Mexican+Fruit+Flies

=Mexican Fruit Flies= Where are they from? =Mexican fruit fly was firs t found in Central Mexico in 1863, and by the early 1950s flies were found along the California-Mexico border. The pest has since been detected in Arizona, California and Texas. A large number of commercially grown crops, including avocado, grapefruit, orange, peach and pear, would be threatened if the Mexican fruit fly became established = = Its natural distribution includes the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, where populations routinely attain pest status if control measures are not practiced. It is a frequent invader in southern California and Arizona. Mexican fruit fly represents a particular threat to Florida because of its special affinity for grapefruit, of which Florida is one of the world's leading producers. Mexican fruit fly larvae are transported widely in infested fruits. = = What is the damage? = = Fruit that has been attacked by the Mexican fruit fly is unfit to eat. Its larvae feed while tunneling through the interior of infested fruits. Microscopic organisms then invade these injured areas, causing internal decay of the fleshy portions of the fruit. As the fruit becomes infested and decays it falls to the ground, thereby destroying the crop. = How to get rid of them? = Three kinds of treatments are used bait spray, the sterile insect technique and/or directed insecticide applications. = =What we can do = = Do not bring or mail fresh fruits, vegetables, or plants into the U.S. or your state unless agricultural inspectors have cleared them beforehand. Never remove fresh produce from your property when your area is under Mexican fruit fly quarantine. = = It's also important to cooperate with any quarantine restrictions or rules that might be imposed because of a Mexican fruit fly find in your area, and allow authorized agricultural workers access to your property to inspect fruit and Mexican fruit fly traps for signs of an infestation. =