232 R. Srinivasan et al.
Introduction
By definition, pheromones are substances se-
creted by an individual and received by a
conspecific in whom it elicits a specific reac-
tion (e.g., behavior or developmental process)
(Karlson and Lüscher 1959 ). Depending on the
modes of action, the pheromones give a “releas-
er” effect (an immediate and reversible behav-
ior change in the receiver) or a “primer” effect
(eliciting a neuroendocrine or developmental
change). The pheromone compounds that give
a releaser effect are quite important, since they
are responsible for a change in the behavior such
as alarm, aggregation, trail, or sex, which could
be exploited in pest management. Although sex
pheromones have been reported in several insect
orders, use of long-distance sex pheromones for
mate recognition has been widely studied in
Lepidoptera (Löfstedt and Kozlov 1997 ). After
the identification of first moth sex pheromone
in silkworm ( Bombyx mori), several hundred
pheromone compounds have been identified in
Lepidoptera.
The pheromones are used to monitor, mass-
trap, and/or disrupt the mating process of selected
insect pests in vegetable production systems in
the tropics. For instance, placing a high concen-
tration of sex pheromone in a slow-release for-
mulation at 5- and 10-m grid in the field resulted
in drastic reduction of tomato fruit worm ( Heli-
coverpa armigera) male moths being attracted to
virgin females, which adversely affects mating in
H. armigera (AVRDC 1988 ). An integrated pest
management (IPM) strategy based on sex phero-
mones for managing eggplant fruit and shoot
borer ( Leucinodes orbonalis) reduced the pesti-
cide use significantly in the Indo-Gangetic plains
of South Asia (Alam et al. 2006 ).
Besides sex pheromones, aggregation pher-
omones are the other group that is being used
in pest management. Aggregation pheromones
are produced by one or both sexes of an insect
species to increase the density of conspecifics
for feeding, mating, and protection. Several co-
leopterans such as Bostrichids, Cerambycids,
and Chrysomelids are known to produce aggre-
gation pheromones (Edde 2005 ; Soroka et al.
2005 ; Teale et al. 2011 ). For instance, the ac-
tive male-derived aggregation pheromone com-
pound of striped flea beetle ( Phyllotreta stri-
olata) attracted significantly high numbers of P.
striolata either alone or in combination with the
host plant volatiles (Beran et al. 2011 ). Thus, the
sex and aggregation pheromones have become
an important component in the IPM strategies.
This chapter aims to compile few case studies
on the attempts in developing and using select-
ed insect pheromones as pest-management tools
at AVRDC—The World Vegetable Center.Sex Pheromone of Common Armyworm,
Spodoptera litura F. (Lepidoptera:
Noctuidae)
After the isolation, identification, and synthesis
of sex pheromone of S. litura by Tamaki et al.
(1973), significant progress has been made in the
use of this pheromone. Researches from differ-
ent parts of the world have confirmed that the
adoption of sex pheromone lures can effectively
monitor and/or suppress adult population, large-
ly decrease larvae or egg mass density and thus
reducing the damage rate of S. litura on various
crops (Singh and Sachan 1993 ; Arida et al. 2002 ;
Yang et al. 2009 ). An experiment was set up at
AVRDC—The World Vegetable Center, during
2005–2007 to continuously monitor the S. litura
population in vegetable fields. The synthetic
lures were obtained from the Taiwan Agricultural
Research Institute (TARI), Taichung, and plastic
funnel traps with two windows (2 × 2 cm) on two
opposite sides were used in the experiment. The
results have indicated that S. litura has only one
peak in Taiwan during November, with popula-
tion exceeding 5000 moths per trap per monthKeywords
Pheromones · Helicoverpa armigera · Spodoptera litura · Maruca vitrata ·
Diaphania indica · Phyllotreta striolata