GOSHAWK DIET IN A MEDITERRANEAN AREA OF NORTHEASTERN SPAIN

The diet of the goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) is described throughout t he year in La Segarra, a Mediterranean area of Catalonia (NE Spain) wh ere one of the densest goshawk populations recorded in Europe was foun d. Red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa), European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), wood pigeon (Columba palumbus), jay (Garrulus glandarius) , magpie (Pica pica), thrushes (Turdus spp.) and red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) formed the bulk of the goshawk diet. Nestling and fledgling birds were very important during the breeding period, but the rabbit was the main source of biomass for most of the year, especially in win ter. In the breeding season, pairs in heavily forested areas captured more squirrels and less rabbits than those in lightly forested areas. Changes in the diet involving a decrease in rabbit consumption and an increase in the proportion of red-legged partridge were detected follo wing a rabbit population crash caused by the viral haemorrhagic diseas e.