Eggs are among the most consumed food in the world by humans. And do you know that … China is the world’s largest consumer of eggs with an average annual consumption of 28.6 million tones. There are also many animals that feed on eggs. 

Snake, Gull, Crow, Raccoon, Mink, Otter, Skunk, Fox and others: What Do They Have in Common? They are all egg-eaters!

African Egg-eating Snake (Dasypeltis-atra)

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African Egg-eating Snake is a colubrid snakeknown to have adapted to feed exclusively on eggs. This non-venomous snake can be found throughout the forested area of Africa. When threatened, it will perform what is called saw-scaling, it will rub its scales together quickly to make a rasping noise that sounds vaguely like hissing. It is also an agile climber and has a keen sense of smell to identify if an egg is rotten or not. It has extremely a flexible jaw and neck for eating eggs much larger than its head. It is toothless but it has bony protrusions on the inside edge of its spine which are used to aid in breaking the shells of eggs.

This snake is a popular exotic pet but due to its unique dietary needs it can be a challenge to keep in captivity. It doesn’t grow so large enough to consume typical chicken egg, so smaller ones must be provided.

Indian Egg-eating Snake (Elachistodon westermanni)

This snake is a rare species of egg-eating snake. It can be found in the South Asian countries of India, Nepal and Bangladesh. This glossy brown to black snake is also called the Westermann’s Snake. This nocturnal creature has special adaptations that juts into the esophagus and helps in cracking eggs.

Long-Tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata)

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The cute-looking Long-tailed Weasel that can be found from Canada down to Central America and northern part of South America usually inhabits open or semi-open areas near water. Its primary diet is rodents. This mammal that can climb trees and a good swimmer is also known to eat eggs.

Skunk

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Skunks are among the known egg-eating mammals. Theseanimals are best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul-smelling odor. There are 10 species of skunks. Like the Raccoons, they are omnivorous eating both plant and animal material. They change their diet as the seasons change. They eat insects and larvae, earthworms, small rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles, and eggs. They also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi and nuts.

Mink

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There are two living species of Minks – the American Mink and the European Mink. They are dark-colored, semi-aquatic and carnivorous mammals. The American Mink is larger, and more adaptable than the European Mink.

Minks on the wild prey on fish and other aquatic life, small mammals and birds. Minks raised on farms primarily eat expired cheese, eggs, fish, meat and poultry slaughterhouse by-products, dog food, and turkey livers, as well as prepared, commercial foods. A Wisconsin fur farm uses 2 million pounds of expired cheese and 1 million pounds of eggs per year.

Otter

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Otters aresemi-aquatic fish-eating and egg-eating mammals. There are 13 known species of Otters and can be found worldwide. Their main food includes aquatic animals, amphibians, birds, small mammals and eggs.

Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

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The Raccoon or Common Raccoon are among the most intelligent animals in the world. This medium-sized mammal is endemic to North America but can now be found in other parts of the world. This creature can weigh as much as 9 kg and can attain a body length of 72 cm making it the largest procyonid. This nocturnal mammal is omnivore and feeds on invertebrates, plant foods and vertebrates. Raccoons are known to douse their food before eating it. They are also known to feed on eggs. They are also commonly known as North American Raccoon, Northern Raccoon and Coon.

Fox

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It’s quite unusual but Foxes are egg-eating mammals. There are 17 known species of Foxes they are widely distributed worldwide and the most common is the Red Fox(Vulpes vulpes). Foxes are omnivores feeding mostly made up of invertebrates. They also eat small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, birds, insects, dung beetles, grasses, berries and eggs. Foxes cache excess food, burying it for later consumption, usually under leaves, snow, or soil.

Stoat (Mustela ermine)

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The Stoat or Ermine is a carnivorous mammal that eats insects, small mammals, bird and their eggs and young. This tree-climber also eats small reptiles and fish. It is capable of killing animals larger than its size and knows to store extra food for later consumption. This predatory mammal is also known as Shorttail or Short-tailed Weasel and Ermelin.

Crow

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Cowsare large passerine birds that originated in Asia. Crows are also known to eat eggs.

Gull

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Gullsare birds typically with harsh wailing or squawking calls. Most species are carnivores that feed on live crabs and small fishes and have been observed preying on live whales, landing on the whale as it surfaces to peck out pieces of flesh.  These birds are also known to eat eggs.

See alsoWeirdest and Bizarre Eating Behavior in the Animal KingdomKinkajou, Dugong, Shrew, Walrus, Duck Mole, Flying Lemur, Whale, Tapir, Manatee and Others: What Are So Amazing With These Mammals?Beetles, Capybara, Elephants, Gorillas, Guinea Pigs, Hamsters, Mole Rats, Pandas, Pigs and Others: What Do These Animals Have in Common?

Eggs are among the most consumed food in the world by humans. And do you know that … China is the world’s largest consumer of eggs with an average annual consumption of 28.6 million tones. There are also many animals that feed on eggs. 

Snake, Gull, Crow, Raccoon, Mink, Otter, Skunk, Fox and others: What Do They Have in Common? They are all egg-eaters!

African Egg-eating Snake (Dasypeltis-atra)

Image Source 

African Egg-eating Snake is a colubrid snakeknown to have adapted to feed exclusively on eggs. This non-venomous snake can be found throughout the forested area of Africa. When threatened, it will perform what is called saw-scaling, it will rub its scales together quickly to make a rasping noise that sounds vaguely like hissing. It is also an agile climber and has a keen sense of smell to identify if an egg is rotten or not. It has extremely a flexible jaw and neck for eating eggs much larger than its head. It is toothless but it has bony protrusions on the inside edge of its spine which are used to aid in breaking the shells of eggs.

