Nature (1982–…): Season 35, Episode 3 - Giraffes: Africa's Gentle Giants - full transcript
Everyone loves giraffes, but what do we really know about them? Dr. Julian Fennessy has spent the last 20 years of his life studying giraffes. Now he's starting to reveal their secrets- the most important being that they are disap...
♪♪
It's an animal you
can't help but look up to.
But what do we really
know about giraffes?
Somehow, these gentle
giants have been overlooked.
But not by one man.
Dr. Julian Fennessy knows
giraffes better than anyone.
And what Julian has recently
discovered is truly alarming.
This silent extinction,
I'm absolutely amazed
that no one has a clue.
In an urgent effort to help,
Julian will travel
across Africa,
from Namibia to
the dangerous border
of Ethiopia and South
Sudan, and on into Uganda
to launch a daring
rescue mission
with a determined team.
Giraffe is very beautiful.
It has to be protected forever.
Together they're standing tall
for a remarkable beast.
Giraffe have gone extinct
in at least seven
countries in Africa.
There's no giraffe going
to go extinct on my watch.
♪♪
♪♪
Weighing up to two tons,
the giraffe is a colossal
animal and unlike any other.
But most of all,
they are a mystery.
For hundreds of years,
we have known the lives
of many other creatures
in great detail,
but giraffes have
been neglected.
Bizarrely, it is
only very recently
that we have learned
almost anything
about these giant animals,
and the little we
have discovered
is extraordinary.
We've found they don't
need to drink in the desert,
but can get enough water
just from eating leaves.
The trees have spikes,
poisonous leaves,
and have recruited ants
to fight the giraffe off.
In response, the
giraffe's skin is tough.
And they can even sniff
out the poisonous leaves
to pluck the
softer, moister ones
with their giant black,
sunproof tongues.
Most importantly,
we've found that
giraffes are vital pollinators
and seed spreaders.
Without the giraffe's
landscape gardening,
Africa would
change for the worse.
Surprisingly, many
of these discoveries
have come from an Australian.
He fell in love with giraffes
and has raised his
family here in Africa.
You have to love
something so big and weird
and sort of, you
know, out there.
They're so funky-looking.
They don't make sense.
20 years ago, Dr. Julian
Fennessy realized
how little we knew
about giraffes,
and he set out to change that.
He earned his PhD studying
them in this desert in Namibia.
His work has deeply changed
our understanding
of giraffe biology.
In this remote valley,
he has just found the skeleton
of a very old male giraffe.
So you can see this
old bull... he's huge.
He probably died
of natural causes.
There's no claw marks on
him like from a lion or anything.
Huge ossicones.
The massive bumps
on a giraffe's head
aren't horns or antlers.
They're different, and
they're called ossicones.
They actually
are like cartilage,
like in your ear,
and when they're
born, they're flat.
And then they fold out,
and they become bone
and fuse to the skull.
The male's ossicones
are much larger
and grow increasingly
massive over their lives.
This is a couple of
vertebrae here of the giraffe.
But there's only seven
vertebrae in their neck...
Just like all humans
and all other mammals.
This is the lower leg bone.
They kick out at lions
and other predators.
They just knock 'em
for six. They're dead.
It's about the same
size as my daughter.
Julian's kids, Molly
and Luca, are 7 and 10.
And just like their
dad, they love giraffes.
A giraffe is very tall.
They've got lots of dots.
Has long legs and ossicones.
And long arm and a long neck.
And a tongue as long as her arm.
Julian and his wife, Steph,
run the Giraffe
Conservation Foundation,
or GCF, from their
home here in Windhoek,
the capital of Namibia.
It's the first giraffe
charity in the world.
It's more from Germany...
From this base,
they work with partners
across the continent.
Giraffes are in trouble,
and their mission
is to save them.
♪♪
The giraffes found here
are called Angolan giraffes.
They are one of nine
different subspecies of giraffes
spread across Africa.
It's just two days'
drive from Julian's home
to a very special place
called the Hoanib River.
Julian has been studying
the giraffes that live here
for almost 20 years.
This desert is protected.
The giraffes here can
roam safe from humans.
It has given Julian and
Steph a vital opportunity
to study wild,
undisturbed behavior.
We got a couple of
females over there.
And then we can
try and I.D. them.
They've been recording
every detail of
the giraffes' lives.
Now all their research is
finally starting to pay off.
- Ooh.
- Found him.
- See the black spot on its neck?
- Yeah.
Absolutely that one here.
Look at that. So,
we saw this giraffe
many, many years before
you guys were even born.
- How cool is that?
- Very cool.
This old bull giraffe
was first seen
at the very beginning
of their studies.
Back then, he was
already an adult,
which means that
he's over 20 years old.
As of this moment,
he's the world's oldest
recorded wild giraffe.
We don't know any giraffe
that is as old as
these in the world.
You know, there just hasn't
been the studies available to date.
Until Julian and the GCF's work,
many of the really basic facts
about giraffes were missing...
How long can they
live, how many there are,
and even how far do they roam.
We're seeing giraffe move
in distances that
we never thought.
Some of them in Namibia
are going more than
1,100 square kilometers.
It's absolutely amazing.
For years, Julian has been
working on his own dime
with a camera, a
car, and a notepad.
Now he is turning to
technology to push things further.
Wow.
It's so dark,
he can't see his own
hand in front of his face,
but his new camera
can peel back the night.
This is like
Christmas all at once.
It's absolutely brilliant.
Julian can now see
that giraffes are
surprisingly active at night.
I don't know anyone who's
observed giraffe at night.
And this is the first
time it's ever been done.
And you know, I know
a little bit about giraffe,
but I've never seen this.
Then he sees something
he's never seen before,
just on the limit of what
the camera can distinguish.
There is one sitting down,
right in front here.
I didn't see that. I
thought it was a tree.
Wow. This guy
just put his neck...
He's just turned it around,
and he's resting it on his bum.
In the middle of the desert,
where lions prowl,
the giraffe has curled
up on the ground
and gone to sleep.
In zoos, they study it.
And basically, when
their neck is down,
it's R.E.M. sleep.
So maybe these
giraffe are dreaming.
I've never seen
that in the wild.
If they are dreaming,
who knows what wild
giraffes dream about.
All this is new to Julian.
So, this female has just turned.
That one just stuck its
neck up straightaway.
It sat down.
It went down straightaway
and stuck its neck
back, started to sleep.
I think they're
talking to each other.
There's got to be
some communication.
It's like they're
taking turns to sleep.
That we don't know for certain
if these massive
animals can communicate
or how they sleep in the wild
shows how neglected
they've been.
So much is new.
Giraffes were thought
to be mute until this year,
when these noises were recorded
from giraffes in a zoo at night.
Discoveries like these,
about how giraffes
live together,
give Julian vital information
that may help him save them.
♪♪
But Julian's most
jaw-dropping giraffe discovery
is, alarmingly, the simplest.
♪♪
He's found that
in just 20 years,
the numbers of giraffes
across all of Africa
have dropped by almost 40%.
I don't know how
else to explain it,
but, you know, just everyone
thinks they're everywhere
and they're lovely
and they're beautiful.
So, of course, they
can't be dwindling.
The numbers can't be going.
Numbers are plummeting.
We have lost many
animals before,
and I just think it would
be a really sad world
without giraffe.
To put this into perspective,
it is well known
that African elephants
are in trouble.
Their numbers
are falling rapidly.
There are just about
half a million left.
But what no one realized is
that there are
far fewer giraffes.
