Diet of an eastern barn owl Tyto javanica on the Patho Plains, northern Victoria

Abstract

A small sample of eastern Barn Owl Tyto javanica pellets, from native grasslands on the Patho Plains in northern Victoria in February 2007, contained the remains of 48 prey individuals: 38 Australian Plague Locusts Chortoicetes terminifera, nine house Mice Mus domesticus and one Fat-tailed dunnart Sminthopsis crassicaudata. Such a high proportion of locusts in the eastern Barn Owl\u27s diet is noteworthy, and is discussed in the context of recent locust-spraying operations in the region.<br /