Amineral lick (also known as asalt lick) is a place whereanimals can go tolick essentialmineral nutrients from a deposit ofsalts and otherminerals. Mineral licks can be naturally occurring or artificial (such as blocks ofsalt that farmers place inpastures forlivestock to lick). Natural licks are common, and they provide essential elements such asphosphorus and thebiometals (sodium,calcium,iron,zinc, andtrace elements) required forbone,muscle and other growth inherbivorous mammals such asdeer,moose,elephants,hippos,rhinos,giraffes,zebras,wildebeests,tapirs,woodchucks,fox squirrels,mountain goats,porcupines, andfrugivorousbats.[1] Such licks are especially important inecosystems such as tropical rainforests and grasslands with poor general availability of nutrients. Harsh weather exposes saltymineral deposits that draw animals from miles away for a taste of needed nutrients. It is thought that certainfauna can detectcalcium in salt licks.[2]
Many animals regularly visit mineral licks to consumeclay, supplementing theirdiet with nutrients and minerals. In tropical bats, lick visitation is associated with a diet based on wild figs (Ficus), which have very low levels of sodium,[3][4] and licks are mostly used by females that are pregnant or lactating.[5]
Some animals require the minerals at these sites not for nutrition, but to ward off the effects of secondary compounds that are included in the arsenal of plant defences againstherbivory.[6][failed verification] The minerals of these sites usually containcalcium,magnesium,sulfur,phosphorus,potassium, andsodium.[7][8][9][10] Mineral lick sites play a critical role in the ecology and diversity of organisms that visit these sites, but little is still understood about the dietary benefits.
The paths animals made to natural mineral licks and watering holes became the hunting paths predators and early humans used for hunting. It is hypothesized that these salt and water paths became trails and later roads for early humans.[11]
Nonetheless, many studies have identified other uses and nutritional benefits from other micronutrients that exist at these sites, includingselenium,cobalt and/ormolybdenum.[12][13] In addition to the utilization of mineral licks, many animals suffer fromtraffic collisions as they gather to lick salts accumulated on road surfaces. Animals also consume soil (geophagy) to obtain minerals, such as moose from Canada mining for minerals from the root wads of fallen trees.[14][15]
Artificial salt licks are used in thehusbandry oflivestock and to attract or maintainwildlife, whether it be for viewing, photography, farming, or hunting purposes.[16] Maintaining artificial salt licks as a form ofbaiting is illegal in some states in the United States, but legal in others.[10]: 413 Inadvertent salt licks may lead to unintended wildlife-human interactions.[17]
Theindigenous peoples of the Americas and thelonghunter watched salt licks to hunt game. Many became well-known, includingBledsoe Lick inSumner County, Tennessee; theBlue Lick in centralKentucky; 'Great Buffalo Lick' in Kanawha Salines, now present-dayMalden, West Virginia; theFrench Lick in southernIndiana; and the Blackwater Lick inBlackwater, Lee County, Virginia.[18][unreliable source?]
InNorse mythology, before the creation of the world, the divine cowAuðumbla licked salty ice for three days and uncoveredBúri, ancestor of thegods and grandfather ofOdin. On the first day as Auðumbla licked, Buri's hair appeared from the ice, on the second day his head, and the third his body.[19]
Media related toSalt licks at Wikimedia Commons
