Seasonal cravings: plant food preferences of syntopic small mammals
Seasonal cravings: plant food preferences of syntopic small mammals
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DOI：
10.1080/03949370.2017.1310141
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发表时间：
2018-01-01
影响因子：
1.2
通讯作者：
Cozzolino, Roberto
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gasperini, Stefania;Bonacchi, Andrea;Cozzolino, Roberto
深入了解动物的摄食行为是生态学的一个基本目标。食物是一种至关重要的资源，可以强烈地统治动物种群，特别是在食物供应是季节性的地方，例如在温带地区。在意大利，以落叶橡树为主的亚地中海森林通常居住着黄颈鼠Apodemus flavicollis、木鼠A.森林田鼠和银鼠耳草。尽管有丰富的文献关于他们的饮食组成在北方欧洲，据我们所知，没有研究已经发表的食物偏好，这些啮齿动物在亚地中海落叶林的同生。33 A. flavicollis，10 A. sylvaticus和18 M.通过季节性盆栽试验，研究了意大利中部落叶橡树林中26种代表性植物生殖器官（花、未成熟果实和成熟果实）上的唐菖蒲（Glareolus）。我们的研究结果表明，A. flavicollis在所有季节都表现出不同的偏好，突出了仅对严格的植物种类的相关亲和力，并充当种子专家。森林姬鼠具有通才的食性，对所有食物的消费模式相似; Glareolus在Apodemus spp.春季和夏季河岸田鼠对某些食物的偏好并不明显，而秋季河岸田鼠对某些食物的偏好明显不同，表现出与A.黄颈这一结果表明，在我们的研究领域，这些啮齿动物之间的潜在竞争相互作用，特别是关于一个关键的资源，如橡子。通过季节性的实验，我们能够描绘出A。flavicollis、黄颈拟步行虫A. sylvaticus和M. Glareolus向属于一系列物种的几个植物部分生长。我们的研究结果可以帮助未来的研究，这些啮齿动物的重点是影响其种群动态的因素，如营养资源和竞争。
Having a thorough understanding of animal feeding behaviour is a basic aim in ecology. Food represents a crucial resource that can strongly rule animal populations, especially where food supplies are seasonal, such as in temperate areas. In Italy, sub-Mediterranean forests dominated by deciduous oaks are commonly inhabited by the yellow-necked mouse Apodemus flavicollis, the wood mouse A. sylvaticus and the bank vole Myodes glareolus. Despite the rich literature regarding their diet composition in northern Europe, to our knowledge no studies have been published on food preferences of these rodents in syntopy in sub-Mediterranean deciduous forests. Feeding preferences of 33 A. flavicollis, 10 A. sylvaticus and 18 M. glareolus on reproductive parts (flowers, unripe and ripe fruits) of 26 representative plant species in a deciduous oak forest of central Italy were investigated through seasonal cafeteria-style experiments. Our findings evidence that A. flavicollis exhibited distinct preferences in all seasons, highlighting a relevant affinity only for a strict array of plant species, and acting as seed specialist. Apodemus sylvaticus showed generalist food habits, eating all foods with similar consumption patterns, whereas M. glareolus occupied an intermediate position between the Apodemus spp. Indeed the bank vole did not show a clear preference for some foods over others in spring and summer, while in autumn the consumption significantly differed resulting in a strong preferences overlap with A. flavicollis. This result suggests potential competitive interactions between these rodents in our study area, especially regarding a crucial resource such as acorns. By using seasonal cafeteria-style experiments we were able to delineate the feeding behaviour and preferences of A. flavicollis, A. sylvaticus and M. glareolus towards several plant parts pertaining to a wide array of species. Our findings can help future studies regarding these rodents focusing on factors influencing their population dynamics, such as trophic resources and competition.