TITLE:
The Profile of Abundant and Essential Fatty Acids in Depot Fat Varies More in Kiwi (Apteryx mantelli) than in Other Avian Species
AUTHORS:
Murray Alan Potter, Charlotte Jane Minson, Roger Graham Lentle
KEYWORDS:
Fatty Acids; Composition; Depot Fat; Diet; Apteryx mantelli; Avian
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.4 No.9A,
September
10,
2013
ABSTRACT: Direct and dendrographic comparison of
the profiles of abundant fatty acids in depot fat was unable to separate 10 avian species on a basis of their
overall proportions but was able to distinguish broad dietary groups or those
in a habitat with distinctive nutritional characteristics such as avian marine
carnivores. In all species considered, including North Island
brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli), oleic
(C18:1) and palmitic acids (C16:0) were most abundant. The relative proportions
of linolenic (C18:3) acid were 4% or lower across all species, while the
relative proportions of palmitoleic acid (C18:0) were less than 7% in nine of
the avian species, with the exception being the insectivorous red-eyed vireo (Vireo olivaceous). The levels of linoleic acid (C18:2)
were lower in avian marine carnivores than in avian herbivores, insectivores,
and omnivores. Whilst the mean values of the individual fatty acids in fat from
various avian species were separated by hierarchical cluster analysis, the wide range of values of each
fatty acid precluded any correlation of clustering with any known variation in dietary items.
Similarly, the wide range in
fatty acid composition of kiwi fat rendered it unhelpful in determining the
optimum composition of the captive diet.