Olfactory communication occurs in carnivores and many scent-mark with anal gland secretions (AGS), which contain a variety of information including sex-related cues.Currently, there is disagreement about whether bear species, other than the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), possess anal glands or anal sacs. We documented anal sacs in brown bears (Ursus arctos) and analyzed AGS from 17 free-ranging, sexually mature individuals using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. We hypothesized that brown bear AGS codes for sex, as it does in giant pandas, and predicted that AGS shows sex differences in gas chromatogram profiles, number of compounds, the digital and analog coding of chemical compounds, and color. We found 90 different compounds. Our results support the predictions that male and female AGS differs in gas chromatograms, analog coding, and possibly color. However, we found no significant difference between sexes in number of detected compounds or in the digital coding. Our results confirm that brown bears possess anal sacs, that secretions likely relay information about sex, and suggest other chemical information critical to the bears' social system is encoded in the AGS.
The house mouse is probably the most widespread invasive mammalian species, being ubiquitous worldwide. In commensal situations, they are known mainly for property damage, for consumption and contamination of stored foods, as a noise/sanitation/odor nuisance, and as a vector of some diseases. In some field settings, they also cause considerable damage to field crops and to natural resources, such as when introduced to islands. We rely heavily upon sanitation, rodent-proofing, capture devices, and rodenticides to control populations and reduce damage. However, a number of situations exist whereby these traditional methods are not adequate or appropriate: crop damage during "mouse plagues" in Australia, livestock feed consumption and contamination and disease hazards in poultry and animal facilities in the U.S., and natural resource damage on small islands. In this review, challenges and some potential solutions to house mouse management are presented, including genetic resistance to anticoagulants, the effectiveness of baits given abundant food resources, the re-invasion problem and need for perimeter strategies, efforts with fertility control, and the need for effective multi-capture trap devices. In difficult situations, an IPM strategy that incorporates a combination of methods closely integrated with land uses and management practices is necessary.
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