By Plucky young chimpanzee David captured our hearts during the first episode of David Attenborough's Dynasties on Sunday when he fought valiantly to regain control of his pack following a vicious spat with another male. Sadly, he has since passed away.
Researchers at Fongoli Savanna Chimpanzee Project in Senegal, Western Africa say David died in February. He was found with fatal wounds believed to be from an attack by Jumkin and Luther, the same male chimp he fought off in the series.
Jill Pruetz, director of the project, said he was likely jumped by the pair who have now taken control of the troop.
"He died from wounds inflicted from what I’m sure are these young males," she told The Telegraph.
"There aren’t other animals that would have inflicted wounds like that - especially when you have multiple individuals attacking a single individual.
"He was very aggressive that’s why he held onto his dominant status for so long. He was pretty clever but our best interpretation of what happened is that these adult males jumped him."
Pruetz said David was her "favourite chimp" and she had been hit hard by his loss, especially as his brother was also killed just a few months ago. But she doesn't believe the current power dynamic will last long.
"I imagine Jumkin will be alpha for a while," she told the paper. "However, you can see Luther [another beta] already challenging him a bit...The dynamic is really different now."
Viewers were left shocked by the brutality of life in the pack. David and fellow alpha male Luther fought for control, leaving the scrappy young chimp gravely injured.
The troop had moved on when David recovered from the attack, but he courageously picked himself up, found the pack and staged an incredible comeback. His standoff with Luther is already being heralded as one of the most moving scenes of the series.
Dynasties returns this Sunday on BBC1 at 8:30pm.
