Why prey animals often see threats where there are none – and how it costs them

Leah Gray; Mike Webster

Why prey animals often see threats where there are none – and how it costs them

Leah Gray, Mike Webster

Biological Sciences

University of St Andrews

Research output: Contribution to specialist publication › Newspaper

Abstract

For a nervous horror fan, an evening watching HBO’s hit post-apocalyptic television show The Last of Us might be followed by a restless night under the duvet. The silhouette of a coat slung over the back of a chair or even the screeching of a cat in the garden will cause a spike of adrenaline.

Animals are primed to be wary through natural selection rather than scary television shows, but like humans, they often make mistakes when watching out for threats.

Original language	English
Specialist publication	The Conversation
Publication status	Published - 2 Mar 2023

Bibliographical note

Mike Webster works for the University of St Andrews. He receives funding from various academic and research organisations.

Leah Gray does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Access to Document

https://theconversation.com/why-prey-animals-often-see-threats-where-there-are-none-and-how-it-costs-them-200864Licence: CC BY-ND

Cite this

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Why prey animals often see threats where there are none – and how it costs them

Abstract

Bibliographical note

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