Abstract
Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) are a significant threat to cucurbit production in Tanzania. To effectively combat these pests, it is crucial to understand the patterns of fruit fly infestations among cucurbit crops at different altitudes. Our study focused on the infestation patterns of fruit flies among commonly grown cucurbit crops-cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus [Thunb.] Matsum. & Nakai), and squash (Cucurbita moschata D.) in Eastern Central Tanzania. The research was conducted in the "plateau" (low altitude) and the "mountainous" (high altitude) areas of Morogoro over three cropping seasons (March - April as Season I, June - July as Season II, and September - October as Season III) during 2020. We collected a total of 450 samples equivalent to 4,500 fruits during this period. Out of these, 418 samples were infested by five fruit fly species: Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett), Dacus ciliatus Loew, Dacus vertebratus Bezzi, Dacus bivittatus (Bigot), and Dacus punctatifrons Karsch, which are the principal tephritid pests of cucurbit crops in Morogoro. In total, 22,169 fruit flies were recovered from the samples, with more flies emerging from the mountainous zone (12,390) than the plateau (9,779). Zeugodacus cucurbitae accounted for the majority of the emerged flies (18,789), while the remaining species, including D. vertebratus and D. ciliatus, contributed smaller numbers. Among the hosts, Cucumis sativus was the most heavily infested, followed by Cucurbit moschata and Citrullus lanatus. Significant effects of fruit fly species × host species and fruit fly species × agroecological zone on percent infestation and degree of infestation. Furthermore, the effects of host species × agroecological zone on percent infestation were significant. The study further found that that Z. cucurbitae was the dominant pest in terms of percent and degree of infestation among the three cucurbit crops at both agroecological zones in the Morogoro region. These findings provide valuable insights into severity of pest infestation that may cause high economic losses in cucurbit crops in cucurbit production. The study recommends that any management strategies for fruit flies should focus on controlling Z. cucurbitae, as a key pest of cucurbits in the region.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Five fruit fly species infested 418 samples of cucurbit crops.
Verbatim
e0“Out of these, 418 samples were infested by five fruit fly species: Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett), Dacus ciliatus Loew, Dacus vertebratus Bezzi, Dacus bivittatus (Bigot), and Dacus punctatifrons Karsch, which are the principal tephritid pests of cucurbit crops in Morogoro.”
Claim · model-written summary
More fruit flies emerged from the mountainous zone than the plateau.
- Outcome
- flies emerginge0
- Direction
- moree0
- Value
- 12,390e0
- Qualifier
- 9,779e0
- Comparator
- plateaue0
- Setting
- mountainous zonee0
Not reportedTaxon
Verbatim
e0“In total, 22,169 fruit flies were recovered from the samples, with more flies emerging from the mountainous zone (12,390) than the plateau (9,779).”
Claim · model-written summary
Zeugodacus cucurbitae accounted for most emerged flies.
- Interactor
- Zeugodacus cucurbitae
_03.jpg?width=60)
Zeugodacus cucurbitaee0pest - Outcome
- emerged fliese0
- Direction
- majoritye0
- Value
- 18,789e0
Not reportedTaxon
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
_03.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“Zeugodacus cucurbitae accounted for the majority of the emerged flies (18,789)”
Claim · model-written summary
Cucumis sativus was the most heavily infested host.
- Taxon
- Cucumis sativus
Cucumis sativuse0 - Outcome
- infestede0
- Direction
- most heavilye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Among the hosts, Cucumis sativus was the most heavily infested, followed by Cucurbit moschata and Citrullus lanatus.”
Claim · model-written summary
Cucurbit moschata was less infested than Cucumis sativus and more than Citrullus lanatus.
Verbatim
e0“Among the hosts, Cucumis sativus was the most heavily infested, followed by Cucurbit moschata and Citrullus lanatus.”
Claim · model-written summary
Fruit fly species by host species significantly affected percent and degree of infestation.
Not reportedTaxonDirection
Verbatim
e0“Significant effects of fruit fly species × host species and fruit fly species × agroecological zone on percent infestation and degree of infestation.”
Claim · model-written summary
Fruit fly species by agroecological zone significantly affected percent and degree of infestation.
- Interactor
- fruit fly speciese0pest
- Outcome
- percent infestation and degree of infestatione0
- Setting
- agroecological zonee0
Not reportedTaxonDirection
Verbatim
e0“Significant effects of fruit fly species × host species and fruit fly species × agroecological zone on percent infestation and degree of infestation.”
Claim · model-written summary
Host species by agroecological zone significantly affected percent infestation.
Not reportedTaxonDirection
Verbatim
e0“Furthermore, the effects of host species × agroecological zone on percent infestation were significant.”
Claim · model-written summary
Z. cucurbitae dominated infestation across three cucurbit crops in both zones.
- Taxon
- cucurbit cropse0
- Interactor
- Z. cucurbitaeZeugodacus cucurbitaee0pest
- Outcome
- percent and degree of infestatione0
- Direction
- dominante0
- Setting
- Morogoro regione0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Z. cucurbitae was the dominant pest in terms of percent and degree of infestation among the three cucurbit crops at both agroecological zones in the Morogoro region.”
Claim · model-written summary
Management of cucurbit fruit flies should focus on Z. cucurbitae.
- Taxon
- cucurbitse0
- Interactor
- Z. cucurbitaeZeugodacus cucurbitaee0pest
- Outcome
- focus on controlling Z. cucurbitaee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The study recommends that any management strategies for fruit flies should focus on controlling Z. cucurbitae, as a key pest of cucurbits in the region.”