Fwd: Re: Carnivores and Packs

[Flyinggoat@aol.com]

I 'slipped'.  Meant to send it here in the first place.....
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Forwarded message:
Subj:    Re: Carnivores and Packs 
Date:    95-02-03 13:32:55 EST
>From:    Flyinggoat
To:      larrys@zk3.dec.com

>Well...deliberately so.  I take it as a given that predators will
>take relatively defenseless juveniles of virtually any species if
>given an opportunity.  What I am getting at is the "normal" mode
>of hunting -

   Hunting juveniles IS the normal mode of hunting for most of the predators
mentioned.  The number of kills of juveniles in any area is ALWAYS higher
than the number of kills of adults of the same type.  It may be more romantic
to think of the conflict between an adult zebra and a pack of hyeanas, but
it's MUCH more frequent that it's an adult zebra trying to protect it's young
from the pack of hyeanas.  In North America, wolves will take on baby moose
and elk any day of the week, but it takes a nasty winter for them to try for
an adult.  You can get hurt by an adult, even crippled. But as Tom has
pointed out, wolves are a lot smarter than therapods.   Perhaps therapods
might because they don't know any better.

Betty Cunningham(Flyinggoat@aol.com)