Pursuit predation

When the predator is at a closer distance (one that would lead to easier prey capture), it finally gives chase.

Since groups can engage in longer chases, they often focus on separating a weaker or slower prey item during pursuit.

[7] Current theories suggest that this proportionally long-limbed approach to body plan was an evolutionary countermeasure to prey adaptation.

[8] Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops) have been shown exhibiting similar behaviors of pursuit role specialization.

Harris's hawks (Parabuteo unicinctus) have two cooperative strategies for hunting: Surrounding and cover penetration, and long chase relay attack.

The raiding parties are highly mobile and move aggressively into the colonies of termites, often breaking through their outer defenses and entering their mounds.

[16] Asian giant hornets, Vespa mandarinia, form similar raiding parties to hunt their prey, which usually consists of honeybees.

[18][19] However, their speed and acceleration also have disadvantages, as both rely on anaerobic metabolism and can only be sustained for short periods of time.

Studies show that cheetahs can maintain maximum speed for up to a distance of approximately 500 yards (460 m),[20] which is only about 20 seconds of sprinting, before fatigue and overheating set in.

Due to these limitations, cheetahs are often observed quietly walking towards the prey to shorten the distance before running at moderate speeds during chases.

Cheetahs are extremely agile, able to change directions in very short amounts of time while running at very high speeds.

This maneuverability can make up for unsustainable high-speed pursuits, as it allows a cheetah to quickly close the distance without having to decelerate when the prey suddenly changes direction.

This bias is in spite of the fact that larger prey are typically faster and choosing them results in less successful pursuits.

Perching dragonflies (Libellulidae family), have been observed "staking out" high density prey spots prior to pursuit.

Current theory on the evolution of pursuit predation suggests that the behavior is an evolutionary countermeasure to prey adaptation.

Because of this, modern pursuit predation is an adaptation that may have evolved separately and much later as a need for more energy in colder and more arid climates.

[7] Longer limbs in predators, the key morphological adaptation required for lengthy pursuit of prey, is tied in the fossil record to the late Tertiary.

It is now believed that modern pursuit predators like the wolf and lion evolved this behavior around this time period as a response to ungulates increasing feeding range.

Prey's adaptation to climate is the key formative reason for evolving the behavior and morphological necessities of pursuit predation.

In addition to serving as a countermeasure to prey adaptation, pursuit predation has evolved in some species as an alternative, facultative mechanism for foraging.

For example, polar bears typically act as specialized predators of seal pups and operate in a manner closely predicted by the optimal foraging theory.

This alternative predatory strategy may serve as a back-up resource when optimal foraging is circumstantially impossible, or may even be a function of filling dietary needs.

[29] However, dilution factor may be a reason to stay in areas of high density due to a decreased risk of predation.

[31] Pursuit predation can then be supported as an adaptive mechanism for not just individual feeding success but also metapopulation persistence.

[33] In many species that fall prey to pursuit predation, gregariousness on a massive scale has evolved as a protective behavior.

This is primarily due to the confusion effect, which states that if prey animals congregate in large groups, predators will have more difficulty identifying and tracking specific individuals.

This introduced a distinction, or oddity, into the population; researchers found that the wildebeest with white horns were preyed upon at substantially higher rates.

[36] By standing out, individuals are not as easily lost in the crowd, and so predators are able to track and pursue them with higher fidelity.