Seasonal and reproductive variation in chemical constituents of scent signals in wild giant pandas

Abstract

Seasonally reproducing animals show many behavioral and physiological changes during the mating period, including increased signaling for intrasexual competition and mate attraction. We collected 102 anogenital gland secretions (AGS) from marking trees in Foping Nature Reserve, and used gas chromatography mass spectrometry analyze these chemical composition. Of these marks, all but one were from males, confirmed with DNA analysis. We found that several chemical constituents, especially volatile compounds, is present only during the mating season and that the relative abundance of many compounds changed as a function of breeding season, whereas nonvolatile compounds were lower in the mating season. This seasonal variation in chemical composition of AGS most likely plays an important role in governing giant panda reproduction, including mate location, attraction, and male-male competition. The chemical properties of many of these putative chemosignals—such as volatility and longevity—are suggestive of these roles, and undoubtedly contribute to successful reproduction for this species with a characteristically sophisticated chemical communication system. We also found a number of important differences between the chemical constituents of AGS from wild pandas and those found in previous studies with captive pandas, suggesting that inappropriate chemosignal composition may contribute to poor reproductive success in captive breeding programs.