<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

During 2018–2022, the local breeding population of the long-legged buzzard (<italic>Buteo rufinus</italic>) in southeastern Bulgaria was monitored in the territory of three districts of Sliven, Yambol and Burgas. Diet data were collected in 15 breeding pairs. Overall, we identified 290 prey items. We used three methods for diet analysis that produced different results: (1) collecting prey remains (68 individuals, 23.5%), (2) collecting pellets and skeletal materials (42 individuals, 14.5%), and (3) collecting data on a diet using trail cameras (180 individuals, 62.1%). The dominant part of the diet formed mammalian species (69.3%, ten species and some undetermined Rodentia and other Mammalia). Birds were less represented but with similar species richness (21.0%, 11 species and pigeons (<italic>Columba</italic> sp.), thrushes (<italic>Turdus</italic> sp.), undetermined Passeriformes and Galliformes). Compared to birds, the proportion of Reptilia was lower (9.3%, two species). Amphibia were represented only with one specimen of the common toad (<italic>Bufo bufo</italic>). The dominant diet of long-legged buzzards in southeastern Bulgaria was European souslik (<italic>Spermophilus citellus</italic>, 31.0%), followed by sibling vole (<italic>Microtus mystacinus</italic>, 25.5%). Less abundant taxa were undetermined Passeriformes (6.9%), lesser mole rat (<italic>Nannospalax leucodon</italic>, 5.9%), pigeons (4.5 %), blotched snake (<italic>Elaphe sauromates</italic>, 3.8%), Balkan green lizard (<italic>Lacerta trilineata</italic>, 3.5%), European hare (<italic>Lepus europaeus</italic>, 3.1%), common magpie (<italic>Pica pica</italic>, 2.8%), Colubridae (1.7%), common blackbird (<italic>Turdus merula</italic>, 1.4%), domestic chicken (<italic>Gallus gallus domesticus</italic>, 1.0%) and Eurasian skylark (<italic>Alauda arvensis</italic>, 1.0%). <italic>Spermophilus citellus</italic> was the most abundant species in the Yambol district samples and the most abundant species in the data obtained from trail cameras. In the Burgas district, the dominant species was <italic>Microtus mystacinus</italic>. When comparing the diet spectrum of <italic>Buteo rufinus</italic> from other authors, birds occurred more frequently than reptiles in our material.
</abstract>

Diet composition of the long-legged buzzard (<italic>Buteo rufinus</italic>) in southeastern Bulgaria

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

We made an analysis of the osteological remains of prey that had been captured by the peregrine falcon (<italic>Falco peregrinus</italic>) and was collected from eyries perched high in rocky cliffs of Slovakia. Birds dominated the 7,233 vertebrates identified (class Aves, with minimum of 98 species and 97.2% of the total). Bones from mammals (class Mammalia, 24 species, 2.5%) were rarely found, and sporadic remains from lower vertebrate species (classes Amphibia, Reptilia, Pisces, 0.3%) were also noted. The collected specimens were divided over three distinct periods. Before domestic pigeons became a major component in the juvenile peregrine falcon diet (Period A), wild pigeons and doves were the most common prey; specifically stock doves (<italic>Columba oenas</italic>) caught at lower elevations, and wood pigeons (<italic>Columba palumbus</italic>) in mountainous areas. The Eurasian woodcock (<italic>Scolopax rusticola</italic>) was a frequent prey . The diversity of peregrine falcon diet reached its maximum between the 1930s and the 1950s (Period B), with the domestic pigeon (<italic>Columba livia domestica</italic>) present in the diet at a similar abundance (16.1%) to wild pigeons and doves. The peregrine falcon population tailed off in the 1960s as pesticides became more commonly used in agriculture. A new population started expanding from Western Europe during the 1990s and has stabilised at around 150 breeding pairs in recent years. Since the turn of the millennium (Period C), domestic pigeons have become the dominant prey (51.1%) along with smaller songbirds such as hawfinches (<italic>Coccothraustes coccothraustes</italic>) and common starlings (<italic>Sturnus vulgaris</italic>), at 15.5% and 14.6% of total osteological remains collected, respectively.
</abstract>

Temporal variation in the peregrine falcons (<italic>Falco peregrinus</italic>) diet after the extinction of the original population and the emergence of a new population in Slovakia

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

One of the most apparent origins of biodiversity loss caused by humans is infrastructural development of roads. Yet they offer certain benefits for some animals, such as hunting opportunities with lower energy costs and consumption of carrion earlier hit by vehicles. Raptors find roads a particularly favorable environment, perching on poles or overhead cables and waiting to attack their prey as it crosses a road. This paper describes the first ever recorded predation by a roadside hawk (<italic>Rupornis magnirostris</italic>) of a striped snake (<italic>Lygophis anomalus</italic>) supportable by material evidence, when both the raptor and the snake were hit by a vehicle immediately after the snake was caught. The study contributes to knowledge about the roadside hawk’s diet and illuminates the problem these human infrastructures pose for animals. Future research on roads birds of prey use as hunting sites could contribute toward improvements in conservation programs for birds of prey species.
</abstract>

