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Laboratory studies have demonstrated that, given plenty of food, many animals can achieve a species‐specific macronutrient intake target by selecting nutritionally balanced foods or combining complementary foods. Wild‐living, broad‐scope omnivorous species often face great heterogeneity in the composition of available resources. Hence they may be precluded, either locally or seasonally, from meeting their nutritional preferences. With the aim of shedding light on the nutritional niche breadth of a wild‐living omnivore, the European badger Meles meles, we reviewed available scat‐based studies on badger diet and applied right‐angled mixture triangles to examine the relationships between macronutrient availability and composition of diets. Moreover, to assess the potential of scat analysis to investigate nutritional balancing, we analysed badger diet in two habitats of NW Italy, focusing on identifying the total weight of each food item ‘as ingested’ as accurately as possible. The average macronutrient content of the European badger's diet comprised 40–45% protein‐energy, 30–35% lipid‐energy, and 20–25% carbohydrate‐energy. Macronutrient intake was not constant throughout the year, suggesting that, in some seasons, badgers may be unable to reach their macronutrient target, and that diet balancing is achieved over longer periods. The macronutrient selection strategy of badgers suggests that their feeding habits are close to those of obligate carnivorous mammals, although badgers were found to be more tolerant towards carbohydrates than obligate carnivores. Macronutrient ratios as assessed by scat analysis matched well with those obtained by reviewing available data, confirming that meta‐analyses of diet studies can provide useful information on the macronutrient requirements of elusive wild mammals.

Italy is amongst the European countries for which data on badger Meles meles numbers and variation in population size are still too few to assess its conservation status. With the aim of estimating badger density in northern Italy, between February 2013 and March 2014, we extensively surveyed an isolated hilly area for badger setts and assessed group size by monitoring a sample of setts by two sessions of camera-trapping. The size and shape of each home range were assessed from main sett coordinates using the Dirichlet tessellation method. Then, assuming that badger home ranges tend to be delimited by hard boundaries or geographical features, the polygon shapes were successively modified by hand to draw more realistic home ranges. The overall trapping effort was 754 camera trap-days. The number of badger individuals sharing the same sett/entrances was recorded, distinguishing individuals based on the time and hole of emergence and, possibly, tail patterns. Groups consisted of two to four adult individuals, averaging 2.75 badgers/group. Camera-trapping proved to be a cost-effective and time-saving method. Depending on the method used to draw home ranges, in the study area, sett density was 0.34–0.51 sett/km2, whilst badger density was 0.93–1.4 adult individuals/km2. Both sett and badger densities were rather high with respect to most available data for continental Europe. As badger mean group size seems to be rather constant throughout both hilly and plain areas of the River Po basin, sett density may be used as an accurate estimator of badger density throughout this wide area.

Small mammals are considered good model species for assessing the global effects of habitat loss and fragmentation in agricultural landscapes. With the aim of investigating the composition and habitat preferences of the small mammal community in an intensively cultivated area, we sampled the three main “macro-habitats” (wood patches, poplar plantations and crops) available on the western plain of the River Po (North Italy). The influence of habitat variables on each species’ occurrence was assessed at three different scales of observation: “macro-habitat”, “micro-habitat” (i.e. vegetation layers at trap sites) and the landscape level (i.e. land cover in plots of 500 m radius centred on each trap line). Overall, 3344 trap-nights yielded 169 Apodemus sylvaticus, 28 Clethrionomys glareolus and two Sorex araneus. The first species was dominant in all macro-habitats, while the other two species were trapped only in residual wood patches. The thickness of the fine litter was the main micro-habitat factor affect...

