Carnivore
From Freepedia
- For other uses, see Carnivore (disambiguation).
A carnivore is an animal that eats a diet consisting solely of meat, whether it comes from live animals or dead (scavenging).
The word also refers to the mammals of the Order Carnivora, many (but not all) of which fit the first definition. Bears are an example of members of Carnivora that are not true carnivores. Carnivores that eat primarily (or only) insects are called insectivores.
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Animals that are obligate carnivores
An obligate or true carnivore is an animal that subsists on a diet consisting only of meat. They may consume other products presented to them, especially animal products like cheese and bone marrow, or sweet sugary substances like honey and syrup, but, as these products are not essential, they do not need to consume these on a regular basis. True carnivores lack the physiology required for the digestion of vegetable matter.
Domesticated carnivores are often recommended to have vegetable supplements (or such containing processed pet foods) as meats designed for human consumption may be lacking in vital nutrients.
- Cats (not only including domestic cats but also including lions, tigers, and other members of the cat family.)
- Dogs (again not only domestic dogs, though it is debated whether they are carnivores or omnivores, but wild dogs such as coyotes and wolves etc.)
- Hyenas
- Some mustelids
- Polar Bears
- Birds of prey, including hawks, eagles, falcons and owls
- Scavenger birds, like vultures
- Several species of waterfowl including gulls, penguins, pelicans and storks
- Anurans
- Snakes
- Crocodilians
- Sharks and many other species of fish
- Toothed whales
- Octopuses and squid
- Spiders
- Mantophasmatodea, Reduviidae and other insects
There are also several species of carnivorous plants, though most are primarily insectivorous, some digest nematodes and other small invertebrates.
Many dinosaurs were obligate carnivores, namely most –if not all– theropods, like Tyrannosaurus rex. Sauropods and ornithischians were herbivorous.
Words with same roots "eater of flesh" but different meaning
- Carnivore
- Sarcophagus
