ANIMAL CURIOSITIES

5 cunning methods of hunting in the animal kingdom

To hunt, sometimes it is not enough to be faster, stronger, or have the sharpest teeth.

In many cases, the winning weapon of predators turns out to be cunning: camouflage, knowledge of the prey's weak points, the ability to wait patiently - the most creative hunting methods require all of these.

Here are five cunning animal hunting methods.

Wikimedia Commons, Getty Images
Hunting is not only about strength
To hunt, sometimes, one does not need to be faster, stronger, or have the sharpest teeth. In many cases, the winning weapon of predators turns out to be cunning. Camouflage, knowledge of the prey's weak points, the ability to wait patiently: the most creative hunting methods require all of these. Here are five cunning animal hunting methods.
Getty Images
Bait fishing
If fishing with a lure is a classic human activity, in the animal kingdom this hunting technique is not so obvious. The green heron, however, has developed a fishing mode similar to that of man: this bird places small amounts of food, even small fish, at the end of its beak, with the aim of attracting larger prey to devour.
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Use a stick
Indian marsh crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris) and American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) wait patiently, even for hours, for their prey with sticks on their heads. What is the reason? These reptiles are said to have realised that, during the mating season, herons and other birds look for small pieces of wood and sticks to build their nests: in this way, crocodiles and alligators can use these small sticks as bait.
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Creating reels
Once the schools of fish are noticed, the humpback whales surround them with a kind of 'bubble net': in practice, these cetaceans emit air from their blowhole and, as they swim, create a circle of bubbles, from which the fish can no longer escape.
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Imitating the cry of prey
The Wied's Cat, a small feline native to the Americas, has learnt to imitate the cry of one of the prey it loves most, the bald tamarin: in particular, this feline reproduces the cry of the tamarin pups and the adults, attracted by the cries, fall into the predator's trap.
Neil Stricklandderivative, Wikimedia Commons
Creating a sunshade umbrella
This is also a very unusual hunting technique. At the hottest times of the day, the black heron places its wings above its head to create a cone of shadow: in this way, it eliminates the reflection of the sun on the water, visualises its prey and crustaceans better and, above all, is able to attract them, as prey are induced to go towards the darker areas, convinced that it is marine vegetation.
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