Selective foraging and food distribution of high-elevation yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris) [Alimentation sélective et répartition de la nourriture des marmottes à ventre jaune d’altitude (Marmota flaviventris)].

Résumé

We examined diet composition, choice of foraging areas, and distribution of food (vegetation) of a high-elevation (3,800 m) population of yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris) in the White Mountains of California. Marmots overwhelmingly ingested forbs over graminoids (grasses, sedges, and rushes) and particularly ingested clover (Trifolium andersonii) despite its rarity. Although suitable marmot habitat is continuous at this site, marmot food plants were distributed in clumps. Areas in which marmots concentrated their foraging contained a disproportionate amount of clover compared with its abundance in the study site. Possible explanations for the choice of forbs over graminoids included the higher water content of forbs. Clumped food distribution has implications for foraging strategies and social behavior.