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Title: EFFECT OF ADULT DIET ON SIGNALING ACTIVITY, MATE ATTRACTION, AND MATING SUCCESS IN MALE MEDITERRANEAN FRUIT FLIES (DIPTERA: TEPHRITIDAE)

Author
item SHELLY, T - APHIS-WAIMANALO, HI
item KENELLY, S - APHIS-WAIMANALO, HI
item McInnis, Donald

Submitted to: Florida Entomologist
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/15/2001
Publication Date: 3/30/2002
Citation: Shelly, T.E., Kenelly, S.S., Mcinnis, D.O. 2002. Effect of adult diet on signaling activity, mate attraction, and mating success in male mediterranean fruit flies (diptera: tephritidae). Florida Entomologist. 85:150-155.

Interpretive Summary: The efficiency of the sterile insect release method depends critically on the mating success of released sterile males with wild females. Improvements to increase the mating competitiveness of released males are a high priority. Tests were conducted in Hawaii to investigate whether or not a difference in the adult diet fed to the flies after emergence could affect the mating performance of the flies. Two diets, one of sugar-only (protein deprived) and the other of protein plus sugar were evaluated. The diets were compared on the basis of the ability of males to attract females and to mate with females. Results indicated that males fed protein were able to attract females to mate ca. twice as well as males fed only sugar. In the mating trials, males fed protein achieved significantly more matings than males deprived of protein. Officials in sterile insect release programs may benefit from this information by improving the efficiency of their programs following a change to including protein in all medfly pre-release adult diets.

Technical Abstract: Field experiments were performed to examine the effect of adult diet on calling activity, female attraction, and mating success in male Mediterranean fruit flies, Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann. In all tests, comparisons were drawn between males fe sugar only ("protein-deprived" males) and males fed a protein-sugar mixture ("protein-fed" males). In tests of long-distance attraction, aggregations consisting of protein-deprived males exclusively, or protein-fed males exclusively, were established in a coffee field, and females were released from a central release point. Protein-fed and protein-deprived males displayed similar calling levels, but approximately twice as many female sightings were recorded at groups of protein-fed males than at groups of protein-deprived males. A second test of female attraction compared single groups of protein-deprived and protein-fed males within the canopy of a field-caged host plant. As before, calling actitivity did not vary with diet, and in this case numbers of female sightings were also similar between aggregations of protein-fed vs. protein-deprived males. In mating trials conducted on field-caged host plants, protein-fed males achieved significantly more matings than protein-deprived males. These results are compared with other recent studies on the nutritional ecology of male Mediterranean fruit flies.