The Japanese tits evaluates the threat level based on the posture of a predator

Abstract

Previous studies showed that the threat level of a predator poses can vary with physical features. In this study, we want to test whether wing posture of a predator can serve as a clue for threat assessment of birds. We observed behavioral response of Japanese tits Parus minor to taxider-mic dummy Eurasian sparrowhawks Accipiter nisus with spread wings and closed wings respectively. The results showed that the response scores to sparrowhawks with spread wings was higher than sparrowhawks with closed wings. We suggested that the Japanese tit can assess predation risk asso-ciated with changes in wing posture of predators.