A first study on home range and habitat characteristics of a tawny owl breeding pair: a case study using direct tracking in the Korean Peninsula

Abstract

This study investigated the home range and habitat characteristics in tawny owls (Strix aluco), a grade II endangered wildlife species from South Korea. We tracked a breeding pair in Gyeongbuk during their brooding period using an attached radio transmitter through a satellite tracking system (WT-300: GPS-Mobile phone based Telemetry). The subjects had consecutively reproduced in a same nest for two years (2016–2017). The female's location data (six coordinates) were collected in 2016, whereas the male's (12 coordinates) were collected in 2017. Kernel density estimates were used to determine the pair's core habitats; the male had a greater movement range (2,133,971 m2) at 95% kernel density estimate than the female (19,572 m2). The male's core habitat was mostly mixed forest (50.6%), followed by coniferous forest (13.4%), nonirrigated land (10.9%), natural grassland (10.1%), and inland bodies of water (8.2%). The female's core habitat was dominated by mixed forest (36.8%), followed by non-natural barren land (21.7%), nonirrigated land (14.4%), residential areas (10%), and transportation areas (7.9%). This study is the first to track a breeding tawny owl pair on the Korean peninsula through direct satellite. Our results provide fundamental data as a case study regarding home range behavior of an owl breeding pair for developing conservation and management plan.

Keywords

• Breeding season
• Habitat type
• Home range
• Satellite tracking
• Tawny owl pair