Melon fly (Diptera: Tephritidae): sexual maturation rates and mating responses of laboratory-reared and wild flies

Nearly all females of a 32-year-old laboratory strain of Dacus cucurbitae Coquilett had mature eggs by 10 days of age. Most females of a wild strain had mature eggs by 20 days. Mating ability was reached at about the same adult age as ovarian maturity. Frequencies of wild male x laboratory female, the reciprocal, and wild male x wild female were all the same. Thus, no evidence for sexual isolation between the two strains was obtained in the laboratory. In outdoor cages, laboratory-reared flies tended to mate faster than wild flies, but differences in mating speed were not significant. In tests combining all types of flies, wild and laboratory males mated equally well with both kinds of females.