Mammals food preference behavior

Regardless of the wild species to be considered or the food flavor under study, the chemist involved in animal food flavor research and development should be aware of the numerous factors that ultimately influence and determine food preference behavior of birds and mammals. 

This review will not be an attempt to report all that is known about food preference behavior of birds and mammals. Such information could be of limited benefit to the chemist working on animal food flavor problems, but, as I will point out to the reader several times, each bird or mammal in a specific habitat is a somewhat unique entity. Laboratory data do not necessarily generalize to field situations and field experiments are often difficult if not impossible to duplicate in the laboratory. Instead of an exhaustive review, I have elected to cover some important factors that can often influence flavor preference behavior. Next, a brief reviw is given of attempts to modify preference behavior by the empirical screening approach. Finally, an example of one approach to the problem of intensifying rice flavor to increase... 

Food flavor familiarity may be the single, most important factor controlling food preference behavior of wild species (8, 23, 77). Mammals show highest acceptance of familiar foods, but they aTTo tend to sample small amounts of any new food item placed in their environment ( ). Some bird species are extremely resistant to changing their preference behavior for certain food items (83). but there is no compelling evidence proving that food flavor is less important to birds than to mammals (6, 85, 89). For mammals (and possibly birds also), food texture, partlFle size, and feeder location can sometimes produce as much, or more, effect than odor and taste of food (103, 104). 

Hudson, R. and Altbacker, V. (1994). Development of feeding and food preference in the European rabbit environmental and maturational determinants. In Behavioral Aspects of Feeding Basic and Applied Research in Mammals, ed. B. G. Galef, M. Mainardi, and P. Valsecchi, pp. 125-145. Chur Harwood Academic. 

Nutritional Factors. Birds and mammals are efficient at food regulation. Even man, whose flavor preference behavior is largely determined by social, economic, and cultural patterns ) tends to generally increase fat intake in cold environments, protein content in temperate zones, and carbohydrate content in tropical zones. Much of this food selection behavior, however, is distorted by food availability whether it be related to socioeconomic status or food crops prevalently grown in specific climates. 

It appears to be unlikely that food flavoring agents, spices, and enhancers developed for humans will effect strong and long-lasting preference behavior modifications in birds and mammals. 

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