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Chemical and Behavioral Evidence for a Third Pheromone Component in a North American Population of the Black Cutworm Moth, Agrotis ipsilon

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Abstract

The sex pheromone of Agrotis ipsilon had been previously identified as a blend of (Z)-7-dodecenyl acetate (Z7–12:Ac) and (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9–14:Ac). A synthetic blend of Z7–12:Ac and Z9–14:Ac (30 μg:10 μg) is effective in attracting males in the field. In several countries, addition of (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate (Z11–16:Ac) to the previously identified blend increases male captures, but this had not been demonstrated in North America. We found Z11–16:Ac, in addition to Z7–12:Ac and Z9–14:Ac, from pheromone gland extracts of females from North America. The mean ratio of Z7–12:Ac, Z9–14:Ac, and Z11–16:Ac produced by individual females was 70.5:14.2:15.3, respectively. In Kentucky, addition of Z11–16:Ac (60 μg) to a two-component blend of Z7–12:Ac and Z9–14:Ac significantly increased the trap capture rate in the field. Traps baited with this three-component blend were 3.3 times (1995) and 4.6 times (1996) more effective in capturing male A. ipsilon than the two-component blend. This improved effectiveness resulted in detection of A. ipsilon in 60% more of the sampling periods in the two years. In the wind tunnel, males flew upwind and contacted a rubber septum loaded with a three-component blend including Z11–16:Ac significantly more frequently than they did to any two-component blend. These results demonstrate that Z11–16:Ac is a pheromone component in this North American population of A. ipsilon.

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  1. Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, 40546

    César Gemeno & Kenneth F. Haynes

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  1. César Gemeno
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  2. Kenneth F. Haynes
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Gemeno, C., Haynes, K.F. Chemical and Behavioral Evidence for a Third Pheromone Component in a North American Population of the Black Cutworm Moth, Agrotis ipsilon . J Chem Ecol 24, 999–1011 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022398318465

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