Division of Entomology, CSIRO, GPO Box 1700, 2601, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
J Chem Ecol. 1985 Apr;11(4):525-38. doi: 10.1007/BF00989563.
Worker ants ofPolyrhachis (Cyrtomyrma) ?doddi collectively discharge the secretions of their large mandibular glands when their nest is disturbed. The major glandular compounds of workers are 6-methylhept-5-en-2-one and phenylacetaldehyde oxime. Other components identified are mellein, 6-methylhept-5-en-2-one oxime, phenylacetonitrile, phenyiacetaldehyde, benzaldehyde, and several alkanes and alkenes. The mandibular gland secretions of queens differ from those of workers only quantitatively. Large queens have considerably more of most components, the small queens have much less of volatile components. There is a pronounced sexual difference: the major components of the male's secretions are octanoic acid and mellein, with geranic acid, 8-heptadecene, 2-methylbutanoic acid, and 9-nonadecene present in lesser amounts. Workers ofP. ?doddi also have unusually large Dufour's glands containing a large array of hydrocarbons, of which tridecane is the major component, but α-farnesene, pentadecane, and heptadecene are also present in large quantities.
工蚁在蚁巢受到干扰时会集体排出大颚腺的分泌物。工蚁的主要腺体化合物是 6-甲基庚-5-烯-2-酮和苯乙酮肟。鉴定出的其他成分有密勒醇、6-甲基庚-5-烯-2-酮肟、苯乙腈、苯乙醛、苯甲醛以及几种烷烃和烯烃。蜂王的大颚腺分泌物与工蚁的分泌物仅在数量上有所不同。大型蜂王的大多数成分都多得多，小型蜂王的挥发性成分则少得多。存在明显的性别差异：雄蚁分泌物的主要成分是辛酸和密勒醇，同时还存在香叶烯酸、8-十七烯、2-甲基丁酸和 9-十九烯。多刺蚁属的工蚁还具有异常大的杜福尔氏腺，其中含有大量的碳氢化合物，其中十三烷是主要成分，但α-法呢烯、十五烷和十七烷也大量存在。
