Possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) diet in a mast and non-mast seed year in a New Zealand Nothofagusforest
The annual diet of possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) during both a beech (Nothofagus) mast fruiting year and a non-mast year in the simple beech forests of the North Branch of the Hurunui Catchment, eastern South Island, New Zealand, was determined by sorting the contents of 270 possum stomachs, collected between December 1999 and December 2001. Beech flowers and seeds contributed 46.1% to annual diet during the mast year, but were not eaten during the non-mast year. Beech foliage and bark made up 13.2% and 45.0% of annual diet in the mast and non-mast years, respectively.