Research overview: solitary versus cooperative hunting success in felids

An overview comparing the hunting effectiveness of solitary felids with the cooperative hunting of lions, addressing why most cats hunt alone. Solitary ambush hunting suits stalking predators that target prey they can subdue individually, minimizing competition over kills, while cooperation pays mainly when prey is large, dangerous or fast enough that lone capture is unlikely. This survey synthesizes data on per-capita intake, capture probability and prey-size thresholds across social and solitary species, and considers cases of temporary cooperation in normally solitary cats. It connects hunting mode to body size, prey availability and the costs of kill sharing and defense. The topic explains the felid family's predominant solitariness as an outcome of the economics of capturing and retaining prey.