Inhibitory effects of centrally and peripherally induced anosmia on mounting behavior in the female rat.

Adult ovariectomized female rats received a testosterone-propionate (TP)-filled silastic implant and were tested for mounting behavior seven days later. Exposure to estrous female urine but not to urine from ovariectomized females increased the number of TP-treated females that displayed mounting behavior. Olfactory bulb removal on its own and peripheral anosmia induced by intranasal ZnSO4 application impaired mounting behavior. These results are discussed with respect to the effects of anosmia on copulatory behavior in the male.