Host plant selection and acceptance in phytophagous insects involves chemosensilla located around the body of the insect. We examined chemosensory responses from multiple sensory appendages (antennae, galeae, and tarsi) of Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) to host plant and insect derived chemicals. This represents the first recordings of chemosensory responses in adult CPB antennal gustatory sensilla, and establishes the antennae as an important gustatory sensory appendage functioning in the finding and examining processes involved in location of suitable host plants or mates. Characterization of neural input from multiple sensory appendages provides not only an understanding of the functional specialization of the appendage, but also a view through the chemosensory window used by the insect to image and respond behaviorally to its environment.
Species 1: Coleoptera Chrysomelidae Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Colorado potato beetle)
Keywords: chemoreception, host plant selection
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