Carpathian mountains) and Poland, with little evidence that this is due to interspecific competition or predation but rather the suitably of the montane habitats. Here the tawny owl tends to occur at lower elevations while the Ural owl occupies the foothill forests at higher elevations. Generally, despite higher densities of the Ural in some mountainous parts of central and eastern Europe, the tawny owl is far more numerous in all countries of that region than the Ural owl.Pačenovský, S. (1995). K medzidruhovým vzťahom Glaucidium passerinum, Strix uralensis a Strix aluco [To interspecific relations between Glaucidium passerinum, Strix uralensis and Strix aluco]. Tichodroma, 8, 61-73. In Slovakia, 13.3% of Ural owl territories overlapped with those of tawny owls, a relatively low overlap given the overall environment. Despite the Ural owl’s presumed dominance, in Slovenia, a tawny owl was observed to fiercely attack a Ural owl until it left the vicinity, though it is not clear whether this was a territorial encounter or antipredator mobbing. In Poland, during post-dispersal in winter tawny owls were able to temporarily utilize parts of Ural owl territories, taking advantage of the Ural owls less aggressive behaviour outside of the breeding season. Ural owls do not generally occur with other Strix owls excepting the tawny owl but overlap in much of their range also with the great grey owl, which furthermore ranges farther north and into the Americas as well. Despite its large size, the great grey owl is a dietary specialist on voles, relying almost exclusively on them. Its dietary restrictions are indicated by its foot morphology, with the great grey owl possessing talons that are conspicuously finer, smaller and less powerful looking than those of the Ural owl despite the slightly larger overall foot size (in correspondence with its body mass) of the great grey. Within the taiga that both the great grey and Ural owls prefer, great grey owls have been shown to nest in a wide diversity of locations, with more nest types overall than the Ural, but it does not normally use tree cavities as do the other two European Strix owls and seldom occurs in areas where conifers are not dominant anywhere in its range, such as riparian zones where forest can diversify to become mixed with deciduous trees. The difference in nest site usage and narrower dietary habits of the great grey are thought to mitigate most serious competition between