My Science School

Except for isolated populations in Central Asian highlands, the gyrfalcon is found mostly in the Arctic region. It has a fully feathered leg and the plumage varies from pure white with black speckling to dark grey. They usually reach a size of more than half a meter. Female gyrfalcons are often double the weight of male gyrfalcons.

Gyrfalcons hunt by fast flight low over the ground. They usually hunt in a horizontal pursuit and do not normally stoop swiftly from heights. Most of their preys are killed on the ground, whether they are taken during flight, or captured on the ground. A large portion of their diet consists of ptarmigan and waterfowl. They occasionally feed on fish and other mammals as well.

Gyrfalcons are used widely in falconry. These birds are generally silent, but whenever they get excited, they are loud.

It is easy to distinguish a Brahminy kite from other birds of prey; adults have a reddish-brown body plumage contrasting with their white head and breast. Also known as the red-backed sea-eagle, the Brahminy kite is a bird of prey found mainly on the coast and in inland wetlands.

This kite is a familiar sight in the skies of Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asia and as far south as Australia. Brahminy kites usually prey on fish and insects. They often steal food from other birds, such as gulls, terns, ibis and other raptors. They also often scavenge carrion on the ground like many others in their family. They also take advantage of schools of Irrawaddy dolphins that bring fish to the surface.

Brahminy kites roost communally on large and isolated trees and as many as 600 have been seen at one location!

The peregrine falcon is the world’s most widespread raptor and one of the most widely found bird species. Also known as the duck hawk, it is the most widely distributed species of bird of prey. Breeding populations of peregrine falcons are found on every continent except Antarctica and some oceanic islands.

The peregrine falcon also enjoys the reputation of being the fastest bird on Earth. It can fly at a speed of 300 km/h. In fact, it is the fastest of any living creature on Earth. According to the National Geographic, the highest measured speed of a peregrine falcon is 389 km/h!

Peregrine falcons are formidable hunters; they can catch prey in the middle of a flight. Peregrines hunt from above and, after sighting their prey, drop into a steep, swift dive. Although its diet consists almost exclusively of medium-sized birds, peregrines will occasionally hunt small mammals, small reptiles, or even insects. Sixteen sub-species of the peregrine are identified so far.

Saker falcons are patient while watching for prey; when the prey is spotted, they suddenly dive for the kill. Unlike the peregrine’s stoop from a height, Saker falcons hunt in horizontal pursuit. They feed on rodents and small birds. Their diet mostly consists of feral pigeons and ground squirrels.

The Saker falcon is a raptor of open grasslands. It has an exceptionally broad wingspan, ranging from 105-130 centimeters. A Saker falcon usually doesn’t build a nest. It lays eggs in an old nest in a tree which was previously used by other birds such as storks, ravens or buzzards.

Saker falcons are not very social animals. However, in places where food is plentiful, they nest close to one another. This bird is widely used in falconry.

The Philippine eagle is known as the monkey-eating eagle because people believed that this bird preyed on monkeys. Contrary to this popular belief, the Philippine eagle does not eat monkeys though it preys on a range of animals including rodents, bats, snakes, and pigs.

The Philippine eagle is endemic to the Philippines. This bird is recognized as the national bird of the country. It can be identified by its brown and white-coloured plumage and a shaggy crest. It is an apex predator and like many other predators, it is opportunistic. Its choice of food depends on availability and ease of catching prey.

Philippine eagles use two techniques to hunt- still hunting and perch hunting. They either watch for prey while sitting almost motionlessly on trees, or periodically gliding from one perch to another. The population of the Philippine eagle is declining due to loss of habitat and other human intervention. It is categorized as critically endangered by the IUCN.

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Let not the name ‘bald eagle’ deceives you. Bald eagles are not actually bald. The term bald refers to the white plumage on their head; the term bald meant white-headed in olden times. This ‘bald’ bird is the national bird of the US.

The bald eagle is a sea eagle found along the coasts of North America and riversides. It is not a picky eater. The diet of a bald eagle is constituted primarily of fish. It catches fish by swooping down and grabbing fish that are near the surface of a lake or stream. It occasionally eats small mammals. It is also known to steal food from other birds and occasion-ally feeds on carrion as well.

The adult male is about 90 cm long and has a wingspan of 2 metres. Females grow somewhat larger than males; they may reach 108 cm in length and have a wingspan of 2.5 metres!

Named after the marshlands of the southern United States, the everglade snail kite is a mid-sized raptor that can reach a length of 36-39 centimeters. It has long legs and a curved beak that is slightly off-centre which allows it to easily extract snails from their spiralled shells.

The everglade snail kite is very picky when it comes to what to eat; it feeds almost exclusively on apple snails, a freshwater mollusc found in Central and South Florida wetlands. It usually hunts in the late afternoons and evenings, when the snails are most active. It usually hunts for snails near the surface of the water. The bird flies slowly near the surface and waits for its prey.

The male everglade snail kites are slate grey in colour with red eyes and orange legs, which turn more reddish during breeding season. Females are brown in colour and have varying streaks of white on the neck, face and chest.

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Found near large bodies of water and coastlines across Europe and parts of Asia, the white tailed eagles are powerful predators capable of attacking large prey of considerable sizes. They themselves are huge birds, but it is not so difficult for humans to catch them, which makes the white-tailed eagles vulnerable.

