Owls
Falcons
Eagles and
hawks
These hunters use heightened senses to spot their victims from a distance seeing and hearing what others can't
Then they attack with precision and scale all from a bird's eye view
Still miss
Quiet
The coast is clear
The perfect time to forage for food
Isn't it
For the great horned owl it is
So the strategy of the great horned owl one hunting is they usually sit stealthy in a tree there Kim
They look like the bark of a tree. They blend right into the bark of a tree they sit there and when prey moves
They'll try to dive down users use their stealth and their silent flight to to catch that rodent
Owls are familiar birds of prey, but they have an unusual gift for homing in on their quarry
These specialized tools give them an edge
Many owl species around the world of asymmetrical hearing so one year is above the other ear so
What that does is allows them to have perfect depth perception so they can actually?
Hear a mouse or rodent either
Making noise under the snow or making noise in the grasslands or even making noise in the forest so they can home in exactly with
That Mouse is only using hearing many times not even using their eyesight
The super hearing ability of owls enables them to pinpoint their prey with incredible accuracy
This super sense isn't just dependent on their ears
Almost every part of its body has evolved to support its hearing
Owls seem to have large hats
But it's just an illusion their facial feathers make their heads seem larger
but they also grow in the formation of a parabolic dish this shape helps focus the sound waves onto their ears and
maximizes the volume of audio information they can collect
Much like when you put your hands up to your ears to hear something a long way away
And makes your head look a lot bigger, but it's but in the Owls case it's only feathers
That's supporting that parabolic dish so they can use their hearing to find their dinner
in the eyes
mesmerizing
Hunting
Like all birds of prey their eyeballs don't move they're locked in place
fixed eyeballs give elves a much needed constant in hunt field with
constantly changing variables, I will don't have the ability to move their eyes, but they certainly have their ability to move their head I
always concern their head about 3/4 of a turn in either direction
As humans we can only turn about 70 degrees in each direction
But when their head moves their hearing and their eyesight move together
Which allows them to of course look around and hear around at the same time which gives them a great advantage when they're out hunting
These fine-tuned and precise head movements indicate a critical stage of the hunt
Audio and visual come together the target is set and it's time to move
Even while in fall flight owls continue to collect data on the location of their prey
Most owl species our design was silent flight so when they flap their wings
They don't make any sound they have specially designed flight feathers very loosely feathered in the chest so they can fly through the air
Quietly a lot of people assume that so they could sneak up on their prey absolutely not
It's so they can actually listen to their prey so if they made a lot of noise with their flight feathers
They'd be listening to themselves and not their dinner so they fly silently so they can use their hearing
When the brains have done their job
Bran takes over and
So the great horned owl are some of the strongest
Feet in the world for their size, they've been measured over 400 psi
That's pounds per square inch of pressure the tips and talons
Incredibly strong they even have a talents a bit serrated, which gives them the ability to hold on to things once they go in
Have the talons have a narrow channel running along them called a blood groove
When the owl grabs on to a rodent blood leaks out of the puncture along the groove so the talons don't seal up the wound
In their mouth of course is actually quite a bit wider than a lot of other birds of prey species
And the reason why is it allows them to be able to swallow many of their prey completely whole
They have a trachea under their tongue like a snake so if they're swallowing something too big they could actually breathe under their tongue
Mouths locate kill and consume
with mastery law in deadly silence
Falcons come in many sizes
But when it comes to speed
There's only fast and extra fast
Soaring at 150 meters a Falken can detect the tiniest motion far below
It dives
100 km/h
153
20
the tiny creature never stood a chance
All Falcons are efficient predators
But the peregrine falcon is in a league of its own
Reaching speeds of over 350 kilometers per hour it's the fastest animal on the planet
At top speeds one of the greatest challenges is simply breathing
So you've probably
being at high speed maybe on a
Boat or something like that you open your mouth and all the airs rushing in it's really hard to breathe
But you're gonna close your mouth a little bit and allow a little less air in because airs coming in fast
The same of the peregrine falcon and their nostrils
When then go into a high speed dive not play out the cone and their beak
It raises a little bit allows less air in and of course allows them to breathe at high speed
Without these adaptations the peregrine falcons lungs would be flooded with too much air these delicate organs couldn't take it
Tests by German scientists using trained Falcons may have uncovered the secret of the world's fastest animal
the study captured high-speed images of Falcons dive 8 using these images they built model life-size Falcons and
Tested them and wind tunnels to measure the drag and lift on the body
They determined that while diving small feathers pop up on the Falcons upper back
this increases speed by reducing drag and
Could be the reason this wing daredevil can move so fast and live to tell the tale
This much smaller Falken may not be able to compete for speed but its eyesight is beyond compare
The American Kestrel is about the size of a mourning dove
It's the smallest Falcon in the Americas
This diminutive cousin of the peregrine falcon has a formidable predatory adaptation all its own
Capsules have been studied essentially for the great eyesight and also they're known now to see into the infrared spectrum of light and they think
Test rolls use app so when they fly over a field they can see urine trails from mice
And no, it's good hunting grounds obviously the more urine trails. They see they know there's lots of mice available
Once they narrow down a key location for prey another scale kicks in
Different Kestrel species worldwide
Have the ability in most cases to hover so they can sit in one place almost like a kite on a string and when their?
