Skip to main content
ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Hilo, Hawaii » Daniel K. Inouye U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center » Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #316783
Title: Artificial rearing of the peach fruit fly Bactrocera zonata (Diptera:Tephritidae)

Author
item SOOKAR, P - Ministry Of Agro Industry And Food Security-Mauritius
item ALLECK, M - Ministry Of Agro Industry And Food Security-Mauritius
item AHSEEK, N - Ministry Of Agro Industry And Food Security-Mauritius
item PERMALLOO, S - Ministry Of Agro Industry And Food Security-Mauritius
item BHAGWANT, S - University Of Mauritius
item Chang, Chiou

Submitted to: International Journal of Tropical Insect Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/18/2013
Publication Date: 11/20/2014
Citation: Sookar, P., Alleck, M., Ahseek, N., Permalloo, S., Bhagwant, S., Chang, C.L. 2014. Artificial rearing of the peach fruit fly Bactrocera zonata (Diptera:Tephritidae). International Journal of Tropical Insect Science. DOI: 10.1017/S1742758414000125.

Interpretive Summary: The peach fruit fly Bactrocera zonata (Saunders) (Diptera:Tephritidae) is among the most harmful insect pests, attacking over 50 fruit species including guava, mango, peach, apricot, and citrus. Female flies lay their eggs beneath the skin of suitable hosts, and the emerging larvae feed on the flesh, destroying large proportions of the fruit and making it unsuitable for consumption or marketing. B. Zonata originated from South and South East Asia, but it has invaded several countries in the Middle East. B. Zonata is regarded as a serious threat to countries in the Middle East and North Africa and to a lesser extent, Southern Europe. Given the importance of this insect pest, the FAO and IAEA have developed a detailed action plan for its management and potential eradication. Mauritius has had pest problems with fruit flies ever since the beginning of the last century. Pesticide use has negative consequences for the environment and kills natural enemies, resulting in the emergence of secondary pest complexes such as spider mites, scales, and leafminers. Therefore, the government of Mauritius has decided to target B.zonata using an area-wide integrated pest management approach that includes a sterile insect technique component. The IAEA, through its Department of Technical cooperation and the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, has provided technical and financial support for this work. A prerequisite for applying the SIT is the ability to rear the target insect in large numbers and at a reasonable cost. The objective of this study was to develop and improve techniques for producing high quality B.zonata flies that could be used in a SIT programme.

Technical Abstract: Integration of the sterile insect technique (SIT) into the area-wide management of the peach fruit fly Bactrocera zonata (Saunders) is a promising althernative to the localized use of chemical control tactics. Implementation of the SIT requires adequate numbers of sterile male insects that are produced in large mass-rearing facilities. The present study was carried out to improve the rearing methods of the peach fruit fly so as to contribute to the development of effective mass-rearing protocols. Commercially available papaya, mango, peach and guava juices were found to be equally effective as oviposition stimulants. Moreover, with respect to the fecundity and fertility of flies, water was found to be as effective as the tested fruit juices. During the first 3 weeks, 90% of the total eggs produced were collected from adult oviposition cages holding 50,000 flies. A larval diet composed of sugarcane bagasse, ground maize, sugarcane sugar, waste brewer’s yeast, wheat bran, benzoic acid, nipagin and water resulted in the following values for the quality control parameters: egg hatch 85%, pupal recovery >67%, pupal weight >4.2g, pupation >95%, adult emergence >89%, and fliers >65%. Adult emergence and flight ability were similar for pupae placed in sand and vermiculite as the pupation medium.