Fine-scale movement patterns and habitat selection of little owls (Athene noctua) from two declining populations.

ABSTRACT: Advances in bio-logging technology for wildlife monitoring have expanded our ability to study space use and behavior of many animal species at increasingly detailed scales. However, such data can be challenging to analyze due to autocorrelation of GPS positions. As a case study, we investigated spatiotemporal movements and habitat selection in the little owl (Athene noctua), a bird species that is declining in central Europe and verges on extinction in Denmark. We equipped 6 Danish food-supplemented little owls and 6 non-supplemented owls in the Czech Republic with high-resolution GPS loggers that recorded one position per minute. Nightly space use, measured as 95% kernel density estimates, of Danish male owls were on average 62 ha (± 64 SD, larger than any found in previous studies) compa

SUBMITTER: Mayer M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8476024 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature