Extremely fast dives help peregrine falcons manoeuvre to catch agile prey

Using detailed computer simulations, Oxford University research has revealed why falcons dive at their prey using the same steering laws as man-made missiles. Published today in PLOS Computational Biology, researchers from Oxford's Department of Zoology use computer simulations of peregrine falcon attacks to show that the extreme speeds reached during dives from high altitudes enhance the raptors' ability to execute manoeuvres needed to successfully attack agile prey that would otherwise escape. Professor Graham Taylor and PhD student Robin Mills, alongside colleagues from the University of Groningen, built a physics-based computer simulation of bird flight that pits falcons against prey. The team had previously shown that falcons attack their prey using the same steering rules as man-made missiles. The simulation incorporated the aerodynamics of bird flight, how birds flap and tuck their wings, how falcons perceive their prey and react to it with delay and how falcons target their prey like a missile. It showed that high-speed dives enable peregrines to produce much higher aerodynamic forces for maneuvering, thereby maximizing their chance of seizing agile prey. In addition the simulation showed that high-speed dives require very precisely tuned steering for a falcon to attack successfully, revealing that the stoop is a highly specialist hunting technique.