Plot Synopsis

Guided by big cat tracker Boone Smith, URBAN JUNGLE is a three-part series that takes a closer look into cities, suburbs and the outskirts of towns, revealing which creatures lurk in the shadows and which ones aren't afraid to stand out in the streets. Black bears sleeping in basements, baboons breaking into kitchens, and coyotes snatching pets out of backyards -- as humans continue to build and expand cities and suburbs around the world, animals are losing their homes. Boone begins his journey in the most densely packed city in the world -- Mumbai. Most residents don't see the leopards prowling the streets of Mumbai at night. Using night vision cameras, Boone exposes just how close these big cats come to city doors and that some leopards will travel more than 4 miles into the city to find the pounds of meat they need per day to survive. Mumbai isn't the only city bustling with invaders. In the heart of downtown Manhattan, rats are a typical sight, and city dwellers learn to get used to them. But what they don't always notice are the red-tailed hawks scanning the packed streets like snipers. In suburban Lake Tahoe, where there have been more than 1,000 reports of black bears over the past year, Boone uses heat-sensing cameras to track the bears and the warm dens they are drawn to. Whether in Chicago, New York, Cape Town or Mumbai, wild animals have made themselves at homes in our cities and towns -- and the more they learn to adapt to city living, the more they will thrive, creating an urban jungle. Nat Geo and Nat Geo Wild simulcast URBAN JUNGLE, as both cable channels broadcast all three episodes consecutively from 8-11pm ET/PT on Sunday, August 3, 2014.