Context Urbanization and artificial light at night (ALAN) are major drivers of local biodiversity losses causing community alterations, disruption of predator-prey interactions, and ultimately, promotion of cascading effects. However, some species can colonize urban environments. Objectives We explore the role of ALAN as a driver of the colonization of urban environments by a nocturnal avian predator, the burrowing owl Athene cunicularia . Methods We studied in a suburban locality in La Pampa, Argentina: (1) prey availability with pitfall traps under streetlights and control sites; (2) diet by analyzing pellets; (3) space use by deploying GPS data-loggers to breeding owls; (4) nesting habitat selection by comparing environmental variables at nest and random locations; and (5) productivity by correlating environmental variables with the number of fledglings. Results First, streetlights altered the invertebrate availability, attracting them to illuminated areas. Second, the owl diet was more similar to the invertebrate taxa trapped at pitfall traps under streetlights than that in control traps. Third, owl space use was determined by streetlights. Owls spent more time around light sources, particularly during the nighttime. Fourth, the most important habitat feature influencing the nesting habitat selection was the distance to streetlight. Owls selected areas close to streetlights for nesting. Finally, productivity was not explained by any of our habitat variables. Conclusions We demonstrate that ALAN alters the availability of invertebrates and plays a role in the diet, space use, and occupation of urban burrowing owls. Streetlights increase foraging efficiency for owls due to the clumping of prey attracted to lights. This predator-prey relationship might be only supported in suburban environments where low urbanization levels let burrowing owls nest in bare ground areas, and invertebrates are attracted to ALAN from surrounding wilder areas.

中文翻译：

---

夜间人造光是鸟类捕食者城市殖民化的驱动因素

背景城市化和夜间人造光 (ALAN) 是当地生物多样性丧失的主要驱动因素，导致社区改变、捕食者-猎物相互作用中断，并最终促进级联效应。然而，一些物种可以在城市环境中定居。目标 我们探索了 ALAN 作为夜间鸟类捕食者、穴居猫头鹰 Athene cunicularia 对城市环境进行殖民化的驱动因素。方法 我们在阿根廷拉潘帕 (La Pampa) 的郊区进行了研究： (1) 在路灯和控制点下设置陷阱的猎物可用性；(2) 通过分析颗粒饮食；(3) 通过部署 GPS 数据记录器来饲养猫头鹰的空间利用；(4) 通过比较筑巢和随机位置的环境变量来选择筑巢栖息地；(5) 通过将环境变量与雏鸟数量相关联来提高生产力。结果 首先，路灯改变了无脊椎动物的可用性，将它们吸引到照明区域。其次，与控制陷阱相比，猫头鹰饮食更类似于被困在路灯下陷阱陷阱中的无脊椎动物类群。第三，猫头鹰空间的使用是由路灯决定的。猫头鹰在光源周围花费更多时间，尤其是在夜间。第四，影响筑巢栖息地选择的最重要栖息地特征是与路灯的距离。猫头鹰选择靠近路灯的区域筑巢。最后，我们的任何栖息地变量都不能解释生产力。结论 我们证明 ALAN 改变了无脊椎动物的可用性，并在饮食、空间利用、和占领城市穴居猫头鹰。由于被灯光吸引的猎物聚集在一起，路灯提高了猫头鹰的觅食效率。这种捕食者-猎物关系可能只在郊区环境中得到支持，在这些环境中，低城市化水平让穴居猫头鹰在裸露的地面区域筑巢，而无脊椎动物从周围的荒野地区被吸引到 ALAN。