The feral cats were caught scavenging the human remains at a fenced research facility in Colorado.
In recent decades, more and more"body farms" have been established. At these sites, scientists leave dead bodies out in order to record how they decompose over time. There are seven of these facilities in the U.S., with the biggest in Texas. This area of research has wide-ranging applications, from aiding in police investigations to archaeology and anthropology.
Several smaller species are known to scavenge on the bodies, and their activity is monitored with infrared cameras. As and when this happens, the species involved is recorded, the team notes. Previously, bobcats have been documentedIn the latest study, the team reports how two bodies, that of a man and woman who died at the ages of 70 and 79 respectively, were scavenged by cats. Both had been placed outside about two weeks after death.
The team also notes that the pattern of scavenging observed was closer to what is reported in bobcats compared to domestic cats. In the few cases where house cats have been reported eating human bodies, they tend to go for facial tissue, such as the nose and mouth. Bobcats appear to target the arms, hips and thighs, the researchers say.
Concluding, the team notes that their research is only based on two reports so this behavior cannot be extrapolated to all feral cats. However, it should be considered when thinking about tissue damage to corpses. Tissue damage from scavenging could appear as trauma before death, for example.
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