This snake is a popular exotic pet but due to its unique dietary needs it can be a challenge to keep in captivity. It doesn’t grow so large enough to consume typical chicken egg, so smaller ones must be provided.

Indian Egg-eating Snake (Elachistodon westermanni)

This snake is a rare species of egg-eating snake. It can be found in the South Asian countries of India, Nepal and Bangladesh. This glossy brown to black snake is also called the Westermann’s Snake. This nocturnal creature has special adaptations that juts into the esophagus and helps in cracking eggs.

Long-Tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata)

Image Source

The cute-looking Long-tailed Weasel that can be found from Canada down to Central America and northern part of South America usually inhabits open or semi-open areas near water. Its primary diet is rodents. This mammal that can climb trees and a good swimmer is also known to eat eggs.

Skunk

Image Source 

Skunks are among the known egg-eating mammals. Theseanimals are best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul-smelling odor. There are 10 species of skunks. Like the Raccoons, they are omnivorous eating both plant and animal material. They change their diet as the seasons change. They eat insects and larvae, earthworms, small rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles, and eggs. They also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi and nuts.

Mink

Image Source 

There are two living species of Minks – the American Mink and the European Mink. They are dark-colored, semi-aquatic and carnivorous mammals. The American Mink is larger, and more adaptable than the European Mink.

Minks on the wild prey on fish and other aquatic life, small mammals and birds. Minks raised on farms primarily eat expired cheese, eggs, fish, meat and poultry slaughterhouse by-products, dog food, and turkey livers, as well as prepared, commercial foods. A Wisconsin fur farm uses 2 million pounds of expired cheese and 1 million pounds of eggs per year.

Otter

Image Source 

Otters aresemi-aquatic fish-eating and egg-eating mammals. There are 13 known species of Otters and can be found worldwide. Their main food includes aquatic animals, amphibians, birds, small mammals and eggs.

Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

Image Source 

The Raccoon or Common Raccoon are among the most intelligent animals in the world. This medium-sized mammal is endemic to North America but can now be found in other parts of the world. This creature can weigh as much as 9 kg and can attain a body length of 72 cm making it the largest procyonid. This nocturnal mammal is omnivore and feeds on invertebrates, plant foods and vertebrates. Raccoons are known to douse their food before eating it. They are also known to feed on eggs. They are also commonly known as North American Raccoon, Northern Raccoon and Coon.

Fox

Image Source 

It’s quite unusual but Foxes are egg-eating mammals. There are 17 known species of Foxes they are widely distributed worldwide and the most common is the Red Fox(Vulpes vulpes). Foxes are omnivores feeding mostly made up of invertebrates. They also eat small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, birds, insects, dung beetles, grasses, berries and eggs. Foxes cache excess food, burying it for later consumption, usually under leaves, snow, or soil.

Stoat (Mustela ermine)

Image Source

The Stoat or Ermine is a carnivorous mammal that eats insects, small mammals, bird and their eggs and young. This tree-climber also eats small reptiles and fish. It is capable of killing animals larger than its size and knows to store extra food for later consumption. This predatory mammal is also known as Shorttail or Short-tailed Weasel and Ermelin.

Crow

Image Source

Cowsare large passerine birds that originated in Asia. Crows are also known to eat eggs.

Gull

Image Source

Gullsare birds typically with harsh wailing or squawking calls. Most species are carnivores that feed on live crabs and small fishes and have been observed preying on live whales, landing on the whale as it surfaces to peck out pieces of flesh.  These birds are also known to eat eggs.

See alsoWeirdest and Bizarre Eating Behavior in the Animal KingdomKinkajou, Dugong, Shrew, Walrus, Duck Mole, Flying Lemur, Whale, Tapir, Manatee and Others: What Are So Amazing With These Mammals?Beetles, Capybara, Elephants, Gorillas, Guinea Pigs, Hamsters, Mole Rats, Pandas, Pigs and Others: What Do These Animals Have in Common?

I’ve been a fan of the natural world for as long as I can remember. When I was growing up, I mostly liked to study different kind of dogs. You see, my parents were breeders active in the local kennel club, and raised schnauzers and a few other breeds professionally. Unlike them, I wasn’t particularly concerned with how good a specimen each dog was or how it compared to its particular breed. I didn’t care if it’s ears had the right proportion or its head had the right coloring. In fact, my favorite dog growing up was a mutt that we had taken in. He was a stray dog, probably two thirds Golden retriever but nowhere near one of the purebreds my parents looked for. Nevertheless, even at that young age I realized that all kinds of animals had their virtues and uses and that it was a mistake to judge one breed or species superior to another.

As I grew up, I took up animal photography as a hobby. I would photograph all kinds of animals, from wild rabbits to domestic cats to lizards, insects and even rare birds. Soon I had more than 100 different kinds of animals organized in my photo album, and I started to think about becoming a professional. In college, I did some freelance photography gigs and wrote a few travel articles for regional magazines, but it never really panned out into a full time career. For me, you see, It was not about making money. Rather, it was about seeing as many different animals as I could and really trying to capture something essential about each one with the pictures I took.

Nowadays, I don’t simply restrict myself to photography anymore. I have an extensive collection of both domestic and exotic pets, featuring all kinds of animals from around the world. I seem to go through phases these days. I was really into mammals growing up, but nowadays I’m much more interested in reptiles, particularly snakes and skinks. Still, there’s only so much you can do with reptiles. I am always careful to keep a couple dogs around or maybe a ferret or two so that I have a buddy I can play chase or catch with. Surprisingly, I still like all kinds of animals, even though I’ve come across a few bad tempered ones over the years. A sullen snake or a bad tempered rabbit has a lot of character, and it’s fascinating to get to know the grouchy critters along with the pleasant ones.

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