Selection of conifer seeds by deer mice and red-backed voles

Abstract

Detection and removal of seeds of white pine (Pinusstrobus), jack pine (Pinusbanksiana), and black spruce (Piceamariana) by deer mice (Peromyscusmaniculatus) and southern red-backed voles (Clethrionomysgapperi) were tested in the laboratory. Both deer-mice and red-backed voles showed a strong preference for seeds of white pine over those of either black spruce or jack pine. Deer mice apparently found jack pine seeds more palatable than did red-backed voles. Detection and removal rates for black spruce seeds varied among experiments. In general, changes in detection rate of black spruce seeds were accompanied by similar changes in detection rate of control dishes and in removal rate of black spruce seeds. Prior conditioning of deer mice to eat jack pine seeds did not produce an increase in either detection or removal of those seeds.