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Both male and female parents have been observed to do this, as well as sterile worker castes in some eusocial animals. Filial infanticide is also observed as a form of brood reduction in some birds species, such as the white stork. [45] This may be due to a lack of siblicide in this species. [46]
In zoology, this commonly refers to the killing and in some cases consumption of newborn animals by either a parent or an unrelated adult of the species. In carnivores, it is common for an unrelated male to commit infanticide to make females sexually receptive. Parental infanticide is sometimes a result of extreme stress by human intrusion.
Some rodent species (most typically males) will take the chance to kill neonates that are unrelated to them should opportunity permit. There is thought to be several benefits by doing so, which not only include nutrition benefits (particularly where food is in short supply [8]) but also non-direct benefits, such as allowing access to more resources, improving reproductive opportunities and the ...
The higher frequency in common marmosets may be due to a variety of social, reproductive, and ecological characteristics - including higher likelihood for overlapping pregnancies and births (due to short intervals between births), habitat saturation, and lower costs of infant care compared to other callitrichids - that increase the chance of ...
A boa constrictor in the U.K. gave birth to 14 babies — without a mate. The process is called parthenogenesis, from the Greek words for “virgin” and “birth.” It tends to occur in ...
Alpha female dwarf mongooses and African wild dogs kill offspring other than their own, but alpha males do not. [23] This may be because the breeding alpha may have sired a rare subordinate's offspring. Subordinate females time their pregnancies such that they give birth several days after the alpha female, to reduce the risk of infanticide.
Some animals starve to death shortly after birthing their young while others are eaten by their own young -- but these mothers make the ultimate sacrifice. Click through for 10 animal mothers that ...
Vertebrate maternal behavior is a form of parental care that is specifically given to young animals by their mother in order to ensure the survival of the young. [1] Parental care is a form of altruism, which means that the behaviors involved often require a sacrifice that could put their own survival at risk. [1]