Behavior Brief

A round-up of recent discoveries in behavior research

Written byCristina Luiggi
| 4 min read

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Deadly moon cycle
Werewolves may strike when the moon is full, but when it comes to lion attacks, it’s the days immediately following that pose the most danger to humans. Researchers studying lion attacks in Tanzania—where free roaming lions have claimed more than 600 human lives over the past two decades—have found that lions are four times more likely to attack during the 10 days following a full moon.

Because lions hunt best under the cover of darkness (when their prey is less likely to spot them), meals become harder to come by in the days leading up to the full moon. But in the days after a full moon, when lions are at their hungriest, the waning moon appears later in the night sky, ...

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