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Garcia de la Chica A, Corley M, Spence-Aizenberg A, Fernandez-Duque E. The social and defensive function of olfactory behaviors in a pair-living sexually monogamous primate. Am J Primatol 2024:e23669. [PMID: 39051726 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2024] [Revised: 07/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/13/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024]
Abstract
Olfactory behaviors serve a wide variety of social functions in mammals. Odor may signal information about attributes of individuals important for mating and reproduction. Olfactory behaviors, such as scent-marking, may also function as part of home range or resource defense strategies. We assessed the potential social and home range defense functions of olfactory behavior in a pair-living and sexually monogamous primate, Azara's owl monkey (Aotus azarae), in the Argentinian Chaco. This is the most extensive investigation of owl monkey olfactory behaviors in the wild. Individuals regularly performed olfactory behaviors (group mean + SD = 1.3 + 0.5 per hour). The patterns were generally comparable to those observed in studies of captive owl monkeys, except that urine washing was the most common behavior in the wild, as opposed to scent-marking and genital inspections. Most olfactory behaviors were performed by adults, and there were striking sex differences in genital inspections: almost all consisted of an adult male inspecting the paired adult female. These findings suggest that olfactory behaviors play an important role in signaling and coordinating reproduction among owl monkeys, particularly during periods of female conception and pregnancy. Additionally, our research indicates that these behaviors may also serve as a defense strategy for maintaining the core area of their home ranges. This study offers the first assessment of the role of olfactory behaviors in reproductive contexts and home range defense in pair-living, monogamous platyrrhine primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alba Garcia de la Chica
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución, Laboratorio de Ecología y Comportamiento Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- The Owl Monkey Project, Fundación ECO, Formosa, Argentina
| | - Margaret Corley
- Department of Anthropology and School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | | | - Eduardo Fernandez-Duque
- The Owl Monkey Project, Fundación ECO, Formosa, Argentina
- Department of Anthropology and School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
- Facultad de Recursos Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Formosa, Formosa, Argentina
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2
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Poirier AC, Melin AD. Smell throughout the life course. Evol Anthropol 2024:e22030. [PMID: 38704704 DOI: 10.1002/evan.22030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2023] [Revised: 04/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/07/2024]
Abstract
The sense of smell is an important mediator of health and sociality at all stages of life, yet it has received limited attention in our lineage. Olfaction starts in utero and participates in the establishment of social bonds in children, and of romantic and sexual relationships after puberty. Smell further plays a key role in food assessment and danger avoidance; in modern societies, it also guides our consumer behavior. Sensory abilities typically decrease with age and can be impacted by diseases, with repercussions on health and well-being. Here, we critically review our current understanding of human olfactory communication to refute outdated notions that our sense of smell is of low importance. We provide a summary of the biology of olfaction, give a prospective overview of the importance of the sense of smell throughout the life course, and conclude with an outline of the limitations and future directions in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice C Poirier
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Amanda D Melin
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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3
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Barja I, Piñeiro A, Ruiz-González A, Caro A, López P, Martín J. Evaluating the functional, sexual and seasonal variation in the chemical constituents from feces of adult Iberian wolves (Canis lupus signatus). Sci Rep 2023; 13:6669. [PMID: 37095312 PMCID: PMC10126121 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33883-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Chemical signals deposited in feces play an important role in intraspecific and interspecific communication of many mammals. We collected fresh feces of adult wolves from wild breeding groups. All samples visually identified as belonging to wolves were subsequently identified to species level by sequencing a small fragment of mtDNA and sexed typing DBX6 and DBY7 sex markers. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), we identified 56 lipophilic compounds in the feces, mainly heterocyclic aromatic organic compounds, such as indole or phenol, but also steroids, such as cholesterol, carboxylic acids and their esters between n-C4 and n-C18, aldehydes, alcohols and significant quantities of squalene and α-tocopherol, which would increase the chemical stability of feces on humid substrates. There was variability in the number and proportions of compounds between sexes, which could be indicative of their function as chemical signals. We also found variability in different reproductive states, especially in odorous compounds, steroids and α-tocopherol. Feces with a presumed marking function had higher proportions of α-tocopherol and steroids than feces with non-marking function. These compounds could be involved in intragroup and intergroup communication of wolves and their levels in feces could be directly related with the wolf's sex and physiological and reproductive status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Barja
- Unidad de Zoología, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
- Research Centre in Biodiversity and Global Change (CIBC-UAM), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Ana Piñeiro
- Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago de Chile, Chile
| | - Aritz Ruiz-González
- Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), C/ Paseo de La Universidad 7, 01006, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Amaia Caro
- Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), C/ Paseo de La Universidad 7, 01006, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Pilar López
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain
| | - José Martín
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain
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4
