Sex Attractants of Heliothis zea and H. virescens1

The increasing number of problems arising from the presence of undesirable insecticide residues as well as the resistance developed by insects to insecticides have caused us to search for other effective means of controlling many insect pests. Hall (1963) suggested that potent chemical attractants, including those that elicit mating between the sexes (sex attractants), might be utilized in planning effective control programs. In 1963 we began studies at Brownsville, Tex., to detect sex attractants in some of the more important cotton pests. This report summarizes the results of our efforts to demonstrate the presence of sex attractants in the bollworm, Heliothis zea (Boddie), and the tobacco budworm, H. virescens (F.)