BEHAVIORAL AND CHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF TRAIL PHEROMONE FROM THE TERMITE RETICULITERMES HESPERUS BANKS (ISOPT, RHINOTERMITIDAE)

A single active fraction, eliciting both induction of trail-following and trail orientation, was isolated by HPLC from dichloromethane extra cts of excised fourth and fifth sternites of Reticulitermes hesperus w orkers. GC separation of the active high performance liquid chromatogr aphy (HPLC) fraction and subsequent bioassays indicated that a single major component is responsible both for induction of trail-following a nd for orientation of termites on the trail. Solvent extracts of intac t termite bodies and excised sternites elicited greater trail-followin g activity than extracts of excised abdomens or thoraxes not separated from heads. Workers from two geographically separate colonies respond ed similarily to dichloromethane extracts of intact bodies and excised sternites from members of either colony, providing no evidence of ext ractable colony-recognition compounds, although the results suggest th at different colonies may produce different quantities of trail pherom one.