Composition of the insect diet in feces of yellow-throated marten, Martes flavigula, in Jirisan National Park, South Korea

Abstract

The composition of the Martes flavigula diet has been extensively studied, but little is known about its insect component. This study characterized the insect diet and insect nest materials in the feces of M. flavigula . A total of 952 fecal samples were collected in Jirisan National Park from January 2009 to November 2011, and 1379 species or taxonomic groups were identified. M. flavigula fed on insects (8.7%) and bee wax (5.0%), which comprised 2.9% and 4.4% of the dry weight of M. flavigula feces, respectively. A total of 12 insect species belonging to 8 families in 3 orders were identified. The most fre quently found insects were Hymenoptera (frequency of occurrence, FO, 89.1), including Vespa simillima simillima (FO, 37.3) and Vespula koreensis koreensis (FO, 20.0). The Vespidae constituted the majority of the insect diet in autumn when the diversity of marten’s prey was strongly reduced, probably because the numbers of social insects were sufficient for M. flavigula. In addition, the data suggest that M. flavigula attacks the nests of social wasps in late autumn when males do not have a venomous sting and new queens are less aggressive than workers. Bee wax appeared in all seasons and the highest rate was from spring to early summer. However, the remains of honeybees were not found in feces; thus, M. fla vigula presumably eats honey but not honeybees.