- I know you guys are thinking right now,
uh, can we see the lion's teeth?
Yeah, we can see the lion's teeth.
You guys ready?
(lion growling)
(dramatic music)
(lion roaring)
Sharp rays of sunlight crept up from the horizon
casing a golden radiance across the savanna.
Morning has arrived in South Africa
and with it the beginning of a journey
that was soon to become one of
the greatest animal encounters I have ever had.
Today we are venturing out into
the world renowned Kariega Game Reserve.
This wild place spans over 10,000 hectares
and the landscape is a splendor
unlike anything you have ever seen.
Endless rolling grasslands,
the perfect habitat to safely house and keep in
one of our planet's most iconic predators,
the African lion.
(lion roaring)
- [Cameraman] Alright, Coyote,
about ready to hop in the jeep?
- Yeah, well the plan today is to track down
a pride of lions, but trust me,
it's much easier said than done.
We've got a lot of ground to cover.
You guys ready to track down the pride?
- [Cameraman] Let's find those big cats.
- Here we go.
Tracking lions on foot can take days, if not weeks,
so the crew and I teamed up with a secondary team
composed of field veterinarians
that had been deployed through support
of the Reserve Protection Agency.
Led by Dr. Waldo Dreyer, their collective goal
from a scientific perspective
was to safely tranquilize one of the larger resident males
in an attempt to collect biometric data.
This important research would help ensure
the health and wellbeing of the pride.
So with the plan in place we parted ways
and headed towards opposite ends of the reserve
to begin our search for the pride.
I feel like luck in on our side today.
A lot of ground to explore, but we got two teams out
and it's just a matter of tracking down the pride.
Since 2004, Kariega has been home
to a very healthy population of lions,
yet finding and getting these big cats
in front of the cameras would be no easy feat,
as they are constantly on the move
and in search of their next meal.
An ostrich way off in the distance there.
So much open space, and with that open space
the pride could wander out of any one
of these clumps of bushes.
Really gonna be tough to find these cats.
We've got some zebras over here,
that looks like good prey.
If I was a lion, a zebra steak would sound pretty good.
Wait, what's this?
(dramatic music)
I got something cool, follow me.
(dramatic music)
Look at this.
That is a perfect wildebeest skull,
and if ever I have seen evidence of a lion kill,
this would be it.
Look at that, right at the back of the neck
where the head connects to the neck right there
is all snapped off.
Wow, well this is obviously ancient at this point,
no skin or flesh on it, but yup,
likely fell victim to a lion.
Alright guys, let's keep searching.
(slow music)
Yeah, hop out, check this out.
You know what that is?
- [Cameraman] Bones.
- Bones, skin, fur, that's a zebra's leg right there.
And zebra's legs don't just fall off on their own.
That is absolute, crystal clear evidence of a lion kill.
It's old though, this is not fresh,
so we do know that the pride has been through here,
but not recently.
Alright, well this is, like I said,
it's gonna be tough to find this pride of lions.
(dramatic music)
Stronger evidence of the pride and their whereabouts
was necessary if we hoped to have an encounter,
so we loaded back into the Land Cruiser
and continued our search deeper
into the interior of the reserve.
Finding tracks is the most reliable sign
in one's quest for locating an animal
and you are always guaranteed to find
the freshest tracks near water.
Check this out, guys.
Completely fresh lion track right there.
Like most cats, they try to avoid walking in the water,
and a cat definitely moved up this side of the road here,
that means we are hot on the pride's trail.
- [Cameraman] So, Joe, what'd you hear?
- There's literally lions on top of this hill.
- [Cameraman] The other team's got eyes on the lions?
- Yeah, yeah, and they're on a kill.
- [Cameraman] Really?
- Yeah.
- [Cameraman] Coyote, the other team's got
the lions over the hill.
- [Coyote] What?
- [Cameraman] Yeah, the lions are just over the hill
and they're on a kill too.
- [Coyote] On a kill?
- [Cameraman] Yup.
- No way!
Okay yeah, hop up, in the jeep!
(dramatic music)
Aw, man, this is gonna be crazy, they're on a kill?
- [Cameraman] Yeah.
