Diet of the Gray Partridge (Perdix perdix L.) in the Central Ciscaucasia

The gray partridge (Perdix perdix L.) is a commercial bird species of the Central Ciscaucasia. In the steppe regions, these birds are found in cultivated gardens, vineyards, green belts along agricultural fields, roads, and railways, etc. The research objective was to study and analyze the diet of the gray partridge in different seasons in the Stavropol Region. The study featured the food spectrum consumed by the gray partridge based on the contents of 42 stomachs and 26 crops of birds caught by hunters and hit by vehicles in various Stavropol biotopes in 2008–2021. Gray partridges are phytophages, which means they feed mostly on plants and, to a lesser extent, on animals. Their autumn and winter diet includes green mass and wheat grains, seeds of cultivated and wild plants, and insect larvae. The gray partridge prefers weedy herbaceous plants: Polygonum aviculare, Echinochloa crus-galli, Amaranthus retroflexus, Chenopodium album, and Setaria viridis. The data obtained can be used to assess food resources of commercial bird species, in gray partridge conservation projects, and winter feeding of birds.