The Predators of Africa
As soon as they appeared, about 60 million years ago, carnivores saw their survival closely linked to the survival of the herbivores. It has been a never-ending chase to adapt between the prey and its predator ever since. The bottom line is that the life of one depends on the survival of the other. It is a fragile balance: the less specialized a predator, the more widespread its species. Since meat is an unpredictable resource in the savannah, no carnivorous mammal can afford to depend on it exclusively.
As soon as they appeared, about 60 million years ago, carnivores saw their survival closely linked to the survival of the herbivores. It has been a never-ending chase to adapt between the prey and its predator ever since. The bottom line is that the life of one depends on the survival of the other. It is a fragile balance: the less specialized a predator, the more widespread its species. Since meat is an unpredictable resource in the savannah, no carnivorous mammal can afford to depend on it exclusively.
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