
It’s the middle of breeding season for the Taiwan leaf-nosed bat, when hundreds nurse their pups inside the Four Faced Buddha Temple in Changhua City. A crested goshawk was recently spotted entering the alcove and executing a daring maneuver to snatch one of the bats while they were sleeping. Footage of the encounter amazed viewers, who were impressed by the bird’s ability to mimic the bats’ upside-down position, even when they normally hunt by swooping down from up on high.
A group of bats are hanging upside-down to sleep when a goshawk suddenly swoops in, executing a flawless bicycle kick to snatch a bat in its talons. The rest of the colony is sent into a frenzy. Looking at it again in slow motion, you can see how the bird flipped upside-down like its prey. Viewers were astounded by the incredible display of agility.
Member of public
Seeing an upside-down bicycle kick like that to catch prey is magical to witness. It managed to hone in on its exact position and capture it in an instant.
Member of public
The goshawk can somehow mimic the bats and turn upside down like they do. It’s incredible.
Every breeding season, hundreds of Taiwan leaf-nosed bats gather inside Changhua City’s Four Faced Buddha Temple to raise their pups. Just outside, a crested goshawk—a protected species—watched greedily, preparing to enjoy a feast.
Wang Yuan-hsien
Changhua City municipal advisor
A few minutes before it flew inside, it let out a cry. It seemed like it was testing the waters. Some were startled awake, while others didn’t hear and continued to sleep suspended from the ceiling. Then with a single swoop, it captured a bat and flew back out.
This particular goshawk caught a bat here last November. Driven by instinct, it returned for more.
Wang Yuan-hsien
Changhua City municipal advisor
It visits often. Its behavior was driven by what we call habitat memory. When it came last month, it couldn’t flip upside-down as well as the bats could. This time around, it learned how and could do it fast and flawlessly. It sunk its talons in immediately and then flew away.
After missing its target during previous attempts, the goshawk deployed its talons with lightning speed this time, pulling off an impressive maneuver to earn its lunch and leaving its human viewers spellbound by the incredible display of animal ability.
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#goshawk #bat #nature #animals #wildlife #Changhua #leafnosedbat #habitatmemory #animalintelligence
正值台灣葉鼻蝠繁衍期,彰化市四面佛寺掩體內,有大量葉鼻蝠哺育幼蝠。1隻鳳頭蒼鷹,日前飛入掩體內,趁蝙蝠還在熟睡,以一記倒掛金鉤,抓走一隻葉鼻蝠。影片曝光,民眾嘖嘖稱奇,平常從高空俯衝,捕食獵物的蒼鷹,竟然有辦法模仿蝙蝠倒立,用倒掛金鉤招式,成功捕食蝙蝠!
蝙蝠吊掛休息,一隻蒼鷹衝向其中一隻,一記倒掛金鉤,成功捕獵蝙蝠,蝙蝠群受到驚嚇,四處逃竄。放慢速度再看一次,飛翔中的蒼鷹,也跟蝙蝠一樣倒立,用腳勾住蝙蝠,畫面曝光讓民眾看了嘖嘖稱奇。
[[民眾]]
“像這樣倒掛金鉤的捕獵方式,覺得蠻神奇的,一下子就找到蝙蝠的位置,把牠抓起來”
[[民眾]]
“這個蒼鷹牠有辦法,用整個模仿的方式,也是倒掛金鉤,跟蝙蝠的這樣子,太神奇了”
每當台灣葉鼻蝠繁衍期,彰化市四面佛寺掩體內,就會有大量葉鼻蝠,在裡面哺育蝙蝠寶寶,保育類二級的鳳頭蒼鷹,在外頭虎視眈眈,準備飽餐一頓。
[[彰化市政顧問 王遠憲]]
“牠要飛進來的幾分鐘前,牠有先叫一聲,叫的時候彷彿投石問路啦,有的被叫聲嚇到驚醒,有的沒驚醒,蝙蝠一樣掛在上面睡覺,一個倒掛金鉤,就抓到蝙蝠飛出去了”
這隻蒼鷹,去年11月就曾飛進來,抓走一隻葉鼻蝠,憑著生物本能,又飛來覓食了。
[[彰化市政顧問 王遠憲]]
“常常都會來,這種的叫棲地記憶,上個月來的時候,倒掛金鉤的技術沒有像蝙蝠那麼嫻熟,這一次學聰明了,速度很流暢,一進來腳骨叼起來就飛走了”
上回沒抓著,這回以迅雷不及掩耳的速度,使出鷹爪,倒掛金鉤,生物潛能無限大,令人看了嘆為觀止。
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