Drosophila suzukii has its origin in Southeast Asia where it is rarely considered a pest. Unlike other drosophila species that lay eggs in split or rotten fruits, D. suzukii has developed a shift in its ecology, to oviposit into ripe and under-ripe fruits. The female does this so well by keying into odor cues of ripe and under-ripe fruits. Therefore, developing strategies constructed around the olfaction of D. suzukii with the goal of “fooling” females on the choice to oviposit could subsequently lead to reduction in fruit infestation in berry orchards. We pursued this objective in field cage trials and laboratory experiments by testing the effect of a novel food-grade gum with and without a killing agent on fruit infestation by D. suzukii. The result of our first trial showed that D. suzukii lays more eggs in the immediate vicinity of the gum, i.e., fruits nearer to the source of the gum and fewer eggs on fruits farther away from the source of the gum. Incorporating a killing agent to gum resulted in fewer eggs laid on fruits nearer to the source of the gum, suggesting that the flies actually made contact with the gum but would need the addition of toxicant to incapacitate adult fly ability to do further damage to fruits. Work is ongoing to improve the delivery method of the food-grade gum. The implementation of this alternative management tactic will lead to reduction of insecticides use, and increased profitability and sustainability of berry production.
