Geographic variation in the diet of the powerful owl (Ninox strenua) at a local scale
Rohan J. Bilney
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, Vic. 3125, Australia. Present address: PO Box 988, Bairnsdale, Vic. 3875, Australia. Email: rohan.bilney@gmail.com
Australian Journal of Zoology 61(5) 372-377 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO13048
Submitted: 16 June 2013 Accepted: 14 October 2013 Published: 1 November 2013
Abstract
This study reports the diet of the powerful owl (Ninox strenua) in East Gippsland, from a dataset of 2009 vertebrate prey items collected from 53 sites. Mammals dominated the diet at all sites, but birds were also consumed regularly. The greater glider (Petauroides volans) was the dominant dietary item across the region in terms of both frequency of consumption and biomass contribution. There was geographical dietary variation between coastal and foothill forest sites, with the sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) and birds consumed more frequently in foothill forests, whereas the common ringtail possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) was frequently consumed only in coastal forests. Typically, a higher percentage of powerful owl diet comprised birds closer to cleared land. The dietary reliance upon hollow-dependent mammals in foothill forests (averaging >70%) is of conservation concern, especially when non-hollow-dependent prey are rare. Forest management activities, especially logging, that reduce densities of hollow-bearing trees in the landscape are therefore likely to decrease the long-term carrying capacity of the landscape for the powerful owl.
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