3,3-Dimethyl-1-butanol, a parakairomone component to Aleurodicus dispersus (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae)

C-6-based green leaf volatiles (GLVs) are signal molecules to herbivorous insects and play an important role in plant–herbivore interactions. How isomerization of GLVs affects insect’s olfactory response has been rarely tested. In laboratory and field experiments, we examined the effect of hexanol isomers on olfactory orientation of the spiraling whitefly, Aleruodicus dispersus Russell, a highly polyphagous pest. In a Y-tube oflactometer, we found that (±)-2-hexanol, 3-methyl-3-pentanol and 3,3-dimethyl-1-butanol significantly attracted female A. dispersus. The trap captures of 3,3-dimethyl-1-butanol were significantly more than that of (±)-2-hexanol and 3-methyl-3-pentanol, and its optimum concentration was 1 μ1/ml. We suggest that the anthropogenic compound 3,3-dimethyl-1-butanol can be exploited as a parakairomone (synthetic analogues of kairomone) to monitor and control adult A. dispersus.