Chemical and behavioral studies on dufour gland contents ofManica rubida (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The Effects of Ethanol and Acetic acid on Behaviour of Extranidal Workers of the Narrow-Headed Ant Formica exsecta (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) during a Field Experiment

Ethanol addiction belongs to the most important problems encountered in the domain of human mental health. The research on the behavioural effects of exposure to/consumption of ethanol are investigated largely with the help of animal models that also include insects, mainly fruit flies and honeybees. The effects of ethanol on ant behaviour remain, however, little known. In the present field study, we investigated the behaviour of workers of the narrow-headed ant (Formica exsecta) displayed in the vicinity of cotton pads soaked in water or in water solutions of ethanol or acetic acid during 5 min tests (n = 30 tests in each group). Both ethanol and acetic acid induced significant modifications of ant locomotion, exploratory behaviour, self-grooming behaviour, and aggressive social behaviour. We confirmed that acetic acid is aversive for the ants, but ethanol enhances their exploratory behaviour. We also found out that field studies may document more types of responses to experimental compounds than laboratory ones, as the tested animals may also escape from aversive substances. Our findings documented a wide spectrum of behavioural effects of exposure to ethanol and acetic acid in a highly social animal species and broadened the general knowledge about behavioural responses to these compounds encountered in animals.

Revisiting the trail pheromone components of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren

Ants use species-specific trail pheromones to coordinate their sophisticated foraging behavior. During the past decades, many trail pheromone components with various structures have been identified in ants, including the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, a notorious invasive species worldwide. Four compounds, Z,E- (ZEF) and E,E-α-farnesene (EEF), Z,E- (ZEHF) and E,E-α-homofarnesene (EEHF), have been reported as components of S. invicta trail pheromone. However, another study reported an analog of α-farnesene, Z,Z,Z-allofarnesene, as a key trail pheromone component. These contrasting results caused some uncertainty about the trail pheromone composition in S. invicta. In this study, we synthesized ZEF and EEF, ZEHF and EEHF, and reanalyzed the chemicals in the Dufour gland extract and in the trail pheromone fraction of S. invicta worker body extract. The reported isomers of farnesene and homofarnesene were detected and showed trail-following activity, with ZEF as the major compound, while no allofarnesene was found, neither in the Dufour gland extract nor in the whole-body extract. Our results confirm ZEF and EEF, ZEHF and EEHF as trail pheromone components of S. invicta.

A List of and Some Comments about the Trail Pheromones of Ants

Ants use many different chemical compounds to communicate with their nestmates. Foraging success depends on how efficiently ants communicate the presence of food and thus recruit workers to exploit the food resource. Trail pheromones, produced by different exocrine glands, are a key part of ant foraging strategies. By combing through the literature, we compiled a list of the identity and glandular origin of the chemical compounds found in the trail pheromones of 75 different ant species. Of the 168 compounds identified, more than 40% are amines. In the subfamily Myrmicinae, trail pheromones are mostly produced in the venom gland, while in the subfamily Formicinae, they come from the rectal gland.

Single experience learning of host fruit selection by lepidopteran larvae

Neonate larvae of a lepidopteran, the codling moth (Cydia pomonella L.) search for their host fruit after hatch. The process of host searching is known to be activated by kairomones contained in host fruit volatiles, but the mechanism of actual selection and infestation of the fruit is unclear. Here we show that lepidopteran neonates can utilize single experience learning in selection and infestation of host apple. We found that the process of host fruit selection may be modified by single experience learning, namely preference induction or averse conditioning. Both types of learning were acquired within 3 h of training. Experience was retained for over 3 days in the case of averse conditioning. Preference induction, a form of learning specific to insects, is expected to produce rigid host preference lasting for days if not weeks, but in codling moth neonates this type of memory was retained only for 3 h. We speculate that conjunction of preference induction with short retention time and averse conditioning with long retention time provide an optimal adaptive strategy of host fruit selection for codling moth neonates.

Characterization of vinyl-substituted, carbon-carbon double bonds by GC/FT-IR analysis

Vapor-phase infrared spectra allow the determination of the stereochemistry of carbon-carbon double bonds conjugated with a vinyl group. Cis and trans isomers of unsubstituted 1,3-alkadienes can be differentiated on the basis of the differences observed in the 900-1000 cm-1 region (spectra of cis isomers show two bands at 993 and 906 cm-1, while those of trans compounds show three absorptions at 998, 949, and 902 cm-1) and the 1590-1650 cm-1 region (the C=C stretch bands are observed at 1595 and 1642 cm-1 for cis compounds and at 1604 and 1650 cm-1 for trans compounds). Compounds bearing CH2=CHC(CH3)=CHCH2- and CH2=CHC(=CH2)-CH2- structural moieties, referred to as alpha- and beta-type compounds, are frequently encountered as natural products. For compounds bearing alpha-type groups, the cis/trans configuration of the trisubstituted double bond can be determined unambiguously. An absorption at 3095-3091 cm-1, for the =CH2 stretch vibration, is common to both of these groups; however, due to the presence of two =CH2 groups, the relative intensity of the band is much higher for beta-type compounds. For alpha-type compounds, a cis configuration at the C-3 carbon atom is characterized by a =CH2 wag absorption at 907-906 cm-1. For beta-type compounds and 3E-alpha-type compounds, this band appears at 899-897 cm-1. In addition, a wavy "fingerprint" pattern with two minima at 1632 (low intensity) and 1595-1594 cm-1 (high intensity) is characteristic for beta-type compounds. Our generalizations are based on spectra of cis and trans ocimene, myrcene, and dehydration products of many 3-methyl-1-alken-3-ols. Six isomers of farnesene can be characterized by GC/FT-IR. Furthermore, gas-phase IR allows the determination of the configuration of the trisubstituted double bond at C-3 in alpha-type farnesene congeners. For example, the homo- and bishomofarnesene isomers from Myrmica ants were shown to include a 3Z bond.