Photo 1. The Eurasian eagle-owl spends the day hidden from sight, but comes out shortly after sunset to perch on one of its favourite “observation posts”. This photo was taken on 1 January 2016 at 4.52 p.m., 23 minutes after sunset.

Non-invasive method of monitoring the presence of wildlife in nature

Up to date, we have used camera traps to monitor the presence of the lynx. It occurred to us that this non-invasive method of monitoring wildlife could also be useful in ornithology, so we placed camera traps in two pre-defined positions which the eagle-owl visits regularly within its habitat.

After only eight days we were rewarded with the first photographic evidence of the bird’s presence. The eagle-owl was “caught” by a camera trap! This method enables us not only to monitor the frequency with which the eagle-owl visits specific perches to rest or observe its surrounding, but also to document its prey.

 Marko Modrić

Link to a related topic on the Web pages of “Priroda”:

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE EURASIAN EAGLE-OWL (http://www.ju-priroda.hr/en-zanimljivosti.asp?iddb=117 )

Photo 2. The Eurasian eagle-owl is a large bird of prey, 60 – 75 cm in height. The bird’s white throat patch is clearly seen on this photo. The white throat patch is larger in males than in females and is especially visible when the bird hoots. The eagle-owl’s ear tuffs, another of its “trademarks”, give the bird a slightly “devilish” appearance.