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Seed choice by rodents: learning or inheritance?

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Abstract

Learning plays a central role in animal life, and it has received special attention in the context of foraging. In this study, we have tested whether learning operates in seed choices by rodents using the Algerian mouse (Mus spretus) and Holm oak (Quercus ilex) acorns as a model. At the laboratory, those rodents captured in the field during the acorn fall period (experienced individuals) rejected weevil-infested acorns, presumably because of their lower energetic value. By contrast, rodents born in captivity and reared without any contact with acorns (naïves) predated weevil-infested acorns at similar rates than sound ones. After exposing naïves to infested and sound acorns during 15 days, they rejected infested acorns as the experienced individuals. In the field, predation on weevil-infested acorns was lower than on sound ones. Predation rates on infested acorns were lowest at the end of the acorn fall season, whereas predation rates of sound acorns increased along the same period. This might be explained by the improved ability to reject infested acorns because of the accumulated experience acquired by the initially naïve rodents along the acorn fall season. We show that learning shapes strongly seed choices by rodents, and it may be advantageous over inherited behaviors in variable unpredictable situations, such as acorn infestation rates that vary strongly between years and trees. We consider that the role of learning has to be taken into account in future studies on seed predation by rodents.

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Acknowledgments

We thank B. Nicolau for his assistance in the field and laboratory. M. Díaz, JM Aparicio, T Czeschlik, and three anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on the manuscript. AM and RB were supported by a fellowship from La Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha. This study was supported by the projects REN2003-07048/GLO, CGL2006-06647/BOS, PAC-02-008, 096/2002 and 003/2007. Rodents were captured and maintained in the laboratory under license from the JCCM.

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  1. Raúl Bonal

    Present address: Department of Entomology, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD, London, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales. Facultad de Ciencias del Medio Ambiente, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha. Avda. Carlos III s/n., 45071, Toledo, Spain

    Alberto Muñoz & Raúl Bonal

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  1. Alberto Muñoz
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  2. Raúl Bonal
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Correspondence to Alberto Muñoz.

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Communicated by T. Czeschlik

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Muñoz, A., Bonal, R. Seed choice by rodents: learning or inheritance?. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 62, 913–922 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-007-0515-y

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