Why can some animals not live in captivity or have lower life expectancy in captivity?
In: Biology
It depends on the species. Some live longer in captivity. Instead, others have a lower life expectancy when captive.
Animal species can be classified in two groups by the balance between the amount of offspring they yield and the quality of it.
_r_ strategists:
– High reproductive rate.
– Sexual maturity achieved at an early age.
– Tendency towards sexual promiscuity.
– Minimal parental investment.
– Simple cognitive and behavioral complexity.
– High availability of food and resources.
– No hierarchy.
– No territoriality.
– Weak body. Tend to be easy preys.
– Examples: rabbits, rats, mice, cockroaches…
_K_ strategists:
– Low reproductive rate.
– Sexual maturity achieved later in life.
– Generally monogamous.
– Great parental investment. Parents need to invest lots of energy and resources to ensure their offspring will survive.
– Complex cognitive capacity, behavior and social structure.
– Highly hierarchical and territorial.
– Food and resources are limited and need to be carefully managed.
– Strong body and efficient offensive and defensive mechanisms.
– Examples: wolves, eagles, rhinos, elephants, lions…
K strategy species have many more behavioral, social and territorial requirements to lead a healthy life, that’s why they tend to have a shorter lifespan in captivity as opposed to _r_ strategists, who actually thrive in the absence of predation provided by captivity.
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