Insect 'Death Stench' Acts as Repellent

The stench of dying bugs is an effective — and ancient — insect repellent, biologists at McMaster University have found.

David Rollo, a professor of biology at McMaster in Hamilton, found that the corpses of insects and certain other animals emit the same blend of stinky fatty acids, and act as a strong repellent for those same animals.

As an added bonus, while the smell sends the critters running, people can barely detect the scent.

Rollo was studying social behaviour in cockroaches and looking for smells that attract them when he made the discovery. Cockroaches emit pheromone signals when they find a good place to live, to attract other cockroaches.

Rollo was extracting chemicals from the bodies of dead cockroaches to isolate the pheromone involved, when he found a group of fatty acids with the opposite effect.

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Source: CBC.ca