| Anastrepha fraterculus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Tephritidae |
| Genus: | Anastrepha |
| Species: | A. fraterculus |
| Binomial name | |
| Anastrepha fraterculus Wiedemann, 1830 | |
| Synonyms | |
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Anastrepha fraterculus, known as the South American fruit fly, is a fruit fly species from the genus Anastrepha. A. fraterculus is a polyphagous, frugivorous fly that is a significant pest of commercial fruit production in South America. [1]
German entomologist Christian Rudolph Wilhelm Wiedemann first described the South American fruit fly in 1830. [2] The Anastrepha fraterculus species is not to be confused with the Anastrepha fraterculus complex, which is a cryptic species with eight taxonomically recognized morphotypes. [3]
The Anastrepha fraterculus species is native to South America and is distributed throughout the southern United States (South Florida and southern Texas), Mexico, Central America, Caribbean Islands, and South America. [4] [5]
Anastrepha fraterculus is a small fruit fly. Its body colouration varies, from orange, to brown and yellow. They have six jointed legs attached to their thorax and one set of membranous wings with yellow and brown bands also attached at their thorax. [5] Attached to their head is a pair of antennae. The antennae have three segments: the scape, the pedicel, and the flagellum. An arista is also located at the dorsal side and proximal end of the flagellum. They have six types of sensilla based on shape, located along their antennae. [6] These sensilla are used for chemoreception. The female A. fraterculus have a modified ovipositor called an aculeus. The aculeus is near the cloacal opening, and it is conical in shape with serrations near the apex. [7]
The digestive system in the South American fruit fly is one long, continuous tube that connects the mouth to the anus. This tract is divided into three specialized regions: the foregut, the midgut, and the hindgut. The foregut is specialized to ingest and soften the food and begin digestion. The foregut contains a short gullet with an esophageal pouch, then a long, narrow crop duct that ends in a wide crop. The midgut is specialized for digestion and absorption of nutrients. The midgut contains a long, coiled stomach. The hindgut is specialized for absorbing nutrients and reabsorbing water and ions. The hindgut includes the ileum, the rectum, and associated rectal glands. [8]
Anastrepha fraterculus have a four-stage life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The females lay their eggs in fruit, where the larvae develop until they reach adulthood and leave the fruit to mate. [9] Their eggs are white, elongated, and curved. [10] The chorion has extensions that are shorter near the anterior end of the egg and bluntly rounded at the posterior end of the egg. [10] The larvae ingest the forced-out yolk masses near the anterior end of the egg and then emerge near the posterior end of the egg. [11] The larvae molt three times before reaching maturity: the first instar occurs from 1-3 days old, the second instar from 4-6 days old, and the third instar from 7-12 days old. [12] The larvae's third instar has some defining characteristics to help distinguish it from other species in the Anastrepha genus: the third instar is greater than 6.0 mm in length and 1.0 mm in diameter, their mandibles don't have a subapical tooth, they have 7-11 oral ridges, the abdominal segments lack dorsal spinules, and the anterior spiracle has 9-14 tubules. [4] After the final molt, the larva enters the pupa stage. The pupa is an inert, sessile stage. The pupa is cylindrical and 4.5-60 mm in length and 2-2.5 mm in diameter. The pupae's colouration is yellow-tinged with brown and then turns reddish-yellow or dark brown. [13] After pupating, the adult fly splits open the pupal case and exits, then leaves the fruit to continue the cycle.
