Post-mortem examinations of New Zealand birds. 2. Long-tailed cuckoos (Eudynamys taitensis,Aves: Cuculinae)*

Little is known about the biology of long-tailed cuckoos (Eudynamys taitensis). In this study, 79 dead cuckoos, mostly from the wider Auckland region, New Zealand, were examined and dissected to shed light on the sex ratio, morphology, breeding season and diet. There were no statistically significant sexual differences in the means for weight or body measurements. However, immature birds had significantly shorter bill, wing and tail lengths than adults. In adults, gonads were enlarged (for breeding) from October to January, while all cuckoos identified (from plumage) as immatures had small gonads. Of 888 food items identified from 62 gizzards, 94% were insects. The main foods were cicadas and shield-bugs (Hemiptera, 48% of food items), stick-insects (Phasmatodea, 19%) and wētās and katydids (Orthoptera, 13%). Small vertebrates (lizards and birds’ eggs and nestlings) were a minor dietary element (1% of food items; 13% of stomachs). Cicadas, stick-insects and praying mantids (large insects abundant in late summer) made up 57% of the immature diet; in adults these three categories made up just 13% of food items. Immatures leave New Zealand on migration several months after adults, and this delay in late summer and autumn coincides with an opportunity to exploit a seasonal abundance of large insects.     

Analysis of the diet of Natterer's bat Myotis nattereri and the common long-eared bat Plecotus auritus in the West of Ireland

The diets of Natterer's bat Myotis nattereri and the common long-eared bat Plecotus auritus were investigated at a nursery colony of each species by analysis of droppings collected monthly from May to September. Respectively, 68% and 42% of the diets comprised items presumed to have been gleaned from foliage or other surfaces: diurnal insects, insects which rarely fly, and non-flying arthropods. Such surfaces included the ground: centipedes were eaten by both bats, and the muscid, Scatophaga stercoraria , usually associated with cattle dung, was a common prey. Indeed, the prevalence of cattle-farming around both of the bat roosts almost certainly contributed indirectly, in the form of S. stercoraria , to a significant part of the Diptera consumed. The chief food of M. nattereri was the larger Diptera, but Trichoptera, Hymenoptera and Arachnida were also important. Lepidoptera, Coleoptera and Hemiptera were minor prey, with Dermaptera and Chilopoda taken occasionally. Diptera, closely followed by Lepidoptera, together accounted for nearly two-thirds of the diet of P. auritus. Also taken, in descending order of importance, were Trichoptera, Arachnida, Chilopoda, Coleoptera, Dermaptera, Hymenoptera and Hemiptera. Plecotus auritus , but not M. nattereri , was evidently able to take a few small insects such as aphids and lesser nematoceran Diptera.     

Feeding of introduced species of Cichla (Perciformes, Cichlidae) in Volta Grande reservoir, River Grande (MG/SP).

Both species studied, Cichla cf. ocellaris and Cichla monoculus, fed mainly on fish, the first on Cichla spp., Plagioscion squamosissimus, and Tilapia rendalli, and the second, Cichla monoculus, on Cichla spp. Both diets indicated a strong correlation among the food items. Remarkable ontogenetic change was noted in both species diet: the young fed on crustaceans and insects while the adults fed mainly on fishes. The species studied, which are highly adapted to a brief life span, cause serious damage to the fish communities by predation, competition, and cascade effects throughout the whole trophic chain.     

Diet and trophic groups of an aquatic insect community in a tropical stream.

The diet and trophic groups of an assemblage of aquatic insects were studied in a tropical stream. Genera of the orders Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Plecoptera, Lepidoptera, and Hemiptera showed feeding specialization. Others, such as Trichoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera, showed great diet variation with genera of different trophic groups. Seasonal variation of insect diet, evident only for some genera of the orders Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera, was due to the differences observed in community composition and to generalist habits of these genera. However, the seasonal comparison of trophic groups showed no significant statistical differences. The great importance of organic matter, a non-limited resource, in the diet of Ribeir?o do Atalho aquatic insects may be the explanation for the trophic stability in this community organization.     

