Field Identification
A tephritid fly whose larvae develop in many tropical and subtropical fruits (guava, mango, Surinam cherry, loquat, etc.). Sting scars and softening fruit with larvae inside are diagnostic.
Adult is yellow-brown with patterned wings; larvae are cream maggots in fruit pulp. Females oviposit under the skin leaving a small puncture.
How to Deal With It
Organic Control Methods
Use regional trapping guidelines; harvest at proper maturity and remove fallen fruit daily; bag fruit in high-value plantings.
Sterile insect technique is area-wide; parasitoid braconids attack larvae in some systems.
Clean orchard floor; host-free periods where regulations require; grow early varieties that mature before peak fly.
Fruit bagging or fine mesh enclosures on individual trees.
Bait sprays combining protein hydrolysate plus approved organic insecticide (e.g., spinosad) target adults—follow local extension recipes and organic certification rules.
Let Nature Handle It
Natural Enemies
- Parasitic Wasps
- Predatory Ants
Threat Map