Beast Mode Battles (Full Episode) | Animal Fight Night Compilation | Nat Geo Animals

All over the world, species clash in nature's savage battle of survival. On the highest mountains, in the open ocean, across vast deserts, all are locked in deadly conflict. Animals fight tooth and claw to win food, territory, and rights to the bloodline. From the heart of Africa to the Himalayas, there are no rules. This is Animal Fight Night. On the plains of Africa, a lioness and a female Cape buffalo are engaged in full-on war. The lone lioness has her sights set on the buffalo's 3-month-old calf. But at 5 feet tall and weighing 1,000 pounds, this buffalo mother is an unstoppable force. Every time the lioness gets near to the helpless calf, the mother steps in and shuts down the attack. (bellows) The lioness must be careful. An injured hunter is as good as dead. She can't get too close to the buffalo's 20-inch horns. (grunts) She has to decide whether pursuing the kill is worth the risk. This hunt could end in dinner or disaster. Just before the lioness can make a choice, the bulldozing buffalo makes it for her. The calf looks safe. But it's not over. Lions are highly intelligent. And they're also masters of deception. They can vanish beneath tall grass in a split second. It's how they stalk prey. As the buffalo mom chases the lioness off, she loses sight of her. The lioness vanishes. The calf is now alone and exposed. Suddenly, the predator emerges from her hiding place and attacks. It looks like game over for the calf. But the buffalo mother returns in the nick of time. She slams into the lion. And fights off repeated attacks. But just when it looks like the cat is giving up, the situation gets drastically worse for the buffalo. The action has attracted the attention of not one, but two more pride lionesses. (bellowing) (growl) The desperate mother fights on, but is fooled into a second trap. One of the lionesses lures her into a chase. And then a second corners her. She's caught between two full-grown killer cats. And knows that just yards away, the third already has her calf. (growling) Family is a lion's major strength. Today it's the buffalo's weakness. It's all over for the baby... and her courageous mother. When it comes to top predators, there's nothing more chilling than a shark. Sharks are believed to have roamed the ocean for 450 million years. They've survived all five mass extinctions, giving them plenty of time to perfect their fighting skills. They're the ocean's top killing machine. At three feet long, this Pacific spiny dogfish shark is no giant, but like its bigger cousins, she's a predator to be reckoned with. She kills by relentlessly pursuing her prey. One of her favorite lunching options is octopus. This giant Pacific octopus has ways to avoid being seen. His main strategy: state-of-the-art camouflage. Using specialized skin cells and muscles, the octopus can change both his color and texture to match the appearance of his environment and blend in with any background. But in the much tighter quarters of a 400,000-gallon aquarium, these creatures are bound to face off. This octopus is trying his best to go unnoticed, but the spiny dogfish shark is on the prowl. The shark doesn't use her eyes alone. She can detect movement in the water up to 330 feet away, and she'll strike at the slightest of triggers. She can project her jaws by an impressive 30% of her total head length to reach her prey. She then creates a vacuum to suck her prey into her mouth. Interlocked, her teeth act as a sharp blade, ideal to sever an octopus arm. She senses something, but it's too late. The hunter has become the hunted. This is the biggest species of octopus in the world. He's more than eight times the shark's weight. The giant octopus wraps his six-foot-long arms around her. The shark tries to escape her captor's grip, but she won't win using strength alone. The shark has a secret weapon: poisonous spines at the bottom of her dorsal fins. Almost one and a half inches, they can puncture through the octopus' arm to inject their venom. But the shark can't get in a position to stab the octopus. Each of his arms has 240 suckers that create such powerful suction, even a hundred of these sharks couldn't pull it off. The octopus will finish the job with his kiss of death. His mouth is like a bird beak, solid and powerful, designed to cut through food covered with shell. So it's an easy job to bite into the shark's neck. He injects deadly venom, which paralyzes his victim and begins to digest her flesh. It's the killer move... literally. ♪ ♪ But a predator's killer move can sometimes mean their own death. In the Himalayas, this snow leopard is the apex predator of a territory that rises nearly 20,000 feet. Against rock, her camouflage makes her all but disappear. She's after ibex. But makes a mistake. She's exposed on snowy ground. The ibex spot her. (grunt) Her cover's blown. In this harsh environment, only 1 in 5 of a snow leopard's hunts ends with a kill. (hiss) She'll survive off a carcass for up to 4 days, and only hunt less than once a week. A tactic that conserves energy, but means every kill is critical. The leopard finds another target. A bharal. She's a 100-pound prize, but she has her own deadly defense strategy. Specialized split hooves help bharal scale near-vertical cliffs. So, they graze close to cliff edges, to give them a fast escape route and lure enemies into danger. This