Foods of Rodents in Hamakua — Kami 
369 
TABLE 1 
Stomach Contents of Rodents Captured in Cane Fields 
FOOD ITEMS 
Rattus exulans 
no. examined: 359 
Rattus rattus 
no. examined: 34 
Mus musculus 
no. examined: 345 
FREQUENCIES 
NO. % 
VOL. 
% 
FREQUENCIES 
NO. % 
VOL. 
% 
FREQUENCIES 
NO. % 
VOL. 
% 
Fruits and berries 
17 
4.8 
3.5 
4 
11.8 
5.7 
2 
0.6 
0.3 
Grass (seeds) 
50 
14.0 
8.6 
6 
17.6 
11.9 
132 
38.3 
32.0 
Grass (stalks) 
26 
7.3 
6.5 
3 
8.8 
5.5 
8 
2.3 
3-0 
Insect 
68* 
19.1 
6.0 
5* 
14.7 
4.4 
56 
16.2 
7.4 
Insect (egg mass) 
86 
24.9 
25.5 
Insect (larvae) 
31 
9.0 
5.9 
Sugar cane 
243 
68.2 
67.2 
21 
61.8 
59-7 
25 
7.2 
9-8 
Nuts 
3 
0.8 
0.7 
5 
1.4 
1.8 
Unidentified material 
21 
5.9 
5.9 
5 
14.7 
11.9 
24 
6.9 
10.9 
Animal flesh 
3 
0.8 
0.5 
1 
2.9 
0.8 
5 
1.4 
1.8 
Other invertebrates 
(earthworms and slugs) 
10 
2.8 
1.0 
7 
2.0 
1.6 
* Includes adults, larvae, and 
egg masses. 
TABLE 2 
Summer and Winter Feeding Pattern of R. Exulans Captured in Cane Fields 
FOOD ITEMS 
SUMMER 
NO. 
(april-september) 
examined: 169 
WINTER 
NO. 
(OCTOBER- 
EXAMINED: 
-march) 
: 190 
FREQUENCIES 
NO. % 
VOL. 
% 
FREQUENCIES 
NO. % 
VOL. 
% 
Fruits and berries 
10 
5.9 
3.6 
9 
4.7 
3.8 
Grass (seeds) 
35 
20.7 
14.1 
13 
6.8 
3.6 
Grass (stalks) 
13 
7.7 
6.4 
13 
6.8 
6.2 
Insects 
41* 
24.3 
9-6 
25 
13.1 
2.2 
Sugar cane 
94 
55.6 
56.2 
147 
77.4 
77.7 
Nuts 
3 
1.6 
1.2 
Unidentified materials 
14 
8.3 
8.3 
7 
3.7 
3.9 
Animal flesh 
1 
0.5 
0.6 
Other invertebrates 
(earthworms, slugs, etc.) 
7 
4.1 
1.7 
4 
2.1 
0.8 
* Includes adults, larvae, and egg masses. 
Although heavy feeding on sugar cane was 
evident throughout the year, its use during the 
winter period increased 21.8% in frequency 
and 21.5% in volume. During the summer 
there was an increase in the consumption of 
grass seeds and insects (see Table 2). No sea- 
sonal changes were observed in the use of 
fruits. The other food items were too infre- 
quently observed to allow seasonal compari- 
sons. 
Rattus rattus: The pattern of food prefer- 
ences was similar to that of R. exulans. Sugar 
cane was the primary diet; 6 1.8% of the ani- 
mals fed on cane which formed 59-7% of the 
volume. Grass seeds and stalks were of con- 
siderable importance to 26.4% of R. rattus and 
these foods amounted to 17.4% of the diet by 
volume. The seeds and stalks of Panicum maxi- 
mum, P. purpurascens, and Setaria palmifolia 
were preferred to other available grasses by both 
R. rattus and R. exulans. 
Fruits, mainly guavas, and a few berries of 
poha (Phy salts peruviana ) and of nightshade 
( Solatium nigrum'), constituted 5.7% of the 