Roadside hawk (<italic>Rupornis magnirostris</italic>) hit by an oncoming vehicle while capturing a striped snake (<italic>Lygophis anomalus</italic>)

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

Over an interval of 16 days, two eggs were laid by the same lesser spotted eagle female in her nest in the west-central Slovakia in 2021. The first egg failed to hatch, and the female ate it on the 45th day after she had laid it. Thereafter, the chick hatched from the second egg and later successfully fledged. The case contributes toward explaining why the species lays a second egg, even though the younger hatched chick is almost always prone to siblicide. In this case, the second egg acts as a reserve or an insurance if the first egg should not hatch, enabling the parents to breed successfully.
</abstract>

The second egg in the lesser spotted eagle (<italic>Clanga pomarina</italic>) clutch as a nesting insurance

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

The distribution, abundance, breeding success, and habitats of the imperial eagle in the mountains and adjacent lowlands of Western Slovakia were studied over the last 45 years (1977–2022), with a total of 65 breeding pairs documented. Of the 589 breeding attempts (range 2–42 per year) that were recorded, 420 were successful (74%) and produced 718 chicks altogether. Breeding success varied considerably across the years, with an average of 1.2 chicks per initiated and 1.7 chicks per successful breeding attempt. Three chicks fledged from 10.7% of the successful breeding attempts, two chicks from 50.2%, and one chick from 39.1% of them. Breeding numbers increased slowly between 1977 and 1997, with a marked increase after 1998. In two of the most recent years, 2020 and 2021, breeding numbers more than doubled. Since 2000, we have observed changes in breeding habitat preferences, where the population has shown more preference for lowland regions than mountains. Natural factors are probably driving the upward population trend, but there has also been action taken with several management measures. The conservation measures involved and their impact on population and range trends are analysed and discussed here.
</abstract>

Distribution, abundance, and breeding of the imperial eagle (<italic>Aquila heliaca</italic>) in Western Slovakia in 1977–2022

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

The little owl (<italic>Athene noctua</italic>) is a common raptor in Mediterranean habitats. To acquire more information on its diet, this study identified cranial and post-cranial skeletal material from 70 owl pellets collected during the 2016 and 2017 breeding seasons. The material was used to quantify the little owl’s relative prey abundance using MNI (minimum number of individuals), a taphonomical unit. This study is the first to examine the diet of the little owl in the Peloponnese (southern Greece). After examining 3,691 isolated skeletal and exoskeletal remains from the processed pellets, a total of 78 and 108 prey items were recorded for the two consecutive years. This study, in congruence with previous research, showed that in both years the little owl favoured primarily small mammals and arthropods, with a clear predominance of Thomas’s pine vole (<italic>Microtus thomasi</italic>) and arthropods from the class Diplopoda. Finally, a redundancy discriminant analysis (RDA) was applied to our two-year results, along with those from similar studies in the Mediterranean region, to examine the relationship between habitat types and prey taxa, which supported the little owl’s opportunistic feeding behaviour, depending on variation of ecological factors.
</abstract>

Laboratory of Palaeontology and Stratigraphy, Department of Geology

Section of Animal Biology, Department of Biology

Hunger sweetens the beans: evidence of opportunistic feeding behaviour of the little owl (<italic>Athene noctua</italic>, Scopoli 1769) from Peloponnese, Greece

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Raptor Journal

 Journal for science, research and conservation on birds of prey and owls. Raptor Journal (formerly known as Slovak Raptor Journal) is issued generally annually and publishes original papers, reviews, short notes and other articles focusing on birds of prey and owls. All articles are published in English.   Why read  The readers can find information about all aspects of the life of raptors and owls – habitat requirements and selection, foraging ecology and diet preferences, breeding biology and nest success, postbreeding movements and migration, threats and protection, population statuses and trends etc.   Why submit   The journal has no article publication charges.  No regional limitation – journal published papers from Europe, Asia and both Americas in last years.  Fair and fast peer review.  All accepted manuscripts are published as “online first” before completing the issue.  All published articles are visible and accessible in full version.   Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 

Raptor Journal

Volume 16 (2022): Issue 1 (December 2022)

Diet composition of the long-legged buzzard (Buteo rufinus) in southeastern Bulgaria

Temporal variation in the peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) diet after the extinction of the original population and the emergence of a new population in Slovakia

Roadside hawk (Rupornis magnirostris) hit by an oncoming vehicle while capturing a striped snake (Lygophis anomalus)

The second egg in the lesser spotted eagle (Clanga pomarina) clutch as a nesting insurance

Distribution, abundance, and breeding of the imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca) in Western Slovakia in 1977–2022

Hunger sweetens the beans: evidence of opportunistic feeding behaviour of the little owl (Athene noctua, Scopoli 1769) from Peloponnese, Greece

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