Digestive Efficiency and Energy Requirements of Captive-reared Common Loons (Gavia immer)

Loon (Gavia immer) Science Article 3

abstract

Many wild Common Loons have been exposed to mercury contamination; thisstudy will help increase understanding of how it affects their lives by providinginformation about digestive efficiency. The assimilated mass coefficient (AMC) foreight captive-reared Common Loons (Gavia immer) was determined by this studyto be 80% of dry fish. Rainbow trout was the species of fish fed to these eightbirds. Bomb calorimetry was used to determine the amount of energy consumed byeach bird as well as the amount of energy excreted. The digestive efficiency isdetermined by subtracting the energy excreted from the energy consumed(Digestive efficiency = Food intake-Excreta).

Andrea Lindo, report

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