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Rate of marking (a-d) and overmarking (e-f) between central and peripheral areas in five adjacent groups of diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema) at the Maromizaha New Protected Area, Madagascar (April-November 2018 and May-December 2019). Plots show scent marking rates for dominant males (a and e), dominant females (b), subordinate males (c and f), and subordinate females (d). *P ≤ 0.05. Whiskers indicate 5th/95th percentiles, the horizontal line gives the median, the box the 25th/75th percentiles, and open circles outliers. DOM: dominant depositors; SUB: subordinate depositors; n.s.: nonsignificant.
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In mammals, olfactory communication plays an essential role in territorial and mating dynamics. Scent depositions in various species, including lemurs, can be placed via marking or overmarking (marking over previous depositions). We focused on the role that marking and overmarking play in territorial defence and intrasexual competition. We investig...
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This study aims to understand the behavior territoriality of the lemur Decken's Sifaka Propithecus deckenii in the Protected Areas (PAs) Complexe Tsimembo Manambolomaty and Mandrozo in the central-west of Madagascar between November 2017 and April 2018, and between July and October 2018. The continuous focal animal sampling method was used to monit...
Citations
... Authors are aware that the georeferenced data (recorded since 2008), are not exactly timely consistent with the observation period from satellite . This necessarily introduces an assumption that lemur habitats, as documented from 2008 Miaretsoa et al., 2022) represents these groups historical distribution, with no significant effects from eventual Additionally, it is worth reminding that overlap in the habitats of different lemur species is possible and common; conversely, groups from the same species were often located in distinct areas, as lemurs can be highly territorial against conspecifics (Figs. 2 and 3). In fact, they clearly define the boundaries of their territory through olfactory, visual or audible signals located at strategic points. ...
... Overmarking will typically occur within breeding pairs where males will scent mark over the scent of their mates, as described in the Neotropical otter (Michalski et al. 2021). Other examples of overmarking in breeding pairs include the Meerkat, Suricata suricatta (Jordan et al. 2007); Kirk's Dik-dik, Madoqua kirkii (Brotherton 1994); Grey Wolf, Canis lupus (Peters and Mech 1975); and the Wild Diademed Sifaka, Propithecus diadema (Miaretsoa et al. 2022). ...
... Overmarking will typically occur within breeding pairs where males will scent mark over the scent of their mates, as described in the Neotropical otter (Michalski et al. 2021). Other examples of overmarking in breeding pairs include the Meerkat, Suricata suricatta (Jordan et al. 2007); Kirk's Dik-dik, Madoqua kirkii (Brotherton 1994); Grey Wolf, Canis lupus (Peters and Mech 1975); and the Wild Diademed Sifaka, Propithecus diadema (Miaretsoa et al. 2022). ...
Latrine sites are used as areas for the deposition of scent-containing excretions and play important roles in intraspecific olfactory communication, territoriality, sexual attraction, and defense behaviors of many mammals. African clawless otters (Aonyx capensis) likely use latrine sites as primary areas for scent marking and scent communication but no studies to date have investigated their potential role or site selection. We assessed latrine site selection at 2 spatial scales (micro- and macroscale) and recorded behaviors via camera trap recordings. Thirty-eight latrine sites were identified and assessed at 2 locations in Mtunzini on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (uMlalazi Nature Reserve and Zini Fish Farm) during the months of August to November 2021. Latrine sites were identified through several intensive surveys, while we characterized nonselected sites through a systematic sampling approach. Latrine and control sites were inventoried along a 52-m buffer around all water bodies in both study areas. At each site we measured a series of potential environmental predictors, including horizontal and vertical vegetation cover, surface slope, and averaged wind speeds for days classified as relatively wind-still and relatively windy. To assess the relative role of various environmental predictors, we used a binomial generalized linear model resource selection function to model both spatial scales of latrine site selection. The majority of latrine sites were located at the ecotone between 2 vegetation units or between a vegetation unit and a water source. At a macroscale, latrine sites were associated with areas containing little vegetative substrate cover and minimal canopy cover. The top-ranked models at the microscale also indicated that latrine sites were characterized as occurring in open areas with less canopy and horizontal cover and on flatter areas that are relatively protected against wind. The most common behaviors recorded at 3 latrine sites were the “jiggle dance” (42%) and sniffing (29%). We hypothesize that otters evaluate numerous environmental parameters to enhance the functionality of latrine sites. For example, sites with little vegetative cover may increase the conspicuousness of latrines to conspecifics, while areas exposed to less wind likely aid in the retention of scent. Ongoing research is characterizing the behaviors of otters around latrines and chemical signatures of latrine sites in an effort to facilitate interpretation of their social function to African clawless otters.
... The diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema) is a diurnal lemur living in female-dominated groups, in which a single male is dominant over other males [55,56]. Although the species is known to perform complex scent-marking from both excreted and scent-glandular secretions [55], the scent-marking behaviour remains little investigated. ...
... The diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema) is a diurnal lemur living in female-dominated groups, in which a single male is dominant over other males [55,56]. Although the species is known to perform complex scent-marking from both excreted and scent-glandular secretions [55], the scent-marking behaviour remains little investigated. Indeed, depositor sex, social rank and the species' reproductive schedule may affect the scent-marking rate [55], but nothing is known about the delivery pattern or the factors influencing scent-marking deposition. ...
