Population increase and synurbization of the yellow-necked mouseApodemus flavicollisin some wooded areas of Warsaw agglomeration, Poland, in the years 1983-2018

Studies on the contribution of the yellow-necked mouseApodemus flavicollisand of other vertebrates to the diet of the tawny owlStrix alucowere carried out in Warsaw (central Poland) in the years 1983-2018. The frequency of the yellow-necked mouse in owl pellets increased at the break of the 20th and 21st centuries, particularly in some woodlands in the peri-urban area of the agglomeration. In the second half of the first decade of the twenty-first century, this mouse species colonised a park in the city centre. The yellow-necked mouse may become an important competitor for the synurbic population of the striped field mouseApodemus agrarius.

Automated summary

Research conducted in Warsaw, Poland, between 1983 and 2018 found that the yellow-necked mouse, Apodemus flavicollis, has started to feature more prominently in the diet of tawny owl, Strix aluco, particularly in peri-urban woodlands. By the second half of the first decade of the 21st century, the yellow-necked mouse had even colonized a park in the city center, potentially becoming a competitor for the synurbic population of the striped field mouse, Apodemus agrarius.