Social behavior of juvenile chum salmon, Oncorhynchus keta, under risk of predation: the influence of food distribution

Synopsis Social interactions can influence both foraging reward and vulnerability to predators. We examined social interactions in groups of juvenile chum salmon, Oncorhynchus keta, receiving food that was either spatially dispersed, with many food items appearing synchronously, or spatially clumped, with individual food items appearing asynchronously. These experiments were conducted both in the presence and absence of predators. when food was dispersed and predators were absent, juvenile chum formed schools and all individuals had access to food, despite frequent agonistic interactions. When predators were present, schooling and feeding continued, but agonistic interactions ceased. In contrast, when food was clumped, dominant fish utilized aggression to monopolize food regardless of whether predators were present or absent, resulting in decreased group cohesion. These results illustrate that food distribution and social interaction may play a role in determining how fish balance predation risk against foraging reward.     

Seasonal changes in food resource distribution and feeding sites selected by Japanese macaques on Koshima Islet,Japan

Feeding sites of Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) change according to seasonal fluctuations in food resource distribution. To examine what characteristics of food items affect feeding site selection, I describe herein the seasonal changes in food items, feeding sites, and food resource distributions of this species. Feeding behavior of monkeys and their food resource distributions were investigated on Koshima Islet, southern Japan, for four study periods (i.e., seasons) in 2002. Monkeys showed large variations in their diet between seasons. To weigh the relative influence of the distribution and abundance of food items on feeding site selection in each season, multiple regression analyses were performed by 100 m × 100 m grid. In the analyses, feeding time was a dependent variable and the abundance of staple food items, for which feeding time was over 5% in each season, in each grid square was an independent variable. There was no correlation between the resource distribution of most food items and the distribution of feeding time by monkeys in each season. Monkeys spent more feeding time where multiple staple food items were available. Food items that affected feeding site selection by monkeys had the following three characteristics: (1) clumped distribution, (2) seasonal availability, and (3) fruit. This suggests that monkeys are likely to select feeding sites to consume food items whose availability is limited temporally and spatially, which may enable them to simultaneously use other widely distributed, abundant food items efficiently.     

Growth and reproduction of fungal feeding Collembola as affected by fungal species,melanin and mixed diets

Fungal feeding soil invertebrates feed on a wide spectrum of fungal species suggesting that mixed diets increase fitness. We investigated relationships between food preferences for seven saprophytic fungal species/forms and fitness parameters (mortality, growth, time to reproduction, reproduction, egg size) in two Collembola species, Folsomia candida and Protaphorura armata. The fungal species/forms studied included the wild type and a melanin-deficient form of Aspergillus fumigatus to investigate the role of melanin in collembolan nutrition. Also, three mixed diets consisting of a preferred fungal species (Cladosporium cladosporioides) and species of intermediate or low food quality were investigated. Both Collembola species preferred similar fungal species/forms as food. Food preference generally matched fitness parameters, i.e. growth and reproduction of Collembola was at a maximum when feeding on preferred fungi. This was not the case for A. fumigatus. The wild type and the melanin-deficient form ranked among the least preferred fungi. Growth and reproduction of Collembola were low when feeding on the wild type but high when feeding on the melanin-deficient form indicating that the Collembola misjudged the food quality of the latter in the preference tests. The results show for the first time that genes driving melanin syntheses (pksP) strongly affect the food quality of fungi for fungal feeding invertebrates. Feeding on mixed diets generally increased growth and reproduction of Collembola except when the diets included toxic species (Penicillium sp.). The results support the nutrient balance hypothesis and also show that the detection of toxic species in the diet is important. They indicate that the widespread generalist feeding mode of Collembola maximizes fitness if toxic fungal species are avoided. The fitness parameters growth, reproduction and time until onset of reproduction were correlated closely but egg volume, which also varied with fungal diet, correlated poorly with the other fitness parameters. Variation in egg size with fungal diet shows that the diet of Collembola may have transgenerational effects.     

