Dataset for: Warmer ambient temperatures reduce protein intake by a mammalian folivore

The interplay between ambient temperature and nutrition in wild herbivores is frequently overlooked, despite the fundamental importance of food. We tested whether different ambient temperatures (10˚C, 18˚C, and 26˚C) influenced the intake of protein by a marsupial herbivore, the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula). At each temperature, possums were offered a choice of two foods containing different amounts of protein (57% vs 8%) for one week. Animals mixed a diet with a lower proportion of protein to non-protein (P:NP, 0.20) when held at 26˚C compared to that at both 10˚C and 18˚C (0.22). Since detoxification of plant secondary metabolites imposes a protein cost on animals, we then studied whether addition of the monoterpene 1,8-cineole to the food changed the effect of ambient temperature (10˚C and 26˚C) on food choice. Cineole reduced food intake but also removed the effect of temperature on P:NP ratio and instead animals opted for a diet with higher P:NP (0.19 with cineol...