贵州草海斑头雁的冬季食性分析

在贵州草海越多的斑头雁粪便中共检出３６种植物,其中天然植物２８种,栽培作物种,禾本科植物是斑头雁主要食物,在其粪便中的平均检出率是６５．０％,白花三叶草平均为１６．４％,莎草科植物为９．７％,农作物仅占５．６％,其他的材料为３．３％,随着月份的不同,六种主要植物及栽培作物在斑头雁粪便中变化非常明显（Ｐ〈０．０００１,ｄｆ１＝４,ｄｆ２＝７０）。     

黑颈鹤越冬生态初步研究

黑颈鹤为我国特产珍稀动物,作者于1975和1978至1984年间,对它的越冬生态进行了观察。观察得知,黑颈鹤每年10月中、下旬迁来草海,翌年8月中下旬离去,越冬期为5个月左右。越冬期,有3种不同的集群形式,即家族群、同种集群和混种集群。主要食物为植物。黑颈鹤在草海越冬的数量,已由1975年的35只,增加到1984年的305只。黑颈鹤除在草海越冬外,还发现于威宁东南的普安县,是迄今所知在我国分布最南和最东的纪录。     

小兴安岭通河林区斑羚冬季食性分析

2004年1～3月在小兴安岭通河林区,使用粪便显微组织学分析方法并结合野外食痕调查,对斑羚（Naemorhedus goral）的冬季食性进行了分析研究。结果表明,斑羚冬季主要以枯草、落叶和当年生枝条为食,共取食20属,22种植物。通过频率转换分析发现,莎草科的羊胡子苔草（Carex callitrichos）和杜鹃花科的兴安杜鹃（Rhododendron dauricum）是其冬季的大宗食物,占食物的百分比分别为31．72％和18．14％。此外,斑羚冬季对苔藓、杨柳科和木犀科植物的取食频次也较高,其百分比分别为7．30％、6．87％和5．25％．     

我国的黑颈鹤与研究

黑颈鹤芷云贵高原和青藏高原分布范围在北纬26°43′—39°,东径79°45′—104°18′之间;垂直分布,繁殖区在海拔2500—5000米,越冬区在海拔2200—4000米;数量在800只左右。 繁殖地四川若尔盖4—9月与越冬地贵州草海地区10—3月的主要气候指标基本相似。 在自然条件下,黑颈鹤的食物主要取食植物,一般不寻觅动物性食物。     

甘肃鼠兔贮草越冬及其生物学意义

对采自草甸、灌丛和弃耕地3种类型栖息地共27个甘肃鼠兔草堆的研究结果表明,每个草堆干重在23．8—984．2g之间,平均184．2g,总计含有26种双子叶植物和一些禾本科单子叶植物。分析显示,草堆大小(食物重量)与栖息地植被类型无关。在贮存干草堆时,甘肃鼠兔对不同植物成分具有强烈的选择性,其中,单子叶植物和双子叶植物分别占总重量的8．06％和84．61％,与它们各自在栖息地中的生物量百分比51．76％和39．57％形成鲜明对照。甘肃鼠兔对植物种类的选择性在一定程度上受栖息地植被类型的影响,但最喜食的几种植物却基本不变,它们是美丽风毛菊、棘豆、麻花艽、禾草、线叶龙胆。人工去除栖息地中的干草堆后,甘肃鼠兔种群越冬存活率从对照样地的51．84％下降到21．33％,表明草堆食物对其成功越冬有一定正效应。野外观察证实,甘肃鼠兔的鸣声不及同域分布的高原鼠兔发达,但前具有贮存食物越冬的习性,而后却不贮存越冬食物,此结果不支持“鼠兔类动物建立草堆的行为与鸣声行为平行发育”的观点。     

