Green leaf volatiles enhance aggregation pheromone of boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis
1989
Dickens, Joseph C.
Enhancement of an insect pheromone response by green leaf volatiles is reported for the first time in the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Single cell recordings from antennal olfactory receptors revealed a class of cells selectively responsive to six carbon alcohols and aldehydes (i.e., ‘green leaf volatiles'). Field tests with released weevils demonstrated enhanced trap captures with trans-2-hexen-1-ol, cis-3-hexen-1-ol, or 1-hexanol paired with grandlure, the boll weevil aggregation pheromone, when in competition with grandlure alone. Although dose-response curves constructed from electroantennograms were indicative of similar populations of receptor cells for selected six carbon alcohols, one of the compounds tested, cis-2-hexen-1-ol, was inactive in field tests. Trans-2-hexenal was active in single cell recordings, but was also inactive in field tests. In tests in cotton fields with indigenous weevil populations, trans-2-hexen-1-ol not only enhanced pheromone trap captures, but also extended the longevity of attractiveness of pheromone-baited traps. The combined electrophysiological and field data support ‘across-fiber coding' of green leaf volatiles by boll weevil olfactory receptors. The results are discussed with regard to the chemistry of the host plant of the boll weevil, cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), and potential economic significance for boll weevil eradication/suppression.
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