Do measures of plant intake and digestibility from captive feeding trials align with foraging patterns of free-ranging snowshoe hares?
Ethan Ellsworth A B , Aaron J. Wirsing C F , Lisa A. Shipley D and Dennis L. Murray E
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83843, USA.
B Present address: Bureau of Land Management, Mount Lewis Field Office, Battle Mountain, NV 89820, USA.
C School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, Box 352100, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-2100, USA.
D School of the Environment, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6410, USA.
E Department of Biology, Trent University, Peterborough, ON K97 7B8, Canada.
F Corresponding author. Email: wirsinga@uw.edu
Wildlife Research 40(5) 349-357 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR13106
Submitted: 7 June 2013 Accepted: 17 June 2013 Published: 10 July 2013
Abstract
Context: Measures of intake and digestibility from captive feeding experiments are often used to evaluate the nutritional value of plant species to herbivores; however, there is question about how well plant-quality rankings from these trials predict foraging patterns of free-ranging animals. Studies addressing the alignment of results from feeding trials and herbivory in the field using captive and free-roaming conspecifics are needed.
Aims: Our goal was to compare the feeding patterns of snowshoe hares in captive intake and digestion trials with those of free-living conspecifics in the species’ south-western range.
Methods: We conducted in vivo intake and digestion trials using captive hares to determine quality and consumption levels of the predominant conifer species in our study system. In the field, we quantified browsing intensity and over-winter depletion patterns of these conifers. We then compared voluntary intake and nutritional quality measured in captivity to consumption in the field.
Key results: Digestible energy (DE, kJ g–1) of conifers ranged from 11.0 (Pinus contorta) to 13.8 (Pseudotsuga menziesii) among six conifers, and digestible protein (DP, g protein per 100 g feed) from 1.2 (Thuja plicata) to 2.7 (P. contorta). During digestion trials, single-species intake was correlated with the content of digestible protein (DP) and digestible energy (DE). Hares maintained energy balance when fed two single-species diets (Pinus contorta, Pseudotsuga menziesii) and a mixed-species diet. Conifer species on which hares were able to maintain body mass (Pinus contorta, Picea engelmannii, Pseudotsuga menziesii) also tended to be the most heavily exploited by free-living hares. DP content of browse species predicted both browsing intensity and overwinter depletion of conifer species.
Conclusions: Voluntary intake and nutritional quality of browse, especially DP, successfully predicted foraging patterns of free-ranging conspecifics.
Implications: Intake and digestion trials can be a useful tool for better understanding patterns of herbivory in the field, and winter habitat quality for populations in this region is likely to be influenced by access to the most energy- and protein-rich conifers.
Additional keywords: conifer, diet, digestion, energy, Lepus americanus, nutrition, Pinus contorta, protein, Pseudotsuga menziesii.
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