The location of pine marten records in northern Italy suggests that main rivers may play the role of natural corridors favouring this species’ colonisation of cultivated lowlands. We assessed the distribution and habitat use by the pine marten on a 35 km long stretch of the River Ticino. Surveys were carried out between October 2011 and June 2012 along linear transects in a 2 × 2 km grid. Using the variation in marking intensity as an indicator of habitat use, habitat selection was assessed at two landscape levels—at transect-scale by the χ 2 test with Bonferroni’s confidence intervals for the proportion of use, and at grid-scale by multiple linear regression. By a polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism method, 91 faecal samples were assigned to the pine marten. Faeces were mainly located in wooded areas, while fields were avoided. At the grid-scale of analysis, marking intensity was positively related to the mean area of wooded patches and negatively to their mean perimeter-area ratio. This suggests that pine marten relative abundance may partially depend on the degree of fragmentation and structure of residual woods. The survey protocol allowed to assess the probability of detection. Occupancy models outlined that heterogeneity in detection probability may arise as a result of variation in marking intensity, i.e. the number of marking individuals. Our results suggest that the availability of both woodland corridors and wood patches are major factors shaping pine marten distribution in intensively cultivated plains and that non-invasive genetic surveys are a cost-effective method for future studies at a broader scale.

In the two last decades, the pine marten Martes martes has expanded in the River Po plain, causing the displacement of the stone marten M. foina from residual wooded areas. As a high degree of food niche overlap can favour exploitative competition and information about stone marten diet in Northern Italy was scarce, we analysed a sample of 181 stone marten faeces collected, prior to pine marten expansion (1997–1998), in the hay-lofts of farms located in the central plain of the River Po. Results were expressed in terms of both frequency of occurrence and mean percent volume, while seasonal variation was assessed by Compositional Analysis. The availability of small mammals was assessed by the analysis of 116 barn- and tawny owl pellets. The bulk of stone marten diet was made up of four main items in equal parts: fruit, birds, lagomorphs and small rodents. Seasonal variation occurred for fruits, which were eaten more in the ripening season, and birds, which were less preyed upon in spring/summer. I...

Summary 1. Biological invasions are considered a major threat to biodiversity. Most research has focused on the distribution, biology and impacts of non-native species on native fauna and flora. However, few studies have explored their role as prey for native predators of conservation concern. 2. To assess the incidence and intensity of predation by the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra on established non-native fish species, data were collated from the published literature. To be selected, studies had to cover at least 1 year, analyse more than 100 spraints and report the study period and percentage relative frequency (%RF) of all prey fish species. 3. To permit reliable, time-related comparisons with %RF of non-native fishes in otter diet, we also reviewed available information about both the distribution of non-native fishes and history of their introductions to European countries, revealing a decrease with longitude in the number of naturalised non-native fishes taken (ranging between 5 and 34) and their percentage in each fish assemblage. 4. Our selective criteria were met by 30 dietary studies from 44 study areas in 15 European countries during 1970–2010. The extent to which otters rely on non-native fishes was almost negligible (mean %RF = 4.8), with the number of non-native fishes preyed upon by otters decreasing with both latitude and longitude. 5. The %RF of non-native fish in the diet increased slightly with time, with otters preying significantly more on non-native fish in study areas where alterations of the fish assemblage had been highlighted in the reference papers. No relationship was found between otter diet breadth and the occurrence of non-native fishes in their diet. 6. The current role of non-native species in otter diet suggests that effective otter conservation management plans should focus on the maintenance and/or enhancement of native fish assemblages.

Pest management requires the development of robust monitoring tools. In Italy, coypu Myocastor coypus (nutria) have been controlled since the early 1990s, but the effectiveness of these measures has never been tested. With the aim of developing a reliable and volunteer-based method for the long-term monitoring of coypu abundance in agricultural landscapes, we calibrated an index based on surveys for coypu paths against density estimates obtained through a standardized mark–recapture technique. Two trapping sessions were performed in winter for each of 12 1-km long stretches of irrigation canals and watercourses using 15 baited cage traps. Trapping sessions lasted 7 days each, with a 10-day break between sessions. Population size was assessed using three methods: Peterson–Lincoln's formula, capwire estimators and accumulation curves. Active coypu paths and five habitat variables were recorded by walking on the edge of both banks. The variables were then related to population size (y) by means of multi-regressive models, testing for the predictive power of the selected models by leave-one-out cross-validation. Multi-regressive models included only the number of coypu paths with the best performances achieved by the model based on Peterson–Lincoln formula, supporting path count as an effective method to assess the abundance of the coypu in agricultural landscapes. Concurrently, to assess the field suitability of the indirect method, surveys for coypu paths were carried out on 122 randomly chosen 3-km long stretches of irrigation canals and watercourses in the central part of the River Po valley (c. 15?000?km2; N Italy). The highest (>8/100?m) mean number of paths was recorded in the central part of the study area. According to the regression models, the overall number of coypu is predicted to range between 350 000 and 1 100 000, raising doubts about the effectiveness of current control measures.

