Area-Wide Integrated Control of Oriental Fruit Fly Bactrocera dorsalis and Guava Fruit Fly Bactrocera correcta in Thailand

Abstract

Two tephritid species namely the oriental fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel and the guava fruit fly Bactrocera correcta Bezzi are considered to be the key insect pests of fruit production in Thailand, causing yield loss and quality degradation. This leads to poor commercialization in domestic markets and quarantine restrictions from importing countries. A decade of effective cooperation between Thailand's Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has resulted in the implementation of an area-wide integrated fruit fly management programme which includes a sterile insect technique (SIT) component. The programme consists of two distinctive pilot areas with associations of smallscale mango growers covering 70 square kilometres in the Ratchaburi (western) and Pichit (northern) Provinces. The ongoing programme is aimed at controlling B. dorsalis and B. correcta through monitoring, orchard sanitation, selective application of bait sprays, and the release of sterile flies. Both species are mass-reared and sterilized at a facility located in Pathumthani Province following standard operational procedures described in this paper. The average weekly production during the mango season is 20 million B. dorsalis and 10 million B. correcta. After sterilization the pupae are transported weekly to the pilot areas, reared to the adult stage and ground-released at fixed release sites. Quality of the released sterile flies is monitored through the use of a trapping network to measure their distribution and abundance, whilst the success of the control is monitored using periodic fruit sampling to assess the percentage infestation. The integrated approach has been effective in controlling fruit flies by reducing damage from over 80% before programme implementation to an average of less than 3.6% in Ratchaburi Province in the past five years (2000 to 2004). Meanwhile, in Pichit Province where the control programme has been carried out for only two years (2003 and 2004), the infestation has been reduced from 42.9 to 15.5%. This preharvest suppression, combined with postharvest risk mitigation measures, has opened the possibility for exports of mango produced in these selected pilot areas to some of the most stringent and lucrative markets such as Japan. An economic feasibility study conducted in 2002 clearly shows that fruit fly control in Thailand using an integrated area-wide approach with an SIT component could be expanded to other production areas with significant economic returns.

Characterization and evaluation of microsatellite markers in a strain of the oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae), with a genetic sexing character used in sterile insect population control

“…The application of the Salaya1 GSS for IPM-SIT suppressed the B. dorsalis populations and reduced the amount of infested fruit. An adequate level of fruit fly suppression during the mango season was not accomplished in the bisexual SIT trials described by Orankanok et al (2007). In addition, the male-only SIT can be continued during the fruit growing season because there are no females to sting the ripened fruits.…”

“…There are many successful examples of pest control programmes using SIT worldwide (Klassen & Curtis, 2005). In relation to the oriental fruit fly, the SIT method was first integrated in area-wide control programmes about ten years ago (Orankanok et al, 2007).…”

The utility of microsatellite DNA markers for the evaluation of area-wide integrated pest management using SIT for the fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel), control programs in Thailand

“…Although mangoes are cultivated in up to 300,000 hectares of farming area, most of the fruit product is currently lost due to fruit fly infestation. The consequences are a significant reduction to yields and market shares, leading to an estimated loss of millions of dollars per year (Orankanok et al 2006(Orankanok et al , 2007. Common solutions for the fruit fly problem generally involve traditional means such as the intensive use of insecticides.…”

Comparison of phenylpropanoid volatiles in male rectal pheromone gland after methyl eugenol consumption, and molecular phylogenetic relationship of four global pest fruit fly species: Bactrocera invadens, B. dorsalis, B. correcta and B. zonata

“…It is endemic in south Asia, e.g., India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and Southeast Asia, e.g., Thailand and Vietnam. In Thailand, it coexists with several sibling species of the B. dorsalis complex especially the oriental fruit fly, B. dorsalis, as most damaging pests in mango and guava orchards (Orankanok et al 2007). It has been detected four times in Florida (Steck 2002) and numerous times in California where it is a serious threat to Californian fruit production (Hoffman 2007).…”