Lukas VFN 🇪🇺

Rare rodent prefers an invasive noxious weed over native vegetation https://phys.org/news/2024-07-rare-rodent-invasive-noxious-weed.html

Threatened stick-nest rats preferentially eat invasive #boxthorn rather than native vegetation on Australia’s #ReevesbyIsland: Annie Kraehe et al. https://www.publish.csiro.au/WR/WR23140

In a twist to the native #animal survival story, new research shows that a threatened #rodent that only survives on offshore islands prefers one of #Australia's most invasive weeds for food and shelter.

Rare rodent prefers an invasive noxious weed over native vegetation, study finds

In a twist to the native animal survival story, new research shows that a threatened rodent that only survives on offshore islands prefers one of Australia's most invasive weeds for food and shelter.

Phys.org
Jul 26, 2024 at 10:53amWeb
Show threadPeterJul 26, 2024

@animalculum

I guess it's not noxious for them?

Show threadLukas VFN 🇪🇺Jul 26, 2024
@PeterLG From what I read in the article, there is no evidence for this. Sometimes, ecology is just complicated and unintuitive.
Show threadPeterJul 26, 2024

@animalculum

My mistake. I defined 'noxious' as 'poisonous' but that's not the way the word is used related to the boxthorn.

The rats' diet is made up of nearly 52% boxthorn, so it obviously isn't worried by it (yet another of the nightshade family). It protects them from raptors, too.