The biological fight against Drosophila starts late in Italy

Published Jun 13, 2022

Tridge summary

The article highlights the challenges posed by the invasion of the small fruit fly, Drosophila suzukii, in Italy, leading to the need for a more effective control strategy. The Ministry of Ecological Transition has permitted the introduction of the parasitoid Ganaspis brasiliensis, which has shown promising results in controlling the fruit fly in its native Asia. Despite initial success with 36 releases in 2021, the expansion of the project to 162 sites for 2022 is facing obstacles due to unclear reasons. Preliminary studies suggest that G. brasiliensis targets early stages of D. suzukii specifically, without affecting other Drosophila species, indicating its potential as a specialized control agent. The ongoing project holds hope for the effective management of the fruit fly infestation.

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Original content

The Ministry of Ecological Transition imposes arbitrary restrictions on the launch of the parasitoid Ganaspis brasiliensis, creating disparities in the partner regions of the biological control project Drosophila suzukii, also known as 'small fruit fly', is a drosophilid dipteran of Asian origin accidentally introduced in Italy in 2009 which in a short time became the main limiting factor for cherry and small fruit crops. Damage in fruit ripening The arrival of this alien species has profoundly changed the defense strategies of the affected crops, increasing the number of insecticide treatments necessary to contain infestations, especially for later harvest cultivars. The damage caused by the gnat, in fact, occurs above all in the vicinity of the ripening period of the fruit aggravated by the continuous reinfestations coming from outside the field, by the duration of the harvesting period and by the coexistence in the territory of numerous crops and host varieties that act as an ...

Source: Terraevita