Are vegetarian animals at the bottom of the food chain? Can a male lion beat a mature giraffe and hunt it

Can a mature African lion beat a mature giraffe? Do lions hunt prime giraffes for food?

The lion is the number one top predator on the African continent. Through the observation and research of scientists, it is found that the lion has attacked all the vegetarian and carnivorous animals on the African grassland. .

However, when faced with large vegetarian animals such as mature elephants, rhinos, and giraffes, lions also feel overwhelmed.

Where are the giraffes in the food chain?

This is actually quite understandable. In nature, some carnivores will be at the top of the food chain, and they will hunt other vegetarian animals; while vegetarian animals are generally at the bottom of the food chain, they are preyed by carnivores. .

However, the status of many vegetarian animals that should be listed at the bottom of the food chain is difficult to distinguish. For example, large vegetarian animals such as gorillas, elephants, and rhinos are short-tempered and have super fighting abilities. Hand-to-hand combat against the enemy.

Therefore, even if these large vegetarian animals face top predators such as leopards, lions, and hyenas, they will not be at a disadvantage in the battle. Obviously, the giraffe, the tallest animal on land, is also a vegetarian animal.

"High Altitude" Animal Giraffe

Giraffes are the tallest animals in the world. Larger adult male giraffes can reach about 6 meters, and larger females can reach about 5.5 meters. Males can weigh 1,800 to 4,000 pounds, and females can weigh 1,400 to 2,600 pounds. The average length of the neck can reach about 2.5 meters, and the baby giraffe just born is about 1.6 meters to 1.8 meters.

In fact, just looking at the head of a giraffe, it looks very much like a camel with horns, so the Latin translation of giraffe is "camel with stripes". Their eating habits are also very similar to camels. The teeth of giraffes are very primitive and low-crowned. They cannot eat grass as their main food, but can only eat twigs on trees.

A giraffe's tongue, like a camel's, curls up to wrap the thorny leaves in its mouth before chewing. Giraffes live in the savannah areas of Africa, where there are 9 species and are also unique animals in Africa.

Under normal circumstances, giraffes are rarely preyed on by predators such as lions, mainly for several reasons.

First: Giraffes often mix with zebras, ostriches, zebras and other animals. Their hearing and vision are very keen, they can warn each other of danger, and they are the tallest animals themselves. Standing high and looking far away, they can observe the arrival of danger in advance. .

The running speed of a giraffe can reach 60 to 70 kilometers per hour. The antlers and flexible neck of the giraffe are its important weapons. The kicking of the giraffe is also its most important means of defense. kick.

Especially mature giraffes, there is almost no food that will risk their lives to prey on them.

Lions also prey on giraffes, but they are only old, weak, sick, and young giraffes

Lions are the most ferocious apex predators in Africa, and their only competitors are hyenas. The lion is also a very rare group animal among the big cats. At present, there are 6 subspecies of lion coexisting in various regions of Africa.

According to scientists' research, nearly half of the animals in the lion's diet are African bison, nearly one-fifth of the giraffes, and the remaining animals are zebras, warthogs, baboons and other animals.

The average weight of giraffes hunted by African lions is about 1,600 pounds, which shows that these giraffes are old, weak, sick, and young. Therefore, according to the analysis of the lion's eating habits, the mature male lion will not attack the mature giraffe.

The opportunist lion will not easily attack the prime giraffe

Lions, like hyenas, are typically opportunistic predators, preferring to attack prey that is very easy to catch, rather than risking their lives to attack prey that appears to have no chance of winning.

The weight of a lion can reach more than 400 kilograms, while that of a giraffe in its prime can reach about 4,000 kilograms. This 10-fold difference in weight is also an insurmountable gap for lions to hunt giraffes.

In addition, even if it catches up with a giraffe at a speed of 70 kilometers per hour, the powerful hooves of the giraffe are too dangerous for the lion. The hind hooves of the giraffe can easily break the skull of the lion.

When lions hunt giraffes, they hunt in groups

Although the giraffes hunted by lions are all old, weak and sick, they are all the result of team hunting by the lions. No male lion has ever hunted giraffes alone.

The way lions prey on giraffes is very primitive. They will jump on the giraffes' backs or hang on their legs, then bite, and finally wait until the giraffes lose too much blood and die, and then they can enjoy the giraffe feast. But a mature giraffe can easily get rid of the lion and run away quickly, using its hind hooves to attack.

at last

Although lions can hunt giraffes, they are all vulnerable individuals among giraffes, and the lions cooperate to hunt giraffes. An adult male lion wants to capture a mature giraffe, and the risk is too high for lions. Adult male lions Can't beat a mature giraffe