Attractiveness of Male and Female Adults ofCryptolestes ferrugineus(Coleoptera: Laemophloeidae) to Conspecifics With and Without Grain

Abstract

Whether stored-grain insects can communicate with each other inside stored-grain bulks is an important question for the development of pest management programs. Movements of the individual adults of Cryptolestes ferrugineus towards caged adult(s), in the presence or absence of wheat, were studied inside an apparatus (10 cm length), using an infrared camera. The numbers of the caged adults were 1, 20, or 50 of females or males, and 100 or 200 mixed-sex adults. Without grain, both males and females moved towards the caged single male, but not the caged single female. With grain, neither males nor females moved towards the caged single male or female. When 50 males were added to the cage, females did move significantly towards the caged males. There were trends for introduced males and females to move towards caged males at higher densities.

Biology, Ecology, and Behavior of Rusty Grain Beetle (Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens))

“…Moreover, they also observed responses from both sexes to the volatiles in males. Similarly, Currie et al [169] reported that in the absence of air currents and food for feeding, male and female C. ferrugineus were attracted to a single male in an apparatus of 10 cm length; when grain was present, a single male was not enough to attract C. ferrugineus. However, a significant number of females were attracted to 50 males.…”