Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus nest-site selection in relation to habitat and the distribution of Goshawks Accipiter gentilis ANITA GAMAUF, 1,2 * GRAHAM TEBB 3 & ERWIN NEMETH 4,5 1 1st Zoological Department, Museum of Natural History Vienna, Burgring 7, A-1010, Vienna, Austria 2 Department of Integrative Zoology, University of Vienna, Althanstr. 14, A-1080, Vienna, Austria 3 University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria 4 Department of Behavioural Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstr. 14, A-1080, Vienna, Austria 5 BirdLife Austria, Museumsplatz 1/10/8, A-1070, Vienna, Austria The selection of a suitable nest-site is critical for successful reproduction. Species’ prefer- ences for nest-sites have presumably evolved in relation to local habitat resources and/or interactions with other species. The importance of these two components in the nest-site selection of the Eurasian Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus was assessed in two study areas in eastern Austria. There was almost no difference in macro- and micro-habitat features between nest-sites and random plots, suggesting that Honey Buzzards did not base their choice of nest-site on habitat characteristics. However, nests were placed significantly further from nests of Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis than would be expected if nest-sites had been chosen at random. Furthermore, in one study area Honey Buzzards appeared to favour areas close to human settlements, perhaps indicating a mechanism to avoid Goshawks, which tend to avoid the proximity of humans. No habitat variable was significantly associated with the loss of Honey Buzzard young, but predation was higher in territories closer to breeding pairs of Goshawks at both study sites. Although Honey Buzzards are restricted to nesting in forests, their choice of nest-site therefore appears to be largely dictated by the distribution of predators. Studies of habitat association may yield misleading results if the effects of predation risk on distribution are not considered. Keywords: interspecific competition, nest-site selection, predator avoidance, reproduction. Analyses of habitat selection in birds generally assume that species select habitat patches that best suit their primary requirements, such as for forag- ing and breeding (e.g. Cody 1985, Brown 1988, Wilson et al. 2009, Watling et al. 2011). While habitat selection is a fundamental process dictating a species’ spatial distribution, optimal habitat patches are not always available and incomplete information on the quality of habitat patches may in practice hamper decision-making (Andr en 1994, Sutherland 1996). Nevertheless, it is clear that the population density and distribution of a species is affected by various environmental parameters, such as the availability of prey, the presence of heterospecifics and the degree of predation pres- sure (Byholm et al. 2012). Natural food chains are extremely complex and predator–prey relationships underlie many of the decisions taken by animals and birds (Town- send et al. 2008). Intraguild predation in birds has received a fair amount of attention (Lima & Dill 1990, Sergio & Hieraldo 2008). For example, it is known that several smaller species of owl are predated by their larger relatives and thus attempt to avoid them, especially during the breeding season (Hakkarainen & Korpim€ aki 1996, Sergio & Bogliani 2000, Sergio et al. 2003, N. Weiss pers. comm.). This phenomenon seems to be more widespread in diurnal birds of prey than previously believed (Kr € uger 2002, Petty et al. 2003). *Corresponding author. Email: anita.gamauf@nhm-wien.ac.at © 2013 British Ornithologists’ Union Ibis (2013), 155, 258–270