In nature, animals often lack the privilege of selecting their food like humans do. Their preference for a specific type of food usually takes a back seat to the mere fact of survival. The rule for wild animals is fairly simple: if it’s in front of you and you can tolerate it, animals will go ahead and eat it.

The presence of taste buds essentially allows wild animals to determine whether a specific food source is good or bad for them to eat. This, in essence, is the key to survival. These animals’ taste buds will be able to detect harmful substances, and therefore animals will opt to avoid these specific harmful foods. It’s of utmost importance that animals can differentiate between good and bad when it comes to the toxicity of food.

The Xinkhova female hoisting an Impala lamb into a tree to get it out of the grasp of any scavengers.

Take, for instance, the Xinkhova Female hoisting an Impala lamb into a tree to get it out of the grasp of any scavengers. Witnessing a hyena devouring carrion that’s been lying around for a week, especially when we experience the scent of that decomposing flesh, is certainly enough to make one nauseous. However, in the wilderness, it might seem that, for the most part, animals are not very selective about what they eat. Contrary to this impression, a closer look at the animal’s lifestyle, diet, and tongue structure is essential to understanding how different creatures perceive taste, and why, for example, hyenas can consume a week-old carcass without any signs of discomfort, even when it has been exposed to the scorching summer heat.

A clan of hyenas feast on an adult giraffe carcass, for two days.

Starting with carnivores makes sense, given that many of the things they consume might be unappetizing to us. However, when you analyze their tongues, a noticeable difference emerges in the density of their taste buds compared to us as humans. On average, humans have around 10,000 taste buds, while most carnivores have far fewer, being around 470 to be exact.

Examining their taste preferences, carnivores are responsive to bitter flavours but cannot taste sweetness. This absence of sensitivity to sweet tastes is attributed to the fact that sugars are not part of their diet, making it rather unnecessary for them to detect those tastes. Bitterness, on the other hand, holds significance for carnivores as it can distinguish between meat that is spoiled and meat that is still safe to consume. The definition of spoiled meat varies slightly for a male lion compared to a human and even more so if we factor in hyenas. This distinction is tied to the carnivore’s digestive system. Their digestive system is far better at processing meats and can tolerate bacteria that would cause immediate and severe stomach issues in humans. This higher tolerance enables carnivores to consume meats that humans would certainly consider inedible.

I think this image could probably sum up how little hyenas worry about the taste and smell of their meals.

To briefly touch on herbivores as well, they have far more taste buds than humans and almost double in most cases. Much like carnivores, herbivores don’t have a massive variety when it comes to their food source, so why do they have more taste receptors than humans?

Their extensive taste bud count becomes crucial in distinguishing the bitter tastes of potentially harmful plants hidden among safe vegetation, especially when they are not meticulously inspecting their food sources. Sensitivity to toxins is paramount, given the prevalence of chemical defences in the plant world.

A buffalo’s taste buds are very important in detecting potential toxins as they are bulk grazers.

The need for animals to eat is the key to survival in the wild. Carnivores need to be able to pick up bitter tastes to detect whether meat has been spoiled (but one simply cannot liken it to the decision we as humans would make about the same piece of meat). For herbivores, they must be able to detect the myriad of chemical defenses that plant life offers and therefore very crucial that they have more taste buds than us as humans.

Therefore, the intricate interplay between taste buds, dietary preferences, and survival strategies among wild animals underscores the remarkable adaptability of nature. While we may find some of their dietary choices unappetizing, understanding the role of taste buds provides valuable insights into the challenges and solutions animals face in their quest for sustenance in the wild.