The Ark Files - Wild Parents

Baby too hot? Baby too cold? Baby just right!

Honeybees have evolved a clever way of controlling the temperature in the hive nursery. They use their antennae as thermometers to tell them when the nursery has become too cool. Then they begin to vibrate their wings, creating mini-heatwaves which warm up the air again. If the hive gets too hot in summer, the bees collect drops of water which they hold under their chins. As the drops evaporate they cool the hive down once more.

The Australian bush turkey builds a huge nest of sand and vegetation in which eggs are incubated. Dad turkey constantly checks the temperature of the nest mound with his heat-sensitive mouth. If the eggs are becoming too cool he removes some of the nest covering to allow the sun's rays to rewarm them. If they 22Come on, hop in!

The toothy jaws of a crocodile would hardly be considered either a comfortable or safe place to be. But inside her mouth is exactly where a mother crocodile places her children. As they hatch, she gently gathers her babies into her mouth where they are safe from predators and carries them down to the river. Here the little crocs get their first spa bath, swished around in mum's chompers.

One big family

Elephant mothers usually all have their babies at the same time. The females support each other and the relatives take part in bringing up the babies so everyone in the herd learns to care for the calves. When it is time to give birth the mother-to-be is surrounded by a protective circle of relatives whilst “midwives” help with the birth.

Elephants take a long time over most things. They wait till they are 10 or 20 years old before having their first calf and then they are pregnant for nearly two years. They also suckle their young for six long years!

The cold bear facts

Polar bears give birth to their cubs in a den under the ice and snow in the sunless winter and raise them there until they emerge in the early spring. In these harsh conditions the mother must conserve energy to suckle her young, so she has a very short pregnancy and the cubs are born small and helpless. The tunnels leading to the den are so cleverly made that the nursery is 20 degrees C warmer than the winter air outside. The mother also keeps it very clean by eating all the baby poo!

When the cubs are finally let out and about, their mother is careful to avoid the father who will kill and eat his babies, so scarce is food at the polar caps! The female spends a lot of time teaching her youngsters to hunt and kill seals as this will be their main source of food. The cubs' first journey to the sea can be up to 22km and it's not surprising that in these extreme conditions and with agro male polar bears to contend with, 70% of polar bears die before their first birthday!

Bees make the best nannies

Busy as a bee? You bet! Parenting seems never-ending in a hive. Queen bees employ female workers who first clean the hive, then tend the brood by incubating the eggs and building new nurseries. They also make more wax, guard the hive entrance and go out collecting pollen and nectar.

Mr Mom

Dads can make great mothers, too. The males of some birds such as herons and black headed gulls help in building the nest, feeding the female, incubating the eggs, feeding the young and cleaning the nest site by removing broken, smelly egg shells which can encourage predators. The dads also protect a territory from other birds, ensuring the mother has her own safe area in which to collect food for herself and her offspring.In a species of water bug, the female lays a clutch of eggs which she glues to the back of her mate. He then cares for his children by taking them to the surface to give them air to speed their growth.

Animal babysitters

Hunting dogs and wolves bring back the shopping by regurgitating chunks of meat to begging adults and young. In some cases adult childminders remain with the defenseless cubs while the rest of the pack goes off on a hunt. Aunts and uncles are fed when the others return.

Breakfast in bed

A species of beetle provides food for its young by building them a nest made out of the rotting flesh of dead animals. Some wasps lay their eggs inside a large caterpillar and when the baby wasps hatch they eat the caterpillar from the inside out!

Let's do the conga

The European shrew has a very funny way of getting the children to "all hold hands". The mother shrew can "imprint" her large family to recognise and follow her wherever she goes. She leads them from one place to another by giving a command to grasp the fur of a brother or sister, and then sets off with a caravan of babies trailing behind her.

Cheetahs move their cubs every few days. It would be easy to lose mum in the tall grass of the African plains if it were not for the bright, white tip of her tail which she raises