Survival of hand-reared gamebirds is reported to be poor after release into the wild. One reason for the high mortality is assumed to be nutritional maladap tation of hand-reared birds to natural foods. In captivity, birds are usually fed commercial poultry foods, which are originally meant for chickens. We car ried out a feeding trial to examine the importance of invertebrates and animal protein on the growth and development of temperature regulation in grey par tridge Perdix perdix chicks. Three diet groups were established: invertebraterich, low-invertebrate, and fish groups. Invertebrate food consisted of fly (Calliphora) larvae and ant (Formicoidea) pupae, and the fish diet of fresh ven dace Coregonus albula and smelt Osmerus eperlanus. Each diet group was pro vided with ad libitum plant food. Chicks were weighed every third day, their primaries were measured, and their cooling rate at 0°C was recorded. Chicks fed an invertebrate-rich diet were heavier than the other chicks, and their pri maries developed earlier than the other chicks' feathers. Chicks fed a low-inver tebrate or a fish diet cooled faster than chicks fed an invertebrate-rich diet. A wild brood was captured and 7-day-old wild chicks were examined as a ref erence group for the captive chicks. Results obtained from these chicks are in agreement with the results obtained from the chicks fed an invertebrate-rich diet. In conclusion, invertebrates are not replaceable by a fish diet like the one used in our study during the growth period of hand-reared grey partridges. Invertebrates should be included in the diet of hand-reared grey partridge chicks during their first weeks of life.