Post-fledging behaviour of juveniles in the Little Owl (Athene noctua)

Abstract

Before dispersal, social and spatial behaviour in owls has only been briefly studied. We used radio tracking to monitor age-influenced social and spatial behaviour in 10 juvenile Little Owls (Athene noctua) from nests in Northern Jutland, Denmark. On average, the post-fledging dependency period lasted 35 days (n = 6). Juveniles stayed on the natal territory 45 days (n = 5) from independence to dispersal. Half of the juveniles had dispersed by mid-September, and the other half remained on the natal territory until at least mid-October. The home range size (minimum convex polygons) was 0.56 +/- 0.53 ha (mean +/- SD) from fledging to independence and 3.25 +/- 4.15 ha from independence to dispersal. Within the first 40 days after fledging, the nightly distance from the nest and the distance between siblings increased, and the frequency and intensity of begging calls decreased. These results were consistent with the notion that food provided by the parents decreased as juvenile foraging skills increased.