Placentophagy, also known as placentophagia, is the act of consuming part or all of the afterbirth following parturition in mammals. Parturition involves the delivery of the neonate, as well as the placenta and fetal membranes. The placenta is a critical organ that develops in the maternal uterus during pregnancy to support the fetus. It connects to the baby via the umbilical cord in order to allow nutrient transport, waste excretion and gas exchange between mother and baby. The morphological features of the placenta differ among species, but the function is universal. The behaviour is characteristic to the mother of the majority of placental mammals. Significant documentation has been provided on placentophagy in a range of animals. Anomalies generally include humans and aquatic species, as well as camels. However, the concept is becoming more popular among women in the Western World despite its controversial overtone. Theories as to why mammals engage in placentophagy are related to the many proposed benefits of placental consumption. These vary between animals but tend to be behavioural, medical or spiritual in nature. Prevalence Placentophagy is a normality in most members of the taxonomic group Eutheria. It has been observed in animals ranging from rodents to primates, and even in some instances humans. The most extensive study has been on animals in orders Rodentia, Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, Carnivora, Perissodactyla, Artiodactyla, and Primates. Exceptions to the ubiquitous behaviour in mammals can be seen in humans, sea mammals and camelids. It is suggested that the portion of marine species that do not practice placentophagy are ones that deliver their offspring in the water because beneficial components are dispersed upon expulsion from the mother, and that the domestication of camelids has eradicated the behaviour by placing stress and selective pressure on the species. In rabbits Placentophagia in rabbits is exclusively performed by maternal figures that have recently given birth. A study shows that even when pregnant and pre-parturient female rabbits are presented with placental meal there is little participation in the behavior but all postpartum mothers ate the afterbirth. When compared with the consumption of liver, another protein source, the occurrence of placentophagia alone increases by roughly 55% in the short 1–5 day period following parturition. The liver is preferential to non-pregnant, pregnant and pre-parturient mothers consistently as opposed to post-partum mothers who chose to consume only placenta when presented with both. The same study also looked at the interest of