Paragraph on “How do big cats catch their prey?” complete paragraph for Class 9, Class 10, Class 11 and Class 12

How do big cats catch their prey?

All the animals shown on this page are  members of the cat family. The big cats are well known for the way in which they hunt mid kill other animals to eat as food, although many of them will scavenge and eat dead animals, or carrion, when live prey is scarce. To be able to hunt other animals, cats have strong senses in order to detect prey, and muscular bodies to enable them to catch and overpower it. Although cats can run quite fast over short distances, many rely on their ability to remain unseen whilst creeping up on their victim, then making a sudden rush at , allowing little chance for escape. Another method used by some cats, leopards for instance, is to lie in wait in a tree, and to pounce on prey from there.

Lions live in groups called prides. A pride usually consists of a mature male and a harem of lionesses, together with some young cubs. Lions eat animals such as antelopes and zebras, and quite often all the mature members of the pride join forces to catch their prey. Lions often hunt by day, perhaps stalking an animal and then, when close, bounding quickly forward and bringing it down. At other times, the pride will surround a head of, say, antelope, and the male will act as a beater, flushing the prey to the waiting females, al-though the male is just as capable of catching prey himself.

Tigers often live in jungles, where their striped bodies help conceal them from their prey. Smaller prey is usually crept up on and quickly brought down, but tigers prefer to chase larger prey.

Although the tiger is mainly a night hunter, the cheetah hunts by day. Cheetahs feed on fast-moving animals like gazelles, and since gazelles graze in open country with little cover, the cheetah must make the most of its great speed in order to catch its victim, although it will try and get as close to the prey as it can without being seen. The cheetah cannot run fast for very long, and if its prey is fast and has a good start, the cheetah soon tires and stops to look for easier meat.