History Main / PredatorsAreMean

* This trope is invoked as a '''stereotype''' in ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}''.

* This trope is invoked as a '''stereotype''' in ''Film/{{Zootopia}}''.

* Brilliantly handled in ''Literature/WatershipDown'', where the the rabbits refer to their multitude of predators as "''u embleer hrair''" -- "The Stinking Thousand." The rabbits live in constant fear and hatred of their predators, casting them as demon-like entities in their mythology. But when confronted with the wanton destruction that humans inflict [[HumansAreCthulhu for no comprehensible reason]], they acknowledge that [[PredationIsNatural their predators only kill because they have to]] and that they are struggling for survival not unlike themselves.

Subtrope of GoodAnimalsEvilAnimals and AlwaysChaoticEvil. Often seen in conjunction with CarnivoreConfusion. Can overlap with HumansAreTheRealMonsters, and maybe even HumansAreCthulhu (particularly in {{Xenofiction}}). Goes hand-in-hand with SuperPersistentPredator, HerbivoresAreFriendly and ScavengersAreScum. Contrast PredationIsNatural. In-universe might explain the XenophobicHerbivore. May be one of the reasons why ReptilesAreAbhorrent--note that [[LovableLizard lizards]] and [[WiseOldTurtle turtles]], two groups that include herbivores, get to be protagonists more often than snakes and crocodilians, which are all predators. At times some predators appear as a non-anthropomorphic third party in a conflict either because they are the only true animals or because they have no interaction with the established individuals in which case they may be neutral characters just as likely to eat the bad guys- if not more so.

* Half of the plot points of ''Manga/{{Beastars}}''.

* Half of the plot points of ''[[Beastars]]''.

* A seemingly rare real-life example would be the monstrous [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_(crocodile) Gustave]], an enormous Nile crocodile. Gustave is believed to be at least 60 years old, but might be closer to a hundred, has been the target of several hunts that have all failed, and was last seen in June 2015 while dragging an entire bull buffalo into the water. He's suspected to have killed around 300 humans as well, but this is often seen as a exaggeration. In truth much of his reputation amounts to little more than hearsay. [[SubvertedTrope In truth his habits]] are [[PredationIsNatural not different]] than a typical crocodile and he found humans were a source of food after multiple regional wars resulted in a large number of dead bodies ending up in rivers. Compare even his high-balled fatality listing of 300 to [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters the tens to hundreds of thousands]] of war victims in the same area.

* Half of the plot points of ''Beastars''.

* A seemingly rare real-life example would be the monstrous [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_(crocodile) Gustave]], an enormous Nile crocodile. Gustave is believed to be at least 60 years old, but might be closer to a hundred, has been the target of several hunts that have all failed, and was last seen in June 2015 while dragging an entire bull buffalo into the water. He's suspected to have killed around 300 humans as well, but this is often seen as a exaggeration. In truth much of his reputation amounts to little more than hearsay. [[SubvertedTrope In truth his habits]] are [[PredationIsNatural not different]] than a typical crocodile and he found humans were a source of food after multiple region wars resulted in a large number of dead bodies ending up in rivers. Compare even his high-balled fatality listing of 300 to [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters the tens to hundreds of thousands]] of war victims in the same area.

* A rare real-life example would be the monstrous [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_(crocodile) Gustave]], an enormous Nile crocodile who's been observed killing for the sake of killing rather than just for food. Gustave is believed to be at least 60 years old, but might be closer to a hundred, has been the target of several hunts that have all failed, and was last seen in June 2015 while dragging an entire bull buffalo into the water. He's suspected to have killed around 300 humans as well. Albeit, much of his reputation amounts to little more than hearsay.

