Premium food for offspring? Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) diet during breeding season in eastern Canada

Canadian Journal of Zoology, Ahead of Print. Knowledge on the diet of the Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus Swainson, 1832) is fragmentary and relies on a limited number of studies. Gaps remain in our understanding of the plasticity of its diet, particularly in the eastern part of its range. The main objective of this study was to assess the diet of Black-backed Woodpeckers in burned and unburned habitats and among sexes and ages in Qu ébec. We collected feces and fecal bags from unburned and burned habitats in the Central Laurentians ecoregion of the eastern boreal shield ecozone and assessed diets based on identified prey items. Buprestidae and Cerambycidae of the sub-family Lamiinae were the predominant prey for adult Black-ba cked Woodpeckers in burned habitats, and the Pythidae Pytho niger (Kirby, 1837) and Lamiinae were the most prevalent prey in unburned habitats. Lamiinae were the most predominant prey items provisioned to nestling in burned habitat, while P. niger was their predominant food in unburned habitat, foll owed by Cerambycidae (without Lamiinae) and Lamiinae. Our results present new insights into Black-backed Woodpecker diet where parents feed their offspring with the largest prey available, potentially providing higher fitness for their offspring. Furthermore, our study confirms that Black-backed Woo dpeckers, at least in the eastern part of its range, are not restricted to feed on Lamiinae but are rather opportunistic in taking advantage from re...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - Category: Zoology Authors: Source Type: research