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It's one of the world's
most appealing creatures...

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..and one of its most mysterious.

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There are around 350
pygmy hippos living in zoos,

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but in the wild, they are endangered
and notoriously hard to find.

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Now, a young ecologist is taking on
what might be mission impossible...

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..to unravel the secrets
of an animal few have ever seen

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and about which we know so little.

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She'll spend months deep in a
remote West African rainforest...

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facing its many hazards,

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as she attempts to get a glimpse
of its elusive behaviour,

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understand how it uses
its forest home,

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so that ultimately,

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conservationists can work out what
the pygmy hippo needs to survive.

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THEY GASP
Oh, my God!

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Meet Gloria.

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She's a three-month-old
baby pygmy hippo.

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Gloria likes messing around,
exploring and taking a nap.

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She lives with her mum,
Wendy, in Marwell Zoo.

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But for wild pygmy hippos,
life is not so rosy.

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Their forest home is disappearing
at an alarming rate

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and at the moment,
all we really know about them

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is what we know from captive
hippos, like Gloria and Wendy.

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Australian Wei-Yeen Yap is a vet,
a wildlife ecologist

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and passionate about pygmy hippos.

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They're just so gorgeous.

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How can you not
fall in love with this?

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The hippos' secretive and
reclusive behaviour in the wild

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makes them hard,
if not impossible, to study.

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But the clock is ticking

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and Wei knows scientists must
find out much more about them

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before it's too late.

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If we want to try
and attempt to save them,

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then we have to know
how they function

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and what they need to survive,

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in order to come up
with some kind of plan.

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Pygmy hippos are on the
internationally recognised Red List,

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with officially
just 2,000 to 3,000 left.

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Living in a region of West Africa
recently blighted by civil unrest,

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their numbers could be much lower.

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Today, pygmy hippos are found
in just a few isolated pockets

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of what's left of
the Upper Guinea forest.

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The largest surviving
protected population

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is in Cote d'Ivoire,
in the Tai National Park.

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Wei has experience of studying
hard-to-find rainforest animals.

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Now, she's joined forces
with local conservationists

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in an international effort
to help solve

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one of the natural world's
last great mysteries.

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Amazingly enough, there are some
animals left in the world nowadays

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that we still
don't know almost anything about

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and the pygmy hippo
is one of them.

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Leading the Tai Hippo Project

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are Professor Inza Kone

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and Dr Karim Ouattara.

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It is very, very difficult
to see the pygmy hippo...

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These animals are nocturnal,

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very lazy, very cryptic, so very
difficult to follow and study.

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I think this is one of the challenge
that Wei-Yeen will face.

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Research assistants Donatien Bele...

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and Leon Sio Toh...

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have 18 years' forest experience
between them,

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but even they have only
glimpsed a pygmy hippo.

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Everything with this animal is hard.

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It makes every little thing
that we do manage to achieve

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really, really exciting.

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Wei's new home will be
a dilapidated research station

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in the remote forest,
five hours from the nearest big town.

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Building a case file on this
notoriously difficult animal

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will be anything but easy.

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The pressure is on.

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Understanding more about the
pygmy hippo's very secret life

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is the first step
to being able to protect

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its long-term future in the wild.

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The big thing for us
is to just start really simple

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and just start with getting a
really basic, clear, simple idea

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of what pygmy hippo behaviour
and ecology and density is,

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and what is really important
to their survival.

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The enormity of this
mission impossible task

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is starting to dawn on Wei,

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as she spends the first two months
looking for clues.

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The water's really high
at the moment,

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but we found fresh tracks all along
this little exit-entry point.

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So, I've just come back
to check it out again.

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It's a really perfect area
for the hippos.

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You can see the river's deep enough

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that he can get
fully submerged in here.

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Pygmy hippos can be just a tenth
of the size of the common hippo.

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Both are amphibious,
but unlike their larger cousins,

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pygmy hippos are thought
to lead a solitary life -

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adults only meet to mate.

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To add to Wei's challenge,

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they are believed to hide in water
by day and are most active at night.

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We've got a print here,

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which you can see
the two main big phalanges

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and then the two
little residual ones.

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And then further up here,

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we can see he's exited
out of this river bank here

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and it's not that great

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but you can see
his two phalanges again, here,

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as he's made his way up.

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I'm looking in certain places.

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I'm trying to think
like a pygmy hippo

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and it seems, at the moment,
to be working.

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The Tai National Park

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is the largest protected
tranche of primary rainforest

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left in West Africa.

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It's home not just
to the pygmy hippo,

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but to many other rare animals.

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With a staggering
140 species of mammal alone,

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the park's amazing
array of flora and fauna

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has earned its
World Heritage Site status.

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There are 12 different primates,

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including the vulnerable
Diana monkey.

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But illegal poaching

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and gold mining is increasing
the pressure on the park's wildlife.

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Cote d'Ivoire already has

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one of the highest deforestation
rates in the world.

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It's lost almost 70% of its original
forest cover in just 50 years.

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If you look at the original
home range of pygmy hippos

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in Cote d'Ivoire,
we see that most forest areas

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have just been destroyed,
converted to industrial plantations.

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And when plantations are so close to
the forest, this is a direct threat.

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Deforestation, plus cocoa,
coffee and rubber plantations

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continue to threaten
forests like Tai,

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one of the last strongholds
of the pygmy hippo.

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Wei is thrilled to find what she
thinks are fresh pygmy hippo tracks,

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but catching sight of who made them
will be a much bigger challenge.

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Wei and the team have set up
remote cameras with night vision.

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She's checking what they've captured.

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It's a fascinating home movie of
the inhabitants of the Tai Forest.

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There is an African civet...

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..a water chevrotain...

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..white-breasted guineafowl...

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..and a particularly nosey
sooty mangabey.

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The largest of the eight species
of forest antelopes called duikers

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is the Jentink's duiker,

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endangered and nocturnal,
just like the pygmy hippo.

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They tend to seem to come around the
same areas as the pygmy hippos
a lot,

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so where we have confirmed
presence of a pygmy hippo,

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we seem to get confirmed presence of
Jentink's in the same area, as well.

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We've got some leopards.

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We've got this beautiful shot
of a really healthy,

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really gorgeous male,
because you can see his back end.

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Leopard...

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Then...the animal Wei came to see.

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So that's...amazing.

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We've got this beautiful picture
of a really quite large,

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male pygmy hippo.

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And you can see him here coming
and actually sniffing the path

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and kind of going,
"Well, that smells like humans,

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"I don't think
I'll go down there today."

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And he gives it a
really, really good sniff,

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hangs around for a quite few seconds
and then decides to keep moving on.

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Footage of wild pygmy hippos
is exceptionally rare.

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Now Wei knows where this male hippo
is active, she hopes he'll be back.

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That's our first confirmation
so we'll put something up there

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and hopefully
manage to study him way more.

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In 2010, a hippo with a
distinctive notch in its left ear

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was caught on a project camera

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but Wei doesn't think
it's the same hippo.

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But such a distinguishing feature
could help identify it...

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if it's still here.

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The team throws up a web of
12 cameras around the target area.

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Almost anything that Wei can learn
from observing the pygmy hippos

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will help her build a case file.

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But Wei's ultimate
goal is more ambitious.

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She hopes to physically capture a
pygmy hippo and attach a GPS collar,

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which will remotely store, then
send her, a comprehensive data bank

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on what the hippo's been doing,
where he's been going

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and when this all happens.

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This could be ground-breaking
new science.

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To test that the
radio telemetry system is working,

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she's heading 20m up into the canopy,
where the signal should be clearest.

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Hi, Bogui?
I'm not getting any signal.

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'Just keep walking unless
you hear that I have a signal.

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'I'll let you know.' OK, thanks.

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Ivorian PhD student Elie Bogui is the
man on the ground with the collar.

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Hi, Bogui? I've got
a pretty weak signal...

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'So, if we mark that,
that's our distance.'

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OK.

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With the collar working correctly,

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there's time to appreciate
the new perspective.

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Once you've been working
in the jungle for a while,

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you get really stuck visually
with just not seeing any horizon

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and feeing really enclosed
all the time.

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It's actually a really big deal,
psychologically.

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It kind of makes you realise a whole
different parallel universe

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existing in the forest.

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I think when I was coming up,

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I disturbed a little group
of pied colobus over there.

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They seemed to be pretty curious and
pretty freaked out by a big primate

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climbing one of their trees.

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So, they're staying
a lot less conspicuous now,

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which is interesting
cos there was some red colobus

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over in that clearing, over there.

