Parasitoids of fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) and their distribution along mango production zones in Senegal

Abstract

In this study, the diversity and distribution of fruit fly parasitoids and their reservoir plants along a latitudinal gradient in three zones of mango production in Senegal were reported. Fruits were collected from wild and cultivated plants at 15 different sites (5 sites per production zone) over a period of seven months. In the northern and middle zone (Niayes and Centre). Our results showed a significant contrast in the distribution of parasitoid species between zones and fruit types. In Niayes, Psytallia cosyrae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) was the dominant species, while in Centre it was P. cosyrae and Diachasmimorpha spp. (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). The native plant species that were hosting the highest densities of fruit flies and parasitoids were Capparis tomentosa, Ziziphus mauritiana, Kedrostis hirtella, and Momordica balsamina. In the southern zone (Casamance), we measured parasitism rate by the introduced parasitoid Fopius arisanus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and found an average of 5% parasitism rate in mango orchards.There, the most abundant parasitoids found were F. caudatus and F. sylvestri. Additional research is needed to characterize the factors affecting the effectiveness of biological control with hymenopteran parasitoids and determine the role played by native host plants in the control of fruit flies.