The Role of Dietary Diversity, Prey Capture Sequence and Individuality in Prey Selection by Parent Mountain Chickadees (Parus gambeli)

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Abstract
(1) Diets delivered to nestlings by parent mountain chickadees (Parus gambeli) were completely enumerated by automated photography. (2) The diversity of the diet fell with rising food demand, increasing number of daily feeding visits and increasing nestling age. Decreasing diversity was mainly a function of increased reliance on the most common prey in the diet, the proportion of which increased with increasing number of daily feeds. (3) Diet composition was not generally dependent on prey sequence, though subhabitats were frequently visited in long runs. Prey were more likely to be in runs if taken from infrequently used foraging areas. (4) Individual diet differed from day to day and between birds by 20-30%. (5) Large individual differences existed between birds in selection of some prey.