Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site uw-beaver Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxj!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!fowler From: fowler@uw-beaver (Rob Fowler) Newsgroups: net.rec.birds Subject: Re: Bird Wars Message-ID: <367@uw-beaver> Date: Thu, 10-Jan-85 15:53:08 EST Article-I.D.: uw-beave.367 Posted: Thu Jan 10 15:53:08 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 12-Jan-85 01:31:54 EST References: <486@mhuxt.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: U of Washington Computer Science Lines: 26 > 1.) What could the large bird have done to get so many small birds > so pi**ed off at it? Birds are very territorial. Merely approaching nesting areas can set off this kind of behavior. Around here the swallows will attack any larger birds that come around. Crows will harass owls to death. I once saw a group of crows hounding a bald eagle. When the crows were coming in on an attack run the eagle did a roll to greet the attacker with its talons. The crows break off the attack rather than get hurt, but continually having to defend itself the eagle seemed to be tiring rapidly. I don't know whether the eagle got away or not because they all flew out of sight. > 2.) How come the small birds were faster and less manueverable than the > large bird? I would have expected the opposite. When swallows attack crows (and I presume other large birds) their attack runs are very fast dives and I guess they lose maneuverability at high speeds. > 3.) What would the small birds have done, had they succeeded in catching > the large bird? Again, when swallows attack, they crash dive beak first into the back of the larger bird. Judging by the desparate screams of the crows this must hurt like hell. I don't know whether they actually kill the larger bird, but it's likely that it'll never return to the area. > 4.) Don't they have better things to do? What's more useful than defending home and family from predators? -- Rob Fowler