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dc.contributor.advisorFossøy, Frode
dc.contributor.advisorVarpe, Øystein
dc.contributor.advisorIms, Rolf Anker
dc.contributor.authorStolz, Christian
dc.date.accessioned2019-06-05T11:03:20Z
dc.date.available2019-06-05T11:03:20Z
dc.date.issued2019-05-15
dc.description.abstractTundra arthropods have considerable ecological importance as a food source for several bird species that are reproducing in the Arctic. The actual arthropod taxa comprising the chick diet are however rarely known, complicating assessments of ecological interactions. In this study, I identified the nestling diet of Svalbard snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) for the first time. Faecal samples of snow bunting chicks were collected in Adventdalen, Svalbard in the breeding season 2018 and analysed via DNA metabarcoding. Simultaneously, the availability of prey arthropods was measured via pitfall trapping. The occurrence of 32 identified prey taxa in the nestling diet changed according to varying abundances and emergence patterns within the tundra arthropod community: Snow buntings provisioned their offspring mainly with the most abundant prey items which were in the early season different Chironomidae (Diptera) taxa and Scathophaga furcata (Diptera: Scathophagidae), followed by Spilogona dorsata (Diptera: Muscidae). An influence of breeding location on the diet could not be established, although tundra habitat explained significant differences in the trapped arthropod compositions. A selectivity analysis revealed a selection towards larger sized prey taxa, which could have implications for observed variations in snow bunting nestling success. This one year study shows the promising results of DNA metabarcoding as a non-invasive technique to assess diet variations and trophic interactions.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10037/15438
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherUiT Norges arktiske universiteten_US
dc.publisherUiT The Arctic University of Norwayen_US
dc.rights.accessRightsopenAccessen_US
dc.rights.holderCopyright 2019 The Author(s)
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0en_US
dc.rightsAttribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)en_US
dc.subject.courseIDBIO-3950
dc.subjectarctic food weben_US
dc.subjectdiet analysisen_US
dc.subjectfecal/faecal samplesen_US
dc.subjectinsectivoreen_US
dc.subjectpitfall trapen_US
dc.subjectscatologyen_US
dc.subjectSpitsbergenen_US
dc.subjecttundra arthropod communityen_US
dc.subjectVDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480en_US
dc.subjectVDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480en_US
dc.titleThe nestling diet of Svalbard snow buntings identified by DNA metabarcodingen_US
dc.typeMaster thesisen_US
dc.typeMastergradsoppgaveen_US


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Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)