Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

Bühler, Roman; Schalcher, Kim; Séchaud, Robin; Michler, Stephanie; Apolloni, Nadine; Roulin, Alexandre; Almasi, Bettina

doi:10.1186/s40462-023-00376-3

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…Correction to: Movement Ecology (2023) 11:14 https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-023-00376-3 Following publication of the original article [1], it was noted that due to a typesetting mistake, the incorrect file for Additional file 1 was processed.…”

Section: Publisher's Notementioning

confidence: 99%

Correction: Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

et al. 2023

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Section: Publisher's Notementioning

confidence: 99%

Correction: Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

et al. 2023

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“…To a great extent, nesting habitat parameters determine the diet composition of raptors during the breeding season [6]. Birds are sensitive to limited food availability; therefore, food resources are one of the most critical factors to address in conservation research [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat Impacts on the Golden Eagle’s Foraging Ecology and Nest Site Selection in Poland

Stój,

Kruszyk,

Zawadzka

et al. 2024

Diversity

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The Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos (hereafter GE) is one of Europe’s largest avian top predators. The present study recognizes the habitat characteristics and food composition of the GE in Poland. The research was carried out in the Polish part of the Carpathian Mountains. The GEs built nests mainly on old coniferous trees and strongly preferred the Silver Fir Abies alba. On average, within a 5 km buffer around the nest, forests covered about 2/3 of the area, while open land with villages was at 31% and water was about 1%. Birds preferred areas with less forest cover than in the random points, but the nests were significantly further from the countryside than the distance measured for the drawn points distributed in the GEs’ range in Poland. Their diet during the breeding season was assessed by analyzing pellets and food remains. The proportion of birds was 55.7%, mammals was 43.4%, and reptiles was 0.9%. The ten most common prey species included the Domestic Pigeon Columba livia, the Ural Owl Strix uralensis, the Tawny Owl Strix aluco, the Buzzard Buteo buteo, the Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus, the Martens Martes sp., and the Red Fox Vulpes vulpes, which composed 70% of food items. Our results showed that the GE is a top predator, as evidenced by the high share of other predators—both mammal and bird species—in its diet, which constituted about 34% of identified preys. The diet of the studied GE population showed geographical variation, suggesting local adaptations to available prey species. The share of Roe Deer increased from west to east, indicating a higher availability in the less urbanized eastern part of the country. An analysis of general food categories showed that, as latitude increased, the share of captured birds among prey of the GEs declined, while the percentage of forest prey increased. Pigeons were prey of the GEs mainly in the western part of their range. The GEs often captured species with nocturnal activity—owls and martens, which were identified in most of the GEs’ territories. The proportion of mammals in the diet of the GE increased with an increase in the proportion of open areas, while the abundance of birds of prey and owls in the diet correlated with a higher proportion of forests. The greatest threat to Poland’s GE population is the reduction in semi-open areas with low human activity and low human population densities.

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Barn owl site occupancy and breeding success in relation to land use and nest box characteristics

Milliet,

Schalcher,

Grangier‐Bijou

et al. 2024

J Wildl Manag

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Agricultural landscapes play a crucial role in enhancing biodiversity because of their widespread presence over the Earth and their ability to encompass diverse ecosystems. Recognizing this, numerous governments are incentivizing farmers through direct payments to adopt sustainable practices, such as managing extensive pastures and meadows, planting wildflowers, or establishing hedgerows. However, the benefit of such sustainable practices on vertebrate species is not well understood. From 2018 to 2020, we investigated nest occupancy, fledging success, and clutch size of a Swiss population of barn owls (Tyto alba) with respect to nest box characteristics and the presence of extensive agriculture and urbanization in areas surrounding nest boxes. Our results revealed that extensively used pastures were positively associated with site occupancy but negatively associated with clutch size. The proportion of urban areas was negatively related to both site occupancy and clutch size. The altitude of the nest box location was negatively correlated with occupancy, and the number of nest boxes placed at the same site (either 1 or 2) was positively correlated with site occupancy. Moreover, clutch size, but not fledging success, was larger in nest boxes placed outside barns than in nest boxes placed inside barns. Based on these findings, we recommend installing nest boxes at locations <700 m in altitude and in pairs on the same barn, incorporating biodiversity promotion areas into agricultural landscapes, and avoiding dense urban areas in favor of rural zones with lower urban density. Understanding the nuanced relationships between nest box characteristics, environmental factors, and breeding success provides valuable insights for optimizing artificial nesting sites and enhancing the overall reproductive success of barn owls.

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Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

Cited by 5 publications

References 74 publications

Correction: Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

Correction: Influence of prey availability on habitat selection during the non-breeding period in a resident bird of prey

Habitat Impacts on the Golden Eagle’s Foraging Ecology and Nest Site Selection in Poland

Barn owl site occupancy and breeding success in relation to land use and nest box characteristics

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