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semiochemical

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A semiochemical, from the Greek σημεῖον (semeion), meaning "signal", is a chemical substance or mixture released by an organism that affects the behaviors of other individuals. Semiochemical communication can be divided into two broad classes: communication between individuals of the same species (intraspecific) or communication between different species (interspecific).

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Encyclopedic overview

8 sections
Contents
  • In nature
  • Pheromone
  • Allomone
  • Kairomone
  • Synomone
  • Human use
  • References
  • External links

A semiochemical, from the Greek σημεῖον (semeion), meaning "signal", is a chemical substance or mixture released by an organism that affects the behaviors of other individuals. Semiochemical communication can be divided into two broad classes: communication between individuals of the same species (intraspecific) or communication between different species (interspecific).

It is usually used in the field of chemical ecology to encompass pheromones, allomones, kairomones, attractants and repellents.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “semiochemical” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.