Is nature a paradise?
Many people picture life in the wild as beautiful and peaceful. For most animals, the reality is very different.
The many-babies strategy
Most animal species have huge numbers of babies:
- many frogs and toads: thousands of eggs;
- some species: about 25,000 young;
- octopuses: hundreds of thousands;
- salmon, cod, and tuna: millions;
- the ocean sunfish: up to 300 million eggs.
What happens to these babies
In a stable population, on average only about two babies per mother survive to replace their parents. All the others die soon after they're born: from hunger, cold, heat, disease, parasites, or being eaten by other animals.
This is the strategy of most species, especially small animals, which make up the vast majority of all animals.
The conclusion
Because of natural processes, for every animal that survives, thousands or millions die very young, usually in painful ways. The typical life of an animal in the wild is short and full of suffering.
In short
- Most species have enormous numbers of babies.
- Almost all of them die soon after birth, often suffering.
- The typical life in the wild is much harsher than we imagine.