Big Cat Diary
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| Big Cat Diary | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Also known as | Big Cat Week |
| Format | Documentary |
| Starring | Jonathan Scott Simon King Saba Douglas-Hamilton (2002-present) |
| Country of origin |  United Kingdom |
| No. of episodes | 15 (since rebranding) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 25 mins |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | BBC One |
| Original run | July 1996 – Present |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
Big Cat Diary (known as Big Cat Week from 2004 - 2006) is a documentary film that has been running since July 1996 on BBC television. The documentary is set in the Masai Mara and follows the adventures of big cats. Normally each year they have a lion pride, a cheetah and a leopard.
The series is set in the Masai Mara. The reason the Mara is such a great place for a documentary is because of the great migration. This means there will be a lot of hunting for the animals they film and also a greater chance of survival.
Big Cat Diary was first filmed in 1996 and shown on BBC One. Updates followed, and new characters were introduced every two years or so on BBC Two. In 2002, the two original presenters, Jonathan Scott and Simon King, were joined by Saba Douglas-Hamilton.
In 2004, there was a change of format for the fifth visit to the Mara. BBC One showed nightly programmes over the course of a week instead of over several months. In 2005, for the first time, they were able to put exclusive broadband footage on the website adding context and detail to the TV experience.
In 2006, there were new programmes with a BBC Three spin-off, Big Cat Uncut and a 10th anniversary special. The first video field reports from the 2006 filming trip were a new addition to the website.
Contents |
[edit] The cats
[edit] The lion prides
- The Marsh Pride
They have been the most successful group to be filmed for Big Cat Diary. They have appeared on the show every year since the show started. The longest-standing member of the pride is Khali, who was eight years old when Big Cat Diary started in 1996.
- The Ridge Pride
This pride has only appeared in the more recent series. The main lions in this pride are Cheza and Sala. These two are young cubs that are growing up together despite having different parents. They were one of the main features of the 2005 series.
- Tamu and her four cubs
Tamu, focus of the 2008 series, is a lone lioness with four cubs, fathered by Notch of the Marsh Pride. Tamu is a social outcast. Tamu has to hunt alone, keep her strength up and provide for her four cubs. She is met with hostility from all lions, especially the lionesses from the Marsh Pride. Tamu lost one of her four cubs in a lion attack.
[edit] The cheetahs
- Fundi and Cubs
In the first series, the show followed Fundi and her adventures trying to protect her cubs. There were two cubs. One of the cubs was a mischievous cheetah and the other always followed her brother. This usually led to trouble.
- Amber
Amber was first seen as mother to three small cheetah cubs, one later named Kike. She had a distinctive notch in her right ear. Amber was one of the first cheetahs to jump onto the jeeps and use them as advantage points to spot prey. She was last seen and filmed in 1999.
- Kidogo and cub
Kidogo was also part of the first series and continued for many years onwards. A first-time mother, Kidogo hunted regularly to keep her cubs well-fed; this led to her being a very entertaining cat.
- Kike and her three cubs
Kike made her debut in the first Big Cat Week in 2004. Discovered at Rhino Ridge, Kike was mother to three small cubs. This was Kike's fourth litter but she hadn't succeeded in raising even a single cub successfully before. Like her mother Amber had done, Kike used the jeeps as advantage points for prey and even occasionally as toilets. The three cubs went on to appear in the 2005 Big Cat Week.
- Honey and her cubs, including Toto
For 2006's Big Cat Week, viewers were introduced to an adult female and her young cub, Toto, a Swahili word meaning ‘little one’. The mother was a cheetah called Honey, although this was not known until after the filming of the series.[1] When he was first filmed, it was estimated that Toto was only 6-8 weeks old, making him the youngest cheetah cub ever to be filmed on Big Cat Diary. Keeping Toto alive seemed to be a constant battle for his mother: he survived close encounters with baboons, lions and other dangers. It is estimated that only 25% of cheetah cubs make it to maturity.
In the final episode of the series, Toto went missing overnight after a storm, and was not found. It was reported a few days later that Honey, was found living alone. Nobody knows what exactly happened, but little Toto did not survive. The end credits that year consisted entirely of footage of Toto.
Honey returned in the 2007-2008 series. When filming began, she had four cubs, but one, a female, was soon lost in a lion attack. She was last seen alive feasting when Jonathan Scott noted that Honey was being risky by letting her cubs feed for so long. The cub was found the next day by Honey, dead, in a thicket of grass.
In February 2007, nearly an entire year before her final appearance on screen Honey was killed after a tragic blunder by a vet when the vet shot her in the wrong place with a tranquilising dart. The dart did not go into the muscle but hit her in the stomach near her kidneys. Oblivious to his mistake, the vet went on to treat Honey's cub while she was left out in the scorching afternoon sun. [2]
As of April 2008, Honey's three remaining cubs are doing well. After her death, the Mara Conservancy had to provide food for them for several months. However, they are now fully grown, hunt on their own, and are self-sufficient. It is believed they have even taken down an adult Topi. The three of them are now quite a killing machine when they hunt together. [3]
[edit] The leopards
- The leopard family
Big Cat Diary only followed one leopard family through each generation. This family started with Half-Tail. Half-Tail was one of the most famous big cats and appeared on the show for quite a few years. She was named Half-Tail after a babboon chase in which she lost half of her tail. Half-Tail only ever managed to raise three cubs. Shadow and Beauty were her daughters and were both featured in the series. She also raised a male cub called Mang'aa. Half-Tail had her sixth and final litter of cubs in 1998 but was sadly killed when she attacked the livestock. As her cubs were too young to fend for themselves they died shortly afterwards. Shadow was to be the next leopard they followed and she went on to have a cub herself called Safi. When the show returned in 2004, a new family was chosen ending the line.
- Bella and Chui
Bella and Chui appeared on the show together for two years. They first appeared in 2004, when Bella was Mum to two small three month old cubs, Chui and his sister. Months after filming ended, Chui's sister vanished. It later became clear she was dead, most likely killed by Lions. In 2005, the public and crew said goodbye to Chui and saw what should have been the final shots of them together, as he'd leave Bella's side and protection sometime after filming. In October 2006, it was announced on their website that Chui had now been chased away by the resident male and Bella was now mating again. Chui has now been reported to have moved to a new territory down river, where he was seen a month ago mating with a new female in Bella's adjacent territory.
[edit] International broadcasters
- Canada - Animal Planet
- United States - Animal Planet
- Portugal - SIC
- Mexico - Canal 40
- Turkey - TRT 1
