Structure of a breeding nest of the Daurian pika, Ochotona daurica, in Mongolia.

Abstract

We excavated a breeding nest of the Daurian pika, Ochotona daurica, in central Mongolia. Four young were captured within the burrows. Three food storage chambers contained plant fragments and a large amount of fecal matter, indicating that hoarded food had been consumed during the last winter. The nest chamber was spherical and measured 22×18×21 cm. Most of the nest chamber was filled with piles of grasses, and these piles were presumably their resting site. The burrow system had three entrances, and the nest chamber was connected to three burrows. Multiple nest entrances were provided ready access to refuge for pikas active on the ground surface from aerial and terrestrial predators, while multiple burrows also provide refuge against the intrusion of predators such as stoats into nest chambers.