Data from: Determinants of predation success: how to survive an attack from a rattlesnake

1. The selection pressures that arise from capturing prey and avoiding
predators are some of the strongest biotic forces shaping animal form and
function. Examining how performance (i.e., athletic ability) affects the
outcomes of encounters between free-ranging predators and prey is
essential for understanding the factors that determine predation success
rates and broad scale predator–prey dynamics, but quantifying these
encounters in natural situations is logistically challenging. 2. The goal
of our study was to examine the relationship between performance and
predation success by studying natural predator-prey interactions in the
field with minimal manipulation of the study subjects. 3. We used
high-speed video recordings of free-ranging sidewinder rattlesnakes
(predator, Crotalus cerastes) and desert kangaroo rats (prey, Dipodomys
deserti) to study how performance at various stages of their encounters
alters the outcome of their interactions. 4. We found that predation
success depends on 1) whether the snake struck accurately, 2) if the
strike was accurate, the reaction time of the kangaroo rat, and 3) if the
kangaroo rat was bitten, the speed with which kangaroo rat dislodged the
snake (i.e., the duration of fang contact). 5. The results of our study
suggest that the role of performance in predator-prey interactions is
complex, and both predator and prey can alter the outcome at multiple
stages of an interaction.