Juvenile Tyto alba furcata (Barn Owl) and Remains of Ascalapha odorata (Black Witch Moth) Found in Natural Limestone Cavity in Hellshire Hills, Jamaica

Seth E. Inman; C. Justin Proctor; John M. Zeiger

Juvenile Tyto alba furcata (Barn Owl) and Remains of Ascalapha odorata (Black Witch Moth) Found in Natural Limestone Cavity in Hellshire Hills, Jamaica

Seth E. Inman^1,*, C. Justin Proctor², and John M. Zeiger¹

¹Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA. ²Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA. *Corresponding author.

Caribbean Naturalist, No. 37 (2017)

Abstract
While conducting avian surveys throughout the Caribbean island of Jamaica, the authors discovered a natural limestone cavity in the Hellshire Hills containing a juvenile Tyto alba furcata (Barn Owl) as well as over a hundred wing fragments of Ascalapha odorata (Black Witch Moth). To date, there are no known records of such abundant lepidopteran prey remains associated with Barn Owl in the scientific literature. Herein we discuss the significance of these novel findings in the greater context of Barn Owl life history, address the paucity of research on the Barn Owl in Jamaica, and the implications of studies that have drawn conclusions on the diet of the Barn Owl solely from the analysis of pellet remains. We also include a preliminary literature review of insectivory and pellet analyses among owls.

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