Abstract
Cuticular compounds (CCs) that cover the surface of insects primarily serve as protection against entomopathogens, harmful substances, and desiccation. However, CCs may also have secondary signaling functions. By studying the role of CCs in intraspecific interactions, we may advance our understanding of the evolution of pheromonal communication in insects. We previously found that the gregarious parasitoid, Cotesia glomerata (L.), uses heptanal as a repellent pheromone to help avoid mate competition among sibling males, whereas another cuticular aldehyde, nonanal, is part of the female-produced attractive sex pheromone. Here, we show that the same aldehydes have different pheromonal functions in a related solitary parasitoid, Cotesia marginiventris (Cresson). Heptanal enhances the attractiveness of the female’s sex pheromone, whereas nonanal does not affect a female’s attractiveness. Hence, these common aldehydes are differentially used by the two Cotesia species to mediate, synergistically, the attractiveness of the main constituents of their respective sex pheromones. The specificity of the complete sex pheromone blend is apparently regulated by two specific, less volatile compounds, which evoke strong electroantennographic (EAG) responses. This is the first demonstration that volatile CCs have evolved distinct pheromonal functions to aid divergent mating strategies in closely related species. We discuss the possibility that additional compounds are involved in attraction and that, like the aldehydes, they are likely oxidative products of unsaturated cuticular hydrocarbons.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Dr. Gaylord Desurmont from the European Biological Control Laboratory, USDA, and Dr. Huijuan Guo from Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Science for useful suggestions for the experimental designs. We also thank Dr. Gregory Röder from the University of Neuchâtel for his help with chemical analyses. The research was funded by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (KYZ201920 and JCQY201904), as well as by a Eurocore project (EuroVol) from the European Science Foundation, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation.
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H.X., G.Z., and T.T. designed experiments. H.X. and G.Z. preformed bioassays, and I.S., S.D., G.Z., H.X. and L.C. performed the electrophysiological analyses. H.X., G.Z. and L.C. did fractionation and chemical analyses. H.X. analyzed data and made the figures. H.X., T.D. and T.T. wrote the manuscript. All authors commented on the manuscript.
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Xu, H., Zhou, G., Dötterl, S. et al. Distinct Roles of Cuticular Aldehydes as Pheromonal Cues in Two Cotesia Parasitoids. J Chem Ecol 46, 128–137 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-019-01142-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-019-01142-9