Cannibalism in the animal kingdom - Bill Schutt
Check out Bill Schutt's "Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History": http://bit.ly/2HLWjrU View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/cannibalism-in-the-animal-kingdom-bill-schutt Until...
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In the deserts of the American Southwest, spadefoot toad tadpoles hatch in tiny oases. Until they develop into toadlets, they can’t survive outside of water, but these ponds are transient and quickly evaporate. The tadpoles are in a race against the clock to grow up before their nurseries disappear. So nearly overnight, some of the brood explode in size. They use their jack-o-lantern teeth and huge jaw muscles to devour their smaller pond mates. Nourished by this extra fuel, they develop quicker, leaving the pond before it can dry out. The spadefoot toad is far from the only animal to eat members of its own species as a normal part of its life cycle. All of these animals do. If that surprises you, you’re in good company. Until recently, scie...
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In the deserts of the American Southwest, spadefoot toad tadpoles hatch in tiny oases. Until they develop into toadlets, they can’t survive outside of water, but these ponds are transient and quickly evaporate. The tadpoles are in a race against the clock to grow up before their nurseries disappear. So nearly overnight, some of the brood explode in size. They use their jack-o-lantern teeth and huge jaw muscles to devour their smaller pond mates. Nourished by this extra fuel, they develop quicker, leaving the pond before it can dry out. The spadefoot toad is far from the only animal to eat members of its own species as a normal part of its life cycle. All of these animals do. If that surprises you, you’re in good company. Until recently, scie...