In fiction, particularly if the prey can talk, carnivores are often [[AlwaysChaoticEvil evil]], and all the [[HerbivoresAreFriendly heroes are herbivores]]. The predator's desire to eat the prey makes the predator a villain, or at least, a DesignatedVillain. For instance, if [[NiceMice the heroes are mice]], often CatsAreMean; if the main character is [[ScrewballSquirrel a squirrel]], then DogsHateSquirrels. And even if the main character is [[AngryGuardDog a dog]], that is the VillainProtagonist at best. In works involving talking animals, carnivores almost always fail to catch their prey. (Sometimes, their prey actually defeats them!).

* ''WebOriginal/HamstersParadise'': While this trope is averted for most of the carnivores on HP-02017, it's played completely straight by the maniacal ripperoo, a highly intelligent theropod-like predatory rodent that [[HadToBeSharp evolved in the harsh Mesoterran Badlands]] and adapted to tear its prey apart and eat it alive due to the lack of features allowing to quickly kill its victims. These factors have caused to become naturally sadistic and enjoy the act of killing rather than only doing so to stay alive. They aren't any better towards their own kind either, with adult males killing adolescent ones to remove competitors, females eating the young of other females to remove competition for their own and the pups using their weaker siblings for hunting practice, which their mothers encourage. It's also heavily implied that they'll [[spoiler:evolve into a sapient AlwaysChaoticEvil species]].

* ''WebOriginal/HamstersParadise'': While this trope is averted for most of the carnivores on HP-02017 it’s played completely straight by the maniacal ripperoo. A highly intelligent theropod-like predatory rodent that [[HadToBeSharp evolved in the harsh Mesoterran Badlands]] and designed to tear its prey apart and eat it alive due to the lack of features allowing to quickly kill its victims. These factors have caused to become naturally sadistic and enjoy the act of killing rather than only doing so to stay alive. They aren’t any better towards their own kind either with adult males killing adolescent ones to remove competitors, females eating the young of other females to remove competition for their own and the pups using their weaker siblings for hunting practice, which their mother encourage. It’s also heavily implied that they’ll [[spoiler: evolve into a sapient AlwaysChaoticEvil species]].

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[[quoteright:300:[[WesternAnimation/{{Barnyard}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dag_5.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:300:"Cook her while I have the little one for an appetizer. You know, 'cause I'm a meaner."]]

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* In the first episode of ''Anime/PokemonTheSeriesDiamondAndPearl'', Piplup is captured in the web of an [[GiantSpider Ariados]] and has to be freed by Dawn. Later on, an entire swarm of Ariados come back to trap them, and Piplup is forced to use [[DeathOrGloryAttack Bide]] in order to fend them off.

* The fox in ''WesternAnimation/TheFirstSnowOfWinter'' goes out of its way to try and eat Sean even after it catches the much fatter Voley.
* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon:
** In ''WesternAnimation/{{Tarzan}}'', a leopard[[ViewerGenderConfusion ess]] named Sabor is one of the main villains. [[spoiler:She is eventually killed by Tarzan when he kills her by impaling her with a knife after an battle.]]
** Glut the Shark in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{The Little Mermaid|1989}}'' actively tries to eat Flounder and Ariel in the shipwreck until they manage to trap him in an anchor.
** ''WesternAnimation/{{Dinosaur}}'': Mimicking ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime'', none of the predatory dinosaurs ever utter a word.
** In ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}'', when a predator goes savage, the trope is played straight but outside that scenario, the trope is zig-zagged all over the place. A mafia boss is portrayed by an arctic shrew, a ruthless predator, but one of the most kind-hearted characters in the movie is a cheetah. In addition, the most gruff and cantankerous character is Chief Bogo who is a cape buffalo and the ruthless BigBad is also a prey animal.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheRugratsMovie'' has a huge vicious and scary wolf named Scar Snout who is portrayed as over-hunting.
* Subverted in ''Anime/OneStormyNight''. Most of the antagonists are wolves however they're not mean because they're wolves, they're just mean wolves. Gabu and some background wolves aren't portrayed as malicious. Gabu is a sweet wolf who becomes best friends with a goat named Mei. Gabu tries to become a vegetarian and, even though Mei dislikes Gabu hunting, they both realize that is impossible.

* ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'' has an aggressive and vicious bird who attempts to eat Flik, Dot, and the Circus Bugs.

* Perhaps one of the most famous examples is ''Literature/TheThreeLittlePigs''. The villain is a TheBigBadWolf who huffs, and puffs, and-- well, you know the story. Anyways, the three little pigs defeat him at the end of the story. In reality, however, pigs and wolves are both omnivores, like humans, eating both animal and plant material. This is very well understood in the older version of the story, where the only surviving pig cooks the wolf for dinner.
* In Larry Niven's ''Literature/KnownSpace'' novels, the carnivorous alien Kzinti are aggressive conquerors who nearly defeat humanity.
* Inverted in ''Literature/TheLostFleet''. During the series, the protagonists meet a sapient race of apex predators that resemble a mix between angry wolves and giant spiders. This species, the Dancers, is substantially ''[[DarkIsNotEvil nicer]]'' than humans on average, for the exact reason this trope is normally averted in RealLife-they, instinctively, are not actually wary of any bigger threats than they are, and thus aren't as suspicious as direct-middle-of-the-food-chain humans are by nature. By contrast, the herbivorous, bottom-of-the-food-chain klicks are a cute, cuddly, almost cow-like race of...[[AbsoluteXenophobe utter]] [[OmnicidalManiac psychopaths]].
* In ''Literature/TheBadGuys'', this is the main stereotype the four main characters (a wolf, a shark, a snake, and a piranha) are attempting to shake in their attempt to be [[HeelFaceTurn good guys]]. It’s a rough thing for them to do, however, as most of them are not in full earnest, and still prefer meat. Mr. Snake especially has trouble shaking this role, which nearly jeopardizes a plan to free caged chickens.

* Played straight in ''VideoGame/FarCry3'' and ''VideoGame/FarCry4''. In the third game in the franchise, some of the predators will hunt you with deliberate intent to kill you over [=NPCs=] that might be closer to them. And in some cases, two (or even three) different predators might gang up on you in favor of killing each other [[note]] the animal AI is designed to act like a normal circle of life and predators will attack other predators if they are "in their territory"[[/note]]. In the 4th game they added a giant eagle that will swoop down on you with little warning (a slight screech indicates a black eagle is about to attack and you have approximately 2 or 3 seconds to find it before you get attacked and lose half your health) and honey badgers that are not only tiny and vicious, but also extremely tough to kill with anything less than a machine gun. At least the honey badgers do not come in packs. The honey badger's toughness and viciousness is lampshaded in a hunting quest where you are given a heavy machine gun to hunt it down, and before you can fully accept the quest, you must say "yes" no less than 4 times to start the mission.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime'' [[{{Sequelitis}} TV Series]], the main villains are, again, carnivorous dinosaurs. Well, at least they get ''names''. The main villain is a ''T. rex'' named Red Claw who has two ''Utahraptor'' henchmen named Screech and Thud. Anonymous "[[CallARabbitASmeerp Sharpteeth]]" also appear in the TV series, including two ''Acrocanthosauruses'' and several anonymous deinonychosaurs.

* In ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'''s ''Woodland Critter Christmas'', most of the titular critters were prey animals (though there was a bear and a fox among them) and had a conflict with a [[CatsAreMean mountain lion]] who would always come down before Christmas and eat the poor little virgin critter impregnated with their lord and savior. Stan, hearing their story, goes out to kill the mountain lion. [[spoiler: It turned out that the predator was good all along because she was stopping the birth of the ''Antichrist'', and it had three cubs who came to mourn their mother's [[WesternAnimation/{{The Lion King|1994}} Mufasa]]-style death.]]
* ZigZagged in ''WesternAnimation/TheWildThornberrys''. Eliza would either befriend or run away from a predatory animal, [[DependingOnTheWriter depending on the episode]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', this trope might be better called "Predators are Jerks" -- there don't seem to be many creatures that actively go out of their way to prey on ponies, but it's noteworthy that several episodes' worth of more unsympathetic antagonists like Gilda the griffon, the diamond dogs, and assorted dragons at the very least ''look'' quite carnivorous. On the other hand, the ponies' ''pets'' are quite naturally immune and the trope has an occasional habit of getting (sometimes hilariously) subverted around Fluttershy...

