Zambia's Liuwa Plain.
These vast grasslands are home
to one of Africa's most successful predators...
..spotted hyenas.
For over a decade,
radio collars have provided a unique insight into
the lives of one formidable group...
..the South Clan.
In hyena society, it's the females that dominate.
Every member has its own rank,
and the most powerful of all is their queen.
From getting the most food to the chance of having
a larger family, she gets the best of everything.
But now, it's a critical time for the South Clan.
Their queen is dead,
and her throne is for the taking.
HYENAS YELP
The Clan faces a power struggle.
Who will be the new hyena queen?
With the death of the South Clan's old queen,
her two-year-old daughter, Sia, should be next in line.
The crown normally passes from mother to daughter...
..but Princess Sia is too young to take power.
The throne has been seized by another.
This is Suma...
..the South Clan's new queen.
The support of allies is vital for not only taking power,
but holding on to it.
Suma has managed to gather enough
backing to take the top spot.
But it's the worst possible time to become queen.
Liuwa is in the grip of
the most extreme drought in living memory.
There's been little rain for 18 months.
The herds are long gone, and with little to hunt,
the South Clan are starving.
At the den, only two cubs have survived.
One of them is Suma's son.
She's managed to keep him alive this far...
..but if her cub is to survive much longer,
the new queen needs to find food.
Her best chance is to head north, in search of the herds.
But beyond the safety of the clan's territory,
she'll be vulnerable and exposed.
But Suma is not alone.
Her allies have followed.
They're stronger together,
and the group are banking on Suma to lead them to food.
Checking for scent
tells them if rivals have passed this way.
They're now far beyond the boundary of their territory.
They need to be on their guard.
These small pools are worth the risk.
They exist even in the driest of times,
a draw for herds from miles around.
This is why Suma has brought them here.
Within days,
a wildebeest calf can run as fast as the herd.
But hyenas are built for endurance.
A charging adult wildebeest could kill her...
..but Suma won't give up.
A precious meal.
By allowing them to feed with her in peace,
Suma reinforces the support of her allies.
By seizing the throne, she and her dynasty should now have
the best chance of survival.
Back at the den,
in the heart of the Clan's territory,
Suma can now nurse her son, Shay.
DISTANT THUNDER
Thankfully, relief from this drought is finally on its way.
The rains recharge pools with fresh water...
..bringing life back to the plains.
The herds return,
and the South Clan gather to make the most of this season of plenty.
Surrounded by her allies,
Queen Suma's position looks comfortable.
But troubles are never far away.
Princess Sia is becoming an increasing threat to Suma.
Growing bolder and claiming as much food as she can.
She continues to edge closer to adulthood.
The higher ranking a hyena is, the more food they get.
Suma gets her pick at any meal.
Low-ranking males have to wait their turn
at the dinner table.
Having eaten her fill,
Suma stashes the leftovers.
This male can't resist a game of hide and seek.
With failing eyesight,
he'll have to rely on his other senses to find the prize.
Nope.
He's getting closer.
Suma doesn't seem particularly bothered.
By tolerating his impertinence,
she might gain his allegiance.
It's got to be here somewhere.
And he's nothing if not persistent.
Bingo.
Suma lets him get away with it.
They're only scraps after all.
And perhaps now she'll have one more supporter.
One of the queen's most important allies is the clan's best hunter,
Sarah.
She's large,
fast...
..and powerful...
..but she's also patient.
The best time to hunt is after nightfall.
While Suma spends time nursing her cub at the den...
..Sarah heads up a night hunting party.
They test the herds for weakness,
charging at them to create confusion and panic.
An adult wildebeest is a good meal.
As dawn breaks,
the queen follows the sound of their feasting.
Her trusted ally, Sarah, has provided.
And now Suma can claim her royal share.
The queen's son Shay is now a year old,
and growing in confidence.
He has inherited high status from his mother,
and tries his luck suckling from another female.
SHE WHINES
SHE YELPS
Not today.
He's also starting to explore his surroundings,
as youngsters do at this age.
But for any young hyena,
the plains are packed with dangers.
And here in Liuwa,
there's no greater risk than rival hyenas.
The South Clan territory is being
constantly raided by them at this time of the year.
The last thing any young hyena wants to do is to cross their path.
Shay has been attacked.
