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December 18 2024
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Eleonora’s Falcons (Falco eleonorae) hunting for roller dung beetles (Scarabaeus sp.)
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Coming from an occasional observation in Sardinia, this has been an unusual attempt to identify an insect taxon in images of falcon predatory actions in the air and has resulted in the first report of Scarabaeus sp. in the diet of Falco eleonorae. Provided this is confirmed as a recurrent food choice, Eleonora’s Falcons and elsewhere declining dung beetles would share enough distribution and phenology to form a predator-prey relationship worthy of further investigation.
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