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<em>Bactrocera curvipennis</em>

Bactrocera curvipennis

Previous scientific names: Dacus curvipennis Froggatt, Strumeta curvipennis, Dacus (Strumeta) curvipennis

Diagnosis

Morphological – adult

Features include:

  • small species
  • very small pale fuscous facial spots present or absent
  • postpronotal lobes and notoluera yellow
  • scutum black, mesopleural stripe reaching midway between anterior margin of notoplueron and anterior npl. seta, lateral postsutural vittae present, medial postsutural vitta absent, scutellum yellow
  • wing with a broad fuscous costal band and anal streak, a broad fuscous band along r-m crossvein, cells bc and c pale fuscous, microtrichia covering cell c and outer corner of cell bc
  • abdominal terga III-V orange-brown with a narrow transverse fuscous band along anterior margin of tergum III merging into broad lateral black margins on tergum III and with anterolateral corners of terga IV and V fuscous
  • posterior lobe of male surstylus short
  • female with aculeus tip needle shaped (Drew 1989, pers. comm.Drew 2010, pers comm.Royer 2017).

Morphological – larvae

Information not available.

Molecular

PCR-RFLP Test 1

BsrI: 570, 250

HinfI: Does not cut

HhaI: 620, 170

Sau3AI: 420

SnaBI: Does not cut

SspI: 550, 200

Vspl: Does not cut

Approximate ITS1 fragment length – gel: 850 bp

PCR-RFLP Test 2

RsaI and SspI produce diagnostic restriction patterns (See Restriction enzyme haplotype chart and Diagnostic restriction patterns).

RsaI: 490, 460, 410, 290
SspI: 1020, 580, 100

Host Range

Bactrocera curvipennis has been recorded on hosts from 20 families (for a full list of recorded hosts see Leblanc et al. 2012). Major commercial hosts (Drew 1989; Leblanc et al. 2012).

  • Annona reticulata (custard apple)
  • Annona squmosa (custard apple)
  • Averrhoa carambola (carambola)
  • Capsicum annuum (sweet pepper)
  • Carica papaya (papaw)
  • Casimoira edulis (white sapote)
  • Citrus species (citrus)
  • Coffea Arabica (coffee)
  • Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato)
  • Mangifera indica (mango)
  • Prunus persica (peach)
  • Psidium guajava (guava)
  • Syzygium species (Malay apple, rose apple)

Distribution

New Caledonia and a remote southern-most island in Vanuatu (Aneityum Island) (Drew 1989).

Similar species

Bactrocera curvipennis is distinct in having a wide costal band to R 4+5 and infuscation on the r-m vein, tinted costal cells with microtrichia covering cell c and outer corner of cell bc, and abdominal terga III-V orange-brown with dark markings on the anterior and lateral edges of edge of tergum III.

It is similar to the Australian species B. bryoniae but has infuscation on the r-m vein, doesn’t have a medial line on the abdomen and is generally smaller.

Bactrocera curvipennis was a dominant pest species in New Caledonia until the introduction of B. tryoni in the 1960s. Host fruit surveys show that where B. tryoni is represented by dense populations B. curvipennis is almost absent, but where B. tryoni has low populations B. curvipennis is still an important pest species (Amice and Sales 1997).

Pest Status

  • Exotic

Attractant/Lure

Isoeugenol is a significantly stronger attractant than cue lure Royer et al. 2018.