Which moth did scientists use to identify the first insect pheromone?

Scientists used the silkworm moth to identify bombykol, the first insect pheromone to be chemically characterized.

In 1959, German biochemist Adolf Butenandt and his collaborators identified the sex pheromone released by female silkworm moths. The compound was named bombykol, after Bombyx mori, the moth species commonly called the silkworm moth. Females release minute quantities of bombykol to attract males.

The discovery helped establish that animals communicate through specific chemical signals. Male silkworm moths can detect extraordinarily small amounts of the pheromone with their feathery antennae and then orient toward its source.

Bombykol is often described as the first insect pheromone identified, although the broader concept of pheromones applies across many animal groups. The silkworm moth was a particularly useful subject because it was domesticated, abundant, and already important in silk production. The finding became a landmark in chemical ecology.