wilderness awareness quiz #2

[wareagle69]

ok folks have at it again

1-whether bird, mammal, reptile, amphibian or insect prey aniamls are often hoppers and predators are usually walkers. Why?

2- The inner bark of the Basswood tree is quite strong and fibrous- a good raw material for cordage. Why does this particular tree have such a bark?

[crashdive123]

I'll take a guess (and it is a guess). Prey animals that hop probably use is as a defense mechanism to make their movements unpredictable, while the predators are more of a stalking nature. (Kind of like the deer zig zagging that you posted earlier). For the second question - if you are asking why the bark of the tree grows the way it does.......I have no idea other than maybe being climate induced.

[Bibow]

1. hopping is faster than running and there main defense is to be faster than anything that wants to eat them.
2. i dont even know what a basswood tree looks like

[Rick]

1. There are a few of reasons I can think of. A). Hopping allows quicker sideways motion so a prey animal is less predictable. B). Hopping allows a prey animal (generally much smaller) to see above grass lines with each hop... and C.) Hopping uses less energy than an animal of the same size that must run. (If you watch a gazelle in slow motion you will see the animal is at rest in between lopes while the cheetah is still running every step.)

2. I have no idea why a basswood tree grows that way other than to say it's DNA provides the blueprint for growth.

[wildWoman]

I don't know that kind of tree, but this is what I would think the advantages of hopping are:
-it leaves only dots of scent, further apart than created by a walking motion
-that makes it harder to follow, especially if the jumps are in an erratic pattern and not in a line
-a jump start will make you race faster (see human sprinters)

[tsitenha]

Hopping: allows for a quicker change of direction, instant burst of speed and less energy expended eg. kangaroo, prey is favored
Walking: most predators use a stalking/ambush/surprise (slow,methodical), followed by a fast direct as possible attack. Once the attack is sprung and not immediately (short time) successful, the long chase, favors the prey.

[Rick]

So. Are you going to tell us the answer or just keep us in suspense?