Seasonal and annual dietary changes in Lesser Kestrels Falco naumanni wintering in Lesotho

Abstract

The diet of Lesser Kestrels FaIco naumanni wintering in an agriculturaily-transformed area in Lesotho was studied by means of pellet analysis. Orthopterans, beetles and soiifugids (sun spiders) comprised the staple food of the wintering Lesser Kestrels. Small vertebrates, termite alates, earwigs and scolopendrans supplemented the diet. The proportion of pellets containing scarabaeid and carabid beetles, as well as those containing locusts and crickets, Increased as the wintering season progressed, while the proportion of pellets containing soiifugids decreased during the same period. Significant differences in diet composition were recorded between the 1998/1999 and 1999/2000 wintering seasons.

Seasonal variation in the diet of the Amur kestrel (Falco amurensis) in its winter quarter in Lesotho

“…On the other hand, numbers of sun spiders in the diet are higher in January and much lower in February and March. A similar change in the proportion of those two main groups of prey has been shown in the diet of the lesser kestrel Falco naumanni wintering in the same areas (Kopij, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2007; Anderson, Kok & Erasmus, 1999; Kok, Kok & Van Ee, 2000). Preying on rather sluggish orthopterans must be energetically much less expensive then preying on fast‐moving sun spiders.…”

“…In many localities in Lesotho and in other areas of southern Africa both falcons roost together on the same trees and hunt in the same areas, c. 30 km around their roosting sites. It has been shown by the pellet analysis, that in Bloemfontein area the lesser kestrel preyed basically on the same prey groups as the Amur kestrels in the Roma Valley (Kopij, 2002, 2005, 2007). Both raptors prey extensively on the arthropods which are largely crepuscular or nocturnal, e.g.…”

Temporal Changes in Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni) Diet During the Breeding Season in Southern Spain

“…Lesser Kestrel diet has been studied in different countries and seasons (Spain: Franco andAndrada 1977, Rodríguez 2004;Portugal: Rocha 1998;France: Choisy et al 1999, Lepley et al 2000South Africa: Anderson et al 1999, Kok et al 2000, Kopij 2007. Most of the work indicates that Lesser Kes-trels are primarily insectivorous, feeding mainly on beetles, myriapods and grasshoppers in Europe, but also on termites and solifuges in their wintering grounds.…”

Change of Feeding Strategy Prior to Migration: A Comparative Diet Analysis in the Lesser Kestrel (Falco Naumanni)

“…Birds feed mainly on invertebrates (Orthoptera, Coleoptera) while their diet is complemented by small mammals and lizards (Parr et al, 1997), especially before the egg-laying period (Donazar et al, 1992). There are also studies focusing on the pre-migration period that highlight the importance of Orthoptera in the diet (Tejero et al, 1982;Lepley et al, 2000;De Frutos and Olea, 2008;Sarà et al, 2014), as well as studies on the species wintering grounds in Africa (Kopij, 1998;Kok et al, 2000;Kopij, 2002;Pilard et al, 2004;Kopij, 2005;Kopij, 2007). Although these studies provide valuable information about the diet at different stages of the Lesser Kestrel's lifecycle, literature comparing dietary changes between periods and their implications concerning the feeding strategy is scarce.…”