Abstract
The spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) is a territorial carnivore that lives in highly structured social groups called clans. Individuals of both sexes produce scent in a prominent anal scent gland. Gas-chromatographic analysis of 13 fatty acids and esters in scent profiles from 45 individuals belonging to three social groups demonstrated sufficient variation to suggest that odour may permit individual olfactory recognition. Further, anal scent secretions from members of the same clan are more similar to each other than those from different clans, consistent with the idea of a social group odour. We describe a mechanism involving both scent pasting and dry-pasting behaviour to explain how a group odour label may be concocted from individual scent secretions and how this group label is spread among members of a clan.
Access provided by Autonomous University of Puebla. Download to read the full chapter text
Chapter PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Keywords
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
References
Albone, E.S. and Perry, G.C. (1975) Anal sac secretion of the red fox, Vulpes vulpes: volatile fatty acids and diamines: Implications for a fermentation hypothesis of chemical recognition. J. Chem. Ecol. 2, 101–111.
Bloss J., Acree, T.E., Bloss, J.M., Hood, W.R. and Kunz, T.H. (2002) Potential use of chemical cues for colony-mate recognition in the big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus. J. Chem. Ecol. 28, 819–834.
Bradbury, J.W. and Vehrencamp, S.L. (1998) Principles of Animal Communication. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts.
Breed, M.D., Diaz, P.H. and Lucero, K.D. (2004) Olfactory information processing in honey bee, Apis mellifera, nestmate recognition. Anim. Behav. 68, 921–928.
Clarke, K.R and Green, R.H. (1988) Statistical design and analysis for a “biological effects” study. Mar. Ecol. Trog. Ser. 46, 213–226.
Drea, C.M., Vignieri, S.N., Kim, H.S., Weldele, M.L. and Glickman, S.E. (2002) Responses to olfactory stimuli in spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta): II. Discrimination of conspecific scent. J. Comp. Psychol. 116, 342–349.
East, M.L. and Hofer, H. (1991) Loud calling in a female-dominated mammalian society: I. Structure and composition of whooping bouts of spotted hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta). Anim. Behav. 42, 637–649.
East, M.L., Hofer, H. and Wickler, W. (1993) The erect “penis” is a flag of submission in a female-dominated society: greetings in Serengeti spotted hyenas. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 33, 355–370.
East, M.L. and Hofer H. (2001) Male spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) queue for status in social groups dominated by females. Behav. Ecol. 12, 558–568.
Eisenberg, J.F. and Kleiman, D.G. (1972) Olfactory communication in mammals. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 3, 1–32.
Gamboa, J.G., Reeve, H.K., Ferguson, I.D. and Wacker, T.L. (1986) Nestmate recognition in social wasps: the origin and acquisition of recognition odours. Anim. Behav. 34, 685–695.
Gorman, M.L., Nedwell, D.B. and Smith, R.M. (1974) An analysis of the contents of the anal scent pockets of Herpestes auropunctatus. J. Zool. 172, 389–399.
Gorman, M.L. and Mills, M.G.L. (1984) Scent marking strategies in hyaenas (Mammalia). J. Zool. 202, 535–547.
Gosden, P.E. and Ware, G.C. (1976) The aerobic baterial flora of the anal sac of the red fox. J. Appl. Bacteriol. 41, 271–275.
Halpin, T.Z. (1986) Individual odors among mammals: origins and functions. Adv. Stud. Behav. 16, 40–70.
Hofer, H. and East, M.L. (1993a) The commuting system of Serengeti spotted hyaenas: how a predator copes with migratory prey. I. Social organization. Anim. Behav. 46, 547–557.
Hofer, H. and East, M.L. (1993b) The commuting system of Serengeti spotted hyaenas: how a predator copes with migratory prey. II. Intrusion pressure and commuters’ space use. Anim. Behav. 46, 559–574.
Hofer, H. and East, M.L. (1993c) The commuting system of Serengeti spotted hyaena: how a predator copes with migratory prey. III. Attendance and maternal care. Anim. Behav. 46, 575–589.
Hofer, H., East, M.L., Sämmang, I. and Dehnhard, M. (2001) Analysis of volatile compounds in scent-marks of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) and their possible function in olfactory communication. In: A. Marchlewska-Koj, J.J. Lepri and D. Müller-Schwarze (Eds.), Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 9. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, pp. 141–148.
Holekamp, K.E., Boydston, E.E., Szykman, M., Graham, I., Nutt, K.J., Birch, S., Piskiel, A. and Singh, M. (1999) Vocal recognition in the spotted hyaena and its possible implications regarding the evolution of intelligence. Anim. Behav. 58, 383–395.
Höner, O.P., Wachter, B., East, M.L., Runyoro, V.A. and Hofer, H. (2005) The effect of prey abundance and foraging tactics on the population dynamics of a social, territorial carnivore, the spotted hyena. Oikos 108, 544–554.
Hurst, J.L., Fang, J. and Barnard, C. (1993) The role of substrate odours in maintaining social tolerance between male house mice, Mus musculus domesticus: relatedness, incidental kinship effects and the establishment of social status. Anim. Behav. 48, 157–167.
Kruuk, H. (1972) The Spotted Hyena. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Mills, M.G.L. and Gorman, M.L. (1987) The scent-marking behaviour of the spotted hyaena Crocuta crocuta in the southern Kalahari. J. Zool. 212, 483–497.
Mills, G. and Hofer, H. (1998) Hyaenas – Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN/SSC Hyaena Specialist Group. IUCN, Gland and Cambridge.
Mykytowycz, R. (1968) Territorial marking in rabbits. Sci. Am. 218, 116–126.
O’Riain, M.J. and Jarvis, J.U.M. (1997) Colony member recognition and xenophobia in the naked mole-rat. Anim. Behav. 53, 187–198.
Poddar-Sarkar, M. and Brahmachary, R.L. (1999) Can free fatty acids in the tiger pheromone act as an individual finger print? Curr. Sci. India 76, 141–142.
Safi, K. and Kerth, G. (2003) Secretions of the interaural gland contain information about individuality and colony membership in the Bechstein’s bat. Anim. Behav. 65, 363–369.
Sun, L. and Müller-Schwarze, D. (1998) Anal gland secretion codes for family membership in the beaver. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 44, 199–208.
Svendsen, G.E. and Jollick, J.D. (1978) Bacterial contents of the anal and castor glands of beaver (Castor canadensis). J. Chem. Ecol. 4, 563–569.
Venkataraman, A.B., Swarnalatha, V.B., Nair, P. and Gadagkar, R. (1992) The mechanism of nestmate discrimination in the tropical social wasp Ropalidia marginata and its implications for the evolution of sociality. Anim. Behav. 43, 95–102.
Voigt, C.C., Caspers, B. and Speck, S. (2005) Bats, bacteria, and bat smell: sex-specific diversity of microbes in a sexually selected scent organ. J. Mammal. 86, 745–749.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer Science+Business Media,LLC
About this paper
Cite this paper
Burgener, N., East, M.L., Hofer, H., Dehnhard, M. (2008). Do Spotted Hyena Scent Marks Code for Clan Membership?. In: Hurst, J.L., Beynon, R.J., Roberts, S.C., Wyatt, T.D. (eds) Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 11. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-73945-8_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-73945-8_16
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-73944-1
Online ISBN: 978-0-387-73945-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)