Scent deposition by cheek rubbing in the alpine marmot (Marmota marmota) in the French Alps

1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (11) ◽  
pp. 2065-2071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Claude Bel ◽  
Christelle Porteret ◽  
Jacques Coulon
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Central Area ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Territorial Defence ◽  
Marmota Marmota ◽  
Marking Behaviour ◽  
Alpine Marmot

The aim of this fieldwork was to provide information about the function of scent-marking behaviour in the alpine marmot (Marmota marmota). Twenty-three identified animals were observed on their home range during the season of activity, from May to September, during which the probability and rate of cheek rubbing decreased significantly. Cheek rubbing was performed more by resident adults than by 2-year-olds or yearlings. The resident adult pairs made "marking tours" during which numerous successive bouts of scent marking occurred throughout most of the home range. Scent marks were not evenly distributed within home ranges. Principal and, if present, accessory burrow systems were saturated with scent deposits, the boundaries being marked significantly more than the central area. We tested the reactions of marmots to strange odours by presenting them with two glass tubes, one clean (control) and the other covered with marks deposited by marmots belonging to other groups. The results showed that residents tended to mark the experimental tubes more frequently, or at least more intensively, than the control ones. In the alpine marmot, cheek rubbing appears to be a multipurpose activity. It is used to advertise the occupancy of burrows and, as predicted by Gosling, scent marks were also laid down where the risk of intrusion was greatest, i.e., at the boundaries, so that intruders could detect them more readily. The results of field tests support another of Gosling's predictions, that residents will tend to overmark any mark deposited by a strange animal inside their territory. Thus, in the alpine marmot, cheek rubbing can play a role in territorial defence.

Observations on the behaviour and ecology of the Common Wombat Vombatus ursinus in northeast Tasmania.

1993 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
R.J. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Average Density ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Faecal Pellets ◽  
Common Wombat ◽  
The Common

Aspects of the behaviour and ecology of Vombatus ursinus were studied in largely cleared agricultural land in a coastal area in northeast Tasmania. The average density of V. ursinus was 20 individuals.km-2 over the whole study area but around 60.km-2 in an intensively studied section. Burrows were concentrated in areas of sandy soil where a dense cover of native vegetation had been maintained. Only short, shallow burrows were present in areas of dolerite, probably because of the difficulty of digging. Home-ranges of different individuals overlapped. Wombats were not active continually through the night and varied in time of emergence from their burrow and the time spent above ground. Often more than one burrow was used on the same night, with more than one individual making use of a burrow, but usually not at the same time. Disputes over the use of burrows occurred. Individuals frequently sniffed around burrows and investigated for the presence of occupants. Males may use this as a strategy for finding females in oestrus. Mating behaviour was observed once. Wombats are solitary and actively avoid the presence of others. Odour in faecal pellets and from scent marking probably plays an important social role by providing information on the individuals sharing a home-range and the occurrence of strangers. Dominant animals may be intolerant of the presence of certain individuals within their home-range.

scholarly journals Lizard movement tracks: variation in path re-use behaviour is consistent with a scent-marking function

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e1844 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan T. Leu ◽  
Grant Jackson ◽  
John F. Roddick ◽  
C. Michael Bull
Keyword(s):  
Scent Marking ◽  
Spatial Knowledge ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Vomeronasal System ◽  
Sexual Competition ◽  
Pair Bonds ◽  
Monogamous Species ◽  
Site Familiarity ◽  
Marking Behaviour ◽  
Social Structuring

