Hawking (birds) - Flycatching

Flycatching

The various methods of taking insects have been categorized as: gleaning (perched bird takes prey from branch or tree trunk), snatching (flying bird takes prey from ground or branch), hawking (bird leaves perch and takes prey from air), pouncing (bird drops to ground and takes prey) and pursuing (flying bird takes insects from air).

In hawking behavior, a bird will watch for prey from a suitable perch. When it spies potential prey, the bird will fly swiftly from its perch to catch the insect in its bill, then return to the perch or sometimes to a different perch. This maneuver is also called a "sally". Prey that is very small relative to the bird, such as gnats, may be consumed immediately while in flight, but larger prey, such as bees or moths, are usually brought back to a perch before being eaten. Sometimes the prey will attempt to escape and this can result in a fluttering pursuit before returning to the perch. Depending on the species of bird, there are observable variations on this behavior. Some species, such as the Olive-sided Flycatcher of North America and the Ashy Drongo of the Indian Subcontinent, tend to choose an exposed perch, such as a dead tree branch overlooking a clearing, whereas others, such as the North American Acadian Flycatcher and the Asian Small Niltava perch within the cover of foliage deep in a forest or woodland habitat.

Many birds make use of a variety of tactics. A study of feeding behaviors in the family Tyrranidae categorized the following moves as ways of taking insect prey: aerial hawking (i.e. flycatching), perch-to-ground sallying, ground feeding (chasing after insects on the ground), perch-to-water sallying, sally-gleaning (can involve an hover-gleaning or a rapid strike), and gleaning while perched. Some tyrant flycatchers, such as those that choose a prominent perch from which to hawk insects, have more of a tendency to return to the same perch after each sally, while others, particularly those of the forest interior, show less of this tendency. A similar pattern is seen in Great Britain, where there are but two flycatchers, the Spotted Flycatcher and the Pied Flycatcher. The Spotted Flycatcher is the specialist, and tends to return to the same perch after each sally. The Pied Flycatcher is more of a generalist, gleaning as well as flycatching, and changes perches often.

Birds with the name "flycatcher" are not the only ones to engage in flycatching behavior. For example, Lewis's Woodpecker feeds by flycatching. Some honeyeaters of Australasia employ hawking and gleaning as feeding tactics. Bee-eaters catch bees in a similar manner and return to the perch to remove the sting before consuming. Furthermore, many small owls take insect prey on the wing; examples include the Western Screech Owl of North America and the Brown Boobook of Asia.