昆明滇蛙的取食策略

目前国内研究两栖类食性选择或偏好多未考虑蛙胃内不同食物的丰盈程度与栖境不同食物资源是否存在相关性.在分析了采自昆明白龙寺和昆明石林西街口的494只滇蛙(Rana pleuraden)的食性的同时,分析了采自对应栖境中的食物资源组成.结果表明,滇蛙的食物成份与食物资源相具有稳定性,主要类群均为直翅目、同翅目、半翅目、鞘翅目、双翅目、鳞翅目、膜翅目和蛛形纲等8类.但又存在变异性,不同产地、不同年份和不同月份之间的蛙标本胃内的食物成分各类群的比例均不相同.主要食物成份与食物资源相的差异显著性分析、相关性分析和选择性分析等方面的结果均支持或证明:滇蛙对食物具有选择性或取食偏好.栖境的食物资源相与蛙胃内的食物成分不存在相关性(白龙寺:r=0.077,P=0.575;西街口:r=-0.086,P=0.500).直翅目(Ei＜-0.35)和同翅目(Ei＜-0.37)昆虫是滇蛙取食时回避的食物,而对鞘翅目、鳞翅目、膜翅目和蛛形纲等4个类群(Ei＞0.45)具有明显偏好.     

The feeding behaviour of caterpillars (Manduca sexta) on tobacco and on artificial diet

ABSTRACT. Feeding behaviour of fifth instar tobacco hornworm caterpillars, Manduca sexta (Johansen) (Lepidoptera; Sphingidae), eating tobacco or artificial diet, is quantitatively described. The insects grow at the same rate on both foods. There is no daily rhythm of feeding behaviour. For most insects, feeding on either food occurs in bouts with the lengths of interfeed gaps and of feeding bouts appearing to be distributed randomly. However, in many insects there is a strong correlation between the length of a feeding period and that of the preceding non-feeding period.
The proportion of time spent feeding on tobacco is much greater than on artificial diet. On tobacco, feeding periods are separated by shorter interfeed gaps than on the artificial diet, while the rate of bout initiation is similar on either food.
On both tobacco and artificial diet, the proportion of time spent feeding increases as the fifth stadium proceeds. This is due to both longer feeding bouts and shorter gaps. The rate of food acquisition within bouts does not change during the stadium.     

湖北后河自然保护区果子狸食物组成初步研究

2005年4~10月在湖北后河自然保护区,采集果子狸(Paguma larvata)粪便,应用频次法进行分析,再结合胃内容物分析,同时根据采食痕迹,对该物种春、夏和秋季的食物组成进行了研究。结果表明,果子狸食物组分以水果类植物(37·5%)、节肢动物(25·2%)为主,其次为非水果类植物(9·9%)和小型哺乳动物(7·1%)等。果子狸食物组成在不同的季节间有一定差异。春季,果子狸食物组成中以节肢动物(35·6%)为主,其次是非水果类植物(26·7%)和小型哺乳动物(15·6%),另外还有少量的软体动物(4·4%)和水果类植物(8·9%);夏季,果子狸食物组成转为以水果类植物(39·8%)和节肢动物(29·2%)为主,此外还有少量非水果类植物(2·7%)和小型哺乳动物(5·3%),以及少量鸟类(0·9%);秋季,果子狸食物组分中含有大量的水果类植物(63·9%),其他食物类别比例很小,包括鸟类(1·0%)、小型哺乳动物(0·6%)和爬行动物(0·4%)等。食物多样性指数显示,随着季节变化,果子狸食物多样性逐渐下降,小型哺乳动物和非水果类植物在其食性组成中逐渐下降,而水果类植物则转为最主要食物。     

Feeding habits of the Chinese minnow Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (Sauvage & Dabry de Thiersant, 1874) from the upper Yangtze River,China

