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00:00in the fight for survival it pays to be well armed life is not for the weak or the defenseless
00:16it is a brutal contest fought afresh each generation but as well as the obvious weapons
00:25a hardware of battle animals are at war using state-of-the-art software
00:36welcome to the intelligence war a hidden battleground of information processing
00:46where victories turn on split-second computation
00:49where strength can be defeated by strategy
01:02where animals triumph not with firepower but with brain power
01:19so
01:43east africa cradle of humanity
01:47and still home to an ape that thrives not just through brawn but by using its brain
01:52the chimpanzee though mostly a fruit eater is a vegetarian dr jekyll disguising a carnivorous mr hyde
02:09but getting meat presents a problem shaped through generations of evolution for eating fruit chimps
02:21just aren't equipped with the claws the camouflage or the lightning speed for hunting
02:26they must depend on other qualities
02:33the target is a group of colobus monkeys always alert and far more nimble around the treetops
02:45but this is the story of survival of the smartest but this is the story of survival of the smartest not the fastest
03:00the chimps
03:04quietly the chimps size up the situation
03:11there are plenty of youngsters easier prey
03:14and the monkeys are in a tight corner with few ways out
03:27if they can block the escapes the hunters might seize a fleeing monkey
03:31it's all a matter of strategy
03:47but this is the story of survival for us
04:02it's going to be a good time
04:04so
04:06The chimps' screams panic the monkeys.
04:35High up, the colobus are safe, but in the confusion, some of them break ranks.
04:42The chimps are waiting.
04:57Action replay shows the chimp fake towards the monkey above him,
05:02and they switch to grab an unsuspecting bystander below.
05:05By using their brains, chimps can make up for their limited speed and weaponry.
05:18Though only part-time predators, they can still outperform specialist killers.
05:23When they bother to hunt, chimps are twice as successful as lions.
05:34Intelligence is their hidden weapon.
05:37But if brains are such a winning formula, why aren't all animals armed with supercomputers?
05:44With huge variation in brain power across the animal kingdom, why do so many species have the budget model?
06:00It's a simple matter of economics.
06:18Nerve cells, which make up brains, are a colossal investment.
06:28And it's not just a matter of growing them.
06:32Their running costs are staggering.
06:34Just sitting on standby, nerve cells burn up fuel, staying primed and ready for action.
06:40They guzzle 20 times more energy than muscle and never rest.
06:47In a world of limited resources and ruthless competition, it just doesn't pay to have surplus brain power.
06:57In fact, many creatures thrive without a brain at all.
07:07Jellyfish are on the move.
07:09Each morning, sunlight guides them to the surface and into contact with the plankton they feed on.
07:15These commuters don't need brains, but they do need flawless coordination.
07:34The beat of the jellyfish bell is triggered by electrical pulses, firing at over 50 miles an hour along specialized communication lines, the nerve network.
07:44With minimal information, jellyfish can home in on plankton.
08:03But to hunt down active prey, animals need to gather more intelligence.
08:07Around 500 million years ago, there was a critical leap forward.
08:17Predators appeared that were armed with a new weapon.
08:20In its head, the land flatworm has a brain, admittedly composed of only a few hundred nerve cells.
08:45This tiny but sensitive computer leads it through the forest, reacting to sunlight, warmth, humidity and gravity, and to a multitude of odors that may betray its prey.
09:04Compared to the jellyfish, the flatworm is swamped with incoming data.
09:08Its brain is there to weigh this information and make the executive decisions that keep it on track.
09:15Earthworms had better beware.
09:36A contact killer, the flatworm oozes chemicals onto its prey.
09:59For the earthworm, it's a slow-dissolving death.
10:10Over millions of years, such primitive struggles have developed into more elaborate contests.
10:15For the adversaries, the advantages of smarter brains are always weighed against their greater costs.
10:26Outback Australia.
10:28And a mud wasp is preparing her family's defenses.
10:34Her egg chamber is underground.
10:36Above it, she builds an entrance tube made to an exact blueprint.
10:40At a height of one body length, she turns the tube through a prescribed angle, then forms a precisely shaped flange.
10:55Onto this, she builds a large bell, measured to the nearest millimeter.
11:00Its size is critical for its defensive role, but so too is its texture.
11:07Though rough on the outside, the inside is polished smooth.
11:12The funnel has a specific purpose, to thwart the cuckoo wasp,
11:18an opportunist looking to plant her own eggs in others' nests.
11:21The slippery funnel keeps her out.
