Odor Preference and Behavioral Interactions of Ratlike Hamsters (Cricetulus triton) During The Nonbreeding Season

Odor preference and behavioral interactions of unrelated and unfamiliar adult ratlike hamsters (Cricetulus triton) were studied during the nonbreeding season in the laboratory.In Y-maze,focal hamsters preferred odors of conspecific bedding materials to those of control cotton;focal males responses did not show a sexual difference between males and females odors,while focal females preferred males odors to females .Focal hamsters spent more time in either arm of Y-maze with hamster demonstrator than another control arm;focal males spent more time in one of arms with same-sex hamster demonstrator than another with the opposite-sex individual,while focal females did not displayed such a difference.The staged dyadic encounters were conducted in a neutral arena;paired encounters between both same sexes and opposite sexes contained frequent agonistic acts and few amiable acts;the victors had more attack and flank gland marking than the losers,this indicated flank gland marking was positively related to gonistic behavior and dominant status.