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They didn't seem bothered at all.

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Up here, it's perfect
hornbill height.

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There's hornbills
and instead of seeing them

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flitting over a clearing
for half a second,

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you get to actually see them
moving from tree to tree.

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And somewhere, deep below the
forest canopy, are pygmy hippos.

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In order to collar a hippo,

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first, she'll have to catch one.

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It won't be easy,
but Wei is undeterred.

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FRENCH: Pardon.

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She and the team are building
a series of humane traps

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close to the hippo's trail.

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Wei is throwing
herself into the task.

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TRANSLATION FROM FRENCH:

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Wei isn't afraid of a challenge -
she even tried to learn French

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00:14:21,660 --> 00:14:23,140
just for this mission.

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..et la porte...

212
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..a crossbeam, pour ca...

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00:14:37,300 --> 00:14:40,700
'No-one speaks any English.

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'I took to learning French
as quickly as possible.

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'I'm probably saying completely
ridiculous things
a lot of the time.'

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13 weeks into the mission,
stage one of the plan is complete.

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There are four traps built
and ready for action.

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Then disaster strikes.

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Wei falls ill.
It looks like malaria...

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..a potentially fatal disease.

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Despite drug treatment,
she isn't getting any better...

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and the nearest big hospital
is an 11-hour drive away.

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I'm probably going to have
to get some tests run

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and just make sure there's nothing
else going on, which really sucks,

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because the traps are built
and ready to go,

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00:15:54,260 --> 00:15:58,660
our trapping date's set
for the next few days and...

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00:15:58,660 --> 00:16:01,300
it's all a real big bummer.

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00:16:03,100 --> 00:16:06,340
Wei is finally persuaded
to go to hospital,

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00:16:06,340 --> 00:16:10,340
where it's confirmed she has
both malaria and a stomach bug.

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She's hospitalised for several days,

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by which time the capture team
has arrived,

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but is now behind schedule.

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00:16:25,020 --> 00:16:28,020
Veterinary anaesthetist
Dr Tim Bouts

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00:16:28,020 --> 00:16:31,580
and postgraduate student Gabriella
Flacke are now eager to get started.

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00:16:33,580 --> 00:16:36,220
This is ketamine,
which goes here. The ketamine...

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00:16:36,220 --> 00:16:38,660
It's nearly 30 years
since anyone attempted

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to anaesthetise wild pygmy hippos.

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00:16:42,100 --> 00:16:44,740
Your dose for Medetomidine?

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00:16:44,740 --> 00:16:46,980
20mg, and 300...

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00:16:46,980 --> 00:16:50,460
Tim is experienced in
captive pygmy hippo sedation

241
00:16:50,460 --> 00:16:54,620
but he knows that this part of the
capture process is the most risky.

242
00:16:56,540 --> 00:16:58,500
If you speak with someone
in Ivory Coast,

243
00:16:58,500 --> 00:17:00,980
they said last time it happened,
all the pygmy hippos died.

244
00:17:00,980 --> 00:17:02,740
I am sure it wasn't like that,

245
00:17:02,740 --> 00:17:05,660
but this is the general feeling
here on Ivory Coast.

246
00:17:05,660 --> 00:17:07,900
So, the fact that
they allowed to do this

247
00:17:07,900 --> 00:17:09,620
was a big step for the Ivorians.

248
00:17:09,620 --> 00:17:12,420
Always test it on yourself first.

249
00:17:12,420 --> 00:17:13,780
And this one then fits,

250
00:17:13,780 --> 00:17:16,220
if you really have to breathe
for the animal.

251
00:17:16,220 --> 00:17:17,660
That fits at the back...

252
00:17:17,660 --> 00:17:20,180
We are well prepared,
we can do everything here.

253
00:17:20,180 --> 00:17:22,740
We've got emergency drugs
if something goes wrong.

254
00:17:22,740 --> 00:17:25,780
It's always in the back of our mind
but we shouldn't shy away of it,

255
00:17:25,780 --> 00:17:31,700
because the possible benefits of
this project are just immense.

256
00:17:31,700 --> 00:17:35,860
Sedation is the only way to get
a GPS collar onto a pygmy hippo.

257
00:17:45,660 --> 00:17:47,820
With Wei back on her feet,

258
00:17:47,820 --> 00:17:51,780
the unexpected delay means they
now have only eight days to catch

259
00:17:51,780 --> 00:17:54,540
one of the world's
most elusive animals...

260
00:17:56,220 --> 00:17:57,660
..and the clock is ticking.

261
00:17:59,100 --> 00:18:00,820
The door only comes up
to this high

262
00:18:00,820 --> 00:18:03,060
so you can actually shoot
straight through this.

263
00:18:03,060 --> 00:18:04,260
That would be fantastic.

264
00:18:04,260 --> 00:18:07,380
And it's easy enough to have someone
else distract him on the other side.

265
00:18:07,380 --> 00:18:10,060
Yeah, we'll need to have
probably two people to distract

266
00:18:10,060 --> 00:18:13,100
and then hope that I don't shoot the
person on the other side. Yeah.

267
00:18:13,100 --> 00:18:15,260
You wedge it against
this side and...

268
00:18:15,260 --> 00:18:17,780
It's the first chance to check
the traps are still working

269
00:18:17,780 --> 00:18:19,820
since Wei was sick.

270
00:18:19,820 --> 00:18:22,060
It's just this trap that's
really, really fiddly,

271
00:18:22,060 --> 00:18:23,900
cos it was the first trigger
we built.

272
00:18:23,900 --> 00:18:26,900
This trap, unfortunately our
first trap, was real trial and error

273
00:18:26,900 --> 00:18:29,980
so it's not the nicest
and smoothest mechanism.

274
00:18:29,980 --> 00:18:32,180
There are lots of parts
where things can break,

275
00:18:32,180 --> 00:18:34,620
just purely because
they've been weathered.

276
00:18:34,620 --> 00:18:39,700
It's a huge thing to have a trap not
work if a hippo walks through it.

277
00:18:39,700 --> 00:18:42,300
And there's no way they'll
walk through it again, ever.

278
00:18:42,300 --> 00:18:43,700
A bit more.

279
00:18:45,340 --> 00:18:46,340
Merci.

280
00:18:50,500 --> 00:18:53,860
Do you guys want to see this
working? Yes, please.

281
00:18:53,860 --> 00:18:56,380
OK, who wants to be the hippo?

282
00:18:56,380 --> 00:18:58,820
Tim?
TIM LAUGHS

283
00:18:58,820 --> 00:19:01,660
OK, I look most like it!

284
00:19:01,660 --> 00:19:03,060
Ce pas necessaire.

285
00:19:03,060 --> 00:19:04,620
OK?

286
00:19:07,340 --> 00:19:09,340
Be careful. Be really careful.

287
00:19:09,340 --> 00:19:10,980
So I just walk through it now?

288
00:19:10,980 --> 00:19:12,620
Yeah.

289
00:19:16,140 --> 00:19:18,340
Voila! Voila!

290
00:19:18,340 --> 00:19:20,340
That was quick! OK.

291
00:19:20,340 --> 00:19:22,380
HE SPEAKS FRENCH

292
00:19:22,380 --> 00:19:25,660
It's a relief, but Karim knows
that the pygmy hippo

293
00:19:25,660 --> 00:19:28,700
can be a wily and wary opponent.

294
00:19:28,700 --> 00:19:33,740
It is our first time we try
the trap with pygmy hippos.

295
00:19:33,740 --> 00:19:38,940
We have no idea
now that this will work

296
00:19:38,940 --> 00:19:41,300
but we hope it will work.

297
00:19:51,420 --> 00:19:55,300
It's six in the evening and time to
set the traps for the first time.

298
00:19:57,100 --> 00:19:59,860
Wei is trying several
different types of bait,

299
00:19:59,860 --> 00:20:03,380
all designed to lure
a hungry hippo.

300
00:20:03,380 --> 00:20:06,580
So this is just salt,
a lot of sea salt,

301
00:20:06,580 --> 00:20:09,700
mineral salts mixed in with clay...

302
00:20:11,540 --> 00:20:15,180
..so it's forming
an artificial salt lick

303
00:20:15,180 --> 00:20:18,340
which most herbivores find
really, really tempting...

304
00:20:24,260 --> 00:20:28,380
Hippos are known in captivity to eat
cassava, bananas, apples, oranges,

305
00:20:28,380 --> 00:20:30,420
the whole lot,
but we have also been trying

306
00:20:30,420 --> 00:20:33,060
other very commonly found
vegetables here,

307
00:20:33,060 --> 00:20:37,140
like avocados, plantain and yam.

