Elemental Sulfur Identified in Urine of Cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus

Abstract

The urine of the cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, is almost odorless, and probably for this reason, it has not attracted much attention from scientists. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, we identified 27 and 37 constituents in the headspace vapor of the urine of male and female cheetah, respectively. These constituents, composed of hydrocarbons, short-chain ethers, aldehydes, saturated and unsaturated cyclic and acyclic ketones, 2-acetylfuran, dimethyl disulfide, dimethyl sulfone, phenol, myristic acid (tetradecanoic acid), urea, and elemental sulfur, are all present in the headspace vapor in very small quantities; dimethyl disulfide is present in such a low concentration that it cannot be detected by the human nose. This is only the second example of elemental sulfur being secreted or excreted by an animal. It is hypothesized that the conversion of sulfur-containing compounds in the cheetah's diet to elemental sulfur and to practically odorless dimethyl sulfone enables this carnivore to operate as if "invisible" to the olfactory world of its predators as well as its prey, which would increase its chances of survival.

Chemical Characterization of Territorial Marking Fluid of Male Bengal Tiger, Panthera tigris

“…Elemental sulfur eluted from column A as a broad and fronting peak, extending over a retention time range of about 5 min, at about the retention time of tetradecan-5-olide (100). Sulfur has previously been identified in the urine of the cheetah, Acynonix jubatus (Burger et al 2006b). Except for a few minor terpenoids, the 3-methyl-2-alkanones and 2-methylcarboxylic acids, 2-ethylhexanoic acid, and a series of γ-alkylsubstituted γ-lactones and δ-alkylsubstituted δ-lactones were the only chiral constituents identified in the marking fluid.…”

“…The lipid material consists of a complex mixture of, inter alia, long-chain free and esterified saturated and unsaturated fatty acids and alcohols with carbon chains of 14 to 22 carbon atoms (Poddar-Sarkar 1996). In bioassays carried out during investigation into the semiochemical role of the urine of the cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus (Burger et al 2006b), it was observed that whereas a male Bengal tiger showed minimal interest in the cheetah's urine and in various other odorants used as controls, it immediately attempted to overmark a mixture of a few of the synthetic constituents of its own marking fluid.…”

Investigation of Scents on Cheeks and Foreheads of Large Felines in Connection to the Facial Marking Behavior

“…Methylketones (2-ketones) also are related to fatty acid metabolism and are enzymatic conversion products from linear carboxylic acids (Pannell and Olson, 1991). Other smaller and more volatile 2-ketones, such as 2-octanone, 2-nonanone, and 2-undecanone, also have been reported in cheetah urine (Burger et al, 2006), while 2-pentanone and 2-heptanone were found in lion urine (Anderson and Vulpius, 1999). In our study, high levels of 2-pentadecanone and 2-heptadecanone were found in captive tigers.…”

“…Two aromatic compounds, phenol and indole, have been identified in the urine of several felines (Mattina et al, 1991;Anderson and Vulpius, 1999;Burger et al, 2006Burger et al, , 2008. Indole is often identified in carnivore samples, but also has been found in Siberian Hamster urine (Soini et al, 2005).…”

“…Urine and anal sac-derived volatile compounds have been partially characterized for many large cats, including tigers (Brachmachary and Dutta, 1981;Brachmachary et al, 1992;Poddar-Sarkar et al, 1994, 2004Poddar-Sarkar, 1996;Burger et al, 2008), lions (Albone and Eglington, 1974;Anderson and Vulpius, 1999), leopards (Brachmachary and Dutta, 1984;Poddar-Sarkar and Brahmachary, 2004 cheetahs (Burger et al, 2006), and bobcats (Mattina et al, 1991).…”