11:30Much larger than her enemy, the mud wasp can climb in.
11:37Her ingenious design triumphs.
11:40But the brain behind it is a blind computer.
11:44A machine that executes a list of instructions with no concept of what it's doing.
11:48Though economical, such a visionless machine has a flaw.
11:59Throw it off its normal course, and it's stumped.
12:02A buried tube should be easy to fix.
12:12The hard part is, understanding there's a problem.
12:18After a brief pause, it's business as usual.
12:21The routine unchanged.
12:23An hour later, and the result is a shortened funnel,
12:31its entrance too low to add the crucial bell.
12:38The mud wasp's brain is a miracle of precise programming.
12:43But on this occasion, her robotic inflexibility has opened the door to her enemy.
12:48Fixed programs are wired into every brain.
13:07They may be inflexible, but such routines are the cheapest way to tackle many problems.
13:11Like the mud wasp, mother goose is a mindful parent.
13:19Should a precious egg roll out from the nest, she perceives the problem and responds intelligently.
13:25Or so it seems.
13:35But like the mud wasp, the goose's brain takes a shortcut and operates by a simple rule of thumb.
13:42If it's smooth and near the nest, it must be an egg.
13:45A goose's powers of discrimination are surprisingly vague.
13:57A goose's powers of discrimination are surprisingly vague.
14:01An egg needn't be white.
14:02An egg needn't be white.
14:03Or even egg-shaped.
14:04An egg needn't be white.
14:05Or even egg-shaped.
14:06An egg needn't be white.
14:07Or even egg-shaped.
14:08An egg needn't be white.
14:29An egg needn't be white.
14:53In her eyes, even a wooden cube can pass for an egg.
15:09Her simplified concept of an egg makes perfect sense.
15:14More elaborate foolproof recognition would just be a waste of resources,
15:19of energy that's better used raising more young.
15:23Her undiscerning outlook ensures that a real egg is never ignored,
15:31even if a few mistakes are made along the way.
15:40Her undiscerning outlook ensures that a real egg is never ignored,
15:45even if a few mistakes are made along the way.
15:48the way but there's one bird where the stakes are higher in the ostrich the
16:02recognition software has had to improve
16:12here females set up a communal nest at first the self-appointed caretaker
16:18welcomes visitors who each add an egg to the clutch before moving on
16:29a large brood raised under one roof will gain safety in numbers
16:36but as the eggs steadily pile up to 25 or more it begins to look like the caretaker is everyone's
16:49fool with her workload mounting new arrivals get a hostile reception
16:58any more eggs and she won't be able to cover them all
17:09determined visitors though won't be turned away
17:17enough is enough
17:23letting off steam seems to clear the caretakers mind for some cool-headed calculation
17:35a goose would be in a real flat by now but not the ostrich
17:42this is egg overload and it's time to concentrate on her own
17:49astonishingly she can recognize each one no fool she carefully tucks her eggs safely into the middle
18:04before removing some of the surplus
18:06tiny surface pores vary in pattern between eggs and this may allow the sharp-eyed ostrich to discriminate
18:18however she does it it's a death sentence for evicted eggs
18:26the better she is at picking out her own eggs the more young she produces her enhanced brainpower pays off in breeding success
18:39but in a world of complex challenges a refined routine is not always enough
18:54to compete animals must also be flexible
19:02the power to learn may be the ultimate survival tool sophisticated examples exist in our own backyards even in the brains of insects
19:17in the last two weeks of its life a honeybee graduates from hive duties and emerges for the first time into the outside world
19:27its mission to bring food to the colony seems simple enough
19:34yet a bee faces a bewildering challenge a confusing variety of open flowers each producing nectar only for brief periods
19:46and at times of day that vary from one species to the next
19:51never was the daily shopping trip so complicated and with just two weeks to live a budding forager must learn fast
20:18amazingly the brain of a honeybee expands with age as it matures into a forager
20:25an extra 160,000 brain cells are added in preparation for the job ahead
20:38cracking the flower schedule requires a precise sense of time and it's no coincidence that bees can read the sun's position
20:45to within a few degrees equivalent to within a few degrees equivalent to the passage of just 18 minutes
20:52the trick of course is to match the flowers to the hours
20:58a rookie forager is bound to make some bad calls
21:03but trial and error is the essence of its strategy
21:06and sooner or later it gets lucky
21:17with the sweet hit of nectar its brain starts to forge a link between the flower and the time
21:25quite literally a vital connection is made
21:28time measured by the sun's position is relayed to the brain throughout the day
21:43only when this coincides with incoming nectar signals
