Comparison of male adult population densities of the oriental and artocarpus fruit flies, <i>Dacus</i> spp. (Diptera: Tephritidae), in two nearby villages in Penang, Malaysia

Abstract

Summary The populations of native male adult oriental fruit fly Dacus dorsalis ( Hendel ) and artocarpus fruit fly D. umbrosus (F.) in two selected site (BU and SD) were estimated weekly by the capture‐recapture technique using live traps baited with methyl eugenol. In BU where many varieties of fruit trees were grown, the estimated population densities of D. dorsalis were between 980 and 3100 male flies per ha between May and July, 1984. During the same period, in SD where there were fewer number and varieties of fruit trees, the estimated population densities were between 300 and 1000 flies per ha. The estimated population densities of D. umbrosus over the same period were between 570 and 1290 flies per ha in BU; and between 5 and 95 flies per ha in SD. Of a total 6828 marked D. dorsalis flies released only one fly (released 6 weeks earlier in BU) was caught in a different site.