Olfactory cues influence female choice in two lek-breeding antelopes

Autor:	Rory Nefdt, James C. Deutsch
Rok vydání:	1992
Předmět:	Male Multidisciplinary Ecology media_common.quotation_subject Olfactory cues Zambia Zoology Animals Wild Biology Attraction Smell Sexual Behavior Animal Antelopes Mate choice Odorants Animals Female Uganda Mating Reproduction media_common
Zdroj:	Nature. 356:596-598
ISSN:	1476-4687 0028-0836
DOI:	10.1038/356596a0
Popis:	PRONOUNCED differences in mating success between males holding territories clustered on traditional mating grounds (leks) are commonly cited as evidence of female choice for male phenotypes1–6but female ungulates appear to prefer particular territories6–12 even when no other individuals are on the lek11,12. Female choice of territories may be influenced by spatial features7–10,12,but observations suggest that females may also be attracted to successful territories by olfactory cues in the soil13. Here we report that transferring the topsoil between successful and unsuccessful territories on leks of two reduncine antelope species caused the numbers of females and matings on the unsuccessful territories to increase tenfold. Females were probably attracted to the soil by smells that had accumulated from heavy use by other females. Because of this attraction, stochastic process may play an important part in generating the variance in mating success between territory holders on leks.
Databáze:	OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz:	https://explore.openaire.eu/search/publication?articleId=doi_dedup___::3651dbbc91f0d2251640585a2293b9e1 https://doi.org/10.1038/356596a0 Zobrazit plný text záznamu