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Vegetative and reproductive components of litter-fall of hard beech were measured for five years and of silver beech for four years under mature trees in the Orongorongo Valley, near Wellington, New Zealand. Mean annual total litter-fall of hard beech (477 g m -2 ) included 318 g of leaves and 109 g of twigs; that of silver beech (463 g m -2 ) included 295 g of leaves and 164 g of twigs. In one year only (1994/95) both species flowered and seeded prolifically. The two species produced similar numbers of seeds (hard beech 4866 seeds m -2 ; silver beech 5551 seeds m -2 ) but litter from male flowers, seeds, and cupules of hard beech weighed 232 g m -2 compared with only 59 g m-2 for silver beech. Seasonal patterns of leaf-fall of the two species also differed substantially; peak leaf-fall of hard

||This study investigates further the possibility that eruptions of house mice in forests of southern beech (Nothofagus spp ) in New Zealand after mast seedings are triggered by increases in the populations of some arthropods, especially Lepidoptera larvae and spiders that are common foods of mice, rather than by the beech seed It reports on a 5-year study of arthropods of the forest floor in hard beech and silver beech forest in the Orongorongo Valley, near Wellington, in relation to (1) litter and seedfall, and (2) the numbers and diet of mice Litter-feeding larvae of Lepidoptera in both the litter and fermentation layers of the forest floor feed on the fallen male flowers of beech, and most species were more common after heavy flowering of the beeches A few of the common spiders (including Miturga sp , the main spider eaten by mice) were also more abundant after beech seeding Analysis of the long-term records of hard beech seeding, numbers of mice, and numbers of adults of the moth Gymnobathra tholodella (Oecophondae) showed that the number of mice was positively correlated with both the number of beech seeds and the number of moths These results indicate a more complex web of interactions in beech forest than was earlier suggested, but because the intensity of flowering in spring largely determines the numbers of both Lepidoptera larvae and beech seeds, the role of each in the population increase of mice can not be determined

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In a herd of captive feral goats, suckling behaviour, mother-offspring distance, kid activity, and kid growth were measured during the first 3 months of life to investigate whether male kids gained greater maternal investment than female kids. Male kids were born heavier and grew faster than female kids. Single male kids suckled more frequently than their female counterparts. Other measurements of suckling behaviour including suckling bout duration, total time spent suckling, and the proportion of suckling bouts initiated and terminated by the offspring showed no significant differences between the sexes. Spatial relationships between mothers and their offspring did not differ between male and female kids. Activity budgets showed that female kids spent more time grazing than male kids, but males spent more time involved in play and exploratory activities. Difficulties in the interpretation of three proximate measures of maternal investment-suckling behaviour, growth rate, and activity budget-highlight the need for a more direct measure of maternal investment, such as an accurate assessment of milk intake.