US EditionUrban hawks may use traffic lights to ambush prey, study finds
- In November 2021, zoologist Vladimir Dinets observed a young Cooper's hawk in West Orange, New Jersey, using a pedestrian crossing signal to improve its hunting success.
- The hawk exploited the pedestrian signal's cue because it triggered a long red light and a queue of cars, providing cover for ambushing birds feeding on breadcrumbs.
- Dinets documented the hawk perching out of sight, recognizing the signal's sound as a pre-attack cue, and swooping low over stopped cars to catch prey such as sparrows and doves.
- Dinets stated, "You have to have a mental map of the whole area," showing the hawk's ability to plan ahead and understand the connection between the signal and hunting conditions.
- This case suggests that Cooper's hawks adapt to urban environments by using cognitive skills to survive and hunt, though further testing is needed to confirm this behavior broadly.
18 Articles
18 Articles
How Do Hawks Use Traffic Lights?
(West Orange, NJ) – The term bird brain is really a misnomer. Scientific research has shown how smart crows are — they even use rocks like tools in some cases. And people who keep parrots as pets know they are among our smartest feathered friends. Now, it seems a hawk in North Jersey is earning the nickname “Einstein.” As shared in an editorial for Frontiers in Ethology, birdwatcher Bob McGuire first observed a Cooper’s hawk behaving in a fascin…
Urban hawks may use traffic lights to ambush prey, study finds
A hawk in a New Jersey town has learned to use a neighborhood traffic light to hunt more effectively, a study published Thursday found. The study in Frontiers of Ethology represents further evidence of how certain bird species have adapted to urban life in surprising ways. “The behavior described here is an impressive feat of intelligence,” the…
"An Intellectual Feat": in the United States, a Falcon Uses Traffic Jams to Steal Near Its Prey
In a study published on Friday 23 May in the journal "Frontiers in Ethics", an American zoologist describes what he considers to be the most advanced observation of the urban environment in birds.
A street-smart hawk uses a pedestrian signal to hunt in the city
In a recent paper, a researcher noted a bird’s surprising urban adaptation: A young Cooper’s hawk used a pedestrian crossing signal to help it hunt more successfully in a busy neighborhood. Vladimir Dinets, an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, U.S., and study author, noticed the Cooper’s hawk’s (Accipiter cooperii) behavior while taking his daughter […]
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