Individual movement influences the spatial and social structuring of a population. Animals regularly use the same paths to move efficiently to familiar places, or to patrol and mark home ranges. We found that Australian sleepy lizards (Tiliqua rugosa), a monogamous species with stable pair-bonds, repeatedly used the same paths within their home ranges and investigated whether path re-use functions as a scent-marking behaviour, or whether it is influenced by site familiarity. Lizards can leave scent trails on the substrate when moving through the environment and have a well-developed vomeronasal system to detect and respond to those scents. Path re-use would allow sleepy lizards to concentrate scent marks along these well-used trails, advertising their presence. Hypotheses of mate attraction and mating competition predict that sleepy lizard males, which experience greater intra-sexual competition, mark more strongly. Consistent with those hypotheses, males re-used their paths more than females, and lizards that showed pairing behaviour with individuals of the opposite sex re-used paths more than unpaired lizards, particularly among females. Hinterland marking is most economic when home ranges are large and mobility is low, as is the case in the sleepy lizard. Consistent with this strategy, re-used paths were predominantly located in the inner 50% home range areas. Together, our detailed movement analyses suggest that path re-use is a scent marking behaviour in the sleepy lizard. We also investigated but found less support for alternative explanations of path re-use behaviour, such as site familiarity and spatial knowledge. Lizards established the same number of paths, and used them as often, whether they had occupied their home ranges for one or for more years. We discuss our findings in relation to maintenance of the monogamous mating system of this species, and the spatial and social structuring of the population.

No trespassing: using a biofence to manipulate wolf movements

2013 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 207 ◽  
Author(s):  
David E. Ausband ◽  
Michael S. Mitchell ◽  
Sarah B. Bassing ◽  
Craig White
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
First Year ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Location Data ◽  
Human Land Use ◽  
Sign Surveys ◽  
Continuous Presence ◽  
Marking Behaviour ◽  
And Control

Context Conserving large carnivores can be challenging because of conflicts with human land use and competition with humans for resources. Predation on domestic stock can have negative economic impacts particularly for owners of small herds, and tools for minimising carnivore depredation of livestock are needed. Canids use scent marking to establish territories and avoid intraspecific conflict. Exploiting scent-marking behaviour may provide a means for manipulating canid movements. Aims We hypothesised that human-deployed scent marks (i.e. ‘biofence’) could be used to manipulate the movements of grey wolves (Canis lupus) in Idaho, USA. Methods We deployed 65 km of biofence within three wolf-pack territories during summer 2010 and 2011 and used location data from satellite-collared wolves and sign surveys to assess the effectiveness of biofencing. Key results Location data provided by satellite-collared wolves and sign surveys in 2010 showed little to no trespass of the biofence, even though the excluded areas were used by the packs in previous summers. We also opportunistically deployed a biofence in between a rendezvous site of a resident pack and a nearby sheep grazing allotment; the pack was not implicated in any depredations in summer 2010, even though they had killed sheep every year since 2006. Location data provided by satellite-collared wolves in summer 2011 showed that wolves did trespass biofences. Conclusions Biofencing effectively manipulated the movements of wolves in the first year of our study, but not the second. Implications Our work suggests that biofencing may be most limited by the apparent necessity to maintain a continuous presence once the biofence is established. The inherent labour and costs associated with such efforts may limit the usefulness of biofencing. Our work can be improved on through further testing that maintains biofencing over a longer timeframe (>3 months), samples several animals per treatment pack, and uses a treatment and control design.

scholarly journals The effect of neighbouring klipspringer on the scent–marking behaviour of a group of klipspringer in the Kruger National Park

Koedoe ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Kruger ◽  
J. Du P. Bothma ◽  
J.M. Kruger
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Kruger National Park ◽  
Scent Mark ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Marking Behaviour ◽  
Strip Transect

Both the male and the female klipspringer scent-mark their ranges. A pair of pre-orbital glands below the eyes produces the scent. The secretion is a sticky, substance that is deposited on a suitable twig. Klipspringer scent marks were surveyed in a specific klipspringer range in the Kruger National Park with the use of a strip transect method. The results showed that klipspringer in the Kruger National Park scent-mark more frequently on the boundaries of their ranges and also more on those sides where there is another resident klipspringer group.

