Turkish Journal of Forestry | Türkiye Ormancılık Dergisi
2019, 20(2): 72-75 | Research article (Araştırma makalesi)
Diet composition of the Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) in the Eastern Anatolia
(Turkey)
Ahmet Yesari Selçuka,*
, Ömral Ünsal Özkoça
, Mehmet Akif Bilira
, Haluk Kefelioğlua
Abstract: In this study, pellet compositions of Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) were analysed. The primary aim of this study was to
investigate the diet composition of Long-eared Owl in high altitude steppe in summer. Compositions of 130 pellets of Longeared Owl were used in the study. 147 preys (1.13 preys per pellet) which belong to 9 different taxa were found in pellet
composition. A significant part of the diet in study area consisted of small mammals. Only two remains of birds were recorded
from pellets. Microtus sp. was found important prey in the diet of Long-eared Owl (F = 81.63 %, B = 78.21%). Since Microtus
sp. is the favourite prey of Long-eared Owl, this situation causes a negative correlation with the prey variety in diet composition.
For this reason, FNB and Shannon-Wiener indices had low levels, Shannon-Wiener (H’) value was found to be low for Longeared Owl.
Keywords: Dietary diversity, Kars, Microtus, Pellets, Summer diet
Kulaklı Orman Baykuşu’nun (Asio otus) Doğu Anadolu Bölgesindeki diyet
kompozisyonu
Özet: Bu çalışmada kulaklı orman baykuşunun (Asio otus) pelet içerikleri analiz edilmiştir. Bu çalışmanın temel amacı, kulaklı
orman baykuşunun yaz mevsiminde bir dağ bozkırındaki diyet kompozisyonunu araştırmaktır. Kulaklı orman baykuşuna ait 130
pelet içeriği çalışmada kullanılmıştır. Pelet içeriğinden 9 farklı taksona ait 147 av (pelet başına 1.13 av) olduğu belirlendi. Küçük
memeliler türün diyetinin en önemli kısmını oluşturmaktadır. Yalnızca iki tane kuş kalıntısına peletlerde rastlanmıştır. Microtus
sp., türün diyetinde önemli bir av olarak tespit edildi (F =% 81.63, B =% 78.21). Microtus sp. kulaklı orman baykuşunun favori
avı olduğu için bu durum diyet içeriğindeki av çeşitliliği ile negatif korelasyona sebep olmaktadır. Bu nedenle FNB ve ShannonWiener indeksi düşük değerdedir.
Anahtar Kelimeler: Diyet çeşitliliği, Kars, Microtus, Pelet, Yaz mevsimi diyeti
1. Introduction
Diet content studies are helpful in determining the
distribution of preys, prey abundance and hunting strategies
of birds (Torre et al., 2004). Many different methods such as
pellet analysis, stomach content analysis, regurgitation of
juvenile birds, fecal content examination of prey remains in
the nest and around the feeding area and direct examination
are used in finding out prey preferences (Duffy and Jackson,
1986; Marti, 1987). Pellet analysis is a frequently used
method in finding out feeding strategies of owls (Terry,
2008). The pellets contain mammal bones such as the skulls
and mandibles. Those remains are useful to identification of
small mammals at the genus and even species level.
Therefore, many significant information can be
provided about the composition of small mammal within
preying areas of owls and their diet preferences (Yalden,
2009). Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) is an opportunist species
which is distributed widely in Holarctic region (Mebs and
Scherzinger, 2000). While Vole (Microtus spp.) and Mice
(Apodemus spp., Mus spp.) species form the main nutritional
source of Long-eared Owl, diet composition can differ
a
@
*
depending on geographical and climatic factors
(Romanowski and Zmihorski, 2008).
Long-eared Owl is a resident and wintering bird species
and also one of the most common owl species throughout
most of the country, but rather more local in Eastern
Anatolia. It is found in different types of habitat with trees
such as forest, wooded areas, plantations areas, parks and
gardens in urban areas (Kirwan et al., 2008). The primary
aim of this study was to investigate the diet composition of
Long-eared Owl in high altitude steppe.
2. Material and methods
2.1. Research area
This study was conducted in the province of Kars in
Eastern Anatolia region in 2018 (N40°27’-E42°49’). The
pellets were collected in 29th of July 2018. Pellets of Longeared Owl were obtained from Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris)
plantation areas which surrounded by agricultural fields.
This plantation area is located within the high steppe at
2200 meter altitude in the province of Kars. The distance of
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ondokuz Mayis University,
55200, Samsun - Turkey
Corresponding author (İletişim yazarı): ahmetyesari@gmail.com
Received (Geliş tarihi): 21.01.2019, Accepted (Kabul tarihi): 27.03.2019
Citation (Atıf): Selçuk, A.Y., Özkoç, Ö.Ü.,
Bilir, M.A., Kefelioğlu, H., 2019. Diet
composition of the Long-eared Owl (Asio otus)
in the Eastern Anatolia (Turkey). Turkish Journal
of Forestry, 20(2): 72-75.
