0000000000970100
AUTHOR
E. Guzzo
Comparative Analysis of Lanner and Peregrine Trophic Niche in the Mediterranean
Predators are highly sensitive to availability and changes of their prey, which are limiting factors for successful reproductive performances. We studied the diet of the increasing Peregrine falcon (F. p. brookei) and the declining Lanner falcon (F. b. feldeggii) populations in Sicily. The two species coexist in the same habitats of this large Mediterranean island and require similar feeding resources. We described the type and diversity of prey taken by both species in order to understand whether differences in foraging ecology could explain their diverse population status. During 2014-2016, we collected prey remains and pellets in 15 Peregrine and 6 Lanner nests and we compared the curren…
Genetic variability in Peregrine falcon populations of the Western Palaearctic region
We analyzed variation in ten polymorphic microsatellites and a portion of cytochrome b mitochondrial DNA in 4 populations of the Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus). living in northern and southern Italy. Spain and Czech Republic to assess species diversity in the poorly investigated Western Palearctic region. The Spanish population lives in the contact zone between F. peregrinus peregrinus and F. p. brookei. both the northern Italian and the Czech populations live within the range of F. p. peregrinus and the southern Italian is within the F. p. brookei. We added to our cytochrome b sequence dataset comprising 81 samples. previously published mitochondrial DNA sequences (n = 31) of English …
Onset of natal dispersal in Peregrine Falcon from Mediterranean islands (Italy)
Abstract Basic information on natal dispersal of Peregrine Falcons is virtually lacking in Europe, despite increased attention on this species, and the sensitivity of this stage in the Peregrines’ life history. In this study, we collected satellite telemetry data during the onset of natal dispersal of 19 Peregrine Falcons tagged in Sicily and the Aeolian archipelago (Italy). We divided the onset of dispersal into the following 3 periods: post-fledging dependence period (PFDP), wandering, and wintering. PFDP lasted on average 47±16 days, during which young peregrines moved very little (0.167 km), and explored small areas (0.226 km2) far from the nest cliff, and showed no sex differences. The…
Environmental suitability model for the lanner falcon Falco biarmicus feldeggii: planning, study and monitoring the Sicilian population
The identification of suitable areas, by spatially explicit distribution models, is crucial for conservation of threatened species as the lanner falcon Falco biarmicus feldeggii. Monitoring and collecting data on lanner falcon during years has proven to be essential for better defining the areas of species environmental suitability. Recent research shows that breeding performances of this species are strongly influenced by bioclimatic factors, especially monthly temperature and rainfall, or linked to landscape morphology, such as the slope of territories. These environmental parameters combined with species productivity (number of fledged juveniles per checked pair) of geo-referenced breedi…
A comparison of peregrine Falco peregrinus and lanner Falco biarmicus trophic niche in Sicily
Prey availability is a crucial factor for the reproductive success of apex predators and the analysis of their diets can provide meaningful information about the quality of their habitats. In Sicily the declining lanner falcon Falco biarmicus feldeggii and the increasing peregrine falcon Falco peregrines brookei share similar habitats and trophic needs. By studying their current and past diets, we have investigated whether the characteristics of their foraging ecology could explain these different demographic trends. In 2014-2016, we identified 805 peregrine and 250 lanner Vertebrate prey from 15 peregrine and 6 lanner nests, and compared our dataset with previous data from Sicily (Peregrin…
Factors affecting the diet of Peregrine Falcon in Italy
The diet of top predators can provide useful information on phenology and abundance of their prey. The cosmopolitan and specialist Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) is an ideal model to assess whether food changes have occurred in the long-term. In this contribution, we reviewed all available literature on Peregrine Falcon diet in Italy which contained 11 detailed datasets useful for our review, and also included analysis of pellets, collected at three breeding sites of Sicily during 2014 and 2015. These data allowed us to shed light on the Peregrine Falcon’s diet over the last forty years (1978-2015). We calculated the numerical and biomass percentage of the resident and not-resident pre…