Components of the sex pheromone of the female spotted stalk borer,Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae): Identification and preliminary field trials

Abstract

Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) abdominal tip extracts were examined by gas-liquid chromatography (GLC) combined with simultaneous electroantennographic (EAG) recording from the male moth. Two olfactory stimulants were detected and identified as (Z)-ll-hexadecenal (I) and (Z)-I 1-hexadecen-l-ol (II) by their GLC behavior, microchemical reactions, and comparison with synthetic materials. Both compounds were detected in volatiles emitted by the "calling" female moth. Synthetic (Z)-9-tetradecenyl formate, a structural analog of aldehyde (I), also elicited a significant EAG response from the male moth. Field trials carried out in India using synthetic (I) and (II) as bait in water traps showed that compound (I) was highly attractive to male C. partellus; compound (II) was not attractive, and its addition to (I) significantly reduced trap catches.

Components of the sex pheromone of the female sugar cane borer,Chilo sacchariphagus (Bojer) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

“…The components of the female sex pheromones of the Chilo species identified to date--(Z)-llhexadecenal and (Z)-13-octadecenal in C. suppressalis (Nesbitt et al, 1975b;Ohta et al, 1976), (Z)-ll-hexadecenal and (Z)-ll-hexadecen-l-ol in C. partellus (Nesbitt et al, 1979), and now (Z)-I 3-octadecenyl acetate and (Z)-13-octadecen-l-ol in C. sacchariphagus--provide a good illustration of the interspecific relationships between pheromone structures. In particular, the distance from the double bond to the end of the molecule remote from the functional group (the "w-distance") is the same throughout.…”

“…The latter figure, which was used for the initial field work, was probably weighted in favor of the alcohol component (II) by impurities which cochromatographed with this component. The low volatilities of the pheromone components made it impossible to collect and analyze the amounts of the two components actually emitted by the "calling" female moth using our usual entrainment technique (Nesbitt et al, 1979).…”

“…Adult moths were sexed and segregated on emergence, provided with a 10% sucrose solution, and maintained under the same conditions as the pupae. Female abdominal tip extracts were prepared in methylene chloride as described for C. partellus (Nesbitt et al, 1979). The majority of extracts were made from female moths on the day after emergence, following a period of 2 hr in darkness.…”

“…The identification and synthesis of the female sex pheromone of this species were undertaken to provide an aid to population monitoring and a possible noninsecticidal means of control. The work forms part of a continuing study of chemical communication in Chilo species which are pests of major economic importance in the tropics (Nesbitt et al, 1975b(Nesbitt et al, , 1979.…”

Biocontrol Potential and its Exploitation in Sustainable Agriculture

“…(Nesbitt et al, 1980), Chilo partellus Swinhoe (Nesbitt et al, 1979) and Aproaerema modicella. Enormous amount of work has been done on the reproductive behaviour and extraction of insect sex pheromones in India (Sarode, 1987).…”