3.3 Dietary composition and seasonal variation in plant food
items
Generally, shrews are known to be small insectivorous mammals that
preferentially target invertebrate prey. Interestingly, plant food items
(especially crops) at various taxonomic levels were successfully
detected from stomach contents of A. squamipes (Figure 6 and 7).
The species of the Fabaceae family (FO: 88%) were the most common plant
food items followed by Poaceae (FO: 71%) based on both FO and relative
abundance (peak value > 50%) over the course of the year
(Table 3). The winter plant-derived diet of Chinese mole shrews was
dominated by Fabaceae species (57.2% of plants consumed), withArachis hypogaea (peanut) being the most 
frequently and
abundantly eaten species from this family, representing 15.2%−86.8% of
the identified plant food items (Figure 4B, 6 and Supplementary Table
2). Poaceae species were found to significant increase in relative
abundance during autumn (>53%) compared to other seasons
(<8%) based on LEfSe analysis (Table 3 and Figure 7B),
suggesting that A. squamipes feeds primarily on the seeds from
Poaceae in autumn, peaking at 53% (Table 3 and Figure 4B). Oryza sativa
(rice) as a commonly eaten crop species from the family Poaceae
displayed the highest frequency (FO: 100%) and proportion (peaking at
26.1%), especially during post-harvest period (e.g., autumn and
winter)(Figure 4B, 6 and Supplementary Table 2). In addition, the crop
species Withania frutescens (balsam pear) and Lactuca
sativa (lettuce) were also identified during the year but contributed a
very low percent of the plant diet (Figure 4B and Supplementary Table
2). Our results confirmed that Chinese mole shrews could cause serious
damage to crops or stored grains.
Aside from crops, species from the Caryophyllaceae (31.5%) and
Lauraceae (26.7%) families were also eaten by A. squamipes in
higher proportions during spring compared to other seasons and appeared
in all of the stomach contents samples (Table 3). Chikusichloa
aquatic , which constituted the majority of Poaceae, was observed at a
significant higher frequency (FO: 100%) and proportion (36.4%) in
autumn compared to other seasons (Supplementary Table 2). The Oleaceae,
Asteraceae, and Nyssaceae were frequently observed during summer,
accounting for 19.8%, 10.6%, and 10.4% of the identified plant diets,
respectively (Table 3). In total, we observed high diversity in Chinese
mole shrew plant-derived diet throughout the year. A wide-range foraging
mode may explain the abundant numbers of this shrew even when food
resources are limited during winter.