INDIVIDUAL VARIATION IN PHEROMONE COMPOSITION IN NEZARA-VIRIDULA (HETEROPTERA, PENTATOMIDAE) - HOW VALID IS THE BASIS FOR DESIGNATING PHEROMONE STRAINS

Previous investigations into the sex-attractant pheromone blend, relea sed by male Nezara viridula, have led to the proposal that ''pheromone strains'' can be identified based on variation in the mean ratio of t rans- and cis-epoxides of (Z) alpha-bisabolene among populations from different countries. We investigated the ratios of these epoxides from Australian N. viridula collected from individual bugs of two differen t regions. Our evidence suggests that the variability used to delineat e ''pheromone strains'' is present even within a single population. We conclude that further behavioural investigations are required to asce rtain the functional significance of the components that make up the p heromone blend to understand better the species-specific signals that enable individuals in nature to recognize and locate an appropriate ma ting partner.