There are just 90,000.
Giraffes have
already become extinct
in at least seven countries.
Easy targets for poachers,
they are killed for their meat,
and their habitats
are being destroyed.
That's frightening.
And I think, if we lost them,
I don't know
where I would be at.
I really think I've lost.
Me and so many people around us
have just not done the
job that we set out to do.
Time is running out,
and Julian knows
we urgently need
to take our understanding
of giraffes to a new level.
He has a revolutionary theory...
That there's not
just one species
divided into slightly
different subspecies.
There are many unique species.
At the 11th hour,
this most basic fact
is really important.
If we know how many
species there are,
we can identify which
are in need of urgent help
and take action to save
those giraffes and
their unique genes.
Julian knows that
only by discovering
their genetic identities
can he prove how
diverse they are,
so he has been taking
samples of their skin.
The DNA inside tiny plugs
of hair and skin like this
could give him the power to save
whole species we
didn't know we had.
Julian has collected the DNA
from almost every wild
giraffe population in Africa.
Before he can run
a species analysis,
he needs one final sample
from a population
called Nubian giraffes.
There are perhaps
just 650 left in the wild.
This group lives far
from Namibia, in Ethiopia,
right on the war-torn
border with South Sudan.
♪♪
This is one of Africa's
most remote national parks...
Gambela.
Years ago, flying
across Gambela,
spotters recorded
a wealth of wildlife.
But since then, the
situation has changed.
All Julian has seen
so far is fires and cows.
This place is mad.
When the population in Ethiopia
is going up by
two million a year,
there's refugees
pouring across the border.
To get his sample,
Julian must find
the last surviving
giraffes in the park.
It takes three days to reach
the rest of the
international team.
They've assembled
to find and satellite-tag
many different
animals in the park.
Julian can't follow these
giraffes on the ground,
but he can from space.
He's brought four
giraffe GPS collars
designed to fit perfectly
around their ossicones.
We want to be able to
monitor them, get some DNA,
'cause we really have no
clue what giraffe they are.
Almost nothing about
this vast park is known.
With no roads or fences,
it only exists on paper.
To even find the giraffes is
going to be a huge challenge.
The only solution is
to use a helicopter.
Now they have a rare opportunity
to shed light on the animals
that live in this remote land
and begin to protect them.
♪♪
With Julian is vet Andre Uys.
This is a... This is a
once-in-a-lifetime job, really.
We know very little
about these animals.
There's quite exciting
and valuable data
that will come out.
They all know the
stakes are high.
Okay, we've got her.
She's in front of us.
Thanks, Nick.
The team sets to work
satellite-collaring
a range of animals.
That's perfect, huh?
- Okay, you all set?
- 27, 27.
Generally, don't give
you much warning
before they wake up.
She's starting to come
out of the anesthetic.
All guys, get back
to the helicopter.
♪♪
But the days tick by,
and in all their flights,
they have seen no giraffes.
Now Julian has
just two days left.
To go home not having
found even a single giraffe
would be devastating.
The team focuses
on wooded areas,
because giraffes can spend
three-quarters of
their time browsing.
Then, in a patch of trees,
right on the Sudanese border,
Julian sees what
he's come for...
A herd of 30 giraffes.
Andre takes the shot.
You have to give them
massively high doses
to get them down,
so it's critical for me
to get to the giraffe
as soon as possible
after it's gone down,
to administer an antidote
and get its respiration
back to normal.
The giraffe is
now totally awake.
Just the team holds it down.
They keep her calm with
a blanket over her eyes.
Time is critical for Julian
to take his DNA sample
from the least intrusive place.
You're fine if I take
a tip off the ear?
Just hold her a bit. Let's go.
Okay.
Let's just...
That's all right.
Next, the team gently
secures the GPS collar.
Now they'll be able to track
where this giraffe roams
and see if she crosses the
border into South Sudan.
Time to let her go.
Okay, Pablo, get
off, get off, get off.
She got me in the
shins with her horns.
- Oh.
- Jesus!
I'm sore.
That's like being beaten with
a 10-pound mallet on your shin.
Fantastic, guys.
- Little bit of DNA.
- All right.
- Let's get on with it.
- Next one, yes, sir.
Soon, Julian will know
if his theory is correct.
We've always known
giraffes look different
in different places
across the continent.
But are they as
different as Julian thinks?
This is really exciting stuff.
This is the first DNA sample.
It's a little piece of tissue.
That's all it is,
but it's got a big
mystery inside of it.
♪♪
We want to send
it off to Germany,
get analyzed, and who knows.
This is the key to
understanding giraffe.
Now they can all be
compared to each other.
♪♪
Julian has just one last flight.
He desperately wants
to get a backup sample.
Sort of in a mad
rush this morning.
We were all ready to
go, and we've just got
another passenger
from the wildlife party
that we have to take with.
Literally, this is my last
day. I'm out this evening.
So we've got to get out there
and see if we can
find these guys.
Without warning, the
government insists
on an official accompanying
the team on their last day,
so there's no room for cameras.
But the helicopter returns
much earlier than expected,
and it's soon clear why.
They've been shot at.
We basically flew over
some guys with some cattle
in the park.
Saw the two rifles point up,
and then we heard, "Bang."
The team is still in shock.
We all thought
that, basically, the chopper
had been hit somewhere,
so we thought, "Well, we got
to get out of here really quickly."
Luckily, no one was hit.
And that's the
end of the collaring.
That's the end of
the giraffe collaring.
That's just... It's
just too unsafe.
It's a bloody war
zone out there.
It's crazy.
The team can't find
where the bullet hit,
but it has ended
Julian's mission.
Just trying to help giraffe.
We're trying to
help conservation.
We don't even know what
flavor giraffe it is out there.
Let's hope the
sample we've got...
we can take that and
figure out who's who.
♪♪
Julian must leave.
He carries a single
precious cargo.
Nothing shakes you up more
than having some AK-47s
fired at you in a helicopter.
It's scary.
I'll tell you what.
I'm happy to leave.
I want to get home to
family, get on with life.
♪♪
Within the last year, a
helicopter was shot down
and the pilot killed by
poachers in Tanzania.
In the last decade,
it's estimated more
than 1,000 rangers
have been killed while
protecting wild animals
in a war with poachers,
increasingly funded
by organized crime.
The early results
from the DNA analysis
are just coming in, and
they are very significant.
As Julian suspected,
it looks like
there isn't just one
but perhaps four or five
separate species of giraffe,
and the Nubian
giraffes in Ethiopia
should be reclassified as one
of the rarest species on earth.
Their only other significant
population is in Uganda.
Here, the giraffes were
already thought to be different
and were called
Rothschild's giraffes.
But they're the same as Nubian.
In total, there's
just 2,150 survivors
of this potentially new
species left in the wild.
This is Murchison
Falls National Park,
Uganda's largest and
oldest conservation area.
♪♪
It's the last great stronghold
of the Rothschild giraffe.
Over 1,000 live here.
They're very distinctive,
with lighter coats,
white stockinged legs,
and not three
but five ossicones.
In the ground beneath their feet
lie three-quarters of
Uganda's oil deposits,
and plans to drill
are under way.
Keeping this fragile
population safe
will now be Julian's and
the team's biggest priority.
An entire species of
giraffe could rely on it.
If something goes wrong
here in Murchison Falls,
Rothschild's giraffe
could be extinct in no time.
The time is now.
If we don't come
together to save giraffe,
it could be too late.
Losing this unique species
would be a disaster.
