Habitat use and population status of the Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina on the north-wester periphery of the distribution range

Dissertation nominated to set important environmental factors for habitat use and population status of the internationally protected bird of prey - Lesser Spotted Eagle (Aquila pomarina) in the north western periphery of the distribution range. Mostly analyzed aspect - species habitat use and their spatio-temporal variation, presented and summarized data on most important attributes of the population: productivity and change in abundance. Also presented data on hybridization with the another eagle species - Greater Spotted Eagle (Aquila clanga). Analysis of the habitat use demonstrated, that birds habitat preferences and avoidances depend on both environmental conditions and different birds reaction to the similar environmental conditions. This demonstrate that locally based bird*habitat model could be misleading when applying to the broader geographical context. In the work was also found that habitat use of the Lesser Spotted Eagle changed within several decades, implicating that old data usage for nature conservation decisions concerning rare species could be ineffective. Population of the Lesser Spotted Eagle decreased contrary to estimated previously, however, productivity is close to the typical value for species in other part of the distribution range. The pairs of eagles differ in productivity, thought this was not related with the habitat characteristics. Results show that Lesser Spotted Eagle and Greater Spotted Eagle form mixed pairs and rise hybrid nestlings