Mating Behavior of (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) Is Mediated by Male-Produced Sex Pheromones.

Harold (Cerambycidae) is a hardwood boring species endemic to Japan. We investigated the adult mating behavior of this species in the field and laboratory. Most males appeared on mating sites before noon, significantly earlier than females did, in field observations. The female approached and contacted the male; the male responded and started the successive mating sequence, comprising mounting, copulation, and appeasement behavior. Before the encounter, the male raised its fore and mid legs and bent the abdominal tip ventrally. Next, a peculiarly structured bifurcate tip was exposed with opening and closing motion, which can be observed in the entire family Cerambycidae and is thought to be associated with the emission of volatile male sex pheromones. Male and female orientation toward conspecifics was examined using T-shaped olfactometers in four combinations (male⁻male, female⁻male, female⁻female, male⁻female). Males exclusively attracted females, indicating the existence of male-produced sex pheromones. A laboratory bioassay with three temperature regimes revealed the temperature dependence of this calling behavior. The calling behavior occurred only when the air temperature and male body surface temperature, which are associated with light intensity, were within the range of 26⁻33 °C and 26⁻28 °C, respectively.