Co-Authors:
Mendel, Z., Department of Entomology, ARO, the Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Jasrotia, P., Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC), Michigan State University (MSU), East Lansing, MI 48824, United States
Protasov, A., Department of Entomology, ARO, the Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Kol-Maimon, H., Department of Entomology, ARO, the Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Zada, A.L., Department of Entomology, ARO, the Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Franco, J.C., Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017 Lisbon, Portugal
Abstract:
The response of the late second-instar male nymphs of the mealybug species (Hemiptera, Pseudococcidae), Planococcus citri (Risso), Planococcus ficus (Signoret), Pseudococcus cryptus Hempel Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead), to their conspecific and heterospecific female pheromone was studied. Males that exhibited the typical appearance of late-second-instar nymphs were tested. The male behavior was monitored soon after their exposure to the tested female sex pheromone in glass Petri dish arenas. Male nymph behavior toward the pheromone source was characterized based on their aggregation on the disks in the arena. Males of all four tested mealybug species were attracted to their conspecific female pheromone. By contrast, almost no interceptions of male nymphs with disks impregnated with a heterospecific female pheromone were observed. The mode of attraction of each of male nymphs of P. ficus, among most of the tested individuals (>80%), to the conspecific female sex pheromone, (S)-lavandulyl senecioate and or (S)-lavandulyl isovalerate, was the same as the mode of attraction latter on as adult. We suggest that by being attracted to the conspecific pheromone these males may direct themselves to a suitable pupation site near conspecific non-sibling mature females, thus preventing inbreeding. The repellency of heterospecific sex pheromone to males that are looking for a pupation site suggests that the latter try to avoid close contact with heterospecific females. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.