Thursday 08:00PM
BELLA AND HER CUBS

Following in the footsteps of Big Cat Diary Family Histories comes the fascinating story of Bella the leopard, one of the undoubted stars of the highly popular natural history soap opera Big Cat Diary. Bella is a leopard in her prime - seven years old and owner of a territory centred around a stretch of the Talek river in the world famous Masai Mara. Her two young cubs rely on her skill and experience to keep them fed, watered and safe from harm in a world where hyenas, baboons and lions prey on them.

We follow Bella as she hunts migrating wildebeest, teaching her cubs valuable skills for their own survival in the future. The cubs practise their own stalking technique, experimenting on unsuspecting birds, butterflies and even their own Mum!

Despite being one of Africa's top predators, leopards - especially leopard cubs - are vulnerable to some of the other wildlife of the Mara. Almost half of the cubs never reach adulthood, and we return to visit Bella eight months on to find out how the cubs have fared. Have brother and sister both survived?