Klaus-Hügi Corinne, Klaus Gregor, Schmid Bernhard, König Barbara
Institut für Umweltwissenschaften, Universität Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland e-mail:
Zoologisches Institut, Universität Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland, , , , , , CH.
Oecologia. 1999 Apr;119(1):81-90. doi: 10.1007/s004420050763.
We studied the feeding ecology of the bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus) in the Dzanga National Park in the rainforest of the Central African Republic to understand better the trade-off between food selectivity, ranging behaviour and social organization of a large, forest-dwelling, social antelope. Food plants and vegetation types were registered along a 311-km route travelled by bongos. Food availability was determined by identifying and counting the plants in 19 randomly chosen forest plots. Bongos showed pronounced selectivity for 26 out of 100 woody forest species. They predominantly consumed younger leaves, which suggests that high protein and low fibre content influence plant choice. In addition to leaves, bongos also ate fruits of two and flowers of one species. Furthermore, the diet was supplemented by grasses and herbs consumed on large natural licks. Such licks were regularly visited by the bongos. According to Jarman's ecological classification of antelopes, selective browsers are relatively small and live alone or in pairs to avoid competition over food. The bongo's large size and gregariousness should not allow it to survive in the rainforest as a pure selective browser. Our data suggest that the bongo relies on the opportunity to graze in bulk which it finds on the natural licks. We hypothesize that such licks either limit the distribution of bongos in other rainforest areas or allow larger group sizes than in areas without licks.
我们对中非共和国雨林中丹加国家公园的邦戈羚羊（Tragelaphus eurycerus）的觅食生态进行了研究，以便更好地理解一种大型的、栖息于森林的群居羚羊在食物选择、活动范围行为和社会组织之间的权衡。沿着邦戈羚羊走过的一条311公里的路线记录了食用植物和植被类型。通过识别和统计19个随机选择的森林地块中的植物来确定食物可利用性。邦戈羚羊对100种木本森林物种中的26种表现出明显的选择性。它们主要食用较嫩的叶子，这表明高蛋白和低纤维含量会影响植物选择。除了叶子，邦戈羚羊还吃了两种植物的果实和一种植物的花朵。此外，其饮食还通过在大型天然盐碱地食用的草和草本植物得到补充。邦戈羚羊会定期前往这些盐碱地。根据贾曼对羚羊的生态分类，选择性食草动物相对较小，独居或成对生活以避免食物竞争。邦戈羚羊体型较大且群居，作为纯粹的选择性食草动物不应能在雨林中生存。我们的数据表明，邦戈羚羊依赖于在天然盐碱地大量觅食的机会。我们推测，这样的盐碱地要么限制了邦戈羚羊在其他雨林地区的分布，要么使得它们能形成比没有盐碱地的地区更大的群体规模。