The diet and feeding behavior of the silver leaf monkey (Trachypithecus auratus sondaicus) in Indonesia

I describe the diet and feeding behavior of silver leaf monkeys (Trachypithecus auratus sondaicus) in the Pangandaran Nature Reserve, West Java, Indonesia, and compare a group living in old secondary rain forest with a group living in mixed plantation/secondary forest to determine intraspecific variation in feeding behavior and the importance of the plantation species in the diet of the monkeys. Young leaves and leaf buds made up slightly less than half of their diets, with both groups showing a preference for a few species when seasonally available. Fruits and flowers of a few species were also preferentially selected when available. These included sweet, fleshy fruits, which most other colobines tend to avoid. Young leaf intake was greatest in months when fruit intake was low. Mature leaves were rarely eaten. Both groups spent approximately 20% of feeding time foraging on Moraceae species. Differences in the diet of the two groups were related largely to differences in vegetational composition and the availability and abundance of food items for the species common to both sites. Teak (Tectona grandis) was the top food species of the group living in mixed plantation/secondary forest, with the midribs of young leaves preferentially selected. Young leaves ofT. grandis, available throughout the study, provided a staple food and were eaten when preferred foods were scarce. More favored food items were available to the group living in old secondary forest, though none was a staple food.     

Spatial distributions of multiple plant species affect herbivore foraging selectivity

Spatial distribution of food resources is an important factor determining herbivore foraging. Previous studies have demonstrated that clumped distribution of preferred species increases its consumption by herbivores in single‐ or two‐species systems. However, the potential impact of distribution pattern of less preferred species on foraging was ignored. In natural grasslands with high species diversity and complexity, the spatial distribution of preferred species impacts on herbivore foraging may be strongly correlated with the distribution of less preferred species. Our aims were to determine the effect of distribution of both preferred and other plant species on herbivore foraging under conditions close to a native, multi‐species foraging environment, and conceptualize the relationships between spatial distribution of food resources and herbivore consumption. We hypothesized that random distribution of non‐preferred species reduces herbivore consumption of preferred species because the dispersion of less preferred species likely disturbs herbivore foraging. We conducted an experiment using three species with five combinations of clumped and random distribution patterns. Three species Lathyrus quinquenervius, Phragmites australis and Leymus chinensis, were of high, intermediate and low preferences by sheep, respectively. Results showed that distribution of low preferred species, but not that of high preferred one, affected the consumption of preferred species. Sheep obtained higher consumption of high preferred species when low preferred species followed a clumped distribution than a random distribution. Distance between aggregations of high and low preferred species did not affect sheep foraging. It was concluded that the effects of spatial distribution of preferred species on its consumption are dependent on herbivore foraging strategy, and sheep can consume more preferred species when there is a consistent spatial pattern between preferred species and the entire food resource, and that the random dispersion of low preferred species in grassland may reduce herbivore consumption of high preferred species, thus minimizing selective grazing.     

Diet, fecundity and egg size in some polyphagous predatory carabid beetles

Egg size was measured at different rates of egg laying in three polyphagous carabid species, known to be useful predators of cereal aphids; the small Bembidion lampros Herbst and the medium-sized Pterostichus cupreus L. and P. melanarius Illiger. Variations in fecundity, as well as the ability of the medium-sized species to also build up fat reserves, were obtained when beetles were subjected to different dietary regimes consisting of aphids, or foods with a lower or higher protein content. Egg size was found to be dependent on the rate of egg laying within a species. A diet of cereal aphids appeared to be adequate for egg production in these polyphagous carabids, but female P. cupreus were unable to build up fat reserves when they ingested aphids contaminated with the aphicide pirimicarb. Beetles were able to devote resources to more and larger eggs (B. lampros), or to larger eggs and/or fat reserves (P. melanarius/P. cupreus) when given access to a carbohydrate-rich food with low protein content. The highest rate of egg laying was obtained when female P. cupreus and P. melanarius were given a more varied diet at frequent intervals; including regular shifts between unsprayed aphids, carbohydrate-rich food and protein-rich maggots. Within the varied diet treatment a negative relationship was obtained between egg size and egg number among similar-sized individuals of P. cupreus and P. melanarius; females producing the largest number also laid the smallest eggs. Egg size affected larval survival, since first instars hatching from large eggs were found to survive longer than those hatching from small eggs. The influence of differences in food intake on reproduction, maintenance metabolism, and survival of fieldinhabiting carabids is discussed.     