Julian and the Uganda
Wildlife Authority
have a daring plan to protect
these giraffes for generations.
Currently, the giraffes all
live on one side of the Nile.
They can't cross it.
The plan is more ambitious
than anything they've done before.
They're going to catch
giraffes from the north side
and start a new
giraffe population
across the river, away
from the oil drilling.
This is Tom Okello,
Murchison Falls' park manager.
You know, you should not
keep all your
eggs in one basket.
We first keeps some
stock out of the oil area,
so that in the event
that some impacts
may come out of oil and war,
we have a set population
somewhere else.
To carry out this mission,
the men and women in charge
of caring for Uganda's wildlife
have gathered from
across the entire country...
Gorilla doctors
from the mountains,
the chief vets from the
other great parks of Uganda,
rangers from
Murchison Falls itself.
And Julian has brought
along a secret weapon...
Vet, Dr. Pete Morkel.
I love giraffes. It's
quite remarkable,
that such a... strangely
put-together beast
functions so well.
Catching and
moving a wild giraffe
is difficult and dangerous.
Pete has done it
hundreds of times.
It is an unusual
type of capture.
That animal is totally awake.
It's a stressful situation,
but it does work very well.
It's the accepted way of
catching giraffe here in Africa.
Before the team has
to tackle a real giraffe,
Pete is training
them on himself.
If that animals falls more
than two or three times,
it says, "That's
it, I'm finished."
It's not good for the giraffe.
The team will have to
guide any giraffe they catch
into a trailer, using ropes.
We need someone
giving good control.
We need the people
responsive. I will show you.
You must still allow
me to move forward.
Otherwise, we
will never load it.
You must let me go.
You must let me move.
You must let me move,
but I don't want to
stay here all day.
So, what you want to do is
stand a little to
one side, yeah.
Aagh!
You want to have these giraffe
delivered safe and sound.
That's the primary objective.
That's what's most
important to me.
It's 5:00 A.M.,
and the team is
preparing for their first day.
- Did you sleep well?
- Yes.
- Are we ready to go?
- Yes, sir.
All right.
Three of the vets are
also Christian pastors.
Muhangi, you lead us in prayer.
Almighty Father, we thank
you for your love for us.
We surrender, every
one of us into your care.
We surrender all that...
They have two weeks to
catch and transport 20 giraffes.
Protect us while we
are in the wilderness.
- Amen.
- Amen.
The group is inexperienced.
But as Julian and Pete
know, the only way to learn
is to get your
hands on a giraffe.
We are going into action now.
♪♪
The catching team
moves ahead carefully.
They are looking to
create a breeding herd,
so they're after
young, healthy females
and just three or four males.
They hope the new
population will quickly swell.
The rest of the cars hang back,
ready to run in, once
they have caught a giraffe.
♪♪
It's in. The drug is in.
Even a small
giraffe is so strong
that no team could
catch it just with ropes.
The dart in its rump carries
such a strong sedative
that the animal must be given
an antidote within 20 minutes.
But it is also a waiting game,
because if they try
to catch it too soon,
it could startle and run away.
♪♪
Four minutes.
Everyone knows
their jobs... in theory.
Go, go, go!
But the giraffe is
extremely unpredictable,
and the capture becomes chaotic.
The team is wary.
A giraffe's kick could
decapitate a man.
Up, up, up, up, up, up!
Finally, they bring
it down safely,
but it's not a textbook capture.
Julian and vet Pete step in.
Pete is in charge
of the antidote.
Give the antidote, gentlemen.
Where's the antidote?
Where is the antidote?
Don't waste time.
We poleaxe them
with chemicals, really.
So if you don't give the
antidote immediately,
it's going to die.
The antidote is in, in time.
Now the giraffe is wide awake.
Julian keeps it from
struggling by sitting on its neck.
Putting on the blindfold,
it sedates her a lot.
Now, hopefully, she's
being a bit more relaxed now.
Just measuring the ossicone.
And by doing that,
we can figure out...
There's hardly any
research ever been done.
- 9.
- Hopefully, we can
just build up more
information over time.
- It's 9 1/2, maybe.
- Okay.
Hurry, guys!
The calmer they
keep the giraffe,
the easier the
next stage will be.
Can we have some water?
It's on the ground
for over 10 minutes
while the team takes
measurements and samples
and positions their trailer.
- Who has it, huh?
- Spray, please.
Spray, spray, spray!
That's all right. We
don't have to shout.
We can just talk nice
and slow. Easy going.
It's time to loop
ropes around it,
which they'll use, as
Pete demonstrated,
to guide the blindfolded
giraffe into its trailer.
I think Julian is the last
one to sit on the neck.
And now they're helping
it up. They're pushing it up.
Wait, wait, wait! Wait!
Must wait. Must wait.
A bit stressful for everyone.
It's a big learning curve.
For a giraffe to stand
up is a huge effort.
The team is wary of
exhausting this one.
Let it go. Let this thing go.
- Let it go?
- Yeah.
- Okay, let this one go.
- Can the pilot move?
To be safe,
vet Dr. Margaret
Dricuru makes a call.
Everyone to one side, please.
Everyone to one side.
Go on, now.
I think it's not a good
idea to keep trying.
The welfare issues.
So that's the
reason we let it go.
♪♪
Back at their base, the
team has built a boma,
an enclosure for the
20 giraffes to go into.
But for now, it remains empty.
It's not a great start.
Undeterred, they
are still aiming
for two giraffes by sundown.
Ranger Francis
Adiokan lives here,
and he loves these animals.
♪♪
At the end of the day, when
you're capturing a giraffe,
you just focus.
It's all about having that
giraffe come down safely
and get up safely.
I'm just totally focused.
Although many of the
team are wild-animal vets,
few have actually
touched a giraffe before,
like Dr. Eddy Kambale.
To push blood up
their huge necks,
to their brains,
giraffes have the largest
hearts of all land mammals.
It can weigh over 20 pounds,
and beats twice
as fast as our own.
When it was running, the
heartbeat was much higher.
But right now,
it's settling down,
so the rate has reduced.
How's the breathing? It's good?
The breathing is fine.
And it's very regular.
It's a very relaxed giraffe.
Yeah. Yeah.
Okay, everyone,
I think let's let the
animal properly stand up.
Let it get up
strongly onto its feet
before we start to pull it, eh?
Catching the giraffe, you know,
it's something that
I learnt from Pete.
Now if he says things
can be done, you do it.
And you're out there, and
you're there for the giraffe.
Giraffes use their
powerful necks
to batter other giraffes.
Oh!
But Julian has to stay close
to stop the giraffe
from hurting itself.
When it's down,
you know, you're sort
of, "Okay, quick, rush.
Let's get all the things
done, let's make it safe,
let's make it sound."
And you're just waiting
for that moment
to get up safely.
♪♪
Slowly, the team is learning
that to move a giraffe,
you cannot pull it.
Instead, you must
gently guide it.
♪♪
Fantastic, eh?
Absolutely bloody
brilliant. There she goes.
Hopefully, uh, we'll see
her soon at the boma.
Bloody brilliant.
This is actually...
It's my first translocation
I'm actually involved in.
I've heard lots of stories,
but I've never been there.
The reality of it is
actually quite tough,
because it's very
intrusive for the animals.
I think we just have to keep
in mind why we are doing it.
The blindfold calms the giraffe
on the slow 10 miles
back to the boma.
Don't take the blindfold off.
Before she can be released,
Pete needs to climb up
and brave the giant neck
to free the giraffe
from her blindfold.
