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Résumé :
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From April to July 1999 the diet of Citril Finch was investigated at the breeding site Mt. Schliffkopf in the Northern Black Forest (950-1054 m a.s.l.; 8degree12' E, 48degree33' N) district Freudenstadt/Offenburg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, SW Germany. Species composition and quantity of the diet was determined for each month separately. At the beginning of the breeding season (April and May), when the vegetation was still poorly developed, predominantly seeds of the mountain pine Pinus mugo were taken. During a late spell of winter weather in mid-April, Teucrium scorodonia was used as a substitute food at refuge sites. In the course of the breeding season the proportion of seeds of herbs and grasses in the diet increased. The most important food plants during the rearing period were Taraxacum officinale in early June, Rumex acetosa from late June to the beginning of July and Anthoxanthum odoratum at the end of July. Insects (Aphidina, Psyllina) seemed to be a notable complementary diet component over that period. The prerequisites for the breeding distribution of the Citril Finch in the Northern Black Forest with respect to the feeding ecology are discussed. The small range of the Citril Finch in Europe may be associated with the occurrence of particular pine species. Immigration and establishment of the Citril Finch in the Black Forest is likely to be a result of the area's colonisation by man.
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