Age differences in the response of California ground squirrels. (Spermophilus beecheyi) to avian and mammalian predators

The antipredator behavior of juvenile and adult California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi) was videotaped in Experiment 1 to measure the effects of age on assessment of a briefly presented live dog and a model red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) in simulated flight. Adult squirrels treated the hawk as more dangerous than the dog, whereas juvenile squirrels showed less differentiation of the predator types. Juvenile squirrels also perceived the dog as a more immediate danger than adult squirrels did. For Experiment 2, the red-tailed hawk model was compared with models of a nonthreatening turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) and crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Neither age class differentiated the avian models; however, the adult squirrels treated these birds as more threatening than the juvenile squirrels did. Both studies suggest that learning may contribute to predator assessment.