* The introduction of Bullet the Super Squirrel in ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'' has this, with the eagle that originally tries to kill Speedy for food is treated like a monster for, you know, being a predator. But then, Bubbles never did care much for animals that werent cute.
* In ''WesternAnimation/AlfredJKwak'', [[CatsAreMean Krabnagel the cat]] is the only anthropomorphic animal that eats other animals, and although not specifically called out for it is therefore considered especially vicious. Other carnivorous characters avert this trope ([[CarnivoreConfusion don't try to think too hard what they eat]]).

* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Witch}}'' has Hay Lin saving a rabbit from what she deems to be a "mean" fox. All the fox was doing was hunting for food.
* Most of the "evil" animal characters (and minions of BigBad witch Hedwig) are predatory marine animals in ''WesternAnimation/SabansAdventuresOfTheLittleMermaid'' including sharks, barracudas, manta rays and a giant octopus.
* Two evil alligators try to eat the cubs in [[VillainExclusivityClause every episode]] ''WesternAnimation/{{Kissyfur}}''.
* Similar to the example above, two evil wolves try to eat the main characters in ''WesternAnimation/PiggsburgPigs'' albeit they are hardly the big bads of the setting as the show has a real scary monster in every episode.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAntAndTheAardvark'' is an [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin animated series about a villainous aardvark trying to eat a noble ant.]]

* In ''MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', this trope might be better called "Predators are Jerks" -- there don't seem to be many creatures that actively go out of their way to prey on ponies, but it's noteworthy that several episodes' worth of more unsympathetic antagonists like Gilda the griffon, the diamond dogs, and assorted dragons at the very least ''look'' quite carnivorous. On the other hand, the ponies' ''pets'' are quite naturally immune and the trope has an occasional habit of getting (sometimes hilariously) subverted around Fluttershy...

* Another rare example would be dolphins, dolphins are known to hunt not only for food but also as a social activity within pods and for fun. {{Downplayed}}, in that there are also many examples of dolphins saving the lives of humans and other animals, with no apparent self-interest motive.

** Carnivorous dinosaurs, [[CallARabbitASmeerp called Sharpteeth]], are the main villains. In the first movie, a ''TyrannosaurusRex'' named Sharptooth is the main villain. He is a nearly invincible killing machine, killing huge apatosaurs twice his size, surviving a 700-foot drop with just a mild coma, and leaping and running effortlessly. He is ultimately dispatched by being tossed into a lake and being hit on the head with a giant rock.

* ''Film/JurassicWorld's'' website lists most of its carnivorous dinosaurs, pterosaurs and sea lizard as having high "Aggression Indexes" (in layman's terms, the carnivores have {{Hair Trigger Temper}}s). Plot relevant ones include the infamously carnivorous ''TyrannosaurusRex'', long-time villains ''[[RaptorAttack Velociraptor]]'', the fish-eating pterosaur ''[[PteroSoarer Pteranodon]]'' and SHARK-eating sea lizard ''[[SeaMonster Mosasaurus]]''. Given what Jurassic World is like, it's possible that they did this on purpose so the animals could live up to the expectations of the public, as most of these animals would have been relatively docile in real life[[note]]Amusingly, ''Pteranodon'' is the one that would most likely have had a bad temper in reality, though this would have had less to do with it being a carnivore and more to do with it being a polygynous breeder (and all of the park's specimens are female)[[/note]]. In the raptors' case this is consistent with how they were depicted in the previous films and the ''Pteranodons''' high aggression level is a plot point in the film, seeing as the saurian BigBad of the film frightens them into a maddened frenzy and sics them on a helicopter that was pursuing her. There are exceptions, though; the fish-eating ''Baryonyx'' and ''Suchomimus'' have a medium Aggression Index, as does the opportunistic pterosaur ''Dimorphodon''. ''Gallimimus'', the one omnivore of the mix, has a low Aggression Index.

