Novel Insights into the Diet of the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse Edgerton, EM1; Rose, CR1,2 Introduc on Methods Results of Preliminary Data The endangered salt marsh harvest mouse Capture mice in Even though native (Reithrodontomys raviventris, SMHM) is plant species were endemic to the marshes of the San Francisco live traps, offered most often, Bay-Estuary. The diet of this species has remove all bait, when averaged, the never been comprehensively examined, but it and allow mice to mice spent the most was believed to be limited primarily to fast 2 hours time eating non- pickleweed. This diet study was designed to native plant species. determine what plants, other than pickleweed, the SMHM prefers to eat when offered. Percent of Time Spent Ea ng When Offered 35 Place mice in 30 25
feeding arena 20
provisioned with 15
10 food for 2 hours Percent of Time 5
0
18 Record 16 Typha Rabbit’s Foot Grass 14 Typha Species - Ty Polypogon monspeliensis - POMO proportion of 12 time spent 10 8 feeding on each 6 Percent of Time 4 Pickleweed Fat Hen 2 Sarcocornia pacifica - SAPA Atriplex prostrata - ATPR food item. 0 Invasive Non-Na ve Naturalized Na ve
Common Reed Pepperweed Phragmites australis - PHAU Lepidium la folium - LELA Conclusion
Na ve Vegeta on Species Non-Na ve Vegeta on Species While our results pertain only to SMHM diet
Naturalized Vegeta on Species Invasive Vegeta on Species preference, they indicate that the diet of SMHM is much more flexible than previously Objec ve believed. This indicates that habitats other Assess diet preferences of SMHM for native than pickleweed dominated wetlands provide and non-native plants growing seasonally in food year round for the SMHM and may have tidal and managed wetlands in Suisun Marsh. high value in conservation of this species.
1. University of California at Davis, Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conserva on Biology. 2. California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Region 3, Suisun Marsh Group. All work was performed under the Memorandum of Understanding between the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the US Fish and Wildlife Service and UC Davis ICUC # 17643. Poster adapted from: Smith, K.R., Riley, M.K., Barthman-Thompson, L., Estrella, S. (2014, August). Diet Preferences of the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse During a California Drought. Poster session presented at the 99th ESA Annual Mee ng, Sacramento, CA. .