The South American fruit flies mate through a lek mating system. [14] The males aggregate into groups of 5, about 80 cm apart, usually on the underside of the leaves of host plants. They start their courtship and mating behaviour 1 hour after dawn until mid-morning. [15] In these aggregations, the males release volatile pheromones to attract females. [16] These pheromones are primarily released from glands in the rectum, though some pheromones are released from their salivary glands. [17] The distal rectum is evaginated to increase the evaporative surface and increase pheromone emission. [18] The females use an ovipositor to puncture the fruit's skin and lay their eggs inside. After laying their eggs, the female Anastrepha fraterculus drags their ovipositor along the fruit and releases an oviposition-deterring pheromone to prevent other females from laying their eggs in that fruit to improve the success of her offspring. [19]
Anastrepha fraterculus is a major agricultural pest. They cause a lot of damage to the plants' fruits. The females puncture the fruit during oviposition, the larvae eat the fruit during maturation, and at adulthood, they damage the fruit by exiting. The punctures also facilitate the entry of phytopathogens into the fruit. A. fraterculus is also a mechanical vector for fungi spores that can cause the fruits to rot. [1]
Anastrepha fraterculus infect many host plants with their larvae. A. fraterculus infest at least 159 species of host plants, including many plants from the family Annonaceae, Myrtaceae, Rutaceae, Malpighiaceae, Rosaceae (apples, cherries, peaches, plums), Vitaceae (grapes), and many, many more. [20]
Many control methods are being studied to decrease the amount of economic damage caused by Anastrepha fraterculus. These methods include using chemical products, such as biopesticides, which include plant extracts and oil, which are used in favour of harmful insecticides. [21] Other alternative methods include sterile insect technique (SIT), where they induced sterility in mass-reared A. fraterculus, preferably males, through radiation, and then reintroduced them into the environment. [22] Many improvements have been made to these mass-rearing protocols to identify males for SIT in viable, non-destructive manners. These methods include developing genetic sexing strains (GSS) and using hyperspectral images of the pupae to determine the sex. [23] [13] Another alternative method includes biological control techniques, such as the introduction of parasitoid species, like Diachasmimorpha longicaudata and Coptera haywardi, to infest and kill A. fraterculus. [24] [25]
A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages thereof being egg, larva, pupa, and imago. The processes of entering and completing the pupal stage are controlled by the insect's hormones, especially juvenile hormone, prothoracicotropic hormone, and ecdysone. The act of becoming a pupa is called pupation, and the act of emerging from the pupal case is called eclosion or emergence.
The apple maggot, also known as the railroad worm, is a species of fruit fly, and a pest of several types of fruits, especially apples. This species evolved about 150 years ago through a sympatric shift from the native host hawthorn to the domesticated apple species Malus domestica in the northeastern United States. This fly is believed to have been accidentally spread to the western United States from the endemic eastern United States region through contaminated apples at multiple points throughout the 20th century. The apple maggot uses Batesian mimicry as a method of defense, with coloration resembling that of the forelegs and pedipalps of a jumping spider.
The Tephritidae are one of two fly families referred to as fruit flies, the other family being the Drosophilidae. The family Tephritidae does not include the biological model organisms of the genus Drosophila, which is often called the "common fruit fly". Nearly 5,000 described species of tephritid fruit fly are categorized in almost 500 genera of the Tephritidae. Description, recategorization, and genetic analyses are constantly changing the taxonomy of this family. To distinguish them from the Drosophilidae, the Tephritidae are sometimes called peacock flies, in reference to their elaborate and colorful markings. The name comes from the Greek τεφρος, tephros, meaning "ash grey". They are found in all the biogeographic realms.
The Queensland fruit fly is a species of fly in the family Tephritidae in the insect order Diptera. B. tyroni is native to subtropical coastal Queensland and northern New South Wales. They are active during the day, but mate at night. B. tyroni lay their eggs in fruit. The larvae then hatch and proceed to consume the fruit, causing the fruit to decay and drop prematurely. B. tyroni are responsible for an estimated $28.5 million a year in damage to Australian crops and are the most costly horticultural pest in Australia. Up to 100% of exposed fruit can be destroyed due to an infestation of this fly species. Previously, pesticides were used to eliminate B. tyroni from damaging crops. However, these chemicals are now banned. Thus, experts devoted to B. tyroni control have transitioned to studying this pests' behaviors to determine a new method of elimination.
