ZOOL 462A Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Anatinae, Atwater System, Diving Duck
Document Summary
All animals must meet their basic nutritional requirements. Nutrients the component of food that are capable of being utilized by animals: proteins, lipids, vitamins, minerals. Foraging ecology, a lot of variation within tribe but in general. Dendrcygnini inverts and plant foods (whistling ducks) Anatini inverts and plant foods (dabbling ducks) Aythyini inverts and plant foods (diving ducks) Anatini (dabble) feed in < 25cm deep. Mallard more emergent veg lamellae farther apart. Pintails more open water veg edge lamellae slightly close. Gadwall and wigeion feed in deeper water submergent veg. Collect feeding birds or gizzard from harvested birds and determine content of digestive tract: moist soil seeds primary food for ducks except during breeding, problem because different food items get ground up more quickly than others. 4 factors: digestibility of the food fraction of the food being metabolized vs leaving the digestive tract, efficiency of metabolism, nutrient concentration in the food, rate of food intake.
