Inhibition of Attraction and Cross-attraction by Interspecific Sex Pheromone Communication in Lepidoptera

MOST studies with lepidopteran sex pheromones have involved the stimulation or attraction of males by known chemicals or extracts of females, but chemicals which are responsible for inhibition of stimulation 1–4 or attraction 5–9 by an active pheromone may be equally useful. These inhibitory chemicals, which are often similar in structure to active pheromones, are effective either simultaneously or before the exposure of the insect to an active pheromone. We now describe a case in which male attraction to females of the same species is inhibited by a pheromone emitted from females of a closely related species.