Feb 16, 2021 09:54 AM EST
New research shows that spotted wing drosophila, which is a fruit fly originally from South East Asia, prefers to lay her eggs in a virgin territory where no other fruit flies have visited. This research raises questions about how the flies can say whether a place is a virgin territory or not and what it means for pest control.
The fruit fly which is originally from Asia, and over the past 10-15 years has spread across Europe, South America, North America, and Africa. This species commonly known as Drosophila suzukii prefers to lay its egg in a virgin ripe fruit, and this results in problems for fruit growers since no consumer would want to buy infested fruit.
Date Time
Invasive Flies Prefer Untouched Territory When Laying Eggs
A recent study finds that the invasive spotted wing drosophila (Drosophila suzukii) prefers to lay its eggs in places that no other spotted wing flies have visited. The finding raises questions about how the flies can tell whether a piece of fruit is virgin territory – and what that might mean for pest control.
D. suzukii is a fruit fly that is native to east Asia, but has spread rapidly across North America, South America, Africa and Europe over the past 10-15 years. The pest species prefers to lay its eggs in ripe fruit, which poses problems for fruit growers, since consumers don’t want to buy infested fruit.