Expected ambient conditions for each treatment.

Expected conditions of ambient temperature (Ta), aridity, and osmolarity of the food source for Mount Carmel (Mediterranean) and Mount Hermon (sub-Alpine) mice exposed to short day (winter) and long day (summer) conditions. The laboratory conditions of short day (8L:16D) and long day (16L:8D) and salinity regimes of the drinking water source (0.9%, 1.4% and 1.8%) present mice with environmental signals which can either represent what occurs in the wild, in which case the environmental signals are not conflicting (No); or they can represent different conditions to what the mice experience in the wild, in which case the environmental signals are conflicting (Yes). * indicates a potentially stressful situation as mice do not expect a high salinity load; ** indicates a potentially stressful situation as mice do not expect a low salinity load.