Dry season diet composition of Eligmodontia moreni (Rodentia, Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) in a hyper-arid region of the Monte desert (Mendoza, Argentina)

C. LANZONE; V. CHILLO; D. RODRÍGUEZ; MARIA ANA DACAR; C. CAMPOS

MULTEQUINA

Multequina

Año: 2012 vol. 21 p. 25 - 30

0327-9375

We report the diet of Eligmodontia moreni during a dry season in a hyper-arid region of the Monte desert. Most eaten items were plant leaves, arthropods and seeds. Besides the high consumption of leaves, it should be considered as omnivorous with tendency to herbivory due to the high variability in consumption. The high consumption of arthropods was not recorded for other species of the genus. E. moreni shows a high flexibility in the diet, and this may be advanta-geous in these unpredictable environments.