308
00:20:37,140 --> 00:20:41,980
Wei is keen to rid the yam
of as much human scent as possible.

309
00:20:41,980 --> 00:20:44,420
The pygmy hippo
may not have great eyesight

310
00:20:44,420 --> 00:20:48,460
but its nose is literally
its biggest asset.

311
00:20:48,460 --> 00:20:53,780
If it gets a whiff of humans,
it could run a mile.

312
00:20:53,780 --> 00:20:56,420
It's all set. Ready to go.

313
00:20:56,420 --> 00:20:59,260
Let's go,
give the hippos a chance.

314
00:20:59,260 --> 00:21:01,420
Yep, he'll be waking up
from his bed now.

315
00:21:03,540 --> 00:21:06,060
Hopefully, he's silly enough
to decide

316
00:21:06,060 --> 00:21:07,700
or curious enough to decide

317
00:21:07,700 --> 00:21:09,740
to walk through and eat some yam.

318
00:21:09,740 --> 00:21:12,060
THUNDER CRASHES

319
00:21:20,580 --> 00:21:23,060
The downpour is welcome.

320
00:21:23,060 --> 00:21:26,380
As the rainy season approaches,
it's thought that pygmy hippos

321
00:21:26,380 --> 00:21:30,140
become more active,
which might play to Wei's advantage.

322
00:21:39,980 --> 00:21:42,340
At dawn, Wei gets a shock.

323
00:21:44,700 --> 00:21:47,300
She knows there might be a
pygmy hippo in one of the traps

324
00:21:47,300 --> 00:21:50,540
on the other side of the river,
but the fallen tree trunk

325
00:21:50,540 --> 00:21:54,940
they've been using as a bridge
has disappeared in the downpour.

326
00:21:54,940 --> 00:21:59,660
There's no way the whole team can get
across with all their capture kit.

327
00:21:59,660 --> 00:22:01,860
The river had risen so high

328
00:22:01,860 --> 00:22:04,060
that the way that
we were using to cross

329
00:22:04,060 --> 00:22:06,060
was completely and utterly
submerged,

330
00:22:06,060 --> 00:22:09,540
to the point where I got lost on the
river bank for about half an hour,

331
00:22:09,540 --> 00:22:12,100
trying to figure out
where my entry point was.

332
00:22:14,220 --> 00:22:16,860
But she can't leave
a potentially distressed hippo

333
00:22:16,860 --> 00:22:18,300
stuck inside the trap.

334
00:22:19,500 --> 00:22:21,740
There's only one way to find out.

335
00:22:27,940 --> 00:22:33,540
Swimming across the river brings its
own dangers, but Wei is determined.

336
00:22:33,540 --> 00:22:36,660
Crossing rivers is not exactly
nice at 5am in the morning

337
00:22:36,660 --> 00:22:38,380
when you're checking traps,

338
00:22:38,380 --> 00:22:41,220
but if it needs to get done,
it needs to get done.

339
00:22:41,220 --> 00:22:43,660
A lot of other researchers
just don't go into the forest

340
00:22:43,660 --> 00:22:45,460
when it is like that,

341
00:22:45,460 --> 00:22:47,940
but unfortunately
we don't have that choice.

342
00:22:47,940 --> 00:22:51,180
If we've set a trap, we can't
exactly leave an animal in it.

343
00:22:51,180 --> 00:22:53,620
There's no pygmy hippo
in the traps yet,

344
00:22:53,620 --> 00:22:55,620
but with more rain to come,

345
00:22:55,620 --> 00:22:59,340
Wei needs a new plan
if the river stays this high.

346
00:22:59,340 --> 00:23:02,260
My only choice this morning
was to swim it,

347
00:23:02,260 --> 00:23:06,220
but it's not an option
for the rest of the crew.

348
00:23:06,220 --> 00:23:10,180
And getting all our collars
and immobilisation gear and guns

349
00:23:10,180 --> 00:23:13,340
and CO2 canisters and IV fluids
and everything...

350
00:23:13,340 --> 00:23:15,980
and ultrasound machines across...

351
00:23:15,980 --> 00:23:19,580
So, I'm not sure what
we're going to do.

352
00:23:24,500 --> 00:23:27,940
It's vital that the team
can get across the river,

353
00:23:27,940 --> 00:23:31,220
so the decision is taken
to build a bridge.

354
00:23:41,340 --> 00:23:45,540
The pygmy hippo's forest home
is crawling with other hazards.

355
00:23:53,820 --> 00:23:58,100
Driver ants are one of the most
aggressive animals in the forest.

356
00:23:58,100 --> 00:24:01,340
Living in vast nomadic
colonies of up to 20 million,

357
00:24:01,340 --> 00:24:05,620
workers carve out marching paths,
flanked by larger soldiers

358
00:24:05,620 --> 00:24:08,980
with powerful jaws,
who attack anything in their way.

359
00:24:11,820 --> 00:24:14,660
Oh, God!

360
00:24:14,660 --> 00:24:16,500
Ah!

361
00:24:16,500 --> 00:24:18,300
They call them manya here.

362
00:24:19,740 --> 00:24:23,020
And you get ant swarms
and if you step into them,

363
00:24:23,020 --> 00:24:26,260
there are a certain type of manya
that really, really hurt!

364
00:24:27,580 --> 00:24:29,740
And once they bite,
they don't let go,

365
00:24:29,740 --> 00:24:31,940
so you've got to rip them out,

366
00:24:31,940 --> 00:24:34,180
which is what I'm doing
through my pants.

367
00:24:34,180 --> 00:24:35,620
I would, if I was by myself,

368
00:24:35,620 --> 00:24:38,820
probably rip my clothes off
right now.

369
00:24:38,820 --> 00:24:42,700
A swarm of manya can kill
a scorpion in a matter of minutes.

370
00:24:45,140 --> 00:24:47,980
That's why you wear
socks over your pants...

371
00:24:47,980 --> 00:24:52,460
and I stupidly didn't
wear my socks over my pants today.

372
00:25:00,980 --> 00:25:03,020
It's 6am the next day

373
00:25:03,020 --> 00:25:07,260
and Donatien & Leon are on early
morning trap-checking duty.

374
00:25:08,700 --> 00:25:11,100
We're sort of waiting right now,

375
00:25:11,100 --> 00:25:14,020
in extreme suspense,
trying not to stress out.

376
00:25:16,220 --> 00:25:20,060
The time frames that
we're having to work with

377
00:25:20,060 --> 00:25:22,300
put the pressure on quite a lot.

378
00:25:22,300 --> 00:25:24,140
But there's nothing
we can do about it.

379
00:25:24,140 --> 00:25:27,380
It's up to the hippo...and chance!

380
00:25:32,460 --> 00:25:34,140
Merci, Leon...

381
00:25:37,820 --> 00:25:41,060
Wei can only hope that
Donatien brings better news.

382
00:25:47,060 --> 00:25:49,340
HE SPEAKS FRENCH

383
00:25:49,340 --> 00:25:51,220
OK. Merci, Donatien...

384
00:25:52,620 --> 00:25:54,820
There's definitely
a sense of disappointment,

385
00:25:54,820 --> 00:25:57,620
but I suppose we need
to get used to the fact that

386
00:25:57,620 --> 00:26:00,820
the majority of mornings,
this is what's going to happen

387
00:26:00,820 --> 00:26:04,140
and so it's, push it aside

388
00:26:04,140 --> 00:26:05,980
and let's get on with today.

389
00:26:08,220 --> 00:26:13,100
To further understand Wei's elusive
opponent, Karim arranges a visit

390
00:26:13,100 --> 00:26:16,580
to the elders of
several local villages.

391
00:26:16,580 --> 00:26:19,380
Sharing valuable knowledge
between the communities

392
00:26:19,380 --> 00:26:21,820
and scientists
is fundamental to the project.

393
00:26:24,460 --> 00:26:27,740
Here, they are regaled with
stories of an animal of mystery,

394
00:26:27,740 --> 00:26:30,980
myth and legend.

395
00:26:30,980 --> 00:26:38,060
If people see the tail and
if you laugh, you can go crazy.

396
00:26:38,060 --> 00:26:40,700
You know, you've got people
that are over 70 years, 80 years,

397
00:26:40,700 --> 00:26:43,780
that remember what it was like
when there was rainforest everywhere

398
00:26:43,780 --> 00:26:46,220
and seeing pygmy hippos
was really normal.