小兴安岭地区原麝冬季食性研究

2004年2—3月和2004年11月至2005年1月在黑龙江省通河县龙口林场,对原麝冬季的食性进行了研究。采用粪便显微组织学分析技术分析原麝冬季采食植物的种类组成和比例,并测定了主要取食的9种木本植物及苔藓和蕨类植物的营养成分。研究结果表明,原麝冬季取食的植物共计46科66种,其中兴安杜鹃、光萼溲疏、五角槭、羊胡子苔草分别占32．7％、7．8％、5．81％、5．56％,是原麝冬季主要取食的植物种类,占取食植物的51．9％。木本植物枝叶是原麝冬季的主要食物,在冬季食物组成中所占百分比最高,达75．0％。对草本植物、蕨类、苔藓、地衣的取食量均较小。冬季原麝比较喜欢采食蛋白含量高的植物,采食部位主要为植物木质化较低的当年枝顶端部分。藓类主要出现在1—3月份的食物中。     

云南纳帕海黑颈鹤越冬行为与生境利用初步观察

2005年10月～2006年3月在纳帕海自然保护区对黑颈鹤越冬期行为和生境利用进行了30天观察.采用扫描取样和目标取样对黑颈鹤的行为和生境利用进行了观察.将行为划分为觅食、喂食与索食、伫立、休息、运动、保养、社群等7种.整个越冬期黑颈鹤的主要行为是觅食,觅食行为在越冬中、末期在所有行为所占比例逐渐增加.黑颈鹤的觅食行为60%以上发生在沼泽,其次是沼泽畔的草地.因此,保护好湿地沼泽对黑颈鹤在纳帕海顺利越冬极为重要.     

可可西里自然保护区藏羚羊的食性分析

2005年7月和2006年1月在可可西里国家自然保护区内收集藏羚羊的新鲜粪样各33份和55份.利用粪便显微分析法分析了该地区藏羚羊的食物构成及其冷季(1月)和暖季(7月)的变化.结果表明,在藏羚羊粪便中镜检到的可识别植物碎片为15科24种(属)植物,其食物谱构成主要包括禾本科、豆科、菊科、柽柳科及玄参科植物;禾本科是藏羚羊全年的主要食物,它在食物组成中所占的比例为60.5%;莎草科、豆科、菊科、柽柳科及玄参科植物是藏羚羊全年都取食的主要食物,其所占比例分别为16.7%、9.2%、6.4%、4.9%及0.9%.藏羚羊在冷季和暖季的食物构成有显著变化,莎草科和柽柳科在冷季所占比例较低,分别为7.7%和0.8%,而禾本科、豆科和玄参科在冷季所占比例较高,分别达到了70.4%、12.6%和2.4%.     

农业耕作活动对西藏越冬黑颈鹤食性及食物可获得性的影响

于1996年1月对西藏中南部越冬黑颈鹤的食性和谷物性食物的可获得性进行了研究。青梨（Hordeum vulgare),春小麦（Triticum spp.),冬小麦（Triticum spp.)是该地区的3种主要作物。对黑颈鹤粪便的分析表明,越冬黑颈鹤取食大量的农作物,尤其是小麦散落从粒,而冬小麦苗仅上鹤类食物组成的很小一部分。秋收后的翻耕,放牧等农业活动影响地面上作物残物（种子,叶,秆或根）及谷粒残物（裸粒,穗稃）的数量,农地翻耕掩埋了大部分的作物残物。未翻耕青梨地与小麦地上的作物残物覆盖比值相似。谷物残物的密度在未翻耕的小麦地上最大,为了最大限度地增加黑颈鹤的冬季食物来源,减少人为活动对黑颈鹤的干扰,我们建议：在秋收后不要翻耕河流两侧的青梨地和小麦地;在冬小麦种植地区,冬小麦应仅仅种植在主要公路两侧。     

