Relative abundance and use of resources by Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, D. simulans Sturtevant and Zaprionus indianus Gupta (Diptera: Drosophilidae) in localities of northern Argentina

Abstract

Zaprionus indianus Gupta is an invasive pest species that has colonized the American continent in the last 20 years. This species is a polyphagous species that with Drosophila melanogaster Meigen and D. simulans Sturtevant utilized a wide variety of fruits as breeding and feeding resources. In the present study we quantified the relative abundance of these species in adult and emerged samples collected from various hosts (commercial fruits) in different localities in northern Argentina. We detected overlapping of rearing and feeding resources between the analyzed species although, our results revealed that the relative abundance between Drosophila and Z. indianus species varied between both adult and emerged samples. This result revealed a differential use of resources and/or interspecific competition.