- Alright, guys, well I'm out there
picking up pieces of old kills,
and apparently the lions have a kill,
the other team has spotted them,
we're gonna make our way over there now,
here comes a lion episode.
Awesome!
With lions located on a fresh kill,
we quickly move to cross the reserve
to meet up with the vet team.
Dr. Waldo joined our vehicle which would give us
a clear view of the tranquilization process.
So with the darts locked and loaded, it was go time.
This is exciting, I've never seen a lion in the wild before,
I know you guys are amped.
Oh, man, this is gonna be one epic day.
Tranquilizing a lion is considered a routine check-up.
Once asleep the biometric data will be collected,
and then a reversal serum will be administered
for the animal to wake up.
Okay, they just radioed from up ahead,
the lions are just up over the top of this next hill here.
We have found them.
Alright guys, we are rolling up on the lions right now,
I can actually see one of the big males
right here off the side of the vehicle.
Wow, so impressive.
Trying to be really quiet right now,
we don't wanna startle them.
Believe it or not, we don't wanna scare the lions,
I'm the one that should be scared right now.
Oh, there it is, there it is.
(dramatic music)
(lion growling)
As our Land Cruiser approached through
the flowing savanna grasses
my heart began to race at an incredible speed.
This was an unprecedented level of danger,
which meant everything had to go right because if it didn't,
that meant everything had gone horrible wrong.
(dramatic music)
Never before had I seen a pride of lions in the wild
and as they came into view,
their primal strength and beauty was a wonder to behold.
In total, four lions have been spotted
on the fallen carcass.
Our primary target was the male,
but the team decided that they also
wanted to check the health of females.
So if the opportunity presented itself,
they would be darted as well.
And in that split second that seemed to slow down in time,
we all clung to the edge of our seats
with focused anticipation.
(tranquilizer gun firing)
Ooh, got one, got one!
Nice shot.
Wow, did you see them spring into action like that?
Okay, we thought that maybe the lions
would move on when we darted one.
We've got four lions, three females and a young male,
it's a young male, right?
- Yup.
- Wow, still an enormous cat.
Alright, getting ready for second dart.
Here we go, we got the male coming up
around the back side here.
(tranquilizer gun firing)
Got the upper, her forefront of her chest.
(dramatic music)
Go, go, go, go.
No, not yet, not yet.
Almost have a clear shot.
Super windy though, could throw off the dart.
Do not want to hit the animal in the face.
Here comes the shot.
(tranquilizer gun firing)
Got 'im!
(dramatic music)
Alright, the male has been darted.
One lion left.
Wow, okay we have three of the lions darted at this point,
a male and two females,
one female still does not have a dart in her though
so we're trying to move the vehicle
to get in a better position.
This is intense.
Hold on, guys.
Be aware, you got lion.
Here we go, look at this, good shot, zoom in, zoom in.
(tranquilizer gun firing)
Got it!
All lions have been darted
and they are all staring at us now saying,
okay, what're you guys doing out here?
Wow, that's intimidating.
With all four cats successfully darted
we watched from a safe distance as one by one
they succumb to the affects of the tranquilizer serum.
Alright, now it's just gonna take a few minutes
for the tranquilizer to set in,
they'll tell us to get out of the vehicles,
we'll move in, get that biometric data.
Wow, my heart's racing right now, how about you?
This is crazy.
Time was of the essence,
so the vet team needed to move quickly.
This meant that as a camera team
we would have a very limited window of time
to capture an up-close presentation
with these sleeping carnivores.
Given his iconic stature,
I was beyond excited to showcase the male.
While in the background, the veterinarians would be
collecting the sought after biometric data from the females.
In human terms, this procedure is comparable
to a check- up at the doctor.
When it comes to lions, this includes
pulling a small hair sample from the tail,
checking body length, paw length, overall health,
and lastly, microchip identification.
That is a big cat right there.
Look at that.
Got this other female down right here.
- [Cameraman] Yeah, it's just lions
laying around everywhere.
- Yeah, lions everywhere.
Keep in mind, guys, these lions are just asleep,
none of these animals are actually hurt.
Here it is, here's the male.
(dramatic music)
That it unbelievable right there.
This is the closest I have ever been
to a wild apex predator of this size.
