DIET OF FERAL GOATS AND FERAL PIGS ON AUCKLAND-ISLAND, NEW-ZEALAND

The diets of feral pigs and feral goats shot on the main Auckland Isla nd in 1989 are described from analyses of stomach and rumen contents. Feral goats ate at least 50 species of plants, but only three, Metrosi deros umbellata, Chionochloa antarctica, and Durvillea antarctica made up over 50% by dried weight of the food eaten. Feral pigs ate a mixed plant and animal diet, of which plants made up 61% of the diet, with the megaherb Anisotome antipoda being the largest dietary item at 38% by dried weight. The animals eaten by pigs were mostly annelids, at 26 % by dry weight of their diet, and there was little evidence of predat ion or scavenging on birds. Goats have subsequently been eradicated fr om the island, but feral pigs remain arguably a potential threat to cu rrent conservation values and certainly an impediment to any restorati on of the island's natural values.