Sexual competitiveness of fertile and sterile, wild and mass‐reared males of Anastrepha obliqua

• Published in: Entomologia experimentalis et applicata 2018-09, Vol.166 (9), p.771-777
• Main Authors: Gallardo‐Ortiz, Uriel, Pérez‐Staples, Diana, Liedo, Pablo, Toledo, Jorge
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anastrepha obliqua; Cages; Competitiveness; Diptera; Experiments; field cages; Fruit flies; Irradiation; Male sterility; Males; Mangoes; Mass rearing; Pest control; Pests; Radiation; SIT; sterile insect technique; Sterility; Sterilization; Sterilized organisms; Tephritidae; West Indies fruit fly
• ISSN: 0013-8703; 1570-7458
• DOI: 10.1111/eea.12709

Anastrepha obliqua (Macquart) (Diptera: Tephritidae), commonly known as the West Indies fruit fly, is a pest species of mango, plum (both Anacardiaceae), and other commercial crops in various countries in the Neotropics, including Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands. Currently, the sterile insect technique (SIT) is used to control this pest. Here, the sexual competitiveness of mass‐reared sterile A. obliqua males was evaluated against wild males in field cages. In the first experiment, fertile mass‐reared males had similar sexual performance as fertile wild males reared on mango and tropical plum. In the second experiment, sterile mass‐reared males had better sexual performance than sterile wild males recovered from mango and tropical plum. In the third experiment, fertile wild males recovered from mango had better sexual performance than sterile mass‐reared males. The relative sterility index (RSI) was 0.32, indicating low acceptance of sterile males by wild females. The induced sterility index estimated by Fried's test produced a coefficient of 0.4, indicating that irradiation affected the sexual performance of the mass‐reared males, which had reduced sexual performance compared to wild males. We discuss our results in the context of mass‐rearing and sterilization as part of the SIT programs used to control A. obliqua. The sexual competitiveness of mass‐reared sterile Anastrepha obliqua (Diptera: Tephritidae) males was evaluated in field cages against wild males. Irradiation affected the sexual performance of the mass‐reared males, which had reduced sexual performance compared to wild males. Reduction in irradiation dose could improve the performance of sterile males and induce a greater sterility with wild females.