Graduation Date
Fall 2019
Document Type
Thesis
Program
Master of Science degree with a major in Natural Resources, option Wildlife
Committee Chair Name
Matthew Johnson
Committee Chair Affiliation
HSU Faculty or Staff
Second Committee Member Name
Jeffrey Black
Second Committee Member Affiliation
HSU Faculty or Staff
Third Committee Member Name
Barbara Clucas
Third Committee Member Affiliation
HSU Faculty or Staff
Keywords
Barn owl, Prey delivery, Prey composition, Ecosystem services, Natural enemies, Rodent pest control, Napa Valley, Tyto Alba, Vineyard, Sustainable agriculture, Integrated pest management, Nest box, Nest box camera
Subject Categories
Wildlife
Abstract
The provision of habitat for natural enemies of agricultural pests is common in integrated pest management approaches globally but has rarely been examined for vertebrate predators controlling vertebrate pests. To mitigate the economic and environmental costs of treating for rodent pests, winegrape producers in Napa Valley, California, have installed nest boxes to attract barn owls (Tyto alba) to their properties, but their effectiveness to control rodent pests in vineyards has not been thoroughly tested. A rigorous estimate of the number of rodents barn owls remove from the landscape is a necessary first step, and this study aimed to produce an index of rodent removal and prey composition by using remote nest box cameras. In addition, I tested hypotheses for how habitat may influence prey delivery rates and composition. Results indicate that each barn owl chick received 191 ± 10.01 prey items before dispersing from the nest box. Grassland habitat was an important predictor of prey delivery rate. Prey composition was dominated by voles, gophers, and mice, and their relative proportions were associated with the composition of habitats near a nesting box. Specifically, oak savannah was positively associated with the proportion of gophers, and negatively associated with voles and grassland was positively associated with voles. Further research should focus on the possible roles of rodent abundance, adult owl quality, and additional metrics of habitat structure on prey delivery rates.
Citation Style
Journal of Wildlife Management
Recommended Citation
St. George, Dane A. R., "Relationship between habitat and barn owl prey delivery rate and composition in a Napa Valley vineyard agroecosystem" (2019). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 351.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/351
Included in
Behavior and Ethology Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons, Zoology Commons