¶¶
NARRATOR: Lions.
Not in Africa...
but in India.
Asiatic lions.
Once almost extinct,
they now number over 500
and are claiming back
their lost lands.
Spreading out from their reserve
into rural India,
they enter villages
and prey on cattle.
[ Roaring ]
It looks like a serious case
of lion conflict.
But here in India's
Gujarat State,
lions are forging a bizarre
relationship with people.
[ Conversing
in native language ]
NARRATOR: And together
they are making history.
¶¶
NARRATOR: A village in Gujarat's
Junagadh district
awakes to find a carcass
in the street.
Two lions killed this cow
in the night.
In a second village,
lion footprints.
They have killed a calf,
leaving only the stomach.
In India's westernmost state,
this sight
is increasingly common.
12 miles from those villages
lies the Gir Forest Sanctuary.
[ Lions roaring ]
Recent changes
in the forest have led
to a big increase
in lion numbers
and what outside observers might
call a predator problem.
But here in Gujarat,
these dangerous big cats
are showing us
their true nature
for the first time.
The Asiatic lion is genetically
distinct from others,
distinguished by a strange
fold of skin under its torso.
Once, they covered much of
Asia and Europe.
Today, they live only here,
in this tiny part of India.
These cats are the very last
of their kind.
In many ways, they are similar
to African lions.
They live in prides.
And they cooperate
to hunt large animals...
such as sambar.
Stags can weigh in
at half a ton.
These two hunters
have a strategy.
One is the catcher.
She will stalk as close
as she can,
then wait.
The other, the chaser,
moves in behind the prey
and drives it towards
the catcher.
It's a well-rehearsed move,
but there's no guarantee
they'll succeed.
[ Bird squawks ]
Life for lions
is getting harder here.
Their numbers
are increasing fast.
Competition for space
is intense.
Fights are frequent.
The Gir Forest,
at less than 600 square miles,
is too small for the long-term
survival of the Asiatic lion.
[ Growls ]
As numbers grow,
dominant males force other lions
out of the reserve
and into contact with people.
The father of these
four adolescents
died while defending
this territory.
If they don't leave,
they too will be killed.
Many people think
this is the only reason
for the cow killings,
that lions are
desperate refugees
in search of an easy meal.
But the truth
is completely unexpected.
After sunset,
the young lions head out
towards the edge of the forest.
A thermal camera helps us track
the group in complete darkness.
A road forms the border
of the reserve.
They cross it
without hesitation.
Soon they reach fields
around a village.
[ Dogs barking ]
This is a unique glimpse
into their hidden world.
Sounds of humanity
fill the night air.
For lions, listening is
a crucial part of hunting.
Every sound carries
vital information.
Dogs prowl the village streets.
Buffalo rest in their stalls.
And stray cattle wander
between the houses.
With the dogs wide awake,
it's not a good time
to visit this village.
The lions move on.
¶¶
12 miles away, a large male
has entered a village
and killed an ox.
No one knows if
he'll return to the kill.
He could still be
resting nearby.
But the thermal camera shows
no sign of him.
Yet nobody in the village
seems worried.
A family eats their evening meal
close to the dead ox.
A big male lion appears
across the fields,
heading straight
for the village.
He surveys the situation.
The family is unaware
they are being watched
by a huge, wild predator.
At 11 o'clock,
the last lights go out.
The lion reclaims his ox.
¶¶
The owner of the house discovers
a killer on his doorstep.
[ Cell phones ringing ]
News of the lion travels fast.
Villagers rush to the scene.
But confronting this killer
without weapons
would be madness.
Still, the people crowd in.
[ Crowd murmuring ]
The lion doesn't seem to care.
He shows no aggression,
and the crowd returns
that respect.
There is a dangerous predator
in their midst...
and people are celebrating.
¶¶
When the lion finally leaves,
the excited villagers follow,
hoping for one last glimpse.
[ Horn honks ]
The next day,
life returns to normal.
The ox's owner
is surprisingly relaxed.
[ Speaking native language ]
NARRATOR: This man watched
the lion make its kill.
