Bionomics of Bactrocera Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan; Exploring Performance of Various Trap Types and Their Characteristics

Abstract

This study investigated spatio-Temporal fluctuations and population dynamics of Bactrocera fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, in relation to selected climatic variables. Additionally, infestation rate of Bactrocera species and trapping efficiency of different trap types and characteristics were explored. Fruit flies were collected from 14 selected localities of 9 districts in 4 agro-ecological zones of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa using pheromone traps (methyl eugenol and raspberry extract), food-baited traps, and from rearing of infested fruits. A total of 12,058 fruit flies belonging to nine species: Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel), Bactrocera zonata (Saunders), Bactrocera correcta (Bezzi), Bactrocera signata (Hering), Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett), Bactrocera tau (Walker), Bactrocera zahadi (Mahmood), Bactrocera scutellaris (Bezzi), and Bactrocera nigrofemoralis (White and Tsuruta) (all Diptera: Tephritidae) were collected. The first 3 species were categorized as dominant. Highest flies per trap per d was recorded from district Kohat (Zone-D) while the lowest was in Nowshera (Zone-C). Havelian, district Abbottabad (Zone-B), was the most diverse locality. Fruit fly population peaked in May and were at a minimum in Dec. There was a significant positive correlation between rainfall and Bactrocera species abundance, and a negative association between relative humidity and population abundance. Highest flies per trap per d were recorded at elevations ranging from 285 to 855 masl in semi-Arid and cool zones, in sub-humid zones of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and in rangelands south of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Fruit flies showed host specificity with respect to certain plant families. Methyl eugenol-raspberry extract traps and food-baited traps displayed species-specific trapping patterns. South-facing and green or yellow colored traps were the most attractive. Numbers of Bactrocera were higher in methyl eugenol-raspberry extract mixture traps compared to other pheromone trap combinations. In food-baited trials, peach and guava-baited traps attracted the highest number of Bactrocera flies. Adding sugar and yeast increased trapping efficiency.