IDENTIFICATION OF MALE-SPECIFIC VOLATILES FROM NEARCTIC AND NEOTROPICAL STINK BUGS (HETEROPTERA, PENTATOMIDAE)

Males of the Central American stink bug species, Euschistus obscurus, produce an attractant pheromone composed of a blend of compounds characteristic of North American Euschistus spp. and the South American soybean pest, E. heros. The range of E. obscurus extends into the southern United States, the species is easy to rear, and males produce an exceptionally large quantity of pheromone (>0.5 mug/day/male). These factors made E. obscurus useful for characterizing the novel pheromone components of E. heros without importing this pest species into the United States. Euschistus obscurus males produce methyl (2E,4Z)-decadienoate (61 %) in abundance, which is characteristic of North American species, and methyl 2,6,10-trimethyltridecanoate (27 %), the main male-specific ester of E. heros. The chirality of Euschistus spp. methyl-branched esters, and field activity of synthetic formulations, remain to be determined.