One of the popular areas of biological research at present is the study of animal behavior. The science of animal behavior is called ethology. Despite the presence of a large number of scientific works on ethology, many issues of animal behavior have still not been sufficiently studied. Biologists receive interesting information when studying the behavior of vertebrate animals kept in captivity.

Every autumn, city residents bring birds of prey to the Children's Ecological Station. Often these are weakened and wounded birds that were unable to migrate to the southern regions for wintering. To create optimal conditions for keeping birds of prey, it is necessary to study their behavior in captivity. This served as the basis for our research.

The mini-zoo DES contains several species of birds of prey. In the yearbook Ostapenko V.A. “Birds of Prey and Owls of the Moscow Zoo” No. 12 (13) talks about the optimal size of the enclosure for keeping a white-tailed eagle. Information is given that the size of the enclosure should be at least 8x8x4 m. Since the eagle is the largest bird among those studied, we assumed that these conditions would also be comfortable for other birds. The conditions of the diesel power plant do not allow keeping birds of prey in such enclosures due to the lack of space, so we decided study their biological characteristics, lifestyle, identify similarities and differences in their behavior in the conditions of the mini-zoo DES. Thus, the objects of our research were the merlin, the white-tailed eagle and the short-eared owl. And the subject of the study was their behavior in captivity.

As a result of our acquaintance with literary sources, we found out that the biological characteristics of the merlin, the white-tailed eagle, the short-eared owl, as well as their behavior in nature are currently well studied and described. By studying the habitat conditions and habits of birds of prey from literary sources in nature, we came to the conclusion that there are no significant differences in the description:

Merlin (small short-winged falcon. Body length 25 (34 cm, wingspan 50 (69 cm). Voice (loud, ringing, abrupt cries. Merlin is widespread throughout Russia from the forest-tundra zone to the forest-steppe zone. Settles in small island forests, open forests, parks (in human settlements) near large swamps, river banks, sea lakes. Very rarely settles in large cities of northern countries. The merlin nests on trees, rocks, on the ground, sometimes on the roofs of houses. It feeds on small birds, rodents, insects, which he looks out for in a low-level flight 5 (10 m above the ground. The smallest bird that was used as a hunter for hunting larks.

The white-tailed eagle (the largest bird of prey in the forest zone of Europe. Body length up to 95 cm, wingspan up to 245 cm. Voice (loud ringing screech. The white-tailed eagle lives almost throughout the entire territory of Russia, but is rare in most regions. The eagle cautious and timid, does not tolerate being close to humans. Nests on tall trees and rocks, usually near large bodies of water. The nests are huge, made of thick branches, some are used for many years in a row. The eagle feeds on fish, birds and small animals, carrion. It catches prey with low level flight or looking out while sitting on a tree or rock.

The Short-eared Owl (a medium-sized bird. Body length up to 45 cm, wingspan up to 120 cm. Has a wide range. Avoids densely populated areas, as well as the vicinity of human settlements. Nests on the ground in open places: in swamps, in river valleys, in meadows almost everywhere from the tundra to the steppes, on the plains and in the mountains. The nest in the form of a trampled hole is located on hummocks, among tall grass, less often (on rotten stumps. It feeds mainly on voles and other small mammals. From time to time it also catches small birds, frogs , lizards, large insects.Unlike other species of owls, the short-eared owl is active during daylight hours (mainly hunts in the morning and evening, sometimes during the day).

The merlin, in comparison with other observed birds, exhibits the greatest motor activity. He spends most of his time on the upper perches of the cage (sitting or jumping from one to another). The bird dropped to the bottom of the cage much less often, mainly only to feed. When fed with live food, it exhibits hunting habits. Merlin feeding was strictly timed to coincide with the period of food supply. We tried feeding at different times of the day and found that this bird can feed throughout the day. Also, if there is a container of water, the merlin readily drinks and bathes. During the observation process, we never recorded a dream. Therefore, during the daytime the bird is usually awake.

White-tailed eagle. The behavior of an eagle in captivity includes several basic elements - movement around the cage (jumping from the perch to the floor and back), immobility, feeding, and feather care. We hypothesized that the low motor activity of the bird is due to the fact that the cage area is not large enough for this species. However, according to the stories of DES workers, in the summer the eagle is kept in a larger open-air cage on the street, where the bird often hits the bars, which leads to injuries. Consequently, keeping a white-tailed eagle requires a large enclosure, close to the size of the enclosures at the Moscow Zoo. In the absence of space, a smaller cage is more suitable for keeping a white-tailed eagle, but limits its motor activity. Just like the merlin, the eagle can feed throughout the day (morning, afternoon or evening) depending on the time of feeding. When feeding displays hunting habits with live food.

In the process of observing the short-eared owl, we found that the appearance of the bird changes throughout the day. In the evening it is a fairly large bird with a large round head and an oval facial disc. In the morning and afternoon, the feathers are pressed against the body, the facial disc almost disappears, the head becomes small, and long feathers, “ears,” rise on it. When frightened, the short-eared owl ruffles its feathers, straightens its facial disc and clicks its beak. We found out that in the morning and afternoon the bird is not active, most often it is motionless, its eyes are covered with eyelids. If food was given to the owl at this time of day, it remained untouched. In most cases, the birds fed at later hours (possibly at night), and we were rarely able to record it. When feeding with live food, the owl killed the prey and left it overnight. In the evening, the short-eared owl is also inactive. The main types of activity are turning the head (reaction to sound and movement) and feeding. We have never recorded pen care.

When a person approaches, the owl ruffles its feathers, straightens its facial disc and clicks its beak. If you approach an owl while feeding, the bird begins to scream, making sounds similar to the meowing of a cat.

In literary sources, the short-eared owl is characterized as a diurnal predator, however, the results of the work will allow us to classify this bird as a nocturnal animal. It is likely that this discrepancy is most likely due to the individual characteristics of the individual being studied or due to the fact that it is kept in captivity.

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