Fecal glucocorticoids as indicators of metabolic stress in female Sykes' monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis albogularis)

Because of their mediating role in the stress response and potential effects on fitness, glucocorticoid (GC) hormones are increasingly used to assess the physiological costs of environmental and behavioral variation among wild vertebrates. Identifying the proximate causes of GC variation, however, is complicated by simultaneous exposure to multiple potentially stressful stimuli. Here, we use data from a partially provisioned social group of Sykes' monkeys to evaluate the effects of potential psychological and metabolic stressors on temporal and individual variation in fecal GC (fGC) excretion among 11 adult females. Despite high rates of agonism over provisioned foods fGCs declined during periods of high provisioning frequency when fruit availability was dominated by neem (Azadirachta indica), an item requiring great feeding effort. Provisioned foods did not prevent fGC increases when availability of the most preferred main fruit item, tamarind (Tamarindus indica), declined drastically. Although rank-related differences in access to provisioned foods and rates of agonism did not lead to an overall effect of rank on fGCs, low-ranking females excreted more fGCs than high-ranking females during a period of high provisioning intensity and low fruit availability. The emergence of this rank effect was associated with elevated feeding effort in all females, a greater access to provisioned items by high-ranking females, and a higher proportion of time spent moving in low-ranking females. Our findings suggest that metabolic stressors were the primary determinants of both temporal and individual variation in fGCs, indicating potential fitness benefits for high-ranking females when food availability is limited.     

Food competition in captive female sooty mangabeys (Cercocebus torquatus atys)

We studied the social and foraging behavior of two captive groups of sooty mangabeys under two different spatial food situations. These food conditions were clumped (food was placed in a box) and dispersed (food was dispersed over the entire enclosure). In each group five adult females and two adult males were observed. As a criterion for food competition, individual differences in the relative food intake were used. Adult female mangabeys had a linear, stable, and unidirectional dominance hierarchy. Access to food was rank dependent among females only under clumped food distribution, as current models of the evolution of primate social systems predict. However, feeding success appeared to be mediated not by female but by male agonistic behavior toward females. High-ranking females received relatively less aggression from males and could, therefore, stay and feed longer in the feeding area. Male tolerance of higher-ranking females seems to mediate female feeding success under restricted food resources. The establishment of a special relationship with a high-ranking male might, therefore, be a strategy to get better access to food. This study demonstrates that female competition for access to food should not be analyzed separately from male influences on females and suggests that a more integral role of males in socioecological models of the evolution of primate social systems should be considered.     

Effects of stoichiometric dietary mixing on<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Daphnia</Emphasis> growth and reproduction

Herbivores often encounter nutritional deficiencies in their diets because of low nutrient content of plant biomass. Consumption of various diet items with different nutrient contents can potentially alleviate these nutritional deficiencies. However, most laboratory studies and modeling of herbivorous animals have been done with diets in which all food has uniform nutrient content. It is not clear whether heterogeneous versus uniform food of equal overall nutrient content is of equivalent nutritional value. We tested the effects of dietary mixing on performance of a model organism, Daphnia. We fed two species of Daphnia ( D. galeata, D. pulicaria) with diets of equivalent bulk stoichiometric food quality (C:P) and studied whether they would produce equivalent performance when C:P was uniform among cells or when the diet involved a mixture of high C:P and low C:P cells. Daphnia were fed saturating and limiting concentrations of a uniform food of moderate C:P (UNI) or mixtures (MIX) of high C:P (LOP) and low C:P (HIP) algae prepared to match C:P in UNI. Daphnia were also fed HIP and LOP algae separately. Juvenile growth rate and adult fecundity were measured. D. galeata performance in UNI and MIX treatments did not differ, indicating that partitioning of C and P among particles did not affect dietary quality. Similarly, D. pulicarias performance was similar in the MIX and UNI treatments but only at low food abundance. In the high food treatment, both growth and reproduction were higher in the MIX treatment, indicating some benefit of a more heterogeneous diet. The mechanisms for this improvement are unclear. Also, food quality affected growth and reproduction even at low food levels for both D. pulicaria and D. galeata. Our results indicate that some species of zooplankton can benefit from stoichiometric heterogeneity on diet.     