399
00:26:52,100 --> 00:26:54,820
In the second village, the elders
tell them they believe

400
00:26:54,820 --> 00:27:00,940
the pygmy hippo was once human,
so people have a duty to protect it.

401
00:27:00,940 --> 00:27:04,580
This is how they keep
in mind the pygmy hippo.

402
00:27:07,340 --> 00:27:10,380
It's not just in Europe, it's not
just in Australia, where we go,

403
00:27:10,380 --> 00:27:12,580
"Oh, they're so cute,
we should save them."

404
00:27:12,580 --> 00:27:16,460
It's also charismatic and has
a lot of meaning here, as well.

405
00:27:24,140 --> 00:27:27,860
Back in the forest, there's still
no sign of any pygmy hippos

406
00:27:27,860 --> 00:27:30,940
at the traps, but the cameras
rigged in and around them

407
00:27:30,940 --> 00:27:33,820
reveal an interesting development -

408
00:27:33,820 --> 00:27:37,220
a host of other forest animals
venturing inside.

409
00:27:42,060 --> 00:27:45,500
Rather worryingly, they also
witness thieves in the night.

410
00:27:47,780 --> 00:27:50,460
Brush-tailed porcupines
make off with the yams

411
00:27:50,460 --> 00:27:52,420
intended to lure the pygmy hippo.

412
00:27:57,700 --> 00:28:01,340
All the team can do
is keep re-baiting the traps.

413
00:28:06,460 --> 00:28:09,180
It's day four before Wei
gets even a glimmer of hope.

414
00:28:11,540 --> 00:28:14,660
She's viewed video footage through
a small viewfinder of a camera

415
00:28:14,660 --> 00:28:18,020
outside trap one, which seemed
to show something exciting.

416
00:28:57,820 --> 00:28:59,980
SHE LAUGHS EXCITEDLY

417
00:29:01,380 --> 00:29:04,100
Celebration soon turns
to disappointment,

418
00:29:04,100 --> 00:29:06,380
when Wei takes a closer look
at the images.

419
00:29:09,300 --> 00:29:11,420
Unfortunately,
when we went back to the computer,

420
00:29:11,420 --> 00:29:13,500
we realised the door
had actually triggered.

421
00:29:13,500 --> 00:29:15,940
We can't figure out
what exactly happened there

422
00:29:15,940 --> 00:29:18,180
or what triggered that trap.

423
00:29:18,180 --> 00:29:21,780
Look, it's really obvious the doors
are down and it can't be....

424
00:29:21,780 --> 00:29:23,820
So, he wasn't able
to go through the trap,

425
00:29:23,820 --> 00:29:25,580
but it IS a pygmy hippo

426
00:29:25,580 --> 00:29:28,380
and he IS visiting the trap.

427
00:29:28,380 --> 00:29:29,740
Can definitely see he's a male.

428
00:29:29,740 --> 00:29:32,140
Yeah...and pretty relaxed.

429
00:29:32,140 --> 00:29:34,420
Whether he would have gone through
that day or not

430
00:29:34,420 --> 00:29:36,940
if the trap had been open,
we'll never know.

431
00:29:36,940 --> 00:29:39,380
But the fact is, is that
he's coming back to that area

432
00:29:39,380 --> 00:29:43,020
on a constant basis so that's
really, really exciting.

433
00:29:55,420 --> 00:29:58,980
Two nights later,
the male hippo returns...

434
00:29:58,980 --> 00:30:00,820
Ah...

435
00:30:00,820 --> 00:30:03,420
..but again,
doesn't set foot inside.

436
00:30:08,940 --> 00:30:12,180
Time is running out
to entice him into the trap.

437
00:30:12,180 --> 00:30:14,820
The capture team leaves
in just two days.

438
00:30:15,820 --> 00:30:17,820
I've done everything I can,

439
00:30:17,820 --> 00:30:22,340
but now I have absolutely
no idea what the magic ingredient

440
00:30:22,340 --> 00:30:24,580
is to get this hippo
to walk through this trap.

441
00:30:34,940 --> 00:30:37,260
And now it's the last evening.

442
00:30:38,380 --> 00:30:41,220
Which trap was this? The bamboo.

443
00:30:41,220 --> 00:30:42,620
Yeah, makes sense.

444
00:30:43,860 --> 00:30:46,700
Wei and the capture team
are spooling through the footage

445
00:30:46,700 --> 00:30:48,140
from the previous night.

446
00:30:48,140 --> 00:30:49,860
HE SPEAKS FRENCH

447
00:30:49,860 --> 00:30:51,180
Ah!
THEY GASP

448
00:30:51,180 --> 00:30:53,620
Oh, my God! Oh, my God.

449
00:30:53,620 --> 00:30:55,060
Come on...

450
00:30:55,060 --> 00:31:00,540
Yeah, but look how close he is
and he doesn't go in there!

451
00:31:00,540 --> 00:31:03,540
Oh, he's eating the sweet potato!
Oh, yes!

452
00:31:03,540 --> 00:31:04,980
No, no, wait...

453
00:31:04,980 --> 00:31:08,220
Oh, yes! He's eating the yam.

454
00:31:08,220 --> 00:31:10,500
Yes, he's eating the yam!

455
00:31:10,500 --> 00:31:12,300
Oh, so close and yet so far!

456
00:31:12,300 --> 00:31:15,140
That is SO awesome.

457
00:31:15,140 --> 00:31:19,220
Wei is thrilled and with good reason.

458
00:31:19,220 --> 00:31:22,860
It's a rare opportunity
to see in close-up a creature

459
00:31:22,860 --> 00:31:27,940
that only a handful of scientists
have ever observed in the wild.

460
00:31:27,940 --> 00:31:31,220
She also now knows
that the bait works,

461
00:31:31,220 --> 00:31:33,620
even though the hippo doesn't
venture far enough inside

462
00:31:33,620 --> 00:31:35,580
to trigger the trap.

463
00:31:35,580 --> 00:31:36,660
In the trap.

464
00:31:36,660 --> 00:31:38,260
He's still very, very cautious,

465
00:31:38,260 --> 00:31:41,860
but he's got his entire head,
up to about his shoulders,

466
00:31:41,860 --> 00:31:43,580
inside the trap.

467
00:31:43,580 --> 00:31:45,620
Even when he's reaching
for the further yam,

468
00:31:45,620 --> 00:31:47,820
he's kind of grabbing it and
bringing it closer to him

469
00:31:47,820 --> 00:31:49,060
and eating it there.

470
00:31:49,060 --> 00:31:50,540
He's sniffing the human smells.

471
00:31:50,540 --> 00:31:53,340
I think that's why he picks it up
at first and he's like, "Huh..."

472
00:31:53,340 --> 00:31:56,340
Yeah, actually... And he's nervous.

473
00:31:56,340 --> 00:31:59,820
He is nervous, yeah,
cos he's really sniffing there.

474
00:32:01,020 --> 00:32:03,900
With the traps already
set for the final night,

475
00:32:03,900 --> 00:32:07,740
Wei can only hope that he'll be
brave enough to venture further in.

476
00:32:18,300 --> 00:32:21,980
When dawn arrives,
it brings fresh disappointment.

477
00:32:24,500 --> 00:32:27,260
The male pygmy hippo did return

478
00:32:27,260 --> 00:32:29,900
but he didn't go inside trap one.

479
00:32:29,900 --> 00:32:31,740
The footage reveals why.

480
00:32:37,860 --> 00:32:41,820
Those porcupine thieves strike again,

481
00:32:41,820 --> 00:32:46,420
so that when the hippo does arrive,
there's no food left to tempt him in.

482
00:32:51,340 --> 00:32:54,180
It's a huge disappointment
for Wei and the team.

483
00:32:55,780 --> 00:32:58,540
For now, their capture
plans are scuppered...

484
00:32:58,540 --> 00:33:02,620
but Wei hopes she'll see more
of the big male hippo in the future.

485
00:33:02,620 --> 00:33:05,460
We've had beautiful footage of him

486
00:33:05,460 --> 00:33:08,900
interacting with the trap
three times now, which is great.

487
00:33:08,900 --> 00:33:13,380
He's the first hippo that we really
got a clear understanding of

488
00:33:13,380 --> 00:33:16,620
his core range that
we got a lot of signs for.

489
00:33:16,620 --> 00:33:19,660
It was the first trap we built
and he has had the most time

490
00:33:19,660 --> 00:33:23,260
to have us disturbing his area
and getting used to that.

491
00:33:28,620 --> 00:33:31,660
After four months,
time has run out for Wei.

