When Parenting Doesn't Work

Because of the lecture this week, I figured the was a very appropriate (though somewhat depressing) topic to discuss. I recently read an article about occurrences of infanticide that have recently occurred in two very different animal species in zoos. The article begins by describing the cutest and newest addition to the sloth bear (think Baloo from the "Jungle Book") captive community in the United States. However, the interesting part about this baby bear is that she is the only surviving sibling out of three that were born at the Smithsonian National Zoo. When she and her siblings were born, her mother ate the first sibling (a still born), and killed the second cub. Zookeepers later realized after doing a necropsy on the second cub was that it had parasites in its intestines. They then decided to remove the third cub for her own safety because she too was ill. She is now under 24 hour care by zookeepers as they now become full time "momma bears". Although this is a sad case that many humans don't like to see, it is a natural process that can and does occurs in zoos in many animal species. Infanticide is about making sure the strongest offspring survive, which entails the killing of infants by the mother or father. This can be because the offspring were too weak, sick, or because the mother needs the nutrients for other offspring or to get pregnant again. Thankfully the baby sloth bear is in good hands and is now on to a healthy happy life. The second occurrence of infanticide came from a cheetah mother named Ally, who gave birth this past winter to four healthy cubs at the National Zoo. However, after three weeks of a seemingly healthy start to life, the new mother became nervous and began carrying her cubs in and out of the den quite frequently. This caused deep wounds in the shoulders and scruffs of the new cubs, which led to infections. The first cub died before the zookeepers could reach it while the remaining three have been treated with multiple surgeries and are now under constant supervision and separated from their mother. The zookeepers now hope to have these three cubs fostered by another cheetah named Mitty, who has six cubs of her own. Cheetah adoptions happen in the wild as well, when a mother is killed another female will sometimes take in and adopt remaining cubs. The three cubs are now on their way to a better and more promising life and hopefully a new mum and siblings. Although infanticide is a grim topic, it is explained by nature that some may not make it and for the future reproductive success of the parents it is an easy way out. It is quite common in nature in many species of both birds and mammals and unless humans intervene, it does even occur in captive situations like zoos. Infanticide is the darker side of parenting, although its purpose in nature is to benefit the future generations of species in the end.

Figure 1. One of the baby cheetahs undergoing a routine bandage change to its wounds. 

Figure 2. The two-month old baby sloth bear giving the camera a "kiss". 

References

Jacobsen, R. 2014. Why some animals eat their young. Science.