Defensive secretions of new zealand tenebrionids: : I. Presence of monoterpene hydrocarbons in the genusArtystona (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae)

The defensive secretions of four species of the genusArtystona endemic to New Zealand differ from those of other tenebrionids in that they contain α-pinene and limonene, as well as the more characteristic quinones and alkenes. Adults and larvae ofA. obscura, A. erichsoni, A. rugiceps, andArtystona sp. feed on the lichenParmotrema reticulatum (Taylor), but the terpenes are not sequestered from it. The defensive secretions of the four species show some interspecific variation.