Social olfaction in male brown lemmings (Lemmus sibiricus = trimucronatus) and collared lemmings (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus): II. Discrimination of mated and unmated females.

When tested in a Y-maze olfactometer, male brown and collared lemmings (Lemmus sibiricus = trimucronatus and Dicrostonyx groenlandicus) preferred the odor of unmated receptive females to the odor of females with which they had just copulated. Similarly, sexually satiated males preferred the odor of an unmated receptive female to that of a strange female that had recently copulated with another male. Sexually experienced males without recent copulatory experience also demonstrated this preference, but sexually naive males did not. Sexually satiated collared lemmings preferred the odor of bedding from a novel estrous female to bedding from the female with which they had just copulated even when the bedding was collected before mating occurred. These results suggest that discrimination between prior mates and unmated females may be based on individual recognition as well as recognition of subclasses of females (i.e., mated vs. unmated, familiar vs. unfamiliar).