A carnivore is an organism that primarily consumes animal tissue, and in anthropology and evolutionary biology, the concept is explored both in terms of dietary adaptation and cultural symbolism.

🌍 Biological Definition

• Carnivore (dietary): An animal whose diet consists mainly of meat.
• Carnivora (taxonomic order): Includes mammals like cats, dogs, bears, and weasels. Not all members are strict meat-eaters (e.g., bears are omnivorous).
• Types of Carnivores:
  • Obligate carnivores: Must eat meat to survive (e.g., cats).
  • Facultative carnivores: Prefer meat but can eat other foods (e.g., dogs).
  • Hyper-carnivores: Diet is >70% meat.
  • Mesocarnivores: Diet is ~50–70% meat.
  • Hypocarnivores: Diet is <30% meat.

🔑 Anthropological & Archaeological Contexts

• Human Evolution:
  • Early hominins incorporated meat into diets, influencing brain expansion and tool use.
  • Hunting and scavenging shaped social cooperation and technological innovation.
• Material Culture:
  • Stone tools (e.g., Acheulean handaxes) often associated with butchering carnivore diets.
  • Carnivore remains in archaeological sites provide evidence of hunting, domestication, or ritual.
• Symbolism:
  • Carnivores often appear in mythologies as powerful, dangerous, or protective beings (e.g., lions, wolves).
  • Their teeth and claws were used as ornaments or ritual objects.
• Domestication:
  • Dogs (facultative carnivores) were domesticated from wolves, becoming integral to hunting and herding economies.

📚 Importance in Anthropology

• Subsistence Strategies: Carnivory shaped human ecological niches.
• Social Organization: Hunting carnivores or competing with them influenced cooperation and territoriality.
• Comparative Value: Studying carnivores highlights contrasts with herbivores and omnivores in ecological and cultural systems.
• Evolutionary Insight: Carnivory is linked to tool use, fire, and cooking practices.

In short: A carnivore is an organism adapted to eating meat, central to anthropology for understanding human evolution, subsistence, symbolism, and ecological relationships.