EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Scavengers break down this organic material and recycle it into the ecosystem as nutrients. Some birds are scavengers. Vultures only eat the bodies of dead animals. Vultures have many biological adaptations that make them well-suited to being scavengers.

Detailed explanation-2: -Overview. Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures, condors, hawks, eagles, hyenas, Virginia opossum, Tasmanian devils, coyotes and Komodo dragons.

Detailed explanation-3: -scavenger, also called carrion-feeder, animal that feeds partly or wholly on the bodies of dead animals. Many invertebrates, such as carrion beetles, live almost entirely on decomposing animal matter. The burying beetles actually enter the dead bodies of small animals before feeding on them underground.

Detailed explanation-4: -Ever seen a dead opossum or cat in the road? You can call that roadkill carrion. The word carrion comes from a Latin word caro, which means “meat, ” but carrion is usually considered unfit for human consumption. Birds of prey and other opportunistic animals will often have carrion as part of their diet, however.

Detailed explanation-5: -Vultures are the only animal species that only eat carrion. They never kill healthy animals, but they might kill an animal that is clearly on its way out the door to make the meal ready more quickly. They often wait for another animal to make the kill and then swoop in to feed on what remains.