Course detail

LET5825 - Chemical Ecology and Insect Behaviour


Credit hours

In-class work
per week
Practice
per week
Credits
Duration
Total
2
2
8
15 weeks
120 hours

Instructor
Jose Mauricio Simoes Bento

Objective
To provide students with basic and applied knowledge on chemical ecology and insect behaviour, with
hands-on lab or field lessons on all topics. Moreover, to enable a critical view on the influence of the
evolutionary process, from a broad perspective, in the behaviour of insects and their interactions with
other organisms and the environment.

Content
Theoretical part 1. History. 2. Behavioural basis. 3. Signs and reception. 4. Mechanisms and evolution of
communication in insects 5. Chemical communication in insects. Types. Production and reception of
odours in insects. Pheromones and allelochemicals. Factors that control the response of insects to
semiochemicals. 6. Herbivores and plants: coevolutionary strategies related to behaviour. 7. Chemical
signals in plants and their relation with insects. 8. Reproductive behaviour in insects. 9. Mating
strategies. 10. Social behaviour of insects. Practical part 1. Methods of extraction and isolation of
pheromones and allelochemicals. 2. Building and use of equipment for observing insect behaviour and chemical ecology. 3. Observation, description and quantification of insect behaviour. 4. Methodologies and use of pheromones and allelochemicals in the field. 5. Notions of identification and synthesis of semiochemicals. 6. Conduction of research projects in behavioural and chemical ecology of insects. 7. Interpretation of data in studies of behavioural and chemical ecology of insects.

Bibliography
AGOSTA, W.C. 1992. Chemical communication: The language of pheromones. Scientific American Library, New York. 179pp. ALCOCK, J. 2013. Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach. Sinauer Associates, Inc.; 10th Edition. 522pp.. ATKINS, M.D. 1980. Introduction to insect behavior. MacMillan Publishing. New York. 237pp. BELL, W.J. & CARDÉ, R.T. Chemical Ecology of Insects. Chapman and Hall, London, 1984. 524pp. BENTO, J.M.S. & PEÑAFLOR, M.F.G.V. 2021. Uso de semioquímicos no controle biológico de pragas. In: J.R.P. PARRA; A.S. PINTO; D.E. NAVA; R.C. OLIVEIRA; A.J.F. DINIZ. (Org.). Controle Biológico com Parasitoides e Predadores na Agricultura Brasileira. 1ed. Piracicaba: FEALQ, v.1, p. 511-547. CARDÉ, R.T. & MINKS, A.K. 1997. Insect pheromone research: New directions. Chapman & Hall, New York. 684pp. CARDÉ, R.T. & MILLAR, J.G. 2004. Advances in Insect Chemical Ecology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 352pp. GREENFIELD, M.D. 2002. Signalers and receivers: Mechanisms and evolution of arthropod communication. Oxford University Press, New York. 414pp. HARDIE, J.H. & MINKS, A.K. 1999. Pheromones of non-lepidopteran insects associated with agricultural plants. CABI Publishing, New York. 466pp. HAYNES, K.F. & MILLAR, J.G. 1998. Methods in chemical ecology: Bioassay methods. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell. 406pp. HOWSE, P.; STEVENS, I. & JONES, O. 1998. Insect pheromones and their use in pest management. Chapman & Hall, London. 369pp. HUMMEL, H.E. & MILLER, T.A. 1984. Techniques in pheromone research. Springer-Verlag. 464pp. KREBS, J.R. & DAVIES, N.B. 1993. An introduction to behavioral ecology. Blackwell, Oxford. 3rd Edition. MARTIN, P. & BATESON, P. 1993. Measuring behaviour. An introductory guide. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 2º.Ed. MATTHEWS, R.W. & MATTHEWS, J.R. 2010. Insect behavior. Springer. 2nd ed., 514pp. MILLAR, J.G. & HAYNES, K.F. 1998. Methods in chemical ecology: Chemical methods. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell. 390pp. TURLINGS, T.C.J. & ERB M. 2018. Tritrophic interactions mediated by herbivore-induced plant volatiles: mechanisms, ecological relevance, and application potential. Annu Rev Entomol 63:433–452. THORNHILL, R. & ALCOCK, J. 1983. The evolution of insect mating systens. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 547pp. VANDER MEER, R.K.; BREED, M.D.; WINSTON, M.L. & ESPELIE, K.E. 1998. Pheromone communication in social insects: Ants, wasps, bees and termites. Westview Press, Boulder. 368pp. VILELA, E.F. & DELLA LUCIA, T.M.C. 2001. Feromônios de insetos: Biología, química e emprego no manejo de pragas. Holos Editora, Ribeirão Preto. 2º. Ed. 206pp. WAJNBERG, E. & COLAZZA, S. 2013. Chemical ecology of insect parasitoids. Wiley-Blackwell, 328pp. WYATT, T.D. 2014. Pheromones and animal behavior: Chemical signals and Signatures. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 2nd ed., 419pp.