| Summary: | The Asian longicorn beetle <i>Anoplophora glabripennis</i> is a recently arrived invasive species to Japan. The Japanese native <i>A. malasiaca</i> shows an extensive overlap with <i>A. glabripennis</i> with host plants, niches, and emergence season. Hybridization between these two species is suspected in Japan. The surface of the female is covered with contact sex pheromones that elicit male mating behavior within species. We evaluated the contact pheromonal activity of crude extract and fractions of female <i>A. glabripennis</i> coated on a black glass model and revealed a hydrocarbon fraction and a blend of fractions to show activity but relatively weak, suggesting the presence of other unknown active compounds. Few male <i>A. glabripennis</i> showed mating behavior when they were exposed to a crude extract of female <i>A. malasiaca</i>. However, a considerable number of <i>A. malasiaca</i> males mounted and showed abdominal bending behavior when presented with glass models that were coated with each extract of female <i>A. glabripennis</i> and <i>A. malasiaca</i>. Gomadalactones are essential contact pheromone components that elicit mating behavior in male <i>A. malasiaca</i>; however, we could not detect them in female <i>A. glabripennis</i> extract. Here, we investigated the possible reasons for this phenomenon and the difference in male mate recognition systems between these two species.
|
|---|