# What Animals Have No Natural Enemies **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 11, 1999, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231 "1999-09-11T20:47:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2017, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/81 "2017-04-08T14:52:48Z")
I don’t know about humans being “apex predators.” I get viciously preyed upon about eight months of the year in my own yard if I’m stupid enough to go out at dusk or dawn. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2017, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/82 "2017-04-08T15:29:28Z")
One on one & without mechanical help, we are a long way from the top. ---
**Author:** ![40below](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/51bf81/32.png) [@40below](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/40below)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2017, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/83 "2017-04-08T15:41:23Z")
Not a biologist, but I am a gardener so I wasn’t thinking large fauna, I was thinking about everything in nature that makes itself either taste bad or smell bad so entire classes of animals not only don’t eat it but actively avoid it and whose only natural enemy is me. ---
**Author:** ![Thaliana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e274bd/32.png) [@Thaliana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thaliana)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2017, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/84 "2017-04-12T21:53:54Z")
Giraffes (yes, even adults) can be prey to lions and hyenas. They are definitely exempt from the no natural enemies statement. [http://www.giraffeworlds.com/giraffe-predators/](http://www.giraffeworlds.com/giraffe-predators/) Not to say it’s EASY for a lion or hyena to take down a giraffe, it does happen, the lions just prefer easier, slower food first. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2017, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/85 "2017-04-14T04:03:35Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > But I’m guessing that some times the fight goes the other way. You’re presuming there’s a fight. The orcas have a hunting technique for sharks. You grab them and then flip them on their backs. Many sharks and rays, when flipped over, go into a catatonic state. White sharks are not exempt. Plus, full-grown orcas are larger than the largest Whites. Like 2 to 3 times the mass. Smart fighters that are bigger than you make poor prey. It should also be telling, as they stated in that video, that when that orca ate that white shark, all the other white sharks for miles left the area and abandoned the seals - a season’s worth of eating and they skipped out. None hung around to fight off the orcas - they all headed for the hills. Given that bottlenose dolphins will attack and drive off white sharks, I’m thinking an orca/shark battle is pretty one-sided. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2017, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/86 "2017-04-14T04:31:28Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Ironically enough, sloths have very few predators despite having precious few natural defenses and no inclination to use them (nevermind the energy to). [Harpy Eagles take a lot of sloths.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0zrah5JEBM) Along with monkeys and opossums they are their principle prey > [@](#): > > The only time they really get attacked with any frequency is when they try and get off their lazy arse and forage around on the ground, at which time leopards and humans take notice. Sloths and leopards don’t occur together. Ocelots and sometimes jaguars take a lot of sloths when they come to the ground once a week to defecate (they don’t forage on the ground). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2017, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/87 "2017-04-14T10:10:47Z")
> [@Thaliana](#): > > Giraffes (yes, even adults) can be prey to lions and hyenas. They are definitely exempt from the no natural enemies statement. > > [Giraffe Predators](http://www.giraffeworlds.com/giraffe-predators/) > > Not to say it’s EASY for a lion or hyena to take down a giraffe, it does happen, the lions just prefer easier, slower food first. Again, a lion pride would RATHER go after a zebra or a gnu. But if they’re REALLY hungry, and they spot an oblivious giraffe munching on acacia leaves? Of COURSE they’ll give it a go. Can’t be too choosy. Very few predators ever think, “Gee, maybe I could kill and eat that unfamiliar animal, but… nah, he’s not in my list of natural prey.” To most predators, a meal is a meal. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2017, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/88 "2017-04-14T10:54:36Z")
> [@pluto](#): > > Since I have already been on a New Zealand thread this morning … > > Prior to the introduction of pigs, rats, cats, dogs, etc. by humans (starting about A.D. 1000) the birds of New Zealand (the dominant fauna) had no natural enemies, at least in the sense of predators. The only mammals on the islands were bats and pinnipeds. None of the birds were carnivorous, so although they competed with each other for ecological niches they didn’t eat each other. > > ## Two things resulted from this – 1) a lot of flightless bird species developed, and 2) the native fauna were easy picking for the introduced predators. IIRC, in the Chatham Islands (near NZ) the lighthouse keeper’s cat was personally responsible for the extinction of a number of species of small birds. > > “non sunt multiplicanda entia praeter necessitatem” > – William of Ockham I realise this is post is almost old enough to drink alcohol in my country, but I can’t help pointing out it’s not true: New Zealand does not have any native mammals bar bats and aquatics, but it has a native falcon, the unimaginatively named New Zealand Falcon, and it used to be home to the largest eagle ever known to exist, the [Haast’s Eagle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haast%27s_eagle), which could take down even the biggest of the moas, judging by skeleton records. Oh, and I think the post has mixed up the (not extinct, but it got damn close) Chatham Island [Black Robin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_robin), and the flightless, and supposedly wiped out by the lighthouse keeper’s cat [Stephen Island Wren](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyall%27s_wren), which was probably actually wiped out from it’s last refuge on Stephen Island by feral cats and specimen collectors, after previously being eradicated from the mainland due to having no defence against mammalian predators. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2017, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/89 "2017-04-16T06:34:12Z")
