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Volatile Combustion Products of Wood Attract Acanthocnemus nigricans (Coleoptera: Acanthocnemidae)

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Abstract

Acanthocnemus nigricans is an Australian pyrophilic beetle approaching smoldering logs for mating and oviposition. We investigated the behavior of the beetles towards combustion products of cellulose (5-methylfurfural, hydroxacetone, karrikinolide), lignin (4-methylguaiacol, 4-ethylguaiacol, eugenol), and (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol in a custom built dynamic two arm olfactometer. The beetles were attracted by 5-methylfurfural, 4-methylguaiacol, 4-ethylguaiacol, eugenol, and hydroxyacetone at different concentrations. Abundances of beetles caught in traps baited with a mixture of the most attractive volatiles showed only a trend to higher numbers. These results are discussed with respect to weather conditions and complementing infrared perception of the pyrophilic beetles.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Prof. Barbara Wilson, Prof. Helmut Schmitz, Dr. Neil Burrows, Mike Cantelo, Brian Inglis and Jan Seelig for scientific and technical support during our presence in Western Australia. We would like to thank the fire fighters of Western Australia and the staff of the Department of Environment and Conservation, Western Australia, for supporting our research. The work of Stefan Dippel was kindly supported by DFG Priority Programme/ SPP 1392: Integrative Analysis of Olfaction. The work of Marta Paczkowska was kindly supported by the BMBF-Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung. The work of Sebastian Paczkowski was kindly supported by the Cusanuswerk, Bischöfliche Studienstiftung, Germany.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forest Zoology and Forest Conservation, Büsgen-Institute, Georg-August-University, Büsgenweg 3, 37077, Göttingen, Germany

    Sebastian Paczkowski, Marta Paczkowska, Stefan Dippel & Stefan Schütz

  2. Department of Developmental Biology, Johann-Friedrich-Blumenbach-Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August-University, Göttingen, Germany

    Stefan Dippel

  3. School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

    Gavin Flematti

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  1. Sebastian Paczkowski
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  2. Marta Paczkowska
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  3. Stefan Dippel
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  4. Gavin Flematti
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  5. Stefan Schütz
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Correspondence to Sebastian Paczkowski.

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Paczkowski, S., Paczkowska, M., Dippel, S. et al. Volatile Combustion Products of Wood Attract Acanthocnemus nigricans (Coleoptera: Acanthocnemidae). J Insect Behav 27, 228–238 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-013-9430-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-013-9430-4

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