The sex pheromone of Cadra cautella is a two component blend of (Z,E)-9,12-tetradecadienyl acetate (Z9,E12-14:Ac) and (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:Ac), and is a highly variable signal. Because selection is only expected to act on heritable variation, we examined the heritability of the variation observed in the titer of Z9,E12-14:Ac and Z9-14:Ac, and the ratio of Z9,E12-14:Ac to Z9-14:Ac in 1-day old females 1 hour into the scotophase, using a half-sibling breeding design. Thirty-two sires were mated to 3 dams each and 10 female progeny per family were assayed. Family means for Z9,E12-14:Ac and Z9-14:Ac (±SE) ranged from 12.66 ± 1.72 to 62.37 ± 3.62 and 0.81 ± 0.11 to 7.24 ± 1.19 ng respectively, and significant differences were found among families in the titers of both components (P < 0.001; ANOVA). The sire- and dam-based estimates of narrow-sense heritability (±SE) for Z9,E12-14:Ac were 1.20 ± 0.32 and 0.26 ± 0.10, and 0.75 ± 0.24 and 0.44 ± 0.09 for Z9-14:Ac (statistically significant, h2>2SE). Family means for the ratio of Z9,E12-14:Ac to Z9-14:Ac ranged from 7.65 ± 0.79 : 1 to 23.04 ± 3.55 :1 and significant differences were found among families (P < 0.0001; ANOVA). The sire- and dam-based estimates of narrow-sense heritability (±SE) for this trait were 0.46 ± 0.17 and 0.56 ± 0.2 (statistically significant, h2>2SE). The sire-based estimate of the genetic correlation (±SE) between the titers of Z9,E12-14:Ac and Z9-14:Ac was 0.85 ± 0.06.