Nesting Behavior in Four Species of Mice

Abstract

Several aspects of nesting behavior (nest-height preference, nest and nest-site attachment, and numbers and types of nests constructed) of Peromyscus floridanus, P. gossypinus, P. polionotus , and Ochrotomys nuttalli were studied in the laboratory. Nest-height selection of each species under experimental conditions generally agreed with field knowledge of its nest location and position along a terrestrial-arboreal gradient. However, some of the laboratory results were at variance with expectations based on knowledge of the species in the wild. These differences may be an effect of the artificial conditions of the experiment or they may indicate that natural nesting behavior of certain of the species studied is more variable than presently supposed. Peromyscus polionotus and O. nuttalli showed stronger attachment to a particular nest and built fewer incomplete nests than P. floridanus and P. gossypinus . These differences may be related to a higher energetic cost of nest and/or nest-site construction and greater security of the nests of P. polionotus and O. nuttalli as compared with those of P. floridanus and P. gossypinus . It is concluded from laboratory and field data on nesting behavior of these species that interspecific competition for nest sites is minimal in areas of sympatry.