Rearing of Bactrocera zonata (Diptera: Tephritidae) for parasitoids production and managing techniques for fruit flies in mango orchards

Abstract

The effectiveness of rearing fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) for parasitoid production and pest control need to be improved. In these studies, the effects of dietary protein ingredients on the biological parameters of the peach fruit fly Bactrocera zonata (Saunders) for parasitoid production were investigated. Among the various food ingredients, torula yeast and brewer’s yeast were found to be more promising than Nu-Lure and protein hydrolysate for rearing of B. zonata. To reduce the infestation of this pest in mango Mangifera indica L. orchards, biological control agents and the male annihilation technique were evaluated. Significantly fewer fruits were infested with fruit flies in the treated blocks compared with fruits in the untreated block. The field efficacy of the hymenopteran larval and pupal parasitoids Aganaspis (Trybliographa) daci (Weld) and Dirhinus giffardii Silvestri, respectively, plus the male annihilation technique in controlling fruit flies was significantly high than that of biological control agents and male annihilation as separate treatments. The release of parasitoids as agents of biological control can play a major role in the suppression of fruit fly populations and parasitoids also pose a minimal non-target risk. Furthermore, combining control tactics could be a very important aspect of an action plan for fruit fly population suppression.