The findings are described in the journal Aluda.Professor Abdeljebbar Qninba, from Université Mohammed V de Rabat in Morocco, who led the study, told MailOnline: ‘To my knowledge, this behaviour to keep alive some prey has never been reported before or for the Eleonora’s Falcon or for other raptor species.’ Fellow bird researcher Mohamed Amezian, who details the findings on his blog, told MailOnline: ‘Many animals such as falcons – Eleonora’s and Sooty falcons – and different shrikes (Lanius spp.) are known to store dead prey in places known as ‘larders’, but storing live prey has never been observed in any bird species.’ The authors report that the behaviour was seen among the falcons before their chicks hatched, perhaps to allow them to stock up before the hungry mouths of their young appear in the nest. They write: ‘Keeping prey alive, one or two days (the precise period not yet known), may allow the falcon to have a fresh food on the right moment, because the dead prey brought to the nest and untouched can no longer be consumed as it dries out too quickly.’ Raptors are intelligent birds and have an array of crafty, and often brutal, techniques to dispatch their prey. Golden eagles have been seen dragging mountain goats off cliffs. They use the same method for different prey. Dropping tortoises onto rocks to break open their shells.
0 comments:
Post a Comment