21:46does the junction take note and chemically set itself
21:49day two at the same time and it doesn't matter where the bee is
22:00the nerves automatically send a memo to visit the same flower
22:04just one successful nectar hit is enough to connect flower and time
22:07rapidly the bee builds up its flower diary with allotted visiting times for each species
22:22a quick check on the sun's position and a bee knows precisely which flowers are open for business
22:27the ability to connect events
22:45to use one thing to predict another
22:48transforms an animal from a simple robot
22:51into a flexible learning machine
22:53but sometimes there are no simple connections to be made
23:03and no time for trial and error
23:06nature is notoriously unpredictable
23:13for an African elephant with a life span of 70 years
23:17coping with unexpected drought is an occupational hazard
23:23nature
23:26when regular water holes dry up
23:27these thirsty animals are forced to move on
23:30into less familiar terrain
23:45there's no place here for the apprentice forager
23:48these elephants need precise coordinates
23:50and there's no time to lose
23:56elephants do have an extravagant sense of smell
24:00they can detect minute traces of water
24:02in the earth and on the breeze
24:07but if the water is down wind
24:09that's of little use
24:11to survive such a crisis
24:12the entire herd may depend not on their noses
24:15but on the memory of the oldest female
24:19she alone may know where to look for water
24:25and the key lies in a specialized part of her massive 11 pound brain
24:30the hippocampus
24:32it contains a database of spatial memories
24:35of mental maps built up over a lifetime
24:37to pinpoint water
24:40she doesn't rely on trial and error
24:45before taking another step
24:47she scans her memory
24:49and tests the journey
24:51in her head
24:53before taking another step
24:54before taking another step
24:55she scans her memory
24:57and tests the journey
24:58in her head
24:59the dead.
25:27Elephants know where they're going.
25:29Even in terrain they've not visited for decades.
25:32Their epic journeys are mapped out expeditions
25:35over ranges spanning thousands of square miles.
25:38Drought is a fact of life.
25:46So for these thirsty giants, such memory is a critical survival tool.
25:53An elephant, even for its size, has an unusually big brain.
25:59It needs it to navigate in an uncertain world.
26:33They need to negotiate an ever-changing social landscape.
26:40It is the varied and complex demands of living with others
26:43that have led to the greatest advances in brain power.
26:51Africa's Kalahari Desert.
26:53Large or small, the brainiest creatures
26:55are the ones that live together in close-knit groups.
26:57The social meerkat has evolved a brain far bigger than you'd expect
27:02for an animal its size.
27:03The extra brain power is a huge advantage in a social environment,
27:08where there are constant opportunities to learn.
27:10The extra brain power is a huge advantage in a social environment,
27:12where there are constant opportunities to learn.
27:13the social human beings,
27:15and the human beings,
27:16the human beings,
27:18the human beings,
27:20and the human beings,
27:21where they are all together in close-knit groups.
27:22The social meerkat has evolved a brain
27:23far bigger than you'd expect for an animal its size.
27:26The extra brain power is a huge advantage in a social environment,
27:29where there are constant opportunities to learn.
27:32Just by watching their elders, the pups can pick up vital survival skills.
27:53Meerkats have lots to learn about the world, but much of it is quickly mastered.
28:02Figure out how to kill a scorpion once, and the same technique works every time.
28:15In contrast, fellow meerkats are much less predictable.
28:19Without warning, yesterday's playmate is today's thief.
28:32If there's one thing a meerkat can never quite be sure about, it's another meerkat.
28:46In the rough and tumble of group life, where food is stolen and bodies trampled,
28:51the threat of conflict is never far away.
29:00Social animals have larger brains, not just so they can learn from each other,
29:04but because they must learn to live with each other.
29:11Social awareness relies on recognizing and remembering individuals.
29:15Play fighting gives the pups a chance to develop these skills,
29:20and also helps to establish the pecking order.
29:23As adults, meerkats rarely come to blows.
29:32Social harmony is no idle luxury.
29:35Meerkats depend on close teamwork for their survival.
29:38In families like meerkats, helping each other comes naturally.
29:59But in other groups, where strangers mix,
30:02animals must have a more calculating attitude.
30:05In the hollow of a dead tree, just such a mixed group is stirring.
30:26In this society, help is more widely exchanged.
30:30It extends to special friends, beyond the ties of blood.
30:33Such friends can become long-term allies,
30:37and they renew their bonds through mutual grooming.
30:42Friends hang out together, but they also share the roost with other,
30:48more casual acquaintances.
