Diet of common ravens on El Hierro, Canary Islands

Abstract

The Common Raven (Carvus coraxi on El Hierro, an oceanci island in the Canary archipelago, is omnivorous. Although ravens from five regions on El Hierro showed qualitatively similar diets, there were considerable quantitative differences. Diet in wet and dry pastureland was made up principally of animals invertebrates at Jinama (frecuency of occurrence in pellets = 84.8%) and high levels of vertebrates at Bascos (60%). Spring was characterized by the consumption of vertebrates (frecuency in pellets = 48.5%), summer by invertebrates (77.1%), and autumn/winter by a diet of plant material (92.6% and 96.9%, respectively). White diets in many continental environments are often characterized by vertebrates throughout the year, ravens on El Hierro tend to be omnivorous, including many insects and wild fruits in their food.