
This article was most recently revised and updated by John P. Without scavengers, carrion would lie on the ground and rot. Animals that eat dead animals are immensely important as they play a vital role in our ecosystems, such as. All scavenger animals have an excellent sense of smell, which helps them track down rotting carcasses from miles away. A clan of 30 hyenas may drive off a small group of lions and steal their kill. Scavenger species are necessary to a thriving ecosystem. Some of the most common animals that eat dead animals include hyenas, vultures, coyotes, crocodiles, and coyotes.

Lone hyenas live mostly on carrion, but where large populations exist they form packs and hunt by night. The spotted hyena, widely known as a scavenger, has heavy jaws equipped for crushing bones. Most large mammalian predators-e.g., the lion and the wolf-will opportunistically eat of a carcass killed by another animal. The bald eagle will scavenge dead fish whenever possible, but it hunts when necessary and will rob the kill of an osprey. © MinuteEarth ( A Britannica Publishing Partner) See all videos for this articleĪmong vertebrates there are species such as the vultures that exist solely on carrion. The strategies that scavengers, such as vultures, burying beetles, and spotted hyenas, have developed to thwart illnesses caused by microbes and other pathogens that inhabit the carrion they consume. SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning.100 Women Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.
#Animals that are scavengers how to
COVID-19 Portal While this global health crisis continues to evolve, it can be useful to look to past pandemics to better understand how to respond today.