30:51Their grooming finished, the bats head out to feed.
31:05And these bats are vampires.
31:06And these bats are vampires.
31:35the bat the Mystery platuna Besides Scalpel teeth slit the skin,
31:49already numbed by a strong anaesthetic in the bat's saliva.
31:52Scalpel teeth slit the skin, already numbed by a strong anesthetic in the bat's saliva.
32:03The victim feels nothing, allowing the bat to feed freely.
32:11As it gets to work, the vampire's stomach stretches to accommodate a massive helping.
32:16It can drink enough blood to last two days.
32:27But if it looks easy, think again.
32:31This is a high-risk way to make a living, and demands more than simple stealth and sharp teeth.
32:46If it fails to feed, a vampire quickly starves.
32:54Two hungry nights in a row, and its life is on the line.
32:57It's time for quick thinking.
33:13Its only hope now is to find another bat, prepared to share some of its spare blood.
33:23The problem is, why should any other bat cough up?
33:27The starving vampire begs for food.
33:38But it's rejected.
33:40It needs to find a friend, a grooming partner.
33:46To survive, it has to remember which of these roost mates it has helped previously.
33:51The starving bat is allowed to drink regurgitated blood from a bat, who owes it a favor.
34:07It's a life-saving act that will be remembered by donor and recipient alike.
34:21This sharing makes a precarious lifestyle more secure.
34:25But it relies on vampires having the brains to keep score.
34:30Only by taking care to count favors, can bats know who to turn to, and who to ignore.
34:35The blood bonds among vampires foreshadow more intricate social arrangements, of animals more closely related to us.
34:53the five contentional monkeys, or devils ofack.
34:55Macaque monkeys in the forests of Sri Lanka.
35:02Coalitions dominate daily life.
35:05Even the infants cultivate friends, and soon learn who they can count on.
35:09Networking is an obsession. This is no place for the socially inept.
35:29Macaque society can be violent and scarred faces tell a story of savage infighting.
35:39When trouble erupts, it helps to have friends.
35:45Group life would be hell without allies for support.
36:10The most powerful animals can relax. Above all, they have first pick of any females that come into heat.
36:20This female, though, has other ideas. She's giving the eye to a young Romeo.
36:28But he's not yet the boss, so they need to watch out.
36:36The dominant male rests up a tree, unaware of the clandestine courtship unfolding below.
36:46The rendezvous is on.
37:08The rendezvous is on.
37:10The rendezvous is on.
37:11The rendezvous is on.
37:12The rendezvous is on.
37:13Well, then in this house, the other side is the opposite.
37:16The rendezvous is on.
37:18The rendezvous is on.
37:20It is difficult.
37:21This is a time for the protection box.
37:22This is hard to get the truth in the lobby.
37:24It is great.
37:25The rendezvous is on.
37:26The rendezvous.
37:27Yes, please.
37:28The rendezvous is there.
37:29The rendezvous.
38:00The boss may be off guard, but his spies are out. They've been spotted, and the alarm
38:21is raised.
38:51For social animals like monkeys, the game is not purely a physical contest. It's a battle
39:00of wits, fought with brains as much as muscle. Living together is a constant balancing act,
39:10between the urge to compete and the need to cooperate.
39:18Alliances hold macaque society together despite its violence. But the dangers of conflict have
39:27driven another monkey to evolve a remarkable method for avoiding tribal war, the gelada
39:35in the highlands of Ethiopia. Just like macaques, geladas form close bonds and rely on well-maintained
39:44social networks. But this huge gathering is not a single troop. It's a collection of smaller
39:51family groups, each one headed by a single, intimidating male.
40:00Under his protection are several females and their young. Their daily monkey business is
40:08much like the macaques. But there's one big difference. These monkeys are much less inclined
40:17to give each other a serious mauling. Life is no less competitive. On the contrary, many family
40:28groups are drawn to the same prime grazing grounds. And competing for limited food and space does
40:34create dangerous tensions. And with such pumped up males, the ingredients are here for the
40:45world's biggest brawl.
41:04But amidst a chorus of noise, brewing fights are somehow quickly diffused.
41:33Against all expectations, an unlikely harmony prevails in the gelada herds.
41:46It seems that these chattering monkeys have developed an unusual talent. Just listen to them.
42:01It seems that these monkeys have developed an unusual talent.
42:05This volume of noise is unique among monkeys. It ebbs and flows continuously, like one gigantic
42:17conversation. Gentle and soothing, this strange hubbub helps keep the lid on simmering tensions.
