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Published on: May 21, 2020
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Seed value influences cache pilfering rates by desert rodents
Stephen B Vander Wall1, Lindsay A Dimitri2, William S Longland2
1Department of Biology and Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA.
Integrative Zoology
|July 19, 2018
Summary
Rodents prioritize high-value seeds, influencing plant evolution. Seed traits like nutrient content and toxins affect how rodents forage, pilfer, and cache seeds, shaping coevolutionary relationships.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Animal Behavior
Background:
- Rodents are key seed dispersers and consumers, influencing plant populations through their foraging behaviors.
- Seed traits, including mass, nutrients, and chemical defenses, significantly affect how rodents interact with seeds.
- Seed pilfering by other rodents adds another layer of complexity to seed fate and selection pressures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how seed traits influence rodent pilfering and recaching decisions.
- To understand the role of seed value and secondary compounds in rodent foraging strategies.
- To clarify coevolutionary dynamics between scatter-hoarding rodents and dispersed plants.
Main Methods:
- Comparison of pilfering and recaching rates for four plant seed species with differing values (singleleaf piñon pine, desert peach, antelope bitterbrush, Utah juniper).
- Establishment of 100 artificial seed caches (25 per species) to monitor rodent removal.
- Observation of rodent interactions with seeds, including pilfering, recaching, and transport distance.
Main Results:
- Rodents preferentially and more rapidly pilfered high-value seeds.
- Desert peach seeds, containing toxic compounds, were recached more often.
- Lower-value seeds (Utah juniper, antelope bitterbrush) were pilfered slower and cached closer to original sites.
- Seed density influenced the perceived value of seeds.
Conclusions:
- Seed traits critically mediate rodent foraging, pilfering, and caching behaviors.
- Rodent selection on seed traits can drive coevolutionary adaptations in plants.
- Understanding seed traits is essential for deciphering rodent-plant dispersal mutualisms and their evolutionary outcomes.
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