492
00:33:33,300 --> 00:33:35,700
She and the capture team
must head home

493
00:33:35,700 --> 00:33:36,700
but they will return.

494
00:33:38,140 --> 00:33:40,580
In the meantime, Donatien and Leon

495
00:33:40,580 --> 00:33:43,220
will continue to monitor
the forest for signs.

496
00:33:53,780 --> 00:33:56,020
CROWD CHANTS

497
00:33:56,020 --> 00:33:59,900
CROWD: Hippo, hippo!

498
00:34:03,340 --> 00:34:05,940
Wei is back in Cote d'Ivoire

499
00:34:05,940 --> 00:34:09,860
and today, she's celebrating
Hippo Day with children from villages

500
00:34:09,860 --> 00:34:13,300
around the forest and the rest
of the Tai Hippo Project team.

501
00:34:15,220 --> 00:34:18,860
It's Karim and Inza's initiative
to educate the next generation

502
00:34:18,860 --> 00:34:21,820
about Cote d'Ivoire's
most mysterious mammal.

503
00:34:23,660 --> 00:34:26,700
It's also a good excuse for a party.

504
00:34:26,700 --> 00:34:31,180
These children are
the future decision-makers,

505
00:34:31,180 --> 00:34:35,460
they are future researchers,
so it is really important for us

506
00:34:35,460 --> 00:34:40,900
to drive them slowly towards
nature conservation issues.

507
00:34:42,540 --> 00:34:44,780
KARIM SPEAKS IN OWN LANGUAGE

508
00:34:51,060 --> 00:34:54,940
Karim hopes that inspiring children
to care about the hippos

509
00:34:54,940 --> 00:34:57,780
and their forest home
is the most effective way

510
00:34:57,780 --> 00:35:00,580
to spread the word about saving
the pygmy hippo's habitat.

511
00:35:01,820 --> 00:35:06,340
For us, if you have
your child come home and say,

512
00:35:06,340 --> 00:35:10,900
"OK, Dad or Mum, we learn
a lot about the pygmy hippos

513
00:35:10,900 --> 00:35:13,180
"and they are disappearing."

514
00:35:13,180 --> 00:35:19,300
So, we expect that this message is
more strong when a child tells you

515
00:35:19,300 --> 00:35:21,980
that you have to stop
what you are doing.

516
00:35:21,980 --> 00:35:26,020
This is our vision, that the
population will start themselves

517
00:35:26,020 --> 00:35:28,380
to say, "OK, we want
to protect our forest

518
00:35:28,380 --> 00:35:31,300
"because we know how it is
important for our future."

519
00:35:46,140 --> 00:35:49,940
Back in the forest, the end
of the rainy season brings with it

520
00:35:49,940 --> 00:35:52,620
an abundance of seasonal
riches for the animals.

521
00:35:55,780 --> 00:36:00,540
Western pied colobus monkeys
feast on ripening bean pods,

522
00:36:00,540 --> 00:36:03,780
ripping open the tough casings
with their sharp canines

523
00:36:03,780 --> 00:36:05,300
to reach the seeds inside.

524
00:36:13,100 --> 00:36:15,180
During the wet season,

525
00:36:15,180 --> 00:36:18,220
Donatien and Leon continued
to bait the traps with yam,

526
00:36:18,220 --> 00:36:20,140
but left the doors open

527
00:36:22,260 --> 00:36:25,740
The cameras were also left up
to keep tabs on any action.

528
00:36:28,340 --> 00:36:30,740
And now Wei is about
to see the results.

529
00:36:33,020 --> 00:36:35,260
Oh, exciting!

530
00:36:35,260 --> 00:36:38,940
Let's just hope the camera traps
haven't let us down.

531
00:36:38,940 --> 00:36:40,740
She's not disappointed.

532
00:36:41,940 --> 00:36:44,940
The big male that came so close
to triggering the trap

533
00:36:44,940 --> 00:36:47,260
appears to be used
to walking through it.

534
00:36:50,500 --> 00:36:52,340
But that's not all.

535
00:36:52,340 --> 00:36:56,820
A smaller, clearly female hippo
is also now on the scene.

536
00:36:57,940 --> 00:37:01,940
We definitely have two different
individuals walking through bamboo,

537
00:37:01,940 --> 00:37:04,740
so the big male and
there's definitely been a female,

538
00:37:04,740 --> 00:37:06,300
which is really exciting.

539
00:37:06,300 --> 00:37:08,500
It raises more questions
about territoriality

540
00:37:08,500 --> 00:37:11,020
and the solitariness of the species.

541
00:37:12,820 --> 00:37:16,060
It's a very important development.

542
00:37:16,060 --> 00:37:19,060
Pygmy hippos are thought
to be highly solitary,

543
00:37:19,060 --> 00:37:21,820
keeping to their own
distinct core ranges

544
00:37:21,820 --> 00:37:24,260
and only coming together
to mate.

545
00:37:24,260 --> 00:37:27,140
That may explain
the female's presence...

546
00:37:27,140 --> 00:37:29,420
but only time will tell.

547
00:37:32,860 --> 00:37:36,420
That night, Wei scours
the incredibly rare footage

548
00:37:36,420 --> 00:37:39,500
for any clues to
the hippos' behaviour...

549
00:37:39,500 --> 00:37:42,620
and finds something
commonly seen in captivity,

550
00:37:42,620 --> 00:37:45,780
but almost never
witnessed in the wild.

551
00:37:45,780 --> 00:37:48,780
There was a time we went
out to check the traps

552
00:37:48,780 --> 00:37:53,500
and we saw fresh spray
all over the side of the exit.

553
00:37:53,500 --> 00:37:56,340
So, we know one of the hippos has
been and actually marked our trap,

554
00:37:56,340 --> 00:37:59,660
but I think we can
actually see that happening.

555
00:37:59,660 --> 00:38:04,060
So, can't see it perfectly but he
stops and shifts his right foot over

556
00:38:04,060 --> 00:38:08,020
and turns his body angle
and then you can actually...

557
00:38:08,020 --> 00:38:09,740
I've actually mashed up
the volume,

558
00:38:09,740 --> 00:38:13,180
you can hear this, like,
"chugga-chugga-chugga",

559
00:38:13,180 --> 00:38:17,420
as his crazy tail is smushing
urine and faeces all over the trap!

560
00:38:17,420 --> 00:38:19,180
So that's really awesome, you know,

561
00:38:19,180 --> 00:38:21,300
to be able to see
a sign in the field

562
00:38:21,300 --> 00:38:24,980
and kind of go, "I think
I've actually got footage of it!"

563
00:38:24,980 --> 00:38:27,180
HIPPO SPRAYS

564
00:38:33,780 --> 00:38:38,740
This type of spray-marking is
unique to pygmy and common hippos.

565
00:38:38,740 --> 00:38:41,620
It's thought to be the way a pygmy
hippo communicates its presence

566
00:38:41,620 --> 00:38:43,420
within its home range.

567
00:38:43,420 --> 00:38:47,740
But Wei is considering
a second theory about navigation.

568
00:38:47,740 --> 00:38:54,020
My hypothesis that wherever
we see spray on a hippo's path,

569
00:38:54,020 --> 00:38:57,660
we pretty much start looking for
some kind of turn off or crossroad

570
00:38:57,660 --> 00:39:02,340
or a new kind of right or
left-hand turn or a bifurcation

571
00:39:02,340 --> 00:39:06,180
going off in two different
directions and we usually find one.

572
00:39:08,260 --> 00:39:12,420
While Wei continues to put the pieces
of the pygmy hippo puzzle together,

573
00:39:12,420 --> 00:39:15,300
a new capture team has arrived.

574
00:39:15,300 --> 00:39:16,780
Wei will work with them

575
00:39:16,780 --> 00:39:22,260
but will also follow her own leads
to advance the field work.

576
00:39:22,260 --> 00:39:25,780
So little is known that even
the smallest detail could be crucial

577
00:39:25,780 --> 00:39:28,740
in building a conservation plan
to save the species.

578
00:39:30,740 --> 00:39:34,820
Whilst the capture team waits to see
if the hippos return to the traps,

579
00:39:34,820 --> 00:39:36,860
Wei is on a different mission.

580
00:39:38,180 --> 00:39:40,740
Investigating a report
of a hippo den.

581
00:39:44,140 --> 00:39:47,220
First, she needs to check that
there's no-one at home.