The stone marten (Martes foina) and the pine marten (M. martes) are closely related mammalian carnivores potentially subject to exploitative competition. The recent expansion of the pine marten into the intensively cultivated plain of the River Po (NW Italy), where previously only stone marten occurred, offered an interesting opportunity to analyse their relationships. We studied the distribution and diet of Martes species and trophic niche overlap between martens and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in two study areas, each with two pseudoreplicates, by analysing genotyped faeces. Our results seem to confirm the displacement of the stone marten from one study area, the pine marten being the only Martes species occurring where previously the stone marten had been reported. We found a large food niche overlap between red fox and both stone and pine martens, but with evidence of size-related differences in the consumption of some food items. We hypothesised that, due to the poor prey-base of the environment, highly altered by intensive crop cultivation, intense interspecific competition originally occurred between the red fox and stone marten. The heightening of interspecific competition caused by the entry of the pine marten in the predator guild may have caused the displacement of the stone marten, at least temporarily. The mechanism of such displacement needs to be clarified through further surveys in areas where the three species occur sympatrically.

In the second half of the twentieth century, European otter populations crashed in large areas of the Italian peninsula. As a consequence, at the end of the century the Italian otter population consisted of five isolated nuclei, the extinction of which had been foretold to occur within a few decades.

In the context of intraspecific competition, the distribution of key resources within a territory could influence the spatial patterns of scent deposition by territory owners, in order to maximise the defensibility of resources and reduce the costs of their defence. We investigated the pattern of spraint deposition by the Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) in Mediterranean rivers of southern Italy, testing the hypothesis that spraints are concentrated around deep pools bordered by riparian vegetation because these represent important patchy sources of food. Otters strongly selected pools throughout the year, marking the largest ones which probably supported the highest fish biomass. Sprainting sites at pools were also marked more consistently than sites elsewhere on watercourses. A positive correlation between the percentage of spraints next to pools (pool markings) and overall volume of the main prey in otter diet confirmed the importance of pools as sources of prey. These results are consistent with the idea ...

We assessed the diet of pine marten (Martes martes) expanding in the heavily human-altered agricultural plain of the River Po, northern Italy. Between February 2008 and November 2009, surveys were carried out twice a week during seasonal sampling sessions of three to four consecutive weeks. To distinguish the faecal samples from those of sympatric carnivores, a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method was applied. The availability of small mammals was assessed by the analysis of 59 barn owl (Tyto alba) pellets. A total of 109 pine marten faeces were analysed. Its diet consisted of fruit, rodents, lagomorphs and birds. Seasonal variation occurred for fruit, which prevailed in summer, and rodents, which were more preyed upon in autumn. In winter, the diet of the pine marten was almost totally based on vertebrates, and lagomorphs were the main source of protein in summer. Use of small mammals differed significantly from their availability, voles, particularly bank vole Myodes glareolus, being preferred to mice (Apodemus sp.) and rats (Rattus sp.). Medium-size mammals formed about 18% of pine marten diet, a value generally reported for high-latitude habitats. In agricultural areas, the pine marten proved to be an opportunistic predator, able to face the reduced availability of small mammals by preying upon medium-size prey and fruit.

