| Title: | Homing and Nest Recognition in Nocturnal Blue Petrels: What Scent May Attract Birds to their Burrows? |
| Author(s): | Zidat T; Gabirot M; Bonadonna F; Muller CT; |
| Address: | "School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Sir Martin Evans Building, Museum Avenue, CF10 3AX, Cardiff, UK. timothee.zidat@inrae.fr. UMR Physiologie de la Reproduction et des Comportements, INRAE, CNRS, Universite de Tours, IFCE, Nouzilly, France. timothee.zidat@inrae.fr. School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Sir Martin Evans Building, Museum Avenue, CF10 3AX, Cardiff, UK. ADENA - Reserve Naturelle Nationale du Bagnas, Domaine du Grand Clavelet, Route de Sete, 34300, Agde, France. CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France" |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10886-023-01424-3 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1573-1561 (Electronic) 0098-0331 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Hypogean petrels return to the same nest burrow to breed on remote islands during the summer months. Their nocturnal behavior at the colony, strong musky odor and olfactory anatomy suggest an important role of olfaction in homing behavior and nest recognition. Behavioral experiments showed that olfactory cues are sufficient to allow nest identification, suggesting a stabile chemical signature emanating from burrows and facilitating nest recognition. However, the chemical nature and sources of this odor remain unknown. To better understand the nest odor composition, we analyzed volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of nests of blue petrels (Halobaena caerulea) derived from three different odor sources: nest air, nest material and feather samples. We also compared, during two successive years, VOCs from burrows with an incubating breeder on the nest, and burrows used during the breeding season by blue petrels but shortly temporally unoccupied by breeders. We found that the nest air odor was mainly formed by the owners' odor, which provided an individual chemical label for nests that appeared stabile over the breeding season. These findings, together with the previous homing behavioral studies showing an essential role of the sense of smell in blue petrels, strongly suggest that the scent emanating from burrows of blue petrels provides the information that facilitates nest recognition and homing" |
| Keywords: | Homing Behavior Nest Air Odor Olfaction Orientation Procellariform Seabirds Td-gc-tof-ms; |
| Notes: | "PublisherZidat, Timothee Gabirot, Marianne Bonadonna, Francesco Muller, Carsten T eng FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IEF-625385 BIRDSCENTS/Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship/ AMBO ANR-08-BLAN-0117-01/Agence Nationale de la Recherche Francaise/ EHTOTAAF 354/IPEV Grant/ 2023/05/26 J Chem Ecol. 2023 May 26. doi: 10.1007/s10886-023-01424-3" |