DOI: 10.18182/tjf.515832
Turkish Journal of Forestry 2019, 20(2): 72-75
Scots pines to each other is approximate 3 meters. Pellets
were scattered in the area and were not collected under a
particular tree. The study area is a breeding site of Longeared Owl. The highest observed number is 13 individuals
at once in the study area and all of them were juvenile
Long-eared Owls. The average temperature in July is
17.6 °C and the average rainfall was 57.6 mm. The average
annual temperature was 4.9 °C and the average rainfall is
499.8 mm (MGM, 2018).
2.2. Research method and data analysis
Small mammal identification was made according to
Kryštufek and Vohralik (2005, 2009). Biomass was
calculated as the sum of the masses of all individuals of the
prey species. The geographic, sex and individual-related
differences in terms of biomass can vary among the many
species. Other papers containing data on mean values of sex
and age groups of prey would be very helpful for the
calculations of biomass (Birrer, 2009). For this reason,
while calculation of mammal biomass, the data in Kryštufek
and Vohralik (2005, 2009)’s studies, which reflects Turkey
sample, were taken into consideration. Skull and mandibula
were used for the identification of small mammals. The
minimum number of individuals (MNI) of small mammal
and bird taxa inside the pellet composition, frequency (F%),
biomass (B%), average prey amount for each pellet and
biomass rates were calculated. For statistical analysis, Food
Niche Breadth (FNB) index was calculated according to
Levin’s (1968) formula: 1/Σpi2, where pi denotes
contribution of a given prey group to the diet. ShannonWiener Index (H'; Formula = - ∑piln(pi); ‘pi’ is the
proportion of species in the entire sample, ‘ln’ is the natural
logarithm) (Krebs, 1994) which shows the species richness
in the diet and the individual numbers between taxa and
Evenness Index (J'; formula = H'/logS; S number of the
species in the pellets, J'; 0 = individuals not equally
distributed, 1 = individuals equally distributed) which shows
the distribution of individuals (regular/irregular) within the
diet were used.
3. Results
As a result of the analysis of 130 pellets of Long-eared
Owl, 147 preys of nine different small mammal taxa and
two bird preys (unidentified) were found in pellet
composition (Table 1). Small mammals constitute a
significant part of the diet composition (F=98.64%,
B=99.28%). Microtus spp. (F=81.63%, B=78.21) is the
dominant prey in the diet preference of Long-eared Owl.
The remains which belong to Microtus sp. were found in
78% of the pellets. Following Microtus sp., Apodemus sp.
(F=6.80%, B=4.84%) was the highest rated taxon within
diet composition (Table 1). Although Mesocricetus brandti
had a low frequency in diet composition, it was found to be
the highest biomass rate, following Microtus sp. It was
determined that very low frequency of bird remains in the
pellet composition of the Long-eared Owl. While the rate of
prey per pellet was 1.13, the rate of biomass was 42.96 g
(Table 1).
73
Table 1. Diet composition of Long-eared Owl from Eastern
Turkey, minimum number of individuals Frequency (F%),
Biomass (B%), statistical analyses.
Species
Arvicola amphibius
Microtus sp.
Cricetulus migratorius
Mesocricetus brandti
Apodemus witherbyi
Apodemus uralensis
Apodemus mystacinus
Mus sp.
Mammals total
Birds
Birds total
Total pellet
Total prey item
Mean number prey/pellet
Mean prey biomass/pellet (g)
FNB
Shannon-Wiener index (H’)
Evenness index (J’)
Mean body
weight (g)
170.0
36.4
32.1
108.7
24.0
20.2
48.7
16.1
MNI
F%
1
0.68
120
81.63
3
2.04
5
3.40
3
2.04
5
3.40
2
1.36
6
4.08
145
98.64
20.0
2
1.36
2
1.36
130
147
1.13 [min-max: 1-2]
42.96
1.49
0.82
0.37
B%
3.04
78.21
1.72
9.73
1.29
1.81
1.74
1.73
99.28
0.72
0.72
4. Discussion and conclusions
In previous studies which have been conducted to find
out the diet of Long-eared Owl, most of the diet
composition consists of Vole species as dominant preys
(Birrer, 2009). Although Vole species (or Sigmodon spp.
which are ecologically similar to Vole species, Williford,
2011) constitute the main prey of Long-eared Owl, other
prey groups can also have high rates in diet composition (for
birds, Kiat et al., 2008; Sándor and Kiss, 2008; for bats,
Tian et al., 2015). A total of 475 studies on the dietary
content of the Long-eared Owl were collected by Birrer
(2009). With the data set obtained in this study, 477 species
were identified as prey of the Long-eared Owl. Among
these species, 180 (37.74%) were small mammals and 191
(40.04%) were birds. Although the rate of the bird taxa is
higher in terms of prey variety, 93.3% of vertebrate prey are
small mammal species, 6.4% are birds and 0.3% are other
vertebrates. Although the number of bird species is higher
than small mammal species, the main preys of Long-eared
Owl consist of small mammals. Similarly, small mammal
species were dominant preys in this study (98.64%). Göçer
(2016) found bird remains at a rate of 100% in an urban area
in Southwestern Turkey. Similar of this exceptional
situation had been found in a few other studies (Sándor and
Kiss, 2008; Kiat et al., 2008). However, pellets in these
studies were collected from natural habitats unlike in
Turkey. According to the optimal nutritional theory
summarized by Pyke (1984), the diversity and rates in the
diet depend on the abundance and availability of the most
important prey. At the same time, it is stated that the Longeared Owl prey on more birds when small mammals are low
density and it is difficult to access to those preys (Milchev
and Ivanov, 2016). The reason of that only birds were found
from pellets collected in the urban area in Turkey could be
that rodent populations are negatively affected by
anthropogenic effects. This situation indicates that the
Long-eared Owl is an opportunistic predator, as referred in
various publications (Bertolino et al., 2001; Tulis et al.,
2015).
