Odour signals used in competitive and aggressive interactions between males are well
studied in the context of sexual selection. By contrast, relatively little is known about …

Latrines are accumulations of two to several hundred faeces resulting from the repeated use
of the same defecation sites by the same or several individuals. Many carnivores deposit …

The fermentation hypothesis for animal signalling posits that bacteria dwelling in an animal's
scent glands metabolize the glands' primary products into odorous compounds used by the …

Scent-marking is widespread among mammals and has been observed in many felid
species. Although the behaviour is well-described, little is known about its function in wild …

Chemical cues are arguably the most fundamental means of animal communication and
play an important role in mate choice and kin recognition. Consequently, there is growing …

Inbreeding and inbreeding avoidance are key factors in the evolution of animal societies,
influencing dispersal and reproductive strategies which can affect relatedness structure and …

Background Epidemiological models often use information on host social contacts to predict
the potential impact of infectious diseases on host populations and the efficiency of control …

Scent‐marking is common in mammals, but where signals are carried by urine and faeces,
distinguishing between scent‐marking and mere elimination is problematic. To do so, we …

An emerging Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTC) pathogen, M. mungi, infects wild
banded mongooses (Mungos mungo) in Northern Botswana, causing significant mortality …

The function of latrines is still debated in many mammals, and in most cases latrine use is
likely multi-functional. Functional hypotheses can be broadly divided into five categories that …