Hoopoes (Upupa epops) preying on Pine Processionary Moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa) pupae, with a note on kleptoparasitism by Woodchat Shrikes (Lanius senator)

• Autores: Constantí Stefanescu Bonet
• Localización: Butlletí del Grup Català d'Anellament, ISSN 1130-2070, Vol. 14, Nº. 1, 1997, págs. 51-54
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Some insectivorous birds are important natural predators of the Pine Processionary Moth, one of the most serious forest pests in southern Europe. Although predation occurs mainly on eggs and caterpillars, sometimes Hoopoes Upupa epops also feed on pupae. Here I report severa1 observations of such predation for the first time in Spain, as well as the opportunistic behaviour shown by two Woodchat Shrikes Lanius senator that also fed on the pupae previously extracted from the ground by the Hoopoes.