Nutritional phagostimulants function as male courtship pheromone inthe German cockroach, Blattella germanica

Summary. Males of the German cockroach, Blattellagermanica, secrete a pheromonal substance from the abdominal tergal glands,which elicits a feeding response in females during the sequential courtship behavior. The nuptial secretion consists predominantly of a synergistic mixture of sugars and phospholipids. Cholesterol and a series of amino acids, which are also components of the males glandular secretion, significantly enhanced the phagostimulantactivity of the sugar components. The nuptial feeding behavior of the female cockroachis therefore elicited by a complex assortment of nutritive components in the male tergal secretion, including sugars, phospholipids, cholesterol, and amino acids. Theseresults indicate that a mixture of primary metabolites, and not of specific secondarymetabolites, serves as a pheromonal cue that appeals to the females gustatory senseand effectively brings her to the precopulatory position. Although themale secretion consists of nutrients, we suggest that these compounds probably do notrepresent a significant nutrient investment in females and their progeny but rather function as a signal in the mating sequence of B. germanica.