time, the leopard learns. She stalks low against the rocks, then pounces, and makes a deadly error. (crash) (roar) Chasing the bharal at a 40-mile-an-hour sprint, the snow leopard's momentum takes them both over the edge of a 400-foot drop. They stay locked in mortal combat. The leopard hits powder at over 40 miles an hour. The bharal tries her downhill getaway strategy. But the leopard digs in. Her prey may be a mountain escape artist, but she is a freefall specialist. The mid-section of a cat's spine has three more vertebrae than a human's, with highly elastic discs. This helps them twist their body in midair to adopt freefall position: an ability known as the aerial righting reflex. By flattening out, they can increase their surface area and their drag, and their long, muscular legs can absorb more energy on impact. So, the bharal may be a goner, but the hunter lives on, with a prize that will keep her going for another week. Anything goes in the world of Animal Fight Night. (screech) And sometimes, the smallest creatures pack the biggest punches. Meet the boxer shrimp. He may only be two inches long, but he's got a mighty uppercut. He's the marine world's miniature Muhammad Ali... (bell rings) ...with an unusual way of disarming his opponents. This Australian coral reef is home to thousands of boxer shrimp. Mating partners live in tiny cracks and caves. And competition for real estate is fierce. This male is on guard duty. So when a colorful contender turns up to steal his rocky home, a showdown is inevitable. Just like in a human boxing match, there's a buildup. The challengers check out their opponent. They square up. Resident red-and-white champ on the left, versus the little red-and-white hope on the right. They feel each other's size with probing antennae. With the formalities done... ...the fight is on. Round 1. They throw lightning jabs and grapple in a test of strength. But there is no round 2. They may be close in size, but the contender is out of his depth. Sensing defeat, he does something mind-blowing. He detaches his own arm. The champ has him on the ropes, the intruder's claw held tight. So the only way he can escape is to give up his arm. Leaving it there with the king of the ring. With the contender successfully dispatched, the victor wins a grisly championship belt to decorate his trophy cabinet. The intruder may have lost this round, but his arm will grow back. And with a bit more practice, one day he could be the Rocky of the ocean floor. (roaring) Some of nature's fights seem totally improbable. And then you can throw away the Animal Fight Night rule book. (yelp) In the Amazon basin of Peru, the black caiman is right at the top of the food chain. The largest of all the alligator species, they are masters of stealth. In this single lake, there are hundreds of these ambush hunters. Some lurking at the water's edge, right where giant river otters build their dens. These family-oriented mammals may look cute, but they are red-blooded carnivores that catch and guzzle down up to 36 quarter-pounders' worth of fish a day. From tip to tail, the largest are longer than the average American man is tall. Known as river wolves, mom, dad, kids, and babies all live, hunt, and travel together. (squeak) But it's not for fun; it's for protection. A caiman recently killed two of this family's five pups. Now another blocks the entrance to their den. Resting or pup hunting? (squawking) He is not welcome here. Working as a team, giant otters can kill and eat a small caiman. But this death machine is 16 feet long. Evicting his 800-pound bulk calls for different tactics. So the family begins by circling the armored beast. This will distract the caiman, so that dad can sneak up and bite his tail. It's a risky maneuver. Dad has 38 sharp teeth and a vicious bite that can shatter bones; enough to pierce the skin below the caiman's tail ridges. But this beast's not budging. The otters have just started a fight, but will they survive to finish it? The river otters have attacked a caiman over twice their size, and now it's the big guy's turn to strike. (squeaking) In the chaos of battle, one of the pups gets too close. The caiman flicks his massive neck at lightning speed, searching for otter flesh. With his explosive power, he can knock out any animal with the force of 17 bowling balls. And his wide-open jaw is a lethal trap. If he catches an otter, he will grip it, drown it, then swallow it whole. But caiman tire easily, so the otters need to wear him out. By mounting the caiman, this otter is out of the strike zone and able to bite. But the caiman's neck is covered with hard, bony scales that act like armor. So the others go for his soft underbelly, where their long canines puncture his skin. The fight goes on for nearly an hour. The caiman, over ten times heavier than a single otter, runs out of energy first. His muscles fill with lactic acid, and he can't move. The otters overpower him, holding him down to finish him off. This caiman is no longer a threat. The otters have won, but there's a cost. Two pups are missing. Deadly danger can lurk anywhere. On the savanna, the trees camouflage a solitary assassin: the leopard. At 130 pounds, a full-grown female leopard is around a third the size of a lioness. But pound for pound, the leopard is one of the strongest of the big cats. And here in South Africa, close to the border of Mozambique, there's a rich supply of four-legged