During the 2003–2004 and 2004– 2005 nesting seasons, we studied parental behavior at seven Magellanic Woodpecker (Campephilus magellanicus) nests in Argentine Patagonia. Food items delivered to nestlings included wood-boring larvae (57.6%), arachnids (13.1%), and vertebrates (4.6%, including a bat, lizards, and avian eggs and nestlings). Less frequent items were adult insects, caterpillars, and pupae. Small, unidentified invertebrate prey made up 19.8% of the observations. Males delivered most of the large prey (wood-boring larvae and vertebrates; 61.7%), while females brought most of the small prey (arachnids and small, unidentified invertebrates; 79.6%), suggesting differences in foraging strategies between sexes. This is the first published account of Magellanic Woodpeckers provisioning nestlings with vertebrates. The frequency of Magellanic Woodpecker predation on vertebrates outside of the breeding seasons is unknown.
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1 June 2006
Provisioning of Magellanic Woodpecker (Campephilus magellanicus) Nestlings with Vertebrate Prey
Valeria S. Ojeda,
M. Laura Chazarreta
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The Wilson Journal of Ornithology
Vol. 118 • No. 2
June 2006
Vol. 118 • No. 2
June 2006