> [@purplehearingaid](#): > > Cockroaches don’t seem to have any natural enemies Sure they do.[Terrifying mind-controlling ones](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_cockroach_wasp). ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2017, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/90 "2017-04-16T18:58:01Z")
AFAIK there isn’t anything out to kill the great wild Gary Busey. Except maybe paparazzi. Can’t remember the poster’s name…I was hoping he was still around to let him know that I’m pretty sure a tiger can eat a lion. Whole. > [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > I don’t know about humans being “apex predators.” I get viciously preyed upon about eight months of the year in my own yard if I’m stupid enough to go out at dusk or dawn. ☹ This applies to me if you’re talking about flibbertyjibbin mosquitoes. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/91 "2017-04-17T02:30:55Z")
Feeding from you isn’t quite the same as eating you. Something about how dead you are at the end of the process. I realize certain ants might blur the distinction. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/92 "2017-04-17T03:22:32Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Feeding from you isn’t quite the same as eating you. What if I croak from dengue? I might not be getting maowed down on, but the natural enemy is still taking me down. Not to mention - that world famous Aussie mosquito hunter’s maxim: “There’s nothing more dangerous than a wounded mosquito”. Also - good “G.I.” band. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/93 "2017-04-17T11:34:29Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > {Schwarzenegger voice]It’s not a puma!{/Schwarzenegger voice] > > Oh, wait, [it _is_ a puma](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90M7kH5wCtA). Gotta love that dangling bite move. I know he’s trying to tire the sloth out, but it’s like “OK, that’s enough effort for today, you lost so just…become dinner now, fucker, OK ?” ---
**Author:** ![wombattver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b77776/32.png) [@wombattver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombattver)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/94 "2017-04-17T17:39:13Z")
Kangaroos? (I don’t think they’ve been mentioned yet) ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/95 "2017-04-17T22:15:36Z")
> [@wombattver](#): > > Kangaroos? > (I don’t think they’ve been mentioned yet) I’m pretty sure that dingoes prey on kangaroos. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/96 "2017-04-17T22:49:07Z")
I know that _something_ does because of those Nature shows that always mention how the mama Kangaroo will dump the baby out of the pouch if she has to when being pursued. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2017, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/97 "2017-04-18T12:39:47Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > I know that _something_ does because of those Nature shows that always mention how the mama Kangaroo will dump the baby out of the pouch if she has to when being pursued. Oh, and I figure that if the kangaroos linger at the water’s edge, they risk gettin’ chomped by crocs, as well. Also, in days past, they had to worry about thylacines. > **[Thylacine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thylacine)** > > The thylacine (/ˈθaɪləsiːn/; binomial name Thylacinus cynocephalus), also commonly known as the Tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf, is an extinct carnivorous marsupial that was native to the Australian mainland and the islands of Tasmania and New Guinea. The thylacine died out in New Guinea and mainland Australia around 3,600–3,200 years ago, prior to the arrival of Europeans, possibly because of the introduction of the dingo, whose earliest record dates to around the same time, but which ne... ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2017, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/98 "2017-04-18T17:02:01Z")
Dingoes have been in Australia so long, people forget they aren’t “natural” predators of the kangaroo, because they aren’t native to Australia. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2017, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/99 "2017-04-18T17:07:12Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Dingoes have been in Australia so long, people forget they aren’t “natural” predators of the kangaroo, because they aren’t native to Australia. Well, at a certain point in time, you have to accept them as “native”. I mean, many species have arrived by colonization. Dingos may have arrived 12000 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2017, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231/100 "2017-04-18T19:50:29Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well, at a certain point in time, you have to accept them as “native”. I mean, many species have arrived by colonization. Dingos may have arrived 12000 years ago. Oh sure, at SOME point, you accept animals as native even if they were introduced later than their neighbors. Point is, the dingoes’ prey DIDN’T have any natural enemies 13,000 years ago. But by now, no one remembers when that was true. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animals-have-no-natural-enemies/3231.md?page=6)