582
00:39:50,460 --> 00:39:54,540
Pygmy hippos are thought to make
their dens in river bank hollows,

583
00:39:54,540 --> 00:39:59,620
like this, created by fast-flowing
water as it hits a bend in the river,

584
00:39:59,620 --> 00:40:03,820
under the roots of primary
rainforest trees.

585
00:40:03,820 --> 00:40:05,900
All right, we're all clear!

586
00:40:08,660 --> 00:40:12,180
Some ecologists believe that the
decline in pygmy hippo numbers

587
00:40:12,180 --> 00:40:15,060
is directly related
to the loss of these trees.

588
00:40:22,340 --> 00:40:25,580
An improvised waterproof
camera on a stick

589
00:40:25,580 --> 00:40:28,500
will enable Wei to probe
deep inside the interior.

590
00:40:28,500 --> 00:40:30,900
Oh! Something slimy...

591
00:40:32,100 --> 00:40:35,060
It's another extraordinary first.

592
00:40:35,060 --> 00:40:37,580
It's believed that
no-one has ever filmed

593
00:40:37,580 --> 00:40:40,100
inside a pygmy hippo den before.

594
00:40:40,100 --> 00:40:42,380
OK, there is definitely
no hippo around.

595
00:40:44,700 --> 00:40:49,420
This one goes much deeper than
the other dens she's seen.

596
00:40:49,420 --> 00:40:53,660
I would never have guessed
the extent of the actual den.

597
00:40:53,660 --> 00:40:55,980
They're always pretty small,
you know,

598
00:40:55,980 --> 00:40:57,900
good enough to hide a hippo in,

599
00:40:57,900 --> 00:41:00,460
but this just is on
a whole other level.

600
00:41:00,460 --> 00:41:02,060
And there's another surprise -

601
00:41:02,060 --> 00:41:05,020
strange vertical markings
on the bank.

602
00:41:05,020 --> 00:41:07,020
I can actually see scrape marks.

603
00:41:08,460 --> 00:41:11,940
Right at the surface,
you can see these marks

604
00:41:11,940 --> 00:41:14,380
going down into the water,

605
00:41:14,380 --> 00:41:17,820
where you've got
this perfect clay wall.

606
00:41:17,820 --> 00:41:22,100
The scrape marks suggest
an intriguing new possibility.

607
00:41:22,100 --> 00:41:23,820
We know they've got those
big canines,

608
00:41:23,820 --> 00:41:24,940
we've kind of always gone,

609
00:41:24,940 --> 00:41:27,580
"Oh, maybe it is for fighting,
maybe it's for territoriality,

610
00:41:27,580 --> 00:41:29,180
"maybe it's for breeding..."

611
00:41:29,180 --> 00:41:33,060
Um, maybe it's for
carving out riverbanks.

612
00:41:33,060 --> 00:41:36,540
It's the first time anyone's
found evidence that hippos

613
00:41:36,540 --> 00:41:40,060
might actually play an active role
in excavating their dens.

614
00:41:42,580 --> 00:41:45,020
But that's not all.

615
00:41:45,020 --> 00:41:46,660
That is going in so deep.

616
00:41:49,500 --> 00:41:53,060
The first entrance
connects to a second.

617
00:41:53,060 --> 00:41:55,620
I'm at the end of the pole.

618
00:41:55,620 --> 00:41:58,660
The tunnel measures an incredible
nine metres -

619
00:41:58,660 --> 00:42:00,060
the length of two cars.

620
00:42:01,380 --> 00:42:03,620
That is going deep this way,
as well.

621
00:42:03,620 --> 00:42:07,100
And three metres away from the bank,
the camera pops up

622
00:42:07,100 --> 00:42:09,780
in a hippo-sized air pocket.

623
00:42:09,780 --> 00:42:13,700
It means, basically,
that this hippo can dive under

624
00:42:13,700 --> 00:42:16,940
and then resurface in an area
where they can sit happily,

625
00:42:16,940 --> 00:42:21,540
breathing, completely enclosed,
completely safe and hidden.

626
00:42:21,540 --> 00:42:23,220
And it's huge.

627
00:42:23,220 --> 00:42:25,980
A single animal shouldn't need
something as huge as this,

628
00:42:25,980 --> 00:42:28,500
so whether they kind of use it
to raise young,

629
00:42:28,500 --> 00:42:30,780
especially when they're
super, super little...

630
00:42:30,780 --> 00:42:33,180
Whether they pair in these dens -

631
00:42:33,180 --> 00:42:36,100
I mean, we don't know and
considering the size of it,

632
00:42:36,100 --> 00:42:40,300
now I'm kind of wondering whether
that could be a possibility.

633
00:42:43,220 --> 00:42:46,380
Bit by bit,
Wei is unearthing new insights

634
00:42:46,380 --> 00:42:51,140
into the secret life
of her pygmy hippos.

635
00:42:51,140 --> 00:42:54,300
But as she starts to uncover
their secrets by day,

636
00:42:54,300 --> 00:42:58,060
they are giving her and
the capture team the slip by night.

637
00:43:04,380 --> 00:43:06,700
Neither the big male, nor the female,

638
00:43:06,700 --> 00:43:09,740
has been seen on camera
for more than a month.

639
00:43:15,020 --> 00:43:18,060
Then, while out searching for tracks,

640
00:43:18,060 --> 00:43:21,820
she and Donatien stumble
across something disturbing.

641
00:43:21,820 --> 00:43:23,780
Oh...

642
00:43:23,780 --> 00:43:25,180
Quoi?

643
00:43:33,300 --> 00:43:36,460
It raises a chilling possibility

644
00:43:36,460 --> 00:43:39,060
that the big male
and the little female

645
00:43:39,060 --> 00:43:42,180
may have fallen victim to poachers.

646
00:43:45,900 --> 00:43:48,940
It's a reminder that
although the Tai forest is protected,

647
00:43:48,940 --> 00:43:51,180
its animals do get hunted illegally.

648
00:43:57,300 --> 00:43:59,700
Karim has brought Wei
to a bushmeat market,

649
00:43:59,700 --> 00:44:01,340
on the border with Liberia.

650
00:44:11,300 --> 00:44:14,980
While hunting forest animals
is outlawed in Cote d'Ivoire,

651
00:44:14,980 --> 00:44:18,500
just over the river in Liberia,
it's perfectly legal.

652
00:44:20,420 --> 00:44:22,460
Hunters sell their goods to traders,

653
00:44:22,460 --> 00:44:26,700
who then ship the animals across the
river border to this informal market.

654
00:44:30,260 --> 00:44:33,020
So, you see here
you have mainly monkeys.

655
00:44:34,500 --> 00:44:38,500
This one seems to be Diana monkey.
C'est Diana?

656
00:44:38,500 --> 00:44:42,940
Yes. With the teeth.

657
00:44:42,940 --> 00:44:47,860
This one is a sooty mangabey.
Yes, sooty mangabey.

658
00:44:47,860 --> 00:44:49,100
With this one...

659
00:44:49,100 --> 00:44:51,900
it's a Campbell's monkey.
It's very fresh.

660
00:44:53,980 --> 00:44:55,780
Oh, wow, it's really fresh. Yes.

661
00:44:57,620 --> 00:44:59,220
No, no, no.

662
00:45:01,460 --> 00:45:03,820
Straight through the heart.

663
00:45:03,820 --> 00:45:06,780
So, that's got to be less
than two hours.

664
00:45:06,780 --> 00:45:11,220
Probably this morning, yes.
Because of the rigor.

665
00:45:11,220 --> 00:45:13,660
Wei is confronted with
many of the species

666
00:45:13,660 --> 00:45:17,700
she has seen in the rainforest
being sold here as food.

667
00:45:18,820 --> 00:45:21,700
Both Wei and Karim
are dreading finding hippo meat.

668
00:45:24,380 --> 00:45:27,860
A local monitoring team checks
the market for all animals that,

669
00:45:27,860 --> 00:45:29,580
like the pygmy hippo,

670
00:45:29,580 --> 00:45:33,420
are on an internationally
banned list of endangered species.

671
00:45:33,420 --> 00:45:37,820
So, she said she started in June

672
00:45:37,820 --> 00:45:44,700
and from June to now,
they recorded no pygmy hippo.

673
00:45:44,700 --> 00:45:49,260
If they do find an animal on the
list, it gets sent back unsold,

674
00:45:49,260 --> 00:45:52,660
in the hope that the no-profit
message gets through.

675
00:45:52,660 --> 00:45:56,500
Officially, we have a lot of law
to protect the animals,

676
00:45:56,500 --> 00:46:01,220
but in practice,
we need more action.

