Preferences for salivary odor cues by female hamsters

There is a growing body of data which indicates that saliva may function as a chemosignal in mammals. The salience of this cue in hamsters is investigated. Twelve females were tested in a four-choice olfactorium to determine whether the subjects could differentiate and demonstrate a preference for salivary cues as a function of the dominance status of the stimulus donors and the subjects estrous state. Clear differences in responding were found for estrous as opposed to diestrous females. Estrous females detected and exhibited a preference for male stimuli on the basis of entry and approach measures. Subjects were also found to exhibit sniffing preferences for male odors and possible an avoidance of female odors relative to the saline control. Estrous females appeared to be unable to distinguish between dominant and subordinate males.