SCENT MARKING IN MEADOW VOLES AND PRAIRIE VOLES: A TEST OF THREE HYPOTHESES

Behaviour ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 138 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 1319-1336 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.G. Mech ◽  
M.H. Ferkin ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Avoidance Response ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Scent Mark ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Meadow Voles ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Marking Behaviour

AbstractMost terrestrial mammals deposit scent marks to communicate with conspecifics. We examined the scent marking behaviour of meadow voles and prairie voles, species with different mating systems and social organizations, to determine whether voles scent mark according to the 'targeting' response, the 'avoidance' response, or the 'shotgun' response. The targeting response occurs when the second scent donor deposits more of its scent marks in an area marked by the first scent donor than in an unscented area. The avoidance response occurs when the second scent donor deposits more of its scent marks in an unscented area than in an area marked by the first scent donor. The shotgun response occurs when the second scent donor deposits a similar number of its scent marks in an area containing scent marks of a conspecific and in an area containing no conspecific scent marks. We allowed voles simultaneous access to an arena containing two arms: one of the arms was scented by a conspecific and the other arm was unscented. We recorded the number of marks deposited by the voles in each arm and the amount of time they spent investigating marks deposited previously in the scented arm. Our data provide no support for the avoidance response, but provide support for the shotgun response and the target response. Species and sex differences in the scent marking behaviours of voles when they encounter the scent marks of conspecifics are discussed within the framework that scent marking responses depend on the voles' social organization and mating system, and that these responses may reflect the tactics males and females use to attract mates and compete with same-sex conspecifics.

Home range and habitat of the cardinal in peripheral and central populations

1969 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas D. Dow
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Central Area ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Central Population ◽  
Woody Cover

A bird's habitat is defined as the physiognomy of vegetational and other cover-forms present in the area that it occupies. Habitats of the cardinal, Richmondena cardinalis, were compared near the center of its range in western Tennessee and at the periphery in southern Ontario.Population density in Tennessee was 0.74 males per hectare (30 per 100 acres), and in Ontario was 0.012 per hectare (0.48 per 100 acres). In Tennessee, cardinals occupied every available type of cover, suggesting plasticity of response to habitat; in Ontario, they were most common in the most abundant cover, suggesting little or no selection.Home ranges were smaller in the central population, 1.18 vs. 18.81 ha (2.91 vs. 46.48 acres). Home ranges in both areas contained the same proportion of woody cover, but woody "edge" was proportionately greater in the central population. Most cover-forms and substrates in home ranges occurred with equal frequencies in the two regions; differences could be reasonably explained in terms of geographic dissimilarity rather than by differential preferences. Peripheral home ranges contained much coniferous foliage, so that birds were not selecting all-broadleaved areas. This suggests that coniferous foliage may be insufficient to limit the species in the north.It is suggested that, in the central area, greatest density is reached in non-preferred habitats such as hedgerows because distance can be easily maintained between neighbors.

Home range, movement and habitat utilisation of the Carpentarian rock-rat (Zyzomys palatalis) in an isolated habitat patch

2004 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Puckey ◽  
Milton Lewis ◽  
David Hooper ◽  
Carrie Michell
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Radio Telemetry ◽  
Central Area ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Habitat Patch ◽  
Minimum Convex Polygon ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Core Areas ◽  
The Mean

Radio-telemetry was used to examine the home range, movement and habitat utilisation of the critically endangered Carpentarian rock-rat (Zyzomys palatalis) in an isolated habitat patch in the Gulf of Carpentaria hinterland over a 13-month period. Two home-range estimators were used in the study, (i) minimum convex polygon (MCP) and (ii) fixed Kernel (KL), the latter also being used to estimate core areas of activity. Based on a total sample size of 21 individuals, the mean MCP home range was 11 165 m2, similar to the mean KL home range of 10 687 m2. Core areas were, on average, 11.9% of the KL home-range estimate. There was no significant difference in the size of home range or core area of males and females. Juveniles had a significantly smaller home range than adults. Home ranges and, to a lesser degree, core areas were non-exclusive, with multiple areas of overlap (averaging 41% and 38% respectively) within and between all age and gender categories, but especially between males and between juveniles. Movement frequencies showed that animals made many short forays in a central area close to the arithmetic home-range mean and far fewer long forays of distances greater than 100 m from the central area. The spatial and temporal activity of Z. palatalis was concentrated in, but not confined to, the 'valley' and 'slope' habitats, with fewer movements of rats onto the surrounding 'plateau'. Resource selection analyses showed that Z. palatalis tended to prefer valley and slope habitats over the plateau and that the proportion of point locations was significantly higher for adults in the slope habitat and for juveniles in the valley habitat. Most home ranges were centred on the ecotone between these two habitat types. Although isolated and spatially limited, these habitat patches provide high-quality resources for dense populations of Z. palatalis. This study exemplifies a species' attempt to make efficient use of a limited resource in an otherwise hostile environment. Even small declines in habitat area or quality due to their vulnerability to fire would impact upon many animals.

