Through 3D imaging and analysis, biologists determined that the biggest known eagle both hunted and scavenged.
. Modern species eat their food by ripping sections off into bite-sized pieces, but the extinct bird known as the Haast’s eagle or harpagornis ate more like a condor, sticking its whole head into the carcasses of larger creatures to eviscerate them from inside out.
Biologists in Australia published their findings on the raptor with a 10-foot wingspan that swooped over New Zealand for the past many millennia inthis week. They studied the morphology of the bird with virtual mockups to understand its behaviors, and used 3D-rendering tools to bring it back to life in a way.
Previously, researchers couldn’t confirm whether harpagornis acted like a golden eagle, hunting and killing its prey, or more like a vulture, scavenging the meat and bones of already-dead creatures. To find out, the authors of the new study distilled potential traits of the ancient species from 3D images and compared them to features in today’s birds.
They found that the harpagornis’s beak and talons were more eagle-like in nature and able to withstand high amounts of pressure, leading them to believe that it was in fact a predator. But its skull shape, which had strain spots from eating, indicated that once it had taken down its meal, it would rip into it and eat the internal organs like a vulture.
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