Olfactory recognition of individual competitors by means of faeces in horse (Equus caballus).
Abstract: Living in complex social systems requires perceptual and cognitive capacities for the recognition of group membership and individual competitors. Olfaction is one means by which this can be achieved. Many animals can identify individual proteins in urine, skin secretions, or saliva by scent. Additionally, marking behaviour in several mammals and especially in horses indicates the importance of sniffing conspecifics' faeces for olfactory recognition. To test this hypothesis, we conducted two separate experiments: Experiment 1 addressed the question of whether horses can recognise the group membership of other horses by sniffing their faeces. The horses were presented with four faecal samples: (1) their own, (2) those of other members of their own group, (3) those of unfamiliar mares, and (4) those of unfamiliar geldings. Experiment two was designed to assess whether horses can identify the group member from whom a faecal sample came. Here, we presented two groups of horses with faecal samples from their group mates in random distribution. As controls, soil heaps and sheep faecal samples were used. In experiment one, horses distinguished their own from their conspecifics' faeces, but did not differentiate between familiarity and sex. In experiment two, the horses from both groups paid most attention to the faeces of the horses from which they received the highest amount of aggressive behaviours. We therefore suggest that horses of both sexes can distinguish individual competitors among their group mates by the smell of their faeces.
© Springer-Verlag 2010
Publication Date: 2010-12-04 PubMed ID: 21132447DOI: 10.1007/s10071-010-0358-1Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research explores the ability of horses to identify individual competitors within their group using the scent from faeces. The study found that horses, both male and female, can distinguish between their own faeces and those of their group mates, and paid most attention to faeces from horses who displayed the most aggressive behaviour towards them.
Importance of Olfaction in Baseline Recognition
- This study notes the significance of olfaction, or sense of smell, in recognizing and identifying individuals within a group in many different animal species.
- For many animals, the individual proteins found in various secretions such as urine, skin secretions, or saliva, provide distinct scent-based identifiers.
- In the context of horses, this paper points towards the marking behavior and propensity to sniff the faeces of others of the species as an indicator that olfactory recognition may be significant.
The Experimental Design
- The research was carried out in two experiments. In the first, the ability of horses to recognize the group membership of other horses by sniffing their faeces was tested.
- The second experiment was designed to determine if horses can identify which specific group member a faecal sample originated from.
- In both experiments, horses were different faecal samples and their reactions were observed and documented. Experiment one used faecal samples from different horses — the horse itself, other horses from the same group, and unfamiliar horses. In the second experiment, faecal samples from their group mates were randomly distributed amongst two groups of horses.
- Soil heaps and sheep faecal samples were used as controls in these experiments.
Results and Conclusions
- From the first experiment, it was found that horses could distinguish their own faeces from that of their group mates. However, they did not seem to differentiate based on familiarity or the sex of the horse from which the faeces originated.
- In the second experiment, horses were found to pay the most attention to the faeces of horses that exhibited the most aggressive behaviors towards them.
- This study thus concludes that both male and female horses may have the ability to identify individual competitors within their group by the smell of their faeces.
Cite This Article
APA
Krueger K, Flauger B.
(2010).
Olfactory recognition of individual competitors by means of faeces in horse (Equus caballus).
Anim Cogn, 14(2), 245-257.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-010-0358-1 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Biology I, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstrasse 31, 93053, Regensburg, Germany. Konstanze.Krueger@biologie.uni-regensburg.de
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Competitive Behavior / physiology
- Feces
- Female
- Horses / physiology
- Horses / psychology
- Male
- Recognition, Psychology
- Sex Factors
- Smell
- Time Factors
Citations
This article has been cited 17 times.- Torres Borda L, Auer U, Jenner F. Equine Social Behaviour: Love, War and Tolerance. Animals (Basel) 2023 Apr 26;13(9).
- Jardat P, Destrez A, Damon F, Menard-Peroy Z, Parias C, Barrière P, Keller M, Calandreau L, Lansade L. Horses discriminate human body odors between fear and joy contexts in a habituation-discrimination protocol. Sci Rep 2023 Feb 25;13(1):3285.
- Harvey AM, Ramp D, Mellor DJ. Review of the Foundational Knowledge Required for Assessing Horse Welfare. Animals (Basel) 2022 Dec 1;12(23).
- Pluháček J, Tučková V, Šárová R, King SRB. Why wait to mark? Possible reasons behind latency from olfactory exploration to overmarking in four African equid species. Anim Cogn 2022 Dec;25(6):1443-1452.
- Buzek A, Serwańska-Leja K, Zaworska-Zakrzewska A, Kasprowicz-Potocka M. The Shape of the Nasal Cavity and Adaptations to Sniffing in the Dog (Canis familiaris) Compared to Other Domesticated Mammals: A Review Article. Animals (Basel) 2022 Feb 19;12(4).
- Sabiniewicz A, Białek M, Tarnowska K, Świątek R, Dobrowolska M, Sorokowski P. A Preliminary Investigation of Interspecific Chemosensory Communication of Emotions: Can Humans (Homo sapiens) Recognise Fear- and Non-Fear Body Odour from Horses (Equus ferus caballus). Animals (Basel) 2021 Dec 8;11(12).
- Ragonese G, Baragli P, Mariti C, Gazzano A, Lanatà A, Ferlazzo A, Fazio E, Cravana C. Interspecific two-dimensional visual discrimination of faces in horses (Equus caballus). PLoS One 2021;16(2):e0247310.
- Rørvang MV, Nielsen BL, McLean AN. Sensory Abilities of Horses and Their Importance for Equitation Science. Front Vet Sci 2020;7:633.
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- Jardat P, Destrez A, Damon F, Tanguy-Guillo N, Lainé AL, Parias C, Reigner F, Ferreira VHB, Calandreau L, Lansade L. Human emotional odours influence horses' behaviour and physiology. PLoS One 2026;21(1):e0337948.
- Torres Borda L, Roth P, Lumetzberger J, Auer U, Jenner F. Proximity tracking using ultra-wideband technology for equine social behaviour research. Sci Rep 2024 Apr 30;14(1):9971.
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