WHY do some animals become cannibals, even though they risk lethal illness as
a result? A new study of caterpillars suggests a surprising
answer—cannibalism might help some animals avoid hungry predators.
Many animals—mostly fish, amphibians and insects—eat their own
species, especially when food is scarce. Cannibals improve their chances of
thriving by stamping out some of the competition.
But sometimes it’s unclear why animals resort to cannibalism. For instance,
the army worm Spodoptera frugiperda, a caterpillar that lives
on maize whorls in Central America, often eats its kin even if other food is
available. And lab experiments…
