The female punctures outer wall of mature fruits with the help of its pointed ovipositor and insert eggs in small clusters inside mesocarp of mature fruits.
On hatching, the maggots feed on fruit pulp and the infested fruits start rotting due to further secondary infection
Management
Hot water treatment of fruit at 48 ± 1 ºC for 45 min.
Male annihilation technique: Set up fly trap using methyl eugenol. Prepare methyl eugenol 1 ml/L of water + 1 ml of malathion solution. Take 10 ml of this mixture per trap and keep them at 25 different places in one ha between 6 and 8 am. Collect and destroy the adult flies
Prior to harvest, collect and dispose off infested and fallen fruits to prevent further, multiplication and carry-over of population.
Ploughing of orchard during November-December to expose pupae to sun’s heat which kills them.
If infestation is heavy, bait splash on the trunk only, once or twice at weekly interval is recommended. To prepare bait splash, mix 100 g of jaggery in one litre of water and add 1 ml of deltamethrin by using an old broom.
Managing fruit flies also reduces anthracnose disease and prevents late fruit fall.