The most important factors determining the distribution
rates of prey in the diet of the Long-eared Owl are probably
the size of the prey and its abundance in the area (Birrer,
Turkish Journal of Forestry 2019, 20(2): 72-75
74
Microtus spp. is the favorite prey of Long-eared Owl, this
situation causes a negative correlation with the prey variety
in diet composition (Mori and Bertolino, 2015). For this
reason, FNB and Shannon-Wiener indices have low levels.
As recorded in other studies, the diet content of the Longeared Owl depends on different factors which related to
each other such as season, geographical location, breeding
or non-breeding area, abundance and attractiveness of prey,
behaviour of the prey and the climatic conditions (Birrer,
2009).
As a conclusion, a significant part of the diet of Long-eared
Owls in study area consisted of small mammals. Bird
remains were recorded as only two individuals. In order to
better understand the diet of Long-eared Owl and to
determine which variables affect the diet, more studies are
needed with pellets collected from different habitat types,
localities and seasons.
2009; Pyke, 1984). It is reported that animals lighter than
300 g are potential prey, but animals lighter than 50 g are
more dominant, as is the case with Microtus species (Birrer,
2009).
On the other hand, in different habitats, the main prey
can consist of Rats Rattus spp. (Pirovano et al., 2000),
Wood Mouse Apodemus spp. (Bertolino et al., 2001), and
Mice Mus spp. (Song et al., 2010) groups rather than Voles
Microtus spp. in diet composition. The reason for this
situation could be that Long-eared Owl prefers the more
abundant preys in the area because the small mammal
composition is related to habitat types.
In studies conducted in different localities and different
habitats of Turkey, Voles (Microtus spp.) are the main prey
in the diet of Long-eared Owl (Asio otus). The only
exception of this situation is the study conducted to find out
the diet composition in breeding period in city center
populations reported by Göçer (2016) (Table 2). Since
Table 2. Diet composition of Long-eared Owl in different habitats, seasons and localities of Turkey, Central Anatolia (CA),
Southeastern Anatolia (SEA), Southwestern Anatolia (SWA), Northern Anatolia (NA), Eastern Anatolia (EA), Frequency
(F%).
Family
Insectivora Soricidae
Cricetidae
Rodentia
Mammals
total
Aves
total
Insect
total
Species
Crocidura sp.
Arvicola sp.
Microtus sp.
Cricetulus sp.
Mesocricetus sp.
Mus sp.
Apodemus sp.
Muridae
Rattus sp.
Meriones sp.
Dipodidae Allactaga sp.
Spalacidae Nannospalax sp.
Turan,
2005
(CA),
Winter
Seçkin and
Çoşkun
(2006)
(SEA),
One-year
Naturel
area
Agricultural
area
F%
3.7
44.4
25.0
-
F%
4.5
73.2
0.7
19.4
0.3
1.6
0.3
73.1
100
100
26.9
-
-
-
Bulut et al.
(2012)
(CA),
Hızal (2013)
Spring and
(CA),
Summer
One-year
Meadow and
Suburban
agricultural
area
area
F%
F%
2.8
<0.1
68.6
84.6
0.9
2.4
0.7
10.8
3.9
11.3
4.2
1.6
0.6
1.4
-
Göçer
(2016)
(SWA),
Spring
and
Summer
F%
-
Selçuk et al.
(2017)
(NA),
Winter
Steppe and
agricultural
area
F%
64.9
1.5
1.3
28.4
0.9
2.8
-
93.9
0
-
4.1
-
2.0
Kaya and
Çoşkun
(2017)
(EA),
One-year
F%
87.4
1.6
3.9
0.7
-
In this study
(EA),
Summer
Steppe and
agricultural
area
F%
0.68
81.63
2.04
3.40
4.08
6.80
-
100
93.6
98.64
100
-
5.9
1.36
-
-
0.5
-
City
center
Naturel
area
Turkish Journal of Forestry 2019, 20(2): 72-75
Acknowledgement
The pellets used in this study were obtained from the
field study conducted as part of ‘National Biological Variety
Inventory and Monitoring Project (UBENIS)’ conducted by
the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Management. We
would like to thank the Ministry of Agriculture Kars branch
office employees for their contributions in the field surveys.
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