* In the first episode of ''[[Anime/{{Pokemon}} Pokémon Diamond and Pearl]],'' Piplup is captured in the web of an [[GiantSpider Ariados]] and has to be freed by Dawn. Later on, an entire swarm of Ariados come back to trap them, and Piplup is forced to use [[DeathOrGloryAttack Bide]] in order to fend them off.

* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon

* Subverted in ''[[Literature/ArashiNoYoruNi One Stormy Night]]''. Most of the antagonists are wolves however they're not mean because they're wolves, they're just mean wolves. Gabu and some background wolves aren't portrayed as malicious. Gabu is a sweet wolf who becomes best friends with a goat named Mei. Gabu tries to become a vegetarian and, even though Mei dislikes Gabu hunting, they both realize that is impossible.
* In ''Animation/LeafieAHenIntoTheWild'', the closest thing to a BigBad the film has is the one eyed-weasel who nearly kills Leafie and kills both of Greenie's biological parents. [[spoiler:The film subverts this near the end as Leafie learns the weasel isn't any worse than she is. The one-eyed weasel s a mother who needs to feed her newly borns. Leafie [[HeroicSacrifice lets the weasel]] [[TheHeroDies eat her]] so her children can live.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'' has a aggressive and vicious bird who attempts to eat Flik, Dot, and the Circus Bugs.

* Played annoyingly straight in ''VideoGame/FarCry3'' and even worse in ''VideoGame/FarCry4''. In the third game in the franchise, some of the predators will hunt you with deliberate intent to kill you over [=NPCs=] that might be closer to them. And in some cases, two (or even three) different predators might gang up on you in favor of killing each other [[note]] the animal AI is designed to act like a normal circle of life and predators will attack other predators if they are "in their territory"[[/note]]. In the 4th game it gets worse still as they add a giant eagle that will swoop down on you with little warning (a slight screech indicates a black eagle is about to attack and you have approximately 2 or 3 seconds to find it before you get attacked and lose half your health) and honey badgers that are not only tiny and vicious, but also extremely tough to kill with anything less than a machine gun. At least the honey badgers do not come in packs. The honey badger's toughness and viciousness is lampshaded in a hunting quest where you are given a heavy machine gun to hunt it down, and before you can fully accept the quest, you must say "yes" no less than 4 times to start the mission.

%% Glut the Shark in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{The Little Mermaid|1989}}''.

[[folder:Documentary]]
* ''Series/WalkingWithDinosaurs'': Averted with most predators, but played dead straight with ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Liopleurodon]]'', which is shown as a "villain" of both episodes it appears in just because it preys on other animals. A bit of a bizarre example, in that in both of the episodes it appears in ("Cruel Sea" and "Giant of the Skies") the creature it is shown preying on or trying to is itself a carnivore.
* In ''Series/WalkingWithMonsters'', anything that preys upon a human ancestor is shown as a [[PrehistoricMonster vicious brute]], unless it is itself stated to be a human ancestor.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]

* Perhaps one of the most famous examples is ''Literature/ThreeLittlePigs''. The villain is a TheBigBadWolf who huffs, and puffs, and- well, you know the story. Anyways, the three little pigs defeat him at the end of the story. In reality, however, pigs and wolves are both omnivores, like humans, eating both animal and plant material.
** This is very well understood in the older version of the story, where the only surviving pig cooks the wolf for dinner.