Oh, you can feel it breathing.
Ah, beautiful animal.
Wow, this creature is enormous
and it is still a sub-adult male lion.
I wanna come on this side just to show you this paw,
you've got the mane, you can see his face
is covered up there, it is asleep.
Look at the size of this animal's paws.
It is bigger than my hand, that is crazy.
And so heavy, so much weight and so much muscle
in the front section of this cat.
You guys wanna see those claws, don't you?
- [Cameraman] Oh yeah.
- Ready for this?
Hold on, let me kind of sit down here.
Get ready.
That is impressive right there,
and these claws are constantly growing
throughout the course of the animal's life.
Now, like all cats, they have four toes up front,
but also a dew claw on the side.
Do you see that?
- [Cameraman] Wow.
- That is the key piece of power right there
because when they lunge toward a water buffalo,
or a wildebeest, and they latch on
it's this claw that hooks in place
and makes sure that that prey does not get away.
And that's what they do, latch on and they for the neck.
Now the lion, believe it or not,
does not have that powerful of a bite force
as compared to other bit cats.
Only somewhere between 600 and 900 pounds per square inch,
but what they wanna do is go for the trachea.
You get the trachea, you're cuttin' off the windpipe
and that animal's gonna suffocate.
Now the males, while they can hunt,
aren't the ones that are actually hunting,
so while when we came up on this pride
you see that they'd taken down an impala,
it's likely the females that killed the impala,
but then the males will come in and they will feast first.
Wow, this cat it just the coolest creature
I have ever been around.
Let's take a look at its head real quick.
Look at the size of the ears, massive ears.
They're capable of moving these individually,
they have incredible sense of hearing.
Look at the mane of this animal, it's so dense,
and it smells like South Africa, it smells like the savanna,
a little bit of grass and a little bit of sand.
Now, you look at this mane and you think,
well what is the purpose of a mane on a lion
other than to have an epic hairdo?
And the purpose is actually to protect them
when they're fighting to protect territory.
All this dense fur, when another male is rearing up
using its claws and its teeth,
protects this lion's throat and his face.
Alright, you guys ready for the reveal?
- [Cameraman] Let's see it.
- Okay, I'm gonna pull this back very slowly,
let's see the lion's face.
There you are, buddy.
Oh my gosh, that is incredible,
what a handsome animal right there.
Look at its whiskers, incredibly dense.
I know you guys are thinking right now,
uh, can we see the lion's teeth?
Yeah, we can see the lion's teeth.
You guys ready?
- [Cameraman] Yup.
- [Coyote] I'm gonna slowly just kind of
pull the lip back here a little bit.
Wow.
- [Cameraman] Whoa.
- [Coyote] Look at those canines.
- [Cameraman] Holy smokes.
- Unbelievable.
Now, lions have three types of teeth.
Up front here you have these incisors,
which are used to carry things,
the females will carry their cubs around.
They're also used to pull meat away from the bones.
Of course, the canines are used to inflict a kill,
and then in the back here,
go ahead and zoom in, you see that?
All these premolars are used like serrated shears
to saw through the meat.
I can see the lion's tongue in there.
It's incredibly grippy, like sandpaper.
They can actually use that tongue
to lick meat away from bones,
they can lick froth, and believe it or not,
if a lion were to lick your skin
it would take the skin right off.
Not exactly like your house cat.
Wow.
Hi, buddy.
Let's see, can I take a look at his eye there?
See, the pupils are slightly dilated,
he's completely out right now.
See that?
Get a tight shot there.
Lions have incredible eyesight, not only during that day,
but also at night.
You're okay, you're a good boy, you're okay.
- [Cameraman] Look how bit its head is compared to you.
- It is massive.
- [Cameraman] It's as big as your body.
- Can you imagine what it would be like
to get an appendage of your body or your head
stuck in the mouth of an animal like this?
And keep in mind, guys, this is still a sub-adult,
they get bigger than this.
I'm guessing this lion is somewhere
between 250 and 300 pounds,
they can tip the scales well over 500.
Okay, I'm gonna just flip this back up over its head
so that the sun stays out of his eyes.
Ah, man, is your adrenaline rushing as fast as mine is?
