中国鸮形目鸟类分类现状

鸮形目Strigiformes鸟类是一类适应夜行性生活的猛禽,主要于夜间活动,体色暗而斑驳,难于直接观察。我国关于鸮类分类的研究报道并不多见,长期沿用的一些种属名和目前国际上通用的相比已显陈旧。通过参阅相关文献,对我国现生鸮形目鸟类的分类系统进行了整理,计有2科12属33种。并指出需要迫切关注的物种和研究内容,其中毛脚渔鸮Bubo blakistoni为濒危种,四川林鸮Strixdavidi为易危种且是我国特有种,这两种鸮类国内相关报道罕见,亟待开展进一步研究工作以加强对这两个物种的保护管理。鬼鸮甘肃亚种Aegolius funereus beickianus的分类地位仍存在争议。鸮类的声学研究在我国几乎一片空白,鸮类的繁殖生物学研究也需要引起我国鸟类学工作者的足够重视。     

Genetic similarity in long-eared owl communal winter roosts: a DNA fingerprinting study

The long-eared owl is a nocturnal predator which winters communally and breeds in the same areas in loose colonies during the spring. We tested the hypothesis that roosts, particularly stable roosts, are formed by close relatives, a condition under which group-related behaviours such as information sharing or helping at nest are more likely to be developed. DNA fingerprinting analysis was used to examine genetic similarity within and between two long-eared owl populations, one wintering in a traditional roost and the other in an unstable roost, and both breeding around their roosting sites. Although genetic similarity within roosts was higher than that between roosts, the difference was not significant. Observed genetic similarity within roosts was smaller than that reported in the bird species whose roosts work as information centres. On the other hand, the presence of some closely related individuals in the roost and behavioural observations suggest that co-operation between kin might have occurred, at least in one of the two study sites.     

Site-Specific Assessments of Environmental Risk and Natural Resource Damage Based on Great Horned Owls

Selection of receptors is a key element of ecological risk and natural resource damage assessments. The great horned owl (Bubo virginianus; GHO) has advantages as a tertiary terrestrial receptor and integrated measure of exposure to chemical residues in a multiple-lines-of-evidence approach that includes elucidation of contaminant exposure by measured (tissue-based) and predicted (dietary) methodologies, and population-level measures of potential adverse effects (i.e., productivity, abundance). Methods described herein exploited attributes of GHO behavior, including its propensity to nest in artificial nesting platforms. This approach allowed better control of experimental conditions, minimized uncertainty in assessment endpoints, and maximized data utility for testing hypotheses. During 5 years, 54 GHO nests (14 active territories) along 38 km of river floodplain were monitored at the Kalamazoo River Superfund Site (Kalamazoo/Allegan Counties, Michigan). Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and otho-, para-substituted isomers of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), including DDD/DDE (Σ DDTs), were measured in 24 eggs and 16 samples of nestling blood plasma. Dietary PCB exposure was predicted by determining site-specific dietary composition and sampling and quantifying PCB concentrations in 171 prey items collected within active GHO territories. The convergence of exposure and effects assessments improved confidence in resulting predictions of minimal risk to resident GHO populations (Hazard Quotients ≤1.5). Repeated GHO use of nesting platforms minimized temporal and spatial variability.     

Isolation and characterization of 21 microsatellite markers in the barn owl (Tyto alba)

We report 21 new polymorphic microsatellite markers in the European barn owl (Tyto alba). The polymorphism of the reported markers was evaluated in a population situated in western Switzerland and in another from Tenerife, Canary Islands. The number of alleles per locus varies between two and 31, and expected heterozygosity per population ranges from 0.16 to 0.95. All loci are in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and no linkage disequilibrium was detected. Two loci exhibit a null allele in the Tenerife population.