He knows it is
vital to keep calm.
Okay.
♪♪
Finally, the first
giraffe is in the boma.
Because giraffes
are social animals,
left alone overnight,
this one might
panic and hurt itself.
The team is under pressure.
They must now catch
her a companion.
The next giraffe is much
bigger and stronger.
♪♪
They hold their nerve
as one ton of giraffe
kicks out at them.
It's been a long day...
but two healthy females
are now safely in the boma.
Just 18 more giraffes to go.
These two giraffe that are
now out there in the boma,
we don't know if
they have feelings,
if they have family bonds.
Are they sad? I don't know.
The team will now pull back
to leave the giraffes
alone overnight.
Let's hope the lovely ladies
can have a good night,
and we'll go from there.
Determined to fill the boma
in the little time they've got,
the team starts
at dawn every day
and finishes after sunset.
Their passion for this
animal sustains their work.
♪♪
We are learning. Thank you.
Well done, Pete. That's cool.
That was much better.
♪♪
It's really cool to see
my dad save the giraffe,
because there's not lots around.
I want to be just
like my dad is.
And I want to
help all the giraffe.
And if there's
only a couple left,
I'll try to work harder.
The tired team knows
the end is in sight.
You're all right, mate.
You're all right, mate.
That way, that way.
You'll be good, mate.
The pioneer giraffe
colony is complete.
Five of the
giraffes are special.
They have been fitted
with satellite tracking collars.
But one young male is
special for a different reason.
There's one giraffe
that I like the best,
and he just has the funny lip.
Yeah, I can see it just there.
And his name is Melvin.
He just looks so hilarious.
And his head looks
like a seahorse head.
And every time he eats,
he looks very grumpy.
Stage One is complete.
The team can now rest
before their final
challenge as the night falls.
Soon these giraffes will go
where no giraffes
have gone before.
Throughout the
mission, the rangers
have also been carrying
out their other duties...
patrolling the park to
protect the animals here.
♪♪
Murchison Falls is
next to Lake Albert.
On the other side is the
Democratic Republic of Congo.
The human populations
all around are growing.
And some people
cross into the park
with metal snares to trap
and poach the wild animals.
♪♪
By Tom's office, two large huts
are stuffed full of
poachers' equipment
that his rangers have found
here in the last year alone.
If an elephant or
giraffe becomes trapped,
this is the result.
It is a stark reminder
of how vulnerable the
Rothschild's giraffes are,
with over half of
their entire population
in just one place.
Now it's time.
The team is preparing for
the final stage of the mission.
The giraffes will be
split into three groups.
They'll be driven for many hours
and, finally, ferried
across the Nile.
To distract them on the journey,
the rangers cover the
truck in delicious leaves.
This specially prepared
vehicle has been paid for
with the donations
of hundreds of people
from across the world.
You've got giraffe in the boma,
you don't relax until
they're released.
I still get worried
until that last giraffe
runs out of a truck and
is off safe and sound.
Murchison Falls has
never seen anything like it.
♪♪
The giraffes are
seeing the world
from an angle even
higher than they're used to.
Because of its precious cargo,
the convoy heads out slowly.
The team has put bars
between the giraffes
to help them stay upright.
It's such a delicate situation
that eight men must
ride up with them
to keep constant watch,
at the risk of being
licked with a giant tongue.
♪♪
Melvin is in the middle,
so he has to be handed
his traveling snacks.
♪♪
After four slow
hours of driving,
they reach an obstacle
no truck or giraffe can cross
without help...
the Nile.
The water here will flow
for over 4,000 miles...
Across the Sudan
and into Egypt...
Before it finally meets the sea.
Just a few miles upstream,
the torrent is so strong, it
can cut through mountains.
But here, the river
becomes calmer.
The banks and the water
are havens for wildlife.
And the current is gentle
enough for a ferry to drive across it.
All the years of hard
work from Julian and Steph
are paying off in a
truly extraordinary sight.
How often do you see
giraffe on a boat, eh?
If anything goes wrong here,
it would be a catastrophe.
You can count one,
two, three, four, five...
six. Where's Melvin?
- At the end.
- Ah.
He's looking where he's
going. He's checking out.
No giraffe has ever seen
anything like this before.
The ferry pulls in safely,
and the passengers
enter a foreign land.
We're on the way.
We've just crossed over
the Nile River with six giraffe.
I've never been so
stressed in my life.
This side of the
river is wilder.
Nothing as tall as a giraffe
has eaten the trees here,
so the rangers and
Julian clear the way
for the world's
tallest living load.
None of this would have happened
if Julian's life hadn't
suddenly changed course
over two decades ago.
As I grew up, I really
wanted to be a stock broker.
Unfortunately, my dad
died when I was 16.
So it was tough.
I realized that I didn't want to
spend my life behind a desk.
I wanted to do something
more than make a few bucks.
I'm really happy that
I changed my game.
And now I think I have the
most amazing life in the world.
If Julian and Steph
can show that
translocation works...
Okay, that is great. Okay.
It will be the beginning
of even bigger
missions to save giraffes.
But they cannot do it alone.
What we need, and what
we'll always need, is money.
I've been doing
giraffe for 15 years
without being paid a cent.
Things can be done, you do it.
And you're out there, and
you're there for the giraffe.
Everyone, apart
from the giraffes,
knows that their long
journey is finally at an end.
We have to open. Stop.
Open the door first, Alan.
There's no time for hesitation.
The longer they're inside, the
more chances of an accident.
Kennedy, you come out. Out.
Let us pull.
- Are the bars all gone?
- The bars are all gone.
The team creeps back
so the nervous giraffes
can see it's clear ahead.
Come on, Melvin. Be the man.
Melvin and the others
make their move.
♪♪
Well done, guys!
See them all go?
♪♪
When it happens, it's amazing.
All the guys we've worked
with, it's been an amazing effort.
You know, and super proud.
Super proud that we've been
able to do an amazing job together.
We are feeling great.
This is a great success!
All the animals are
released. They're all alive.
No problems.
Hey, sing properly!
Giraffe after giraffe
runs off into a new life.
♪♪
- Goodbye!
- Bye-bye!
♪♪
The team can finally celebrate.
In this historic moment,
Dr. Andrew Seguya,
the head of the Uganda
Wildlife Authority,
has come to join them.
I'm very, very proud of them.
Look at them. These
guys have worked
for the last three weeks.
They have put in everything.
They have left their families.
They have come here,
they have slept in
the bush, they have...
Most important, they have
shown their love for the giraffe.
They have handled
them with a lot of care,
with a lot of love, with
a lot of professionalism.
I'm very, very proud of them.
But also, it's really
one of those exciting
days for conservation.
This is just the beginning.
The Ugandan team will
now continue their mission
to save giraffes and
other endangered animals
across the entire country.
For Julian and Steph, it's
a very personal moment.
After 15 years of hard
and dangerous work,
they can finally see
the tide starting to turn.
If you had that
moment every day,
I don't reckon you'd be
able to sustain yourself.
My heart wouldn't be able
to survive, let's be honest.
Melvin was the funny
one with the funny lips.
I miss him now, but at
least he's not in a zoo.
We did that.
We actually made
a difference here.
And I think that is
something really amazing,
and not too many people
can say that in their life
that they actually
have made a difference.
Over the coming months,
the giraffes range far and wide.
The readings from
their GPS collars
show them traveling
hundreds of miles
as they explore their new home.
The team is planning
more translocations
to further expand the colony.
And soon, they hope
that new giraffe calves
will be born on both
sides of the Nile.
