INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL DIET AND PERISHABILITY ON CACHING AND CONSUMPTION BEHAVIOR OF JUVENILE EASTERN WOODRATS

We tested the hypotheses that juvenile eastern woodrats (Neotoma flori dana) learned to select appropriate foods to cache by cues from the ma ternal diet and that the effect of perishability affected caching and consumption behavior of juvenile woodrats. In May 1993, female woodrat s were mated and placed on a diet of garlic-flavored chow. Females in group A were fed garlic-flavored chow until offspring were weaned. Fem ales in group B were fed garlic-flavored chow until parturition and th en were placed on a diet of standard laboratory chow. All offspring we re weaned at 45 days postpartum and maintained on a diet of standard l aboratory chow. In October and November 1993, juveniles were tested to determine their preference for caching and consumption of garlic-flav ored chow or a novel (mint) flavored chow. Juveniles in group A cached more garlic-flavored chow than juveniles in group B (P = 0.04). There was no difference between groups in the amount of garlic chow consume d (P = 0.5). Naive juveniles preferred to cache dry apple (P = 0.01) b ut preferred to consume fresh apple (P = 0.01). The outcome of our exp eriments suggests that maternal diet influences the cache-food selecti on of naive woodrats. Further, naive juvenile woodrats treat perishabl e and non-perishable foods in a manner similar to adults suggesting th at their response to such foods is not learned.