... Although the species is known to perform complex scent-marking from both excreted and scent-glandular secretions [55], the scent-marking behaviour remains little investigated. Indeed, depositor sex, social rank and the species' reproductive schedule may affect the scent-marking rate [55], but nothing is known about the delivery pattern or the factors influencing scent-marking deposition. In particular, it is unclear to what extent scent-glandular secretions contribute to scent-marking deposition in this potentially glandular marker species. ...
Simple Summary
Many animal species use body odours and secretions to communicate with conspecifics. In this study, we observed wild lemurs (diademed sifakas) to understand how and where they deposit scent marks, and whether rank and sex influence the scent-marking behaviour. We found that lemurs deposit their scent marks by rubbing different parts of their bodies, and that the deposition pattern varied according to both sex and social status of the individuals. In particular, we observed that dominant individuals often deposited glandular secretions along with urine when marking, and that the most common areas for marking were the anogenital and chest regions, with chest rubbing being more frequent in dominant males. Males also showed longer and more complex scent-marking sequences compared to females. Moreover, we found that lemurs preferred tree trunks and marked at a similar height, regardless of age or sex. Our results suggest that this species uses a mix of glandular secretions and excreta to increase the probability of signal detection by conspecifics.
Abstract
Scent-marking through odours from excreta and glandular secretions is widespread in mammals. Among primates, diurnal group-living lemurs show different deployment modalities as part of their strategy to increase signal detection. We studied the diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema) in the Maromizaha New Protected Area, Eastern Madagascar. We tested whether the scent-marking deposition occurred using a sequential rubbing of different body parts. We also tested if glands (i.e., deposition of glandular secretions) were more frequently rubbed than genital orifices (i.e., deposition of excreta) by comparing different kinds of rubbing behaviour. We then investigated if the depositor’s rank and sex affected the sequence of rubbing behaviour, the height at which the scent-marking happened, and the tree part targeted. We found that glandular secretions were often deposited with urine, especially in dominant individuals. The probability of anogenital and chest marking was highest, but chest rubbing most frequently occurred in dominant males. Markings were deposited at similar heights across age and sex, and tree trunks were the most used substrate. Males exhibited long and more complex scent-marking sequences than females. Our results indirectly support the idea that diademed sifakas deploy a sex-dimorphic mixture of glandular secretions and excreta to increase the probability of signal detection by conspecifics.
... De plus, la fréquence de cette activité augmente pendant la saison humide qui coïncide à la période d'accouplement. Cette constatation est cohérente avec celle des autres recherches sur les communications reproductives chez d'autres espèces de lémuriens [35] ; [36]. ...
This study aims to understand the behavior territoriality of the lemur Decken's Sifaka Propithecus deckenii in the Protected Areas (PAs) Complexe Tsimembo Manambolomaty and Mandrozo in the central-west of Madagascar between November 2017 and April 2018, and between July and October 2018. The continuous focal animal sampling method was used to monitor eight groups of Sifakas, two groups of the intact habitat and two groups from the disturbed habitat in each PA. Scent marking frequencies per focal groups differs between the two habitats types and is influenced by sex in favor of males. Season does not impacted this activity. The home range (define by MCP and 95% Kernel density estimate) and core area varies between monitored groups and the daily path length can reach 234 ± 98 m to 362 ± 110 m. These parameters are not influenced by season and habitat types. However, the intensity of territory use does not have any variation among the studied groups. The mean average « defensibility index » value for P. deckenii is 1.74 ± 0.70 (n = 8). The studied species has ability to adjust their territorial behavior, despite the degradation of habitat in sustainable use zones
... The third contribution, by Longondraza et al. (2022), investigated patterns of scent marking in diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema) in the same study site, Maromizaha Protected Area. The authors observed five sifaka groups over 14 months to test whether marking and overmarking serve territorial defense and is influenced by sex, rank or season. ...
Social status and dominance are critical factors influencing well-being and survival across multiple species. However, dominance behaviors vary widely across species, from elaborate feather displays in birds to aggression in chimps. To effectively study dominance, it is essential to clearly define and reliably measure dominance behaviors. In laboratory settings, C57BL/6 mice are commonly used to study dominance due to their stable and linear social hierarchies. However, other mouse strains are also used for laboratory research. Despite substantial evidence for strain effects on behavioral repertoires, the impact of strain on dominance in mice remains largely unstudied. To address this gap, we compared dominance behaviors between CD1 and C57BL/6 male mice across four assays: observation of agonistic behaviors, urine marking, tube test, and a reward competition. We found that CD1 mice demonstrate increased fighting, increased territorial marking through urination, and increased pushing and resisting in the tube test. We used unsupervised machine learning and pose estimation data from the reward competitions to uncover behavioral differences across strains and across rank differences between competing pairs. Of the four assays, urine marking and agonistic behaviors showed the strongest correlation with dominance in both strains. Most notably, we found that CD1 dominance rankings based on the tube test negatively correlated with rankings from all three other assays, suggesting that the tube test may measure a different behavior in CD1 mice. Our results highlight that behaviors can be strain-specific in mice and studies that measure social rank should consider assays carefully to promote reproducibility.
