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Title: AUTOMATING THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY MEXICAN FRUIT FLY (ANASTREPHA LUDENS) PROGRAM

Author
item Anderson, Gerald
item HARKINS, WILLIAM - APHIS,PPQ,HARLINGEN,TX
item Swanson, Wayne
item DOERFLER, SUSAN - APHIS,PPQ, HARLINGEN,TX

Submitted to: Biannual Workshop in Color Photography and Videography in Resource
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/1/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: This paper outlines the efforts of the USDA, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to map citrus groves in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) of south Texas. Accurate maps will provide APHIS with an accurate estimate of the amount of citrus in the valley and hopefully help in controlling the wild Mexican fruit fly populations in the area.

Technical Abstract: The Mexican fruit fly, Anastrepha ludens (Loew), is an insect pest that has infested citrus in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of south Texas since 1927 (Shaw et al., 1970). Control of Mexican fruit fly populations in the region and in northern Mexico has been accomplished through mass rearing and repeated aerial releases of sterile fruit flies. The success of the control lprogram depends, to a large extent, upon having accurate knowledge of the extent and location of host plants and fly population levels. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Remote Sensing Research Unit (RSRU), Weslaco, TX and the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Harlingen, TX entered into a cooperative research effort in 1995 to standardize and automate various components of the Mexican fruit fly program using aerial photography and geographic information system (GIS) technology. Products resulting from this effort included a comprehensive LRGV citrus map, a standardized management grid, and an automated data management and visualization system. This technology will provide APHIS with an accurate picture of the extent, distribution, and dynamics of citrus acreage and Mexican fruit fly populations across the valley and hopefully increase the ability of the program to systematically suppress feral Mexican fruit fly population levels.