Macronutrient selection by foraging rats.

Rats were studied in a laboratory simulation of foraging for separate sources of carbohydrate, fat, and protein. Fixed ratios of bar-presses were required to search for a cue signalling the availability of a meal and to procure each meal. In the first phase, the costs of procuring all three foods were raised equally for three rats. Meal frequency declined and meal size increased for all three foods. Protein opportunities were accepted more frequently than those for other foods, and the proportion of calories taken from protein remained low and constant. Two rats were studied in the remaining three phases. When protein meal cost was raised while the costs of energy foods were low, protein intake was gradually reduced and at the highest cost was dropped from the diet. There were individual differences in the preferred source of energy calories; when each animal's preferred energy source was made more costly, these preferences persisted over the range of costs studied in one rat, but shifted abruptly in the other rat. Finally, when search costs were raised, the animals became less selective in accepting meal opportunities and composing their diets. These results suggest that diet selection in the rat is flexible and responsive to changes in the costs of acquiring food. This ability is consistent with the foraging behaviors required by omnivorous generalized feeders.