Preliminary study on the feeding habits of roe deer (<i>Capreolus capreolus</i>) in the western Alps

Mussa, Pier Paolo; Aceto, P.; Abba, C.; Sterpone, L.; Meineri, Giorgia

doi:10.1046/j.1439-0396.2003.00421.x

Cited by 15 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Thus, the heavy use of grasses may be related to the absence of other resources at high altitude. Percentages of graminoids in the diet up to 15-30% have been reported for the roe deer (Tixier & Duncan, 1996;Cornelis et al, 1999), and in our study area Mussa et al (2001) found 16-26% of graminoids.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Food–niche relationships within a guild of alpine ungulates including an introduced species

2008

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To assess competition for trophic resources within a guild of ungulates, we studied the food niches of sympatric ungulates in an alpine area of the Italian Western Alps and evaluated the extent of their dietary overlap, especially with regard to the presence of the introduced mouflon Ovis musimon. The roe deer Capreolus capreolus had the most diverse diet including dicotyledons, young sprouts of trees and an unusually high percentage of graminoids. The red deer Cervus elaphus and chamois Rupicapra rupricapra mainly consumed graminoids, supplemented with dicotyledonous herbs and woody plants. The mouflon was a grass feeder, with graminoids representing the majority of items ingested in all seasons. Among the native species, we recorded a high overlap of feeding choices between red deer and chamois, which frequently used the same areas and are both intermediate feeders.The mouflon showed considerable dietary overlap with the chamois and red deer in all seasons, while the similarity with roe deer was low. High food-niche overlap can imply competition but only if resources are limited and the species use the same habitats.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Food–niche relationships within a guild of alpine ungulates including an introduced species

2008

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“…However, only little is known about the ecology, including the feeding ecology, of roe deer in Mediterranean environments (Linnell et al 1998). Most studies on their diet refer to mountain areas where summer conditions are less severe (Grigorov 1976;Fandos et al 1987; Bartolomé et al 2002;Mussa et al 2003), whereas studies from the lower altitudes were based on small sample sizes (Fandos et al 1987) or on a newly introduced population (Guilhem et al 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Local and seasonal variations of roe deer diet in relation to food resource availability in a Mediterranean environment

Minder

2011

Eur J Wildl Res

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Feeding behaviour patterns of European roe deer are well known but not in their southern range, where in contrast to Central and northern Europe the climate is characterised by mild winters, but hot and dry summer months. Spatial and temporal variations of the roe deer diet were investigated by analyses of 597 faecal samples in a coastal area in Italy. The aim was to evaluate the adaptive strategies of dietary intake to seasonal availability of different forage types in areas of fairly natural Mediterranean scrubwood and different areas dominated by agricultural habitats. A wide range of plant taxa (151 species/genera) was used, belonging to eight categories. A gradient was found from a diet dominated by woody plants and fruits in natural habitats to one characterised by cultivated plants in the agricultural areas. Usage of forage categories in areas dominated by woodland was proportional to their availability, whereas diet selection was found in the agricultural habitats, particularly marked in summer, the time at which food quantity and quality decreased due to harvest and drought. As to seasonal variation, the summer and autumn diets included more deciduous browse, whereas the winter diet was characterised by an increasing use of cereals and grass. In most areas, half-woody browse and fruit were preferred; grass and cereals were used less than expected by their availability. Most probably, selective behaviour patterns are linked to the difference of quality between plants together with their variable abundance, which is more evident in agricultural areas than in the woodland.

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“…Other studies have described patterns of diet overlap between wild and domestic ruminants to assess competitive interactions (e.g., Mysterud 2000;Pordomingo and Rucci 2000;Mussa et al 2003). A high level of overlap in resource exploitation was used to support the hypothesis of interspecific competition (Belovsky 1986, e.g., Breebaart et al 2002, which most likely occurs between introduced livestock and wildlife (Stewart et al 2002;Voeten and Prins 1999), while native sympatric species generally show low dietary overlap as a consequence of niche separation and resource partitioning (Hartnett et al 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feeding habits, forage selection, and diet overlap in Alpine chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra L.) and domestic sheep

Morgia

Bassano

2009

Ecological Research

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Fecal microhistological analyses have been used to assess the summer diet of chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra L., 1758) and domestic sheep and to evaluate diet overlap. The aim of our work was to investigate interspecific interactions and to assess the effects of sheep grazing on the summer feeding habits of chamois. A high dietary overlap (Pianka's index = 0.93-0.99) was found, despite differences in the use of some plant groups. Sheep presence strongly affected chamois feeding habits: a reduction of highly digestible forbs was observed in the chamois diet during August, when both species grazed in the same range. As a consequence of sheep grazing, chamois may have been forced to reduce niche breadth and to change their food habits, increasing percentages of monocotyledons in the diet and feeding mainly on Cyperaceae. The diet overlap between sheep and chamois suggests that resource-mediated interactions as well as direct competition must be taken into account when evaluating chamois and sheep compatibility on Alpine meadows.

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Preliminary study on the feeding habits of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in the western Alps

Cited by 15 publications

References 6 publications

Food–niche relationships within a guild of alpine ungulates including an introduced species

Food–niche relationships within a guild of alpine ungulates including an introduced species

Local and seasonal variations of roe deer diet in relation to food resource availability in a Mediterranean environment

Feeding habits, forage selection, and diet overlap in Alpine chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra L.) and domestic sheep

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