Peregrine falcon naps as crow swoops in to steal its prey
An early morning hunt yielded a sumptuous breakfast for a peregrine falcon, but the raptor’s nap later gave a crow the chance at an effortless meal.
At about 8am on Friday (24 Oct), Teo Boon Tong spotted the falcon perched on the ledge of an HDB block along Yishun Ring Road.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
Its talons were bloodstained as it perched on the ledge of an HDB block with its dead prey, a red-legged crake.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
For the next two hours, Mr Teo observed several crows circling the area, seemingly eyeing the carcass.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
During this time, he noticed that the peregrine falcon appeared “a little drowsy”.
By 10.50am, the bird had fallen asleep — and that was when opportunity struck.
Crow swoops in to claim napping falcon’s breakfast
Seizing the moment, a crow began circling the ledge before swooping in to snatch the unattended carcass.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
Mr Teo, who later shared a video of the dramatic feeding scene in the Singapore Wildlife Sightings Facebook group, noted that the crow first plucked the feathers of the crake, a common process before eating the flesh.
Source: Boon Tong Teo on Facebook
The bird then viciously tore into the carcass, picking at its crown.
Source: Boon Tong Teo on Facebook
After about half a minute, the crow dragged the carcass to another spot, out of the falcon’s sight.
As the crake was relatively large compared to the crow, it struggled briefly before managing to fly off with it.
Source: Boon Tong Teo on Facebook
Meanwhile, the peregrine falcon remained fast asleep, seemingly unaware that its meal had been taken.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
A ‘nature-at-work’ moment
Speaking to MS News, Mr Teo, a self-described peregrine falcon enthusiast, said he had stayed at the scene hoping to see the raptor finish its prey.
Instead, the 43-year-old ended up witnessing an unexpected twist.
“[I was] quite excited to witness a different kind of nature-at-work, as we usually only see crows eating up a dead rat or small chick,” he said.
Image courtesy of Teo Boon Tong
Mr Teo added that while he does not frequent the Yishun area, he recently observed crows hunting chicks at Pasir Ris Park.
Also read: Crow circles bird drowning in Kallang River, netizens speculate that crow had attacked it
Crow circles bird drowning in Kallang River, netizens speculate that crow had attacked it
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Teo Boon Tong.