The marking behaviour of the European badger (Meles meles L., 1758) in a low-density population of NW Italy was investigated by examining the distribution and pattern of use of latrines in relation to space-use by a badger social group, as assessed by radiotracking. Latrines were mostly placed close to linear features and marked the core area of the group. The winter-spring peak in latrine use suggested that marking behaviour was correlated to reproductive cycle and involved in sexual advertisement.

Research on the feeding habits of mammalian carnivores relies mainly on the analysis of stomach contents and faecal samples, but the outcomes of these two methods have only been compared in a few studies, with contrasting conclusions. In an Alpine area of NW Italy, we analysed both fox faeces collected along standardised transects, and the stomach contents of road-killed individuals. Faecal analysis involved the identification of macroscopic fragments, the identification of earthworm chaetae, and the assessment of relative volumes using Kruuk and Parish’s technique. Use of both methods indicated that the diet of the red fox included mainly fruit and mammals, but quantitative differences emerged. Garbage, birds, and cultivated fruit were overrepresented in the stomach contents, while earthworms, mammals, and wild fruit prevailed in the faecal samples. Logistic Regression Analysis suggested that the method of analysis was the main factor in determining the occurrence of food items in fox diet. Nonetheless, evidence suggests that road-killed foxes may include a disproportionately high percentage of synanthropic individuals and therefore be biased towards anthropogenic food. Results suggest that by using Kruuk and Parish’s technique, the main limitation of faecal analysis, i.e. the inaccurate estimation of the relative volume of each food item, can be overcome.

Although originally evolved as predators, several species of mammalian carnivores exhibit a great trophic diversity, ranging from hypercarnivory to a high consumption of vegetable food. Habitat characteristics influence food availability and consequently could affect the nutritional composition of the diet of generalist species. By reviewing the available literature, we tested the hypothesis that intraspecific differences in the food habits of badgers (Meles meles) living in different habitats across Europe could affect the percentage of macronutrients (i.e., protein, lipids, and carbohydrates) in their diet. Notwithstanding the different composition of the diet, the percentage of protein and lipids fed by badgers did not vary among temperate forest-pasture mosaics, Mediterranean woodlands, or scrublands and arable lands, suggesting a certain form of regulation of the diet balance. The percentage of carbohydrates was similar in the first two habitats, while it was fivefold higher in arable lands, where cereals were the main food of badgers and were consumed throughout the year. Earthworm consumption by badgers was positively related to the latitude, while the lack of any latitudinal or altitudinal pattern in protein consumption reflected the absence of a gradient in carnivory. A slight inverse latitudinal gradient in lipids consumption probably depended on the use, in southern Europe, of vegetal foods rich in lipids. We hypothesize that in agricultural landscapes dominated by crop cultivations, the decline of animal prey (i.e., earthworms, insects, and vertebrates) due to habitat loss forced badgers to increase the percentage of protein in their diet by over-eating cereals, with the consequence of a disproportionate increase in carbohydrate consumption.

False negative detections may bias the surveys for rare species and reduce the reliability of models based on the proportion of occupied patches. We assessed the detectability of the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra through the standard survey method by analysing the detection history of 28 sampling stretches surveyed monthly between March 2001 and January 2003. Each survey negative for otter spraints was considered as a false negative if the otter had been recorded in the previous and/or following month (respectively, cFN and FN). Otter marking intensity (MI) (MI=N° of spraints per kilometre) was calculated and assumed to represent an index of its relative abundance. Spraints were found in 81.7% of all surveys. Yearly MI ranged from 1.02 to 101.4 spraints per kilometre. In 2002, mean MI was significantly lower than in the previous year, while no clear seasonal trend could be outlined. The minimum number of surveys required to establish the occurrence of the otter, as estimated by a probability model, was 2.6 and was inversely related to MI. For a sub-sample of 18 sampling stretches, the relation between the frequency of both cFN and FN and five variables of potential interest for otters was tested by means of stepwise linear multiple regressions, yielding two highly significant models, which both included only MI as the explanatory variable. The frequency of both FN and cFN was correlated to MI and the resulting equations used to assess the percentage of surveys positive for otters in both years. After the correction for non-detections, otter site occupancy did not vary between the 2 years, except for one river when applying the more conservative estimate of false negatives (cFN). Multiple visits and the assessing of MI should become standard components of otter surveys. This approach has broad applicability and may be applied to assess the large-scale distribution of other rare or elusive mammalian carnivores.

