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CUTICULAR HYDROCARBON ANALYSIS OF THE AQUATIC BEETLE AGABUS ANTHRACINUS MANNERHEIM (COLEOPTERA: DYTISCIDAE)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

Yves Alarie ,
Hélène Joly  and
Danielle Dennie
Yves Alarie
Affiliation:
Biology Department, Laurentian University, Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6
Hélène Joly
Affiliation:
Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, Laurentian University, Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6
Danielle Dennie
Affiliation:
Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, Laurentian University, Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6
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Abstract

Relatively little information concerning the cuticular hydrocarbon composition of aquatic insects is known. The cuticular hydrocarbons of the aquatic beetle Agabus anthracinus Mannerheim have been identified with the aid of a gas chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrometer. The cuticular hydrocarbon profile comprises n-alkanes (46.8%), n-alkenes (27.1%), and methylalkanes (25.9%) and is basically similar to that of terrestrial Coleoptera. However, the hydrocarbons of A. anthracinus differ in that (i) the shorter chain n-alkanes are present in higher proportion, (ii) there is a relatively lower abundance of methylalkanes, and (iii) the proportion of n-alkenes is significantly higher.

Résumé

La composition en hydrocarbures cuticulaires des insectes aquatiques demeure inconnue. Cet exposé identifie les hydrocarbures de la cuticule d’Agabus anthracinus Mannerheim, un coléoptère aquatique, à l’aide d’un chromatographe en phase gazeuse couplé à un spectromètre de masse. Les données démontrent que la cuticule d’A. anthracinus est composée de n-alcanes (46,8%), de n-alcènes (27,1%) et de méthylalcanes (25,9%) ce qui est fondamentalement semblable à la condition observée parmi les coléoptères terrestres. Les hydrocarbures d’A. anthracinus se distinguent cependant (i) par une plus grand abondance de n-alcanes à chaîne courte, (ii) une moins grande abondance de méthylalcanes et (iii) un pourcentage de n-alcènes significativement élevé.

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 130 , Issue 5 , October 1998 , pp. 615 - 629
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1998

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