Insect thermotolerance comparing host infestation methods: Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae) reared in grapefruit or diet.

Abstract

Research on insect control should be conducted in a manner that mimics as closely as is feasible its commercial application in all of its practicably conceivable forms. When significant deviations from commercial application are used in research, the effect of the deviations on efficacy should be evaluated. Pest control techniques are sometimes based on research that used untested assumptions about variables that might affect efficacy. For example, some phytosanitary treatments are based on research done with diet-reared larvae inserted into holes bored in fruits, although the effect of this manipulation has not been evaluated. This research compares this type of infestation of grapefruit with Mexican fruit fly, Anastrepha ludens (Loew), third instars with a more natural infestation technique whereby females were allowed to oviposit on picked grapefruit in laboratory cages and third instars were reared inside the fruit. Although the results did not show statistically significant differences between infestation techniques, tendencies in the data caution against researchers making assumptions about efficacy without testing them when experimental techniques stray from more natural situations for which the research is designed.