[Ecological implication and behavior mechanism of food selection of mammalian herbivores]

This paper is aimed to review the research progress in the behavior mechanism of food selection of mammalian herbivore. The study of food preference of mammalian herbivores is a prominent field of research in foraging ecology. It was put forth that nutritious hypotheses, plant secondary compounds hypotheses, nutrient balance hypotheses, optimal foraging theory, and conditioned flavor aversion hypotheses could explain the food preference of mammalian herbivores. Animals learn about foods through affective system and cognitive system. Social learning is a form of phenotype plasticity, and enable individuals to acquire adaptive behavior patterns suitable for local habitats. Early experience by the offspring mediated by social learning through the mother may play an important role in determination of food preference in the life. Where the environment is relatively stable, offspring may copy the food choices of older individuals, whereas in highly fluctuating environments, those individuals that select food on a trial and error basis are likely to obtain a more nutritious diet that those imitating the older adults.