It can be feast or famine in the wild

Q: Do any animals overeat in the wild?

A: A wild animal’s food consumption is determined as much by the availability of food as it is by appetite. What might appear to be gross overconsumption sometimes turns out to be a useful adaptation for survival.

For most species, eating a quarter of one’s body weight might be considered overeating, but wild lions often do so. A mature male lion can easily consume as much as 90 pounds at one feeding. Normal weight for a lion ranges from about 330 to 575 pounds.

This apparent excess must be seen in light of the likelihood that the lion’s next big hunting and feeding opportunity may be days or a week away. The lion has simply stocked up on protein for a long period of abstinence, and the ability to do so is a valuable evolutionary trait.

Similar feast-or-famine gorging behaviors are seen in species like migratory birds preparing for a long ocean crossing, and bears in autumn getting ready to hibernate.