DISTINCTIVE FLAVORS INFLUENCE MIXING OF NUTRITIONALLY IDENTICAL FOODS BY GRASSHOPPERS

Generalist feeders commonly ingest a mixture of different food items and in some situations it is known that dietary mixing involves an improvement in overall nutrient balance. Grasshoppers have been demonstrated to compensate for low nutrients by eating more of a food or eating an alternative one (Simpson and Simpson, 1990), although the details of the mechanisms involved have not been teased apart. This paper provides data that indicate a role for non-nutrient flavors in dietary mixing. Even with nutritionally identical foods, individuals mix two foods much less intensively when there are distinctive flavors added to them. This implies that flavor cues can be important in structuring foraging behavior. The different possible interpretations of these effects are discussed with reference to learning. novelty effects, 'boredom' and a basic tendency to alternate spatially.