Sex-Pairing Pheromones in Three Sympatric Neotropical Termite Species (Termitidae: Syntermitinae)

Sex-Pairing Pheromones in Three Sympatric Neotropical Termite Species (Termitidae: Syntermitinae) Termite colonies are almost always founded by a pair of winged dispersers, in spite of the high costs and low success rates inherent in independent colony foundation. The dispersal flights of imagoes from natal colonies are followed by mate search, mediated by sex-pairing pheromones. Here, we studied the chemistry of sex-pairing pheromones and the related aspects of mate search in winged imagoes of two facultatively parthenogenetic species, Embiratermes neotenicus and Silvestritermes minutus, and an additional species from the same subfamily, Silvestritermes heyeri. All three species are widespread in the Neotropics, including the rainforests of French Guiana. After the dispersal flight and spontaneous loss of wings, females expose their hypertrophied tergal glands situated under abdominal tergites VIII – X. The females are attractive to males and, upon direct contact, the two sexes form characteristic tandems. Chemical analyses indicated that the females secrete species-specific combinations of unbranched, unsaturated C12 primary alcohols from the tergal glands, (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol (approx. 200 pg per female) and (3Z)-dodec-3-enol (185 pg) in E. neotenicus, (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (3500 pg) in S. heyeri, and (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (300 pg) and (3Z)-dodec-3-enol (50 pg) in S. minutus. (3Z,6Z,8E)-Dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol and (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol act as major pheromone components in the respective species and mimic the function of female tergal gland extracts in electrophysiological and behavioral experiments. Biologically relevant amounts of the third compound, (3Z)-dodec-3-enol, elicited non-significant reactions in males of E. neotenicus and S. minutus, and slight synergistic effects in males of S. minutus when tested in combination with the major component. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of Chemical Ecology Springer Journals

Sex-Pairing Pheromones in Three Sympatric Neotropical Termite Species (Termitidae: Syntermitinae)

13 pages
Read Article

Loading next page...
 
/lp/springer_journal/sex-pairing-pheromones-in-three-sympatric-neotropical-termite-species-cxksA2TV4J
Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 2018 by Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature
Subject
Life Sciences; Ecology; Biochemistry, general; Entomology; Biological Microscopy; Agriculture
ISSN
0098-0331
eISSN
1573-1561
D.O.I.
10.1007/s10886-018-0965-x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Termite colonies are almost always founded by a pair of winged dispersers, in spite of the high costs and low success rates inherent in independent colony foundation. The dispersal flights of imagoes from natal colonies are followed by mate search, mediated by sex-pairing pheromones. Here, we studied the chemistry of sex-pairing pheromones and the related aspects of mate search in winged imagoes of two facultatively parthenogenetic species, Embiratermes neotenicus and Silvestritermes minutus, and an additional species from the same subfamily, Silvestritermes heyeri. All three species are widespread in the Neotropics, including the rainforests of French Guiana. After the dispersal flight and spontaneous loss of wings, females expose their hypertrophied tergal glands situated under abdominal tergites VIII – X. The females are attractive to males and, upon direct contact, the two sexes form characteristic tandems. Chemical analyses indicated that the females secrete species-specific combinations of unbranched, unsaturated C12 primary alcohols from the tergal glands, (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol (approx. 200 pg per female) and (3Z)-dodec-3-enol (185 pg) in E. neotenicus, (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (3500 pg) in S. heyeri, and (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol (300 pg) and (3Z)-dodec-3-enol (50 pg) in S. minutus. (3Z,6Z,8E)-Dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol and (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol act as major pheromone components in the respective species and mimic the function of female tergal gland extracts in electrophysiological and behavioral experiments. Biologically relevant amounts of the third compound, (3Z)-dodec-3-enol, elicited non-significant reactions in males of E. neotenicus and S. minutus, and slight synergistic effects in males of S. minutus when tested in combination with the major component.

