Interactions between gray-sided voles (Clethrionomys rufucanus) and bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus), their main winter food plant

Dahlgren, Jonas; Oksanen, Lauri; Sjödin, Maria; Olofsson, Johan

doi:10.1007/s00442-007-0664-8

Cited by 40 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(69 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Most studies on the interactions between grey-sided voles and vegetation have focused on Vaccinium myrtillus , which has been considered as the most important food item of this species [64]–[68]. However, our results show that during the snow-free period the species has a diverse diet which includes, in addition to V. myrtillus , a range of different herbaceous food items.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Arctic Small Rodents Have Diverse Diets and Flexible Food Selection

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The ecology of small rodent food selection is poorly understood, as mammalian herbivore food selection theory has mainly been developed by studying ungulates. Especially, the effect of food availability on food selection in natural habitats where a range of food items are available is unknown. We studied diets and selectivity of grey-sided voles (Myodes rufocanus) and tundra voles (Microtus oeconomus), key herbivores in European tundra ecosystems, using DNA metabarcoding, a novel method enabling taxonomically detailed diet studies. In order to cover the range of food availabilities present in the wild, we employed a large-scale study design for sampling data on food availability and vole diets. Both vole species had ingested a range of plant species and selected particularly forbs and grasses. Grey-sided voles also selected ericoid shrubs and tundra voles willows. Availability of a food item rarely affected its utilization directly, although seasonal changes of diets and selection suggest that these are positively correlated with availability. Moreover, diets and selectivity were affected by availability of alternative food items. These results show that the focal sub-arctic voles have diverse diets and flexible food preferences and rarely compensate low availability of a food item with increased searching effort. Diet diversity itself is likely to be an important trait and has previously been underrated owing to methodological constraints. We suggest that the roles of alternative food item availability and search time limitations for small rodent feeding ecology should be investigated.NomenclatureAnnotated Checklist of the Panarctic Flora (PAF), Vascular plants. Available at: http://nhm2.uio.no/paf/, accessed 15.6.2012.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Arctic Small Rodents Have Diverse Diets and Flexible Food Selection

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The reason why possible quality changes in bilberry did not appear to be correlated with bank vole dynamics may be the relatively omnivorous diet of bank voles, even in winter (Viro and Sulkava 1985). In addition, the quantity or quality of toxic compounds of phenols and tannins or other growth inhibitors has generally not been found to explain palatability or population changes of voles or other herbivorous mammals, even in bilberryspecialised species like the grey-sided vole Myodes rufocanus (Sinclair et al 1988;Laine and Henttonen 1987;Oksanen et al 1987;Strengbom et al 2003;Dahlgren et al 2007). This means that a low quality of bilberry twigs and leaves mmay not have caused the poor body condition of grouse hens either, as suggested by Widén et al (1987) and Selås (2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Vulnerability of black grouse hens to goshawk predation: result of food supply or predation facilitation?

Tornberg

Helle²,

Korpimäki

2010

Oecologia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The plant cycle hypothesis says that poor-quality food affects both herbivorous voles (Microtinae spp.) and grouse (Tetraonidae spp.) in vole decline years, leading to increased foraging effort in female grouse and thus a higher risk of predation by the goshawk Accipiter gentilis. Poor-quality food (mainly the bilberry Vaccinium myrtillus) for these herbivores is induced by seed masting failure in the previous year, when the bilberry is able to allocate resources for chemical defence (the mast depression hypothesis; MDH). The predation facilitation hypothesis (PFH) in turn states that increased searching activity of vole-eating predators during or after the decline year of voles disturbs incubating and brooding grouse females. The behaviours used by grouse to avoid these terrestrial predators make them more vulnerable to predation by goshawks. We tested the main predictions of the MDH and PFH by collecting long-term (21-year) data from black grouse Tetrao tetrix hens and cocks killed by breeding goshawks supplemented with indices of bilberry crop, vole abundance and small carnivores in the vicinity of Oulu, northern Finland. We did not find obvious support for the prediction of the MDH that there is a negative correlation of bilberry crop in year t with vole abundance and with predation index of black grouse hens in year t + 1. We did find obvious support for the prediction of the PFH that there is a positive correlation between predator abundance and predation index of grouse hens, because the stoat Mustela erminea abundance index was positively related to the predation index of black grouse hens. We suggest that changes in vulnerability of grouse hens may mainly be caused by the guild of vole-eating predators, who shift to alternative prey in the decline phase of the vole cycle, and thus chase grouse hens and chicks to the talons of goshawks and other avian predators.

show abstract

“…Some studies suggest that Vaccinium has a positive effect on tree growth (Chrimes et al 2004), whereas others have shown its allelopathic effects on seedling recruitment and performance (Gallet 1994). Vaccinium is periodically disturbed by the rodent Clethrionomys rufocanus (grey‐sided vole), which feeds on stems below the snow pack during winter causing huge damage to the shrub (Dahlgren et al 2007).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shrub–tree interactions and environmental changes drive treeline dynamics in the Subarctic

Grau¹,

Ninot²,

Blanco‐Moreno³

et al. 2012

Oikos

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Treelines have drawn persistent research interest as they can respond markedly to climate. However, the mechanisms that determine tree seedling recruitment and the response of the forest‐tundra ecotone to environmental changes remain poorly understood. We hypothesise that treeline tree seedling performance depends on the interplay between climatic and soil nutritional changes and facilitative and competitive interactions between trees and shrubs. We conducted a seedling transplantation experiment with Betula pubescens at a subarctic treeline, in northern Sweden, which followed a full factorial design with four treatment factors relating to environmental regimes of stress and resource availability: site (forest vs treeline); temperature (+/− passive warming); shrub presence (+/−Vaccinium myrtillus removal); and nutrient availability (+/− NPK addition). During three growing seasons we assessed the establishment and performance of Betula. The experimental manipulations caused highly significant effects on seedling performance. Although Vaccinium enhanced seedling survival and reduced the effects of excessive solar radiation and insect herbivory, the seedlings growing with the shrub had a poorer performance by the end of the experimental period. Also, seedlings in the forest had a poorer performance than those at the treeline. Betula seedlings showed a very pronounced and positive response to passive warming and to nutrient addition, but such effects were more evident at the treeline site and often interacted with the presence of Vaccinium. This experiment shows that shrub–tree interactions are important drivers of subarctic treeline dynamics and that they vary with time and space. Facilitation, competition, herbivory and environmental changes at the tree seedling stage act as important filters in structuring the forest–tundra ecotone. We demonstrate that changes in this ecotone cannot be simply predicted from changing temperature patterns alone, and that complex interactions need to be considered, not only between shrubs and trees, but also with herbivores and between warming and soil nutrient availability.

show abstract

Interactions between gray-sided voles (Clethrionomys rufucanus) and bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus), their main winter food plant

Cited by 40 publications

References 46 publications

Arctic Small Rodents Have Diverse Diets and Flexible Food Selection

Arctic Small Rodents Have Diverse Diets and Flexible Food Selection

Vulnerability of black grouse hens to goshawk predation: result of food supply or predation facilitation?

Shrub–tree interactions and environmental changes drive treeline dynamics in the Subarctic

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About