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Moreira LAA, Watsa M, Erkenswick G, Higham JP, Melin AD. Evaluating genital skin color as a putative sexual signal in wild saddleback (Leontocebus weddelli) and emperor (Saguinus imperator) tamarins. Am J Primatol 2023; 85:e23456. [PMID: 36437549 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2022] [Revised: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Coevolution between signalers and receivers has played a significant role in the diversity of animal signals and sensory systems. Platyrrhines (monkeys in the Americas) exhibit a remarkable color vision polymorphism that may have been selected by both natural and sexual selection, but sociosexual color signaling among platyrrhines has received almost no attention. Here, we study the color of reproductive skin among different reproductive classes in free-ranging female saddleback (Leontocebus weddelli) and emperor (Saguinus imperator) tamarins, modeling color spaces, and contrasts for the different visual systems. We find that the chromatic saturation and luminance of genital color vary between reproductive classes in saddleback tamarins. Chromatic contrast between the vulva and belly is lower in the parous females (PFs) relative to adult but not currently breeding females, while achromatic contrast is higher in PFs in saddleback tamarins relative to nonparous females. However, in emperor tamarins, genital color (saturation, hue, and luminance) does not vary between reproductive classes. Overall, genital skin color variation is present in tamarins and may play a role in sexual signaling. Nevertheless, the patterns are inconsistent between species, suggesting interspecific variation. Future studies should integrate the perceiver's behavioral responses and the physical and social signaling environments into comprehensive studies of communication as well as consider the role and interaction between multiple sensory modalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lais A A Moreira
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Mrinalini Watsa
- Beckman Center for Conservation Research, San Diego Zoo Global, Escondido, California, USA.,Field Projects International, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Gideon Erkenswick
- Field Projects International, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA.,Department of Biology, University of Missouri St. Louis, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA.,Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - James P Higham
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York City, New York, USA
| | - Amanda D Melin
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada.,Department of Medical Genetics, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
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5
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Ma R, Zheng W, Guo J, Hou R, Huang H, Xue F, Zhou Y, Wu W, Huang C, Gu J, Feng F, Yu X, Liu J, Li Z, Zhang L, Lan G, Chen C, Bi W, Dai Q, Owens JR, Yang H, Gu X, Yan QG, Qi D. Symbiotic microbiota and odor ensure mating in time for giant pandas. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:1015513. [PMID: 36466630 PMCID: PMC9712809 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1015513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/29/2024] Open
Abstract
To achieve reproduction, male solitary mammals need to locate females using chemical communication with high levels of precision. In the case of giant pandas, the total estrus period of females was usually 15 days each year, however, successful mating activity is finished within 3 days from respective home range. The mating pattern of giant pandas, where multiple males compete for each female requires females employ efficient systems to communicate their estrus phases. To verifying whether the scent secretions of giant pandas changes by gender and estrus progression, the microbiota and compounds in 29 anogenital gland samples from 14 individuals during estrus were analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing and GC-MS. We show that the microbiota communities covary by gender with 4 particular compounds of scent secretions. Among 597 genera, 34 were identified as biomarkers that could be used to distinguish between different estrus phases. By bacterial-compounds co-analysis, 3 fatty ester acids and squalene compounds covaried with the development of estrus in the bacterial communities of female giant pandas. This study helps clarify how a large, solitary mammal expresses accurate information to improve the likelihood of successful reproduction by changing the composition of microbiota and odor compounds of anogenital glands during estrus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Ma
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, China
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | | | - Junliang Guo
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Rong Hou
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - He Huang
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Fei Xue
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Yanshan Zhou
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Wei Wu
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Chong Huang
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Jiang Gu
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Feifei Feng
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Xiang Yu
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Jiabin Liu
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Zusheng Li
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Long Zhang
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Guanwei Lan
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Chao Chen
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Wenlei Bi
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
| | - Qiang Dai
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Jacob R. Owens
- Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Hong Yang
- Daxiangling Nature Reserve, Yaan, China
| | - Xiaodong Gu
- Sichuan Forestry and Grassland Bureau, Chengdu, China
| | - Qi-gui Yan
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, China
| | - Dunwu Qi
- Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, China
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6
