Staying still
Staying still
A prey animal that senses danger does not always seek a hiding place. Some species first try another way of avoiding detection: freezing in place. Many predators can easily spot prey in motion, but are less likely to notice a still animal, especially if it blends into the background.
A moving rabbit out in the open, for example, is an easy target for a hawk. To avoid being spotted, the rabbit crouches low and freezes in place. Its stillness reduces the chances of it being seen, and its low profile makes it look more like a mound of dirt than a round-bodied animal sitting on the ground.
In much the same way, newborn deer lie still among ferns and grasses while their mothers spend time away from them, feeding on leaves. The fawns, born without any odor that would lure a predator, rely on their stillness as well as their spots to avoid detection on the sun-dappled woodland floor. Pronghorn antelope fawns remain still for hours on end, lying in tall grass to escape the notice of coyotes and eagles. The chicks of spotted sandpipers and many other birds also crouch and freeze when danger threatens.
Though many crouch-and-freeze creatures also benefit from coloration that helps them blend in with their background, such camouflage is not a requirement for “the freeze” to work. A squirrel, for example, is usually a highly visible animal as it busily dashes along branches or springs across a lawn. Should a dog or other animal threaten it, however, the squirrel scrambles up a tree trunk, circles to the side of the trunk opposite the predator, and freezes. If the predator follows it, the squirrel scurries to the other side of the trunk and freezes again. Using this spiraling method, the squirrel keeps a blockade between it and its attacker—even if the attacker is incapable of climbing the tree in pursuit.
A prey animal that senses danger does not always seek a hiding place. Some species first try another way of avoiding detection: freezing in place. Many predators can easily spot prey in motion, but are less likely to notice a still animal, especially if it blends into the background.
A moving rabbit out in the open, for example, is an easy target for a hawk. To avoid being spotted, the rabbit crouches low and freezes in place. Its stillness reduces the chances of it being seen, and its low profile makes it look more like a mound of dirt than a round-bodied animal sitting on the ground.
In much the same way, newborn deer lie still among ferns and grasses while their mothers spend time away from them, feeding on leaves. The fawns, born without any odor that would lure a predator, rely on their stillness as well as their spots to avoid detection on the sun-dappled woodland floor. Pronghorn antelope fawns remain still for hours on end, lying in tall grass to escape the notice of coyotes and eagles. The chicks of spotted sandpipers and many other birds also crouch and freeze when danger threatens.
Though many crouch-and-freeze creatures also benefit from coloration that helps them blend in with their background, such camouflage is not a requirement for “the freeze” to work. A squirrel, for example, is usually a highly visible animal as it busily dashes along branches or springs across a lawn. Should a dog or other animal threaten it, however, the squirrel scrambles up a tree trunk, circles to the side of the trunk opposite the predator, and freezes. If the predator follows it, the squirrel scurries to the other side of the trunk and freezes again. Using this spiraling method, the squirrel keeps a blockade between it and its attacker—even if the attacker is incapable of climbing the tree in pursuit.
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