All across the continent,
Julian and the team
are working closely
with African governments
and the people who live
alongside these gentle giants
to secure a better
future for all giraffes.
It's an animal you
can't help but look up to.
But what do we really
know about giraffes?
Somehow, these gentle
giants have been overlooked.
But not by one man.
Dr. Julian Fennessy knows
giraffes better than anyone.
And what Julian has recently
discovered is truly alarming.
This silent extinction,
I'm absolutely amazed
that no one has a clue.
In an urgent effort to help,
Julian will travel
across Africa,
from Namibia to
the dangerous border
of Ethiopia and South
Sudan, and on into Uganda
to launch a daring
rescue mission
with a determined team.
Giraffe is very beautiful.
It has to be protected forever.
Together they're standing tall
for a remarkable beast.
Giraffe have gone extinct
in at least seven
countries in Africa.
There's no giraffe going
to go extinct on my watch.
♪♪
♪♪
Weighing up to two tons,
the giraffe is a colossal
animal and unlike any other.
But most of all,
they are a mystery.
For hundreds of years,
we have known the lives
of many other creatures
in great detail,
but giraffes have
been neglected.
Bizarrely, it is
only very recently
that we have learned
almost anything
about these giant animals,
and the little we
have discovered
is extraordinary.
We've found they don't
need to drink in the desert,
but can get enough water
just from eating leaves.
The trees have spikes,
poisonous leaves,
and have recruited ants
to fight the giraffe off.
In response, the
giraffe's skin is tough.
And they can even sniff
out the poisonous leaves
to pluck the
softer, moister ones
with their giant black,
sunproof tongues.
Most importantly,
we've found that
giraffes are vital pollinators
and seed spreaders.
Without the giraffe's
landscape gardening,
Africa would
change for the worse.
Surprisingly, many
of these discoveries
have come from an Australian.
He fell in love with giraffes
and has raised his
family here in Africa.
You have to love
something so big and weird
and sort of, you
know, out there.
They're so funky-looking.
They don't make sense.
20 years ago, Dr. Julian
Fennessy realized
how little we knew
about giraffes,
and he set out to change that.
He earned his PhD studying
them in this desert in Namibia.
His work has deeply changed
our understanding
of giraffe biology.
In this remote valley,
he has just found the skeleton
of a very old male giraffe.
So you can see this
old bull... he's huge.
He probably died
of natural causes.
There's no claw marks on
him like from a lion or anything.
Huge ossicones.
The massive bumps
on a giraffe's head
aren't horns or antlers.
They're different, and
they're called ossicones.
They actually
are like cartilage,
like in your ear,
and when they're
born, they're flat.
And then they fold out,
and they become bone
and fuse to the skull.
The male's ossicones
are much larger
and grow increasingly
massive over their lives.
This is a couple of
vertebrae here of the giraffe.
But there's only seven
vertebrae in their neck...
Just like all humans
and all other mammals.
This is the lower leg bone.
They kick out at lions
and other predators.
They just knock 'em
for six. They're dead.
It's about the same
size as my daughter.
Julian's kids, Molly
and Luca, are 7 and 10.
And just like their
dad, they love giraffes.
A giraffe is very tall.
They've got lots of dots.
Has long legs and ossicones.
And long arm and a long neck.
And a tongue as long as her arm.
Julian and his wife, Steph,
run the Giraffe
Conservation Foundation,
or GCF, from their
home here in Windhoek,
the capital of Namibia.
It's the first giraffe
charity in the world.
It's more from Germany...
From this base,
they work with partners
across the continent.
Giraffes are in trouble,
and their mission
is to save them.
♪♪
The giraffes found here
are called Angolan giraffes.
They are one of nine
different subspecies of giraffes
spread across Africa.
It's just two days'
drive from Julian's home
to a very special place
called the Hoanib River.
Julian has been studying
the giraffes that live here
for almost 20 years.
This desert is protected.
The giraffes here can
roam safe from humans.
It has given Julian and
Steph a vital opportunity
to study wild,
undisturbed behavior.
We got a couple of
females over there.
And then we can
try and I.D. them.
They've been recording
every detail of
the giraffes' lives.
Now all their research is
finally starting to pay off.
- Ooh.
- Found him.
- See the black spot on its neck?
- Yeah.
Absolutely that one here.
Look at that. So,
we saw this giraffe
many, many years before
you guys were even born.
- How cool is that?
- Very cool.
This old bull giraffe
was first seen
at the very beginning
of their studies.
Back then, he was
already an adult,
which means that
he's over 20 years old.
As of this moment,
he's the world's oldest
recorded wild giraffe.
We don't know any giraffe
that is as old as
these in the world.
You know, there just hasn't
been the studies available to date.
Until Julian and the GCF's work,
many of the really basic facts
about giraffes were missing...
How long can they
live, how many there are,
and even how far do they roam.
We're seeing giraffe move
in distances that
we never thought.
Some of them in Namibia
are going more than
1,100 square kilometers.
It's absolutely amazing.
For years, Julian has been
working on his own dime
with a camera, a
car, and a notepad.
Now he is turning to
technology to push things further.
Wow.
It's so dark,
he can't see his own
hand in front of his face,
but his new camera
can peel back the night.
This is like
Christmas all at once.
It's absolutely brilliant.
Julian can now see
that giraffes are
surprisingly active at night.
I don't know anyone who's
observed giraffe at night.
And this is the first
time it's ever been done.
And you know, I know
a little bit about giraffe,
but I've never seen this.
Then he sees something
he's never seen before,
just on the limit of what
the camera can distinguish.
There is one sitting down,
right in front here.
I didn't see that. I
thought it was a tree.
Wow. This guy
just put his neck...
He's just turned it around,
and he's resting it on his bum.
In the middle of the desert,
where lions prowl,
the giraffe has curled
up on the ground
and gone to sleep.
In zoos, they study it.
And basically, when
their neck is down,
it's R.E.M. sleep.
So maybe these
giraffe are dreaming.
I've never seen
that in the wild.
If they are dreaming,
who knows what wild
giraffes dream about.
All this is new to Julian.
So, this female has just turned.
That one just stuck its
neck up straightaway.
It sat down.
It went down straightaway
and stuck its neck
back, started to sleep.
I think they're
talking to each other.
There's got to be
some communication.
It's like they're
taking turns to sleep.
That we don't know for certain
if these massive
animals can communicate
or how they sleep in the wild
shows how neglected
they've been.
So much is new.
Giraffes were thought
to be mute until this year,
when these noises were recorded
from giraffes in a zoo at night.
Discoveries like these,
about how giraffes
live together,
give Julian vital information
that may help him save them.
♪♪
But Julian's most
jaw-dropping giraffe discovery
is, alarmingly, the simplest.
♪♪
He's found that
in just 20 years,
the numbers of giraffes
across all of Africa
have dropped by almost 40%.
I don't know how
else to explain it,
but, you know, just everyone
thinks they're everywhere
and they're lovely
and they're beautiful.
So, of course, they
can't be dwindling.
The numbers can't be going.
Numbers are plummeting.
We have lost many
animals before,
and I just think it would
be a really sad world
without giraffe.
To put this into perspective,
it is well known
that African elephants
are in trouble.
Their numbers
are falling rapidly.
There are just about
half a million left.
But what no one realized is
that there are
far fewer giraffes.
There are just 90,000.
Giraffes have
already become extinct
in at least seven countries.
Easy targets for poachers,
they are killed for their meat,
and their habitats
are being destroyed.
