A maize inbred extracted from an Iowa synthetic (BSBB) produces silks with an odor that is easily detectable by most humans. The inbred did not demonstrate greater field resistance to ear-feeding by insects than sister lines from the same synthetic. The odorous trait was determined to be inherited as a recessive trait but could not be positively associated with a single gene when the odorous line was crossed with unrelated normal lines. Failure to produce a single-gene Mendelian ratio for F2 and backcross generations was attributed to errors in classification for a subjectively evaluated trait and the seeming incomplete penetrance of the trait, possibly due to the presence of modifying genes. Eleven compounds that differed from those obtained from nonodorous sister lines were separated and identified by headspace trapping and analysis by gas chromatographic and mass spectrometric techniques. A five-member panel clearly identified the odorous compound as indole.