677
00:46:01,220 --> 00:46:06,060
Wei wants to ask a Liberian trader
whether hunters target pygmy hippos.

678
00:46:06,060 --> 00:46:10,540
Do you know how they try to hunt
the pygmy hippopotamus?

679
00:46:12,180 --> 00:46:15,620
Do people try any more,
or is the animal too hard?

680
00:46:15,620 --> 00:46:17,620
They will try, if they can get it.

681
00:46:17,620 --> 00:46:20,100
And there is like
specialist hunters? Yes.

682
00:46:20,100 --> 00:46:25,260
Do they make pits
or do they make traps?

683
00:46:25,260 --> 00:46:28,100
Some set traps, some use gun.

684
00:46:28,100 --> 00:46:29,820
Do people really like the meat...
Yes.

685
00:46:29,820 --> 00:46:31,660
..of the pygmy hippo? Yes.

686
00:46:31,660 --> 00:46:34,100
More than the duiker?

687
00:46:34,100 --> 00:46:37,260
More than that.
More than le singe - monkey?

688
00:46:38,340 --> 00:46:41,260
So, they will pay quite a lot of
money if there's a hippo?

689
00:46:41,260 --> 00:46:43,340
Yes.

690
00:46:43,340 --> 00:46:46,060
There are no pygmy hippos
in this market

691
00:46:46,060 --> 00:46:49,940
but discovering hippo meat is
popular - at least over the border -

692
00:46:49,940 --> 00:46:51,740
is a reality check for Wei.

693
00:46:53,340 --> 00:46:56,260
But she also understands that,
for local people,

694
00:46:56,260 --> 00:47:00,380
forest animals often represent
their only source of protein.

695
00:47:00,380 --> 00:47:03,540
The worst thing you can do is come
here and start crying and yelling

696
00:47:03,540 --> 00:47:06,500
and telling everyone here
that their way is not OK.

697
00:47:07,620 --> 00:47:10,860
I will probably go and
have a little cry when I get home,

698
00:47:10,860 --> 00:47:14,460
about the animals' eyes
that I've looked into today.

699
00:47:16,660 --> 00:47:22,500
If you imagine that each week,
we have this quantity of bushmeat,

700
00:47:22,500 --> 00:47:25,900
that means the pressure
is very high on the forest,

701
00:47:25,900 --> 00:47:27,500
high on the animals

702
00:47:27,500 --> 00:47:31,540
and we don't know how long
this can continue.

703
00:47:34,340 --> 00:47:37,060
CHIRPING

704
00:47:43,140 --> 00:47:46,980
Sadly, Wei's chances of capturing
the big male or female hippo

705
00:47:46,980 --> 00:47:48,700
have run out.

706
00:47:49,940 --> 00:47:52,300
This morning,
the capture team had to leave,

707
00:47:52,300 --> 00:47:54,940
but Wei is determined to carry on
as best she can.

708
00:47:56,340 --> 00:47:58,540
She's back at the traps where,
ironically,

709
00:47:58,540 --> 00:48:00,620
there are signs of activity.

710
00:48:06,500 --> 00:48:07,860
Then, at last,

711
00:48:07,860 --> 00:48:09,580
she finds a hippo calling card.

712
00:48:09,580 --> 00:48:11,020
Donatien!

713
00:48:12,860 --> 00:48:14,220
Oh!

714
00:48:22,740 --> 00:48:24,220
We've got fresh spray

715
00:48:24,220 --> 00:48:27,260
in one of their
really frequently sprayed spots.

716
00:48:27,260 --> 00:48:29,460
We've got a really, really
nice fresh poo sample,

717
00:48:29,460 --> 00:48:31,780
which is the first
in a really long time.

718
00:48:31,780 --> 00:48:35,580
Once analysed, the poo
will give Wei crucial insights

719
00:48:35,580 --> 00:48:38,100
into pygmy hippo diet
and genetic profile.

720
00:48:39,940 --> 00:48:43,980
She can only hope that her nocturnal
visitor was caught on camera.

721
00:48:48,140 --> 00:48:50,180
She expects it to be the big male,

722
00:48:50,180 --> 00:48:51,820
as this is his core range.

723
00:48:52,940 --> 00:48:54,460
It's really impossible to tell,

724
00:48:54,460 --> 00:48:56,900
especially when they're
this close up to the camera.

725
00:49:07,860 --> 00:49:10,900
When the female first turned up
in the male's core range,

726
00:49:10,900 --> 00:49:12,540
up to six months ago,

727
00:49:12,540 --> 00:49:14,340
Wei wondered if it was for mating.

728
00:49:14,340 --> 00:49:19,260
But her reappearance suggests
it could be more significant.

729
00:49:19,260 --> 00:49:22,060
We're going to go around and see
if we can figure out where she went,

730
00:49:22,060 --> 00:49:24,500
where she came from,
what she's actually been doing

731
00:49:24,500 --> 00:49:27,580
and see what's going on.

732
00:49:35,900 --> 00:49:38,740
We've got brand-new fresh prints
from last night,

733
00:49:38,740 --> 00:49:42,620
so same hippo,
same spray, this lay-on.

734
00:49:42,620 --> 00:49:46,260
We might put another camera trap
right here, as well.

735
00:50:03,140 --> 00:50:05,940
Oh, my God. We're stepping
all over signs, everywhere!

736
00:50:05,940 --> 00:50:09,020
Getting caught in trees, ah...
Getting too excited!

737
00:50:11,260 --> 00:50:13,300
They follow the female's trail.

738
00:50:17,540 --> 00:50:20,380
But the clues run out
at the edge of the water.

739
00:50:25,260 --> 00:50:27,900
The wily pygmy hippo has vanished,

740
00:50:27,900 --> 00:50:30,340
eluding them once again.

741
00:50:30,340 --> 00:50:32,540
But after weeks
of seeing no hippos at all,

742
00:50:32,540 --> 00:50:34,580
it's a huge relief.

743
00:50:34,580 --> 00:50:37,100
It's such a shame the
capture team has already left

744
00:50:37,100 --> 00:50:39,380
but Wei gathers
what evidence she can.

745
00:50:39,380 --> 00:50:40,900
Really interesting morning.

746
00:50:40,900 --> 00:50:43,540
Today is the first time
they've started showing signs

747
00:50:43,540 --> 00:50:47,180
back in the areas
we've known about in the past.

748
00:50:47,180 --> 00:50:50,620
They put up another camera
to see if she returns tonight.

749
00:50:55,500 --> 00:50:59,180
The next morning
brings exciting news.

750
00:50:59,180 --> 00:51:01,220
Ha! Oh!

751
00:51:09,020 --> 00:51:10,940
Ah, c'est bon!

752
00:51:10,940 --> 00:51:15,220
It's the female, coming from
the same direction as last night.

753
00:51:15,220 --> 00:51:17,860
She kind of goes
the exact opposite way

754
00:51:17,860 --> 00:51:20,700
to what we've always known
the male to go.

755
00:51:20,700 --> 00:51:23,860
Um, so it's really interesting.

756
00:51:25,740 --> 00:51:29,460
The big male has also been known
to walk this trail.

757
00:51:29,460 --> 00:51:32,260
It seems that the two of them
are sharing the route

758
00:51:32,260 --> 00:51:36,060
through this area, so it's possible
they may encounter each other.

759
00:51:38,180 --> 00:51:42,860
This time, the female has left a more
significant trail of clues behind.

760
00:51:50,980 --> 00:51:54,020
Wow, she's really going nuts,
marking away!

761
00:51:54,020 --> 00:51:57,660
One theory Wei has about
the volume of evidence is that,

762
00:51:57,660 --> 00:52:01,500
like cats, hippos may leave
a trail of pheromones in the area

763
00:52:01,500 --> 00:52:03,460
they feel most comfortable in -

764
00:52:03,460 --> 00:52:05,500
the core of their home range.

765
00:52:05,500 --> 00:52:08,260
And when they actually
come back into those areas

766
00:52:08,260 --> 00:52:10,060
and smell their own pheromones,

767
00:52:10,060 --> 00:52:12,900
it produces an actual
physiological response.

768
00:52:12,900 --> 00:52:15,900
So, like a drug that
alters their own biochemistry,

769
00:52:15,900 --> 00:52:18,420
they kind of go, "Ahhh," and relax.

770
00:52:18,420 --> 00:52:22,460
And then that forces them to
become happy and mark even more.

