Non-galliform birds’ attraction to soil mounds outside Chinese pangolin burrows

What is it about?

To better explore the status and function of the Chinese Pangolin as a keystone species in the ecosystem, we investigated the relationship between the Chinese Pangolin and birds. Birds often ingest a large amount of gravel to aid in the digestion of food, and the soil mounds excavated by the Chinese Pangolin provide an abundance of fresh gravel. We hypothesized that the soil mounds outside fresh burrows might have an attractive effect on birds. This study compares species photos and video data captured by infrared cameras placed near Chinese Pangolin burrows with those from randomly placed infrared cameras to verify whether the fresh soil mounds outside the burrows of the Chinese Pangolin have a significant attraction to birds.

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