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Publication Date
2018
Abstract
I used pellet analysis, a non-invasive method for studying the diet of raptorial birds, to quantify the diets of Barn Owls (Tyto alba) in a region where their diet has not previously been studied; Humboldt County, California. I identified 1113 prey items from 430 pellets collected from February to April 2018. I found that owl diets were primarily composed of small rodents, particularly the California vole (Microtus californicus), which also made up most of the relative biomass of prey consumed (62.89%). I also estimated the food niche breadth of Barn Owls and concluded that while they have a specialist diet (FNB st = 0.07), they also exhibit an opportunistic feeding strategy in their ability to take a range of prey species.
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