Table of Contents
Learn What Mongoose Eat
Mongoose is well known for fighting snakes including venomous snakes. These brown land animals are quick to hunt and kill other animals. Because they are omnivores, mongooses can feed on diverse animals, birds, reptiles, and insects. However, some of their species are also semi-aquative – that feed on amphibians. As for plants, they are also fond of noshing vegetables and seeds for their diet. If you’re curious about, “What do mongoose eat?” then this post will guide you about it. Hence, we’ll explore the variety of diets in the wild that mongooses enjoy eating.
Insects and Animals
Mongoose is often seen hunting and eating snakes — no matter how poisonous they are. Feeding on snakes doesn’t potentially harm the mongoose, which is why they ingest it. They are fond of eating cobras and other species of snakes. Hence, mongooses eat snakes, cobras, black mambas, and poisonous snakes.
Considering the availability of food in the wild, their diet isn’t limited to just a few choices. Mongooses eat rats, mice, birds, chickens, ducks, rabbits, squirrels, and meat. While these aren’t egg-eating animals, they do search for the eggs for their diet. This is why mongooses eat eggs, chicken eggs, and chicken as well. Oftentimes, they also hunt the other small animals and their babies fall prey to mongooses. As a result, mongoose eat baby chickens, kittens, and so on. For the most part, mongooses eat snakes, fish, frogs, geckos, iguanas, scorpions, ants, bees, and centipedes.
Fruits and Vegetables
Being omnivorous, the eating habits of mongooses vary depending on the food available in their surroundings. While their favorite food consists of meat, they can switch to other foods as well. This diverse feeding allows mongooses to enjoy vegetables and fruits as well. Hence, mongoose eat plants and vegetables to boost their energy levels if other food isn’t available. As for the fruits, mongoose eat tomatoes, seeds, and a variety of nuts as well. Whether they are in the wild or captivity, mongooses can devour plenty of foods including chocolate.
What mongoose don’t eat?
Mongoose are not picky eaters, but they do have food preferences as well. They wouldn’t eat everything related to meat despite being carnivores! While they feed on vegetation, mongoose doesn’t eat grass and crops – not their cup of tea! Plus, mongooses don’t eat cats, dogs, or humans. They don’t have a taste for things that might seem meaty, but bulky to eat! Besides, mongoose don’t eat king cobras, chameleons, elephant shrews, lemurs, and meerkats. And, of course, their diverse diet excludes a variety of other animals, birds, and more. That being said, mongoose don’t eat owls, bee eater birds, penguins, zebras, and rattlesnakes. And that’s because those animals are very large, or they can harm the mongoose if encountered.
Conclusion
Whether they live on land or near the water, mongoose diet varies depending on its surroundings. These carnivorous animals can ferociously attack the prey for their next meal. All in all, the favorite food of mongoose includes a variety of snakes and rodents.
