RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 Risk for the natural regeneration of Quercus species due to the expansion of rodent species (Microtus arvalis)
A1 Del Arco, Jose María
K1 Rodents . Acorns . Partial consumption . Embryo damage . Natural regeneration
AB The role played by rodents in the colonization of acorn-producing plant species has been interpreted in different ways along time.It has gone from a predation relationship, in which rodents destroy seeds by devouring them, to a mutualistic one, in which theyleave part of their caches or, more recently consume part of the cotyledons but leave the embryo intact. We studied how threerodent species, Apodemus sylvaticus (wood mouse), Mus spretus (Algerian mouse), and Microtus arvalis (common vole) treat theacorns they consume. The wood mouse and the Algerian mouse have consumed acorns for a long time and participate in thismutualistic relationship by preserving the embryo. The common vole eats acorns for the first time, as it is not a part of its habitualdiet.We observed that this rodent species devours the embryo, as opposed to the other two rodent species that usually eat acornsand modifies its behavior over time, suggesting that its way of eating the acorns is not genetically fixed. The common vole hasonly recently started to enter the distribution areas of Quercus species. Its population density is high during certain periods,reaching plague levels in crops. When its usual food source runs out during these periods, it has to find others which probablyinclude acorns. This rodent species eliminates the embryo during consumption and can, therefore, become a serious problem foracorn-producing species by limiting their colonization process. The three rodent species under study showed the same preferencefor the Quercus species provided, rejecting acorns of Q. suber and preferring those of Q. ilex subsp. ballota.
PB Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
YR 2018
FD 2018
LK https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/78497
UL https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/78497
LA eng
NO Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology (septiembre 2018) 72:160 p.1-8
DS UVaDOC
RD 09-oct-2025