Pheromones are not aphrodisiac substances for the fruit or vinegar fly ( Drosophila melanogaster ) but they play a key role in distinguishing the sex and species of their partner , according to a study published in the scientific journal Nature .
In a series of experiments with fruit flies, Professor Joel Levine and his Canadian colleagues at the University of Toronto found that, after genetically suppressing the production of pheromones, flies – male and female – without "perfume" became powerful "sex magnets" that attracted male flies of the same species, and even specimens of other species of fruit flies that normally show no sexual interest in Drosophila melanogaster .
"Male flies whose sexual odor had been suppressed exhibited unnatural behaviors, such as trying to copulate with other males, " explained the researcher. This shows, Levine concludes, that pheromones are substances that regulate sexual behavior in fruit flies, affecting their ability to recognize specimens of the same species or of different sex.
The experiment also showed that this change in behavior only affects male flies, as females are not attracted to insects that do not produce pheromones .
