Effects of season and food on the scatter-hoarding behavior of rodents in temperate forests of Northeast China

Dianwei Li; Yang Liu; Hongjia Shan; Na Li; Jingwei Hao; Binbin Yang; Ting Peng; Zhimin Jin

doi:10.3897/zookeys.1025.60972

Effects of season and food on the scatter-hoarding behavior of rodents in temperate forests of Northeast China

Zookeys. 2021 Mar 18:1025:73-89. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1025.60972. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Dianwei Li^{1

2

3}, Yang Liu¹, Hongjia Shan¹, Na Li⁴, Jingwei Hao¹, Binbin Yang¹, Ting Peng¹, Zhimin Jin¹

Affiliations

¹ College of Life Sciences and Technology, Mudanjiang Normal University, No. 191 Wenhua Road, Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang 157011, China Mudanjiang Normal University Mudanjiang China.
² College of Wildlife and Protected Area, Northeast Forestry University, No. 26 Hexing Road, Harbin 150040, China Northeast Forestry University Harbin China.
³ Heilongjiang Academy of Forestry, No. 134 Haping Road, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, China Heilongjiang Academy of Forestry Harbin China.
⁴ Mudanjiang Medical School No. 5 Fangzhier Road, Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang 157009, China Mudanjiang Medical School Mudanjiang China.

Abstract

To explore the differences in hoarding strategies of rodents for different seeds in various seasons, we labeled and released the seeds of Pinus koraiensis, Corylus mandshurica, Quercus mongolica and Prunus sibirica in temperate forests of Northeast China and investigated the fate of the seeds in spring and autumn. The analysis showed that the hoarding strategies of the rodents varied substantially between seasons. The seeds were consumed faster in the spring than in the autumn. More than 50% of the seeds in the two seasons were consumed by the 16^th day. It took 36 days to consume 75% of the seeds in the spring and 44 days in the autumn. The rate of consumption of the seeds in the spring was greater than in the autumn, and the rate of spread of the seeds was greater in the autumn. The distances of removal for the consumption and dispersal of seeds in the spring (3.26 ± 3.21 m and 4.15 ± 3.52 m, respectively) were both shorter than those in the autumn (3.74 ± 3.41 m and 4.87 ± 3.94 m, respectively). In addition, the fate of different seeds varied significantly owing to differences in hoarding strategies. The seeds of the three preferred species, P. koraiensis, C. mandshurica, and Q. mongolica, were quickly consumed. More than 90% of the seeds of these species were consumed. Only 21% of Pr. sibirica seeds were slowly consumed, and the two seasons had the same seed consumption rate patterns: the consumption rate of P. koraiensis seeds was the highest, followed by C. mandshurica, then Q. mongolica, and finally Pr. sibirica. The median removal times of the two seasons were different, but the rules were the same: P. koraiensis was the shortest, followed by C. mandshurica, and the third was Q. mongolica. In both seasons, the most predated in situ seeds were those of P. koraiensis; the most hoarded seeds were those of C. mandshurica, and the most unconsumed seeds were those of Pr. sibirica.

Keywords: Murids; rodents; scatter-hoarding; seed dispersal; seed fate; voles.

Dianwei Li, Yang Liu, Hongjia Shan, Na Li, Jingwei Hao, Binbin Yang, Ting Peng, Zhimin Jin.

Grants and funding

This research were supported by the Innovation Research Project of Mudanjiang Normal University (GP2019004), the Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province of China (LH2020C071), the Doctoral Research Fund of Mudanjiang Normal University (MNUB201907) and the Undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program (202010233012).