The study mentions the prevalence of red oak acorns as food for the mice. Why specifically red oak and not, say, white oak?
I did some sleuthing, and apparently the mice will eat white oak acorns immediately but will store away the red oak acorns for later. They only eat them when there is no other option, because they have lots of tannins and are bitter tasting. So basically, red oak acorns are a food to help get through bad winters.
Tick numbers don’t predict the next generation of ticks and explains why deer don’t matter. deer feed adult ticks, but more adults don’t lead to more nymphs. Also the riskiest year for people is the one after a mouse boom, especially when mice crash. Nymphs are abundant the year after a mouse peak so if mouse numbers then collapse, those nymphs have few mice to feed on, raising human risks.
The study mentions the prevalence of red oak acorns as food for the mice. Why specifically red oak and not, say, white oak?
I did some sleuthing, and apparently the mice will eat white oak acorns immediately but will store away the red oak acorns for later. They only eat them when there is no other option, because they have lots of tannins and are bitter tasting. So basically, red oak acorns are a food to help get through bad winters.
interesting items from the study:
Tick numbers don’t predict the next generation of ticks and explains why deer don’t matter. deer feed adult ticks, but more adults don’t lead to more nymphs. Also the riskiest year for people is the one after a mouse boom, especially when mice crash. Nymphs are abundant the year after a mouse peak so if mouse numbers then collapse, those nymphs have few mice to feed on, raising human risks.
study:
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2610907123