What is the criterion for animals that are eaten and those that are not?

Question : May Allah reward you. He says: What is the criterion for animals that are eaten and others, in terms of permissibility or prohibition?

Answer : Allah the Mighty and Majestic said: So everything on earth is permissible to eat, except what is commanded to be killed or forbidden from being killed. Do you understand? What is commanded to be killed or forbidden from being killed is not to be eaten. Of what was commanded to be killed are five animals: the scorpion, the rat, the crow, the kite, and the vicious dog. These are five for which killing was commanded. Likewise, the lizard was commanded to be killed, and the weasel was also commanded to be killed. Do you know what a weasel is? Good. The snake was commanded to be killed. So whatever the Shari'ah commands to be killed is not permissible to eat, because it was commanded to be killed because it is a corrupting, harmful creature. When a person sustains himself with what is corrupting and harmful, he acquires of its nature and becomes a corrupting, harmful person. Likewise, what is forbidden from being killed is not permissible to eat. Among that is the game of the Haram, for killing the game of the Haram is forbidden. Likewise, the game of the one in ihram; if the one in ihram kills game, its consumption becomes forbidden for him and for others. Also, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade killing four things. But if they harm and their harm cannot be repelled except by killing, what is the ruling? Killing them is permissible. For example, if ants dig up the ground, ruin the flooring, fall into the dates, fall into the oil, and harm people, then it is permissible to kill them. Because if the human being, whom Allah the Exalted has honored and preferred over much of what He created, is killed when his harm cannot be repelled except by killing, then others are all the more so. Likewise, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade every predator with fangs among the beasts and every predator with talons among the birds. The meaning is the predatory beasts and birds. So the wolf, for example, what is it? Forbidden or not forbidden? Forbidden, because it is a predator. The lion, the leopard, the elephant are forbidden. And likewise, he forbade every predator with talons among the birds, such as the falcon, the kite, the hawk, the goshawk, and the like. These are known among the people of knowledge in their books, so let the questioner refer to them so that he may take from them something broader than what we have said.