O is for ...
One thing that makes most people confuse is the belief that any animals can be characterised neatly. When I was young, most mammals could be neatly grouped as herbivores, carnivores and omnivores. The group of omnivores was quite small consisting mainly of man and pigs. It turned out that most herbivores do have the ability to change their vegan diet. They maybe meat light but that that does not mean they do not eat meat.
A fair number of primates eat meat (And I mean flesh of other animals not just insects). Some are willing to practise cannibalism.
As for the safe (for humans that is) animals that are herbivores, it turned out that some do like meat. Now I know that some people will claim that humans have been playing god with farm animals. That is why we have the mad cow disease. We fed cows other animals parts. Except that we have not touched the wild. Deers eat meat. Cows eat Skittles too but that this another story.
Now, why is the diet of animals changing? The truth is that our understanding of animals was incomplete in many ways. To find out what an animal ate, you needed to observe it round the clock. Alternatively, you could analyse its stool to see what it ate. If your sample was small, you merely found out what the animal usually ate which was not an honest picture. If you were missing during the rainy or winter season, your knowledge about the rainy or winter season would be based on assumptions. (If you were observing animals during winter or rainy season, you may need a life. But thank you for your contributions to further our understanding of science.)
Fortunately, it turned out that some carnivores were also omnivores. If you exclude the feline family, you will intereested to know that most other big mammal predators are omnivores. Bears eat fish and berries. Dogs eat whatever leftovers they can find.
The point is that it is pretty hard to say what animals eat just based on what they appear to evolve. Ruminant animals are not always mean herbivores. Canine teeth do not mean carnivore. Camels have sharp teeth but we do not view as a predator.
In conclusion, the brain is the only thing that decides what is for dinner.
A fair number of primates eat meat (And I mean flesh of other animals not just insects). Some are willing to practise cannibalism.
As for the safe (for humans that is) animals that are herbivores, it turned out that some do like meat. Now I know that some people will claim that humans have been playing god with farm animals. That is why we have the mad cow disease. We fed cows other animals parts. Except that we have not touched the wild. Deers eat meat. Cows eat Skittles too but that this another story.
Now, why is the diet of animals changing? The truth is that our understanding of animals was incomplete in many ways. To find out what an animal ate, you needed to observe it round the clock. Alternatively, you could analyse its stool to see what it ate. If your sample was small, you merely found out what the animal usually ate which was not an honest picture. If you were missing during the rainy or winter season, your knowledge about the rainy or winter season would be based on assumptions. (If you were observing animals during winter or rainy season, you may need a life. But thank you for your contributions to further our understanding of science.)
Fortunately, it turned out that some carnivores were also omnivores. If you exclude the feline family, you will intereested to know that most other big mammal predators are omnivores. Bears eat fish and berries. Dogs eat whatever leftovers they can find.
The point is that it is pretty hard to say what animals eat just based on what they appear to evolve. Ruminant animals are not always mean herbivores. Canine teeth do not mean carnivore. Camels have sharp teeth but we do not view as a predator.
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| Monkey eating a durian in the wild |
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