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Food of the zebra finch (Poephila guttata) , and an examination of granivory in birds of the Australian arid zone

1983; Wiley; Volume: 8; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/j.1442-9993.1983.tb01321.x

0307-692X

SR Morton, P. H. DAVIES,

Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies

Abstract Birds are important granivores in the Australian arid zone, and this paper reviews their role by assembling available data on diet and habitat selection of the granivorous species occurring in the region. Paucity of dietary information is alleviated by a study of the food of the zebra finch (Poephila guttata) at two sites in the eastern arid zone. Zebra finches subsisted entirely on grass seeds of a relatively narrow specific range; 17 classes of seeds (at least 19 species) were eaten, but one class dominated the diet at each study site and only five classes (probably six species) were significant overall. Comparative information concerning granivorous species‐ suggested that the seeds of grasses and shrubs are of most importance in diets, that larger species tended to eat larger seeds from a wider variety of plants because of the addition of shrub species to the diet, and that Acacia shrublands contained most species. Characteristics of the arid zone that are of particular importance to granivorous birds appear to be the abundance of grasses and the patchy and erratic nature of the rainfall.