A PRUIT FLY MENACE. 



Compilation by O. E. BREMNER. 



The fruit growers of the State of California have realized during the 

 past few years, more especially, that the fruit industry is bearing a great 

 burden of tax from the source of insect pests and diseases. The advent 

 of even threatened invasion of any new pest is therefore viewed with 

 great alarm, and justly so. Even our state and county quarantine forces 

 have been more alert and careful in their inspection duties since the 

 White Fly (Aleyrodes citri) outbreak three years ago at Marysville, 

 Oroville, and Bakersfield. 



While we know that our fruits are attacked by many serious pests, 

 much more serious are those which are now just outside our borders, and 

 but for the utmost vigilance will gain admittance to our State. This 

 leaflet is, therefore, issued with the intention of sounding a warning 

 against what is undoubtedly the most destructive and hardest to combat 

 of all insect pests, namely, the fruit flies. The three menacing our State at 

 present are the Morelos orange maggot (Trypeta ludens) of Mexico, the 

 Melon Fly (Dacus cucurbitce), and Mediterranean Fruit Fly (Ceratitis 

 capitata) of the Hawaiian Islands. It is of the last named fly that we 

 have the most fear, and to which we wish to particularly call your atten- 

 tion. 



In October, 1910, we received the following letter from the Board of 

 Commissioners of Agriculture and Forestry, Honolulu, dated October 6, 

 1910: 



"State Commissioner of Horticulture, Capitol Building, Sacramento, California: 



SIR : It is with the greatest regret that I have to inform you of the appearance on 

 this island of the Mediterranean Fruit Fly (Ceratitis capitata). At a meeting of 

 the Board of Agriculture and Forestry, held yesterday, I advised the Board to notify 



the California Commission of Horticulture, and now officially do so by their order. 

 ************** 



Yours very truly, 



(Signed) EDWD. M. EHRHORN. 



' Supt. of Entomology." 



The seriousness of this pest can only be comprehended when we take 

 into consideration the fact that practically every known fruit and vege- 

 table, both cultivated and wild, is attacked by this insect. It is essen- 

 tially a stone fruit pest, but does not limit its diet to these fruits, as 

 shown by the following article : 



(T. W. KIRK, NEW ZEALAND DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. FRUIT FLIES.) 



"Any person finding a white pointed maggot resembling the maggot of the Blow 

 Fly in fruit, is requested to at once send fruit and insect to this office. 



The impossibility of applying remedial measures has led Inspectors Benson and 

 Boiler of the Queensland Department of Agriculture to conduct a series of experi- 

 ments to endeavor to discover some substance which would act as a deterrent to the 

 female when egg laying and to protect the crop. The results are, however, disap- 

 pointing. The following is their report : 



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In Western Australia and in New South Wales nothing has been found of any 

 use against the fly. At the Cape of Good Hope the only successful method has been 

 covering the fruit with mosquito curtain whilst the fruit was ripening. * * * 

 \\ have now had to burn consignments of the following fruits, because they were 

 infested with this dreaded maggot : 



Peaches. Apricots. Nectarines. 



( Mn-rries. Pears. Apples. 



Mangoes. Shaddocks. Mammee-apples. 



Pineapples. Tomatoes. Loquats. 



Persimmons. Plums. Mandarins, 



oranges. Bananas. .Maupi fruit. 



Grenadillas. Figs. 



