Abstract
In the austral summers 1993/94 and 1994/95, 54 chicks ofC. antarctica lonnbergi, C. maccormicki, as well as mixed pairs of both forms, were ligatured in order to get quantitative results of food composition and consumption. In total, 2992 g food was obtained from Brown Skua chicks, 730 g from South Polar Skua chicks, and 214 g from mixed pair chicks. The food composition varied between the forms. For the two years investigated, there was no diet variation in the South Polar Skua and the mixed pairs. Brown Skua chicks received 80 % penguin components, including digested krill from penguin stomachs, and 12 % station garbage. Three percent were of marine origin. South Polar Skua chicks, in contrast, received 83–87 % fish, 3–13 % crustaceans, including krill, and no garbage. Mixed pair chicks got 73–80 % fish and 17–20 % penguin meat. The amount of food found in the ligatures differed for the three types of samples, being on average 9.5 g per control in the South Polar Skua, 11.9 g in the mixed pairs and 26.0 g in the Brown Skua. The maximum mass obtained in one control bout was 119 g in a Brown Skua chick. The average rates at which food was found in the ligature samples were 2.8 times per day for the South Polar Skua, 3.4 times per day for the Brown Skua and 1.3 times per day for the mixed pairs. There were neither diel differences in the number of feedings nor in the amount of food delivered. With increasing age, the chicks were fed higher amounts of food per feeding, but no correlation between chick age and number of feedings was found. The number of feedings per day, the amount of food per feeding and per day did not differ between twins of eight Brown Skua pairs. For the Brown Skua, no preference of certain internal organs of the penguin body as a food source was found.
Zusammenfassung
In den Südsommern 1993/94 und 1994/95 wurden 54 Küken zwei verschiedener Skuaformen mit Halsringen versehen, um das Nahrungsspektrum und die Fütterungsaktivität zu ermitteln. Insgesamt standen 2992 g Nahrungsproben der Braunen Skua, 730 g der Antarktikskua und 214 g von Mischpaaren zur Verfügung. Die Nahrungsspektren der drei Gruppen unterschieden sich voneinander, wiesen jedoch zwischen beiden Untersuchungsjahren keine Unterschiede auf. Die Küken der Braunen Skua erhielten 80 % Pinguinbestandteile, einschließlich Krill aus Pinguinmägen, 12 % Stationsabfälle, und 3 % marine Nahrung. Die Antarktikskuaküken erhielten 83–87 % Fisch und 3–13 % Krebstiere, Mischpaarküken 73–80 % Fisch und 17–20 % Pinguinfleisch. Die drei Gruppen unterschieden sich auch in ihrer durchschnittlichen Nahrungsmenge pro Fütterung: 9,5 g bei der Antarktikskua, 11,9 g bei den Mischpaaren und 26,0 g bei der Braunen Skua. Die maximal bei einer Kontrolle gefundene Menge lag bei 119 g bei einem Küken der Braunen Skua. Durchschnittlich wurden Antarktikskuaküken 2,8mal, Küken der Braunen Skua 3,4mal und Mischpaarküken 1,3mal pro Tag gefüttert. Weder in der Masse der aufgenommenen Futterportionen noch in der Häufigkeit der Fütterungen zeigten sich tageszeitliche Unterschiede. Die Küken der drei Skuaformen erhielten mit zunehmendem Alter mehr Futter pro Fütterung, jedoch stieg die Anzahl der Fütterungen mit dem Jungvogelalter nicht an. Geschwister in acht Paare der Braunen Skua zeigten in der Anzahl der Fütterungen pro Tag, in der Menge pro Fütterung und pro Tag keine Unterschiede. Pinguinfressende Braune Skuas scheinen keine bestimmten Körperteile oder Organe im Pinguinkörper zu bevorzugen.
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Reinhardt, K. Nahrung und Fütterung der Küken antarktischer RaubmöwenCatharacta antarctica lonnbergi undC. maccormicki . J Ornithol 138, 199–213 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01651623
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01651623