[Abstract] We studied the rapid decline in the number of breeding pairs (geometric growth rate λ = 0.86; 14 % annual decrease) of a semi–colonial ground–nesting bird of prey, the Montagu's harrier (Circus pygargus), after ...

[Abstract] The supply of sticks to cliff nests by many European raptors has been explained only as a functional means of decreasing ectoparasite loads in nests and for signalling nest occupancy. We provide here a historical ...

[Abstract] Intense human persecution of wildlife in the past selected for shy individuals that survived in suboptimal refuge habitats. It appears that this long-term conflict is coming to an end in southern Europe, where ...

[Abstract] The depopulation of rural areas by humans (or rural exodus) in southern Europe, and the associated abandonment of cropland, had marked ecological consequences on wildlife, which became evident approximately ...

[Abstract] The increasing urbanization of the landscape is a major component of global change worldwide. However, it is puzzling that wildlife is selecting anthropogenic habitats despite the availability of apparently ...