Cache sites preferred by small rodents facilitate cache survival in a subtropical primary forest, central China
Shoujia Sun A and Hongmao Zhang A B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Animal Behaviour Research Group, College of Life Sciences, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.
B Corresponding author. Email: hongmaozhang@gmail.com
Wildlife Research 40(4) 294-302 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR13038
Submitted: 15 December 2012 Accepted: 20 May 2013 Published: 12 June 2013
Abstract
Context: Scatter-hoarding rodents tend to hoard plant seeds in preferred places that facilitate seed survival, resulting in high food rewards for hoarders and a high probability of seedling establishment for plants.
Aims: To test the hypothesis that caches placed in rodent-preferred microhabitats, nearest-neighbour distances between caches (cache density) or cache depths have an increased chance of survival.
Methods: Rodent-made caches and observer-established caches of Himalayan hazelnut (Corylus ferox) seeds were tracked in a subtropical primary forest in central China. The survival of caches within rodent-preferred microhabitats, nearest-neighbour distances and cache depths were identified.
Key results: Rodents preferred to hoard Himalayan hazelnut seeds in microhabitats under and at the edge of shrubs, with the nearest-neighbour distance of <4.0 m, and at 2.1–4.0-cm depth. The survival times of both rodent-made caches and observer-established caches were longer within rodent-preferred microhabitats than in other habitats and increased with an increasing nearest-neighbour distance and cache depth, up to what appeared to be an optimal nearest-neighbour distance and depth.
Conclusions: Conditions of rodent-preferred cache microhabitats, nearest-neighbour distances and cache depths can facilitate cache survival.
Implications: Rodents often move plant seeds away from parent trees and bury them in shallow soil, which benefits seed dispersal and establishment of plants. The present study demonstrates that rodent-preferred cache conditions may translate into higher seed survival and a higher tendency of seeds to germinate and establish. Thus, careful management and conservation of rodent-preferred hoarding habitats may benefit seed dispersal and survival.
Additional keywords: cache density, cache depth, cache survival, food-hoarding, microhabitat, seed dispersal.
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