Can venom volatiles be a taxonomic tool for Polistes wasps (Hymenoptera,Vespidae)? |
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| Authors: | C Bruschini R Cervo F R Dani and S Turillazzi |
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| Institution: | Dipartimento di Biologia Animale e Genetica 'Leo Pardi';;and Centro Interdipartimentale di Spettrometria di Massa (C.I.S.M.), Universitàdegli Studi di Firenze, Firenze, Italy |
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| Abstract: | In the present study, we investigated whether venom volatiles have a species-specific composition and could possibly be used to discriminate between related paper wasp species. We compared venom volatile chemical profiles, obtained through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses, of three non-parasitic European Polistes species ( P. dominulus , P. gallicus and P. nimphus ). The results show that the venom volatile composition is indeed species specific and can thus be a useful systematic tool. |
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| Keywords: | Polistes venom volatiles chemotaxonomy wasps |
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