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The alarm pheromone of southern California populations of the ant Forelius foetidus (Buckley) was identified as 2-heptanone. This compound (2.9µg per worker) occurs in an admixture with cis, trans-iridodial and a minor unidentified iridodial isomer, which together constitute a defensive secretion emitted posteriorly from the gaster. Secretory components were isolated and quantified from extracts by gas chromatography and structurally elucidated by 1 H and 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance analyses. Videorecordings of agonistic encounters with foreign ants revealed a stereotypical defense behavior of F. foetidus workers culminating in aerial transfer of their secretion onto the heterospecific worker. The defensive spray was repellent but not toxic to either Solenopsis maniosa or Crematogaster califomica Chemical and behavioral comparisons between F. foetidus and F. (=Iridomyrmex) pminosus indicate a high degree of similarity between these sympatric ants and support the generic reclassification of the latter species.
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Scheffrahn et al. (1984) studied this question.
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