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Selective Herbivory By The Woodrat (Neotoma Lepida) On Joshua Trees (Yucca Brevifolia), M P. Stanford, Nancy J. Huntly
Selective Herbivory By The Woodrat (Neotoma Lepida) On Joshua Trees (Yucca Brevifolia), M P. Stanford, Nancy J. Huntly
Biology Faculty Publications
We studied herbivory by the desert woodrat (Neotoma lepida) on Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia) in the Mojave Desert to determine whether N. lepida fed selectively based on leaf nitrogen content. We measured leaf nitrogen content and the location and amount of herbivory by woodrats on Y. brevifolia trees in southwestern Utah, USA. Neotoma lepida removed the outer tips of leaves (1/3 to 2/3 of total leaf length) but left leaf bases, which had lower nitrogen content, uneaten. Herbivory by N. lepida also was concentrated on rosettes that were oriented south, and these had significantly higher nitrogen content than rosettes that …