My Science School

The word carnivore usually describes animals that feed on meat, but not all meat-eaters belong to the carnivore group, nor do all carnivores eat meat.

Carnivores include cats, dogs, and bears as well as weasels, raccoons and mongooses. Most are meat-eaters, but others feed on insects and fruit and some eat only plants. They are grouped together because they are all descended from mammals that had specially shaped teeth for cutting through flesh. Many of the meat-eating carnivores still have these teeth, but in others they have been adapted for grinding plant material.

Carnivores have keen senses, especially their sense of smell. Scent is used to mark their territory or to communicate with others. Many live in packs, hunting together and even helping to raise the young.

The cat family is made up of the big cats such as lions, tigers and leopards, and the small cats, such as the ocelot, bobcat and the domestic cat. They feed only on meat, and are superbly adapted for hunting.

Cats have excellent hearing and vision, and can see in the dark. Their feet have soft pads for creeping up silently on their prey. Their sharp claws can be drawn in when walking to stop them from becoming blunted on the ground.

Although lions are well-known for living in groups, or prides, most cats in the wild are secretive animals that usually live and hunt alone.

The dog family includes wolves, foxes and wild dogs. Domestic dogs are descended from wolves. Like the cats, dogs are built for hunting. Their long, strong legs can carry them great distances in search of food. Small prey are grabbed in the jaws or pounced on first with the front feet. Larger prey are chased down then pulled to the ground and killed.

Dogs are able to adapt easily to different conditions, living in the hottest and the coldest of environments. They also have a more varied diet than the cats, feeding on almost anything they can find, including fish, fruit and even insects, as well as meat.

Most kinds of dogs live together in family groups. A pair of Arctic wolves will form a breeding partnership that can last for life.

Their young leave to make their own family groups when they become adult. African wild dogs form large packs where young males are allowed to stay with the pack while their sisters must leave to find a new one. Pack hunters work together to hunt down large prey, and also help to feed and look after the young.

In contrast, another group of carnivores, the bears, led a mainly solitary life. Bears are large, heavily built mammals which, despite their short legs, can run at speed. They include the largest carnivores on land, the polar bear and grizzly bear.

Bears have poor eyesight but an excellent sense of smell. Most bears are mainly plant-eaters, but they also feed on fish, small animals and insects. They will eat meat killed by other carnivores, and even catch some prey themselves. The exception is the polar bear, which feeds mostly on seals since there is little vegetation in the icy Arctic.

Most bears live in forests, and the smaller bears such as the black bear or sun bear are good climbers. Bears that live in northern climates spend the winter in caves or in dens dug under the snow. They live off the food they stored as fat in the summer. During the winter, the females give birth.

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