Chemical Methodology in the Study of Mammalian Communications

Claesson, Alf; Silverstein, Robert M.

doi:10.1007/978-1-4684-2364-8_6

Cited by 9 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…Most investigators have found, as we have in the present study and that of female urine of black-tailed deer ' , that the response disappeared completely before the fractionation had reached the level of single compounds. Claesson and Silverstein (1977) had noted that the preferred modus operandi--to monitor each fraction and combinations thereof with a bioassay--may not be feasible when most or all of the components are needed for substantial activity and when the field bioassay itself is complex, difficult to reproduce, and may yield only unspecific responses such as sniffing. Many responses occur or are valid only in the proper physical, social, and temporal contexts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 4

Doty¹,

Müller-Schwarze²

1986

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All rights reservedNo part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any fonn or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written pennission from the Publisher v signals by humans (Doty) concludes the review. Needless to say, this field is more important than a single contribution can convey.As this collection of essays testifies, the exploration of chemical signals has become more firmly embedded in behavioral ecology and sociobiology. Current research has been stimulated by the studies of insect pheromones and is guided by evolutionary concepts.These papers were presented at the Fourth International Symposium on Chemical Signals in Vertebrates, held at the University of Wyoming, Laramie, from 27-30 July 1985. Our meeting was affiliated with the 10th International Symposium on Comparative Endocrinology, organized by Charles Ralph and held the previous week at Copper Mountain, Colorado. We thank the

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 4

Doty¹,

Müller-Schwarze²

1986

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“…The identification of organic compounds is time-consuming, and requires extensive chemical instrumentation (Claesson & Silverstein 1977). Since the main focus of our study was to explore how pheromones code for information about kinship, positive identification of these pheromone compounds was not attempted.…”

Section: Compound Extraction Purification and Characterizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anal Gland Secretion Codes for Relatedness in the Beaver, Castor canadensis

Sun

Müller-Schwarze

1998

Ethology

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We investigated how information about relatedness is coded in the anal gland secretion (AGS) of the beaver (Castor canadensi.c). Using gas chromatography, we found that individual secretion profiles did not change over time and location of the beaver and the variation in the AGS profile was smaller within an individual than between individuals. Therefore, the AGS is suituable for characterising individuality. We also found that related individuals shared more features in the AGS profile than did unrelated individuals. Hence, information about kinship can be coded in the AGS profile. These findings substantiate the behavioural kin recognition system using the mechanism of phenotype matching in the beaver.

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“…The chemical methods appropriate to the identification of odours have been reviewed in some detail (Claesson & Silverstein, 1977) and this section is limited to the examination of some of the general problems which occur in the assay of odiferous materials. It was pointed out in an earlier paragraph that GLC, one of the most used techniques in this area, is not without its problems.…”

Section: Chemical Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The bioassay of mammalian olfactory signals

Mackintosh¹

1985

Mammal Review

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SUMMARY The bioassay of chemical signals in mammals presents a number of problems. Many of these difficulties are the result of the complexity of the behaviour which has to be analysed and of the odiferous output itself. Additionally, it is usual for the response to the odour to be affected by information from other sensory modalities, by experience and by the spatial and social context. This degree of variability and of flexibility which is characteristic of mammals also has the result that concepts such as ‘pheromone’, which were originally developed in simpler organisms, can be seriously misleading. Although valuable information can be gained by less direct methods, a bioassay is only likely to be successful in the identification of active substances if: 1. there is a clearly defined behavioural or physiological response to the odour, 2. the method of testing actually measures this response, 3. the situation used for testing is as close as possible to that in which the response naturally occurs, 4. in the case of a behavioural response, the recording technique is as detailed as possible so that ambiguous results are avoided, 5. an adequate test population is available to allow repeated testing, 6. considerable resources are available for chemical analysis. Although it is not easy to fulfil all of these requirements at one time, olfaction is of such importance in mammalian communication that the attempt to do so will always be valuable.

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Chemical Methodology in the Study of Mammalian Communications

Cited by 9 publications

References 74 publications

Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 4

Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 4

Anal Gland Secretion Codes for Relatedness in the Beaver, Castor canadensis

The bioassay of mammalian olfactory signals

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