771
00:52:22,460 --> 00:52:26,300
If the female IS marking and
regularly using this same area

772
00:52:26,300 --> 00:52:29,300
as the big male, then it may
mean that pygmy hippos

773
00:52:29,300 --> 00:52:31,780
are less solitary
than previously thought

774
00:52:31,780 --> 00:52:35,020
and indeed might share core ranges.

775
00:52:35,020 --> 00:52:38,900
Wei needs evidence that the big male
is still in the area.

776
00:52:42,140 --> 00:52:44,500
ANIMAL CALLS

777
00:52:51,300 --> 00:52:52,300
The next morning,

778
00:52:52,300 --> 00:52:55,340
she's back out to see if the
big male has made an appearance.

779
00:52:55,340 --> 00:52:58,620
(Please work.)

780
00:52:58,620 --> 00:53:00,500
She scans the footage
from the cameras

781
00:53:00,500 --> 00:53:02,180
on the trail the female is using.

782
00:53:03,260 --> 00:53:04,940
The first two draw a blank...

783
00:53:04,940 --> 00:53:07,900
but then there's a surprise.

784
00:53:07,900 --> 00:53:10,020
There we go! It's the big male!

785
00:53:15,460 --> 00:53:17,100
It's good to see him again.

786
00:53:18,300 --> 00:53:22,380
Let's watch that again.
I haven't seen him in months.

787
00:53:22,380 --> 00:53:25,220
Wei now has proof that
the male and female

788
00:53:25,220 --> 00:53:29,020
have been on the same trail
within a day of each other.

789
00:53:29,020 --> 00:53:32,300
They obviously are very, very aware
that each other are there,

790
00:53:32,300 --> 00:53:35,380
that there's no doubt, at all,

791
00:53:35,380 --> 00:53:38,420
that they're co-existing
in an overlapping habitat

792
00:53:38,420 --> 00:53:39,820
without realising.

793
00:53:39,820 --> 00:53:43,540
They're walking directly
along the same lay-ons

794
00:53:43,540 --> 00:53:45,740
and sniffing each other's poo

795
00:53:45,740 --> 00:53:48,980
and coming just a day later
and things like that.

796
00:53:48,980 --> 00:53:51,620
You've just got to be patient
and you've got to just

797
00:53:51,620 --> 00:53:55,260
keep slowly fitting pieces
of the puzzle together.

798
00:54:01,580 --> 00:54:03,140
It's Wei's final night here.

799
00:54:04,220 --> 00:54:09,100
Tomorrow, she will leave the forest
and the pygmy hippos behind.

800
00:54:09,100 --> 00:54:10,940
She's unearthed a host of insights

801
00:54:10,940 --> 00:54:12,940
into the secret life
of the pygmy hippo,

802
00:54:12,940 --> 00:54:16,820
including intriguing evidence that
the male and female are sharing

803
00:54:16,820 --> 00:54:20,060
at least part of the same core range.

804
00:54:20,060 --> 00:54:22,660
Maybe they den together
and maybe they forage together

805
00:54:22,660 --> 00:54:25,020
and maybe they do
everything as a pair

806
00:54:25,020 --> 00:54:27,860
and maybe that's actually
more the norm for this species

807
00:54:27,860 --> 00:54:30,420
than the other way round
or they might be an anomaly.

808
00:54:33,060 --> 00:54:35,620
And now Wei wants to check
something else from the camera

809
00:54:35,620 --> 00:54:38,540
left on inside trap one
during the rainy season.

810
00:54:41,420 --> 00:54:45,460
One of the hippos seen inside the
trap has a notch in its left ear.

811
00:54:47,020 --> 00:54:50,780
And it's exactly the same ear mark
that we've seen in a hippo

812
00:54:50,780 --> 00:54:52,420
from a study done in 2010.

813
00:54:53,780 --> 00:54:56,620
It's not the big male,
as his left ear is full,

814
00:54:56,620 --> 00:54:58,740
but she's yet to check the female.

815
00:54:58,740 --> 00:55:02,100
I'm just going to go through
all the confirmed female shots

816
00:55:02,100 --> 00:55:05,180
and just see if I can see
any other markings on her.

817
00:55:05,180 --> 00:55:06,820
That's her right ear...

818
00:55:08,540 --> 00:55:10,420
..but that is definitely a full ear.

819
00:55:15,100 --> 00:55:17,380
This means that there are not two

820
00:55:17,380 --> 00:55:20,900
but THREE hippos
in the same small area

821
00:55:20,900 --> 00:55:24,460
and, interestingly,
there could be two males.

822
00:55:27,100 --> 00:55:30,740
We've never heard anything about
males hanging out in the same area.

823
00:55:31,980 --> 00:55:35,380
The only way to find out
is to analyse the only image

824
00:55:35,380 --> 00:55:38,660
where both ear and genitalia
are just visible.

825
00:55:38,660 --> 00:55:40,500
I'm going to have to
look at it a few times

826
00:55:40,500 --> 00:55:42,540
to see whether there's
an ear notch or not,

827
00:55:42,540 --> 00:55:45,980
but there's definitely a penis
that wiggles in the corner there.

828
00:55:45,980 --> 00:55:47,900
If you don't have a great image,

829
00:55:47,900 --> 00:55:50,460
it actually is really hard
to tell the difference

830
00:55:50,460 --> 00:55:53,020
and you have to stare at it
a billion times.

831
00:55:53,020 --> 00:55:54,860
If that is actually an ear mark,

832
00:55:54,860 --> 00:55:59,180
which I am starting to convince
myself more and more of right now,

833
00:55:59,180 --> 00:56:02,980
it's confirmation that the ear mark
individual is in fact a male.

834
00:56:05,300 --> 00:56:08,340
It raises a
tantalising possibility -

835
00:56:08,340 --> 00:56:11,980
two males sharing
the same trail as the female.

836
00:56:13,500 --> 00:56:17,660
And that would be a significant new
development to our understanding

837
00:56:17,660 --> 00:56:20,700
of how pygmy hippos live in the wild.

838
00:56:24,140 --> 00:56:25,820
Who knows what
their relationship is,

839
00:56:25,820 --> 00:56:29,700
but two males existing
in the same core range is huge.

840
00:56:29,700 --> 00:56:33,980
And what's more, Wei now knows
that this second large hippo,

841
00:56:33,980 --> 00:56:37,780
first seen in 2010,
has survived in this forest

842
00:56:37,780 --> 00:56:39,740
for at least three years.

843
00:56:40,860 --> 00:56:43,460
And that's a very hopeful sign
for the future

844
00:56:43,460 --> 00:56:45,900
of this pygmy hippo population.

845
00:56:50,980 --> 00:56:54,220
Wei has spent six months
in the forest with the team,

846
00:56:54,220 --> 00:56:56,420
building a pygmy hippo case file.

847
00:56:57,860 --> 00:57:02,100
In just one small area, she's
uncovered some intriguing evidence.

848
00:57:02,100 --> 00:57:04,260
Ha!

849
00:57:04,260 --> 00:57:06,660
Her findings raise
significant questions about

850
00:57:06,660 --> 00:57:11,100
whether the pygmy hippo is as
solitary as previously thought.

851
00:57:11,100 --> 00:57:13,940
She also found clues that
they may use their canines

852
00:57:13,940 --> 00:57:16,180
to improve their dens.

853
00:57:17,620 --> 00:57:20,860
And she's significantly
increased the amount of footage

854
00:57:20,860 --> 00:57:24,100
that exists of wild pygmy hippos,

855
00:57:24,100 --> 00:57:27,140
the findings from which offers hope

856
00:57:27,140 --> 00:57:32,340
and will now push this critical
research further forward.

857
00:57:36,980 --> 00:57:39,540
Wei's time here is at an end,

858
00:57:39,540 --> 00:57:44,620
but she's full of confidence about
the future of the Tai Hippo Project.

859
00:57:44,620 --> 00:57:47,900
The biggest cool thing
about this Hippo Project

860
00:57:47,900 --> 00:57:51,100
in Cote d'Ivoire, specifically,
is that they are Ivorians

861
00:57:51,100 --> 00:57:52,700
that are super passionate,

862
00:57:52,700 --> 00:57:55,180
that are also super enabled
and empowered

863
00:57:55,180 --> 00:57:58,860
to be in a position
to really have an impact.

864
00:57:58,860 --> 00:58:02,500
Everything we've learned so far
will just keep helping to unravel

865
00:58:02,500 --> 00:58:05,820
more and more the secrets of
this really mysterious animal

866
00:58:05,820 --> 00:58:08,620
and hopefully give us a better
chance at helping to save them.