NARRATOR: Incredibly,
Gujaratis are glad to have
lions as neighbors.
In other countries,
killers of livestock
are usually hunted down.
Why do these people
accept lions so readily?
The relationship between
Asiatic lions and humans
has a troubled history.
Once, the big cats ranged
over much of Asia and Europe.
Today, they survive
in just one spot.
Hunting royals
and pastoral people
exterminated lions
on a huge scale.
By the mid-20th century, they
were extinct outside India.
¶¶
In Gujarat, their numbers
dropped to just 20
before they received protection
from the local prince,
the Nawab of Junagadh.
Today, there are over 500
wild lions in India.
A remarkable recovery.
Now the Gir Forest brims
with life.
And there's plenty of prey
for the lions.
Wildlife has blossomed
because of reduced
livestock grazing.
Spotted deer have
increased tenfold.
Sambar, fivefold.
Wild boar and nilgai,
India's largest antelope,
have tripled.
This should be a perfect
hunting ground,
but there's a catch.
The abundance of animals can
actually make hunting harder.
Langurs and spotted deer
often forage together.
The monkeys provide the deer
with an early warning system.
The lions also face
another problem.
Thick cover makes the lion
harder to see...
but easier to hear.
Deer have excellent hearing.
She needs to be very cautious.
Progress is slow.
Getting close enough to strike
takes extreme patience
and very careful footwork.
[ Animals grunting ]
[ Shrieking ]
Her stalk takes too long.
Another failed hunt.
¶¶
This is the biggest problem
lions face hunting in Gir --
dry, crisp leaves
on the forest floor.
With just 24 inches
of rain per year,
the forest is parched
for 9 months out of 12,
making it hard for lions
to move silently.
With so few easy hunting
opportunities,
competition among lions
is fierce.
Rival prides constantly
battle for space.
Serious injuries are common.
[ Roaring ]
Leopards are a target, too.
Competition from them
is not tolerated.
[ Growling ]
Once, leopards had most
of this forest to themselves.
Now they are often driven out.
But the lack of space
is just one reason
why lions leave the reserve.
Not long ago, Maldhari people
grazed their herds
among the trees
of the Gir Forest.
Lions hunted the cattle
just like wild prey,
often picking off
the old and sick.
For most of the last century,
the big cats depended on
these cattle for survival.
[ Rooster crows ]
Today, most of the Maldhari
have left the forest.
They still raise
their dairy herds,
but they're now part of
21st century Indian life.
¶¶
The Maldhari believe
that the lions
have followed them
out of the forest.
And recently, lion numbers
have increased the most
outside the forest reserve.
Today, there are lions
all across Southern Gujarat.
Here the relationship
between lions and people
is completely revolutionary.
[ Laughter ]
Lions are valued members
of the community.
They even get
special protection.
Forest Rangers
left this ox carcass
to lure two sisters
into the open.
They think the second sister
may have a broken leg.
In Gujarat,
sick lions are shot...
but only with
a tranquillizer dart.
Wildlife rescue teams
are here to help, 24/7.
The crew's aim
is to get this lioness
back on her feet
as soon as possible.
[ Man speaking native language ]
NARRATOR: With only 500
wild Asiatic lions on Earth,
this injured female
is incredibly precious.
They assess her condition
and decide she needs
further treatment.
[ Conversing
in native language ]
NARRATOR: At the rescue center,
the injured lioness
joins other patients
in various stages
of recuperation.
Most common are males wounded
in fights with other males.
[ Growls ]
This lioness fell down a well
and nearly drowned.
Some cats are here
not for medical reasons,
but for public safety.
[ Man speaks native language ]
NARRATOR: This lioness
has killed a man.
She'll remain here with her
two angry cubs
while the team makes a plan
for their future.
[ Growling ]
The team doesn't
just rescue lions.
They also help people adapt
to life with these predators.
There are signs
of lions everywhere.
Forest department trackers
keep a close eye
on lion movements,
including tracking their kills.
Eyewitnesses describe
a commotion the previous night
and report two male lions
gorging on this cow.
