Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds
Abstract Knowledge of feeding ecology of declining species, such as farmland birds, is essential to address their conservation requirements, especially when their habitats are suffering important reductions of trophic resources. In this study, we apply a metabarcoding approach to describe the diet c...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-00519-9 |
| _version_ | 1818738332111208448 |
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| author | Xabier Cabodevilla François Mougeot Gerard Bota Santi Mañosa Francesc Cuscó Julen Martínez-García Beatriz Arroyo María J. Madeira |
| author_facet | Xabier Cabodevilla François Mougeot Gerard Bota Santi Mañosa Francesc Cuscó Julen Martínez-García Beatriz Arroyo María J. Madeira |
| author_sort | Xabier Cabodevilla |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Knowledge of feeding ecology of declining species, such as farmland birds, is essential to address their conservation requirements, especially when their habitats are suffering important reductions of trophic resources. In this study, we apply a metabarcoding approach to describe the diet composition of six of the most significant farmland birds inhabiting European cereal pseudo-steppes: little bustard, great bustard, pin-tailed sandgrouse, black-bellied sandgrouse, red-legged partridge, and common quail. We further studied seasonal diet variations (autumn to spring) in all species but the common quail, whose diet was studied during spring and summer. We show that study species´ diets mostly consisted of plants, although in the case of little bustard and great bustard arthropods are also highly relevant. Among arthropods, we found high proportions of thrips, arachnids, and springtails, which were previously unreported in their diet, and some taxa that could be used as antiparasitic food. Moreover, we report that little bustard’s diet is the least rich of that of all studied species, and that diet of all these species is less diverse in winter than in autumn and spring. Diet composition of these declining species supports the importance of natural and semi-natural vegetation and landscape mosaics that can provide a wide variety of arthropods, plants, and seeds all year-round. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T01:07:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f890896b6b244fc48502cda4b330dcff |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T01:07:15Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-f890896b6b244fc48502cda4b330dcff2022-12-21T21:26:12ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222021-10-0111111310.1038/s41598-021-00519-9Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birdsXabier Cabodevilla0François Mougeot1Gerard Bota2Santi Mañosa3Francesc Cuscó4Julen Martínez-García5Beatriz Arroyo6María J. Madeira7Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) (CSIC-UCLM-JCCM)Landscape Dynamics and Biodiversity Programme, Forest Science and Technology Center of Catalonia (CTFC)Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia I Ciències Ambientals, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de BarcelonaDepartament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia I Ciències Ambientals, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de BarcelonaDepartment of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) (CSIC-UCLM-JCCM)Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)Abstract Knowledge of feeding ecology of declining species, such as farmland birds, is essential to address their conservation requirements, especially when their habitats are suffering important reductions of trophic resources. In this study, we apply a metabarcoding approach to describe the diet composition of six of the most significant farmland birds inhabiting European cereal pseudo-steppes: little bustard, great bustard, pin-tailed sandgrouse, black-bellied sandgrouse, red-legged partridge, and common quail. We further studied seasonal diet variations (autumn to spring) in all species but the common quail, whose diet was studied during spring and summer. We show that study species´ diets mostly consisted of plants, although in the case of little bustard and great bustard arthropods are also highly relevant. Among arthropods, we found high proportions of thrips, arachnids, and springtails, which were previously unreported in their diet, and some taxa that could be used as antiparasitic food. Moreover, we report that little bustard’s diet is the least rich of that of all studied species, and that diet of all these species is less diverse in winter than in autumn and spring. Diet composition of these declining species supports the importance of natural and semi-natural vegetation and landscape mosaics that can provide a wide variety of arthropods, plants, and seeds all year-round.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-00519-9 |
| spellingShingle | Xabier Cabodevilla François Mougeot Gerard Bota Santi Mañosa Francesc Cuscó Julen Martínez-García Beatriz Arroyo María J. Madeira Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds Scientific Reports |
| title | Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| title_full | Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| title_fullStr | Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| title_full_unstemmed | Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| title_short | Metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| title_sort | metabarcoding insights into the diet and trophic diversity of six declining farmland birds |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-00519-9 |
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