The nestling diet of fairy pitta pitta nympha on Jeju Island, Korea

Eun-Mi Kim, Chan-Ryul Park, Chang-Wan Kang, Se-Jae Kim

Department of Biology, Jeju National University, Jeju, Korea.
The Korea Association for Bird Protection Jeju Branch, Seogwipo, Korea.
Warm-temperate Forest Research Center, Korea Forest Research Institute, Seogwipo, Korea.
Warm-temperate Forest Research Center, Korea Forest Research Institute, Seogwipo, Korea;Division of Forest Ecology, Korea Forest Research Institute, Seoul, Korea.

DOI: 10.4236/oje.2012.24021                

Abstract

The nestling diet of the Fairy Pitta (pitta nympha) was studied by videotaping during breeding period in Jeju Island, 2009. Earthworms of several species were the most common food resources for nestlings, averaging 82% of all items, followed by 4% of Homoptera larvae. The remaining was only rarely recorded, including Lepidopteran larvae and adults, slugs, spiders, beetle adults and larvae (Coleoptera) and grasshoppers. Adults provided the number of preys ranging from 1 to 7 items to chicks per one visit. The average value of prey number per visit was 3.0 (SD = 1.38). The estimated average length of prey was 5.7 cm (SD = 2.85), and 96% of the food items were smaller than 10 cm. The staying time for feeding in an early stage was longer than other stages. Provision rate at a forenoon (mean ± SD, 14.7 ± 4.92) and an afternoon time (15.8 ± 5.30) was not significantly higher than that of noon time (11.7 ± 4.49). These results provide basic information for conservation action of international endangered species of this species.

Keywords

Earthworm; Prey Availability; Prey Size; Rainfalls; Videotaping

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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