Abstract
Recent theoretical models have considered how nutritional status and predation risk affect the decision by an individual to forage. We consider the feeding behaviour of a scavenger under risk of predation. The intertidal gastropod Nassarius dorsatus Röding was used to test the following hypotheses: (1) a damaged conspecific should be a less preferred meal than a damaged predator or another species; (2) a scavenger should be able to discriminate between a damaged conspecific in the presence and one in the absence of its predator, preferring the latter; and (3) the decision by a scavenger to feed should reflect a trade-off between nutritional status and the above preferences. Results from the laboratory and field were consistent with predictions. Two hypotheses are suggested from the work: scavengers may generally be less willing to feed on carcases of conspecifics than on those of other species, and intertidal scavengers may commonly face a relative or absolute shortage of food.
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McKillup, S.C., McKillup, R.V. The decision to feed by a scavenger in relation to the risks of predation and starvation. Oecologia 97, 41–48 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317907
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317907