But we still don’t know why Harris’s hawks in the southern US do it – or even whether the South American subspecies, which is rarely seen in groups, does it at all. Whether in hawks, chimps, lions, sharks, groupers or wolves, cooperative hunting should only be able to evolve when the benefits outweigh the risks and the cost of going it alone. Any member of the team could sneak up on and kill another member, or at least steal more than their fair share. “Cooperation in predators is always fascinating to me because it’s a dog eat dog – or a hawk eat hawk – world out there,” Coulson says. What makes this collective approach work is that these uniquely social hawks share their kills afterward. In other situations, such as when a pack rat seeks safety in its nest, “blocker” hawks will stick their feet down the hole to plug or guard that exit. Instead, they fly down noisily to wade through the brush, scaring the animal out back into the open. If prey goes to hide under brush, certain hawks act as “flushers”, who will sacrifice their own chance at a kill. It’s like a whole quidditch team bent on making a kill. If the first hawk dives and misses, another will slide into place on high, ready to take another shot while the first hawk gets back into line. Once airborne, a single hawk will lead the pursuit, with wingmen on either side that can visually pick up the prey if it turns sharply. If they take wing to chase a rabbit, the others follow. Some hawks, blessed with better vision, become the group’s prey spotters, Coulson says. Share and conquerĪs they hunt, individuals take on roles that are suited to their strengths or their status in a dominance hierarchy – as is seen in wolves. The hawk on top, which is careful to not hurt its living perch by digging in its talons, gets a better vantage point when scanning for prey. “Two or three hawks will stand on each other, so they look like a hawk totem pole,” Coulson says. But she and her husband, both avid falconers, also have their own trained hunting team, which allows them to see such behaviour up close.įirst there’s “backstanding”, which looks how it sounds. Coulson is hoping to understand how cooperative hunting works in the wild, where it’s been observed in groups of two to nine wild Harris’s hawks. “It’s amazing to watch,” says ecologist Jennifer Coulson of the Orleans Audubon Society in Pearl River, Louisiana. Some Harris’s hawks work in teams with a whole playbook of tricks – and if you’re a rabbit or a lizard, they’re the last things you want on your tail. ![]() Meet the only raptors known to hunt in packs.
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