Integrating Pellet Analysis and Photographic Surveys to Assess the Diet of the Lesser Kestrel in Türkiye
POLISH JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, cilt.74, sa.1, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 74 Sayı: 1
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.3161/15052249pje2026.74.005
- Dergi Adı: POLISH JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, BIOSIS, Geobase
- Ankara Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
Understanding the diet of farmland raptors is essential for evaluating prey availability, habitat quality, and planning wildlife-friendly agricultural practices. However, individual dietary assessment methods may capture different components of prey use. We therefore investigated the diet of the Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni) in T & uuml;rkiye by combining pellet analysis from a breeding colony in Central Anatolia with photo-based records from citizen science platforms at the national scale. We analysed a total of 93 pellets collected in June and July 2020, yielding 821 identified prey items, with a mean of 8.8 (SD = 5.4) prey items per pellet. Arthropods dominated the diet (99% of individuals). Coleoptera (68%) and Orthoptera (26%) were the dominant prey groups, indicating a relatively narrow trophic niche. Additionally, we screened 1,019 photos from citizen science platforms, yielding 219 unique prey records. Orthoptera were the most frequently recorded prey, and proportionally more often in photos than in pellets, likely reflecting detection bias toward larger and more conspicuous prey. Our results confirm the predominantly insectivorous diet of the Lesser Kestrel in T & uuml;rkiye and show that pellet-and photo-based approaches provide complementary perspectives on prey composition. Integrating conventional and citizen-science-based dietary data can improve ecological assessments and support bird-friendly agricultural management in pseudo-steppe landscapes.