Sterols of phytophagous and omnivorous species of Hymenoptera

The sterols of six species of Hymenoptera including two phytophagous species (Apis mellifera and Megachile rotundata) and four omnivorous species (Dolichovespula maculata, Vespula maculifrons, Formica exsectoides, and Solenopsis invicta) were isolated and identified. The two phytophagous species of bees have in common relatively high levels of 24-methylenecholesterol and very low levels of cholesterol (