Finding Metarchons for Pest Control

Abstract

SELECTIVE control of pest insects by behaviour-controlling scents or other metarchons¹ promises to become a preferred method, but if, as seems probable, the scents to which insects respond are in most cases blends of several distinct chemical substances, the problem of isolating and identifying the active materials becomes very difficult². This control method is based on the assumption that by sufficiently permeating the environment with a particular scent, such as a sex attractant, either the males will be unable to perceive the small increment released by the female or, what is effectively the same thing, their receptors will become fatigued and temporarily cease to register any signal.