22 BULLETIN 536, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



FRUITS ERRONEOUSLY LISTED AS HOSTS. 



No infestation has been found in pineapples (Ananas sativus), 



banyan (Ficus indica), pride of India or chinaberry (Melia azedarach), 



noni (Morinda citrifolia), jujube (Zizyphus jujuba), mulberry (Morus 



nigra), tamarind pods (Tamarindus indica), wine palm (Caryota 



ureus), Ixora coccinea, Oanarium commune, Sideroxylon sandwichensis, 



mammee apple (Mammea americana), durion (Durio zibethinus), 



Cape gooseberry or poha (Physalis peruviana), ohelo berry (Vaccinium 



reticulatum) , kukui nut or candlenut tree (Aleurites moluccana), 



nigbt-blooming cereus (Cereus triangularis) , and jack fruit (Artocarpus 



integrifolia) . 



Pineapple. 



The pineapple {Ananas sativus) is not a host fruit of the Mediter- 

 ranean fruit fly in Hawaii. Negative data are given here because 

 of the persistent reports that this fruit is subject to fruit-fly attack. 

 Iflingsworth reared the pineapple fruit fly (Dacus xanihodes Broun) 

 from pineapples in Fiji in 1913. In 1904 Kirk states that he had 

 reared only the Queensland fruit fly (Dacus tryoni Frogg.) from pine- 

 apples exported from Queensland into New Zealand. In 1908 Kirk 

 again states that Dacus xanthodes was commonly found in pineapples 

 and oranges from Fiji and Rarotonga entering New Zealand. 

 Gowdey, in 1913, reports rearing Q. capitata from pineapples in 

 Uganda, British East Africa. So far as the writers are aware no 

 data have ever been published from careful experiments to determine 

 the true status of the pineapple as a host fruit, and the writers know 

 of no positive evidence that C. capitata has ever been reared from this 

 fruit. 



It is certain that during a period of over three years not one of 

 seven entomologists in Honolulu has succeeded in rearing adults 

 from this fruit. Fullaway, of the United States Experiment Station, 

 obtained negative results from fruits placed in a large cage. The 

 market and plantation inspectors of the Federal Horticultural Board 

 have brought to the office during the past three years many partially 

 decayed fruits, but no fruit flies were reared from them, although 

 many decay flies were. Although pineapples are grown profitably 

 only under the best horticultural conditions (PL III), none of the 

 developing fruits are sufficiently isolated from other varieties of host 

 fruits affected to warrant the belief that adult fruit flies are not 

 present in large enough numbers to infest each fruit were the pine- 

 apple susceptible to infestation. 



In an attempt to force an infestation within the laboratory, 50 ripe 

 pineapples were placed either singly or by twos in large glass jars con- 

 taining from 300 to 500 adult flies in a mature egg-laying condition, 

 and allowed to remain with the flies from 2 to 4 days. The pineapples 

 were then removed and placed over sand in covered jars. No flies 



