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A Red-tailed Hawk in New Jersey Displayed Uncommon Intelligence by Manipulating Traffic Signals for Hunting Purposes

Street Falcon Adapts Hunting Skills, Guided by Traffic Lights and a Mental Navigation System.

,   and  ASMedia
3 min read
A city hawk masters its hunting skills, relying on traffic lights and a mental navigational chart.
A city hawk masters its hunting skills, relying on traffic lights and a mental navigational chart.

A Red-tailed Hawk in New Jersey Displayed Uncommon Intelligence by Manipulating Traffic Signals for Hunting Purposes

In a suburban neighborhood of West Orange, New Jersey, a Cooper's hawk showcased an unprecedented urban adaptation, as observed by zoologist Vladimir Dinets. Over months, he witnessed the hawk employing a deliberate strategy to capitalize on traffic patterns, taking advantage of the extended red lights to launch surprise attacks on small birds.

Urban life poses numerous hazards for Cooper's hawks, but it also offers abundant prey. To observers, the species may seem an unlikely urban resider, given its stealthy forest-hunting nature. However, Dinets' findings reveal that this particular hawk demonstrated a keen understanding and exploitation of the urban environment.

By monitoring the traffic intersection where the hawk hunted, Dinets discovered the hawk's predilection for waiting until it heard the pedestrian crossing signal, which indicated a longer-than-usual red light. This sound cue signaled an ideal opportunity for the hawk, as piles of cars along the curb provided suitable cover. When the cars stretched to a tree near the intersection, the hawk would launch, utilizing the canopy for concealment before executing a swift, low-flying attack.

The precision of the hawk's attacks was striking, achieving success every time it targeted prey in a yard frequented by sparrows, doves, and starlings. The birds were drawn to the area by crumbs left out by a family eating outdoors. The hawk's impressive accuracy led Dinets to conclude that the bird had formed a mental map of the neighborhood and calculated its approach based on this knowledge.

The hawk's surprising intellect challenges the popular notion that raptors are limited in intelligence. While corvids (crows and ravens) and parrots are better known for their tool use and abstract reasoning, studies continue to reveal unexpected cognitive depths in other bird species.

Indeed, hawks and falcons have demonstrated the use of burning sticks to spread wildfires, hunting cooperatively, and driving prey into plate-glass windows. However, this instance from New Jersey represents a new level of urban adaptation, as the hawk employed a sound - a specific pedestrian crossing signal - to predict its ambush opportunities.

After the pedestrian signal broke and the family moved away, the birds stopped coming, and the hawk disappeared from the area. Most urban Cooper's hawks in New Jersey are winter visitors from non-urban regions, but this bird appeared to have learned quickly, adapting within weeks of arrival.

Urban wildlife encounters often center on nuisance or novelty, such as coyotes in backyards or bears rummaging through garbage. However, researchers are increasingly focusing on the subtle, intelligent behaviors that help some species not only survive in cities but thrive. A city intersection may seem an unpromising venue for wildlife, but as this hawk demonstrates, it provides the stage for evolution in action.

Dinets' research suggests that urban Cooper's hawks, like their counterparts in other cities, remain adaptive and intelligent, managing to survive and even flourish in the concrete jungle. The hawk's urban hunting strategies exemplify the fascinating complexity of urban wildlife adaptations.

  1. The hawk's exploitation of traffic patterns to launch surprise attacks on small birds in an urban environment challenges the traditional perception of raptors as limited in intelligence.
  2. The sound cue of the pedestrian crossing signal at a traffic intersection served as a trigger for the hawk's ambush opportunities, showcasing a level of urban adaptation.
  3. Urban life, often perceived as a hazard, can offer abundant prey for wildlife species, as demonstrated by the Cooper's hawk in West Orange, New Jersey.
  4. The quick adaptation of the urban Cooper's hawk in New Jersey, learned within weeks of arrival, is a testament to the species' adaptive and intelligent nature.
  5. Scientists are increasingly focusing their research on the subtle, intelligent behaviors of urban wildlife, revealing the complexity of these adaptations that allow some species to not only survive but thrive in cities.

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