Mediterranean Fruit Fly Pest Profile

Tropical fruit flies represent a major threat to California’s agriculture. The damage caused by larval feeding makes fruit unfit for human consumption. In addition, the presence of an established population would cause a severe economic impact via restrictions/prohibitions on the export of fresh fruit both domestically and internationally. The crops potentially affected in California are many and comprise a significant portion of the total agricultural output for the state.

The Mediterranean fruit fly has one of the widest host range of any pest fruit fly, and is considered the most important agricultural pest in the world. It has been recorded infesting over 250 cultivated and wild fruits. The host list includes apple, apricot, avocado, bell pepper, carambola, coffee, dates, fig, grape, grapefruit, guava, lemon, lime, loquat, lychee, mango, nectarine, orange, papaya, peach, pear, persimmon, plum, pomegranate, pummelo, quince, sapote, tangerine, tomato, and walnut. In California, the combined 2011 gross value of the above hosts was over $16.5 billion (USDA NASS 2012).

The Mediterranean fruit fly is native to Africa, but has spread to other parts of the world including southern Europe, Australia, and the New World tropics. In Africa, it has been recorded from Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zaire, and Zimbabwe. In Europe it is known to be established in Albania, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and Ukraine. It has invaded and become established in the Atlantic Ocean islands of the Azores, Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, Madeira, St. Helena, and São Tomé and Principe. It is known from the Middle Eastern countries of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Turkey. It is established on the Indian Ocean islands of Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion and Seychelles. It has been recorded from the Caribbean on the island of Jamaica and in the Netherlands Antilles. In the Pacific it is established in western Australia, Hawaii, and the Mariana Islands. In the Americas it is known from the Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama. Finally, it is established in the South American countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela. This pest was first trapped in California in 1975.