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      Diet and macronutrient niche of Asiatic black bear ( Ursus thibetanus) in two regions of Nepal during summer and autumn

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          Abstract

          Relatively little is known about the nutritional ecology of omnivorous Asiatic black bears ( Ursus thibetanus) in Nepal. We characterized the diet of black bears in two seasons (June–July, “summer”; and October–November “autumn”) and two study areas (Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve [DHR]; and Kailash Sacred Landscape [KSL]). We then conducted nutritional analysis of species consumed by black bears in each study area, in combination with nutritional estimates from the literature, to estimate the proportions of macronutrients (i.e., protein [P], lipid [L], and carbohydrate [C]) in the seasonal bear foods and diets, as well as their macronutrient niche breadth. We found that bamboo ( Arundinaria spp.) had the highest relative frequency in both study areas and seasons. Ants and termites were found in DHR diets, but not KSL diets. One anthropogenic crop was found in DHR summer diets ( Zea mays) and two were found in KSL summer diets ( Z. mays; and Kodo millet [ Paspalum scrobiculatum]). Other than insects, no animal prey was found in either diet. The proportions of macronutrients in diets (i.e., realized macronutrient niches) were relatively high in carbohydrate for both study areas and seasons: DHR summer 24.1P:8.7L:67.2C; KSL summer 16.7P:8.2L:75.1C; DHR autumn 21.1P:10.5L:68.4C; KSH autumn 19.0P:11.0L:70.0C. Macronutrient niche breadth was 3.1 × greater in the DHR than KSL during summer, and 4.0 × greater in the autumn, primarily due to the higher proportion of lipid in ants and termites relative to plant foods. Within‐study area differences in niche breadth were greater during summer than autumn; in the KSH the macronutrient breadth was 1.4 × greater in summer, while in the DHR it was 1.1 × greater in summer. Similarity in dietary macronutrient proportions despite differences in foods consumed and niche breadth are suggestive of foraging to reach a preferred macronutrient balance.

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          Most cited references48

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          Optimal foraging when regulating intake of multiple nutrients

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            Integrative models of nutrient balancing: application to insects and vertebrates.

            We present and apply to data for insects, chickens and rats a conceptual and experimental framework for studying nutrition as a multi-dimensional phenomenon. The framework enables the unification within a single geometrical model of several nutritionally relevant measures, including: the optimal balance and amounts of nutrients required by an animal in a given time (the intake target), the animal's current state in relation to these requirements, available foods, the amounts of ingested nutrients which are retained and eliminated, and animal performance. Animals given a nutritionally balanced food, or two or more imbalanced but complementary foods, can satisfy their nutrient requirements, and hence optimize performance. However, animals eating noncomplementary imbalanced foods must decide on a suitable compromise between overingesting some nutrients and underingesting others. The geometrical models provide a means of measuring nutritional targets and rules of compromise, and comparing these among different animals and within similar animals at different developmental stages or in different environments. They also provide a framework for designing and interpreting experiments on the regulatory and metabolic mechanisms underlying nutritional homeostasis.
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              Toward a quantitative nutritional ecology: the right-angled mixture triangle

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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                mountsaroj@gmail.com
                sean.c.p.coogan@gmail.com
                Journal
                Ecol Evol
                Ecol Evol
                10.1002/(ISSN)2045-7758
                ECE3
                Ecology and Evolution
                John Wiley and Sons Inc. (Hoboken )
                2045-7758
                08 March 2019
                April 2019
                : 9
                : 7 ( doiID: 10.1002/ece3.2019.9.issue-7 )
                : 3717-3727
                Affiliations
                [ 1 ] Department of Forests and Soil Conservation Ministry of Forests and Environment Kathmandu Nepal
                [ 2 ] Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences Massey University Auckland New Zealand
                [ 3 ] Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science The University of Sydney Sydney New South Wales Australia
                [ 4 ] Department of Renewable Resources University of Alberta Edmonton Alberta Canada
                Author notes
                [*] [* ] Correspondence

                Saroj Panthi, Department of Forests and Soil Conservation, Ministry of Forests and Environment, Kathmandu, Nepal.

                Email: mountsaroj@ 123456gmail.com

                and

                Sean C. P. Coogan, Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

                Email: sean.c.p.coogan@ 123456gmail.com

                Author information
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1502-7711
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6658-8714
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2694-8468
                Article
                ECE34926
                10.1002/ece3.4926
                6468138
                31015961
                b8dad1d5-d303-4497-942d-3c5a62690483
                © 2019 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

                This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 13 June 2018
                : 10 December 2018
                : 21 December 2018
                Page count
                Figures: 2, Tables: 4, Pages: 11, Words: 7900
                Funding
                Funded by: Rufford Small Grants Foundation, UK
                Funded by: Phoenix Zoo, USA,
                Categories
                Original Research
                Original Research
                Custom metadata
                2.0
                ece34926
                April 2019
                Converter:WILEY_ML3GV2_TO_NLMPMC version:5.6.2.1 mode:remove_FC converted:16.04.2019

                Evolutionary Biology
                asiatic black bear,diet,macronutrients,niche breadth,nutritional ecology,ursus thibetanus

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