A 30‐year systematic review reveals success in tephritid fruit fly biological control research

Abstract

Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) are among the main pests in horticulture, impacting field crops and export markets. The biological control of fruit flies has become an important method for environmentally friendly crop production. Although biological control is an age-old practice and the mass-rearing of some biological agents boomed in the 1990s, efforts in fruit fly control programs still face several challenges.We conducted a systematic review to investigate publications assessing the success or failure of using natural enemies against tephritid fruit flies. Our goal was to compile and summarize information from over 30 years of research on biocontrol efforts, including groups and species of control agents and fruit flies tested, methodological approaches applied, the country where the study was performed, and the scope adopted. We also analyzed effectiveness, efficiency, and success rates in biocontrol studies published from 1990 to 2021. Our review showed 2986 records, of which 225 publications matched the criteria. The most-studied biocontrol agents for the suppression of fruit flies were parasitoids, fungi, and nematodes. A few studies assessed bacteria, predators, and viruses. We found a total of 55 fruit fly species described as hosts of the biological agents. Natural/conservation biological control was the main scope studied; however, augmentative biological control had a higher rate of successful studies and potential success, followed by classical biological control. The effectiveness and efficiency parameters are discussed to provide support for researchers in future studies.

Review of entomopathogenic fungi and nematodes as biological control agents of tephritid fruit flies: current status and a future vision

“…Major hymenopteran parasitoids of fruit flies belong to the families of Braconidae (Opiinae), Pteromalidae, and Figitidae (Eucoilinae). Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead), Doryctobracon areolatus (Szepligeti), Fopius arisanus (Sonan), Utetes anastrephae (Viereck) (all Braconidae, Opiinae), and Ganaspis pelleranoi (Brethes) (Figitidae, Eucoilinae) are the most reviewed species (Dias et al, 2022).…”

“…(Hymenoptera: Formicidae), are major predators of fruit flies. Other predatory species, including Argiope keyserlingi Karsch (Arachnida: Araneidae), Harpalus rufipes (De Geer) (Coleoptera: Carabidae), and Ocypus olens (OF Müller) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), have been reported (Heve et al, 2021; Dias et al, 2022). Possibly, the activities of M. anisopliae spores may interfere with predation of B. dorsalis adults by O. longinoda or may directly kill O. longinoda colonies on mango trees in orchards (Heve et al, 2021).…”

“…They showed that repayment of costs by spot treatments of H. bacteriophora appears achievable in Florida (USA). The low number of studies showing cost‐effective BCAs is due to the difficulty of evaluating treatment costs in the field for horticultural crops other than major crops such as soybean, cotton, and maize (Dias et al, 2022). In several cases, biological control would probably be cost‐effective if compared with chemical insecticides (Dias et al, 2022).…”

“…The low number of studies showing cost‐effective BCAs is due to the difficulty of evaluating treatment costs in the field for horticultural crops other than major crops such as soybean, cotton, and maize (Dias et al, 2022). In several cases, biological control would probably be cost‐effective if compared with chemical insecticides (Dias et al, 2022). Thus, cost‐benefit analyses must include the environmental benefits associated with using BCAs in IPM programs.…”

Entomophagous insects: Predators and parasitoids that shape insect communities and offer valuable tools for insect pest management

“…Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), the most widely used biocontrol agent against Tephritidae fruit fly pests (Dias et al., 2022), is central to the studies by Nussenbaum et al. (2024) and Devescovi et al.…”