The feeding habits of the Chinese minnow, Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (Sauvage & Dabry de Thiersant, 1874), were investigated in the Laohegou River, a tributary of the upper Yangtze River, China. A total of 412 specimens were collected by electrofishing in four seasons of 2012, 7 days per season. Diet composition was analyzed according to season, size classes and sex. The Chinese minnow is a generalist omnivorous species, whose diet consists of aquatic insects and plants. Besides algae, Hemiptera, Ephemerida, Trichoptera, Odonata, Diptera were the most dominat food items. The Shannon‐Wiener index on diet items showed no significant differences between major food items (p > .05) or between seasons, size classes and sexes. In contrast, fullness index and dietary breadth analysis both indicated significant diet changes between seasons. Consequently, this study provides information on feeding habits of R. oxycephalus, which may be useful in cultivation trials.     

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.     

Diet of the Marsupial Micoureus demerarae in Small Fragments of Atlantic Forest in Southeastern Brazil

The diet of the marsupial Micoureus demerarae was studied from fecal samples obtained from live-trapping in Atlantic Coastal Forest fragments at Poço das Antas Biological Reserve, southeastern Brazil, from 1995 to 1997. Among arthropods, the most frequent food items belonged to the orders Coleoptera and Hymenoptera, whereas Arachnida, Orthoptera, Hemiptera and Lepidoptera were also frequent. Lepidoptera and Diptera were represented mostly by larvae and pupae. Crustaceans of the orders Copepoda and Isopoda were also found. Plants were represented by seeds of species from secondary vegetation, mostly belonging to the families Piperaceae, Moraceae and Cecropiaceae, which should reflect frugivory. Predominance of arthropods in the diet was consistent with previous studies. Diet composition was remarkably constant among fragments, sexes, age classes, breeding versus non-breeding seasons, and climatic categories (dry versus humid months). The only significant difference was that diversity of arthropods was higher in the non-breeding than in the breeding season, but this was likely to be due to sampling effects. Given the natural abundances of the food items, the constancy of the diet is likely to reflect opportunism rather than food 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.     

The characteristics of feeding of Diaphus theta (Myctophidae) in the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean in the Summer-Autumn period

The feeding of Diaphus theta in the zone of the subarctic front and in Pacific waters off the Kuril Islands in November 2001 and in July–August 2002 was studied. Interzonal plankton [euphausiids (mainly Euphausia pacifica), copepods (Metridia pacifica), and amphipods (Themisto pacifica)] dominated in the food bolus. As fish grow, the proportion of copepods decreases, the proportion of euphausiids and amphipods increases in stomachs, and the food spectrum extends. One considerable peak in the feeding (in both the summer and autumn periods) occurring in the nighttime was revealed. The most intensive feeding takes place in the dark time of the day in the epipelagial due to euphausiids and amphipods; in the light time of the day, the feeding activity declines. Fish feed mainly on copepods in the upper pelagial. The daily ration of D. theta was 1.5% of the weight of fish in the summer period and 3.2% in the autumn period.     

Diet of sympatrically breeding Southern Carmine Bee-eater Merops nubicoides and White-fronted Bee-eater Merops bullockoides

The Southern Carmine Bee-eater Merops nubicoides and White-fronted Bee-eater Merops bullockoides are insectivore, cavity-nesting bird species, both of which occur in the Zambezi Region, north-eastern Namibia. I examined there the diet composition of these species by an analysis of prey remnants. The Southern Carmine Bee-eater chick's diet consisted of exclusively insects, represented by seven orders. The most numerous were orthopterans and beetles (40.9% and 26.1%, respectively; n = 582 prey items). Hymenopterans (18.7%) and bugs (12.9%) supplemented the diet, whereas dragonflies (Odonata) and moths (Lepidoptera) were preyed only occasionally. In the diet of the White-fronted Bee-eater, nesting at the same site, beetles were the most important prey (81.2% of all 101 prey items identified), with scarabaeids comprising more than half of the beetle diet. In comparison with the White-fronted Bee-eater, a lower proportion of beetles, but much larger proportion of orthopterans were recorded in the diet of the Southern Carmine Bee-eater. In both bee-eater species, hymenopterans appear to be less important than was expected. The essential difference in the proportion of main prey groups recorded in Southern Carmine and White-fronted Bee-eaters breeding at the same site may represent a shift in food niche due to both temporal segregation in breeding, and differences in food preferences (feeding sites).     