For a youngster, wounds like these can be fatal.
He's lucky to have made his way back.
Suma makes sure her son gets to feed...
..using her status to force all the others away,
even hunter Sarah.
Sarah will have to wait her turn.
Shay is Suma's priority.
But soon, her attention will need to turn to her allies.
Princess Sia, daughter of the old queen,
is coming of age.
She may just be playing with her brother...
..but she is a threat to the new queen.
Suma keeps an eye on proceedings.
It's time for her to remind them that she is still boss.
Sia, despite her growing strength,
has been made well aware of the queen's power.
Suma's support base is continuing to grow.
One of her close allies, Sitale, has had twins.
These are the first cubs to be born since the drought.
Like their mother, these cubs will be Suma's allies too.
But for now, the twins' demands are rather exhausting.
Whilst they're distracted playing,
Sitale can grab a little relaxation time.
Pure bliss.
The perils of falling asleep in the bath.
All too soon...
..it's time to get back to feeding duty.
On the other side of the pool,
the queen is ready to keep growing her own dynasty.
She's choosing her mate.
It's a long, drawn-out process that can last weeks.
Until she makes her decision,
Suma will be followed everywhere by potential suitors.
Meanwhile, her son Shay is continuing
his journey towards independence.
But he is still injured and weak.
This is one of the hardest times for hyena cubs.
Suma can't look after him forever.
Only half of all hyena cubs make it to adulthood.
Four months have passed and it's still a time of plenty.
Although apparently alone, Suma still holds on to power.
And what is more,
she's done something that may help secure her legacy.
For weeks, she's kept away from the group,
hiding a secret...
..two tiny cubs.
Now, it's time to introduce them to the rest of the clan.
She carefully carries each one of them to the den.
These little cubs are precious.
Even more so,
as one day either could become queen.
Meanwhile, Princess Sia has been busy
building support of her own.
She seems to be deliberately spending more time
in the company of potential allies.
Out on the plains, the queen's crucial ally, Sarah,
is leading another hunting party.
Wildebeest bulls are an ambitious target.
But as they fight for territory, these two have dropped their guard.
Head on, a bull is well-armed and dangerous.
Sarah, however, is undeterred.
But they're all heading towards danger.
A deep pool, full of matted weeds.
A potential deathtrap.
Understandably, the hunting party keeps back.
All except Sarah.
She won't give up.
SHE WHINES
Out of their depth and tangled in weeds,
both hunter and hunted are in peril.
The wildebeest takes its last breath.
EXHALES WATER
Sarah is lucky to escape with her life.
Another of Suma's loyal supporters,
Sitale, has reached an important moment for her family.
Her twins are on their first trip away from the safety of the den.
But female hyenas can sometimes harm or even kill cubs
that aren't their own.
It's a nervous time for both cubs and mother.
Princess Sia arrives.
Without the queen around, she immediately starts to harass
both the twins and Sitale.
THEY WHINE AND CHATTER
With this aggression,
Sia is reminding everyone here of her growing status...
..and perhaps of her ambitions.
The twins flee,
followed by their mother.
Sitale tries to calm her cubs,
by encouraging them to feed.
By her actions,
Sia is now sending a message to the clan.
She has a claim to the throne.
Queen Suma has remained at the den,
leaving Sia unchecked.
The threat Sia poses continues to grow.
The dry season is coming again.
As the water recedes,
Liuwa transforms once more.
And the herds are on the move.
Queen Suma should be mother to a growing family...
..but her den is empty.
We'll never know what fate befell them,
but here on the plains,
life for hyena cubs is a constant challenge.
Being a mother hasn't come easily to Suma...
..and now her position as queen is at risk, too.
Princess Sia is coming into her own.
She's now a fully grown adult,
dominating a kill made by hunter Sarah.
To strengthen their bond,
Sia allows her to feed in peace.
She gets a sign of respect from Sarah.
One by one, the most powerful females join and greet Sia.
It is Queen Suma.
As she moves in to feed,
she pushes off hunter Sarah.
But Sia challenges.
Her confidence has grown,
especially with her new-found support.
Even Sarah's loyalty appears to be shifting.
It's an uneasy truce
as both queen and princess feed side by side...
..for now.
Just one year has passed since Suma became queen.
She was once surrounded by allies,
but now her support is dwindling.
