to enjoy hanging out with their big brother, Hamlet.
Though, sometimes, big playmates can get a big heavy-handed.
Hamlet's only a couple of years old and still has a lot of growing up to do,
but already, he's showing the moody traits of male baboons.
The Tokai gang is doing extremely well
under Danny's leadership.
Thanks to him, several of the females, such as middle-aged Berta,
are pregnant.
It's siesta time in the Tokai troop.
These baboons know how to relax.
But there is no downtime for the Smitz.
The Plateau troop's in town. And though the youngsters are enjoying new friends,
the adults don't appreciate this competition on their patch.
TK1, the opposition leader,
might be a problem for Fred.
The youngsters continue to play.
And the females seem oblivious to the tension growing between the males.
Shifty glances give way to tooth-baring yawns -
a sign of aggression.
It's time for the girls to get out of here.
Baboons usually try to avoid conflict with other troops,
but the pressures on land mean their paths cross more frequently than normal.
Fred could really do with some backup from the boys,
but where is Jimmy?
The tough-guy gangster that fought his way into the troop
doesn't seem to have much sense of loyalty.
He's still checking out parked cars and stuffing his face.
He's more interested in eating than lending Fred his support.
He's not showing any interest at all in helping to defend
the home patch of his new troop.
Luckily, Fred's got more loyal henchman,
the gang's mature males - Merlin, Force and Rude Boy -
rush to support their leader.
There's a lot of noise, but TK1's bark is worse than his bite.
He's big, but he's outnumbered.
He heads for the hills.
The Smitz boys have done their job.
Home turf is safe and sound.
With their leader driven off, the rest of the Plateau troop retreat...
..leaving the Smitz troop as the rightful owners of Smitswinkel Bay.
Victorious, Fred rounds up his family and escorts them up the cliffs
to the safety of their roost.
Baboons like to spend the night high up,
where they can look out for approaching danger.
And these cliffs give them a wall to put their backs against.
It's just about the safest spot a baboon troop could hope for.
With a road providing an endless stream of food-bearing tourists,
the Smitz patch is well worth defending.
It's time for the Smitz troop to settle down for the night.
Next time, we'll find out if Merlin succeeds
in his audacious restaurant raid.
And join the Tokai as they welcome some new arrivals.
itfc subtitles