The role of cuticular hydrocarbons of Cyclocephala barrerai (Coleoptera: Melolonthidae) in intraspecific recognition

This study identified and quantified the cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) present in adults, evaluated their variation according to age and sex, and analyzed behavioral responses to conspecific CHCs. CHCs were extracted using hexane and analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Nine compounds were identified. Males exhibited arrestment, courtship, and copulation behaviors in response to female extracts, demonstrating that female CHCs function as a contact sex pheromone.