Hunters
Kingini and her kittens - mother, not hunter Kingini, my cat, is an appalling hunter. Anything that moves catches her attention: a fluttering leaf, a lizard on the wall, even a dangling thread. She will observe it with the sharp eye of a hunter before pouncing on it with her feline playful killer-instinct. Once she even brought a snake home. Is hunting a basic instinct of most animals? I was struck by this thought as I tried to engage in a friendly conversation with my young partner yesterday. We were both judges at a spelling competition. During the intervals I tried to have some meaningful conversation with her and failed pathetically. She was a teacher by profession. Yet she seemed scared of people. Do I radiate some predatory waves? I wondered. That question soon became generalised in my mind. Are too many animals hunters by instinct, some being potential victims like my young companion? Evolution has etched the hunter deep into the nerves of my Kingini and her counterpa...
