Feeding Ecology of a Parrot Assemblage in the Brazilian Cerrado

Abstract

In this study, during two years, I documented the feeding habits of a parrot assemblage in response to food resources offer (abundance, nº of food species, and diversity), across a habitat mosaic in the Brazilian Cerrado. In addition, to each parrot species, I compared variations in those parameters across seasons, as well as in the feeding niche breadth. The feeding activity of every parrot species paralleled both food abundance and the number of food species available. In fact, despite fluctuations, food abundance, the number of food species, and diversity exhibited similar values through seasons, suggesting a trend for adequate food supply across the three major habitat types (palm swamp, gallery forest, and the dominant Cerrado vegetation). Excepting Orthopsittaca manilata (foraged only on Mauritia flexuosa fruit pulp), all other five species (Ara ararauna, Amazona aestiva, Alipiopsitta xanthops, Eupsittula aurea, and Diopsittaca nobilis) showed wide feeding niche breadth. Their broad diets resulted from the opportunist use of a rich collection of seasonal food species. Moreover, they presented diet association according to plant part eaten, in which parrot’s diet displayed a gradient that had an increasingly greater dominance of seeds (A. ararauna, A. aestiva, and A. aurea), to a diet composed mainly by fruit pulp and flowers (A. xanthops, and D. nobilis). The accelerated fragmentation process of the Brazilian Cerrado has been suppressing habitat types in which unpredictable and scattered food patches might be available to parrots. Thus, conservation plans should prioritize the inclusion of habitat mosaics, at least, in the form documented here. As a concern, in the smaller Cerrado remnants, food resources available may be scarce, mainly in terms of the variety and abundance year-round required by parrots.

Revealing new insights into Red‐bellied Macaw foraging ecology through citizen photography

“…The citizen photography analysis conducted here allowed us to examine the foraging of the Red‐bellied Macaw on a considerable geographic scale, particularly across the Cerrado and Amazon biomes. We confirm that this macaw substantially forages ripe pulp fruits of M. flexuosa palm trees in multiple locations (Table S1), aligning with previous studies (Bonadie & Bacon, 2000; Matsufuji et al., 2021; Munn, 1988; Ragusa‐Netto, 2022; Roth, 1984; Silva & Melo, 2015). Furthermore, Red‐bellied Macaws have adapted to different palm trees to meet their specific dietary needs based on ripe pulp (Table 1 and Table S1), distinguishing them from seed‐reliant macaw species (Matuzak et al., 2008; Renton et al., 2015).…”

“…They inhabit Neotropical flooded and swamp ecosystems mono‐dominated by Buriti palm Mauritia flexuosa L.f.—called ‘buritizais’ or ‘veredas’—chiefly within Brazilian Amazon and Cerrado biomes (Forshaw, 2006; Juniper & Parr, 1998). Previous studies have shown that Red‐bellied Macaw heavily relies on ripe fruit pulp from M. flexuosa (see Figure 1a) as a food source (Matsufuji et al., 2021; Munn, 1988; Ragusa‐Netto, 2022; Roth, 1984; Silva & Melo, 2015). Their population density and seasonal movements are closely linked to M. flexuosa fruit ripening, often forming large flocks and extended feeding times (Bonadie & Bacon, 2000; Hosein et al., 2017; Karubian et al., 2005; Silva & Melo, 2015; Villalobos & Bagno, 2012).…”

Feeding ecology of the Red-and-green Macaw (Ara chloropterus; Gray 1859) in a habitat mosaic from Cerrado

“…Ara (Lacépède, 1799) macaws are generalist feeders (Collar et al, 2020), although they often feed on some abundant seed types for extended periods (Matuzak et al;Santos and Ragusa-Netto, 2014;de la Parra-Martinez et al, 2019). Regardless, these large parrots typically have diets dominated by large seeds (Matuzak et al, 2008;Lee et al, 2014, de la Parra-Martinez et al, 2019Ragusa-Netto, 2022). Indeed, macaws generally have a moderate diet breadth, consisting of a limited set of prolonged available foods while consuming small amounts of other items (Matuzak et al, 2008;Contreras-González et al, 2009;Lee et al, 2014).…”

“…Indeed, macaws generally have a moderate diet breadth, consisting of a limited set of prolonged available foods while consuming small amounts of other items (Matuzak et al, 2008;Contreras-González et al, 2009;Lee et al, 2014). Due to spatiotemporal fluctuations in resource availability, Ara macaws regularly move over large areas, searching for suitable food patches (Haugaasen and Peres, 2007;Ragusa-Netto, 2006, 2022. Despite this, many macaw species have declined due to the increasing rarity of their main foods (Berg et al, 2007).…”

A food interaction network between psittacines and plants in an urban area in the city of São Carlos – SP, southeastern Brazil

“…Despite being considered mainly frugivorous, psittacines may not act as seed dispersers, as they commonly act as seed predators (Higgins, 1979;Galetti and Rodrigues, 1992;Francisco et al, 2002;Silva, 2005;Silva, 2007;Galetti et al, 2013). Considering that these birds tend to feed mainly on fruits while still being on the mother plant, they have been recognized as pre-dispersal seed predators (Francisco et al, 2002;Ragusa-Netto, 2014, 2022, with the possibility of influencing the recruitment of plant species with which they interact (Silva, 2007;Blanco et al, 2018).…”