Food habits of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) in a steppe area of Tunisia

The diet of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) is well known in different habitats but a lack of data persists for arid and subarid environments. We provide preliminary information on food selection of barn owls in Tunisia by the analysis of the composition of pellets. The diet consists largely of rodents and the three-toed Jerboa (Jaculus jaculus) that accounted for more than 50% of total prey biomass. Results suggest that barn owls show a nonrandom tendency toward rodent species especially small and young individuals.