Food habits of northern (Eptesicus nilssoni) and brown long-eared (Plecotus auritus) bats in Sweden

Food habits of sympatric northern and brown long-eared bats were examined by analysis of droppings collected in six maternity roosts of each species. Relatively large, nocturnal flying insects such as moths (Lepidoptera), June-beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), crane-flies (Diptera: Tipulidae) and caddis-flies (Trichoptera), were eaten by both bat species, representing 47% (by volume) of the northern and 57% of the long-eared bat's diet. Small dipterans were important food items for the northern bat (47% of the diet) but not for the long-eared bat, which instead consumed large amounts of diurnal or predominantly non-flying taxa such as blow-flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae), earwigs (Dermaptera), spiders (Araneae) and harvestmen (Opiliones) (40% of the diet). The difference in food selection by the two species is probably due to the different foraging strategies used.     

数学形态学在昆虫分类学上的应用研究.Ⅰ.在目级阶元上的应用研究

根据昆虫图像,对半翅目（Hemiptera）、鳞翅目（Lepidoptera）、鞘翅目（Coleoptera）的34种昆虫提取形状参数、叶状性、球状性等7项数学形态特征进行了统计分析,从而论证了各项数学形态特征在目级昆虫分类阶元上作为分类特征的可行性和可靠性,并从数学形态学角度对所涉及到的同阶元昆虫类群的亲缘关系做了描述。结果表明,在作为目级阶元分类特征时,各项特征的可靠性依次为：(似圆度、偏心率、亮斑数)＞(叶状性、球状性、圆形性)＞形状参数。由这些特征的差异显著性可知,从数学形态特征角度讲,3个目的亲缘关系远近大小依次为：半翅目与鞘翅目＞半翅目与鳞翅目＞鳞翅目与鞘翅目。     

Diet and feeding behavior of Rhinopithecus brelichi at Yangaoping, Guizhou

Expectations of increases in human population growth and accelerated habitat loss, along with the realization that efforts to provide protection for ecosystems that sustain primates have met with limited success, make it critical that conservation plans are grounded firmly in scientific observation. Studies of the diet breadth and feeding behavior of endangered species, therefore, are critical for understanding ecological adaptations and developing a conservation strategy. The diet and feeding ecology of gray snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus brelichi) were studied in the Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve, Guizhou, China. The monkeys were found to consume 107 different species of trees, shrubs, and ground plants from 58 genera and 28 families. Food items included young leaves, mature leaves, flowers, fruits/seeds, buds, and insects. Among these food items, there were at least 13 evergreen species of tree and liana, 3 species of grasses, and at least 2 kinds of invertebrates collected from decayed wood. Diet varied markedly throughout different seasons. Overall, diet composition (based on feeding records) was 15.3% buds, 25.5% young leaves, 21.8% mature leaves, 9.4% flowers, 21.6% fruits/seeds, and 6.3% other items. The monkeys feed mainly on young leaves and flowers in spring, unripe fruits/seeds and young leaves in summer, ripe fruits/seeds in autumn, and mature leaves and buds in winter. We propose that when inhabiting forests of lower elevation and greater vegetation complexity, R. brelichi is characterized by expanded diet breadth and includes a greater diversity of food types and plant species in its diet. One food type that appears critical to the diet of this species, especially during the winter, are the buds of Magnolia sprengeri. To protect this resource we advocate working with local communities to limit the collection of M. sprengeri, which is used in traditional Chinese medicine and has high economic value for people in the reserve.     

