#ANIMALS THAT ARE SCAVENGERS FREE#

For example, on the African savannah, cheetahs are at a severe disadvantage despite the bounty of carrion, they’re built for bursts of speed over short distances, and are easily bullied off their food by stockier big cats and hyenas. Interestingly, the same useful meat-thieving traits can and do work in different environments albatrosses regularly take dead squid floating on the sea surface, for example these birds have so many similarities to vultures that they have been dubbed the “vultures of the sea”.īut there are surprises too. This was the idea set out by the research team, whose work shows that you can position any animal – extinct or alive - on this scale, based on its biological traits and its environment. We should, therefore, think of different species in terms of where they sit on a scavenging scale, on which those best suited to the lifestyle appear at one end, and those ill-suited to scavenging are sited at the other.

#ANIMALS THAT ARE SCAVENGERS FREE#

Even a hungry vulture will hunt, should the opportunity arise, while regal lions will regularly “lower” themselves to taking carrion if it provides a free lunch.

Instead, meat-eating species are spread along a gradient. But research shows there is no sharp distinction between a scavenger and a predator.

Both can detect carcasses from huge distances away, and both are able to move over vast areas without breaking a sweat. Typically, vultures and hyenas are the species that come to mind when we think of scavengers, and for good reason. An environment containing next to no wildlife isn’t going to be a good place to start your search, and it’s even tougher in fast-moving rivers where any bodies soon become swept away. Their work also suggests that the same ingredients produce different end results when the recipe is varied, because good scavengers can live in vastly different environments and look very different from one another.Īny sense that allows you to detect an unmoving meal is a particularly useful trait for a would-be scavenger – especially when it is coupled with an ability to search far and wide for scattered food. That’s according to collaborative research from scientists at Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, St Andrews University, and Imperial College London, who argue that Mother Nature requires the right mix of biological ingredients to make a good scavenger. All the better to eat you with.īut how would you find out whether your chosen species got by on dead meat, or if it survived and thrived by catching live prey? To answer that kind of question you have to go beyond teeth and look at many other aspects of its biology - from the way the creature moves to how far it can see. The chances are you’ll then have a good idea if it’s a meat eater or a vegetarian.

Animals that are scavengers