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Red-throated Caracara

Sir David Attenborough presents the red-throated caracara from the Amazonian rainforest.

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Sir David Attenborough presents the red-throated caracara from the Amazonian rainforest. The size of buzzards, red-throated Caracaras are black- and -white birds of prey that travel together when searching for paper wasp nests among the leaves. While some birds search for food, others act as sentinels on the lookout for predators. If a monkey or a spotted cat approaches, the sentinel will alert the flock and together they will mob the intruder with loud calls. They specialise in bee and wasp grubs, but seem impervious to stings and it was once thought that they may possess a special repellent which deters the adult insects. Latest research now shows that when they are disturbed by the caracaras, paper wasps keep away from their damaged nest to avoid further danger and so the birds simply take advantage of the wasp's absence.

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1 minute

Last on

Thu 3 Jun 2021 05:58

Red-throated carcara (Ibycter americanus)

Webpage image courtesy of Tim Laman / naturepl.com.

Β© Tim Laman / naturepl.com

Broadcasts

  • Mon 29 Dec 2014 05:58
  • Fri 4 Dec 2015 05:58
  • Mon 11 May 2020 05:58
  • Thu 3 Jun 2021 05:58

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