A pecky rice-causing stink bug Leptocorisa chinensis escapes from volatiles emitted by excited conspecifics

Abstract

The stink bug Leptocorisa chinensis (Hemiptera: Alydidae), which causes pecky rice grains, emits pungent volatiles when disturbed. To study ecological functions of the volatiles, we investigated the responses of adult L. chinensis in a small observation arena. When an undisturbed individual of the same gender was introduced into the arena, the initially occupying L. chinensis did not show any behavioural responses. However, when a disturbed conspecific of the same gender was introduced, the initial occupant was excited immediately and escaped from the arena through the hole, suggesting that the pungent volatiles from a disturbed conspecific caused excitement/ escape behaviour. Chemical analyses using a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer showed that disturbed adults of both sexes emitted octanal, (E)-2-octenal, octanol, hexyl acetate, (Z)-3-octenyl acetate, octyl acetate and (E)-2-octenyl acetate. (E)-2-Octenal was the major compound. When exposed to (E)-2-octenal and to (E)-2-octenyl acetate, undisturbed females were excited and escaped from the observation arena with a similar proportional response as to disturbed females. Males and females escaped from (E)-2-octenal at ca. 2-10 ppbV in a mesh cage. The possible use of the volatile compounds eliciting excitement/escape behaviour in L. chinensis for control of this species in paddy fields is discussed.

Effects of aphid‐induced semiochemicals from cover plants on Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

“…The first of these, ⊍-farnesene, in another study did not increase the attraction of H. axyridis compared to the control. 42 The second compound, octyl acetate, is known as a specific compound in some species of the Miridae family 51,52 and is also detected as alert pheromone in Leptocorisa chinensis (Dallas) (Hemiptera: Alydidae) 53 and bees. 54,55 The third of these compounds, benzothiazole, is closely related to plant resistance, which may explain the significant increase in its release after the plant infestation of aphids, and has an important application in agricultural production.…”

Biological activity and specificity of Miridae-induced plant volatiles

“…(Millar and Rice 1998;Millar et al 1997;Zhang and Aldrich 2008). Octyl acetate was also detected as a pheromone alert in both males and females of the hemipteran Leptocorisa chinensis Dallas (Hemiptera: Alydidae), although in significantly higher amounts in females (Yamashita et al 2016), and in the composition of the natural sting alarm pheromone components in bees (Wager and Breed 2000;Wang et al 2016), which cause other bees to behave defensively when alarm pheromones are released at the moment that a bee stings another animal. Interestingly this compound was also detected as part of the sex pheromone of the moth, Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) (Levi-Zada et al 2013).…”

Bank vole alarm pheromone chemistry and effects in the field

“…2-Octanone has been found in the alarm secretions of several ant species (Crewe and Blum 1970a;Dumpert 1972;Brand et al 1989) and lorises (Hagey et al 2007). 1-Octanol has been found in the alarm secretions of several bee species (Johnson et al 1985;Collins et al 1989;Hunt et al 2003) and stink bugs (Yamashita et al 2016). 1-Octanol also showed the highest emission rate of all compounds of interest in our experiment (Fig.…”