Fruit compounds affect male sexual competitiveness in the South American fruit fly, Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae).

VERA, M. T.; RUIZ, M. J.; OVIEDO, A.; ABRAHAM, S.; MENDOZA, M.; SEGURA, D. F.; KOULOUSSIS, N.; WILLINK, E.

Pereybere, Isla Mauritius

Workshop; Final RCM on Improving Sterile Male Performance in FF SIT; 2009

IAEA

Exposure to plants has been shown to influence sexual behaviour in a number of phytophagous insect species. Here we assessed the effect of exposure to guava, mango and lemon on the mating competitiveness of Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae) males. We evaluated different exposure times and the need for physical contact with the fruit. For guava and mango, males had access to the pulp of the fruit while for lemon, males were exposed to essential oils emanating from glands in the flavedo area. Exposed and non-exposed males were confronted to virgin females and the number of couples obtained for each male type was recorded. Results showed that exposure to guava increased sexual performance, exposure to mango had no effect, and exposure to lemon increased or decreased it depending on the experimental conditions. Enhanced mating success after guava exposure was evident both for wild and laboratory flies. In addition, for wild flies, the time copulation started for exposed males was shorter than for non-exposed males. Lemon exposures that lasted more than one day eliminated the detrimental impact of lemon on mating competitiveness. Physical contact with the fruit or ingestion of compounds was not essential to obtain mating advantage given that exposure to volatiles also resulted in male enhancement. The possibility of taking advantage of this findings to enhance A. fraterculus male sexual competitiveness in control operations and the potential role of the compound a-copane are discussed.