BACKGROUND Pheromones play an important role for mate finding and courtship in many insects. In species where males are the signaling sex, females are expected to choose among potential mates with regard to the emitter's quality and/or genetic compatibility. One important aspect is the balance between negative and positive effects of in- vs. outbreeding. In the present study, we aimed to assess the potential of the territory marking pheromone of European beewolves as an indicator for genetic compatibility in the context of female choice. RESULTS We analyzed the sex pheromone composition of male European beewolves (Philanthus triangulum F., Hymenoptera, Crabronidae) from eight different locations across Central Europe (six in Germany, one in England, and one in Italy). The pheromone constitutes a complex blend of various long-chain hydrocarbons (alkanes, alkenes, alcohols, ketones, and a carbon acid). We demonstrate that pheromone composition differs significantly among distant populations (regional scale), among subpopulations (local scale) and between families within subpopulations. The differences in the pheromone blend are positively correlated with geographical distances as might be expected according to an isolation-by-distance model. On a local scale, family membership has a larger effect on pheromone composition than subpopulation affiliation, while the reverse is true for the regional scale. CONCLUSION Our results show that male pheromones can contain information on both kinship and geographical origin that may be used by females to choose adaptively among potential mates on the basis of their genetic distance.

中文翻译：

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起源气味：亲缘关系和地理距离反映在雄性蜂狼（Philanthus triangulum F., Hymenoptera, Crabronidae）的标记信息素上。

背景信息素在许多昆虫中对寻找配偶和求偶起着重要作用。在雄性是信号性别的物种中，预计雌性会根据发射器的质量和/或遗传兼容性在潜在的配偶中进行选择。一个重要的方面是传入与远交的负面和正面影响之间的平衡。在本研究中，我们旨在评估欧洲蜂狼的领土标记信息素作为雌性选择背景下遗传相容性指标的潜力。结果我们分析了来自中欧八个不同地点（六个在德国，一个在英国，一个在意大利）的雄性欧洲蜂狼（Philanthus triangulum F.，膜翅目，蟹科）的性信息素组成。信息素由各种长链烃（烷烃、烯烃、醇、酮和碳酸）的复杂混合物构成。我们证明信息素成分在远距离种群（区域尺度）、亚种群（局部尺度）和亚种群内的家庭之间存在显着差异。正如根据距离隔离模型所预期的那样，信息素混合物的差异与地理距离呈正相关。在局部尺度上，家庭成员对信息素组成的影响大于亚群隶属关系，而在区域尺度上则相反。