THE VELOCI-RAPTOR: A BICYCLE-POWERED MODEL RAPTOR FOR REALISTIC PREDATOR ENCOUNTER EXPERIMENTS

Abstract Raptor attacks in the wild can be difficult to observe and impossible to manipulate in a repeatable manner. We have developed a bicycle-driven model raptor (“Veloci-Raptor”) to test prey responses to raptor attacks. Previous researchers have used wind-up toy birds or gravity-driven model raptors, which typically have low maximum velocities and often require cumbersome equipment. Our method's combination of portability, flexibility, and high maximum speed (19.4 m/s) make it superior to previous methods in many field situations.