Investigations of the acceptability of Citrus reticulata [portugal] as a forage substrate for the leaf cutting ant Acromyrmex octospinosus
1984
Jones, V.G.
The literature of the Attines, and physical and chemical defence mechanisms in plants and their uses in pest control is surveyed. Forage selection by Acromyrmex octospinosus is determined by physical and chemical characteristics of the target plant. In laboratory bioassays using 8 citrus varieties, portugal was found to be the least attractive and pineapple orange (Citrus sinensis) the most. The chemical factors involved in the reduced attractiveness of portugal leaves were isolated and investigated by sequential fractionation of the whole leaf extract, with bioassays at each stage to indicate the least attractive extract and direct further fractioning. The two most active fractions were in the non-polar lipids. Thin-layer chromatography identified the chemical present in both extracts as an ester of long-chain fatty acids. The deterrence of the active extracts was demonstrated by the reduction in pick-up of an otherwise attractive substrate on addition of them. The active extracts also considerably slowed the growth of the food fungus Attamyces bromatificus, the laboratory culture of which is outlined
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