Journal

Journal of Chemical Ecology – Springer Journals

Published: May 12, 2018

References

  • Biosystematics of social insects
    Ampion, M; Quennedey, A
  • Social recognition in invertebrates: the knowns and the unknowns
    Bagnères, A-G; Hanus, R
  • Biology of termites: a modern synthesis
    Bordereau, C; Pasteels, JM
  • Sex pheromone identified after solid phase microextraction from tergal glands of female alates in Cornitermes bequaerti (Isoptera, Nasutitermitinae)
    Bordereau, C; Cancello, EM; Sémon, E; Courrent, A; Quennedey, B
  • Sex pheromones and trail-following pheromone in the basal termites Zootermopsis nevadensis (Hagen) and Z. angusticollis (Hagen) (Isoptera: Termopsidae: Termopsinae)
    Bordereau, C; Lacey, MJ; Sémon, E; Braekman, JC; Ghostin, J; Robert, A; Sherman, JS; Sillam-Dussès, D
  • Sex-pairing pheromones and reproductive isolation in three sympatric Cornitermes species (Isoptera, Termitidae, Syntermitinae)
    Bordereau, C; Cancello, EM; Sillam-Dussès, D; Sémon, E
  • Nerolidol: a sesquiterpene alcohol with multi-faceted pharmacological and biological activities
    Chan, W-K; Tan, LT-H; Chan, K-G; Lee, L-H; Goh, B-H
  • Biology of invasive termites: a worldwide review
    Evans, TA; Forschler, BT; Grace, JK
  • Asexual queen succession in the higher termite Embiratermes neotenicus
    Fougeyrollas, R; Dolejšová, K; Sillam-Dussès, D; Roy, V; Poteaux, C; Hanus, R; Roisin, Y
  • Asexual queen succession mediates an accelerated colony life cycle in the termite Silvestritermes minutus
    Fougeyrollas, R; Křivánek, J; Roy, V; Dolejšová, K; Frechault, S; Roisin, Y; Hanus, R; Sillam-Dussès, D
  • Sexual communication in the termite Prorhinotermes simplex (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae) mediated by a pheromone from female tergal glands
    Hanus, R; Luxová, A; Šobotník, J; Kalinová, B; Jiroš, P; Křeček, J; Bourguignon, T; Bordereau, C
  • A comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of termites (Isoptera) illuminates key aspects of their evolutionary biology
    Inward, DJG; Vogler, AP; Eggleton, P
  • Smells like home: chemically mediated co-habitation of two termite species in a single nest
    Jirošová, A; Sillam-Dussès, D; Kyjaková, P; Kalinová, B; Dolejšová, K; Jančařík, A; Majer, P; Cristaldo, PF; Hanus, R
  • Predation on the termite Macrotermes michaelseni reproductives and post settlement survival in the field (Isoptera: Macrotermitinae)
    Lepage, MG
  • Pairing behavior in Hodotermes mossambicus (Isoptera)
    Leuthold, RH; Bruinsma, O
  • Review of secondary reproduction in termites (Insecta: Isoptera) with comments on its role in termite ecology and social evolution
    Myles, TG
  • Termites: evolution, sociality, symbioses, ecology
    Noirot, C; Darlington, JPEC
  • Biology of termites, 1
    Nutting, WL
  • Species-specific sex pheromones secreted from new sexual glands in two sympatric fungus-growing termites from northern Vietnam, Macrotermes annandalei and M. barneyi
    Peppuy, A; Robert, A; Bordereau, C
  • Neotropical termites: revision of Armitermes wasmann (Isoptera, Termitidae, Syntermitinae) and phylogeny of the Syntermitinae
    Rocha, MM; Cancello, EM; Carrijo, TF
  • Phylogenetic reconstruction of Syntermitinae (Isoptera, Termitidae) based on morphological and molecular data
    Rocha, MM; Morales, AC; Cuezzo, C; Cancello, EM
  • Sex pheromone and trail pheromone of the sand termite Psammotermes hybostoma (Rhinotermitidae: Psammotermitinae)
    Sillam-Dussès, D; Hanus, R; El-Latif, AOA; Jiroš, P; Krasulová, J; Kalinová, B; Valterová, I; Šobotník, J
  • Fat body of Prorhinotermes simplex (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae): ultrastructure, inter-caste differences and lipid composition
    Šobotník, J; Weyda, F; Hanus, R; Cvačka, J; Nebesářová, J
  • Alate production and sex ratio in colonies of the Neotropical termite Nasutitermes corniger (Isoptera; Termitidae)
    Thorne, BL
  • Biology of termites: a modern synthesis
    Vargo, EL; Husseneder, C
  • Sex-pairing pheromone in the Asian termite pest species Odontotermes formosanus
    Wen, P; Ji, B-Z; Liu, S-W; Liu, C; Sillam-Dussès, D
  • Sex-pairing pheromone of Ancistrotermes dimorphus (Isoptera: Macrotermitinae)
    Wen, P; Mo, J; Lu, C; Tan, K; Šobotník, J; Sillam-Dussès, D
  • Female preference for male coloration may explain behavioral isolation in sympatric darters
    Williams, TH; Mendelson, TC

You’re reading a free preview. Subscribe to read the entire article.

Try 2 weeks free now

DeepDyve is your
personal research library

It’s your single place to instantly
discover and read the research
that matters to you.

Enjoy affordable access to
over 18 million articles from more than
15,000 peer-reviewed journals.

All for just $49/month

Explore the DeepDyve Library

or browse the journals available

Search

Query the DeepDyve database, plus search all of PubMed and Google Scholar seamlessly

Organize

Save any article or search result from DeepDyve, PubMed, and Google Scholar... all in one place.

Access

Get unlimited, online access to over 18 million full-text articles from more than 15,000 scientific journals.

Your journals are on DeepDyve

Read from thousands of the leading scholarly journals from SpringerNature, Elsevier, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford University Press and more.

All the latest content is available, no embargo periods.

See the journals in your area

DeepDyve

Freelancer

DeepDyve

Pro

Price

FREE

$49/month
$360/year

Save searches from
Google Scholar,
PubMed

Create folders to
organize your research

Export folders, citations

Read DeepDyve articles

Abstract access only

Unlimited access to over
18 million full-text articles

Print

20 pages / month

PDF Discount

20% off

Sign up
for free
Start 14 day
Free Trial