White-tailed eagles fly swiftly; they can reach a speed of 70 km/h in no time. They are opportunistic predators and will not leave a chance to snatch food from other birds and otters. They are adept in catching fish from the surface of the water. However, they occasionally feast on carrion as well.

White-tailed eagles sometimes attack entire colonies of smaller birds. This has caused some smaller birds to relocate their entire colonies away from white-tailed eagle ranges.

A small vulture found in the Iberian Peninsula, the Egyptian vulture is also known as white scavenger vulture or pharaoh’s chicken. They generally inhabit arid open areas such as steppes, deserts, cereal fields and pastures, and move to rocky sites for nesting.

Though they feed mostly on carrion, they are opportunistic predators and will not miss a chance to prey on small mammals, reptiles and birds. They have a long beak with the help of which they tear off small pieces of meat left by larger scavengers. The thin beak can fit through narrow spaces between bones to get food that large-beaked vultures cannot reach. They usually break large eggs with the help of stones; they drop a stone on the egg and feast on its content when it breaks open.

Egyptian vultures hunt by sight and not smell. They mostly seek food in open areas where they can see carcasses from a height.

With broad wings, bald head and a short tail, the African white-backed vulture is Africa’s most common large vulture. The white feathers on its rump contrasts with its dark plumage.

White-backed vultures circle the sky looking for food; they search for prey by soaring far and wide. They have a sharp vision that helps them in spotting a meal. Once a vulture detects a carcass, it signals other vultures by wheeling in the sky. They make chittering and squeaking noises similar to that of a pig upon finding food. Their beaks do not have the capacity to rip through tough meat, as a result of which they can only eat animals that have soft tissue.

These vultures usually feed on large animals ranging from hippopotamuses to wildebeests to elephants, rhinos, and any other sizeable source of carrion. They also do not hesitate to venture into human habitats in search of dead livestock.

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Distinguished by their white collars and bald heads, Andean condors are one of the largest predatory birds that can fly.

They weigh around 11-15 kilograms and have a wingspan of more than three metres. Because of their weight, these birds prefer to live in windy areas where they can glide on air currents with little effort.

Condors are vultures and most of their diet is constituted by carrion. They feast on large animals, both wild and domestic. Their eating habits offer a natural clean-up of the environment. They also feed on the carcasses of marine animals like seals. Apart from carrion, they eat eggs and hatchlings, raiding the nests of other birds.

Andean condors are recorded to live up to 75 years in captivity. Their reproduction is slow though. Loss of habitat has affected the numbers of Andean condors.

These birds are categorized as threatened by the IUCN.

There are three species of electric eels, all of which are found in the Amazon River and its tributaries. Though they have a snake-like appearance and the name says eel, electric eels are not eels. Their scientific classification is closer to carp and catfish.

These famous freshwater predators get their name from their enormous electrical charge. They have electric organs with about 6,000 specialized cells called electrocytes. These cells store power like tiny batteries. When threatened or attacking prey, these cells will discharge electricity simultaneously.

The shocked prey is stunned long enough to be sucked through the mouth directly to the stomach. Electric eels do not use electric charge all the time; sometimes they simply gulp the prey faster than it could react. The electrical discharges are also used to induce a twitching response in hidden prey that causes the prey to reveal its position.

Though most of their diet is made up of fish, electric eels also prey on other small amphibians.

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A muskellunge can be recognized by the elongated body and the absence of scales on the lower part of the cheeks and gill covers. It usually waits around for the prey and at an opportune moment, it swiftly bites the prey and then swallows it head first. Clearly, it is an ambush predator.

The muskellunge is a solitary fresh-water fish usually found in the North American Great Lakes region. Largest of the pikes, the muskellunge averages about 9 kg in weight, but may be 1.8 m long and weigh up to 36 kg or more. It eats all varieties of fish present in its ecosystem including other muskellunge. It is capable of taking prey up to two-thirds of its body length, thanks to its large stomach.

The muskellunge populations are highly vulnerable. Their low reproductive rate and slow growth make them all the more susceptible to overfishing. Therefore, some artificial propagation projects are under way to maintain the numbers.

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Pufferfish have highly elastic stomachs and can quickly ingest huge amounts of water to turn themselves into a virtually inedible ball, several times their normal size.

Many scientists are of the opinion that these fish developed inflatability as a result of their slow, somewhat clumsy swimming style that makes them vulnerable to predators. They have tough, usually prickly skins and fused teeth that form a beaklike structure with a split in the centre of each jaw. Some species also have spines on their skin to make them even less palatable. Though they are considered small, some of them grow to a size of 90 centimeters.

Puffers are found in warm and temperate regions around the world, primarily in the sea but also, in some instances, in brackish or fresh water. Their diet includes snails, worms, and other crustaceans. Pufferfish are also known as blowfish.

The blue marlin is one of the fastest and strongest predators of the open ocean. It is also one of the most sought-after game fish in the world. Distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the blue marlin spends most of its life far out at sea. It is one of the largest bony fish; it grows up to a size of 5 meters and weighs around 820 kilograms. It has a long bill that grows out of its head which is used to stun the prey by slashing on its head. This action knocks the prey unconscious.

Blue marlins prey on a wide variety of marine organisms, mostly near the surface including mackerel and tuna. Many parasites live on them. Once a blue marlin grows and matures, only very few predators like the great white shark, prey on them.

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