Active Defense and Predator Specialization

By: Jed and Damien

What is Active Defense?

Active defense is a form of defense in motion, for example: running, jumping, attacking and evolution.

Some animals are armed with weapons like sharp teeth or a stinger.

Animals can also evolve to give themselves things like sharper teeth, longer teeth, thicker skin or longer legs.

The animals will evolve to use anything it can to protect itself.

Examples of Active Defense

Why do animals have Active Defense?

Animals, prey especially need it because their predators will always be hunting their species.

Active defense is use full because it allows the prey to either escape the predator’s attack or it allows them to escape their predator’s successfully.

Passive Defense – Camouflage

Defense due to the presence of a structural component that is already present in its body

Mimicry – the technique to imitate another creature

Camouflage – involving shape, colors, and patterning modification

Ex: Quills on a porcupine

Active Defense – examples

A male chameleon guards his territory fiercely against rival males and frightens them off by inflating his lungs which puffs up his body.

Rattle snakes have a rattle on the end of their tail that they use to scare away predators that would try to kill it, although it doesn’t work well on flying predators.

Predator Specialization

What is Predator Specialization?

Types of predators

-Generalist- Predators who hunt anything

-Specialist- Predators who specialize in one prey and evolve according to their prey and the environment

Examples of Predators

Generalist – Lions (impalas, buffalo, zebras, warthogs, etc…)

Specialist – Weasels (small rodents)

Generalist and Specialist plants

Being a generalist and specialist isn’t limited to the animal kingdom.

For example; some plants require very specific temperatures, soil conditions and light to grow like and survive like marijuana while others such as the cactus require very little water and don’t require very rich soil at all.

Predator specialization - Generalist

A generalist species is able to thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions and can make use of a variety of different resources

Omnivores are usually generalists, they are generalists because their diet consists of many things such as multiple plant species and multiple prey.

Predator Specialization - Specialist

A specialist species can only thrive in a narrow range of environmental conditions or has a limited diet.

Herbivores are often specialists, but herbivores that eat a large variety of different plants may be considered generalists.

A well-known specialist is the koala, almost the entire diet of the koala consists of eucalyptus leaves.

Evolutionary Arms Race

The predators and prey constantly evolve -Whenever prey’s defense gets improved (poison, run faster, etc . ) the predator must adapt to these changes so that the equilibrium is maintained.

Example of evolutionary arms race

A parasite and its host Dodo bird became extinct because it lacked the experience of constantly evolving to beat the invasive species (such as: crab eating macaques)

Female lions vs. Buffalo

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=d6d_1179792837

Bibliography

www.blueplanetbiomes.org

http://www.slideshare.net/NickHardwood/active-defense-and-predator-specialization

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generalist_and_specialist_species

http://www.wonderclub.com/Wildlife/reptiles/common_chameleon.html

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=d6d_1179792837

http://animals.howstuffworks.com/mammals/african-buffalo-defense.htm

http://www.firstpeople.us/pictures/bear/Feeling-Grizzly-1600x1200.html

http://www.african-safari-pictures.com/porcupine-facts.html