A Black Rat (Rattus rattus) and 800 Tawny Owls (Asio otus) in Serbia
The undersigned has examined 20 Tawny Owl pellets collected by Hans Kristian Ravn on 12.12. 2025 near the village of Kikinda, located in the northern part of Serbia. Here, up to 800 wintering Tawny Owls can be observed. They can be seen everywhere in the city, and the locals are proud of this unique natural experience. Many tourists visit Kikinda every year to experience this special sight. This is probably the world's largest concentration of Tawny Owls.
Results
54 prey animals were recorded, distributed as follows: Harvest mouse (Micromys minutus) 6, Yellow-necked mouse (Apodemus flavicollis) 1 possibly, Yellow-necked/Wood mouse (Apodemus flavicollis/sylvaticus) 28, Black rat 1, House mouse (Mus musculus) 2, Bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus) 1 and Southern field mouse (Microtus arvalis) 15.
Discussion
All mammals found are known from the northern part of Serbia (Jones-Mitchell et al 1999). The two-house mice are probably the form (Mus musculus), which is very common in the species' range in Europe. In Denmark, where it is called Lys husmus, it is in marked decline (Laursen 2005, 2024). Own data after 2005 show the same population development. See also Laursen (2024. The found Yellow-necked/Wood/ mouse were all small, which suggests Wood mice. Southern field mice are very common in many European countries (Jones-Mitchell et al 1999).
Literature
Jones-Mitchell A.J., Amori G., Bogdanowicz W., Krystufek B., Reijnders, P.J.H., Spitzenberger E., Stubbe M., Thissen J.B. M., Vohralik V., & J. Zima 1999: The Atlas of European Mammals. – T & A D Poyser, Natural History.
Laursen J.T. 2005: Er husmusen (Mus musculus) i stærk tilbagegang? - Bestandsudvikling i Danmark 1896-2004 på grundlag af forekomst i uglegylp. - Flora og Fauna 111(2): 39-48.
Laursen J.T. 2024. Status, bestandsudvikling og fødevalg for Danmarks ynglende ugler ca. 1960-2021. DOFT 118:65-79.
(Hans Kristian Ravn was told that there are only 10 Great bustard in Serbia and they live near Kikinda. They saw 8 birds).
Fotos: Hans Kristian Ravn. See also Facebook)
