Pheromones in animals are far better understood than pheromones in humans, and the entire concept of pheromone research originated in animal studies. The term itself was coined in 1959 to describe a chemical compound first identified in silkworm moths, and the framework that grew out of insect research (sex pheromones, alarm pheromones, trail markers, aggregation cues, and primer pheromones in social insects) has shaped how all subsequent pheromone work is organized. Animal pheromones are commercially exploited in pest control, in agricultural pollinator management, and in calming products for cats and dogs. The strict categories that work well for insects translate less directly to mammals and especially to humans, but the animal-pheromone literature is still where the strongest foundational knowledge lives.
What follows covers the origins of pheromone research, the main categories used to classify animal pheromones, the cluster of insect pheromones (ants, bees, wasps, spiders, moths), the queen-pheromone story in social insects, mammal pheromones in pets and other species, the vomeronasal organ across the animal kingdom, the commercial uses of animal pheromones, and how all of this compares to what’s understood about human pheromones.
Where Pheromone Research Started
The word “pheromone” didn’t exist before 1959. Two researchers, Peter Karlson and Martin Lüscher, coined the term in a two-page paper in Nature describing a new class of biologically active substances that act between members of the same species rather than within an individual body. They built the term from Greek roots: pherein (to carry) and hormon (to stimulate). Pheromones, in their definition, are chemical messengers carried outside the body that release specific reactions in receivers of the same species.
The trigger for their paper was the work of Adolf Butenandt and his team at the Max Planck Institute, who in 1959 had just chemically identified the first pheromone: bombykol, the sex attractant released by female silk moths. Bombykol drew male silkworm moths from impressive distances using just a few molecules per cubic meter of air. The female moth’s release of bombykol triggered specific flying-and-fluttering behavior in males, with effects detectable at vanishingly low concentrations.
Karlson and Lüscher’s framework defined pheromones as a category distinct from hormones. Hormones act between tissues within an organism. Pheromones act between individuals. The framework was deliberately broad enough to anticipate that pheromones would be found across the animal kingdom, from insects and crustaceans to fish and mammals.
That broader expectation has held up. Pheromones are now identified in essentially every group of animals studied at sufficient depth, with insect pheromones remaining the best-characterized and the model system for understanding pheromone chemistry in general.
The Main Categories Of Animal Pheromones
Animal pheromones are typically classified by the function they serve. The main categories that emerged from insect research, and which still organize the field, break down as follows.
Sex pheromones. Compounds released by one sex to attract or indicate reproductive readiness to the other sex. Bombykol (the silk moth attractant) is the textbook example. Most moth sex pheromones are species-specific blends of multiple compounds in precise ratios, allowing reliable mate-finding even in environments with many similar species.
Alarm pheromones. Compounds released by an animal under threat that warn or activate conspecifics. Honeybees release isopentyl acetate when stinging, which marks the target and recruits more bees to attack. Many ants and aphids have similar systems.
Trail and territory markers. Compounds deposited on the ground or on surfaces to guide other individuals to food, to mark territory, or to indicate paths between nest and resource. Ant trail pheromones from species like Solenopsis are some of the most-studied systems.
Aggregation pheromones. Compounds that attract individuals of both sexes, often used by insects to coordinate large gatherings (for feeding, mating, or defense). Bark beetles use these to coordinate mass attacks on trees.
Primer pheromones. Compounds that produce slow, hormonal, or developmental changes in receivers rather than immediate behavioral responses. Queen mandibular pheromone in honeybees, which suppresses worker reproduction, is the classic example.
These five categories overlap in some species and apply to varying degrees in others. The framework is most rigid for insects and weakens progressively as you move to mammals. The full breakdown of how these categories map onto human pheromone research is covered in the types of pheromones page.
Insect Pheromones
Insect pheromones are the most extensively studied of all animal pheromones. The major insect groups and their pheromone systems break down as follows.
Ant pheromones. Ants are the textbook case for trail pheromones: a foraging ant that finds food deposits chemical trail markers on the way back to the colony, and other ants follow the trail and deposit more markers as they go. When the food runs out, the trail evaporates and is no longer reinforced, so the colony stops sending foragers there. Ant pheromones also include alarm compounds (released when the ant is crushed) and the queen pheromones covered in the next section.
Bee pheromones. Honeybees have one of the most-studied pheromone systems in any animal. The alarm pheromone (isopentyl acetate, released when a bee stings) marks the target and triggers other bees to sting the same spot, while the Nasonov pheromone released near the hive entrance helps foragers find their way back. Queen mandibular pheromone, covered in the next section, controls colony reproductive structure.
Wasp pheromones. Wasps use alarm and aggregation pheromones similar to bees, with species-specific variation. Some social wasps release alarm pheromones from venom-gland secretions when threatened. Solitary wasps tend to rely more on sex pheromones for mate-finding.
Spider pheromones. Spiders use sex pheromones extensively, with female spiders releasing chemical attractants that males detect on their pedipalps and through specialized cuticular receptors. Spider pheromones are less studied than insect pheromones because spiders are less commercially relevant, but the underlying chemistry follows the same general pattern.