Habitat segregation is considered to favour the coexistence of sympatric pine martens Martes martes and stone martens M. foina, the latter being displaced to agricultural and urbanised areas. Subsequent to the report of pine martens in cultivated areas of the western River Po plain (NW Italy), we reviewed all available information on the presence of this species in plain areas of northern Italy and, for two study areas, applied a non-invasive PCR-RFLP method for the identification of Martes species from faecal mtDNA. A total of 24 pine marten records were collected, grouped in the western part of the River Po plain. The number of records showed an exponential increase from 1988 to 2007, the percentage of woods in a 10 km2 wide circular plot surrounding the location of records being inversely correlated to its distance from the 300 m a.s.l. contour line. In the two study areas, 36 out of 119 “marten-like” faeces were assigned to the pine marten, whilst none belonged to the stone marten. In the best monitored area, the pine marten was present almost constantly. Our results suggest that the pine marten is expanding its range to include cultivated areas which were previously considered a prerogative of the more synanthropic stone marten.

In 2001 and 2002 we studied Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) fish selection in southern Italy by comparing otter diet (805 analysed spraints) with fish availability, estimated by electrofishing. The surveyed river was dominated by cyprinids, particularly by chub (Leuciscus cephalus), roach (Rutilus rubilio) and bleak (Alburnus sp.). Roach and chub were the most common prey recorded in spraints. Otters ate mainly small prey (total length < 90 mm). Chub were widely consumed according to abundance, whilst roach and bleak consumption was not proportionate to their availability. Otters selected roach both in 2001 and 2002 and responded to a decrease in roach availability (–27.3%) by increasing their frequency of consumption rather than switching to an alternative prey. Despite their high abundance, bleak seemed to be markedly avoided by otters. We hypothesized that differences in microhabitat selection may influence the susceptibility of cyprinids to otter predation. The possible effects on fish community...

Indirect methods such as faecal counts have been widely used for assessing the abundance and habitat preferences of many mammal species, although their reliability has been long debated. We tested the validity of this method for the Eurasian badger Meles meles in a low-density population in northern Italy by comparing results obtained from radio-tracking and latrine distribution. The pattern of habitat use extrapolated from each method was strikingly similar, with badgers selecting for patches of woodland and avoiding agricultural and urban areas. Latrines were mainly sited in the centre of activity of all individuals along man-made linear features. Although our data need to be validated over a wider range of social groups, evidence suggests that latrines might be used to broadly infer habitat preferences of badgers at the landscape level in low-density areas.

The effects of geographical factors, such as latitude and altitude, on climate are known to influence the food habits of predator species distributed over a broad distribution range. A sharp latitudinal gradient in the diet of the Eurasian otter ( Lutra lutra (L., 1758)), that is an increase of trophic diversity from temperate to Mediterranean Europe, has been described recently. Altitude, affecting the diversity of fish assemblages and hence prey availability for otters, could also be a key factor influencing otter diet. With the aim of testing for the presence of an altitudinal gradient in otter diet in the Mediterranean area, we assessed the composition of diet at 24 sampling reaches spread in three main river catchments of southern Italy. The analysis of 1885 spraints revealed that fish were the main prey of otters, followed by amphibians, while other food items were of lesser significance, although crustaceans could be locally important. The altitude of the sampling station was negatively correlated with fish consumption and positively correlated with otter trophic diversity; at higher altitudes, alternative prey (particularly amphibians) were included in otter diet. The reduction of fish availability with elevation plays a major role in shaping this dietary pattern. The ability of otters to exploit alternative prey, such as amphibians, could allow the colonization of small rivers sustaining a low fish biomass.

