{"id":237,"date":"2022-02-14T11:00:57","date_gmt":"2022-02-14T10:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.discoverwildlife.com\/?p=52714"},"modified":"2022-02-14T11:19:16","modified_gmt":"2022-02-14T10:19:16","slug":"cannibal-animals-10-creatures-that-eat-their-own-kind","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/cannibal-animals-10-creatures-that-eat-their-own-kind\/","title":{"rendered":"Cannibal animals: 10 creatures that eat their own kind"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Leoma Williams\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 14 February 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Cannibalism \u2013 the act of eating an individual of the same species as food \u2013 is often not a good idea, and not just because of our own human morals. It can lead to the spread of some very nasty diseases, as well as the evolutionary cost of potentially eating your own kin.<\/p>\n

However, it is not as rare as you might think. In fact, it has been recorded in more than 1,500 species, and as with all behaviours, there is often a good evolutionary reason behind it. These reasons are varied, and cannibalism can take a few different forms, read on to find out more.<\/p>\n

10 examples of cannabilism in the animal kingdom<\/h2>\n

1. Chimpanzees<\/a> (Pan troglodytes<\/em>)<\/h3>\n
\""Alpha\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Alpha male chimpanzee, Kibale Forest National Park, Uganda. \u00a9 Marc Guitard\/Getty<\/em><\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Although primarily herbivorous, chimpanzees<\/a> do enjoy eating meat occasionally, hunting for monkeys and bush pigs. Their tastes can be even closer to home, however. We may not like to think of our closest animal relatives indulging in something so gruesome but they sometimes feed on their own too.<\/p>\n

This primarily takes the form of eating newborn infants. It is thought that male chimpanzees do this when they don\u2019t think they are the father, to free up breeding opportunities from new females, and to outcompete other males.<\/p>\n

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