Dietary Profile of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhinopithecus bieti</Emphasis> and Its Socioecological Implications

To enhance our understanding of dietary adaptations and socioecological correlates in colobines, we conducted a 20-mo study of a wild group of Rhinopithecus bieti (Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys) in the montane Samage Forest. This forest supports a patchwork of evergreen broadleaved, evergreen coniferous, and mixed deciduous broadleaved/coniferous forest assemblages with a total of 80 tree species in 23 families. The most common plant families by basal area are the predominantly evergreen Pinaceae and Fagaceae, comprising 69% of the total tree biomass. Previous work has shown that lichens formed a consistent component in the monkeys’ diet year-round (67%), seasonally complemented with fruits and young leaves. Our study showed that although the majority of the diet was provided by 6 plant genera (Acanthopanax, Sorbus, Acer, Fargesia, Pterocarya, and Cornus), the monkeys fed on 94 plant species and on 150 specific food items. The subjects expressed high selectivity for uncommon angiosperm tree species. The average number of plant species used per month was 16. Dietary diversity varied seasonally, being lowest during the winter and rising dramatically in the spring. The monkeys consumed bamboo shoots in the summer and bamboo leaves throughout the year. The monkeys also foraged on terrestrial herbs and mushrooms, dug up tubers, and consumed the flesh of a mammal (flying squirrel). We also provide a preliminary evaluation of feeding competition in Rhinopithecus bieti and find that the high selectivity for uncommon seasonal plant food items distributed in clumped patches might create the potential for food competition. The finding is corroborated by observations that the subjects occasionally depleted leafy food patches and stayed at a greater distance from neighboring conspecifics while feeding than while resting. Key findings of this work are that Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys have a much more species-rich plant diet than was previously believed and are probably subject to moderate feeding competition.     

Food distribution,dominance, and aggressive behaviors in bonnet macaques

Resource availability or distribution may affect interindividual competition in species such as primates, which forage in social groups, and several field studies suggest that dominance status predicts access to restricted food sources. Increased competition due to restricted resources may result in the intensification of aggressive behaviors. The study reported here examines the impact of manipulation of the distribution of food resources in a laboratory-housed group of bonnet macaques to assess the impact of distribution on aggressive behaviors. Food was restricted to a space which allowed access to only one or two individuals at a time or was dispersed throughout the living enclosure to allow universal access in alternating periods. During periods of clumped distribution, the monkeys obtained access to the food in order of their dominance status in the group. In addition, overall levels of aggressive behaviors increased, submissive behavior increased, and play decreased during periods of clumped distribution of food. These results confirm the findings from field studies indicating increases in agonism with restriction of food resources. These findings also have implications for primate colony management, in terms of developing strategies for minimizing intragroup aggression in captive groups.     

Diet traditions in wild orangutans

This study explores diet differences between two populations of wild Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) to assess whether a signal of social learning can be detected in the observed patterns. The populations live in close proximity and in similar habitats but are separated by a river barrier that is impassable to orangutans in the study region. We found a 60% between‐site difference in diet at the level of plant food items (plant species–organ combinations). We also found that individuals at the same site were more likely to eat the same food items than expected by chance. These results suggest the presence of diet (food selection) traditions. Detailed tests of three predictions of three models of diet acquisition allowed us to reject a model based on exclusive social learning but could not clearly distinguish between the remaining two models: one positing individual exploration and learning of food item selection and the other one positing preferential social learning followed by individual fine tuning. We know that maturing orangutans acquire their initial diet through social learning and then supplement it by years of low‐level, individual sampling. We, therefore, conclude that the preferential social learning model produces the best fit to the geographic patterns observed in this study. However, the very same taxa that socially acquire their diets as infants and show evidence for innovation‐based traditions in the wild paradoxically may have diets that are not easily distinguished from those acquired exclusively through individual learning. Am J Phys Anthropol 143:175–187, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Nutrients in fruit increase fertility in wild-caught females of large and long-lived Euphaedra species (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae)

Fruit-feeding butterflies can experience a more nutrient rich adult diet than nectar-feeding species, and can be expected to use these nutrients for egg production. Here we compare life span, and reproduction parameters of wild-caught females of large and long-lived species on either a sucrose or a mashed banana diet. With small sample sizes per species, but rich longitudinal data for each individual, we examined the longitudinal reproduction pattern, egg size and hatchability of these butterflies in captivity. Diet significantly affected mortality in captivity in a time-dependent manner. On average, we found that butterflies fed mashed banana laid 1.855 times more eggs than those fed sugar. They laid significantly more eggs when they laid and conserved egg size with age while butterflies fed sucrose showed significantly declining egg sizes. Egg hatchability was not significantly affected by diet. Long pre-oviposition periods, significantly smaller first eggs, and absence of age at capture effects on intensity of reproduction indicate low reproduction rates in the field that are due to low food availability. With our small sample sizes, we did not detect significant differences between the species in their response to the diet treatments.     

