African savannah animals they are more afraid of human voices than lion’s roar, among the most feared predators. This is reported in a new study by an international research team led by British scientists from the University of West London, who collaborated with colleagues from the ARC-Livestock Institute, the Mbombela Rangeland Ecology Group (South Africa) and the Department of Ecology. Evolution and Behavior University of Minnesota (USA).
How the study was conducted
Scientists have posted cameras and speakers at some strategic points in the reserve, for example, where the greatest interaction between prey and predators occurs, and they made a series of sounds to test the animals’ reactions. They then focused on the responses of 19 species (including elephants, antelope, buffalo, leopards, warthogs, giraffes, kudu, impalas, hyenas, zebras, rhinoceroses).
Man is scarier than a lion
The study found that most animals ran away from humans more often than from lions. In particular: giraffes, leopards, hyenas, zebras, warthogs, impalas. It was even caught on video leopard with prey running at full speed immediately after hearing human voices.