Abstract: Based on literature records and the results of an extensive trapping program, presence records for 194 species of Bactrocera and Dacus in the 19 provinces of Papua New Guinea (PNG) are presented. Of the 770 records, over 500 are new. Based on species accumulation curves, Central, Morobe, Madang, Eastern Highlands, Western Highlands, New Ireland and Bougainville provinces, plus the province pairs of East and West Sepik, East and West New Britain, and Southern Highlands and Enga, can be regarded as having been adequately sampled. The remaining provinces should still be regarded as being under-collected. On mainland PNG, Morobe and Central provinces have the richest faunas and highest levels of endemism, approximately 15% each. All other mainland provinces have very low levels of endemism and are essentially subsets of the faunas of Morobe and Central Province. Although also with very low levels of endemism, the Highlands provinces have a statistically distinct fauna, suggesting that a pool of the PNG species are able to utilise both lowland and highland habitats. The fruit fly fauna of the island provinces is distinct from the mainland fauna, with further separation between the islands of the Bismark Archipelago (New Britain and New Ireland) and Bougainville. The greatest diversity of flies in PNG are associated with major northern geological elements, i.e., the New Guinea orogen, New Guinea accreted terranes and the off-shore islands, rather than the primary southern geological element, the Australian creton.

Abstract: In a database cataloguing radiation doses for arthropod sterilization and disinfestation, out of 65 entries on Diptera species from 16 families and 22 genera, 21 species belong to the Tephritidae, confirming the importance of this group in pest management and international trade in agricultural commodities. Following Tephritidae are Culicidae (15 species), Glossinidae (6), Muscidae (6), Calliphoridae (5), Drosophilidae (1), Anthomyiidae (1), Oestridae (2), Agromyzidae (2), Chloropidae (1), Piophilidae (1), Cuterebridae (1), Psilidae (1), Sarcophagidae (1), Sciaridae (1) and Tachinidae (1). The 21 species of Tephritidae belong to five genera, with Bactrocera having the largest number of species (9) being the subject of studies on sterility induction for pest control,followed by Anastrepha (6 species), Rhagoletis (3), Ceratitis (2) and Dacus (1). The mean dose to induce sterilization in Tephritidae is 65 Gy, which reflects an intermediate sensitivity to radiation compared toother Dipteran families. In general, the Tephritidae are a relatively homogeneous group. Less than 100 Gy is needed to achieve complete sterility in the five genera, and this confirms the recommendation of a generic dose in the range of 100–150 Gy to disinfest agricultural commodities for international trade.

Abstract: On the Mascarene Islands, the Ethiopian fruit fly, Dacus ciliatus Loew, is one of the major frugivorous pests of Cucurbitaceae. Both visual and olfactory signals involved in the host location process need to be evaluated to better understand the behaviour of this species, and to improve trapping. This article reports results of our studies with visual stimuli. Responses of immature and sexually mature females and males were studied in two outdoor field cages. The reaction of cohorts of 150 adults of each sex to coloured rectangles, spheres and ovoids of different sizes were observed during four successive days within a period of 13 weeks. Sexually mature males were caught more frequently than females of the same age. Captures rates were high: more than 70% for females and more than 80% for males. Spherical shapes were preferred by both sexes to ovoid and rectangular shapes. Orange colours were the most attractive to sexually mature females, whereas yellow colours were the most attractive to sexually mature males. Immature females preferred yellow colours. (Resume d'auteur)

Abstract: Reunion Island is characterized by a particular orography and a variable distribution of host plants for Dacini species. A complex of 3 Dacini species infests 16 host plant species belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae. These three species of vegetable fruit flies represent the primary pests of this plant family and are the main insect problem for cucurbit crops. We included in this study the two species B. cucurbitae (melon fly) and D. ciliatus (Ethiopian fruit fly). Adults of B. cucurbitae are classified as 'R-strategists; spending more energy than D. ciliatus in effectively using environmental resources. Adults of D. ciliatus can be classified as 'K-strategists: B. cucurbitae is the species best adapted to exploit short-lived host plants. This adaptation explains its pre-dominance over D. ciliatus under larval interspecific competition on Reunion Island. (Resume d'auteur)

Abstract: Cucurbit fly is an important pest of cucurbit plants (Cucumber, melon and watermelon) in most mid-east countries including, Iran. This insect causes a high damage so that several sprayings are required to control the pest. Using male strile is another physical method for controlling this pest. For this purpose it is necessary to rear many male insects. Therefore an investigation was carried out to compare different artificial diets for rearing the melon fly. First, pupae were collected from cucurbit field and transferred to laboratory. In this experiment five diet formulations were compared and the following was used for rearing: Wheat bran (14 g), soybean lees (3 g) sugar (50 g), yeast extract (2.7 g) nipagin (0.1 g). sodiumbenzoate (0.1 g) Hydrochloric acid 3.5% (4.0 ml) and distilled water 70.5 mil. For rearing the adult, the best diets contained: Brower yeast (1 part), Honey (5 parts), water (94 parts) and a slice of cucumber. These diet caused abundance of oviposition and egg fertility.