cat food. But a thriving population means adult siblings will never be far apart. And leopards are loners... and fiercely territorial. This female has more reason than most to want to keep her territory to herself. She's a new mom with a young cub. She'll spend her next 2 years as a dedicated mother, providing for and protecting her child. But there's another childless female in the neighborhood. The intruder picks up the mother's scent. She seems familiar. Her younger sister. The leopards share the same mother. But this intruder's a half sister from a different litter. In this case, family ties count for nothing. She's marched into her sister's territory. In open ground, they come face to face. Mom's not looking for trouble. But big sister is aching for a fight. Leopards can run at over 30 miles per hour. Her 130-pound frame slams into the mom. It's a tumbling furball of fury. The mom lands on her haunches. Lightning fast, she slams down her rival. Her left paw fends off the sister's counter. She bares canines over one inch long. She's fiercer, faster, and ready to kill. Mom's in total control. Her sibling's fury turns to fear. Beaten, she has to leave and keep her distance. Mom's message to any other sisters: Don't mess with me. Animals battle to protect their young. But for kingfishers, even mating can be a fight to the death. Pairing up in spring, kingfisher males use fresh sushi to attract their girl. (chirping) When she finally accepts, their marriage is sealed. And the nest-building begins. But as this happy couple fixes up the nursery, an unwelcome visitor shows up. A desperate female. A home-wrecker who wants this territory and its resident male. With finely honed aerial combat skills, the new bride chases her rival off. But the home-wrecker is headstrong, returning to battle it out. These featherweight fighters may weigh the equivalent of just 34 paperclips, but with their flying skills and sharp, strong beaks, they are highly evolved killing machines. After their full-on beak-to-beak warfare, something totally unexpected will happen! To keep her guy, the new bride kingfisher is trying to drown a rival home-wrecker by forcing her head underwater. But the home-wrecker employs her jump-jet technology... ...and manages to break free. But only to catch her breath. Then it's back for the final round. The pocket-sized home-wrecker gets the upper hand. She's trapped the new bride's beak in hers and uses all her strength to hold it shut and drown her. Now the new bride fights for her life. And it looks bad. She is exhausted. Her wings waterlogged, heavy and useless. The home-wrecker has her by the neck. An American mink. It's a voracious predator that loves the thrill of the kill. Executing with a single bite to the neck. The home-wrecker didn't stand a chance. The new bride dived to safety. She's lived and keeps her territory and her man for now. A quick death can be nature's version of kindness. But it can be cruel when you see it coming. (rattling) With more venomous creatures than anywhere else in America, the Sonoran Desert is no place for the timid. As night falls, one of its most terrifying residents begins his prowl. This giant desert centipede is almost five years old. At seven inches long, he's one of the largest centipedes in the world, and tonight, he's got a big appetite. To kill his dinner, he uses weaponry hidden beneath his head. He can paralyze and kill using his two huge venomous claws. He secretes a venom more potent than most scorpions. It's a cocktail of dozens of toxins. A dose can kill an ordinary mouse in a matter of seconds. There's even an account of one killing a human. This centipede's stores of venom are full. He's got enough to take down 12 mice. He's just got to find one. (distant cry) (sniffing) She might not look like a warrior, but looks can be deceiving. (whistling) She's a grasshopper mouse, and she's heading out to find her own dinner. Her shrill howl can be heard for over 300 feet. In the Sonoran Desert, she knows you either kill or get killed. She spots the centipede. He's already got one mouse in his claws, and he wants her next. It's a fight to the death. The giant centipede throws his back legs at the mouse. He saves his venom for when he can get a strong grip. Each of the centipede's 42 legs has a claw on the end to restrain its prey. They're so sharp, they can cut right through the mouse's skin. Covered in needle-like legs, the mouse gets a battering. The centipede's tail looks very similar to his head, where his venomous claws are. This is for his killer move. As the mouse tries to bite him, he twists himself to inject his venom, but he misses. Like a kung fu master, the mouse escapes with a 180-degree jump. She finally reveals her game. Unlike any other mouse in North America, she eats meat, and she has a taste for centipede. Her strategy: death by a thousand cuts, one bite, one kung fu escape jump, again and again. But the centipede won't give up. He narrowly misses her eyes. They are her most valuable hunting tools, so she protects them by closing her eyes in close combat. The mouse takes successive small bites. With each, she further immobilizes the centipede. She needs him still to eat him safely. This desert king has lost his crown, and he makes a 100-foot-long sub for the new queen. Persistence can be decisive over life and death. But sometimes it just takes brute force and epic violence to seal the deal. South