Diet composition of otters (Lutra lutra) was investigated in 2001 by spraints analysis (N=1323) on five rivers of southern Italy, with the aim of assessing the influence of fish availability, elevation and discharge on the consumption of food resources alternative to fish. Data were expressed as per cent frequency of occurrence (%FO) and per cent volume (%V). The study confirmed the great feeding adaptability of the otter that, in rivers partially interconnected and flowing on a small area, showed a strong fish eating habit in some rivers (Sinni and Mercure-Lao) and a diet mainly constituted by alternative resources in other ones (amphibians in the rivers Cogliandrino and Frido, crustaceans in the River Battendiero). Fish consumption for the five rivers was significantly correlated with fish biomass and with mean summer discharge, while it was inversely correlated with the mean altitude of the five rivers. The lack of a clear seasonality in the consumption of food sources alternative to fish together with the correlation between fish use and fish biomass for each river indicated fish availability as the main factor affecting otter relying to non-fish preys. Otter diet seemed influenced by the characteristics of river habitats (altitude, discharge and consequently fish biomass) more than by summer drought, typical of Mediterranean regions. The %FO and the %V allowed to drawn a similar picture of otter diet. Nonetheless the %V was useful for better illustrating diet variation among the different rivers and we argue that it could be useful in habitats where the otter feeds on preys with different proportions of indigestible remains.

In an Alpine area, scat analysis and marking activity were used to assess the feeding habits, habitat preference and the degree of overlap of trophic niche and habitat use in sympatric carnivores: the red fox (n = 133 faecal samples), the badger (n = 177), the pine and the stone marten (Martes sp., n = 382). Fruits were the main trophic resource for all species. The diet of martens differed from those of the red fox and badger by means of a higher consumption of garbage and non‐Rosaceae fruits. The red fox preyed on more lagomorphs and roe deer and relied almost exclusively on two fruit species, rose‐hips and whitebeam berries. Badgers ate few invertebrates, with cultivated fruits and pine seeds forming the bulk of their diet. On the whole, trophic niche overlap was kept low by the exploitation of different species of berries and mammals and, secondly, by seasonal differences in the use of same items by the three carnivores. Badger trophic niche overlapped to a wider extent than those of the other two pre...

1 Changes in otter Lutra lutra distribution in Italy were examined by analysing geographical, historical and survey data. 2 As in other European countries, otters declined sharply in Italy during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Between 1985 and 2004 the species became extinct, except for some reintroductions, in northern and most of central Italy while the species appears to have substantially recovered in its southern range. This recovery of the otter population is apparently not due to increased research effort, but reflects a real expansion of range. 3 Differences in the degree of range reduction during the second half of the 20th century and in the availability of suitable habitats are probably the major factors that have determined the two opposite trends shown by otter populations in the last 20 years. 4 Better knowledge of otter status and distribution is needed for effective conservation management. We suggest that a national survey of the Italian otter population that employs genetic approaches should represent a first step of the national action plan for otter conservation.

The diet composition of otters in the upper catchment of the River Agri (southern Italy) was investigated by spraint analysis (N = 555) between May 2001 and January 2003. Once a season, spraints were collected along four riverine stretches, two with swift-waters and two with slow-waters. Overall, fish represented the dominant food (percent mean volume, Vm% = 57.30), followed by amphibians (Vm% = 18.90) and crayfish (Vm% = 15.60). The food composition of otters feeding along swift-water sections differed significantly from that recorded along slow-water sections. The trophic niche was larger for slow-water sections, because of the presence of more fish species. In both sampled habitats (swift- and slow-waters) the importance of fish decreased in winter when flooding increasing water speeds and turbidity and thus reduced the hunting efficiency of the otters. Hibernating amphibians represented a primary alternative resource. As expected, insects and reptiles were eaten more frequently in summer, while birds ...

