Premium
The nutritional value of invertebrates with emphasis on ants and termites as food for mammals
Author(s) -
Redford Kent H.,
Dorea Jose G.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
journal of zoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0952-8369
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1984.tb02339.x
Subject(s) - biology , predation , invertebrate , alate , ecology , adaptive value , sociality , larva , zoology , pupa , botany , pest analysis , homoptera , aphididae
Water, ash, total nitrogen and fat contents were determined for the worker and soldier castes of nine species of central Brazilian termites. These values were then compared with those from other species of termites, ants and 22 other species of terrestrial invertebrates. In comparison with most other invertebrates, termite workers and soldiers tend to be high in ash, low in fat and about equal in water and nitrogen. In contrast, alate ants and termites and most larval or pupal insects have much higher percentages of fat. It is pointed out that most protein and total energy values for arthropods are of limited use because the assays used incorporate the nitrogen present in the indigestible chitin exoskeleton. It is concluded that most invertebrate‐eating mammals choose prey based on availability and other aspects of prey biology and not on gross nutritional factors. The problems associated with eating ants and termites are discussed and include low nutritional value of prey, small prey size and forms of defense relying on the sociality of the prey.