Pilfering of western juniper seed caches by scatter-hoarding rodents varies by microsite and canopy type.

Scatter-hoarding rodents store seeds throughout their home ranges in superficially buried caches which, unlike seeds larder-hoarded in burrows, are difficult to defend. Cached seeds are often pilfered by other scatter-hoarders and either re-cached, eaten or larder-hoarded. Such seed movements can influence seedling recruitment, because only seeds remaining in caches are likely to germinate.

Seed value influences cache pilfering rates by desert rodents.

Some rodents gather and store seeds. How many seeds they gather and how they treat those seeds is largely determined by seed traits such as mass, nutrient content, hardness of the seed coat, presence of secondary compounds, and germination schedule. Through their consumption and dispersal of seeds, rodents act as agents of natural selection on seed traits, and those traits influence how rodents forage.