Great, natural selection is picking speed and fear over cooperation and brains. Maybe the herd had better hope one of them develops tool and weapon making skills.
Saw a documentary about prides: The females hunted and killed, then the male feasted. They would also attack an elderly male who lost the pride to a younger male challenger.
Face it: We human beings are natural prey animals. No fangs. No claws. No armor. No fur. No poison. Crappy camouflage. Terrible night vision. Slow runners. Poor swimmers. Can’t fly. And, to top it all off, soppily devoted to our offspring, who remain helpless, useless resource sinks for years after birth. (Contrast that with colts or fawns struggling to their feet within minutes of being born.)
How then to explain our success as a species? The main reasons are (1) these big honkin’ brains of ours and (2) the linguistic ability they’ve given us. In the ideal case, once a single human acquires a bit of knowledge about the world, he or she can transmit it to all other humans via language, so nobody else has to independently make that same discovery. In practice, it takes way more than one exposure for any bit of information to stick, and most of what does stick is transmitted no further than to other members of the same small tribe. Specifically, parents pass along information to their children, and thus knowledge is preserved, accumulates over time, and gives its possessors a competitive edge over rival tribes.
In addition to the knowledge itself, however, parents transmit something more subtle: an attitude. It’s the attitude that elders should be listened to and obeyed. This attitude is reinforced each time some young whippersnapper ignores the repeated abjurations to not go down by the river and ends up providing lunch for the crocs in full view and hearing of his soon-to-be-former playmates. Now, the elders didn’t say that this is what would happen — in fact, they themselves may have forgotten why — but the lesson underlined is that they should never have had to: Their word alone should have sufficed.
The gazelle on the horizon is running the wrong way; running in a herd is a survival instinct – hence, Natural Selection: the faster you run, the better chance you will have to survive.
If they banded together they could easily defeat that lioness especially with those long sharp horns they have. The lioness, or even a couple of them wouldn’t stand a chance and they wouldn’t want to get injured because that would lessen their chances of hunting successfully which would lead to starvation and death.
Actually that’s exactly how natural selection works. Some will run, some will fight and some will do nothing. Until only the surviving behavior remains.
rmremail over 1 year ago
That only works if your bro’s have your back. Otherwise it ends up being you taking on the tiger (or in this case, lion) all by your lonesome.
Which only ends well for the lion.
Ratkin Premium Member over 1 year ago
Who will bell the cat?
Bilan over 1 year ago
All they have to do is run faster than the one that pauses and says “Hey! . . .”
sirbadger over 1 year ago
A scimitar antelope or scimitar oryx can sometimes kill lions.
Imagine over 1 year ago
The lion’s misinformation campaign bears fruit.
Richard S Russell Premium Member over 1 year ago
The best D&D character I ever rolled up didn’t survive his first encounter with about a hundred kobolds.
enigmamz over 1 year ago
You don’t have to be the fastest. Just second slowest will do.
TwilightFaze over 1 year ago
I don’t know, Leroy, why don’t you lead the charge and find out?
wallylm over 1 year ago
Great, natural selection is picking speed and fear over cooperation and brains. Maybe the herd had better hope one of them develops tool and weapon making skills.
boniface22 over 1 year ago
I’m not a wildebeest, I’m one of those stripey things over there. For there are no mirrors in the Serengeti.
LawrenceS over 1 year ago
“If I see a lion, I’m running.”
“Even Usian Bolt couldn’t outrun a lion.”
“I don’t have to outrun the lion, I just need to outrun you.”
ewaldoh over 1 year ago
Running away works for all but one.
fuzzbucket Premium Member over 1 year ago
Aim those horns. Charge!
GentlemanBill over 1 year ago
It works sometimes for Cape Buffalo.
david_42 over 1 year ago
Not survival of the fittest, extinction of the least fit and/or dumbest.
batesmom7 over 1 year ago
Saw a documentary about prides: The females hunted and killed, then the male feasted. They would also attack an elderly male who lost the pride to a younger male challenger.
HOTLOTUS1 over 1 year ago
you aint lion.
DaBump Premium Member over 1 year ago
Reminds me of certain cartoons where the cannon fodder is always saying something like that about the OP MC.
Redd Panda over 1 year ago
Sometimes, it’s all in how you deal with a threat.
A herd of Bison will surround the young and face the threat.
Elephants also do this.
Humans do this, we call it ‘’raising an army’’.