42:25But most of the time, at least, everyone stays relaxed. But the social skills of monkeys have been eclipsed by others.
42:41In the past few waves, a rival intelligence has been separately developing for 60 million years. Dolphins are also intensely social animals, and tireless communicators too.
42:53Their societies are ruled every bit as much by friendships and alliances. But with dolphins, the scientific evidence is pointing to something new.
43:05The bottlenose dolphin has another card up its sleeve, something that sets it and us apart from most other species. This animal can see the world from another's point of view.
43:21It can make an imaginative leap into the mind of another being.
43:35To picture the world as another sees it and understands it is to open up new possibilities.
43:45Armed with this kind of insight, the actions and intentions of others become easier to read.
43:53Feelings, such as a calf's need for reassurance, can perhaps be imagined.
44:03And so, too, another's lack of knowledge and need of example.
44:17Such leaps of imagination are complex computations, but a dolphin can't compete without them.
44:27As far as we know, only one other group of animals has ever developed this ability.
44:33The power to contemplate the minds of others is a weapon also evolved by apes.
44:41In the social chess game, anticipating rivals is a crucial skill.
44:47Those who read others well can build themselves a winning power base.
44:51To fathom the minds of others, though, requires at least a glimpse of one's own thoughts and motives.
45:05It requires self-knowledge.
45:11Some form of conscious awareness.
45:27Whatever their thoughts, grooming is at the heart of chimpanzees' social life.
45:33As well as cementing lifelong friendships, this pleasurable activity secures short-term allies.
45:41But for these schemers, there are other ways to conduct politics.
45:59In the hands of a chimp, a prized piece of meat is more than a meal.
46:07Crudely handled, it's a gift that can buy future favors or seal a strategic partnership.
46:15such conscious manipulation is commonplace for us.
46:33And just as in human society, more than simple brute strength is needed to stay at the top.
46:43When chimps bid for power, alliances make the difference.
46:53It's political muscle that really counts.
46:57Fights within the group are rarely lethal.
47:15But it's a different story when chimps run across outsiders.
47:19Strangers risk being murdered.
47:45Violence between groups may have driven the most extraordinary advance in brain power.
47:55It's a different story when chimps.
48:07Throughout our own evolution, we have like chimps clashed with rival groups.
48:13One thing that made us develop differently though, was our invention of weapons.
48:23They made human conflict more dangerous.
48:31The survivors were those who could live together in bigger groups.
48:43But the bigger the groups.
49:11The greater the skills needed to hold it together.
49:19In other primates, physical grooming is vital for bonding.
49:23In humans, it's been replaced by a much more efficient mechanism.
49:27Conversation.
49:29Our speech is a masterpiece of biological evolution.
49:37Yet more than anything else, we use it for small talk.
49:41To forge and renew social bonds.
49:45Grooming has given way to gossip.
49:57Our chit chat though is far from idle.
50:01It's a critical tool.
50:03The ultimate competition.
50:05Courtship.
50:13Just as the peacock's tail attracts a hen,
50:15so over millions of years,
50:17ever larger and brighter human brains
50:19may have held more appeal for human partners.
50:31Our wit and wisdom, expressed through language,
50:35and so demanding of brain power,
50:37may have less to do with survival
50:39and more to do with sex.
50:41Whatever the cause,
50:53our exceptionally complex brains
50:55are light years on
50:57from those first connecting nerve cells.
50:59The raw material
51:01which evolution has woven
51:03into such exquisitely complex calculating machines.
51:07into brains that span a breathtaking range
51:13in size and ability,
51:15and which empower animals
51:17to make sense of their world.
51:25Behind every set of eyes
51:27is a state-of-the-art survival tool.
51:29A hidden weapon, constantly at work,
51:31computing a winning course through life.
51:35And the story of brain power is an evolving journey.
51:45One whose twists and turns
51:47are hard to predict.
52:01But one thing is certain.
52:03evolution is thrifty
52:05and will continue to equip animals
52:07only with the brain power they really need.
52:17In a remarkable triumph of life,
52:19our species has scaled
52:21new intellectual heights,
52:23developing a conscious mind
52:25that can think beyond itself
52:27and imagine other realities.
52:29our mind
52:37Our mind has a unique ability
52:39to contemplate its own fate
52:41and the fate
52:43of life itself.
52:45To learn more about what you've seen
52:49on this nature program,
52:51you can learn more about what you've seen
52:53on this nature program,
52:55you can learn more about what you've seen
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