Methyl 2-(methylthio)benzoate: A sex attractant for the June beetles, Phyllophaga tristis and P. apicata
1Department of Entomology, 630 West North St., Cornell University, New York State Agricultural Experiment
Station, Geneva, New York 14456
2Present address: United States Horticultural Research Laboratory, Subtropical Insects Research Unit, ARS, USDA,
2001 South Rock Rd., Fort Pierce, Florida 34945
3Kansas Department of Agriculture, Plant Protection and Weed Control, Forbes Field Building 282, Box 19282,
Topeka, Kansas 66619
4Florida State Collection of Arthropods, Department of Entomology, P.O. Box 147100, Gainesville, Florida 32614
Abstract
Male antennae of Phyllophaga tristis (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) were tested using a coupled gas chromatograph-electroantennogram detector (GC-EAD) system for electrophysiological responses to five sex pheromones identified from other Phyllophaga species including L-valine methyl ester, L-isoleucine methyl ester, L-leucine methyl ester, methyl 2- (methylthio)benzoate and methyl 2-amino benzoate. Male antennae responded only to methyl 2- (methylthio)benzoate. In a 2003 field test near Greensburg, Kansas, cross-vane traps baited with rubber septa containing 1 mg of methyl 2-(methylthio)benzoate captured 466 male P. tristis. Control traps baited with rubber septa loaded with only hexane captured none. Similarly, in a field test in 2010 in Gainesville, Florida, 265 male P. apicata Reinhard were captured in traps baited with 1 mg of methyl 2-(methylthio)benzoate whereas control traps captured only a single male.
Resumen Usando un cromatógrafo de gases acoplado a un sistema detector electroantenograma (GC-EAD), antenas de machos de Phyllophaga tristis (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) fueron analizadas para determinar las respuestas electrofisiológicas a cinco feromonas sexuales identificadas en otras especies de Phyllophaga incluyendo L-valina metil éster, L-isoleucina metil éster, L – leucina metil éster, metil-2 - (metiltio) benzoato y metil 2-amino benzoato. Antenas de machos sólo respondieron a metil-2 - (metiltio) benzoato. En 2003, en evaluaciones de campo cerca de Greensburg, Kansas, trampas cebadas con tapones de caucho conteniendo 1 mg de metil-2 - (metiltio) benzoato capturaron 466 machos de P. tristis. Trampas cebadas con tapones de caucho conteniendo unicamente hexano no capturaron insectos. De igual forma, en evaluaciones de campo en el 2010 en Gainesville, Florida, 265 machos de P. apicata Reinhard fueron capturados en trampas cebas con 1 mg de metil-2 - (metiltio) benzoato mientras que en las trampas control únicamente se capturo un solo macho.
Keywords: amplicornis, crinita, lissopyge, pheromone, phylogenetics, suttonana, Trichesthes
Correspondence:
a* psr1@cornell.edu,
b glenn.salsbury@kda.ks.gov,
c bobsgems@aol.com,
d stephen.lapointe@ars.usda.gov,
e cel1@cornell.edu, *Corresponding author
Editor: Tugrul Giray was Editor of this paper.
Received: 31 August 2010 | Accepted: 12 March 2011 | Published: 25 August 2011
Copyright: This is an open access paper. We use the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license that permits unrestricted use, provided that the paper is properly attributed.
ISSN: 1536-2442 | Volume 11, Number 108
Robbins PS, Salsbury GA, Woodruff RE, Lapointe SL, Linn, Jr. CE. 2011. Methyl 2-(methylthio)benzoate: A sex attractant for the June beetles, Phyllophaga tristis and P. apicata. Journal of Insect Science 11:108 available online: insectscience.org/11.108
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