Oviposition deterrents in larval frass of four Ostrinia species fed on an artificial diet.

Behavioral bioassays have shown that volatile oviposition-deterring chemicals are present in the frass of Ostrinia zealis, O. furnacalis, O. scapulalis, and O. latipennis larvae fed on an artificial diet. These chemicals were extractable with acetone, and could be partitioned into a polar lipid fraction. This fraction mainly included palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic, and linolenic acids. No significant differences among the four Ostrinia species were found in the amount and composition of these free fatty acids. A mixture of the five authentic fatty acids of the composition found in the larval frass of O. zealis exhibited significant oviposition-deterring effects on all four species.