Dietary variation of the stone marten (Martes foina): A meta-analysis approach

Abstract

Goal: Understanding the biogeographical trophic patterns of generalist predators, such as the Stone Marten (Martes foina), is particularly challenging due to their wide distributions and the broad trophic spectrum. The geographical variation in food habits of the Stone Marten was reviewed. Method: We collected data from 43 studies, from the available literature on food studies from locations which covered most of the Stone Marten’s European range. We explored if there is a pattern in dietary composition of the species, related to geographical range. The original data were expressed as weight, percentage of numerical abundance (%N) and frequency of occurrence of the food items measured in stomachs and scats, in North and Central Greece, and we compared them using meta-analysis. Results – Conclusions: We observed a clear latitudinal differentiation and heterogeneity in the main food categories (mammals, birds-eggs, insects, vegetation-fruits and reptiles-amphibians). Consequently, we concluded that variations in feeding habits of Stone Marten could be associated to local climate and, therefore, the availability of alternative potential food. In a general geographical scale, Stone Marten respond to varying food availability by adjusting its foraging strategy and should be considered opportunistic and flexible feeder.