Abstract
Olfactory signals may facilitate species recognition between the sympatric voles,Microtus montanus andM. pennsylvanicus. In an effort to isolate and identify compounds that might contribute to such a chemical communication system, the preputial glands of those voles have been examined. Morphological examinations show both vole species possess preputial glands; however, the glands ofM. montanus are much larger than those ofM. pennsylvanicus. Gas Chromatographie analysis revealed that the preputial glands ofM. montanus contain a series of species-typical lipids that are not found inM. pennsylvanicus. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry, the species-typical lipids were identified as esters of branched, saturated, and unsaturated C5 and C4 alcohols and straight-chain C16, and “iso” branched C17 fatty acids. This is the first description of such esters from mammalian tissues. The results are discussed relative to the possibility that the species-typical esters act as species recognition cues for the sympatric voles.
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Welsh, C.J., Moore, R.E., Bartelt, R.J. et al. Novel, species-typical esters from preputial glands of sympatric voles,Microtus montanus andM. pennsylvanicus . J Chem Ecol 14, 143–158 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01022538
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01022538