Application of molecular methods to identify food resources of short-eared owl (Asio flammeus) in wetland community

Abstract

The short-eared owl (Asio flammeus), which lives in open wetland habitats, has been threatened and become endangered in South Korea due to the destruction and loss of its habitats. However, the diet of the short-eared owl remains to be studied. 'The prey of the short-eared owl was monitored using molecular methods as an alternative tool. A total of 121 pellets of the species were collected in the Dalsung wetland. Of these pellets, aoout 3()01o (n =33) were selected for prey identification in 2002 (n = 12), 2003 (n = 6) and 2006 (n = 15). 'IWo hundred and thirty-two oone fragments were successfully analyzed and 9 prey species were detected. In an expanded analysis, excluding 4 pellets used for the preliminary analysis, small manunals constituted the highest percentage (89.10/0,): 47.6% Eurasian field mouse (Apodemus agrarius); 27.2% European harvest mouse (Micromys minutus); 6.1% Japanese wild house mouse (Mus musculus); 5.4% Asian lesser white-toothed shrew (Crocidura shantungensis); and 2.7% Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus). Not only small mammals, but birds and amphibians were also identified: 4.1% Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica); 3.4% vinous-throated parrotbill <Paradoxornis webbianus); 0.7% eastern turtle dove (StreptopeJia orientaJis); and 2.7% Kori salamander (j{ynobius yangJ). This result would be valuable in understanding the feeding ecology of the short-eared owl in its wetland habitats.

Molecular analysis of faecal samples from birds to identify potential crop pests and useful biocontrol agents in natural areas

“…Among terrestrial birds, molecular analyses have been used to identify invertebrate DNA in the faeces of tits (Parus spp.) (Sutherland, 2000), Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) (Jedlicka et al, 2013) and captive Carrion Crows (Corvus corone) (Oehm et al, 2011), and to identify prey species from bones in owl (Strigiformes) pellets (Poulakakis et al, 2005;Kim et al, 2009). However, we know of no studies of prey DNA from song bird faeces other than that of Sutherland (2000) working on Blue Tits (Parus caeruleus) and Great Tits (P. major), and the work of Jedlicka et al (2013) (to order level only) on Western Bluebirds.…”