An individual and a sex odor signature in kittiwakes? Study of the semiochemical composition of preen secretion and preen down feathers

• Published in: Naturwissenschaften
• Main Authors: Leclaire, Sarah, Merkling, Thomas, Raynaud, Christine, Giacinti, Géraldine, Bessière, Jean-Marie, Hatch, Scott A., Danchin, Etienne
• Other Authors: Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Chimie Agro-Industrielle (CAI), Institut National Polytechnique (Toulouse) (Toulouse INP), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Ecole nationale supérieure des ingénieurs en arts chimiques et technologiques-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier (ENSCM), United States Geological Survey (USGS), French Polar Institute Paul-Emile Victor
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2011
• Subjects: Kittiwake; Odor; Preen gland; Uropygial secretion; Individual signature; MAJOR HISTOCOMPATIBILITY COMPLEX; AUKLETS AETHIA-CRISTATELLA; BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES; HUMAN-BODY ODOR; GLAND SECRETIONS; UROPYGIAL GLAND; ALKANOLS CONTRIBUTE; SEASONAL-VARIATION; CHEMICAL-COMPOSITION; RISSA-TRIDACTYLA; [SDV.IDA]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Food engineering; [SPI.GPROC]Engineering Sciences [physics]/Chemical and Process Engineering; Black-legged Kittiwake; rissa tridactyla
• Online Access: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02645753; https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-011-0809-9

International audience The importance of olfaction in birds' social behavior has long been denied. Avian chemical signaling has thus been relatively unexplored. The black-legged kittiwake provides a particularly appropriate model for investigating this topic. Kittiwakes preferentially mate with genetically dissimilar individuals, but the cues used to assess genetic characteristics remain unknown. As in other vertebrates, their body odors may carry individual and sexual signatures thus potentially reliably signaling individual genetic makeup. Here, we test whether body odors in preen gland secretion and preen down feathers in kittiwakes may provide a sex and an individual signature. Using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, we found that male and female odors differ quantitatively, suggesting that scent may be one of the multiple cues used by birds to discriminate between sexes. We further detected an individual signature in the volatile and nonvolatile fractions of preen secretion and preen down feathers. These results suggest that kittiwake body odor may function as a signal associated with mate recognition. It further suggests that preen odor might broadcast the genetic makeup of individuals, and could be used in mate choice to assess the genetic compatibility of potential mates.