prey breaks cover
They'll dive down from a height advantage being right over it and be able to capture their prey on the ground or in the air
The Peregrine and the Kestrel have different approaches
But when it's time to kill these two Falcons rely on the same tools to finish the job
All Falcons have have a specially designed beak it has a 90 degree angle
In it a little tooth that sticks out on one on both sides so when they take their prey down using their speed in their
feet they immediately go right to the spinal column right to the neck and
Will dislocate a back bone subduing their prey so the prey doesn't fight back
This powerful tool gives both the peregrine falcon and the American Kestrel the ability to take down prey
twice their size
Sometimes their catch may be too big to eat in one sitting but for Falcons a big kill is an investment in the future
Falcons will cache prey so they they'll leave it somewhere almost like a safety deposit box, and they'll come back and eat it
particularly when they're feeding young to one young have hatched
Planning for the future is just one of the many traits that make Falcons successful big or small
fall can survive using speed and control and precision
The bald eagle is truly an icon
With laser sharp eyes and deadly talons on powerful feet this bird of prey is a phenomenal hunter
Eagle eyes the cliche is so ubiquitous. It's easy to forget where it comes from
Cruising at 70 kilometers per hour
An eagle can spot prey from up to three kilometers away
He pinpoints his target with predatory binocular vision
dives
Accelerates to almost 160 km/h
Ceases
And crushes its victim with razor-sharp talons ten times stronger than a human's grip
Throughout the history of civilization the Eagle in all of its forms has symbolized power
In North America the symbolism lives on in the bald eagle
After a brush with extinction in the 1980s this majestic animal now lives in virtually every part of North America
They are large for raesha scar divorce proficient aquatic predators, they need meat and lots of and
Bald eagles are found near large bodies of water for the simple fact there. They're a large spotted bird
They hunt a lot of larger things waterfowl ducks geese and all those there tend to be a lot of open water
From beak to tail they are a metre long
Their wingspan is as much as two metres
Males can be up to four kilograms while females can be 25% bigger up to six and a half kilograms that
Size advantage is unusual in the animal world, but not for birds of prey
There are larger birds out there
But in the hearts and minds of many wildlife enthusiasts the bald eagle soars above all others
Clearly this handsome hunter is not bald at all
The name comes from the old english word Baldy meaning quite
The eyes are almost as large as a he lands
but our vision pales in comparison
It's vision is probably between four and seven times stronger than humans
Depending on what expert you talk to and I have to remember they see faster than us
So we see about 28 to 30 frames per second they see over 100 frames per second and so they can see speed really easy
Where we can move our eyes side-to-side birds of prey can't they actually have to move their head
But it's advantageous as there in other eyes or a steady platform
When there's almost like a gyroscope their neck access and they can pull that use that binocular vision and pull focus which allows them to
Have almost something called tunnel vision
So they can see something and focus on it be able to fly up and down their head stay still and they can still home
On and what they're trying to hunt
They are fully capable of hunting a wide array of small animals, but they're designed specifically to kill fish
as they lock on to the target a nictitating membrane closes over to protect the eyeballs
It blinks every three to four seconds to keep the eye moist and clean, but because it's translucent
Vision is maintained
Then the talons go to work
Bald eagles don't have as long as talons of some of the other birds of prey or Raptor species for the simple fact as they
Are fish catchers so they don't need the big hook on their talons
They do have slightly curved talons
But it makes it a little bit easier if they're not hooked all the way around it makes it much easier to grab into slippery
things like fish
but
Also on their feet they have almost like sandpaper are like treads on your shoes it allows him to have grip
So they can hold on the fish and other slippery things
They have a hook on the end of their beak
Which acts just like us using a fork so their feet do the killing and where they're our feet make little holes in their food
They could stick their beak in that hole and pull little pieces off because they're certainly not gonna be able to swallow their food whole
When they catch something as large as say a 2 kilo rainbow trout
They were able to put their hook on the beak and pull it out in little pieces
And they got perfect sashimi huh for the rest of the day?
