Animals in the Wild [ 93 



through mammal exhibition halls, he demonstrates the cries of 

 the appropriate creatures in a thoroughly uninhibited manner. 

 These calls are enjoyed not only by the group of visitors assigned 

 to him, but by fascinated children who seem to appear from 

 nowhere, all eager to hear what animals sound like. 



How Mammals Fight 



Warfare in the animal world is not limited to sporadic outbreaks 

 when some creature or other decides to attack its neighbors. 

 Instead, the warfare is constant and unceasing. The need for food 

 drives the meat eaters to prey on other animals, and there seem to 

 be a few that kill for the sake of killing. Among some groups, the 

 males fight it out to win a mate or establish themselves as leader 

 of a herd. Among the most dramatic of mammal battles are those 

 between animals that wear antlers or horns such as moose, deer, 

 elk, and goats. 



A DUEL BETWEEN MOOSE 



The instinct of boys for pounding and pummeling each 

 other seems mild indeed compared to a clash between two bull 

 moose. Hostilities may start with a moose striking its antlers 

 against small trees in a way that broadcasts his defiance to all 

 within hearing. Another male rushes out to accept the challenge 

 and the battle is on! Heads lowered, the two giants rush at each 

 other. The impact of the collision may knock one down; if he 

 regains his footing, they charge again. 



Each moose tries to stab his enemy with the sharp brow tines 

 that are the vicious part of the antler. The wide flattened areas 

 are useful for defense in warding off blows. Frequently it is a 

 fight to the death for one of the contenders. Sometimes the ending 

 is tragic for both: Their antlers may become so firmly locked 

 together that they are powerless to move, and death by starvation 

 is their fate. 



SPECIAL BATTLE TECHNIQUES 



Mountain lions, jaguars, and other members of the cat 

 family have four long pointed teeth (canines) as weapons, as well 



