When designing cages to maximize welfare, we should consider both the physical and psychological needs of the animals for which the cage is intended. Many laboratory species show non-random defecation patterns and therefore might possess a psychological need for soiling sites with preferred characteristics. This study examined whether caged laboratory mice preferred to defecate on a floor with or without sawdust, and whether mice preferentially defecated in clearly partitioned areas of the cage which prevented mixing of soiled and clean sawdust. The mice were recorded as active in each area of the cage at a frequency that would be expected from the floor-area available, ie general activity was randomly distributed, but, the mice were selective in the areas used for defecation. Significantly more faeces were deposited in areas containing sawdust than in areas without (p<0.0001). After corrections for differences in the size of floor-area, significantly fewer faeces were deposited in partitioned areas at the rear of the cage than in the front area of the cage which contained the feeder and drinkers (p <0.001). Overall, these results show that the mice defecated in localized areas and preferred to defecate in areas containing sawdust. These results support other evidence which indicates that conventional cage designs for mice do not provide a sufficiently complex or appropriate environment to allow selective soiling behaviour. Such cages might therefore be inadequate with respect to catering for the psychological needs and overall welfare of laboratory mice.

Feeding, defecation, palp behaviour and motility of the tubicolous annelid, Magelona alleni were observed in a laboratory environment. Both surface deposit, and to a lesser extent, suspension feeding were exhibited, with the ingestion of sand grains, and of smaller amounts of foraminiferans and administered commercially available suspension. Predominantly sand could be seen moving through the gut, resulting in conspicuous defecation, not previously observed in other magelonid species. During this ‘sand expulsion’ behaviour, individuals turned around in a network of branched burrows. The posterior was extended from the burrow and substantial amounts of sand were expelled in a string-like formation, involving mucus. The posterior morphology of M. alleni differs greatly compared with other European magelonid species, in possessing a large terminal anus, likely related to its diet. In contrast to what has been recorded for other magelonids, M. alleni appears predominately non-selective. The current paper adds credence to the idea that multiple feeding modes exist within the family. Tube-lined burrows were observed to be primarily permanent, and motility of the species reduced in comparison to other magelonids. The differences noted between M. alleni and other species is most likely linked to its tubicolous lifestyle. The effect of environmental parameters on observed behaviours is discussed.

In lowland England, badgers Meles meles form social groups of up to 30 individuals. They share a main den (sett) and a core feeding range, but largely forage alone. Faeces are deposited in discrete hinterland and border ‘latrines’. Border latrines are shared with neighbouring groups. We demonstrate that there is a highly significant tendency for neighbouring groups to place a similar quantity of faeces at shared latrines. There are also significant tendencies to place more faeces in boundary latrines close to the sett, and for reduced separation of latrines close to the sett. We also demonstrate that badgers tend to defecate most frequently on the boundary closest to their current feeding site. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that faeces at border latrines are used to promote range exclusion. We propose that faecal volume represents a reliable signal of the encounter likelihood and/or foraging pressure of badgers along a particular border. According to the ‘active territorial defence’ hypothesis, this indicates a stand-off position in terms of each group's resource holding potential by signalling encounter likelihood across the boundary. By the ‘passive range exclusion’ hypothesis, this border is an isopleth (equal contour) of resource depletion between groups, and crossing over such a contour deep into a neighbouring range reduces foraging efficiency. By either hypothesis, the matched faecal volume and sett proximity effects suggest a simple mechanism that is capable of allowing reliable information to be passed by individuals between adjacent sectors of neighbouring territories to deter intrusion. This is a ‘bottom–up’ process of inter-dependent, parallel, individual responses, which is capable of generating the emergent complexity of co-ordinated group ranges without central control.

Scent-marking behaviour and inter-pack aggression were studied in wild Ethiopian wolf, Canis simensis, packs. Raised-leg urinations, followed by ground scratching, were the most frequently deposited scent-mark. Scent-marking rates were highest along or near territory boundaries, where distances between scent-marking sites were reduced and the proportion of multiple marks was increased, relative to other areas. Marking rates increased with wolf numbers during patrols but not during other activities. Although all adult members of a pack contributed to scent-marking, the dominant pair marked most frequently. Subadult males scent-marked occasionally but subadult females never did. Wolves vigorously over-marked neighbours' scent-marks. Most direct encounters between neighbouring wolves at territory borders were aggressive and involved repeated chases, and the larger group was most likely to win. Resident wolves were more tolerant of opposite-sex than same-sex neighbours. Resident wolves therefore signalled pack composition and status at home range borders by olfactory and auditory cues and by aggressive contests. Such signalling may reduce the occurrence of potentially costly inter-pack aggressive encounters at territory borders and provide information on reproductive status.

Twenty lambs (median body weight 37.2 kg) were kept on a paddock of 0.56 ha in England for four weeks in autumn. A 10 m grid was marked out in the paddock and from 10 of the 54 grid squares, all faeces were removed by hand at the start of each week. Faecal abundance was estimated by a point quadrat technique and observations of behaviour were made by scan sampling at intervals of 10 min during 15 h in each week. Each lamb produced on average 0.72 kg wet weight of faeces per day. Removal of faeces had no effect on grazing behaviour and the only correlation between faecal abundance and behaviour was that night lying tended to be on areas where faecal abundance was high. This was probably due to the lambs preferring certain areas for night lying and defecating heavily in these areas before starting to graze in the morning. Faecal encounter during daytime grazing was affected neither by sheep body weight nor by parasite burden. Behavioural mechanisms of avoidance of faeces are probably not detectable when behaviour is studied in the context of grid squares of 100 m2 and further study should include detailed observations on the grazing paths of individual sheep.

A Crypthecodinium cohnii-like dinoflagellate was found to prey on the unicellular red alga Porphyridium sp. The cytoplasm of the prey is ingested by myzocytosis within 10–30 s, and the contents of up to 20 Porphyridium cells can be taken up by one dinoflagellate. The feeding tube is retracted after each uptake process. Cytochalasin D disturbs the suction and the retraction of the feeding tube. Feeding behaviour depends on the light–dark regime: the dinoflagellates prey preferentially in the dark period and finish the trophic phase at the beginning of the light period. They then assemble and encyst, and digestion takes place in the light period. Cell division is restricted to the encysted stage. At the end of the light period excystment takes place, combined with defecation. Isogamy as well as anisogamy and nuclear cyclosis were observed. The trophonts have very thin thecal plates and a microtubular basket with two kinds of elongate vesicles. The microtubules of the tubular basket are also found in young cysts, formed after the end of the feeding period. The fine structure of the digestion vacuoles and of the faecal bodies is described.