Animal food items of wintering Black-necked Cranes(Grus nigricollis)

The Black-necked Crane (Grus nigricollis) feeds mainly on plants, sometimes they also take animal matter as food. Animal preys are one of the cranes most important protein and fat sources, especially before migration. Little is known, however, about the animal prey composition of the Black-necked cranes. Between 2004 and 2012, we made observations on animal food items fed by Black-necked Cranes wintering at Napahai Wetland and Dashanbao Wetland. As a result, we observed the cranes eating 3 vertebrate animals, the Common goldfish (Carassius auratus), Pond loach (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus), Chaochiao frog (Rana chaochiaoensis), as well as insect larvae. The prey items of the Black-necked Crane are noticeably different at these two wintering grounds. The Black-necked Cranes wintering at Napahai Wetland mainly feed on fish. In contrast, the Black-necked Cranes wintering at Dashanbao Wetland mainly feed on insect larvae living in the soil.