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Ritualised Dung Kicking by White Rhino Males Amplifies Olfactory Signals but Reduces Odour Duration
C Marneweck1,2, A Jürgens3, A M Shrader4,5
1School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. courtney.marneweck@gmail.com.
Journal of Chemical Ecology
|July 17, 2018
Summary
White rhinos kicking dung amplifies their scent signals, increasing the emission of key odor compounds. This olfactory signal amplification (OSA) helps signal territorial ownership, despite reducing odor longevity.
Area of Science:
- Animal Behavior
- Chemical Ecology
- Mammalian Biology
Background:
- Mammals often use visual cues to enhance olfactory signals, depositing them in prominent locations.
- Behaviors can modify odor emission rates, potentially amplifying scent signals.
- White rhinos defecate in communal middens, with territorial males exhibiting dung-kicking behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the function of dung-kicking behavior in territorial male white rhinos.
- To test the hypothesis that dung kicking serves as olfactory signal amplification (OSA).
- To determine if dung dispersal increases volatile compound emission and signal strength.
Main Methods:
- Collected dung from non-territorial adult male white rhinos.
- Analyzed volatile compounds emitted from dispersed versus intact dung samples.
- Identified specific volatile compounds indicative of dung age and dispersal status.
Main Results:
- Dung dispersal significantly increased the emission of hydrocarbon acids, supporting OSA.
- The volatile compound toluene indicated intact dung age, while acetophenone indicated dispersed dung age.
- Dung dispersal decreased odor longevity, reducing temporal signal detectability.
Conclusions:
- Dung kicking by territorial male white rhinos amplifies olfactory signal strength.
- OSA enhances the detectability of territorial dung odors in communal middens.
- This amplified signal likely communicates territorial ownership to rivals and mates.
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