B. dorsalis Wigs & Legs male
Male adult flies of B. dorsalis were treated with ME (98% purity, purchased from Sigma Aldrich) in three ways: (i) ME aroma therapy to adult males (ME-olfactory stimulation, ME-OS), (ii) ME fed to adult males, and (iii) ME fed to larvae. The insects were kept at the same conditions of temperature, photoperiod and humidity as in the control treatment. In the control group (CK), the ME was replaced by a light-mineral oil (purchased from Sigma Aldrich). In detail, in the ME-OS treatment, a lure containing 1 mL of ME was placed in a rearing cage (303030 cm3) containing 200 adult males of B. dorsalis. A small table fan was used to perform the ME aroma delivery to the adult males inside the cage for 2 h. In the treatment where ME was fed to male adults, 1 mL of ME (1:1 ME; MO) was placed inside the rearing cage in a glass vial and the male flies were allowed to fed on the ME liquid for 10-15 minutes. To feed the larval stages with ME, we started with 800-1000 eggs that were placed on untreated larval diet, and we kept these larvae on the diet till they reached the second instar. Subsequently, third instar larvae were transferred to a diet containing ME at a dosage of 100 L/100 g (based on dry weight of the artificial diet) (Shelly et al., 2005). For pupation, the plastic container with ME-containing diet and larvae was placed over vermiculate. Finally, the attractancy test was performed in the Y-tube olfactometer.