The Effect of Male Annihilation on a Population of Wild Melon Flies, Dacus cucurbitae COQUILLETT (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Northern Okinawa

Annihilation of male melon flies with cue-lure was conducted on Iheya Is. The results showed that although no wild flies were subsequently caught with cue-lure traps after intensification of distribution of cue-lure strings, the mating rates of mature females did not decrease significantly (p>0.05) compared with those on the other control islands. The infestation rates of the host fruits in this period were not always lower than those of the same months in the previous year. These results suggested that the suppression of melon fly reproduction through male annihilation with cue-lure is problematic.