To evaluate the perimeter trapping strategy as a control method, field tests were conducted in three different host species of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), in Israel. Dry traps baited with a three component food-based synthetic attractant that were hung in the peripheral rows of a plum, a pear, and a persimmon orchard, caught female C. capitata (up to 20.1, 1.4, and 4.1 female C. capitata per trap per day, respectively). Fruit damage, estimated at harvest, indicated a negligible percentage for the plum orchard (< 1%), 3% for the persimmon orchard (compared with 9% at an untreated neighboring plot), and no damaged fruit in the pear orchard. Finally, dissections of female C. capitata caught in dry traps on different host plant species indicate that a high percentage (range, 84-100%) contained mature eggs. The attraction of mature females to the dry traps might explain the successful results. Future research, to determine precisely how many traps should be placed and how frequently they should be serviced, is necessary before applying this strategy on a commercial basis.

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We investigated the influence of the physiological state of young female Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae) on resource foraging behavior and mating propensity in field cage studies. Three kinds of diets were supplied prior to release on host plants: (1) 2% sucrose, (2) 20% sucrose, and (3) protein hydrolysate. Laboratory‐cultured C. capitata females of different ages, ranging between 3–9 days old, were released in field cages containing two potted citrus tree seedlings, each consisting of either proteinacous or carbohydrate sources. Flies 3–7 days old, exposed to 2% sucrose, showed no preference for either source, while other groups, at the same age, displayed a significant influence of diet. Conversely, the behavior of flies within the age 8–9 days old was governed only by their reproductive needs, all three groups being significantly attracted to protein. In additional field‐cage studies, mating propensity of similar groups was observed. Copulation was significantly higher among immature flies fed on proteinacous diet than those exposed to carbohydrate sources prior to their release.

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