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I generally think we give animals too little cognitive credit, but this argument doesn't convince me. A predator, in finding prey that looks dead, does not have
by Jeff_Brown 5y ago
I generally think we give animals too little cognitive credit, but this argument doesn't convince me. A predator, in finding prey that looks dead, does not have to understand either that death is permanent or that it implies non-functionality. It just has to believe that the prey would probably, if eaten right now, be gross.
- sombremesa 5y agoIt’s likely even simpler than that. Animals live mostly by instinct. Predators usually sneak up on live prey and chase it, whereas scavengers will happily eat animals that are already dead. I’m willing to bet that the “play dead” strategy backfires spectacularly against vultures, for example. It doesn’t take more than an encounter with a house cat to see how their hunting instincts work. They’re just not triggered by dead things.