Feeding habits and people's perception of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba tuidara, J.E.Gray 1829) in urban settings of Southern Chile: Implications for conservationHábitos alimenticios y percepción de las personas hacia la Lechuza blanca (Tyto alba tuidara, J.E.Gray 1829) en un barrio urbano del sur de Chile: Implicancias para la conservación JAVIER
ABSTRACTPeople's perception on birds of prey is heavily infl uenced by its intrinsic value, utility, myths and superstitions. In particular, negative perceptions may encourage poaching and persecution of these birds, affecting their conservation status. One nocturnal raptor species widely distributed across the world is the Barn Owl (Tyto alba, Tytonidae). In Chile, this species has been recorded and studied exclusively in rural and sub-urban areas. However, in the city of Valdivia Barn owls exist within the city boundaries. In this study we documented the feeding habits of Barn owls nesting in urban settings of Valdivia, and we analyze the opinions of local neighbors toward the owls. To characterize the diet of owls, we collected all pellets found around their nesting tree on a monthly basis between August 2010 and August 2011. We interviewed the neighbors using a questionnaire that included questions about the utility, ethical or aesthetic value of the owl and the tree where they nested. Our results indicate that the main prey of the Barn Owl was the Long-tailed Colilargo (Oligoryzomys longicaudatus). The neighbors' perception was favorable to the Barn Owl primarily for aesthetic and ethical reasons, and not utilitarian reasons. Our results suggest that people perception in urban areas is different than in rural areas, where previous studies showed the prevalence of utilitarian values. This positive perception represents a great potential to promote conservation and environmental education in the city, creating a link between people and the natural elements they have in their environment.
KEYWORDS:Environmental education, Oligoryzomys longicaudatus, Raptors, urban ecology, urban wildlife.
RESUMENLa percepción que tienen las personas frente a las rapaces está fuertemente infl uenciada por su valor intrínseco, por su utilidad, y por mitos y supersticiones. En particular, las percepciones negativas pueden fomentar la caza furtiva y la persecución de estas aves, afectando su estado de conservación. Una rapaz nocturna distribuida a nivel mundial es la lechuza blanca (Tyto alba, Tytonidae). En Chile, esta especie ha sido registrada y estudiada exclusivamente en zonas rurales y sub-urbanas. Sin embargo, en la ciudad de Valdivia existen lechuzas habitando dentro del perímetro urbano. En este trabajo documentamos la composición de especies de roedores consumidos por las lechuzas blancas dentro de un barrio urbano, y evaluamos la percepción de los vecinos sobre la presencia de lechuza blanca en su barrio. Para caracterizar la dieta de las lechuzas, recolectamos egagrópilas mensualmente entre agosto de 2010 y agosto de 2011. Para conocer la percepción de los vecinos, se elaboró un c...