Surviving the Ancient Grasslands (Full Episode) | Hidden Kingdoms of China | Nat Geo Animals

This is a story of an incredible creature, the Tibetan fox, living in one of the most remote places on Earth, China's Great Plains, home to many remarkable animals. China is a realm of diverse landscapes, full of rare and surprising creatures. For the first time, we'll uncover their remarkable untold stories. In the hidden kingdoms, China, the Great Plains of China, part of the biggest grassland on Earth, covering a third of this mighty country at altitudes of 16,000 feet. For nine months of the year, snow and ice make this land impenetrable. Then, for a few brief months of summer, it becomes a land of plenty. It's a great place to raise a family. But it's a race against time and tests all to the limit. The most extraordinary animal to live in this special kingdom is the whammo. Or to you and me, the Tibetan fox. A creature rarely filmed before, now he gives us a unique and privileged view into his life and the many challenges in this fast-changing wilderness. It's the start of summer on China's high grasslands. Life is waking up after a long winter. Our Tibetan fox male has a family of four lively youngsters. They only emerged from their den a few days ago, after a month underground. Tibetan foxes normally have just two or three cubs, so this family of four is quite a handful. The cubs are totally dependent on their parents for care and protection. They're always hungry, so mom and dad must take it in turns to hunt. And today, it's dad's turn to stay at home and babysit. Mom goes off to find lunch, leaving behind four sets of hungry eyes. For their safety, the young cubs must stay close to their den and watch the world go by. There's a lot to learn about their grassland home and those they share it with. There's no stopping three boisterous boys. Their smaller sister finds it all rather exhausting. Our foxes live on the grasslands that cover China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Fifty million years ago, this was an ancient sea, but when the Himalayas were formed, it was thrust three miles high. Today, melting glaciers from the surrounding mountains create hundreds of lakes, which nourish these great plains. Our fox family lives along the shores of one of the largest, mighty Dongae Chona. For most of the year, it's covered in ice, but during the summer, it becomes a precious oasis. Its waters feed the surrounding grasslands, helping to support a diversity of life. The foxes share their grassland home with a surprising little creature, Plateau pika. It's a close relative of the rabbit, but much smaller, just six inches long. Pikas live in large underground colonies of hundreds of individuals. They spend most of the summer grazing the nutritious grass and can eat as much as half their body weight each day. Every pika family has a home range of over half a square mile and their digging helps aerate the soil. Their droppings add crucial fertilizer to the grasslands and in parts of Qinghai where pikas have previously burrowed, this happens. Pika are the gardeners of China's Great Plains, and key to maintaining this grassland kingdom. Back at the den, Dad's still looking after the cubs. Mom is yet to return with food, and the family is getting hungry. Luckily for them, the food they most like is fairly widespread – pikas. Pikas make up to 95% of the Tibetan fox's diet, so it's no coincidence the parents chose to make their den near this colony. Dad has a slender muzzle and extremely long canines, which help to hook the small pikas from their burrows. His big and powerful jaw muscles make his head unusually large, which helps to hide the rest of his body when he's hunting in the open. To feed his large brood, Dad needs to catch 20 pikas each day. It's a tall order, and Mom is still nowhere to be seen. He has no option but to head out again to try to catch more prey. Our four rowdy Tibetan fox cubs are hungry and home alone. Mom is still away, and Dad is hunting in the nearby pika colony. The pikas have mowed the grass so short, he must use the slightest contours of the land to conceal himself. This pika is grazing near to its escape route, so Dad needs to get within 10 feet to stand a chance. Dad is a great provider, so all the cubs have what they need, even the little female. Time now for a well-deserved rest while he continues to wait for mom. As summer progresses, Donggeziya comes alive with seasonal visitors. Migrating birds come to nest on its mosaic of wetlands, some traveling over a thousand miles to get here from northern India, flying right over the Himalayas. There's a special reason why they come here. Donggeziya lies directly above one of China's largest and most active fault zones, Kunlun Fault Line. The constant movement of the earth's crust creates bubbling springs through the porous rock. This enriches the lake with minerals, so the waterside plants and insects flourish, providing plenty of food for the seasonal visitors and their chicks. The rich grasslands that surround the lake also hide one of China's rarest antelopes, the Tibetan gazelle. This fawn is only a few hours old. At such a tender age, she's highly vulnerable. Her secret to survival is to keep as still as possible. She slows her heart rate by half, which reduces her breathing, and keeps noise to an absolute minimum. Her underdeveloped scent glands make her almost completely odorless. Mom keeps watch on her from a safe distance until she's two weeks old, when she encourages her out of hiding. older more active gazelle fawns now join the main herd. They've developed a smell predators could pick up, but they've also got speed. Uh-huh, uh-huh. Agile creatures have one more trick up their sleeve. At the slightest hint of trouble, They flash their tail. It's a way of communicating with one another and confusing any predators. For the first few weeks of their lives, Tibetan gazelle fawns need all of these tricks to survive. Back at the fox den, there's still no sign of mom. She's usually only away from the den for a few hours, but she's been gone for days. Little do they know, something tragic has happened. Cubs want their mom, but tragedy has struck on China's grasslands. A cub's mom has fallen victim to Tibetan wolves. For her family, this is a huge loss. China's high plateau can be relentless. Even at the height of summer, ferocious snowstorms sweep in, pushing temperatures well below freezing. Small creatures can escape underground, but others have no place to hide. This can make the difference between life and death in this barren kingdom. Luckily, the summer snows don't last that long. At the pika colony, a surprising family takes up residence in an abandoned burrow. White-rumped snow finches. On these high plains, where there are few trees, the finches prefer to nest underground. They migrate here from the lowlands to take advantage of the seasonal