云南纳帕海越冬黑颈鹤日间行为模式与年龄和集群的关系

2006年10月—2007年5月,在云南省西北部纳帕海,采用路线调查结合瞬时扫描行为取样法,对越冬黑颈鹤(Grus nigricollis)种群的时间分配及其与年龄、集群和时间的关系进行了观察。结果说明,黑颈鹤越冬活动主要是以觅食为主,占日间时间的(76.81±9.1)％。越冬期间黑颈鹤日间行为的节律性较为明显,具有适应高寒气候的特点。集群形式对成鹤的行为有着显著影响,集群和家庭中活动的成鹤在觅食、警戒和争斗中存在显著差异(F1,76= 0.27、0.77, U= 279, P= 0.001—0.000)。年龄是影响鹤群行为的因素之一。幼鹤相比成鹤有较多的觅食时间和休息时间,警戒行为比例较低(F1,76= 0.04—2.59, U= 188—299, P= 0.006—0.000),且不受集群形式的影响。随着越冬期间的早、中、晚3个时期的环境变化,黑颈鹤的时间分配有显著变化(F2,36= 4.63—26.54, 22= 5.29—13.68, P= 0.0016—0.000)。不同越冬地的黑颈鹤行为存在差异。气候、食物资源和人为影响可能是造成这些差异的主要因素。     

黑麂食物组成及其季节变化

2002年12月至2003年11月在浙江省九龙山和古田山自然保护区,分季节采集黑麂 (Muntiacus crinifrons)粪便,采用粪便显微组织学分析方法为主,辅以野外观察,对其食性进行研究。结果表明 :黑麂食物包括29科43种(属)植物。食物中的植物类型包括乔木、灌木、藤本、非禾草类草本和禾草类草本五种类型;灌木是黑麂全年的主要食物,它在食物组成所占的比例为55.4%;三尖杉 (Cephalotaxus fortunei)、光叶菝葜(Smilax glabra)、矩圆叶鼠刺(Itea chinensis var. oblonga)、南五味子(Kadsura longipedunculata)和络石(Trachelospermum jasminoides)为黑麂四季都取食且在食物组成中所占比例较高的植物,分别为 17%、16.5%、9%、8.7%和 4.3%,是黑麂取食的主要食物。方差分析表明 :黑麂的主要食物及其主要种类都存在季节变化。夏秋季节,乔木植物在黑麂食物组成的比例低于冬春季节 ,而藤本植物和草本植物则相反,灌木植物变化较小;黑麂取食的五种主要食物中,其中三尖杉和光叶菝葜季节变化极显著,在冬季,三尖杉和光叶菝葜在食物组成比例中最高,达到 21.7%和 24 .3%;在夏季,它们在食物组成比例中下降到最低点,分别是 11.3%和 11.6%,但相对密度(RD)值仍保持最高序位 ;矩圆叶鼠刺和南五味子变化较平缓 ,基本变化趋势相同:冬春季节比例较高,夏秋季节比例有所下降;络石季节变化不明显;由于黑麂的食物组成中禾草类占的比例很小,说明黑麂更接近嫩食者     

兰州北山三种蜥蜴春季食性分析

兰州地区密点麻蜥、丽斑麻蜥和草原沙蜥的春季食物均为动物食物。无论在栖息地重叠地区还是非重叠地区,三种蜥蜴的食物种类在种间均无显著差异（Ｆ＝０．８６１,ｄｆＴ＝２,ｄｆＥ＝３６,Ｐ〉０．０５）。种内不同性别和年龄食性无显著差异。     

Nutrition of bison (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Bison bison</Emphasis>), camels (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Сamelus bactrianus</Emphasis>), and horses (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Equus caballus</Emphasis>) from their joint grazing on an isolated steppe pasture