- [Cameraman] I'm just trying to stay calm actually.
- [Coyote] Okay, are we ready to collect biometric data?
Alright, let's do it,
gotta get the measurements on this lion.
- [Dr. Waldo] Okay, I'm gonna go all the way
to the backside here.
- [Coyote] Okay.
- [Dr. Waldo] So we've got 123 and a half.
Okay, what do we have here?
54.
- [Coyote] Left paw measurements.
- [Dr. Waldo] Six.
- [Coyote] And this is important data,
for us to know exactly the size of this lion's paw,
so if they are out there looking for tracks
you'd know exactly which lion this is.
- All these kind of markings on the face
also over time will help you identify individuals.
He's got quite a striking one right here.
- [Coyote] Yeah.
- They're gonna wake this guy up, I think they are ready.
- Alright, guys, what's really cool is that this lion
doesn't actually have a microchip in it,
so we are gonna get to insert one today
and that will allow us to keep a tight record
of this animal any time that they
then tranquilize in the future
to be able to collect its biometric data.
Wow, cool, alright so where do you insert the microchip?
- Yeah, so the microchips are like a big needle,
about the size of a--
- Ooh.
- A grain of rice.
- I don't like needles, I don't do very well with needles.
- So we can sit it right in the middle,
between the shoulder blades.
- [Coyote] Okay.
- [Dr. Waldo] So we just make a little tent of the skin.
- [Coyote] Okay.
- [Dr. Waldo] Put it underneath the skin.
- [Coyote] Ooh, just a little prick, right?
- [Dr. Waldo] In it goes.
- Boom, just like that, wow.
Alright, guys, well it's time to apply the reversal drug
so that this male wakes up and heads back off into the wild,
but this certainly was epic.
Getting to explore here at the Kariega Game Reserve,
tranquilizing four lions,
and getting up close to collect biometric data.
I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave, stay wild.
We'll see ya on the next adventure.
Alright, time to wake up.
- [Dr. Waldo] Just give it in the muscle,
and push the plunger back a bit
as soon as you're in with the needle.
- Alright, guys, lion's about to wake up,
let's head back to the trucks.
Whew!
Man!
- That was amazing.
- [Coyote] Whew, that was cool.
That was cool.
- [Cameraman] Alright, Coyote, what's happening right now.
- We have administered the reversal drug
and now we are just safely back in the vehicle
waiting for the lions to wake up.
I've got a GoPro positioned just in front of this female,
we've got zoom lenses in one the male,
the ones up here underneath the bush,
we can also keep an eye on them
and in just a few minutes here they're gonna pop back up
and disappear into the underbrush.
- [Cameraman] I think this is it.
(slow music)
- You can see the lions are beginning to wake up.
This lioness right here in front of us is starting to move.
It's been about 15 minutes, sounds about right.
Since the dawn of mankind we have feared that
which is capable of hunting us, so much so,
that we, in turn, chose to hunt many
of these natural predators to the brink of extinction.
The lion is not exception.
Today, our mindset has changed and fear has been replaced
with love and protection for these incredible beasts.
Several hours after the vet procedure had concluded
we returned to the hilltop and checked in on the pride.
Our hope was that they would still be in the area
allowing us to get a final glimpse of these beautiful cats.
(upbeat music)
(lion roaring)
Then suddenly, in what seemed like a moment slowed in time,
the king of the savanna materialized from the underbrush.
(slow music)
He stepped into the golden glow of the setting sun
and moved with an elegance that defined him
as the ruler of this land.
And as we watched, our cameras all fighting
to capture the moments as they played out before us,
it was not difficult to pull my eye away from the viewfinder
so that I could appreciate all of the beauty in this animal
with my own two eyes.
I know that I will never forget my time spent
alongside that sleeping giant,
my fingers placed upon its massive teeth,
the moment it woke back from its slumber,
and the sight as it strolled along
through the flowing grasses
staking claim as king of the savanna.
If you enjoyed this encounter,
make sure to go back and watch
as we get the cameras up close
with some of the planet's most fascinating animals.
And don't forget, subscribe and click the Notification bell
so you can join me and the crew on our next wild adventure.
(coyote howling)