Tarsal contact chemoreceptors of the cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis cerasi: specificity, correlation with oviposition behaviour, and response to the synthetic pheromone

Abstract

Females of the European cherry fruit fly (Rhagoletis cerasi L.) (Dipt., Tephritidae) mark the host fruits (cherry, Prunus avium (L.) L.) after oviposition by dragging their ovipositor over the fruit surface, leaving behind a trace of droplets containing a pheromone. This host-marking pheromone trail deters subsequent ovipositions by the same or other flies, and has been called oviposition-deterring pheromone (ODP).