The nutrition of free-ranging bison (Bison bison), domestic horses (Equus caballus), and camels (Camelus bactrianus) were investigated from their joint grazing on a forb-grass steppe pasture. The species composition of consumed plants, selectivity of food plants, and digestibility of plant forage were assessed. Species of the plants consumed and their share in the diet have been determined using microhistological analysis of feces. The plant food selectivity (FS) was estimated by the ratio of the share of plant species in the diet of animals to their portion in the plant community of the pasture. The digestibility is calculated by the ratio of inert (undigested) components (silicon, lignin) in the diet and feces. In summer (June), these characteristics were similar for horses and bison. Both species are typical animals consuming gramineous plants: the share of these plants in their diet is 81–83%, their selectivity of graminoids is equal (1.4), and the digestibility of food is similar (49–51%). Camels differed from bison and horses by all food characteristics: forbs (mainly ruderal annual Bassia sedoides (43%) and Atriplex tatarica (20%)) predominated at 86%; graminoids amounted to 14%. The food selectivity coefficient (FS) for forbs was 2.1, including 7.7 and 2.9 for Bassia and Atriplex, respectively. The digestibility coefficient (60%) was much higher for camels in comparison with bison and horses. Under joint grazing, species with different forage selectivity (horse–camel or bison–camel) affect the plant community of a pasture evenly and preserve its species diversity.     

Agricultural land use effects on the winter diet of Brown Hares (Lepus europaeus Pallas) in southern Sweden

The winter diet of the Brown Hare in relation to agricultural land use was studied in three different areas (pasture land; mixed farmland; monoculture land) in southern Sweden. Stomachs from Hares were collected during the hunting season (October-December). By microanalysis of epidermal structures, the plants eaten were determined as to species, genera or families. Altogether 37 plant species/genera were recognized, 20 of which were graminids and the other herbs. Grasses were most frequent at this time of the year and were highly utilized in pasture land and mixed farmland. Among cultivated plants, wheat was most frequent in mixed farmland (20-5^o_o) and in monoculture land (48-5%). Although widely represented in mixed farmland, rape was less utilized (12-2%), while it was highly utilized in the monoculture land (37-8%). Hares might possibly avoid rape food in the late autumn due to its content of glucosinulates. But in the absence of alternative food, rape will be more often utilized in monocultures. In all areas wild plants were preferred to cultivated crops, indicating the importance of a rich wild flora available to Hares. The results obtained suggest a way of improving the Hare's habitat.     

Microhabitat choice and diet of rodents in Maynugus irrigation field, northern Ethiopia

An ecological study on the choice of microhabitat and diet of small mammals was carried out in Maynugus irrigation field of the Tigray region in northern Ethiopia. Abundance of rodents was high during the reproductive phase of the agricultural plants. Mastomys erythroleucus occurred more frequently in vegetable fields, whereas Arvicanthis dembeensis was more frequent in habitats with monocot plants. Scrotal males and reproductive females consumed more food by weight than abdominal males and quiescent females. Arvicanthis dembeensis consumed more food than M. erythroleucus. Both the species consumed more food during the main rainy season. All the cultivated plants were attacked by these rodents with a degree of difference in relation to season, species, sex, age and sexual condition. As rodent attack was more intense during the fruiting phase of the plants, rodent control management should be carried out during the flowering phase.     

Famine food of vegetal origin consumed in the Netherlands during World War II

Background

Periods of extreme food shortages during war force people to eat food that they normally do not consider edible. The last time that countries in Western Europe experienced severe scarcities was during World War II. The so-called Dutch famine or Hunger Winter (1944–1945) made at least 25,000 victims. The Dutch government took action by opening soup kitchens and providing information on wild plants and other famine food sources in “wartime cookbooks.” The Dutch wartime diet has never been examined from an ethnobotanical perspective.

Methods

We interviewed 78 elderly Dutch citizens to verify what they remembered of the consumption of vegetal and fungal famine food during World War II by them and their close surroundings. We asked whether they experienced any adverse effects from consuming famine food plants and how they knew they were edible. We identified plant species mentioned during interviews by their local Dutch names and illustrated field guides and floras. We hypothesized that people living in rural areas consumed more wild species than urban people. A Welch t test was performed to verify whether the number of wild and cultivated species differed between urban and rural citizens.

