Winter foraging of chinkara (Gazella bennettii shikarii) in Central Iran

摘要

Diet selection and forage quality of chinkara (Gazella bennettii shikarii) were investigated in Darre Anjir Wildlife Refuge, central area of Iran. Foraging observations and feeding site examinations were carried out from January to March 2014. We used Rodgers's and Manly's a indices of preference for cafeteria experiments. Nitrogen content was determined using the micro-Kjeldahl technique. Based on this study, the food composition of chinkara during winter was mainly consisted of 19 plant species, belonging to 16 genera and 9 families. The results of cafeteria experiments showed that the preference values of plant species were significantly different whereas no significant relationship between forage quality and preference value was detected.