Eagles have been used as symbols of power and integrity
Perhaps because of their reputation as great hunters or because they look intimidating
But in the wild Eagles do what needs to be done to survive
And that means they're just as happy feasting another animals kills
Bald eagles are considered to be about a 50/50 predator so 50% of their dinners carry at 50% as they catch live
So essentially they're opportunistic whatever presents them whatever the easiest food sources at the time will certainly consume it
And if they don't have to catch it if it's sitting there laid out for them dead on the on the shore
Perfect opportunity to have a free meal
And if they can't fulfill their needs through hunting and scavenging
Bald eagles have another trick up their sleeves
When it's time to eat, they're not above stealing
Bald eagles are klepto parasitic their food pirates
If they see another eagle with the fish they have no problem swooping down to snatch it out of its talons
Many times the other bird will drop it and the bald eagle will either catch it in the air
Or catch it on the surface of a lake
If they see a cormorant with the Fisher's gonna snatch the comrade in the fish
Whether they have to beg borrow or steal
These birds of prey will take any food
They're savvy survivors with a firm grip on their role as America's icon
Some Hawks aunt impacts eating prayed twice their size while others search and solitude
You
Up here this solitary Harris Hawk looks like it doesn't need any help
With its razor-sharp vision prey hardly stands a chance
Now it's just a waiting game and when it finally zeroes in on its target. It rarely misses
But if it does it's no big deal because there's always another Hawk right behind to pick up the slack
Harris Hawks are one of the few birds of prey that hunt in packs
Their pack is called the family unit very well organized
They're essentially all related with each other so it could be mum and dad
Siblings from the year before could be uncles and aunts all working together as a team. There is someone. How wolves would hunt together
hunting is a group means that a Harris Hawk has a better chance of getting a meal a
Strategy involved because they mostly live in deserts where food is scarce
The group dynamic increases their chances of finding food where there is little
The strategy for this Hawk is to work in groups of two to six each has a specific job
It might be to flush out prey from the brush while others wait to make the kill
The best view is always from high up the thermal breezes from below allow them to gain altitude
They do soar quite a bit - meaning
They use the thermal
Heat Kurds coming off the earth, and they can sit on those and that's like a hot air balloon pushing them in the air
All Hawks have incredible eyesight. They see in color as humans do
Also, they can see in the ultraviolet range which allows them to spot prey at dusk and the position of the rise gives
them an additional advantage
Hawks just like are the other birds of prey have fully binocular vision
So they can actually adjust focus as they go this is very beneficial when you're pursuing an animal
That's quite fast
And they can adjust naturally within their eye to be able to spot something
Look at it and be able to pursue it without taking their eyes off it
What allows Hawks to continue that pursuit at high speed is the same type of?
Semi-transparent membrane that protects Eagles eyes it moves across from side to side like a windshield wiper
at moistened Zi and allows them to be able to see at fairly high speed and
this is a great advantage over humans because we have to blink all the time and by blinking we take our vision away basically we're
Shutting our eyes for a split second. We're hawks don't have that
The see-through membrane allows the hawk to never lose sight of its quarry
To make the perfect kill Harris Hawks rely on brute strength
using particularly large and powerful beaks and talons
pots vary in size from species to species the Harris Hawk has an average wingspan of
115 centimeters
They're experts at taking prey in mid-flight
They can grab a bird at high speed using ratchet like tendons in their toes once they grab on they don't let go
The more the prey moves the tighter they grip they grab on to their prey
And they will squeeze some squeeze multiple times and put multiple holes in their prey
Something will squeeze once and hold on for dear life
And hopefully their prey will will die just from pressure and from from being bludgeoned to death
Four Hawks
patience and position lead to a kill
They'll sit on a telephone pole sit in a tree the look over a field and when they see prey move
They will watch it and watch until the breaks cover
and then they'll dive down using that height advantage and speed and a slow sort of glide and then grab their prey right on the
ground
Hawks vary their food according to where they live and what's in season
For instance red-tailed Hawks and North America eat a lot of mice and snakes in the summertime where they're available
We have Swensons hawks of the canadian prairies and badlands that eat a lot of grasshoppers in the summer months
We have Goss ox in the forests of the northern hemisphere, North America Asia in Europe
They eat a lot of grouse they eat a lot of crows and rooks
Also vary depending where they are but a lot of cottontail rabbit and a lot of jack rabbits
Hogs it seems are happy to go with the flow when it comes to eating and accept whatever's on the menu with binocular vision
Vice-grip light feet and the ability to hunt in packs
These feathered assassins have become masters of air and land
Seeing the world from above give birds of prey a huge advantage with impeccable eyesight
Sharp beaks and powerful talons these predators are precise
efficient and
deadly
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