Despite people watching
just yards away,
the lions left peacefully
before dawn.
There will be no lion hunt,
no retribution.
But the villagers
and the forest department
need to know where the lions are
and what they might do next.
The tracks lead across fields
towards a small patch of scrub.
Half a mile from the village,
the two cow killers
are resting in the shade.
Lions need to drink
after feeding,
and this is
the only water nearby --
a cattle trough.
But there are lions here already
with small cubs.
The killers move closer.
These cubs could be
in great danger.
Two mothers, both limping
from thorns in their feet,
bring the defenseless cubs
out into the open.
These males must be
their fathers,
or the cubs
would be dead by now.
They share the water
all together.
¶¶
For two lionesses to bring up
four healthy cubs
is a great achievement.
To do it so close to a village
is a miracle.
People are their neighbors.
These lions are not refugees
from the forest.
This is their home.
But how does a pride
survive here?
And with such small cubs?
Like many lions, especially
those living near people,
they are almost
completely nocturnal.
Night cameras reveal
their strange and unique world.
For several hours after sunset,
the lions sleep off
the heat of the day.
But by 10:00 PM,
the cubs can't resist exploring.
It's cooler now, and quiet
enough to move safely.
[ Growling softly ]
The mothers call
to their cubs to follow.
¶¶
They head towards the main road.
Instead of crossing into fields,
they turn onto the tarmac
towards another village.
The lionesses are careful
but unafraid.
They stop and listen
for signs of prey
or threats to the cubs.
[ Horn honks ]
At the sound
of an approaching car,
they melt into
the roadside vegetation.
This is the village
the lions were headed for,
but it's no place
for young cubs.
Though there are plenty
of cattle here,
the dogs could target
the youngsters...
[ Dogs barking ]
...and would wake
the whole village
if they spotted lions.
The cattle are safe
for the moment.
Ironically, the dogs
have gathered
because they're in danger.
Not from lions,
but from leopards,
their main predator.
[ Dogs barking ]
Just outside the village,
Indian gazelles can graze,
unmolested by dogs.
Herds of wild boar root
through newly sown fields.
Nilgai are everywhere.
Conditions could be perfect
for a hunt.
The nilgai
are confident and relaxed,
and there are far more of them
here than inside the reserve.
But even here, small lion cubs
would be vulnerable.
It's a young male
from a different pride.
In this bright moonlight,
the nilgai spot him easily
and keep their distance.
¶¶
He's only about 18 months old,
too young to know how to use
cover properly.
Instead of making a kill,
he clears the area of wildlife.
There's no meal here now for
the mothers and their cubs.
But scavengers and other
predators are here, too.
This is an extremely rare
sighting of a striped hyena.
These normally shy scavengers
can sniff out a carcass
from a great distance.
Old lion kills are an important
source of food.
He's no escapee from
the nature reserve.
He lives here.
Other residents
are out in force.
Golden jackals.
The cubs gang up on
the much larger hyena.
Jackals keep a low profile
in daylight,
but tonight they're everywhere.
The hyena seems nervous.
He's expecting trouble.
Lions often scavenge, too.
It's safer for the hyena
to take the meal away.
The jackals have found
a different carcass --
a buffalo.
But they don't have long
to eat their fill.
[ Growling ]
Yet another lion.
She claims the buffalo
as her own.
Even though she can eat over
45 pounds in a single sitting,
there'll still be plenty left
for the jackals and hyenas.
Under the cover of darkness,
this farmland takes on
a whole new character.
It's like an Indian Serengeti.
[ Cow moos ]
Large carnivores behave as if
this was their natural home,
completely at ease
with the human world.
Bizarre as it may seem,
this is now lion country.
[ Growling ]
Two weeks after the man-killing
lioness was captured,
her fate is decided.
It turns out that four men
accidently surprised her.
She attacked to protect
her cubs.
[ Snarls ]
But she didn't feed
on the dead man.
[ Man speaking native language ]
NARRATOR:
They decide she's not a threat.
They can release her
in a different area
with fewer people.
In any other country,
she would have been destroyed.
