Behavioural adaptations of the buzzard for foraging along the expressways

The expansion of human activities in their many forms is increasing the frequency, diversity and scale of human-wildlife interactions. One such form, a negative one, is the expansion of road infrastructure, causing roadkill and traffic-related noise as well as habitat loss and fragmentation. Even so, habitats around road infrastructure are attractive foraging areas that attract certain bird species. We assessed the impact of road infrastructure on the foraging strategies of the Common Buzzard Buteo buteo. These birds were observed in two habitat types – along an expressway and in an open agricultural landscape – during two winter seasons. In farmland, the buzzards spent most of their time in trees, but on the roads, they spent more time on medium-height hunting sites. Buzzards changed their hunting sites in accordance with the mean wind speed and snow cover; also, they more often changed their sites along the expressway than in farmland. The number of attacks on prey was mediated by the number of hunting site changes and snow cover but not by the habitat types. These results illustrate the high plasticity of the buzzards' behaviour, which can adapt their hunting strategies to both foraging location (expressway vs. farmland) and weather conditions. Roadsides along expressways are indeed attractive foraging areas for this diurnal raptor, so reducing the risk of vehicle collisions with this and other birds of prey may require targeted planning efforts.人类各类活动的扩张正提升人兽交互的频率、多样性与规模。其中一类负面影响是道路基础设施的扩张，它会引发道路致死事件、交通噪音，同时造成栖息地丧失与破碎化。即便如此，道路周边的栖息地仍会成为颇具吸引力的觅食区域，吸引特定鸟类聚集。我们评估了道路基础设施对普通鵟（Common Buzzard Buteo buteo）觅食策略的影响。本研究于两个冬季期间，在两种生境类型中对该鸟类开展观测——分别为高速公路沿线与开阔农田景观区域。在农田生境中，普通鵟多数时间栖息于树木之上；而在道路沿线时，它们则更多停留于中等高度的捕猎位点。普通鵟会根据平均风速与积雪覆盖情况调整捕猎位点，且相较于农田区域，它们在高速公路沿线的位点更换频率更高。猎物攻击次数的变化由捕猎位点更换次数与积雪覆盖情况介导，而非生境类型。上述研究结果彰显了普通鵟行为的高度可塑性：它们能够根据觅食区位（高速公路与农田）与天气条件灵活调整捕猎策略。高速公路沿线的路边区域确实是这种昼行性猛禽极具吸引力的觅食区域，因此降低该物种与其他猛禽遭遇车辆碰撞的风险，或需开展针对性的规划工作。