Utetheisa ornatrix

Abstract

The sex attractant pheromone produced by the female of the moth Utetheisa ornatrix was shown to contain Z, Z, Z-3, 6, 9-heneicosatriene. The compound, whose structure was confirmed by synthesis, proved active in electroantennogram and field bioassays. Pheromone emission occurs discontinuously, in the form of short pulses (pulse repetition rate=1.50.2 pulses/s). It is argued that such temporal patterning which had not previously been demonstrated for an airborne chemical signal can provide close-range orientation cues to the male moth as it seeks out the female.