Sept. 16, 2003
FREE STATE, South Africa — Never mind the red droplets clinging to Julie's whiskers or the fact that her canines look like bloody icicles. Never mind the acrid smell. To close my eyes and pinch my nose would do little to mitigate the power of this scene.

It's what I'm hearing that defines this moment: the sound of carnassials, honed to perfection.

Carnassials are what set the order Carnivora apart from other mammals. These scissor-like back teeth cut skin, flesh and sinew. Particularly pronounced in cats, they are set in the back of the short, powerful jaws.

Julie's carnassials are getting a workout just now as she rips into the meaty rear section of a wildebeest carcass.

John Varty and I sit about 12 feet away from Julie, in the open cab of Land Rover. The tiger ignores us entirely. There is no chuffing, no greeting. Nor is there growling. There's just chewing and ripping and gnawing and cutting.

Julie is hungry, but less so than she was just a minute ago when Ron backed off the carcass and let her have a go at it.

Beyond being mere carnivores, cats are known as "hyper carnivores" because their diets consist almost entirely of flesh of other mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish. A mixed diet including fruits and nuts is not an option for a tiger because its entire digestive system is a finely tuned meat-processing plant.

Meat is easier to digest than plants, and extremely nourishing. But there are strings attached. Finding prey can be difficult, as Ron and Julie can attest, having unsuccessfully hunted wildebeest for several days. And bringing down prey can be frustrating, at best, and often dangerous.