研究人员新近发现，企鹅可以闻出伴侣的气味，这可能有助于它们在企鹅群中找到彼此。企鹅也可以辨识出近亲的气味，免得发生近亲交配。
一些海鸟会利用嗅觉找食物，或者定位筑巢位置。而对美国芝加哥布鲁克菲尔动物园里汉波德企鹅的研究发现，企鹅也能用气味来区分亲人和陌生人。研究发布于《公共科学图书馆.统合》。
研究者使用了动物园饲养的22只汉波德企鹅，将它们分成2组。企鹅尾部有一种腺体，能分泌油脂来保持羽毛清洁，同时也具有嗅觉上的作用。在一个实验中，相对陌生企鹅的气味，有伴侣的企鹅更喜欢伴侣的气味。另一个实验中，没有伴侣的企鹅在闻陌生企鹅的气味时，要花上比自己近亲更多的功夫。
研究者表示，很多动物，包括人类的婴儿都会在新的气味和线索上花上更多的功夫。在很多物种中，气味都被用于吸引配偶，或者防止近亲婚配。
汉波德企鹅在秘鲁悬崖上筑巢，会花上很长时间在海里找食物。在它们回到聚集地，数千只企鹅在一起时，气味可能就能起到辨识身份的作用。研究者表示，对在野外群居的鸟类，比如企鹅来说，知道谁是邻居，可以帮助它们找到自己的筑巢地，也能了解自己该怎么跟邻居相处。(生物谷 Bioon.com)
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0025002
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Odor-Based Recognition of Familiar and Related Conspecifics: A First Test Conducted on Captive Humboldt Penguins (Spheniscus humboldti)
Heather R. Coffin1, Jason V. Watters, Jill M. Mateo
Studies of kin recognition in birds have largely focused on parent-offspring recognition using auditory or visual discrimination. Recent studies indicate that birds use odors during social and familial interactions and possibly for mate choice, suggesting olfactory cues may mediate kin recognition as well. Here, we show that Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti), a natally philopatric species with lifetime monogamy, discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar non-kin odors (using prior association) and between unfamiliar kin and non-kin odors (using phenotype matching). Penguins preferred familiar non-kin odors, which may be associated with the recognition of nest mates and colony mates and with locating burrows at night after foraging. In tests of kin recognition, penguins preferred unfamiliar non-kin odors. Penguins may have perceived non-kin odors as novel because they did not match the birds' recognition templates. Phenotype matching is likely the primary mechanism for kin recognition within the colony to avoid inbreeding. To our knowledge this is the first study to provide evidence of odor-based kin discrimination in a bird.
