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Porcupines also eat certain insects and nuts. In the winter, they mainly eat conifer needles and tree bark. Porcupines are selective in their consumption; for example out of every 1,000 trees in the Catskill Mountains, porcupines will only eat from 1-2 linden trees and one big-toothed aspen. [citation needed]
In the winter, it may eat bark. [2] The African porcupine is not a climber; instead, it forages on the ground. [2] It is mostly nocturnal [10] but will sometimes forage for food during the day, eating bark, roots, fruits, berries, and farm crops. Porcupines have become a pest in Kenya and are eaten as a delicacy. [11]
Their diets consist mainly of bark, leaves, and conifer needles, but can also include roots, stems, berries, fruits, seeds, nuts, grasses, and flowers. Some species also eat insects and small reptiles. [2] Their teeth are similar to those of Old World porcupines, with the dental formula 1.0.1.3 1.0.1.3.
The crested porcupine is for the most part herbivorous, eating roots, bulbs, and leaves, but occasionally they do consume insects, small vertebrates, and carrion. To ingest calcium and sharpen incisors, they often gnaw on bones. These animals often travel long distances looking for food.
"Unfortunately, the decline in porcupines is a bit of a mystery and we are hoping to start working on it soon within the FWP Nongame Program," explained Torrey Ritter, non-game Wildlife Biologist ...
Porcupines do not shoot their quills. They can detach, and porcupines will deliberately back into attackers to impale them, but their quills do not project. [48] [49] [50] Mice do not have a special appetite for cheese, and will eat it only for lack of better options; they actually favor sweet, sugary foods. The myth may have come from the fact ...
Indian crested porcupines have a very broad and mostly herbivorous diet. [2] They consume a variety of natural and agricultural plant material, including roots, bulbs, fruits, grains, drupe and tubers, along with insects and small vertebrates. [2] [3] [13] [14] Because they are cecal digesters, they are able to exploit low quality forage. [15]
Long-tailed porcupines’ appearances are somewhat rat-like. [4] [5] Their weight is usually around 1.7-2.3 kg but can be as small as 1.5 kg and their length can be between 27.9-48 cm excluding their tail which is usually up to 24 cm. [6] [4] To save themselves from predators including larger mammals, snakes and birds, their tails can be lost when grabbed but will not be regenerated.