[Traveler] Premium Member over 1 year ago
If you want to pull the tail of the tiger, you better have a plan for dealing with the teeth
sandpiper over 1 year ago
We’ll miss you, Darlene. I’ll tell the others.
Zebrastripes over 1 year ago
Food chains! Ugh☹️
vaughnrl2003 Premium Member over 1 year ago
“To smart for your own good”, really is a thing.
SusieB over 1 year ago
Great metaphor for us against the upper 1%.
Richard S Russell Premium Member over 1 year ago
Face it: We human beings are natural prey animals. No fangs. No claws. No armor. No fur. No poison. Crappy camouflage. Terrible night vision. Slow runners. Poor swimmers. Can’t fly. And, to top it all off, soppily devoted to our offspring, who remain helpless, useless resource sinks for years after birth. (Contrast that with colts or fawns struggling to their feet within minutes of being born.)
How then to explain our success as a species? The main reasons are (1) these big honkin’ brains of ours and (2) the linguistic ability they’ve given us. In the ideal case, once a single human acquires a bit of knowledge about the world, he or she can transmit it to all other humans via language, so nobody else has to independently make that same discovery. In practice, it takes way more than one exposure for any bit of information to stick, and most of what does stick is transmitted no further than to other members of the same small tribe. Specifically, parents pass along information to their children, and thus knowledge is preserved, accumulates over time, and gives its possessors a competitive edge over rival tribes.
In addition to the knowledge itself, however, parents transmit something more subtle: an attitude. It’s the attitude that elders should be listened to and obeyed. This attitude is reinforced each time some young whippersnapper ignores the repeated abjurations to not go down by the river and ends up providing lunch for the crocs in full view and hearing of his soon-to-be-former playmates. Now, the elders didn’t say that this is what would happen — in fact, they themselves may have forgotten why — but the lesson underlined is that they should never have had to: Their word alone should have sufficed.
(continued)ladykat over 1 year ago
And the lioness gets dinner!
uniquename over 1 year ago
I’ve always wondered what those big, long, pointy things on their heads are for.
paranormal over 1 year ago
Just let her impale herself on those long horns…
drfiero over 1 year ago
Teeth buddy… teeth.
Ray Helvy Premium Member over 1 year ago
Why? Because lions aren’t solitary hunters, and your horns only point one way at a time!
dadlivonia over 1 year ago
I love her tail wagging – soup’s on!
MollyCat over 1 year ago
As now being witnessed in Yellowstone and other National Parks.
mindjob over 1 year ago
Its the next approach since the “lets be friends” approach didn’t work out
Chris Sherlock over 1 year ago
The one who doesn’t run is dinner.
Imagine over 1 year ago
Famous last words.
mistercatworks over 1 year ago
“You stay here and think about that. We’ll come by later and see how that worked out.”
Count Olaf Premium Member over 1 year ago
(In)Famous Last Words.
HenryStryker over 1 year ago
Here, I’ll hold your beer…..
Teto85 Premium Member over 1 year ago
You just see one lioness. The rest of her pride are hiding in the tall grass just waiting for you to run by.
c141starlifter over 1 year ago
Beware of a Lion licking her lips and wagging her tail
Wilde Bill over 1 year ago
… and we have pointy things on our heads.
MITZI over 1 year ago
Thinking is good, but only when it’s critical thinking. Great concept, Wiley!
eddi-TBH over 1 year ago
Dinner serves itself.
eddi-TBH over 1 year ago
No wonder lions have a rep for being lazy.
keenanthelibrarian over 1 year ago
The gazelle on the horizon is running the wrong way; running in a herd is a survival instinct – hence, Natural Selection: the faster you run, the better chance you will have to survive.
Birdman47 over 1 year ago
If they banded together they could easily defeat that lioness especially with those long sharp horns they have. The lioness, or even a couple of them wouldn’t stand a chance and they wouldn’t want to get injured because that would lessen their chances of hunting successfully which would lead to starvation and death.
Isenthor1978 over 1 year ago
When I was a kid, I thought I was a lion. Then a bee pollinated me and told me I was a dandelion.
Larry Zambrano Premium Member over 1 year ago
Actually that’s exactly how natural selection works. Some will run, some will fight and some will do nothing. Until only the surviving behavior remains.
bakana over 1 year ago
Considering they are all armed with a nice long pair of Spears, the Lion better Hope they never figure it out.