MIGRATORY PATHWAYS, STOPOVER LOCATIONS AND WINTERING GROUNDS OF SOUTHERN SPANISH EURASIAN SCOPS OWLS OTUS SCOPS

Little is known about the migration and wintering distribution of Eurasian Scops Owls Otus scops. we deployed GPS-loggers on breeding Scops Owls from a southern Spanish population to analyse migratory routes and migration timing of this trans-Saharan migrant. tag deployment had no short- or long-term effects on Scops Owls. Individuals followed rapid autumn and spring migrations along the coasts of Morocco and western Sahara and the western edge of the Sahara desert. South Spanish breeding Scops Owls wintered across a large area of west Africa; within Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Gambia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, where they stayed apart from one another for 4-5 months. wintering sites were primarily in tree-covered habitats suggesting that these are important for Scops Owl conservation year-round.