Why wild giant pandas frequently roll in horse manure

Attraction to feces in wild mammalian species is extremely rare. Here we introduce the horse manure rolling (HMR) behavior of wild giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). Pandas not only frequently sniffed and wallowed in fresh horse manure, but also actively rubbed the fecal matter all over their bo...

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Published inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 117; no. 51; pp. 32493 - 32498
Main Authors Zhou, Wenliang, Yang, Shilong, Li, Bowen, Nie, Yonggang, Luo, Anna, Huang, Guangping, Liu, Xuefeng, Lai, Ren, Wei, Fuwen
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States National Academy of Sciences 22.12.2020
Subjects
Acclimatization
Ailuropoda melanoleuca
Ambient temperature
Animals
Behavior, Animal
Biological Sciences
Caryophyllene
Caryophyllene oxide
Cold
Cold tolerance
Female
HEK293 Cells
Horse manure
Horses
Humans
Ion channels
Male
Mammals
Manure - analysis
Manures
Mice, Inbred C57BL
Pandas
Phylogeny
Polycyclic Sesquiterpenes - analysis
Polycyclic Sesquiterpenes - pharmacology
Pyrimidinones - pharmacology
Rare species
Rats, Wistar
Temperature
Transient receptor potential proteins
TRPM Cation Channels - genetics
TRPM Cation Channels - metabolism
Ursidae
horse
temperature
TRPM8
feces
giant panda
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Summary:Attraction to feces in wild mammalian species is extremely rare. Here we introduce the horse manure rolling (HMR) behavior of wild giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). Pandas not only frequently sniffed and wallowed in fresh horse manure, but also actively rubbed the fecal matter all over their bodies. The frequency of HMR events was highly correlated with an ambient temperature lower than 15 °C. BCP/BCPO (beta-caryophyllene/caryophyllene oxide) in fresh horse manure was found to drive HMR behavior and attenuated the cold sensitivity of mice by directly targeting and inhibiting transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8), an archetypical cold-activated ion channel of mammals. Therefore, horse manure containing BCP/BCPO likely bestows the wild giant pandas with cold tolerance at low ambient temperatures. Together, our study described an unusual behavior, identified BCP/BCPO as chemical inhibitors of TRPM8 ion channel, and provided a plausible chemistry-auxiliary mechanism, in which animals might actively seek and utilize potential chemical resources from their habitat for temperature acclimatization.
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1W.Z., S.Y., B.L., and Y.N. contributed equally to this work.
Author contributions: W.Z., S.Y., B.L., Y.N., R.L., and F.W. designed research; W.Z., S.Y., B.L., Y.N., A.L., X.L., R.L., and F.W. performed research; B.L., Y.N., A.L., G.H., X.L., R.L., and F.W. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; W.Z., S.Y., A.L., G.H., and F.W. analyzed data; and W.Z., S.Y., B.L., Y.N., G.H., R.L., and F.W. wrote the paper.
Edited by Haoxing Xu, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, and accepted by Editorial Board Member Alan Hastings October 2, 2020 (received for review March 11, 2020)
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.2004640117