Abstract: In this study, we present the results of analyses of tawny owl (Strix aluco) pellets collected from three locations in the East Slovak Hills. The owls used daytime shelters in buildings (a stable attic and abandoned wine cellars) for varying periods between 2013 and 2024. In total, we identified 1,491 prey items in the food remains, including 21 species of mammals (Mammalia, 49.9%), 34 species of birds (Aves, 7.7%), and 2 species of amphibians (Amphibia, 1.0%). An exceptionally high proportion of the diet consisted of invertebrates (Evertebrata, 46.2%), particularly orthopterans (Orthoptera, 36.5%), with crickets (Gryllus sp.) being recorded in the pellets from the village of Priekopa from autumn 2014 to summer 2015. This represents an extraordinary dietary specialization of the tawny owl, which has not been previously recorded in Slovakia.

Key words: generalist, foraging ecology, Gryllus, mammals, anthropic environment