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Proceedings of the International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, 2011, 1(1):57-69
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Article

Differential marking, investigation and motor activity in presence of conspecific odours differing on their population of origin in bank voles

Geraldine Verplancke1,2 , Eric Le Bouleng¨¦2, Claire Diederich1
1Laboratory of Anatomy and Ethology of Domestic Animals, University of Namur (FUNDP). 6 rue Muzet. B-5000 Namur, Belgium; 2Ecology and Biogeography Unit, catholic University of Louvain (UCL). 4-5 Place croix du Sud. B-1348 Louvain-la-neuve, Belgium

Received 17 February 2011; Accepted 1 March 2011; Published online 14 May 2011
IAEES

Abstract
Odours emitted by rodent species convey cues about their overall body conditions and provide valuable information intervening in many aspects of their social relationships such as territorial and mating activities. Although bank vole is one of the primary models for studying chemical communication in wild rodents, literature is scarce about its reactivity to odours of conspecifics from its population compared to those of conspecifics from a different population. Here we tested the effect of the population of origin on the behaviour of wild bank voles (Myodes glareolus) through 30min tests in laboratory. We observed both males and females differential marking (i.e. by urine or glandular secretions), motor activity and investigation (i.e. sniffing events) in presence of conspecific whole body odours coming from either the Same Population of Origin (SPO) or from a Different Population of Origin (DPO). Our results showed that both male and female bank voles react differently to odours of conspecifics according to the population of origin of the latter. Both motor activity and marking were more important when voles were confronted to odours from DPO donors than SPO ones. These effects were independent of the sex of the subjects. Moreover, male subjects tended to investigate more odours from DPO conspecifics than odours from SPO ones. Causes underlying apparent between-populations differences in the bank voles' body odours are discussed.

Keywords Myodes glareolus; population recognition; wild rodents; chemical signals; olfactory communication.



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