Scent marking in Sunda clouded leopards (Neofelis diardi): novel observations close a key gap in understanding felid communication behaviours

Abstract

Intraspecific communication is integral to the behavioural ecology of solitary carnivores, but observing and quantifying their communication behaviours in natural environments is difficult. Our systematic literature review found that basic information on scent marking is completely lacking for 23% of all felid species, and information on 21% of other felid species comes solely from one study of captive animals. Here we present results of the first systematic investigation of the scent marking behaviours of Sunda clouded leopards in the wild. Our observations using motion-triggered video cameras in Indonesian Borneo are novel for clouded leopards, and contrary to previous descriptions of their behaviour. We found that clouded leopards displayed 10 distinct communication behaviours, with olfaction, scraping, and cheek rubbing the most frequently recorded. We also showed that males make repeated visits to areas they previously used for marking and that multiple males advertise and receive information at the same sites, potentially enhancing our ability to document and monitor clouded leopard populations. The behaviours we recorded are remarkably similar to those described in other solitary felids, despite tremendous variation in the environments they inhabit, and close a key gap in understanding and interpreting communication behaviours of clouded leopards and other solitary felids.

Using video surveillance to monitor feeding behaviour and kleptoparasitism at Eurasian lynx kill sites

“…The development of digital photography later improved the efficiency of this approach and nowadays the widespread use of automatic digital video surveillance (ADVS) enables the collection of detailed information on animal behaviour. ADVS is today being increasingly applied to behavioural and ecological studies, such as monitoring nesting behaviour and nest predation (Reif & Tornberg 2006, Gula et al 2010, scavenger activity (Allen et al 2016a), use of artificial feeding sites (Popova et al 2017, Fležar et al 2019, denning behaviour (Racheva et al 2012), marking behaviour (Allen et al 2016b), and intra-and inter-specific interactions (Lovich et al 2014, Elbroch et al 2017).…”

Non-invasive faecal sampling reveals spatial organization and improves measures of genetic diversity for the conservation assessment of territorial species: Caucasian lynx as a case species

“…They are lagomorph specialists (similar to the Iberian lynx Lynx pardinus ), have a smaller body size [15] and smaller home range sizes, and thus occur in suitable habitats at higher population densities [16] than European subspecies. They live in dry open, rocky and coniferous habitats and scrape mark [15, 17], a marking behaviour that in the genus Lynx is otherwise only observed in bobcats ( Lynx rufus [18]). Highway collisions, habitat fragmentation and poaching are the main factors threatening the Caucasian lynx across its range [19].…”

A Bayesian state-space model using age-at-harvest data for estimating the population of black bears (Ursus americanus) in Wisconsin

“…Population estimates are essential for making decisions about management and conservation of many species 1 , 2 , but often are difficult or expensive to obtain across large geographical scales 2 , 3 . This is particularly true of mammalian carnivores 4 , 5 , which are cryptic and difficult to count directly 6 – 8 . Consequently, carnivore managers often base their population estimates on extrapolations from small data sets and adjust harvest quotas based on subjective opinion from the public and experts 9 .…”