Diet composition of chub,Squalius cephalus (Teleostei: Cyprinidae), in Lake Tödürge,Sivas, Turkey

Digestive tract contents of 241 specimens captured between March 1998 and November 1999 were analysed using both qualitative and quantitative methods to determine diet composition and feeding habits of Squalius cephalus (L., 1758) inhabiting Lake Tödürge, Turkey. Ages ranged from I to VI years; 60.6% of the fish were females, 39.4% males. The chub population appeared to consume a wide range of food items such as phytoplankton, zooplankton, nematodes, insects, fish, macrophytes, plant and animal detritus, whereby zooplankton (69.2%) predominated. Although individuals in the age I group preferred plankton (phytoplankton frequently; zooplankton infrequently), the older specimens (age groups IV, V and VI) behaved mostly as carnivores but also consumed some macrophytes. While there were no significant differences between diet compositions of males and females, seasonal changes were observed in frequency of occurrence, quality and quantity of consumption, and feeding activity. The chub specimens fed most heavily during spring (the pre‐spawning period: March, April and May). Highest food volume (13.0 cm³) consumed was in May and the lowest in September (2.0 cm³) while also being correlated with temperature. All of the food items were found in the digestive tract (82.1% of the specimens examined over all seasons). Highest fullness (84.9%) was reached in autumn and the lowest during summer (79.8%).     

Exotic sturgeons in the Vistula Lagoon in 2011, their occurrence,diet and parasites,with notes on the fishery background

The Siberian sturgeon Acipenser baerii and the sterlet Acipenser ruthenus were recorded for the first time in the Vistula Lagoon in 2011. Among 66 sturgeons collected between April and December 2011, the Siberian sturgeon was the most numerous species (77%); however, a significant seasonal variability was observed, with sterlet dominating in the catches in late autumn of the same year. The stomach contents of the two species differed widely: Siberian sturgeon (14.9–42.2 cm standard length, SL) fed on crustaceans (Cercopagis pengoi, Oithona sp., Neomysis integer) (10.7% IRI), larvae and pupas of insects (Chaoborus sp., Chironomus sp., Polypedilum sp., Procladius sp., Culex sp.) (88.9% IRI) and fishes (Neogobius melanostomus, Osmerus eperlanus) (0.5% IRI), whereas sterlet (24.0–34.4 cm SL) consumed crustaceans (N. integer) (64.3% IRI), larvae of insects (Chironomus sp., Polypedilum sp.) (20.3% IRI) and fish (N. melanostomus) (15.4% IRI). Single Siberian sturgeon (4.3%) were found to harbour the parasitic nematode (Raphidascaris acus).     

Resource partitioning of roach Rutilus rutilus and bleak Alburnus alburnus in two eutrophic lakes in SE Norway

In this paper I investigate the resource partitioning of roach Rutilus rutilus and bleak Alburnus alburnus in two eutrophic lakes in SE Norway. Zooplankton was the preferred food item for both species during summer, whereas blue-green algae dominated the diet in September/October. There was no diet overlap in May, with the roach feeding mainly on detritus and the bleak feeding on surface insects. During summer the diet overlap increased, reaching high values in autumn. Habitat overlap was close to unity in spring and early summer. Coinciding with increasing diet overlap during summer and autumn the overlap in habitat decreased.     

Feeding of Oligosarcus hepsetus (Cuvier, 1829) (Characiformes) in the Serra do Mar State Park--Santa Virgínia Unit, S?o Paulo, Brazil.

We describe the diet of Oligosarcus hepsetus, in the Santa Virgínia Unit of the Serra do Mar State Park. The Paraibuna and Grande rivers in the basin of the Paraíba do Sul River were sampled monthly from January to December 2004. The Alimentary Preference Degree and the frequency of occurrence indices were used to analyze the food items. The diets of Oligosarcus hepsetus in the two localities sampled were very similar, and reinforced the importance of the streamside forests in establishing and maintaining biotic and abiotic conditions in these environments. The species had a carnivorous diet that differed with ontogeny: smaller individuals were principally insectivorous and larger ones ichthyophagous.