That's frightening.
And I think, if we lost them,
I don't know
where I would be at.
I really think I've lost.
Me and so many people around us
have just not done the
job that we set out to do.
Time is running out,
and Julian knows
we urgently need
to take our understanding
of giraffes to a new level.
He has a revolutionary theory...
That there's not
just one species
divided into slightly
different subspecies.
There are many unique species.
At the 11th hour,
this most basic fact
is really important.
If we know how many
species there are,
we can identify which
are in need of urgent help
and take action to save
those giraffes and
their unique genes.
Julian knows that
only by discovering
their genetic identities
can he prove how
diverse they are,
so he has been taking
samples of their skin.
The DNA inside tiny plugs
of hair and skin like this
could give him the power to save
whole species we
didn't know we had.
Julian has collected the DNA
from almost every wild
giraffe population in Africa.
Before he can run
a species analysis,
he needs one final sample
from a population
called Nubian giraffes.
There are perhaps
just 650 left in the wild.
This group lives far
from Namibia, in Ethiopia,
right on the war-torn
border with South Sudan.
♪♪
This is one of Africa's
most remote national parks...
Gambela.
Years ago, flying
across Gambela,
spotters recorded
a wealth of wildlife.
But since then, the
situation has changed.
All Julian has seen
so far is fires and cows.
This place is mad.
When the population in Ethiopia
is going up by
two million a year,
there's refugees
pouring across the border.
To get his sample,
Julian must find
the last surviving
giraffes in the park.
It takes three days to reach
the rest of the
international team.
They've assembled
to find and satellite-tag
many different
animals in the park.
Julian can't follow these
giraffes on the ground,
but he can from space.
He's brought four
giraffe GPS collars
designed to fit perfectly
around their ossicones.
We want to be able to
monitor them, get some DNA,
'cause we really have no
clue what giraffe they are.
Almost nothing about
this vast park is known.
With no roads or fences,
it only exists on paper.
To even find the giraffes is
going to be a huge challenge.
The only solution is
to use a helicopter.
Now they have a rare opportunity
to shed light on the animals
that live in this remote land
and begin to protect them.
♪♪
With Julian is vet Andre Uys.
This is a... This is a
once-in-a-lifetime job, really.
We know very little
about these animals.
There's quite exciting
and valuable data
that will come out.
They all know the
stakes are high.
Okay, we've got her.
She's in front of us.
Thanks, Nick.
The team sets to work
satellite-collaring
a range of animals.
That's perfect, huh?
- Okay, you all set?
- 27, 27.
Generally, don't give
you much warning
before they wake up.
She's starting to come
out of the anesthetic.
All guys, get back
to the helicopter.
♪♪
But the days tick by,
and in all their flights,
they have seen no giraffes.
Now Julian has
just two days left.
To go home not having
found even a single giraffe
would be devastating.
The team focuses
on wooded areas,
because giraffes can spend
three-quarters of
their time browsing.
Then, in a patch of trees,
right on the Sudanese border,
Julian sees what
he's come for...
A herd of 30 giraffes.
Andre takes the shot.
You have to give them
massively high doses
to get them down,
so it's critical for me
to get to the giraffe
as soon as possible
after it's gone down,
to administer an antidote
and get its respiration
back to normal.
The giraffe is
now totally awake.
Just the team holds it down.
They keep her calm with
a blanket over her eyes.
Time is critical for Julian
to take his DNA sample
from the least intrusive place.
You're fine if I take
a tip off the ear?
Just hold her a bit. Let's go.
Okay.
Let's just...
That's all right.
Next, the team gently
secures the GPS collar.
Now they'll be able to track
where this giraffe roams
and see if she crosses the
border into South Sudan.
Time to let her go.
Okay, Pablo, get
off, get off, get off.
She got me in the
shins with her horns.
- Oh.
- Jesus!
I'm sore.
That's like being beaten with
a 10-pound mallet on your shin.
Fantastic, guys.
- Little bit of DNA.
- All right.
- Let's get on with it.
- Next one, yes, sir.
Soon, Julian will know
if his theory is correct.
We've always known
giraffes look different
in different places
across the continent.
But are they as
different as Julian thinks?
This is really exciting stuff.
This is the first DNA sample.
It's a little piece of tissue.
That's all it is,
but it's got a big
mystery inside of it.
♪♪
We want to send
it off to Germany,
get analyzed, and who knows.
This is the key to
understanding giraffe.
Now they can all be
compared to each other.
♪♪
Julian has just one last flight.
He desperately wants
to get a backup sample.
Sort of in a mad
rush this morning.
We were all ready to
go, and we've just got
another passenger
from the wildlife party
that we have to take with.
Literally, this is my last
day. I'm out this evening.
So we've got to get out there
and see if we can
find these guys.
Without warning, the
government insists
on an official accompanying
the team on their last day,
so there's no room for cameras.
But the helicopter returns
much earlier than expected,
and it's soon clear why.
They've been shot at.
We basically flew over
some guys with some cattle
in the park.
Saw the two rifles point up,
and then we heard, "Bang."
The team is still in shock.
We all thought
that, basically, the chopper
had been hit somewhere,
so we thought, "Well, we got
to get out of here really quickly."
Luckily, no one was hit.
And that's the
end of the collaring.
That's the end of
the giraffe collaring.
That's just... It's
just too unsafe.
It's a bloody war
zone out there.
It's crazy.
The team can't find
where the bullet hit,
but it has ended
Julian's mission.
Just trying to help giraffe.
We're trying to
help conservation.
We don't even know what
flavor giraffe it is out there.
Let's hope the
sample we've got...
we can take that and
figure out who's who.
♪♪
Julian must leave.
He carries a single
precious cargo.
Nothing shakes you up more
than having some AK-47s
fired at you in a helicopter.
It's scary.
I'll tell you what.
I'm happy to leave.
I want to get home to
family, get on with life.
♪♪
Within the last year, a
helicopter was shot down
and the pilot killed by
poachers in Tanzania.
In the last decade,
it's estimated more
than 1,000 rangers
have been killed while
protecting wild animals
in a war with poachers,
increasingly funded
by organized crime.
The early results
from the DNA analysis
are just coming in, and
they are very significant.
As Julian suspected,
it looks like
there isn't just one
but perhaps four or five
separate species of giraffe,
and the Nubian
giraffes in Ethiopia
should be reclassified as one
of the rarest species on earth.
Their only other significant
population is in Uganda.
Here, the giraffes were
already thought to be different
and were called
Rothschild's giraffes.
But they're the same as Nubian.
In total, there's
just 2,150 survivors
of this potentially new
species left in the wild.
This is Murchison
Falls National Park,
Uganda's largest and
oldest conservation area.
♪♪
It's the last great stronghold
of the Rothschild giraffe.
Over 1,000 live here.
They're very distinctive,
with lighter coats,
white stockinged legs,
and not three
but five ossicones.
In the ground beneath their feet
lie three-quarters of
Uganda's oil deposits,
and plans to drill
are under way.
Keeping this fragile
population safe
will now be Julian's and
the team's biggest priority.
An entire species of
giraffe could rely on it.
If something goes wrong
here in Murchison Falls,
Rothschild's giraffe
could be extinct in no time.
The time is now.
If we don't come
together to save giraffe,
it could be too late.
Losing this unique species
would be a disaster.
Julian and the Uganda
Wildlife Authority
have a daring plan to protect
these giraffes for generations.
Currently, the giraffes all
live on one side of the Nile.
They can't cross it.
