Author
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Dickens, Joseph |
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 7/2/1999 Publication Date: N/A Citation: N/A Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Colorado potato beetles (CPB) are attracted by chemical signals emitted by potato plants. Feeding by CPB induces emission of a number of volatiles by the plant over the short term; over the long term there is a systemic release of compounds in response to beetle feeding. I used electroantennograms (EAGs) to investigate temporal variation in responses of antennal chemoreceptors of CPB to 22 volatiles emitted by potato plants. EAGs to a standard increased from emergence through 12-14 days of adulthood; this increase was similar to the time course for ovarian development. A new statistic called "linear age-skew" was created to obtain information about the effects of the volatiles on younger versus older insects relative to those approaching sexual maturity. "Linear age-skew" values plotted against mean EAGs indicate those chemicals that have similar effects with age. Five classes of volatiles apparent from these plots are discussed with regard to their short term or systemic release by potato plants. Our results help to explain behavior of CPB to chemical signals and provide a basis for investigating interactions of CPB with its host plant, conspecfics and associated insects. |
