Observation of a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium brasilianum) Feeding Upon a Common Green Iguana (Iguana iguana) in Veracruz, Mexico

Jorge A. Contreras-Lozano; Oscar Ballesteros-Medrano

doi:10.1894/0038-4909.63.81

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1 March 2018 Observation of a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium brasilianum) Feeding Upon a Common Green Iguana (Iguana iguana) in Veracruz, Mexico

Jorge A. Contreras-Lozano, Oscar Ballesteros-Medrano

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The Southwestern Naturalist, 63(1):81-83 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909.63.81

Abstract

In Mexico, the ferruginous pygmy-owl (Glaucidium brasilianum) is widely distributed and is considered a generalist predator consuming insects, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. In this note we report the first evidence of a ferruginous pygmy-owl consuming an entire iguana (Iguana iguana) in the state of Veracruz, Mexico, on 7 July 2012 near Rio Jamapa, and include feeding behavior. Although the ferruginous pygmy-owl has been known to feed on reptiles, this is the first documented case of this owl feeding on this species of lizard. This event permits us to increase the knowledge about the diet of this predator and provides the way in which the pygmy-owl consumes prey items.

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Jorge A. Contreras-Lozano and Oscar Ballesteros-Medrano "Observation of a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium brasilianum) Feeding Upon a Common Green Iguana (Iguana iguana) in Veracruz, Mexico," The Southwestern Naturalist 63(1), 81-83, (1 March 2018). https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909.63.81

Received: 18 March 2016; Accepted: 2 July 2018; Published: 1 March 2018

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