| Title: | Argentine ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) trail pheromone enhances consumption of liquid sucrose solution |
| Address: | "Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, USA" |
| DOI: | 10.1603/0022-0493-93.1.119 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 0022-0493 (Print) 0022-0493 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "We investigated whether the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), trail pheromone, Z9-16:Ald, could enhance recruitment to and consumption of liquid sucrose solutions. All tests were done as paired comparisons with a 10% sucrose solution as food. In the laboratory, mixing 20 microl of a 10-microg/ml solution of the pheromone with 50 microl of the 10% sucrose solution increased the number of ants feeding by >150%. In a field test, we combined the trail pheromone with a 10% sucrose solution in 50-ml vials. These vials were covered with a plastic membrane that has 1.5-mm-diameter holes punched uniformly across its surface. Ants could drink from the holes after the vials were inverted. For half of the vials, 1 microg of the pheromone was put onto the plastic membrane before the vials were filled with a 10% sucrose solution. The remaining vials had no pheromone on the plastic membrane. After 4 h we measured the consumption in each vial. Bait consumption with the pheromone was enhanced by 29%. In a 2nd series of tests, vials were left outside for 24 h. The consumption rate was 33% higher with the pheromone compared with the controls that didn't have pheromone" |
| Keywords: | Animals Ants/*physiology Eating *Pheromones Solutions *Sucrose; |
| Notes: | "MedlineGreenberg, L Klotz, J H eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2003/12/09 J Econ Entomol. 2000 Feb; 93(1):119-22. doi: 10.1603/0022-0493-93.1.119" |
