Sci Data. 2016 Sep 27;3:160085. doi: 10.1038/sdata.2016.85.
- 1Department of Environmental Biology, University of Navarra, Irunlarrea 1, Pamplona 31008, Spain.
Abstract
We
describe the pellet sampling data set from the Vertebrate Collection of
the Museum of Zoology of the University of Navarra. This data set
compiles all information about small mammals obtained from the analysis
of owl pellets.
The collection consists on skulls, mandibles, and some skeletons of 36
species of more than 72,000 georeferenced specimens. These specimens
come from the Iberian Peninsula although most samples were collected in
Navarra, a highly diverse transitional area of 10,000 kilometre square
sitting across three biogeographical regions. The collection spans more
than forty years and is still growing as a result of the establishment
of a barn owl
pellet monitoring network in 2015. The program will provide critical
information about the evolution of the small mammals' community in this
transition zone as it changes over time.