Results

A total number of 38 emergency food species (14 cultivated and 21 wild plants, three wild fungi) were mentioned during interviews. Sugar beets, tulip bulbs, and potato peels were most frequently consumed. Regularly eaten wild species were common nettle, blackberry, and beechnuts. Almost one third of our interviewees explicitly described to have experienced extreme hunger during the war. People from rural areas listed significantly more wild species than urban people. The number of cultivated species consumed by both groups was similar. Negative effects were limited to sore throats and stomachache from the consumption of sugar beets and tulip bulbs. Knowledge on the edibility of famine food was obtained largely by oral transmission; few people remembered the written recipes in wartime cookbooks.

Conclusion

This research shows that 71 years after the Second World War, knowledge on famine food species, once crucial for people’s survival, is still present in the Dutch society. The information on famine food sources supplied by several institutions was not distributed widely. For the necessary revival of famine food knowledge during the 1940s, people needed to consult a small group of elders. Presumed toxicity was a major reason given by our participants to explain why they did not collect wild plants or mushrooms during the war.

     

鸟类传播种子对几种树篱中侵入植物多样性的影响

2001年4月至2003年11月,在南京中山植物园内调查了冬青卫矛(Euonymus japonicus)、日本珊瑚树(Viburnum awabuki)和溲疏(Deutzia scabra)3种树篱,以及位于不同生境的2个黄杨(Buxus microphyllavar.sinica)树篱中侵入生长的杂草及杂树种类,并选择3 km外南京农业大学实验楼周围的冬青卫茅树篱作为参照。在6个树篱类型中调查到侵入生长的种子植物共计1230株,分隶于42科57属70种植物。其中适应于鸟类传播的植物有55种1047株植物;适应于风力传播的植物有10种161株植物;传播媒介不明的植物有5种22株植物。各树篱类型中,适应于鸟类传播种子的侵入植物种类数目显著多于风力传播的植物种类(t=5.086,df=10,p<0.0001)和种子传播媒介不明的植物种类(t=8.446,df=10,p<0.0001),但各树篱中适应于风力传播的侵入植物与种子传播媒介不明的植物在种类数目上无显著差异(t=1.977,df=10,p=0.076)。南京中山植物园的5个树篱类型中,适应于鸟类传播的侵入植物物种多样性的Shannon-Wiener指数都较高,为2.151至2.917,平均2.671±0.306,并且种类数目也较多,为15~36种,平均25.6±8.1种。而南京农业大学内冬青卫茅树篱的物种多样性指数最低,为1.679,并且种类数目也最少,为12种。Bray-Curtis相似性指数的聚类分析结果显示,不同树篱类型中适应于鸟类传播种子的侵入植物组成的相似性主要受到树篱周围的种子源及其距离、食果鸟类、人为干扰活动等生境因子的影响,而非简单取决于树篱种类本身。鸟类传播种子增加了单一树种构成的树篱中的种子植物多样性,同时也对树篱的景观产生了一定的不利影响,不过人工对树篱的日常修剪等管护措施严格限制了这些侵入植物实生苗及小树的正常生长。研究结果反映出种子源、鸟类传播种子和灌丛在促进植物群落的发展和演替过程中具有重要的生态意义。     

Analysis of diet composition and overlap in four species of the genus Diplectrum (Perciformes: Serranidae) in the Mexican Central Pacific

