Study Of The Foraging Behaviour Of Birds With Emphasis On Northern Grey-Headed Sparrows (Passer Grisetis) In Mouau Environment

ABSTRACT

Bird species in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), were studied and observed for their foraging behavior. A total of 10 species were encountered and of these, 8 featured and could be termed as resident birds. Passerine birds were observed to forage on ground in open grasslands using three (3) selected sites in MOUAU environment. Observations were recorded and analyzed using Pearson correlation. Emphasis on Passer griseus revealed that group size and vigilance were closely related, there was a significant effect (n10, r0.949, pO.000), correlation is significant at the 0.011eve1 (2-tailed); vigilance had a significant effect on feeding rate (n=10, r=0.798, p=O.007), significant at the 0.011eve1.There is a higher relationship between vigilance and feeding in field 1 than in field 2 (n10, r0.665, pO.036; r0.328, pO.355). Vigilance decreased as group size increased, and as vigilance decreased, pecking rate increased. The smaller the group, the higher the vigilance, but vigilance reduced in field 1 having cover less than meter away. Overall the present findings suggest that bird foraging behavior is dependent on the nature of the microhabitat, group size and vigilance.