Home range size, habitat use, activity patterns and hunting behaviour of urban-breeding Northern Goshawks Accipiter gentilis

The Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis typically prefers woodland habitat for nesting and hunting. In recent decades, however, the species has started colonising urban environments across Europe. Here I present the first study on the ranging behaviour of urban-breeding Goshawks. Each year from 1997 to 1999, I tracked a different adult male during the breeding season in the city of Hamburg, Germany (858 hours of total tracking time; n = 5364 radio-fixes). All corresponding pairs raised young in the year of data collection (3, 3 and 4 juveniles). Average home range size was 863 ha (100% Minimum Convex Polygons). Males spent 88% of daylight hours in patches of urban green space (mainly parks) and made short but regular hunting excursions into the matrix of built-up habitat. Built-up habitat was used less frequently than expected from its percentage availability

Rutz C., ARDEA 94 (2): 185-202.