top of page

animal media

Screenshot 2024-10-23 at 1.41.49 PM.png

Source: 

MacDonald, David W. Symp. Patterns of Scent Marking with Urine and Faeces Amongst Carnivore Communities. zoo/. Soc. Land. (1980) No. 45, 107-139

"Carnivores deploy their urine and faeces (sometimes associated with glandular secreta) at varied sites and in diverse contexts. Recent field work has disclosed that the pattern and frequency of marking within some species varies with the individual's sex, social and reproductive status. In most cases the functions of urine and faecal marking remain largely unknown, but accumulating evidence suggests that many different messages are conveyed by these odours. It is stressed that the pattern of marking may show significant intra-specific variation when comparisons are made between populations inhabiting different habitats." 

"Just as recent studies have pointed to the flexibility of carnivore societies, so we should expect the role that odours play to vary intraspecifically. Preliminary evidence suggests that the pattern of resource distribution in a given habitat and the influence of that pattern on a species' social organization, may underlie some features of the distribution of scent. Not only should we expect each scent to convey a diversity of information - we should expect its context and function to vary between individuals. The selective forces acting on each individual within a society are different and these will be reflected in their scent marking behaviour, as in all other aspects of their social life. "

Although the scents themselves are created by the body, it is certainly in the dissemination of the scent where an animal's particular creative touch comes into play. By choosing how to broadcast or place a scent, whether it is a bear rubbing urine on a tree, or a gray fox placing feces close to a fruiting tree, it's clear from this survey of canine scent making that complex, creative decisions are taking place, motivated by a desire to communicate something specific to others of the same and different species. 

© 2035 by Agatha Kronberg. Powered and secured by Wix

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Vimeo
bottom of page