A typical day in wild Tanzania:
Lioness stalks baboon.
But nothing is quite as it seems.
These baboons are not the prey.
They become traitors,
ready to sacrifice the lives of others to survive.
How do they carry out this betrayal
and then turn their backs on the carnage?
In Ruaha National Park, permanent water is like gold.
This is one of the few waterholes
that survived the brutal dry season
long after the rivers have evaporated.
It's a magnet for species that would normally inhabit the savannah.
A troop of yellow baboons
and a pride of lions live here year-round.
They’ve formed a strange alliance –
thrown out nature’s rule book.
Normally, lions eat baboons,
and baboons fear lions.
Here, the two species share the same space without conflict.
Baboons are among the most intelligent primates.
They can count, they can reason, and they can even cheat one another.
Here, at the last waterhole
they deceive other animals.
Not the lions.
They keep the lions fed.
Herds of a type of antelope,
the greater kudu, come to drink at the waterhole.
They have excellent hearing, eyesight and a superior sense of smell,
but they also rely on the baboons to warn them of danger.
Normally, when a hungry lion is near,
baboons climb up trees, not down.
And they cry out to alert their troop.
Other animals will also heed the signals and retreat.
But here the baboons remain silent.
Sure of their safety, they even follow the lions.
The greater kudu are on alert, ready to flee if the baboons call.
but they are all relaxed, just going about their daily business.
There's no danger here,
the deception is almost complete.
The kudu fall for the trick and move down to the water –
the place where they are most vulnerable.
The baboons continue to keep up the charade,
lulling the kudu into a false sense of security.
It even looks as if the traitors have come to observe.
If the lioness fails to take down a kudu,
the hunt will be abandoned –
she and her cubs will go hungry.
The baboons need the hunt to be successful.
A hungry lion is a dangerous lion.
They have given the lioness the advantage.
Now it's up to her.
The lioness and her cubs will have full stomachs for days.
The baboons can relax.
And when the lions are hungry again,
the baboons will set another trap
Being a permanent resident at this waterhole
means never having to go thirsty.
Growing up here is a privilege.
But to stay safe at this oasis,
these baboons have had to abandon their natural instincts.
For as long as it keeps the troop secure,
future generations may continue to keep this strange alliance intact,
keep the lions fed
and they may never crave the taste of baboon.