Socio-spatial organization and spatial ecology

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.G.L. Mills ◽  
M.E.J. Mills
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Spatial Ecology ◽  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Home Range Size ◽  
Dispersal Distance ◽  
Range Size ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Large Home Range ◽  
Core Areas

Home ranges of males (1204 km2) and females (1510 km2) were similar. Female home range size was positively related to the dispersion of prey and generally, but not exclusively, they displayed home range fidelity. Overlap between female home ranges was extensive, although they rarely met up. Male home ranges overlapped extensively and there was no difference in size between coalition and single males. Males overcame the problem of scent marking a large home range by concentrating scent marks in core areas. Generally female cheetah home range size is affected by resource productivity, although where prey are migratory, or in fenced reserves where movements are constricted, and areas where disturbance is severe, this may be different. Southern Kalahari males apparently need large home ranges to increase the likelihood of locating wide-ranging and sporadically receptive females. Mean dispersal distance for subadult males (96 km) was further than for females (39 km).

Spatial and behavioral changes by red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in response to artificial territory intrusion

2011 ◽  
Vol 89 (9) ◽  
pp. 808-815 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Arnold ◽  
C.D. Soulsbury ◽  
S. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Total Activity ◽  
Territory Size ◽  
Dominant Male ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Marked Area

Urine marking is thought to play a pivotal role in territory demarcation by red foxes ( Vulpes vulpes (L., 1758)), but little is known about how individuals respond to alien scent marks, and whether there are sex-related differences in territorial defense. We radio-tracked dominant male and female urban foxes before and after synthetic fox urine was applied to approximately a third of their territories and compared spatial and behavioral reactions both before and after scent application and with foxes on territories where no urine was applied. Home-range boundaries of male foxes shifted towards the scent-marked area, but this change did not affect the total territory size. Larger males shifted their home ranges to a greater degree than small males. Scent application did not affect total activity, but males spent more time in the scent-marked area. Behaviors such as distance moved per night and speed of movement did not differ before and after application, but foxes searched a greater percentage of their home range each night following scent marking. Females showed no significant spatial or behavioral response to the synthetic scent marks. Overall, responses of foxes to synthetic scent marks were male-biased and related to changes in space use rather than movement behaviors.

Scent marking in coyotes

1980 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 473-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Don Bowen ◽  
Ian McTaggart Cowan
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Canis Latrans ◽  
Scent Marking ◽  
Dominant Male ◽  
Scent Mark ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Scent Marks ◽  
Jasper National Park ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Marking Behaviour

The scent marking behaviour of coyotes, Canis latrans, was studied in Jasper National Park, Alberta, during the period 1974–1976. Results show that adult males and females scent mark throughout their territory at all times of the year. Urine is most frequently used in marking. The rate of scent marking at the edge of the territory is approximately twice that in the center. This increase is accomplished by reducing the distance between scent-mark sites and increasing the proportion of multiple marks. All members contribute to the marking behaviour of the pack, although the dominant male marks most frequently. The scent marks of neighbours at territory borders are not avoided but vigourously marked. Nevertheless, it appears that marking is associated with the maintenance of territory.

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