Variation in Sex Pheromone Composition of a Few Selected Lepidopteran Species

Abstract

Composition of insect sex pheromone is not always constant for any particular species. It may be different depending on the geographical area in the distribution of a species, as can be seen in the case of the European corn borer moth, Ostrinia nubilalis (Pyralidae). During the course of examining sex pheromone compositions of several lepidopteran species damaging agricultural and horticultural crops in South Korea, some subtle or apparent differences were noticed in sex pheromone compositions of Korean population belonging to those same species distributed in her neighboring countries. The oriental tobacco budworm moth, Helicoverpa assulta (Noctuidae), in Korea prefers the blend of 100 : 5 between ( Z)-9-hexadecenal and ( Z)-11-hexadecenal, while Thailand population responds best to 100 : 13 and Chinese population to wider blends from 100 : 2 to 100 : 20. Among lepidopteran insect pests on apples and apple tree leaves, the oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Tortricidae), showed almost no difference from one region to another. Korean population responded best to the blend of 100 : 5, with other populations to 100 : 6∼100 : 9 between ( Z)-8-dodecen-1-ol acetate and ( E)-8-dodecen-1-ol acetate. On the other hand, the peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii (C. niponensis) (Carposinidae), males were attracted best to a single component, ( Z)-7-eicosen-11-one in the case of Korean population, in contrast to Japanese population which was shown to be preferentially attracted to the mixture of the ( Z)-7-eicosen-11-one and ( Z)-7-nonadecen-11-one at the ratio of 100 : 5. The yellow peach moth, Dichocrocis punctiferalis (Pyralidae), seems to consist of two different populations in the northeastern Asia region, with one group responding to the blend of 100 : 8∼100 : 11 between ( E)-10-hexadecenal and ( Z)-10-hexadecenal and the other to that of 100 : 43. The first group was found in Japan and China and the second in Korea and also China. Korean population of the apple leaf miner, Phyllonorycter ringoniella (Gracillariidae), was best attracted to the blend of 100 : 150 between ( Z)-10-tetradecen-1-ol acetate and ( E, Z)-4,10-tetradecen-1-ol acetate, while Japanese and Chinese populations to the blends of 100 : 10∼30 and 100 : 43∼67, respectively. Furthermore, Korean Adoxophyes (Tortricidae) seemed to be a totally different species from Japanese Adoxophyes sp., or Adoxophyes orana fasciata, when viewed in terms of their pheromone composition.