Food habits of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) in spiny bush habitat of arid southwestern Madagascar [An article from: Journal of Arid Environments]

This digital document is a journal article from Journal of Arid Environments, published by Elsevier in 2007. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
The food habits of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) are relatively well documented across its Madagascar range based on pellet contents, with the exception of the arid zone of the extreme southwest. New data are presented herein to fill this void. The diet of this owl consists largely of introduced rodents and there are some marked seasonal differences in the other types of prey taken. Evidence is presented to support the hypothesis that this owl has been able to expand its distribution in the wake of human habitat disturbance and the associated trophic proliferation of non-native rodents in disturbed habitats.