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Predators are typically larger, faster, and more powerful than the animals they hunt. Yet in nature, most attacks fail. A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , by researchers from the University of Amsterdam Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), asks: why do prey get away so often? The key, the researchers found, lies in something the original model overlooked: reaction times.

Cat chases mouse. Falcon pursues pigeon. Shark trails fish. Across land, air, and water, the same game plays out between predator and prey. Pursuit predation, where a predator actively chases a fleeing prey, is one of the most fundamental animal behaviors.

"It's something you see throughout the animal kingdom," says first author Lars Koopmans, a Ph.D. candidate at IBED.…