Effects of ultrasonic on production and perception of aggregation pheromone in tribolium confusum (duval) [electronic resource].
- p.239-248.
Includes references.
The confused flour beetle, Tribolium confusum (Duval), is a serious economic pest of stored products in many areas of the world, and it is a secondary pest of stored grain, (Cronwell, 1966). Quite apart from the economic importance of T. confusum as a pest of flour and other cereal products, is its significance as a model in population studies (Park, 1962). Suzuki el al. (1975), while working with T. confusum and with T. castaneum, identified seven unsaturated hydrocarbons (l-tetradecene, 1- pentadecene, 1-hexadecene, 1-heptadecene, 1, 6-pentadecadiene, 1, 8- heptadecadiene, and heptadecatriene) which, in admixture, have repellent qualities and which therefore act as alann pheromones. Any attempt to device control measures, using pheromones, or to allow for their influence in population models, calls for an understanding of the effects of environmental and physiological factors. Many factors affect the production and perception of pheromones by insects. Accordingly, the present study examines the effects of habituation behavior and age, on the response and perception of aggregation pheromones in this species under ultrasonic treatment Hinton, (1942), differentiated the sexes of the confused flour beetle T. confusum by the presence of a sub basal setiferous sex patch on the ventral side of male femur, a structure which is absent in the female. Males of T. castaneum, T. confusum, Prostephanus truncates (Horn) and Rhyzopertha damenica (Fabricius) (Bostrichidae), produce aggregation pheromones attractive to both sexes (Oceallachain and Ryan, 1977, Suzuki; 1980; Williams et al., 1981 Hodges et al., 1984). T. castaneum males produce the aggregation pheromone, 4.8- dimethyldecanal (Suzuki, 1980), from setiferous sex patch on the ventral side of the femur which mediates behavioural responses in both sexes (Faustini ef al., 1981,1982).The attractancy of the synthetic pheromone has led to the production of commercial lurs for use in trapping.