An Overview of Pest Species of Bactrocera Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) and the Integration of Biopesticides with Other Biological Approaches for Their Management with a Focus on the Pacific Region.

Jaime C Piñero,Roger I Vargas,Luc Leblanc

doi:10.3390/insects6020297

Abstract

Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) are among the most economically important pest species in the world, attacking a wide range of fruits and fleshy vegetables throughout tropical and sub-tropical areas. These species are such devastating crop pests that major control and eradication programs have been developed in various parts of the world to combat them. The array of control methods includes insecticide sprays to foliage and soil, bait-sprays, male annihilation techniques, releases of sterilized flies and parasitoids, and cultural controls. During the twenty first century there has been a trend to move away from control with organophosphate insecticides (e.g., malathion, diazinon, and naled) and towards reduced risk insecticide treatments. In this article we present an overview of 73 pest species in the genus Bactrocera, examine recent developments of reduced risk technologies for their control and explore Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Programs that integrate multiple components to manage these pests in tropical and sub-tropical areas.

Highlights

Fruit flies of the family Tephritidae constitute a group of agricultural pests of worldwide importance that attack a wide range of fruits and vegetables [1]
In this article we present an overview of the tropical pest species in the genus Bactrocera, examine recent developments of reduced risk technologies for control and explore Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs that utilize multiple components to manage these pests in tropical and sub-tropical areas
In a study conducted by Deguine et al [78], augmentoria with a mesh having a hole area of 3 mm2 prevented 100% of adult B. cucurbitae from escaping while 100% of the parasitoids (Psyttalia fletcheri (Silvestri) and Fopius arisanus) were able to escape from the mesh

Summary

Introduction

Fruit flies of the family Tephritidae constitute a group of agricultural pests of worldwide importance that attack a wide range of fruits and vegetables [1]. The. HAWPM program was not aimed at eradication of fruit flies, but predicated on a pest management strategy that would reduce the entire population in and around cropping areas where economic damage occurred [2]. IPM programs against pestiferous fruit fly species can be implemented at local (e.g., single orchard) and regional (e.g., area-wide IPM) levels and not all IPM components that may be available for a given system would be appropriate or affordable for implementation in small-scale farming operations. In this article we present an overview of the tropical pest species in the genus Bactrocera, examine recent developments of reduced risk technologies for control and explore IPM programs that utilize multiple components to manage these pests in tropical and sub-tropical areas

Overview of Pest Bactrocera Species

Area-Wide Control Technologies

Male Annihilation

Sterile Insect Releases

Releases of Natural Enemies

Cultural Controls

Sanitation

Fruit Bagging

Augmentorium

Soil Disturbance

Findings

Conclusions