Wild Things: Killer Whales, Spiders and Woodpeckers
Yellow saddle goatfish, mastodon ribs and more in this month’s summary of wildlife news
- By T.A. Frail, Joseph Stromberg, Erin Wayman and Sarah Zielinski
- Smithsonian magazine, January 2012
(Franco Banfi / Oceans-Image / Photoshot)
Lions, orcas, hyenas, some hawks and a few other species hunt collaboratively, and now researchers have added a fish to that list. Yellow saddle goatfish in the Red Sea often congregate. And when one fish starts accelerating toward a prey fish, its associates join the hunt. These “blockers” spread out over the reef to cut off the prey’s escape routes, giving the group of goatfish a better chance at making a successful catch. The behavior was observed by researchers from the University of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. Other species of goatfish eat only invertebrates, while the yellow saddle variety chases mainly other fish. The researchers suggest that collaborative hunting may have evolved in this species to allow the goatfish to exploit a faster and more nimble source of food.
Additional Sources
“On Group Living and Collaborative Hunting in the Yellow Saddle Goatfish (Parupeneus cyclostomus),” Carine Strübin et al., Ethology, October 10, 2011
“Worthless Donations: Male Deception and Female Counter Play in a Nuptial Gift-Giving Spider,” Maria Albo et al., BMC Evolutionary Biology, November 14, 2011
“Pre-Clovis Mastodon Hunting 13,800 Years Ago at the Manis Site, Washington,” Michael R. Waters et al., Science, October 21, 2011
“Antarctic Killer Whales Make Rapid, Round-Trip Movements to Subtropical Waters: Evidence for Physiological Maintenance Migrations?” John W. Durban and Robert L. Pitman, Biology Letters, October 26, 2011
“Why Do Woodpeckers Resist Head Impact Injury: A Biomechanical Investigation,” Lizhen Wang et al., PLoS ONE, October 26, 2011
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