Condor Watch Talk

Who kills who or why not?

  • CatchATiger by CatchATiger

    I am not sure if I am asking this right but here goes!

    I know part of marking the photos is to show what animals are around each other at the same time. Why dont the condors just turn around and eat the eagles? Or why dont the eagles just eat the ravens? Or eagles just kill turkey vultures? KNow what I mean? Thank you 😃

    Posted

  • wreness by wreness moderator

    One of the scientists can certainly give a better answer but I'll try to give some info. 😃

    Condors are scavengers, meaning they eat animals that are already dead (though they will kill animals that are dying and too weak to fight them off.) Because they aren't built for killing, they aren't built for fighting, either; they don't have sharp talons but instead rip their food apart with their beaks.

    There's a reason you see these birds hanging out together. Condors have incredible eyesight and use this to not only to fly around and look for food but also to watch predators, like eagles and wolves, hunt and kill their food.

    Ravens are usually the first on the scene when an animal dies, advertising that a carcass is available to eat with their big mouths and chatter. You can imagine, from all you've seen marking all those ravens in the photos, that they can't keep it to themselves. 😃

    When there is a coyote eating a carcass, none of the other animals usually goes near them (except those stupid ravens) . You probably noticed if a golden eagle is eating, everyone leaves them alone, too (except those stupid ravens). These are the predators of the group. Golden eagles can, and do, kill condors who just don't have any means to defend themselves and not much is a match against an eagle. Eagles can kill wolves and coyotes in aerial attacks and it's a close call if it got into a vicious ground fight. Eagles have been known to drag animals off cliffs.

    Turkey vultures are also scavengers like the condors (interesting fact - Condors have no sense of smell; turkey vultures have a keen sense of smell.) but unlike condors they do kill things and will eat fruit, vegetation and fish. They will kill things as well as scavenge but are not the vicious killers that eagles or coyotes are. They will be seem eating among the Condors who, at about 4x their size, could reach out and bat them around like a dust ball so they pose no threat, Plus, they're funny looking and make everyone laugh.

    Because there is Free Food at the carcass sites and, if there are several carcasses, the animals can put enough space between them the incidences that may go on normally aren't going on. Everyone is busy feeding their faces. You will see in the photos plenty of times when a coyote will move and everyone will scatter or an eagle will chase a condor away. It's a tense situation if an eagle or coyote is around.

    Great question - thanks for asking 😃

    Posted

  • myraf by myraf scientist

    this is an interesting question and Wreness did a great job answering so I have very little to add.

    Bottom line --- golden eagles are tough! In a fight between condors and golden eagles, the eagles win, thus, if eagles are around the condors will typically stay back until the eagle is done.
    So, in terms of dominance at a carcass it usually goes like this:
    Golden eagles
    Condors
    Turkey Vultures,
    and then ravens will be around and jump in there when it is safe - they are fast, agile and smart!

    Posted

  • itsmestephanie by itsmestephanie

    I was wondering whether ravens also benefit from larger animals breaking open the meat for them?

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  • wreness by wreness moderator

    I'm sure they do! Ravens are opportunists so usually go after the easy parts - the eyes, tongue and ...you wanna hear this? It gets gross. Let me just say "the soft parts" at the back end. At... the ... end ... opening. Please feel free to use your imagination.. . . . . . . . . There you go.

    I'm sure you've seen the beaks on those things. They're thick and heavy and like jackhammers - that's how they use them, pecking, poking and drilling. It gets the job done to a certain point. Hide is tough and it's a lot of work to get the the actual meat. Imagine how great it is when the eagles, condors or coyotes show up with their razor sharp teeth, razor sharp talons, powerful beaks and strength.

    That's why you often see ravens happy to stand back and walk around 'supervising', fighting with everyone, being pests and fighting among themselves while they wait to swoop in and eat as soon as someone else has uncovered the Good Parts. 😃

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