Designing a sex pheromone blend for attracting the yellow-legged hornet (Vespa velutina), a pest in its native and invasive ranges worldwide

Ya-Nan Cheng (1, 2) , Ping Wen (1, 3) , Ken Tan (1) , Éric Darrouzet (2)

1 Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden
2 IRBI - Institut de recherche sur la biologie de l'insecte
3 UC Riverside - University of California [Riverside]

A subspecies of the Asian hornet Vespa velutina, V. velutina nigrithorax (Vvn), is native to coastal China but has invaded several other parts of the world. It is a major pest in both its native and invasive ranges. The subspecies V. velutina auraria (Vva) is native to inland China, where it causes harm to local apiculture industries by preying on honey bees. As part of a broader effort to develop effective attractants to control the Asian hornet, we analyzed the species' sex pheromone compounds. We confirmed that 4-oxo-octanoic acid (4-OOA) and 4-oxo-decanoic acid (4-ODA) are major pheromone compounds in both subspecies, and we determined that 5-oxo-decanoic acid (5-ODA) is an additional minor compound. We observed variability in the ratio of pheromone compounds. However, using field bioassays, we were able to identify an optimal blend for attracting Vva males in the subspecies' native range (4-OOA:4-ODA:5-ODA in a ratio of 2:4:1). This blend also attracted males from both native and invasive Vvn populations. Sex pheromone blends for attracting males could be a useful general tool in efforts to control invasive hornet populations.

Mots clés: hornet; invasive species; selective control; 4-oxo-octanoic acid; 4-oxo-decanoic acid; 5-oxo-decanoic acid

Domaines: Zoologie des invertébrés; Zootechnie

Ya-Nan Cheng, Ping Wen, Ken Tan, Éric Darrouzet. Designing a sex pheromone blend for attracting the yellow-legged hornet (Vespa velutina), a pest in its native and invasive ranges worldwide. Entomologia Generalis, inPress, ⟨10.1127/entomologia/2022/1395⟩. ⟨hal-03562571⟩