Infanticide Common in Male Mammals- Study Says

A study unveils that majority of the male adult mammals practice infanticide

Elise Huchard from the National Center for Scientific Research’s Center for Evolutionary and Functional Ecology along with Dieter Lukas of the University of Cambridge, carried out this research. The chief aim of their research was to find a commonality between the mammals who observe infanticide. In addition, they wish to determine the aspects of this particular action.

They performed a study on more than 260 mammal species. The study reveals that almost 119 of those 260 species kill their young ones. However, the survey merely includes mammals that really performed infanticide in the past.  The result signifies that almost half of the animals kill their younger ones.

Researchers evaluated numerous factors such as social factors, mating behavior in order to find a particular pattern. Later on, they discovered that males execute infanticide more than the females. However, both of them live in the same environment and social conditions.

Huchard informed that infanticide is part of the “sexual strategy” through which male mammals attract the mothers for sexual activity. Infanticide is one of the most severe signs of sexual fights between male and female mammals. The researchers formed this conclusion since the practice was not common among the animals that live in groups.

Moreover, the infanticide was not a tradition of animals that had a special season for mating.