Scent marking competitor assessment

Scent-matching is not the only way that conspecifics might use scent marks to assess an individual s competitive ability and we suggest that it is just one part of a more general mechanism that both competitors and potential mates use to assess the competitive ability of a territory owner, or of a dominant individual in a non-territorial or group-territorial social system. 

Owner advantage in contests with intruders depends on the identification of the owner, not as an individual (see below) but as the owner of the territory. Elsewhere I have argued that the function of scent marking in territories is to advertise the owner s status and thus to reduce the cost of territory defence (Gosling, 1982). If this is true then the proper context for scent marking is competitor assessment theory which is an offshoot of the ideas about animal contests mentioned in the previous section. Briefly, animals would be expected to adjust their behaviour to the probability and benefits of winning a contest, and the costs of... 

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