Rose apple may refer to:
Ceratitis capitata, commonly known as the Mediterranean fruit fly or medfly is a yellow and brown fly native to sub-Saharan Africa. C. capitata has no near relatives in the Western Hemisphere and is considered to be one of the most destructive fruit pests in the world. There have been occasional medfly infestations in the states of California, Florida, and Texas requiring extensive eradication efforts to prevent the fly from establishing itself in the US.
Bactrocera dorsalis, previously known as Dacus dorsalis and commonly referred to as the oriental fruit fly, is a species of tephritid fruit fly that is endemic to Southeast Asia. It is one of the major pest species in the genus Bactrocera with a broad host range of cultivated and wild fruits. Male B. dorsalis respond strongly to methyl eugenol, which is used to monitor and estimate populations, as well as to annihilate males as a form of pest control. They are also important pollinators and visitors of wild orchids, Bulbophyllum cheiri and Bulbophyllum vinaceum in Southeast Asia, which lure the flies using methyl eugenol.
Chrysomya is an Old World blow fly genus of the family Calliphoridae. The genus Chrysomya contains a number of species including Chrysomya rufifacies and Chrysomya megacephala. The term “Old World blow fly” is a derivative of both the associated family, Calliphoridae, and the belief that the genus Chrysomya originated in Asia and migrated to North America only relatively recently. Chrysomya’s primary importance to the field of medico-criminal forensic entomology is due to the genus’ reliable life cycle, allowing investigators to accurately develop a postmortem interval. Chrysomya adults are typically metallic colored with thick setae on the meron and plumose arista. The name comes from the word chrysos, meaning “golden” in reference to the metallic sheen of the genus’ species, and -mya, a derivation from the word myia, meaning “fly”.
Rhagoletis mendax is a species of tephritid fruit fly known by the common name blueberry maggot. The blueberry maggot is closely related to the apple maggot, a larger fruit fly in the same genus. It is a major pest of plant species in the Ericaceae family, such as blueberry, cranberry, and huckleberry. The larva is 5 to 8 mm long, apodous, and white with chewing mouthparts. Female adults are 4.75mm in length, males are slightly smaller. Both adults are mostly black in color with white stripes, orange-red eyes, and a single pair of clear wings with black banding. The adult female fly lays a single egg per blueberry, and when the larva hatches it consumes the fruit, usually finishing the entire berry in under 3 weeks and rendering it unmarketable. The larva then falls to the soil and pupates. Adult flies emerge, mate, and females oviposit when blueberry plants are producing fruit. Each female fly can lay 25 to 100 eggs in their lifetime.
The Tephritid Workers Database is a web-based database for sharing information on tephritid fruit flies. Because these species are one of the most economically important group of insect species that threaten fruit and vegetable production and trade worldwide, a tremendous amount of information is made available each year: new technologies developed, new information on their biology and ecology; new control methods made available, new species identified, new outbreaks recorded and new operational control programmes launched. The TWD allows workers to keep up-to-date on the most recent developments and provides an easily accessible and always available resource.
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Sarcophaga bullata, or the grey flesh fly, is a species of fly belonging to the family Sarcophagidae. It varies in size from small to large, 8 to 17 millimeters in length and is very similar in appearance and behavior to a closely related species, Sarcophaga haemorrhoidalis. S. bullata is a common scavenger species in the Eastern United States, but is found throughout the Nearctic region. Identification down to the species level in the family Sarcophagidae is notably difficult and relies primarily on the male genitalia. Though limited information is available regarding S. bullata, it has gained increasing recognition in the field of forensic entomology as a forensically-relevant fly species, as it may be among the first species to colonize human remains. In these instances, recovered maggots may be analyzed for post-mortem interval (PMI) estimations, which may be used as evidence in courts of law. Current studies regarding S. bullata have revealed a maternal effect operating in these flies that prevents pupal diapause under certain environmental conditions, which is an important factor to be considered during forensic analyses.
Hydrotaea is a genus of insects in the housefly family, Muscidae. They occur in most regions of the world but are more populous in warmer climates. They are often found on feces in summer months, and are therefore generally found in close proximity to livestock. Among the 130 known species in this genus, one of the most commonly recognized is the dump fly.
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