Morphology of the white-tailed deer tarsal gland

Abstract

T he com m u nication o f reproductive inform ation in cervids is thought to be accom plished b y odors associated with skin glands. The tarsal glands o f w hite-tailed deer O d ocoileu s virg in ia n u s (Zim m erm an, 1780), in particu lar, are the focu s o f m any breedin g b ehaviors and appear to attract the interest o f conspecifics. These glands are annointed w ith urine w ith increasing frequency as the breedin g season approaches and m ay con vey social odors relating to dom inance, reproductive condition, or individual recogn ition . W e collected tarsal glands from male and fem ale w hite-tailed deer o f various ages du rin g the breedin g and non-breedin g seasons. U sing light m icroscopy, we exam ined skin biopsies o f tarsal glands m icroscopically to quantify sebaceous and apocrine glandular activity. M easurem ents o f sebaceous and apocrine glands did not differ betw een sexes or seasons, or am ong age classes. D uring the b reedin g season, the tarsal tu fts o f older m ales b ecom e darkly stained. A lth ou gh the tarsal glands o f w hite-tailed deer are im portant in conspecific com m unication, the staining and asso ciated odors appears to be unrelated to variations in the sebaceous or apocrine gland activity. R ather, odor production on the tarsal gland likely results from interactions am ong u rinary constituents, m icrobial decom position, and glandular secretions.