* ZigZagged in WesternAnimation/TheWildThornberrys. Eliza would either befriend or run away from a predatory animal, [[DependingOnTheWriter depending on the episode]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', this trope might be better called "Predators are Jerks" -- there don't seem to be many creatures that actively go out of their way to prey on ponies, but it's noteworthy that several episodes' worth of more unsympathetic antagonists like Gilda the griffon, the diamond dogs, and assorted dragons at the very least ''look'' quite carnivorous. On the other hand, the ponies' ''pets'' are quite naturally immune and the trope has an occasional habit of getting (sometimes hilariously) subverted around Fluttershy...
* The spider, the cat, and Pete (who plays a dogcatcher here), in the 1937 MickeyMouse short ''The Worm Turns.'' Mickey gives their victims, a fly, a mouse, and Pluto (don't think about [[FurryConfusion that second one]] too hard), a serum to make them more powerful and beat their tormentors up.

--> ''[[OldShame Since then]] I have lived to see state after state extirpate its wolves. I have watched the face of many a newly wolfless mountain, and seen the south-facing slopes wrinkle with a maze of new deer trails. I have seen every edible bush and seedling browsed, first to anaemic desuetude, and then to death... In the end the starved bones of the hoped-for deer herd, [[GoneHorriblyRight dead of its own too-much,]] bleach with the bones of the dead sage, or molder under the high-lined junipers. I now suspect that just as a deer herd lives in mortal fear of its wolves, so does a mountain live in mortal fear of its deer.''

This is a common way to deal with predators in talking animal fiction. This trope may be one of TheOldestOnesInTheBook, despite predators serving a vital ecological role (no apex predators=too many herbivores=ecosystem completely collapses), or needing to eat meat to live. On the other hand, to the mouse, what the owl is like inside isn't as relevant as that it's trying to eat you. When the story focuses on a prey animal, there's not a lot of ways to keep predators from being monstrous. SapientEatSapient is a justified case of this, since there are sapient predators that know what they are doing and sapient prey that has a right to live. There are still a few ways to avoid this though, the most famous being with the fish-eating characters who are often spared sympathy thanks to their targets being non-sapient (see NoCartoonFish for more about that trope).

In fiction, particularly if the prey can talk, carnivores are often [[AlwaysChaoticEvil evil]], and all the [[HerbivoresAreFriendly heroes are herbivores]]. The predator's desire to eat the prey makes the predator a villain, or at least, a DesignatedVillain. For instance, if [[NiceMice the heroes are mice]], often CatsAreMean; if the main character is [[ScrewballSquirrel a squirrel]], then DogsHateSquirrels. And even if the main character is [[AngryGuardDog a dog]], that is the VillainProtagonist at best. In works involving talking animals, carnivores almost always fail to catch their prey. (Sometimes, their prey actually defeats them!). Like bullies, there not all predators are villains because they just being mean and dangerous creatures which is usually neutral characters unless they are anthropomorphic that shown to be evil or over-hunting, anthropomorphic predators are evil or over-hunting rather than normal predators.

Subtrope of GoodAnimalsEvilAnimals and AlwaysChaoticEvil. Often seen in conjunction with CarnivoreConfusion. Can overlap with HumansAreTheRealMonsters, and maybe even HumansAreCthulhu (particularly in {{Xenofiction}}). Goes hand-in-hand with SuperPersistentPredator, HerbivoresAreFriendly and ScavengersAreScum. Contrast PredationIsNatural. In-universe might explain the XenophobicHerbivore. May be one of the reasons why ReptilesAreAbhorrent--note that [[LovableLizard lizards]] and [[WiseOldTurtle turtles]], two groups that include herbivores, get to be protagonists more often than snakes and crocodilians, which are all predators.

** In ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}'', when a predator goes savage, the trope is played straight but outside that scenario, the trope is zig-zagged all over the place. A mafia boss is portrayed by an arctic shrew, a ruthless predator, but one of the most kind-hearted characters in the movie is a cheetah. In addition, the most gruff and cantankerous character is Chief Bogo who is a cape buffalo and the ruthless BigBad is a prey animal.