glut of insects. The fledgling chicks demand a constant supply of food from their hard-working parents. Little do they know what danger lurks in their summer meadow. An Asian badger, one of the high grasslands' most prolific hunters. He will eat virtually anything. His sense of smell is 800 times more acute than ours. And he's caught the scent of something mouth-watering. Snowfinch chicks. They're too young to fly. All they can do is duck for cover. Their parents alarm call to try to distract him. No use. Nesting in a burrow, you can become easily trapped. He digs at one end of the finch burrow, then the other to corner his prey. It's very tough for the finch family, but it's important for the badger. He needs to put on several pounds of fat if he's to survive the winter. The badger is now on his own, the sole provider and carer for his family. More driven than ever to ensure they remain well fed and learn how to hunt. One way he does this is by leaving objects around the den for them to pounce on and play with. The rule is that by the end of the summer, they'll be able to fend for themselves. Until then, he's got his work cut out. Dad has to do more than just provide food for his family. He also has the task of scent marking the perimeter of his territory, which covers four square miles. It's a huge task. Marking the territory is hard work. You've still got to catch the pika along the way. Two jobs at once. Dad's tired. for four mouths to feed. He's not going to give up. At the height of summer, China's high grasslands echo to the courtship duet of very rare visitors, black-necked cranes. Almost the entire world population of an estimated 11,000 nest along the shores of China's Great Lakes during the summer. It's a safe place to raise a family, and there's plenty of food. For centuries, Tibetans have revered these birds as symbols of longevity and harmony between people and nature. China's grasslands are some of the highest flowering meadows on Earth. They can experience huge swings in temperature, even at the height of summer, plunging 40 degrees Fahrenheit in a matter of hours. As dawn returns, the Great Plains are locked in ice To survive these temperature extremes, the plants here have evolved some useful tricks. Fine hairs on their stems and leaves trap the heat. Large root systems and bulbs help with food storage. Some even grow protective pods to insulate their delicate flowers. Yet one plant in this kingdom has a more sinister approach. Don't be fooled by its beauty. As elegant as it is, broomrape is a vampire of the grasslands. This parasitic plant doesn't absorb the food it needs from the earth. It preys on other plants, attaching itself to their roots, sucking the water and goodness from them, leaving its victims to wither and die. Dad is trying to get some rest, but it's difficult with such rowdy cubs. They're hungry and starting to take their frustrations out on one another. Most fox cubs have two parents feeding them. But even with this combined effort, one out of every five will still die. So the odds are stacked heavily against our dad's family. But he's determined to do all he can for them. His energy levels aren't what they were. and the pika seem to know it He's come home empty-handed. and the cubs are increasingly desperate to make matters worse. They've developed a dominance hierarchy, with the strongest brother overpowering his siblings. He makes sure he gets first dibs on any food dad brings home. Dad can do nothing about their squabbling. He has to continue to search for food. The smallest of his cubs is now at her most vulnerable. The largest species of wild ass in Asia, kiang. They come here to the summer pastures that surround Donggekiona. Experienced matriarchs lead groups of females here from the lowlands to feed on the rich summer pasture. They can put on nearly 90 pounds in grazing weight in just three months. As they graze, the females sometimes cross into a territory held by a stallion. Summer is kiang breeding season, and this male wants to keep them on his land. Some of the females still have foals from last year, so they viciously fight off his advances. All this commotion attracts one of the grassland's most dangerous predators, the Tibetan wolf. This pack is looking for any weak or vulnerable individuals. Deliver fatal kicks so the wolves weigh up the odds. The females form a protective circle around their young. The wolves wisely choose to move on. Strength and unity keep the Kiang safe. This time things are looking bleak for our Tibetan fox family. Little sister is desperately weak and it looks like she won't survive to see winter. The short window of summer on these grasslands gives life, but it also takes it. Dad is running on empty. And to make matters worse, his failed attempts keep the pika colony on high alert. But wily Dad has keen senses. His ears can detect the low-frequency sounds of pika communicating and scurrying underground. He's just not quick enough, and the pikas have underground escape routes. But his acute sense of smell detects something else. Guarding pika. It may be smelly, but it's food. The two stronger brothers fight over the meager meal, leaving their weaker siblings with nothing. What happens next may change their fate. In summer, new migrants arrive on China's high pastures, Tibetan herders. They bring their sheep and yak here To fatten up on the bountiful grass. Like their ancestors have done for thousands of years. Overnight, the grassland is transformed. The fox cubs wake to a completely different world. Their home is now swamped in livestock. The sheep and yak are also destroying dad's hunting ground. Every time he hunts, the sheep blow his cover. The yak make life hard. Gradually, the sheep accept him. He can now use them as a mobile hunting blind. The pikas are oblivious to the approaching danger. Tibetan foxes are intelligent, adaptable. This is why they are the most successful hunters in all of China's grasslands. In fact, dad is becoming too successful. One mouth, four pikas, at last. There's now more than enough food for all four cubs. Even the youngest gets her fill. Dad catches so many pikas, he and his cubs can afford to bury the surplus in their underground pantries. Keeps the meat cool and preserved, a crucial supply of food as winter approaches. As the days close in and the temperature drops, China's grasslands go into shutdown. Residents retreat to the shelter of their burrows. Visitors move out to warmer climes, where foxes grow thick fur coats in preparation for winter. Dad's dedication to his family means that, miraculously, all of his cubs are alive. They will stay with him for the next four months before setting off on their own life adventures. Maybe next year Dad will try again, a new mate and a new family. But for now, the grasslands will vanish beneath the snow, and the Great Plains will once again become China's truly hidden kingdoms.