Open AccessHome range and activity of African goshawks <i>Accipiter tachiro</i> in relation to their predation on bats
Author(s) -
I. L. Rautenbach,
M. Brock Fenton,
Alan C. Kemp,
S.J. van Jaarsveld
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
koedoe
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.419
H-Index - 29
eISSN - 2071-0771
pISSN - 0075-6458
DOI - 10.4102/koedoe.v33i2.437
Subject(s) - accipiter , predation , crepuscular , biology , dusk , ecology , fecundity , range (aeronautics) , home range , swordfish , zoology , fishery , demography , fish <actinopterygii> , population , habitat , tuna , sociology , materials science , composite material
Winter radio-tracking of three African goshawks Accipiter tachiro showed that they each occupied well-wooded home ranges of at least 28 hectares. They perched and roosted mainly within densely foliaged trees and an adult female changed perches on average 4,7 times per hour. No crepuscular predation of bats was recorded, in contrast to regular summer predation on colonies of little free-tailed bats, Tadarida pumila, but winter emergence rates of these bats at dusk had dropped to < 5 of the previous summer. We predict that many accipiters will be regular predators of bats and that skewed sex ratios and high fecundity may be two means by which bats counter this predation