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Rigaill L, Vaglio S, Setchell JM, Suda-Hashimoto N, Furuichi T, Garcia C. Chemical cues of identity and reproductive status in Japanese macaques. Am J Primatol 2022; 84:e23411. [PMID: 35757843 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2022] [Revised: 04/26/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Olfactory communication plays an important role in the regulation of socio-sexual interactions in mammals. There is growing evidence that both human and nonhuman primates rely on odors to inform their mating decisions. Nevertheless, studies of primate chemical ecology remain scarce due to the difficulty of obtaining and analyzing samples. We analyzed 67 urine samples from five captive female Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) and 30 vaginal swabs from three of these females using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and examined the relationship between odor (compounds identified, richness, intensity, and diversity) and female identity as well as cycle phase. We found a total of 36 urine compounds of which we identified 31, and 68 vaginal compounds of which we identified 37. Our results suggest that urine and vaginal odor varied more between individuals than within cycle phases. However, we found that within a female cycle, urine samples from similar phases may cluster more than samples from different phases. Our results suggest that female odor may encode information about identity (vaginal and urine odor) and reproductive status (urine odor). The question of how conspecifics use female urine and vaginal odor remains open and could be tested using bioassays. Our results and their interpretation are constrained by our limited sample size and our study design. Nonetheless, our study provides insight into the potential signaling role of female odor in sexual communication in Japanese macaques and contributes to our understanding of how odors may influence mating strategies in primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucie Rigaill
- EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine), CNRS, Université de Rennes 1, Normandie Université, Rennes, France.,Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan
| | - Stefano Vaglio
- School of Sciences, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - Joanna M Setchell
- Department of Anthropology & Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution Research Centre, Durham University, Durham, UK
| | - Naoko Suda-Hashimoto
- Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan
| | - Takeshi Furuichi
- Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan
| | - Cécile Garcia
- Eco-anthropologie (EA), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France
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7
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Heymann EW. New sniffing at New World primates: recent advances in the study of platyrrhine olfactory communication. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2021.2015454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Eckhard W. Heymann
- Leibniz-Institut für Primatenforschung, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany(E-mail: )
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8
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Elwell EJ, Walker D, Vaglio S. Sexual Dimorphism in Crowned Lemur Scent-Marking. Animals (Basel) 2021; 11:ani11072091. [PMID: 34359219 PMCID: PMC8300250 DOI: 10.3390/ani11072091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 07/07/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Primates are typically thought to use hearing and vision more than the sense of smell. However, lemurs show a complex olfactory repertoire which includes conspicuous scent-marking behaviours (i.e., a form of olfactory communication displayed by animals that deposit their odour in specific places to transmit a message to other animals). We studied two pairs of crowned lemurs at Colchester and Twycross zoos (UK) by combining behavioural observations and chemical analyses of odour secretions released via scent-marking. Male lemurs scent-marked most frequently, showing three types of behaviours: ano-genital marking for applying their scent onto females; head marking for placing their secretions on or near the mark left by another individual; and wrist marking to deposit their mark in specific meaningful areas of the enclosure. Female lemurs displayed only ano-genital marking, primarily on feeding devices. We detected a total of 38 volatile compounds in male ano-genital scent-marks and 26 in female ano-genital odour secretions, including many compounds that have been identified in odour profiles of other primates. In conclusion, we found sexual dimorphism in crowned lemur scent-marking. In males, head and wrist marking behaviours would play defensive territorial functions, while ano-genital marking may be related to socio-sexual communication; female ano-genital marking could be involved in resource defense. This study contributes to improving our understanding of lemur communication. Abstract Primates are traditionally considered to have a poor sense of smell. However, olfaction is important for non-human primates as demonstrated by conspicuous scent-marking behaviours in lemurs. We studied two pairs (n = 4) of crowned lemurs (Eulemur coronatus) housed at Colchester and Twycross zoos (UK) by combining behavioural observations and chemical analyses of scent-marks and glandular swabs. We recorded observations of olfactory behaviours for 201 h using instantaneous scan sampling. We investigated the volatile compounds of ano-genital odour secretions (n = 16) using solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Males scent-marked most frequently, displaying ano-genital marking for allomarking, head marking for countermarking and wrist marking in specific areas of the enclosure. Females displayed ano-genital marking, predominantly on feeding devices. We detected a total of 38 volatile components in all male ano-genital scent-marks and 26 in all female samples of ano-genital odour secretions, including a series of esters, aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, terpenes, volatile fatty acids and hydrocarbons that have been identified in odour profiles of other primates. In conclusion, we found sexual dimorphism in crowned lemur scent-marking. Male head and wrist marking behaviours might play defensive territorial functions, while ano-genital marking would be related to socio-sexual communication as chemical mate-guarding. Female ano-genital marking might be involved in resource defense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily J. Elwell
- Department of Biology, Chemistry and Forensic Science, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton WV1 1LY, UK; (E.J.E.); (D.W.)
| | - David Walker
- Department of Biology, Chemistry and Forensic Science, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton WV1 1LY, UK; (E.J.E.); (D.W.)
| | - Stefano Vaglio
- Department of Biology, Chemistry and Forensic Science, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton WV1 1LY, UK; (E.J.E.); (D.W.)
- Department of Anthropology & Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution Research (BEER) Centre, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, UK
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +44-0190-232-3328
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