Owls are predators that perform important ecological functions. There are several threats to owl conservation such as the bioaccumulation of chemicals through environmental contamination. The high probability of bioaccumulation in these animals is related to their role as predators and high trophic positions. The objective of this study was to quantify four elements (cadmium, chromium, nickel, and lead) as the biomarkers of environmental exposure in owls. To this end, we analyzed pellets and feathers of different owl species. These matrices were contaminated with all four elements, with chromium most commonly detected. Chromium and nickel were found in the pellets in all 10 months of the study, and May was the month with the highest concentrations of all the elements. Tyto furcata appears to bioaccumulate more elements in its feathers than Megascops spp. and Athene cunicularia. Our findings showed bioaccumulation of these four elements in owls and their environment.

猫头鹰是捕食者，具有重要的生态功能。猫头鹰的保护面临多种威胁，例如由于环境污染导致化学物质的生物蓄积。这些动物体内高生物积累的可能性与其作为捕食者和高营养位置的作用有关。这项研究的目的是量化四种元素（镉，铬，镍和铅）作为猫头鹰环境暴露的生物标记。为此，我们分析了不同猫头鹰种类的颗粒和羽毛。这些基质均被所有四种元素污染，最常检测到铬。在研究的所有10个月中，颗粒中都发现了铬和镍，而5月份是所有元素中含量最高的月份。呋喃菌与Megascops spp相比，其羽毛中的生物积累似乎更多。和雅典娜cunicularia。我们的研究结果表明，猫头鹰及其环境中这四种元素的生物蓄积性。