Keywords
bats
Common Barn-Owl
feeding behavior
predation
Strigiformes
Tyto alba
Abstract
Diet of Tyto alba in both rural and urban areas in the Pampean region of Argentina were described and compared. A total of 175 pellets was collected between December 1993 and January 1995, from which 475 individual prey were identified. Diet differed between areas in composition and in seasonal variability. In the urban area, an unusual high percentage of bats was found in pellets during spring-summer, whereas rodents were the most abundant type of prey during autumn-winter. In contrast, rodents were the primary food found in pellets in the rural area all year round, including also amphibians in spring-summer and birds all year round. The causes of the variation between areas and seasons are discussed, and also the high percentage of bats which constitutes an unusual finding. This study contributes to the knowledge of Tyto alba diet at a regional scale, and it shows interesting results in relation to the presence of some species of health concern.
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