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Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 13 pp 217–228Cite as

Dominance Hierarchy in Indian Blackbuck (Antelope cervicapra L.): Sources, Behavior and Role of Pheromone Signals

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Abstract

For many different species of terrestrial mammals, the formation and maintenance of dominance hierarchies affects access to mates and other resources. In the Indian Blackbuck, Antilope cervicapra, an endangered species, social dominance is influenced by different factors, such as the frequency of an individual’s urine, fecal, preorbital and interdigital gland marking, displays of its aggressive behavior, and its circulating testosterone titer. Further, the appearance of specific volatile peaks in the pheromone sources during the formation of dominance hierarchy in dominant males may represent behaviorally important chemical signals. The identification of α2u-globulin (17 kDa polypeptides) in preorbital glandular secretion of Blackbuck provides circumstantial evidence of presence of pheromone binding protein in the gland. It is possible that this protein may carry the volatile ligand in male Blackbuck preorbital gland that affects scent marking in this species. This chapter provides a detailed account of the establishment and maintenance of the dominance hierarchy of Blackbucks and how fecal steroids and urinary and preorbital glandular pheromones may be involved.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Prof. M.A. Akbarsha, Director and Chair, MGDC, Bharathidasan University for critical reading of the manuscript, and the Chief Wildlife Warden and the Director of the Arignar Anna Zoological Park (AAZP), Vandalur, Chennai, for granting permission to carry out this study. TR is thankful to the UGC for awarding Rajiv Gandhi National Research fellowship, New Delhi. We acknowledge the facilities provided to us by Bharathidasan University, DBT, DST, UGC-SAP and DST-PURSE.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Pheromone Technology, Department of Animal Science, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, 620 024, India

    Thangavel Rajagopal & Govindaraju Archunan

  2. Department of Zoology, Thiagarajar College (Autonomous), Madurai, Tamil Nadu, 625 009, India

    Thangavel Rajagopal

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  1. Thangavel Rajagopal
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  2. Govindaraju Archunan
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Correspondence to Govindaraju Archunan .

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  1. Department of Biology, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA

    Bruce A. Schulte

  2. Department of Chemistry, Hendrix College, Conway, Arkansas, USA

    Thomas E. Goodwin

  3. Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA

    Michael H. Ferkin

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Rajagopal, T., Archunan, G. (2016). Dominance Hierarchy in Indian Blackbuck (Antelope cervicapra L.): Sources, Behavior and Role of Pheromone Signals. In: Schulte, B., Goodwin, T., Ferkin, M. (eds) Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 13. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22026-0_16

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