Vision-mediated exploitation of a novel host plant by a tephritid fruit fly

Abstract

Shortly after its introduction into the Hawaiian Islands around 1895, the polyphagous, invasive fruit fly Bactrocera (Zeugodacus) cucurbitae (Coquillett) (Diptera: Tephritidae) was provided the opportunity to expand its host range to include a novel host, papaya (Carica papaya). It has been documented that female B. cucurbitae rely strongly on vision to locate host fruit. Given that the papaya fruit is visually conspicuous in the papaya agro-ecosystem, we hypothesized that female B. cucurbitae used vision as the main sensory modality to find and exploit the novel host fruit. Using a comparative approach that involved a series of studies under natural and semi-natural conditions in Hawaii, we assessed the ability of female B. cucurbitae to locate and oviposit in papaya fruit using the sensory modalities of olfaction and vision alone and also in combination. The results of these studies demonstrate that, under a variety of conditions, volatiles emitted by the novel host do not positively stimulate the behavior of the herbivore. Rather, vision seems to be the main mechanism driving the exploitation of the novel host. Volatiles emitted by the novel host papaya fruit did not contribute in any way to the visual response of females. Our findings highlight the remarkable role of vision in the host-location process of B. cucurbitae and provide empirical evidence for this sensory modality as a potential mechanism involved in host range expansion.

Rh6 gene modulates the visual mechanism of host utilization in fruit fly Bactrocera minax

“…For example, in the tephritid fruit fly, Neoceratitis cyanescens , mature females use visually independent information to locate the host plant . Similarly, recent empirical research on Zeugodacus cucurbitae has highlighted the primary role of vision in the host‐location process . Beyond tephritids, examples of other herbivores responding more strongly, or exclusively, to host plant visual signals over chemical signals include the beetles Altica engstroemi , Hylastes ater , and Arhopalus ferus , and the hemipterans Macrosiphoniella artemisiae and Empoasca fabae .…”

“…47 Similarly, recent empirical research on Zeugodacus cucurbitae has highlighted the primary role of vision in the host-location process. 48 Beyond tephritids, examples of other herbivores responding more strongly, or exclusively, to host plant visual signals over chemical signals include the beetles Altica engstroemi, 49 Hylastes ater, and Arhopalus ferus, 50 and the hemipterans Macrosiphoniella artemisiae 51 and Empoasca fabae. 52 Thus, increasing evidence across major orders of herbivorous insects demonstrates that vision can play a critical role in host plant detection and location.…”

Larval host plant influences male body size and mating success in a tephritid fruit fly

“…The melon fly, Zeugodacus (previously Bactrocera ; Virgilio et al., ) cucurbitae (Coquillett) (Diptera: Tephritidae), is a world‐wide, agricultural pest that primarily infests plants of the family Cucurbitaceae but also attacks hosts in unrelated families (Dhillon et al., ; Piñero et al., ). The species exhibits a lek mating system, in which males defend individual leaf territories that are spatially aggregated and that contain no resources critical to females (Iwahashi & Majima, ; Mir & Mir, ).…”

Combination of edible vegetable oil and artificial fruit to reduce Bactrocera dorsalis oviposition in chilli fruits

“…Artificial fruits used in fruit fly rearing are usually made from a clear plastic cup or glass jar, filled with fruit juice and covered with its perforated lid or cling wrap plastic film. Artificial fruits are useful for studying fruit fly preferences on colour, odour, shape and size (Drew, Prokopy, & Romig, 2003;Linn, Nojima, & Roelofs, 2005;Mayer et al, 2000;Piñero, Souder, & Vargas, 2017;Prokopy, Green, & Vargas, 1990). Moreover, adhesive-coated artificial fruits can be used for trapping fruit fly females (Cornelius, Duan, & Messing, 1999b;Katsoyannos & Kouloussis, 2001;Schutze et al, 2016).…”