With the wildlife rescue team
looking out for them,
the lions of Southern Gujarat
can live safely
even in densely populated areas.
The locals accept they will
sometimes kill cattle.
Even killing a person
is not a death sentence.
It may seem like a big sacrifice
for these small communities,
but the lions earn their keep.
Incredibly, people
and these wild predators
often work together.
Outside the reserve,
the landscape is a mosaic,
which resembles
the savannah habitat
where lions originally evolved.
Complete with similar prey --
antelope...
deer...
and cattle.
¶¶
Come late afternoon,
these herbivores migrate
from their hiding places to
nocturnal crop-raiding haunts.
It's a nuisance for road users,
but a huge problem for farmers.
Freshly emerged wheat
is a favorite.
And sesame fields
are irresistible.
The deer and antelope used
to have all this to themselves.
But now there are lions
on the scene.
MAN: Here.
NARRATOR: Forest department
trackers follow the prints
of a large pride among fields
and villages.
MAN: You see?
You see?
NARRATOR: The tracks lead
to a hilltop,
where 12 lions are waking
from their daytime slumber,
using the last light
to plan their hunt.
They are scanning
for signs of prey
in the surrounding farmland.
Or even in the nearby village.
¶¶
As darkness falls,
grazers begin to emerge.
Farmers head for the fields,
ready for a long night
of deer scaring.
But with no moon,
their difficulty
is finding the deer.
The lions have the same problem,
locating prey from a distance
in complete darkness.
They can only listen.
And this is where
the farmers can help.
The farmer finds the deer
by creating a disturbance.
[ Man whooping ]
NARRATOR: He can then see
their eyeshine by flashlight.
[ Man whoops ]
NARRATOR: All he has to do is
chase the deer from his fields,
and often onto
his neighbor's land.
[ Man whooping ]
NARRATOR:
Even from two miles away,
this sound is like a dinner bell
for the lions.
¶¶
[ Man whooping ]
NARRATOR: They head towards
the farmer's calls.
Four adult females
and eight cubs.
[ Man whooping ]
The lions know
these fields well,
and the farmer's calls give them
all the added information
they need.
They approach cautiously
and silently.
There are no dry leaves here.
The deer catch the scent
of the lions
but can't see far
in the starlight...
and don't know where to run.
The cats spread out
to encircle the deer,
as if they were
on open savannah.
Tonight the four adults
will be the catchers,
and the inexperienced cubs
will be the chasers.
¶¶
The females conceal
themselves in scrub
at the edge of the field,
and the trap is set.
At this young age,
the cubs use no stealth
and move directly
towards the deer...
[ Deer shrieking ]
...inadvertently driving them
towards the concealed catchers.
[ Deer shrieks, lion growls ]
The spotted deer's distress call
locates the kill
for all the lions.
[ Growling ]
The most powerful mothers
make space
for their own offspring first.
There is barely room
for the whole pride.
With full stomachs,
the pride spreads out
on the edge of the field
to relax.
This is a rare scene,
a testament to decades of
careful conservation.
¶¶
Soon, the farmers appear,
surrounded by lions,
yet completely unconcerned.
[ Men conversing
in native language ]
NARRATOR: The big cats have
cleared the area of crop pests.
And now the farmers,
too, can relax.
This relationship is unique.
Lions have adapted their
natural hunting behavior
from the open plains
where they evolved
to work alongside humans
in these rural farmlands.
Scenes like this
are increasingly common
all over Southern Gujarat.
After thousands of years
of persecution and conflict,
lions and people have
settled their differences,
at least for now.
As a result, Gujarat's lions
are spreading far and wide
from the Gir Forest.
Their range now covers nearly
8,000 square miles.
[ Lion roaring ]
Once driven to
the edge of extinction,
to a low point
of just 20 survivors,
these big cats have
clawed their way back.
This time, the people of India
are ready to meet them halfway.
And thanks to their interesting
new partnership,
there is hope for Asiatic lions
in a once hostile home.
¶¶
To learn more about what you've
 seen on this "Nature" program,
 visit pbs.org.