Hunter Sarah is no longer on her side.
This crucial ally has switched loyalties.
The story of this clan is about to change.
THUNDER RUMBLES
Several months have passed on the plains.
And the struggle to become the South Clan's queen
has reached its final act.
Sia is approaching the den.
Flanked by her trusted allies.
Suma is waiting.
Sia heads directly towards her.
Without strong enough alliances to back her up...
BARKING
..Suma submits.
She is no longer queen.
There is a new order in the South Clan.
But Sia and the strength of her alliances are soon tested.
Under the light of the full moon,
the clan are feasting.
All too soon, they have company.
A rival clan.
They have invaded the South Clan's territory
to steal their food.
The rivals continue to advance...
..But that is close enough.
Sia charges.
And her allies unite behind her,
driving the rivals out of her territory.
Together they have the strength to defend their kill.
And the South Clan have the territory to themselves once more.
For Sia, it's been two years since her mother,
the old queen, passed away.
Now, finally,
her dynasty is returning to the throne.
Sia is a princess no more.
Suma has lost the crown and all that goes with it,
but there is a silver lining...
..a new cub.
She has another chance of raising a family.
One day, her dynasty may rise again.
The Dynasties team spent two years
in Zambia's Liuwa Plain National Park,
following and filming the resident hyena clans.
Hyenas have typically had quite a bad press.
They're often portrayed as just scavengers,
but they are incredible animals,
and that's why we're doing this.
Amazing predators, amazing mums,
and they have really fascinating social groups.
Each individual has so much character, so much personality.
Liuwa is one of the best places in the world
to film hyena.
But they are facing one of the hardest times in recent memory.
We're just getting set up to go and see the hyena
for the first time this trip.
Obviously, we're really excited to get out see how they're doing,
but we had some really worrying reports last night
to say that they're in a terrible condition,
because there is nothing for them to eat,
and there's just no water.
This corner of the continent has endured one of
the worst droughts on record.
For generations,
people have lived alongside wildlife here,
but with fishing now difficult and crops failing,
local communities look to other sources of food.
Hunters set crude wire traps,
snares to catch antelope.
But snares don't discriminate,
and an increasing number of hyena are falling victim
to their deadly grip.
The Zambian Carnivore Programme have been working
with Liuwa's wildlife for over a decade,
but more and more of their time is now spent rescuing,
rather than studying the animals.
So we're going to dart this hyena now, and remove the snare,
and then hopefully she or he will heal from her wounds.
The team must get close enough to fire a tranquiliser dart.
But the hyena is moving into an area of long grass,
which conceals some unwelcome obstacles.
With the vet stuck,
a second team keeps an eye on the hyena's location.
Can you see us? We've got visual.
Just be ready for a lot of bumps.
A little helping hand from the film crew,
and the team are back on track.
She's stable. Temperature is fine, respiration is good.
They must work quickly.
It's very deep.
It's gone like two, to two and a half centimetres inside.
The snare is a wire noose that tightens as an animal struggles,
and digs into their necks.
If it had pulled too tight, it could have killed her.
Now we have just, we removed the snare,
and then we're just cleaning it up a little bit,
and then she will be fine.
Hyenas have a remarkable ability
to heal from such seemingly horrific injuries.
With the wound cleaned, the vet administers a reversal drug.
She can finally rejoin the rest of her clan.
Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident.
Just heard on the radio that another snared hyena's been spotted.
Although no members of the South Clan were snared during filming,
four hyenas from other groups had to be rescued in a single week.
If this would've been on her much longer, she would have died.
With climate change, droughts will become more frequent.
They will become more severe.
Animals will have to move to find food.
There will probably be more clashes between animals and humans.
Increased contact with humans inevitably puts
hyena under even greater threat.
But, despite all of this,
through collaboration between researchers,
park management and the wildlife authority,
over the last decade,
the Liuwa hyena population has actually been increasing.
And finally, for crew and hyena,
there are promising signs on the horizon.
The rains are coming. The grass is coming up,
and the wildebeest are starting to return.
The females are going to calve soon, so everyone's coming back together.
The sense of relief for everything and everyone just is palpable.
WHISPERING: Here's our buddy.
Hello, little champ.
With continued vigilance,
hopefully this place will remain a sanctuary
for these often misunderstood animals for many years to come.