Africa in the dry season. These chacma baboons live in close-knit troops of around 50 members, where the elders keep a watchful eye on their young. A crucial job when these are the neighbors at your local pool. (screeching) The Nile crocodile is the most ferocious crocodile in Africa. Males can grow up to 19 feet long and weigh up to 2,000 pounds. They are the second largest of all living reptiles, a brutal killing machine. They can eat half their own weight in one sitting, and there are an incredible 60 of them at this pool, fiercely competing for water and food. And food comes in the form of thirsty baboons. The more patient family members have a cunning solution. They dig pits at the pool's edge and drink water from the bottom. But this 10-year-old nursing mother needs water so desperately, she's beyond caution. She's drinking directly from a pool infested with starving crocs. This hungry female teenager has her eyes on the reckless baboon. The mother keeps drinking. This is a huge mistake. The croc grabs both mother and baby. The Nile crocodile has one of the most powerful bites on Earth. The croc's sharp, conical teeth are designed to sink into her catch's flesh, allowing for a grip that is almost impossible to loosen. Her next move: drown her victims. But clamping down on both mother and baby proves tricky. The croc adjusts her bite, and with impeccable timing, mom escapes. But her broken arm is a death sentence. Her family raises the alarm. In the confusion, she dropped her baby. He's alive, but only just. The baboons must distract the croc before she gets the baby. First, the baby's uncle taunts the croc with his body. He swings out of the way like a matador and uses his most lethal weapon: sharp canine teeth. His canines are two inches long, almost as long as a lion's. He aims right for her back. The skin on the crocodile's back is thickened by bony plates, an armor so tough a knife would struggle to pierce it. She escapes his bite and snatches the baby. But now the other crocodiles want to steal her snack, so she leaves the water. This time she has dad to contend with. At 70 pounds, he's a worthy adversary. He pummels her again and again, chasing and grabbing the croc to try to make her drop his baby. The croc is beat. She heads back to the water without the baby. The baboons' teamwork crushes the super predator, but dad's heroic rescue is too late. The baboons' troop have lost a member, a loss that will take some time for this dad to accept. Africa's Serengeti, where it's kill or be killed. A starving female hyena searches for food. It's the dry season. Mass migration means that prey is in short supply. Picking up the scent of a carcass over a mile away, she takes a huge risk, leaving the protection of her clan. She trespasses into rival territory; an act punishable by death. (shrieking) Hyena clans are led by dominant females. Made up of extended families up to 80 strong. (shriek) If they catch a hyena from another clan, they won't think twice about killing the trespasser. As the clan devour a kill, they see the lone hyena sneak closer. The famous hyena call alerts the clan to her presence. It can be heard nearly 3 miles away. (yipping) The lone hyena flees for her life. Just as they take down prey, gang leaders bite into the tendons of her back legs to disable her. Pound for pound, hyenas have the most deadly bites on the planet, delivering 1,100 pounds per square inch, 40% more than a leopard. Enough to bite through human bone. Hyenas can rip apart and devour a whole zebra in half an hour. This intruder is an easy challenge. One bites down on her ear. As the gang savage her, scavengers go after the unguarded kill. The hyenas must choose between their food and dispensing gangland justice. Luckily for the lone female, the kill comes first. She flees. Next time this hungry hyena will search for food somewhere a little safer. If battling over food is bad, imagine battling over your home. The woodlands of North America. Woodpeckers hammer bark at a mind-blowing 20 times per second. Twice as fast as a machine gun fires bullets. Their beaks hammer tree trunks to access bugs. But it's also nest construction hardware. Woodpeckers are the model of hard work and enterprise, but some of their neighbors have lower standards. (chirp) The starling's beak is also sharp and pointed for prizing out bugs. But he lacks a rapid-fire action, so ferociously freeloads on the woodpeckers' hard work. These birds have a history of violence. This northern flicker woodpecker is busy doing home improvement. He hammers at a hole to widen the entrance to a cozy nest. But a pair of starlings lurks on the fringes. When his back's turned, they profit from woody's hard labor. Mrs. Starling takes up residence and claims squatter's rights. Woody hammers down on the trapped female. Her partner looks on, weighing up the odds. Finally, the man of the house takes action... ...and guards the threshold. It's on! Woody wants his home back. He rains shattering hammer blows down on the starling. The squatter needs a way to disarm that weapon. So he hangs on tight. His sharp beak tip is dangerously close to the woodpecker's eyes. Woody braces and uses his powerful neck muscles to break free. Woody needs a new tactic. He grabs the starling's beak. But this sitting tenant isn't going anywhere. It's stalemate. (chirps) Starling obstinacy claims the day. And the future of a new brood of nest bandits is secure.