Nudaurelia spp. (Saturniidae) are sporadic pests of pine plantations in South Africa. Taxonomie uncertainty exists in South Africa with this group and represents an impediment to the development and implementation of pheromone-based management tactics. Populations from the Western Cape have been described as Nudaurelia cytherea while those from KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga have been described as Nudaurelia clarki. We compared Cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene sequences from moths from the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) and Mpumalanga regions. We also analysed female pheromone gland extracts with gas-chromatography electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) and gas-chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for moths from KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga. COI gene barcoding sequences were identical for moths from the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) and Mpumalanga regions providing preliminary evidence to suggest that these populations may be the same species. Based on the comparison to available literature, the morphology and origin of our samples suggests that pheromone analyses in this study were done on N. clarki. Male N. clarki antennae respond to two compounds in female extracts. One of these compounds was confirmed with a synthetic standard to be (Z)-dec-5-en-1-yl-3-methylbutanoate, the sex pheromone previously identified from N. cytherea. The identity of the second compound could not be confirmed. Both male and female antennae responded to four structurally related compounds in the synthetic pheromone standard. Field trials with custom-made traps confirmed attraction of N. clarki males to polydimethylsiloxane and polyisoprene lures loaded with synthetic (Z)-dec-5-en-1 -yl-3-methylbutanoate.

The beetle Amerrhinus ynca Sahlberg, 1823 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) causes damage to several species of the Arecaceae family. The larvae of this palm weevil damage palm trees by causing perforations in the leaf rachis, obstructing the flow of nutrients to the plant. To date, are no registered insecticides for the control of A. ynca. An efficient control strategy would be the use of synthetic pheromones of this beetle for integrated pest management tactics. In this work, the aggregation pheromone of A. ynca was identified from adults collected as larvae and pupae from the rachis of coconut palm. The volatile compounds produced by A. ynca were collected via headspace aeration of adult beetles, and the identification of the pheromone was performed with gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS), GC-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (GC-FTIR) and GC-electroantenographic detector (GC-EAD). Dual-choice olfactometry experiments were performed to evaluate the bioactivity of the synthetic pheromone. GC analyses showed the presence of a male-specific compound that was identified as octadecanal. In GC-EAD analyses, synthetic octadecanal elicited responses of A. ynca female antennae. Behavioral bioassays showed attractiveness of synthetic compound for males and females, indicating octadecanal as the aggregation pheromone of A. ynca.