<b>Effect of plant surface soil volatiles on</b>

Plant volatiles are important for insect selection of oviposition sites. <i>Monolepta signata </i>is an important agricultural pest. The adults damage aboveground plant parts and lay eggs on the surface soil. We hypothesized that the attraction of<i> M. signata </i>adults to specific volatiles is the main reason for their choice of oviposition site. Therefore, our study aimed to assess the effect of plant surface soil volatiles on the oviposition behavior of <i>M. signata</i>. We identified the olfactory active volatile compounds (OAVCs) involved in the selection of oviposition sites in <i>M. signata</i>. In the oviposition selection cage test, <i>M. signata </i>preferred to lay eggs in corn soil. OAVCs were extracted from corn soil using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and included one terpenoid, three alcohols, three ketones, four aldehydes, six hydrocarbons, one olefin, and four aromatics. Y-tube olfactometer tests showed that tridecane, 6,10,14-trimethyl-pentadecanone, 2-ethylhexyl salicylate, 2-ethylhexanal, decanal, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one, nonanal, and longifolene attracted <i>M.</i><i> </i><i>signata</i> females. In the oviposition selection test, 6,10,14-trimethyl-pentadecanone, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one, and nonanal promoted oviposition in <i>M. signata</i> females. Our results can pave the way for developing new ‘attract and kill strategies’ for <i>M. signata</i> control.