Analysis of diet composition and overlap in four species of the genus Diplectrum (Perciformes: Serranidae) in the Mexican Central Pacific. The information of trophic interactions among species is essential to understand ecosystem function. To assess this in four Diplectrum species, we analyzed the stomach contents of 397 individuals caught using shrimp trawling nets off the coasts of Jalisco and Colima, Mexico. Main food component of D. eumelum were fish of the Order Pleuronectiformes, followed by shrimps (Metapenaeopsis spp). D. euryplectrum feeds mainly on crustaceans, with stomatopods (Squilla mantoidea) as main food items followed by shrimps and brachyurans. Fish and polychaetes had a low representation in the diet of this species. D. labarum feeds mainly on crustaceans, mollusks and fish. The stomatopod Eurysquilla veleronis contributed to with a high diet percentage by weight, followed by shrimps (mostly Solenoceraflorae) and brachyurans, as well as the squid Lolliguncula diomedae. Fishes (Ophidion spp.) were also an important component of the diet of this species. The most common preys of D. rostrum were crustaceans, mollusks, polychaetes and fish. The squid Lolliguncula diomedae and fishes of genus Ophidion were also well represented in the diet. Diet breadth index yielded significant differences between species. The number of diet items varied from 16 in D. euryplectrum to 6 in D. eumelum. The average value of overlap (0.247) was not significantly different (p = 0.118) from the expected one for a null model (0.174). The observed variance of the overlap index (0.071) was significantly higher (V = 0.025, p = 0.0004) than the value expected for a null model.     

Diverse diet compositions among harpaline ground beetle species revealed by mixing model analyses of stable isotope ratios

1. Species diversities of some insect lineages have been attributed to differentiation of feeding habits among species. Our objective was to determine variation in diet composition among harpaline ground beetle species occurring in a riverside grassland. 2. We examined the diet compositions of 14 species from six genera in the spring and 10 species from two genera in the autumn. We performed measurements of nitrogen and carbon stable isotope ratios in consumers and in their potential food items, and estimated relative contributions of different food items with two mixing models, IsoSource and MixSIR. 3. IsoSource and MixSIR software gave similar results, but IsoSource tended to calculate higher contributions of principal food items and smaller percentile ranges than MixSIR. Among harparine beetle species, there were diverse food utilisation patterns among four food categories (detritivorous invertebrates, herbivorous invertebrates, C3 plants, and C4 plants). Detritivores comprised the main diets of abundant harpaline species in the spring, whereas abundant harpaline species in the autumn were primarily herbivores feeding on C4 plants, or omnivores feeding on herbivorous invertebrates and C3 plants. Seasonal changes in food use were related to seasonal changes in the abundance of each food resource. 4. Mixing model analysis of stable isotope ratios is a convenient and effective method for roughly estimating diets of many species with diverse food habits (such as ground beetles). This method can contribute to determining the trophic relationships of related insects in one ecosystem.     

Plant functional traits reveal the relative contribution of habitat and food preferences to the diet of grasshoppers

Food preferences and food availability are two major determinants of the diet of generalist herbivores and of their spatial distribution. How do these factors interact and eventually lead to diet differentiation in co-occurring herbivores? We quantified the diet of four grasshopper species co-occurring in subalpine grasslands using DNA barcoding of the plants contained in the faeces of individuals sampled in the field. The food preferences of each grasshopper species were assessed by a choice (cafeteria) experiment from among 24 plant species common in five grassland plots, in which the four grasshoppers were collected, while the habitat was described by the relative abundance of plant species in the grassland plots. Plant species were characterised by their leaf economics spectrum (LES), quantifying their nutrient vs. structural tissue content. The grasshoppers’ diet, described by the mean LES of the plants eaten, could be explained by their plant preferences but not by the available plants in their habitat. The diet differed significantly across four grasshopper species pairs out of six, which validates food preferences assessed in standardised conditions as indicators for diet partitioning in nature. In contrast, variation of the functional diversity (FD) for LES in the diet was mostly correlated to the FD of the available plants in the habitat, suggesting that diet mixing depends on the environment and is not an intrinsic property of the grasshopper species. This study sheds light on the mechanisms determining the feeding niche of herbivores, showing that food preferences influence niche position whereas habitat diversity affects niche breadth.