Abstract
In this study we describe the European badger diet in a Mediterranean arid landscape mainly dominated by xeric shrubland, and we discuss the potential implications of direct drivers of Global Change on its feeding behavior. Based on an analysis of 140 scats collected monthly from June 2011 to May 2012, it was observed that the consumption of fruits and invertebrates were significantly different between seasons while vertebrates was not. In addition, we found that figs and oranges were dominant items along the year. Due to the availability of oranges depends on the human management and figs depend more directly on rainfall, the feeding behavior of badger could be affected both by changes in land cover/ use as well as changes in the rainfall patterns derived by climate change.
Keywords: European Badger, diet, global change, Meles meles, Iberian Peninsula, land cover/use.