Journal of Pest Science (2014) 87, 99-106

Ibrahim M. Hegab, Hemin Pan, Junyan Dong, Aiqin Wang, Baofa Yin, Shengmei Yang and Wanhong Wei (2014)
Effects of physical attributes and chemical composition of novel foods on food selection by Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus)
Journal of Pest Science 87 (1), 99-106
Abstract: An organism's food is a fundamental aspect of its survival niche. Free-ranging rodents are presented regularly with different types of novel food. To investigate the novel food selection process in Norway rats concerning chemical and physical characteristics, 288 laboratory bred Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) were tested with a 2-h free choice for each animal. First, rats were tested against eight kinds of novel foods: corn, beans, broiler ration, soybeans, peanuts, rice, potatoes, and millet. Rats preferred corn over the other novel food types, and there was a significant positive correlation between the selective coefficient and carbohydrate content; rats chose novel food with highest energy content. Rats also appeared to be less neophobic to foods of high sugar content. Regarding physical characteristic, rats effectively differentiated between spectral colors of different wavelengths, and red-colored food was more attractive for rats than foods of four other colors. Small-sized food received the highest numbers of visits and longest feeding bouts compared to other sizes. These results suggest that the carbohydrates content, red color, and small size of novel food play a role in the novel food selection of Norway rats.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Rattus norvegicus