title: Variation in attraction to host plant odors in an invasive moth has a genetic basis and is genetically negatively correlated with fecundity.
abstract: Lepidopteran insects are major pests of agricultural crops, and mated female moths exploit plant volatiles to locate suitable hosts for oviposition. We investigated the heritability of odor-guided host location behavior and fecundity in the cosmopolitan oriental fruit moth Grapholita (Cydia) molesta, an oligophagous herbivore that attacks fruit trees. We used a full-sib/half-sib approach to estimate the heritability and the genetic correlation between these two traits. Results document a considerable genetic basis for olfactory attraction of females (h ( 2 ) = 0.37 ± 0.17) and their fecundity (h ( 2 ) = 0.32 ± 0.13), as well as a genetic trade-off between female attraction and fecundity (r ( g ) = -0.85 ± 0.21). These estimations were empirically corroborated by comparing two strains maintained in the laboratory for different numbers of generations. The long-term reared strain lost its olfactory discrimination ability but achieved significantly higher fecundity compared with the short-term reared strain. Our results highlight that genetic studies are relevant for understanding the evolution of odor-guided behavior in herbivore insects and for judging the promise of pest management strategies involving behavioral manipulation with plant volatiles.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Agricultural Sciences/Applied Entomology, ETH Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 9/LFO, 8092, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Najar-Rodriguez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schneeberger
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bellutti
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dorn
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility / Q000235:genetics; D060434:Herbivory / Q000235:genetics*; D009036:Moths / Q000235:genetics*; D009812:Odorants; D027861:Prunus; D012903:Smell; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds
chemical_list: D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds