Mango Fruit Fly Control

Symptoms

Female flies lay eggs under the skin of ripening fruit leaving tiny puncture marks. Maggots tunnel inside, the flesh rots and turns brown, and the fruit drops early or oozes liquid. Cut fruit shows white legless maggots feeding in the pulp.

Damage

Fruit fly is one of the most serious pests of mango and can cause heavy pre and post harvest losses, sometimes very high in unmanaged orchards. Maggot tunnelling makes fruit unfit to eat or sell and triggers quarantine restrictions on export consignments.

Organic & cultural control

Collect and destroy fallen and infested fruit daily by deep burying so maggots do not reach the soil to pupate. Hang methyl eugenol pheromone traps at about ten per hectare to catch and kill male flies. Plough the orchard to expose pupae. A protein bait spray mixed with a little insecticide on the canopy attracts and kills flies with very low chemical use.

Chemical control

Where infestation is high, a protein bait spray or spot spray with a recommended insecticide such as malathion or spinosad combined with traps and sanitation works best; cover sprays are rarely needed. Always read and follow the label, strictly observe the pre-harvest interval since fruit is near maturity, and consult your KVK or agronomist before spraying.

Always follow the product label, the recommended pre-harvest interval, and your local KVK or agronomist. Pesticide approvals change, so verify before use.

Prevention

Practice strict orchard sanitation by removing all fallen fruit. Harvest fruit at the correct mature stage rather than over ripe. Bag individual fruits on small trees, and set up methyl eugenol traps from the start of fruiting across the whole village area for area wide control.