Torn limb from limb: the ethology of prey-processing in Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii)

Abstract

The success of carnivorous mammals is determined not only by their ability to locate and kill prey, but also their efficiency at consuming it. Breaking large prey into small pieces is challenging due to the strong and tough materials that make up a carcass (e.g. hide, muscle, and bone). Carnivores therefore require a diverse suite of prey-processing behaviours to utilise their catch. Tasmanian devils are Australia’s only large marsupial scavengers and have the ability to consume almost all of a carcass. To determine how they do this we analysed 5.5 hours of footage from 21 captive and wild devils feeding at carcasses. We documented 6320 bouts of 12 distinct prey-processing behaviours, performed at frequencies that varied throughout feeds and between groups. The time point in the feed influenced the types of behaviours used. This is likely due to changing prey size, as different techniques appear better suited to handling whole carcasses or large pieces (pulling and pinning) or smaller pieces (holding and manipulating). Group size impacted the frequency of social pulling behaviours, which increased with the number of animals. Our findings highlight the range of prey-processing behaviours performed by scavenging devils when handling, breaking down, and consuming a carcass. The devils’ repertoire shares similarities with large carnivores that handle and consume whole carcasses as well as small carnivores that are adept in grasping and handling smaller prey.