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Mystery #4Tier 2animals / survival

Why would an animal flop over and pretend to be dead when attacked?

Grab an opossum, or startle a certain beetle or snake, and something bizarre happens: the animal flops over, goes stiff or limp, lets its tongue loll out, and can even give off a rotten smell. It looks completely, convincingly dead. Then, once the danger has passed, it springs up and scurries off, perfectly alive. Why would an animal pretend to be dead just when a hunter has caught it?

An opossum lying limp and still on the grass with its mouth open and tongue out, pretending to be dead.
Photo: Tony Alter · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

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Why might playing dead help an animal stay alive?

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