Difference between Feral and Wild

Both feral and wild are closely related to living things, particularly animals, based on their living environment. Animals of both categories live in wild environments and eat the same food but still there are some other differences between them. Feral and wild can be defined in terms of an animal’s detachment from humans.

Feral is basically a status attributed to the species, while wild is an implication to the natural environment of a species.

Feral is term used to describe wild animals that were once domesticated. Wild describes animals that were never domesticated.

The term feral is always an adjective. Wild, on the other hand, is both an adjective and the name of a place.

Wild species never upset the natural flow of energy but feral species could either sustain or disturb the natural balance in their environment.

Feral is the term to describe only animals, but any type of organism or plants can be referred to as wild.

Feral animals are domesticated, so they have been handled by humans. Wild animals, on the contrary, never have experienced any form of human handling.

Wild animals are being saved through in-situ conservation of genetic resources, which is basically a course of action to protect the endangered animal or plant species in their natural habitat. On the other hand, feral animals are conserved and promoted through ex-situ conservation or off-site conservation. This is the process of taking care of an endangered species (rare) of animal or plants outside their natural habitat.

Instructions

  • 1

    Feral

    Feral is derived from a Latin word Fera, which means a wild beast. Feral is a state of group of plants or animals, where they currently live in a wild environment after being cultivated or domesticated. The domestication of animals dates back to 10,000 BC when sheep were used in the Middle East as the main source of food and wool. Later, the domestication of dogs started as they were considered as a source of security. Barley, wheat, lentils and various types of peas were the first plants to be domesticated by human beings.

    - Image Courtesy: hubpages.com

  • 2

    Wild

    Wild is a broad term that has different meanings, yet it is mostly referred to wilderness and wild animals. It is a state when a species of animals are found in the natural environment. In addition to that, the natural environment itself is usually called wild. Generally, the first image that comes to mind about the term wild is the jungle or forest but the meaning should never be limited to that. In fact, the word wild represents all those places where an undomesticated species can be found.

    - Image Courtesy: picture-book.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


+ four = 10