Differential Acceptance of Toxic Jojoba Seed (Simmondsia Chinensis) by Four Sonoran Desert Heteromyid Rodents

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Abstract
Selected native heteromyid rodents were placed on diets of jojoba seeds (Simmondsia chinensis), which contain cyanogenic glucosides, to determine their ability to utilize the wild seed crop. Perognathus baileyi ate jojoba seeds and lived on a diet of seeds or meal for several weeks. Perognathus penicillatus, Perognathus intermedius, and Dipodomys merriami refused jojoba seed diets and lost weight rapidly. Apparently P. baileyi has a detoxification mechanism not possessed by the other species. Cyanogenic glucosides in jojoba seeds may function as a defense in seed predation. The development of detoxification mechanisms by P. baileyi could have been a coevolutionary response to the development of seed toxicity in jojoba. Biogeographically their distributions are broadly overlapping. Jojoba seed storage by P. baileyi may function to disperse seeds and facilitate germination and seedling survival. It is hypothesized that jojoba seed toxicity is an important factor in resource allocation among coexisting seed—eating rodents in jojoba habitats.

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