Population size of European otters (Lutra lutra) was estimated in Pollino National Park (southern Italy) by genetic typing of fresh feces collected in the field. Of 187 fecal samples gathered, 185 (98.9%) yielded otter DNA, 77 (41.2%) were successfully typed, and 23 different genotypes were identified. A nonlinear regression between the number of typed spraints and the cumulative number of identified genotypes was repeated after randomization of the sample until it gave an estimated otter population of 34‐37 animals (0.18‐0.20 otters/km of watercourse). The applied method represents a valuable conservation tool, combining the advantages of an indirect survey with the accuracy of an exhaustive census.

The food habits of both weasels and stoats (Mustela nivalis and M. erminea) and the occurrence of fruit in their diet were studied by scat analysis in the Gran Paradiso National Park (western Italian Alps). Being impossible to distinguish between stoats and weasels scats, they were grouped together as the genus Mustela. Despite the high consumption of small rodents, which represented the main food item in the diet of small mustelids (41.5% in mean volume), wild fruits (mainly Rosaceae and Ericaceae) were also relatively common (23.3% in mean volume). Fruits were exploited throughout the year, with an intensive use in seasons of high availability. Their consumption did not significantly differ between habitat types, despite a significant decrease of fruit availability from deciduous mixed forest to alpine prairie. This evidence suggests that this trophic behaviour could represent a consolidated feeding strategy of both weasels and stoats, which seem to adopt an opportunistic behaviour as shown by larger size mustelids. We argue that fruits, owing to their good availability and high profitability, could play an important role in the diet of small mustelids in alpine habitats, slackening their well-documented dependence on rodents.

Between 2001 and 2004, with the aim of restoring the natural biodiversity of a protected area, the Eurasian badger (Meles meles) was reintroduced into the Montevecchia and Curone Valley Regional Park (northern Italy), where it had been extirpated by human persecution. The project was combined with the reduction of badger damage on railway tracks allowing at least a pair of badgers per year and to move animals whose translocation would have been anyhow imposed by precautionary measures. Four badger family groups (a total of 12 animals) were trapped and moved to an acclimatisation enclosure located in the middle of the release area. Post‐release monitoring was carried out by both radio‐tracking and indirect methods. The average group range size (1.58 km2) was similar to reports from favourable districts in Britain, supporting the contention that badgers can thrive in this area. Radio‐tracked badgers selected woods, while urban areas and cultivated field were avoided. Although results indicate that the badge...

The diet and feeding relationships of two cyprinids, the Italian orange‐fin roach Rutilus rubilio and the chub Leuciscus cephalus, were studied in southern Italy by the analysis of 189 gut contents. Fish species were sampled in conditions of sympatry/hybridisation in the River Sinni, and allopatry in the River Mercure‐Lao (roach) and in the River Raganello (chub). The diet of both fish species included both plant material and invertebrates. The broad spectrum of prey eaten showed that both fish species looked for invertebrates along the whole water column and particularly on the surface. For the River Sinni a high dietary overlap was found. The high contribution of plant material in the overall diet of roach in the presence of other cyprinids species, compared with the almost equal importance of plant material and animal food in allopatry, suggested that competition could be the cause of roach dietary shift towards suboptimal food sources. For the river Raganello, the high proportion of vegetation in the ...

Between 2001 and 2004, 229 foxes, 36 stone martens and 48 badgers from the western Italian Alps were examined for sarcoptic mange and for gastrointestinal helminths to investigate their prevalence and geographical distribution and to point out the existence of potential interactions among them. Sarcoptic mange was observed in 25.3±2.8% SE of foxes and in 5.6±3.8% SE of stone martens, while no badger was found infected. Helminths belonged to Cestoidea Cyclophillidea (3.0±1.1% SE), Nematoda Trichurida (Capillaria aerophila and Trichuris vulpis: 6.5±1.6% SE; Trichinella britovi: 3.0±1.1% SE), Ascaridida (12.2±2.2% SE) and Strongylida (6.9±1.7% SE). Sarcoptic mange infection and the presence of helminths proved to be associated, with mangy foxes showing significantly higher prevalence of both cestode and nematode (particularly Ascaridida) worms. Moreover, considering three clusters of parasites (S. scabiei, nematodes and cestodes), more foxes than expected hosted simultaneously 2 and 3 taxa. These evidences suggest the existence of some kind of interaction, whose modalities and implications are discussed in this paper.

