Comparative study of the sex pheromone of carob moth, Apomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller, 1839) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) from four regions of Iran using headspace solid phase micro extraction - gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

Carob moth, Apomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller, 1839) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is the most important pest of pomegranate in Iran as well as in most other countries. There is no suitable chemical method available for controlling this pest. The sex pheromone components, emitted by virgin female of A. ceratoniae were characterized by headspace solid phase micro extraction (HS-SPME) and subsequently analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The low rate of release of pheromone from the gland, common to the most of the lepidopteran insects, is one of the limiting factors in pheromone research studies. As a result, sex pheromone components of the insect from four different geographical regions of Iran were analyzed comparatively by HS-SPME in 2015. The major component, ( Z,E )-9,11, 13-tetradecatrienal, and minor components, ( Z,E )-9,11-tetradecadienal and ( Z )-9-tetradecenal, were identified and compared to reference samples. Compared to gland extraction, the simplicity of HS-SPME technique revealed its suitability for identification of the pheromone components.