Rank Differences in Ecological Behavior: A Comparative Study of Patas Monkeys (Erythrocebus patas) and Vervets (Cercopithecus aethiops)

One of the central dichotomies in primate behavior is between species in which there are relationships among females that include stable dominance relationships, and those in which the relationships include weak or unstable dominance relationships. This dichotomy has been attributed to differences in food resources, with stable dominance hierarchies occurring in species that feed on usurpable foods. We compared rank-related differences in nonagonistic behaviors considered to be tightly linked to ecology in broadly sympatric vervets (Cercopithecus aethiops) and patas monkeys (Erythrocebus patas), two closely related cercopithecines that are exemplars of this dichotomy, with the expectation that vervets would exhibit stronger rank differences than patas monkeys in these behaviors. Overall, rank explained more than twice as much variation among vervets as among patas monkeys in ranging behavior, activity budgets, and diet. Vervets did not, however, exhibit stronger rank differences when they used Acacia xanthophloea habitat, in which foods are more usurpable, compared to Acacia drepanolobium habitat, in which foods are less usurpable. In Acacia drepanolobium habitat, to which patas are restricted, higher-ranking vervets converged in behavior with patas monkeys to a greater extent than lower-ranking vervets, suggesting that social constraints interfere with the foraging efficiency of lower-ranking vervets even in habitats in which there are fewer opportunities to usurp foods.     

Diet and foraging opportunism of the Guiana dolphin (Sotalia guianensis) in the Abrolhos Bank,Brazil

Diet analysis allows exploring how coastal dolphins interact with the environment and their role in the marine food webs. We studied the diet and feeding ecology of the Guiana dolphin, Sotalia guianensis, through analysis of stomach content from 42 animals stranded on the eastern coast of Brazil. A total of 1,336 semidigested prey items (fish, otoliths, cephalopod beaks, and crustaceans) were identified. Teleost fish comprised the most frequent food item (92% of the total), followed by cephalopods, and crustaceans. Prey belonged to 34 taxa and richness in individual stomachs varied from 1 to 15 prey taxa. Prey were generally small, but showed a significant trend to increase in size with dolphin length. The main prey of Guiana dolphins were demersal, estuarine, and sound-making fish such as catfish and sciaenids. No sex-related differences in diet were found. Diet composition varied seasonally and occurrence of prey items was coherent with breeding or high abundance periods of some fish species and squids. Our study shows the importance of demersal prey from estuarine and soft-sediment habitats to Guiana dolphin in the Abrolhos Bank and reveals that feeding habits are generalist and opportunistic, with diet reflecting the seasonal abundance and availability of prey.     

Behavioral activities and diet of Azaras’s capuchin monkey,Sapajus cay (Illiger, 1815), in a forest remnant of the Brazilian Cerrado

ABSTRACT

Azaras’s capuchin monkey (Sapajus cay) is a poorly studied species in ecological aspects. We investigated behavioral activities and diet of a group of S. cay in a remnant of the Brazilian Cerrado. We sought to identify the most frequent behavior that the group engaged in, as well as to verify possible differences in behavioral patterns and diet between adult males and females. From January to July 2012 we collected behavioral and foraging data for a group of 21 individuals using scan sampling. Behaviors and food items consumed were analyzed using percentages and two proportions Z-tests to assess differences between males and females. We obtained 878 scans in approximately 202 hours of sampling effort, resulting in 4,159 individual activity records of capuchin monkeys. The group allocated time to traveling (41.3%), resting (25.5%), feeding (14.3%), foraging (13.7%), and social activities (5.1%). Females spent more time foraging and feeding, while males spent more time resting. Fruits (61.4%), invertebrates (15.3%), and seeds (14.3%) were the most common food items consumed. We did not find differences in food consumption between sexes. Behavioral activities may be influenced by habitat quality of the studied area, opportunistic habits, and plasticity in the diet.     

Reproductive energetics of the role reversing bushcricket,Kawanaphila nartee (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Zaprochilinae)

Theory predicts that sexual differences in reproductive strategies arise because of differences in the magnitude of investment made by males and females in reproduction. In some bushcrickets, the typical sex role of competitive male and choosy female is reversed when populations are subject to nutrient stress. Here I present an energetic analysis of reproduction for the role reversing bushcricket, Kawanaphila nartee, that supports the contention that this sex role reversal is a consequence of reversal in the pattern of relative reproductive investment. When fed ad libitum, males spent 16% of their daily energy reserves on the spermatophore compared with 26% spent on calling to attract a mate. Females spent 29% of their daily energy reserves in producing and laying eggs. However, when allowed only limited access to food, female expenditure in eggs was reduced to 23% of daily reserves while male expenditure remained unchanged. After accounting for the incorporation of male nutrients into eggs, female energy expenditure in reproduction exceeded male expenditure when animals were fed ad libitum, but male expenditure exceeded female expenditure when diet was limited. This role reversal in relative energy expenditure that is associated with courtship role reversal supports classical and contemporary theories on the control of sexual selection.     

Diet and activity budget of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhinopithecus roxellana</Emphasis> in the Qinling Mountains,China

We collected data on diet and daytime activity budget, and investigated the phenology of food trees and food abundance for a group of Rhinopithecus roxellana on the East Ridge of Yuhuangmiao in the Qinling Mountains from November 2001 to December 2003. We calculated the seasonal activity budget using data collected by scan sampling from 84 full-day observations (winter 16, spring 18, summer 28, autumn 22 days). During scan sampling we recorded behavioral states, and the food items and species consumed. The subjects consumed 84 plant species, including trees and shrubs of 29 families, and lichens. Food species varied seasonally. The overall diet of R. roxellana consisted of 29.4% fruit/seeds, 29.0% lichens, 24.0% leaves, 11.1% bark, 4.2% buds, 1.3% twigs and 1.0% unidentified items. Because the abundance of different food items varied seasonally, the monkeys had to shift their major food items seasonally. The annual activity budget of R. roxellana was 36.2% time spent resting, 35.8% feeding, 22.9% moving, and 5.1% other behavior. Seasonal changes in activity budget were observed. R. roxellana spent more time moving in autumn, when the quality of the food might be highest, and least time moving in winter when the food quality might be lowest. Thus, this type of monkey has a passive foraging strategy.     

Spatial and temporal variation in the diet of the sandy beach gastropod Olivella minuta

Marine gastropods exert a strong influence on the structure of marine ecosystems through their foraging activities, yet little is known about how environmental differences in space and time may affect their feeding behavior. To enhance the knowledge about the trophic ecology of coastal benthic species, we investigated temporal and spatial variations in the diet of the sandy beach gastropod Olivella minuta. We collected individuals of O. minuta seasonally, over 1 year, at two sandy beaches with different morphodynamic characteristics (Araçá Bay, an ultra‐dissipative tidal flat, and Barequeçaba Beach, a dissipative beach) and analyzed the stomach contents of specimens of O. minuta. We identified approximately 15,000 food items, which we grouped into 14 categories. Thirteen food categories were found at each area, but significant differences in diet were observed between sites and sampling periods. Individuals from Araçá consumed an overall larger quantity and diversity of food items, which consisted mainly of foraminiferans, polychaetes, and crustaceans. At Barequeçaba, diatoms were the most important item, followed by crustaceans and polychaetes. Temporal variation depended on sites: the number of food items in the stomachs of individuals of O. minuta and dietary composition was roughly constant over time at Araçá, whereas larger variations were observed at Barequeçaba. Although O. minuta has been previously characterized as a carnivore/scavenger, our results show that the diet of this species varies in space and time and comprises a large variety of food resources. The species thus plays a role in the cycling of both vegetal and animal organic matter. This generalist behavior may allow individuals to shift their diet according to habitat alterations and food availability, thereby enhancing the persistence and resilience of O. minuta in different environments or future climate change scenarios.     

NOTES ON THE BREEDING BEHAVIOUR OF THE PARADISE FLYCATCHER (TERPSIPHONE VIRIDIS PLUMBEICEPS)

Milewski, A. V. 1978. Diet of Serinus species in the southwestern Cape, with special reference to the Protea Seedeater. Ostrich 49:174-184.

The diet of the Protea Seedeater Serinus leucopterus was assessed by opportunistic observation of feeding occasions throughout the distribution of the bird. The Protea Seedeater feeds mainly on seed of a wide range of plant species. It takes the large seed of Proteo more frequently than it does any other food item. The diet of the Protea Seedeater consists essentially of food items and types similar to those taken by six sympatric and partly sympatric congeners, which are also mainly dating. However, its diet differs quantitatively, each species taking different food types, such as achenes and seed kernels, with different frequency.