Fauna Rescue of South Australian Incorporated Waterbird Diet Chart

Species	Wild Diet	Captive Diet	Quantity	Frequency	Method
Herons Egrets Bitterns Ibis Spoonbills	Variety of insects, amphibians, small fish, crustaceans. Some take small reptiles & mammals	* Meat Mix * White Bait * Fly Pupae and insects	Handful Handful Sprinkle	2 x Daily 2 x Daily 1 x Daily	* Force feed if needed. * Meat mix in dish. * Fish in water. * Insects in dish or scattered
Cranes	Invertebrates, bulbs, shoots, grains, seeds.	Poultry breeder pellets. Meat Mix *Greens, lettuce, spinach, celery, sprouts.	10 Handfuls 5 Handfuls 5-6 Handfuls	1 x Daily 2 x Daily 1 x Daily	Scatter In Dish Scatter
Stilts	Molluscs, insects, diatoms, brine shrimp.	Stilt Mix	2 Handfuls	2 x Daily	In Dish
Curlews	Crustaceans, Worms.	* Stilt Mix *Earthworms	3 Handfuls 1 Handful	1 x Daily 1 x Every 3 days	In Dish Covered with soil in deep dish.
Lapwings Plovers Godwits	Insects, Larvae, molluscs, worms, some vegetable matter, seeds.	Stilt Mix Crickets Grasshoppers Earthworms	2 Handfuls 10 10 1 Handful	2 x Daily When available 1 x Every Day 3 Days	In Dish Scatter after cooling in fridge. *Covered with soil in deep dish.
Rails	Insects, molluscs, crustaceans, seed, plant matter.	*Stilt Mix	2 Handfuls	2 x Daily	In Dish
Moorhens Swamphens Coots	Aquatic plants, seeds, insects, molluscs.	*Stilt Mix	3 Handfuls	2 x Daily	In Dish
Gannets	Fish	Meat Mix Whiting	Handful 5-6	2 x Daily	*Initially force feed then throuw food in water or at bird to catch. Leave food in enclosure.
Boobies	Fish, Squid, crustaceans.	Small Whiting Squid and crustaceans.	6-8 Handful	2 x Daily 1 x Week	As Above
Penguins	Small fish, squid.	*Small Whiting	5-6	2 x Daily	*Force feed initially, then hand feed.
Skua	Fish, crustaceans, molluscs, carrion , eggs, birds.	Meat Mix Whiting Mice or Chicks Raw Egg	3 Handfuls 5 2 1	1x Daily 1 x Daily 1 x Daily 1 x Daily	In Dish
Darters	Small fish, frogs, snakes, insects.	Small Whiting Meat Mix *Whitebait	8-10 Handful Handful	2 x Daily 1 x Daily	Force feed if needed. Meat Mix in dish. Fish in water or dish.
Cormorants Shags	Mainly fish, also squid, crustaceans, amphibians, insect larvae.	Whiting Meat Mix *White Bait	6-8 1/2 Handful 1/2 Hanful	2 x Daily 1 x Daily 1 x Daily	As Above
Sea Eagles	Fish, birds, small mammals, carrion.	*Rats, mice, mullet,day old chicks.	*1 rat or 6 mice or 6 day old chicks or 5-6 whiting.	1 x Daily	*Feed different food each day.
Pelicans	Mainly Fish	Whiting Small Mullet	10 1	2 x Daily 2 x Daily	Throw, bird will catch.
Terns	Mainly Fish	White Bait Small Whiting *Pilchards	Handful 3 3	2 x Daily 2 x Daily 2 x Daily	In dish or water.
Geese Swan Ducks	Grasses, herbs, sedges, aquatic plants & seeds, insects, molluscs, crustaceans, insect larvae.	Poultry Breeder pellets. Seed, oats, cracked corn, millet, wheat. *Greens, lettuce, spinach, sprouts, celery.	Handful Handful 3-5 Handfuls	2 x Daily 2 x Daily 2 x Daily	In Dish In Water In Water