Do wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus L.) use food selection as a means to reduce heavy metal intake?
Food preference of wood mice from two with heavy metals polluted sites and two unpolluted sites was tested under laboratory and field conditions with two-way choice experiments. In the laboratory, wood mice preferred to eat acorns from unpolluted sites over acorns from polluted sites. Previous experience with polluted food had no influence on food choice. Preference was negatively related to acorn metal content. Furthermore, the nutrient content of the acorn endosperm was consistently lower in polluted sites. We therefore conclude that wood mice used absolute metal concentration in the acorn, nutrient content, or both as a food selection cue. The results of the laboratory experiment could not be confirmed under field conditions. We hypothesized that search time constraints due to the presence of predators, competitors and/or other stress factors in the field have prevented the mice to forage selectively.