![]() Certain raptors, such as owls, hawks, and vultures often utilize cave entrances as roosts and accumulate bones. Here we refer to raptors, or birds of prey, in the informal sense, meaning those birds that base their diet on scavenging or hunting other vertebrates. Human communities, especially those that rely on subsistence hunting, are also at risk for increased dietary Pb exposure from consumption of game animals killed with Pb-based ammunition whose flesh consequently contains numerous small fragments of metallic Pb. ![]() Other large scavengers such as bald eagles and vultures that feed on large carrion killed using Pb ammunition are similarly at risk for this sort of Pb exposure and poisoning. Although the overall incidence of such poisonings is low for most raptor species, accounting for about 3–6% of total reported mortality, Pb poisoning from ingestion of Pb bullet fragments embedded in carcasses of hunter-killed animals is a major cause of mortality for California condors ( Gymnogyps californianus) and has been an important factor limiting the successful reintroduction of this endangered species. A similar phenomenon has also been documented in upland habitats where various eagle, hawk, and owl species that feed on terrestrial prey are documented to have died of Pb poisoning, probably from incidental ingestion of Pb shot lodged in carcasses of the upland game birds and mammals that they feed upon. Secondary Pb poisoning of bald eagles ( Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that scavenge hunter-shot ducks was a major consideration leading to a national prohibition on the use of Pb shot for waterfowl hunting in the US. This source of exposure is responsible for virtually all cases of Pb poisoning in adult raptorial birds. Schmitt, in Encyclopedia of Ecology, 2008 Secondary Pb shot poisoningīirds of prey suffer Pb poisoning when they ingest Pb shotgun pellets or bullet fragments embedded in the flesh of dead or wounded animals shot with Pb-based ammunition. We also examine management and conservation actions undertaken as a result of long-term studies on the ecology of the species, as well as gaps and future research needs with the aim of preserving Chaco eagle populations in natural environments.Ī.M. Here we examine and review information on the biology of Chaco Eagle, highlighting the most important threats to this species in the arid and semiarid landscapes of Argentina. In the Neotropical realm, which extends from tropical Mexico to South America, one of the rarest, most elusive and severely threatened birds of prey is the Chaco Eagle ( Buteogallus coronatus). ![]() As a result, a great number of the recognized raptor species are currently listed as threatened. ![]() ![]() All these features make birds of prey especially susceptible to the variety of human pressures on their populations and habitats. Besides the role they play as top predators on food webs, raptors are also among the most susceptible species to the negative effects of habitat transformations and human perturbations, in part due to their large habitat requirements, low population densities, and turnover rates. Beatriz Martínez-Miranzo, in Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences, 2021 Abstractĭiurnal birds of prey are the predominant apex avian predators for most terrestrial ecosystems. ![]()
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