The plan is more ambitious
than anything they've done before.
They're going to catch
giraffes from the north side
and start a new
giraffe population
across the river, away
from the oil drilling.
This is Tom Okello,
Murchison Falls' park manager.
You know, you should not
keep all your
eggs in one basket.
We first keeps some
stock out of the oil area,
so that in the event
that some impacts
may come out of oil and war,
we have a set population
somewhere else.
To carry out this mission,
the men and women in charge
of caring for Uganda's wildlife
have gathered from
across the entire country...
Gorilla doctors
from the mountains,
the chief vets from the
other great parks of Uganda,
rangers from
Murchison Falls itself.
And Julian has brought
along a secret weapon...
Vet, Dr. Pete Morkel.
I love giraffes. It's
quite remarkable,
that such a... strangely
put-together beast
functions so well.
Catching and
moving a wild giraffe
is difficult and dangerous.
Pete has done it
hundreds of times.
It is an unusual
type of capture.
That animal is totally awake.
It's a stressful situation,
but it does work very well.
It's the accepted way of
catching giraffe here in Africa.
Before the team has
to tackle a real giraffe,
Pete is training
them on himself.
If that animals falls more
than two or three times,
it says, "That's
it, I'm finished."
It's not good for the giraffe.
The team will have to
guide any giraffe they catch
into a trailer, using ropes.
We need someone
giving good control.
We need the people
responsive. I will show you.
You must still allow
me to move forward.
Otherwise, we
will never load it.
You must let me go.
You must let me move.
You must let me move,
but I don't want to
stay here all day.
So, what you want to do is
stand a little to
one side, yeah.
Aagh!
You want to have these giraffe
delivered safe and sound.
That's the primary objective.
That's what's most
important to me.
It's 5:00 A.M.,
and the team is
preparing for their first day.
- Did you sleep well?
- Yes.
- Are we ready to go?
- Yes, sir.
All right.
Three of the vets are
also Christian pastors.
Muhangi, you lead us in prayer.
Almighty Father, we thank
you for your love for us.
We surrender, every
one of us into your care.
We surrender all that...
They have two weeks to
catch and transport 20 giraffes.
Protect us while we
are in the wilderness.
- Amen.
- Amen.
The group is inexperienced.
But as Julian and Pete
know, the only way to learn
is to get your
hands on a giraffe.
We are going into action now.
♪♪
The catching team
moves ahead carefully.
They are looking to
create a breeding herd,
so they're after
young, healthy females
and just three or four males.
They hope the new
population will quickly swell.
The rest of the cars hang back,
ready to run in, once
they have caught a giraffe.
♪♪
It's in. The drug is in.
Even a small
giraffe is so strong
that no team could
catch it just with ropes.
The dart in its rump carries
such a strong sedative
that the animal must be given
an antidote within 20 minutes.
But it is also a waiting game,
because if they try
to catch it too soon,
it could startle and run away.
♪♪
Four minutes.
Everyone knows
their jobs... in theory.
Go, go, go!
But the giraffe is
extremely unpredictable,
and the capture becomes chaotic.
The team is wary.
A giraffe's kick could
decapitate a man.
Up, up, up, up, up, up!
Finally, they bring
it down safely,
but it's not a textbook capture.
Julian and vet Pete step in.
Pete is in charge
of the antidote.
Give the antidote, gentlemen.
Where's the antidote?
Where is the antidote?
Don't waste time.
We poleaxe them
with chemicals, really.
So if you don't give the
antidote immediately,
it's going to die.
The antidote is in, in time.
Now the giraffe is wide awake.
Julian keeps it from
struggling by sitting on its neck.
Putting on the blindfold,
it sedates her a lot.
Now, hopefully, she's
being a bit more relaxed now.
Just measuring the ossicone.
And by doing that,
we can figure out...
There's hardly any
research ever been done.
- 9.
- Hopefully, we can
just build up more
information over time.
- It's 9 1/2, maybe.
- Okay.
Hurry, guys!
The calmer they
keep the giraffe,
the easier the
next stage will be.
Can we have some water?
It's on the ground
for over 10 minutes
while the team takes
measurements and samples
and positions their trailer.
- Who has it, huh?
- Spray, please.
Spray, spray, spray!
That's all right. We
don't have to shout.
We can just talk nice
and slow. Easy going.
It's time to loop
ropes around it,
which they'll use, as
Pete demonstrated,
to guide the blindfolded
giraffe into its trailer.
I think Julian is the last
one to sit on the neck.
And now they're helping
it up. They're pushing it up.
Wait, wait, wait! Wait!
Must wait. Must wait.
A bit stressful for everyone.
It's a big learning curve.
For a giraffe to stand
up is a huge effort.
The team is wary of
exhausting this one.
Let it go. Let this thing go.
- Let it go?
- Yeah.
- Okay, let this one go.
- Can the pilot move?
To be safe,
vet Dr. Margaret
Dricuru makes a call.
Everyone to one side, please.
Everyone to one side.
Go on, now.
I think it's not a good
idea to keep trying.
The welfare issues.
So that's the
reason we let it go.
♪♪
Back at their base, the
team has built a boma,
an enclosure for the
20 giraffes to go into.
But for now, it remains empty.
It's not a great start.
Undeterred, they
are still aiming
for two giraffes by sundown.
Ranger Francis
Adiokan lives here,
and he loves these animals.
♪♪
At the end of the day, when
you're capturing a giraffe,
you just focus.
It's all about having that
giraffe come down safely
and get up safely.
I'm just totally focused.
Although many of the
team are wild-animal vets,
few have actually
touched a giraffe before,
like Dr. Eddy Kambale.
To push blood up
their huge necks,
to their brains,
giraffes have the largest
hearts of all land mammals.
It can weigh over 20 pounds,
and beats twice
as fast as our own.
When it was running, the
heartbeat was much higher.
But right now,
it's settling down,
so the rate has reduced.
How's the breathing? It's good?
The breathing is fine.
And it's very regular.
It's a very relaxed giraffe.
Yeah. Yeah.
Okay, everyone,
I think let's let the
animal properly stand up.
Let it get up
strongly onto its feet
before we start to pull it, eh?
Catching the giraffe, you know,
it's something that
I learnt from Pete.
Now if he says things
can be done, you do it.
And you're out there, and
you're there for the giraffe.
Giraffes use their
powerful necks
to batter other giraffes.
Oh!
But Julian has to stay close
to stop the giraffe
from hurting itself.
When it's down,
you know, you're sort
of, "Okay, quick, rush.
Let's get all the things
done, let's make it safe,
let's make it sound."
And you're just waiting
for that moment
to get up safely.
♪♪
Slowly, the team is learning
that to move a giraffe,
you cannot pull it.
Instead, you must
gently guide it.
♪♪
Fantastic, eh?
Absolutely bloody
brilliant. There she goes.
Hopefully, uh, we'll see
her soon at the boma.
Bloody brilliant.
This is actually...
It's my first translocation
I'm actually involved in.
I've heard lots of stories,
but I've never been there.
The reality of it is
actually quite tough,
because it's very
intrusive for the animals.
I think we just have to keep
in mind why we are doing it.
The blindfold calms the giraffe
on the slow 10 miles
back to the boma.
Don't take the blindfold off.
Before she can be released,
Pete needs to climb up
and brave the giant neck
to free the giraffe
from her blindfold.
He knows it is
vital to keep calm.
Okay.
♪♪
Finally, the first
giraffe is in the boma.
Because giraffes
are social animals,
left alone overnight,
this one might
panic and hurt itself.
