Invertebrate-biased diet of burrowing owls in a newly-restored coastal grassland

Invertebrate-biased diet of burrowing owls in a newly-restored coastal grassland

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Recovering biodiversity across trophic levels is a major challenge in restoration ecology.Specifically, predator population recovery depends on the timely re-establishment of their preferred prey species in restored habitats.Here, we evaluate potential dietary factors contributing to the loss click here of western burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia hypugaea (Bonaparte, 1825)) from a newly-restored coastal grassland.We examined owl pellets and found that burrowing owl diets were relatively low in vertebrate prey during their brief occupation of the restoration site (2.

6% of prey items; found in 61.8% of sampled pellets).We suggest that preferred food limitation may have been one contributor to the loss of powell and mahoney bloody mary mix owls from the restoration site.These findings suggest the need to prioritise re-establishment of prey communities for effective long-term recovery of burrowing owls in restored landscapes.