Habitat and Nest Site Selection of the European Rollers in the Northern Anatolia

Abstract

In this study, habitat preferences of the European Rollers (Coracias garrulus) in the Northern Anatolia was investigated, in 2014 breeding season. Total of 31 breeding pairs in 4 certain roller sites were located. The average distance between the breeding territories was 1.2 km in one of the roller sites with 17 pairs. Both solitary and colonial breeding pairs were recorded. Overall, 8, 2 and 2 nests (total of 12 nests) were located on sand quarries, concrete buildings and abandoned magpie nests on electrical poles, respectively. The habitat preferences were determined within a radius of 300 m and 1000 m around the nest site for the breeding and foraging habitats, respectively. We conducted the spatial analysis in ArcGIS 10.5 using Corine Land Cover 2012 database. Agricultural areas were the major land cover types where the European Rollers breed in our study. Use of unfavorable habitats and other nest sites including magpie nests necessitated a conservation program for the European Rollers in the study area.