Termitivore or detritivore? A quantitative investigation into the diet of the East African caecilian Boulengerula taitanus (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Caeciliidae)

Most caecilians are thought to be generalist predators of soil ecosystem engineers (earthworms, termites and ants), but it has been suggested that members of the East African genus Boulengerula are specialist predators. Surprisingly, in the only detailed study of diet of any Boulengerula, the authors speculated thatB. taitanus is partly detritivorous,based on the large amount of organicmatter found in the alimentarycanal.Here we test the con icting hypotheses thatB. taitanus is a termitivoreor detritivore,using the stomach and gut contents of 47 specimens collected in the Taita Hills, Kenya. Termites and earthworms contribute most signiŽ cantly to diet by number and mass, respectively. These constitute the major dietary items, together with dipteran larvae and other soil macrofauna.