From June 2000 to December 2003 a low-density badger (Meles meles) population was studied by radiotelemetry in an area of agricultural lowland in northern Italy. Four badgers, one male (M1) and three females (F1, F2, F3) were caught but only three of these were radio-tracked for 8–12 months because the transmitter attached to F3 failed. Tracked animals showed considerable home range overlap, with an overall mean size of 3.83 km2 (M1 = 3.22 km2, F1 = 2.39 km2, F2 = 5.87 km2, Minimum Convex Polygon of 100% of the locations). In the study area 10 setts (mean number of entrances = 2.1) were detected. Each radio-collared badger used 2–3 setts, occupying one sett from 1 to 8 months (mean = 3.7 months, SD = 3.06) before moving to another one. All badgers shared, although in different periods, one main sett located in the inner part of their ranges. Considering this evidence and additional data about badger translocation from neighbouring areas, the social structure badgers in northern Italy is discussed.

Food habits of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) were studied in the Aosta Valley region (NW Italian Alps) and were related to the prevalence of Trichinella infection in the red fox itself and in two Mustelid species (the stone marten (Martes foina) and the badger (Meles meles)). The search of Trichinella by the automatic digestion of muscles samples led us to determine a prevalence of 3.5+/-1.2% in red foxes, 7.9+/-4.3% in stone martens and 1.9+/-1.8% in badgers, with no significant differences among the species. All larvae were identified as Trichinella britovi. The fox diet was assessed through the analysis of both faeces (n=180) and the stomach contents of road-killed animals (n=109). Our results confirmed the opportunistic feeding behaviour of the red fox, which is able to use various trophic resources, both of animal and vegetal origin: e.g. wild and cultivated fruits (F%=47.1; V%=67.3), rodents (F%=22.8; V%=64.8) and carrion (F%=15.6; V%=78.6) formed the bulk of the fox's diet. The frequency of occurrence of potential events of cannibalism was 1.0%, even if the complete absence of undigested remains, other than hairs, suggested the possibility of confusing cannibalism with coat-cleaning. We suggest that intra-specific necrophagy could not represent the unique way of transmission of the nematode in natural conditions.

From March 2001 to December 2002, 32 stretches (sampling stations, mean length 673 m) distributed on 17 watercourses of the Pollino National Park (southern Italy) and the surrounding area were searched monthly for otter Lutra lutra signs, mainly spraints. All the watercourses were positive for otter with a mean percentage of 82.2%, indicating a stable presence of otters, mainly on Sinni and Mercure-Lao catchments (central-northern part of the park). Mean sprainting activity was 12.8 sprainting sites/km and 31.7 spraints/km, and showed a seasonal variation only in 2001 with two peaks, in May-June and in October. Sprainting activity was positively correlated with the percentage of positive stretches on watercourses, confirming that spraint density can represent an indicator of the population size of otters. A preliminary evaluation of the relationship between fish availability and otter marking intensity was performed along 39 km of the River Sinni on one day. A positive correlation was found between sprain...

Food availability has been suggested to be the main factor shaping the altitudinal limits of species distributions. We analyzed the badger (Meles meles) diet in the western Italian Alps and, particularly, at the altitudinal limit of its range, with the main aim of highlighting any reduction in earthworm availability with altitude which could act as a limiting factor for badgers. Earthworms were by far the main food resource of badgers, followed by fruit. The two-month importance of these two items in badger diet was inversely correlated. Earthworm consumption was negatively correlated with air temperature. The seasonal pattern of earthworm use by badgers seemed to be influenced by the reproduction and estivation times of some epigeic species, rather than by climatic conditions per se. The eating of fruit by badgers was at least in part independent from the availability of earthworms. The badgers' efficacy in preying upon earthworms also in adverse conditions and their reliance on a wide variety of food resources suggest that worm availability might play a minor role in shaping the altitudinal limit of the species on the Alps.