Venom Constituents of Three Species of Crematogaster Ants from Papua New Guinea

Fourteen new long-chain derivatives ( 1j − 1l, 2j − 2l, 4a − 4f, 6, and 7 ) have been isolated, together with the known 4-oxo-2,5-dienyl acetates 1g − 1i and 4-oxo-2,5-dienals 2g − 2i, from the defensive secretions of three species of Crematogaster ants from Papua−New Guinea. Their structures have been established by HREIMS and 1 H−NMR studies, and by MS−MS analyses of the dimethyl disulfide derivatives 3a − 3f, 5a − 5f, and 8a − 8f . These results, together with those already reported on the three European Crematogaster species, suggest that the production of long-chain electrophilic contact poisons is a characteristic feature of this ant genus.