The team is under pressure.
They must now catch
her a companion.
The next giraffe is much
bigger and stronger.
♪♪
They hold their nerve
as one ton of giraffe
kicks out at them.
It's been a long day...
but two healthy females
are now safely in the boma.
Just 18 more giraffes to go.
These two giraffe that are
now out there in the boma,
we don't know if
they have feelings,
if they have family bonds.
Are they sad? I don't know.
The team will now pull back
to leave the giraffes
alone overnight.
Let's hope the lovely ladies
can have a good night,
and we'll go from there.
Determined to fill the boma
in the little time they've got,
the team starts
at dawn every day
and finishes after sunset.
Their passion for this
animal sustains their work.
♪♪
We are learning. Thank you.
Well done, Pete. That's cool.
That was much better.
♪♪
It's really cool to see
my dad save the giraffe,
because there's not lots around.
I want to be just
like my dad is.
And I want to
help all the giraffe.
And if there's
only a couple left,
I'll try to work harder.
The tired team knows
the end is in sight.
You're all right, mate.
You're all right, mate.
That way, that way.
You'll be good, mate.
The pioneer giraffe
colony is complete.
Five of the
giraffes are special.
They have been fitted
with satellite tracking collars.
But one young male is
special for a different reason.
There's one giraffe
that I like the best,
and he just has the funny lip.
Yeah, I can see it just there.
And his name is Melvin.
He just looks so hilarious.
And his head looks
like a seahorse head.
And every time he eats,
he looks very grumpy.
Stage One is complete.
The team can now rest
before their final
challenge as the night falls.
Soon these giraffes will go
where no giraffes
have gone before.
Throughout the
mission, the rangers
have also been carrying
out their other duties...
patrolling the park to
protect the animals here.
♪♪
Murchison Falls is
next to Lake Albert.
On the other side is the
Democratic Republic of Congo.
The human populations
all around are growing.
And some people
cross into the park
with metal snares to trap
and poach the wild animals.
♪♪
By Tom's office, two large huts
are stuffed full of
poachers' equipment
that his rangers have found
here in the last year alone.
If an elephant or
giraffe becomes trapped,
this is the result.
It is a stark reminder
of how vulnerable the
Rothschild's giraffes are,
with over half of
their entire population
in just one place.
Now it's time.
The team is preparing for
the final stage of the mission.
The giraffes will be
split into three groups.
They'll be driven for many hours
and, finally, ferried
across the Nile.
To distract them on the journey,
the rangers cover the
truck in delicious leaves.
This specially prepared
vehicle has been paid for
with the donations
of hundreds of people
from across the world.
You've got giraffe in the boma,
you don't relax until
they're released.
I still get worried
until that last giraffe
runs out of a truck and
is off safe and sound.
Murchison Falls has
never seen anything like it.
♪♪
The giraffes are
seeing the world
from an angle even
higher than they're used to.
Because of its precious cargo,
the convoy heads out slowly.
The team has put bars
between the giraffes
to help them stay upright.
It's such a delicate situation
that eight men must
ride up with them
to keep constant watch,
at the risk of being
licked with a giant tongue.
♪♪
Melvin is in the middle,
so he has to be handed
his traveling snacks.
♪♪
After four slow
hours of driving,
they reach an obstacle
no truck or giraffe can cross
without help...
the Nile.
The water here will flow
for over 4,000 miles...
Across the Sudan
and into Egypt...
Before it finally meets the sea.
Just a few miles upstream,
the torrent is so strong, it
can cut through mountains.
But here, the river
becomes calmer.
The banks and the water
are havens for wildlife.
And the current is gentle
enough for a ferry to drive across it.
All the years of hard
work from Julian and Steph
are paying off in a
truly extraordinary sight.
How often do you see
giraffe on a boat, eh?
If anything goes wrong here,
it would be a catastrophe.
You can count one,
two, three, four, five...
six. Where's Melvin?
- At the end.
- Ah.
He's looking where he's
going. He's checking out.
No giraffe has ever seen
anything like this before.
The ferry pulls in safely,
and the passengers
enter a foreign land.
We're on the way.
We've just crossed over
the Nile River with six giraffe.
I've never been so
stressed in my life.
This side of the
river is wilder.
Nothing as tall as a giraffe
has eaten the trees here,
so the rangers and
Julian clear the way
for the world's
tallest living load.
None of this would have happened
if Julian's life hadn't
suddenly changed course
over two decades ago.
As I grew up, I really
wanted to be a stock broker.
Unfortunately, my dad
died when I was 16.
So it was tough.
I realized that I didn't want to
spend my life behind a desk.
I wanted to do something
more than make a few bucks.
I'm really happy that
I changed my game.
And now I think I have the
most amazing life in the world.
If Julian and Steph
can show that
translocation works...
Okay, that is great. Okay.
It will be the beginning
of even bigger
missions to save giraffes.
But they cannot do it alone.
What we need, and what
we'll always need, is money.
I've been doing
giraffe for 15 years
without being paid a cent.
Things can be done, you do it.
And you're out there, and
you're there for the giraffe.
Everyone, apart
from the giraffes,
knows that their long
journey is finally at an end.
We have to open. Stop.
Open the door first, Alan.
There's no time for hesitation.
The longer they're inside, the
more chances of an accident.
Kennedy, you come out. Out.
Let us pull.
- Are the bars all gone?
- The bars are all gone.
The team creeps back
so the nervous giraffes
can see it's clear ahead.
Come on, Melvin. Be the man.
Melvin and the others
make their move.
♪♪
Well done, guys!
See them all go?
♪♪
When it happens, it's amazing.
All the guys we've worked
with, it's been an amazing effort.
You know, and super proud.
Super proud that we've been
able to do an amazing job together.
We are feeling great.
This is a great success!
All the animals are
released. They're all alive.
No problems.
Hey, sing properly!
Giraffe after giraffe
runs off into a new life.
♪♪
- Goodbye!
- Bye-bye!
♪♪
The team can finally celebrate.
In this historic moment,
Dr. Andrew Seguya,
the head of the Uganda
Wildlife Authority,
has come to join them.
I'm very, very proud of them.
Look at them. These
guys have worked
for the last three weeks.
They have put in everything.
They have left their families.
They have come here,
they have slept in
the bush, they have...
Most important, they have
shown their love for the giraffe.
They have handled
them with a lot of care,
with a lot of love, with
a lot of professionalism.
I'm very, very proud of them.
But also, it's really
one of those exciting
days for conservation.
This is just the beginning.
The Ugandan team will
now continue their mission
to save giraffes and
other endangered animals
across the entire country.
For Julian and Steph, it's
a very personal moment.
After 15 years of hard
and dangerous work,
they can finally see
the tide starting to turn.
If you had that
moment every day,
I don't reckon you'd be
able to sustain yourself.
My heart wouldn't be able
to survive, let's be honest.
Melvin was the funny
one with the funny lips.
I miss him now, but at
least he's not in a zoo.
We did that.
We actually made
a difference here.
And I think that is
something really amazing,
and not too many people
can say that in their life
that they actually
have made a difference.
Over the coming months,
the giraffes range far and wide.
The readings from
their GPS collars
show them traveling
hundreds of miles
as they explore their new home.
The team is planning
more translocations
to further expand the colony.
And soon, they hope
that new giraffe calves
will be born on both
sides of the Nile.
All across the continent,
Julian and the team
are working closely
with African governments
and the people who live
alongside these gentle giants
to secure a better
future for all giraffes.