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Effect of the sterile insect technique (SIT) on predator-prey interactions in Queensland fruit fly, Bactrocera tryoni (Diptera: Tephritidae)

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posted on 2022-11-15, 03:56 authored by Darshana N. Rathnayake

Queensland fruit fly (Q-fly) is a serious horticultural pest known to infest over hundreds of economically important fruits and vegetables in Australia. Sterile insect technique (SIT) is currently a wide-spread method to control its wild population. Domestication and irradiation of laboratory reared flies are the two key steps in SIT, however, these processes are likely to affect the performance of SIT released flies negatively. High-density mass rearing is expected to reduce the flies’ awareness of their surroundings and irradiation lowers activity, emergence, flight ability and survival. Previous work suggests that Q-flies (including SIT released flies) are targeted by many predators in the field. These circumstances are concerning as SIT released flies are predicted to be predated more than wild counterparts. However, to date no detailed study has been conducted to test the influence of natural predators on Q-fly survival and reproduction, including SIT released flies. Therefore, my thesis investigated the effect of natural predators on Q-fly survival and reproduction. My study offers an evaluation for current SIT control, emphasising the effect of domestication and irradiation on released fly behaviour against their natural predators. My thesis research confirmed that the together with SIT, natural predators play a significant role in controlling wild Q-fly populations through direct (predation) and indirect (lowering reproduction) effects. Interestingly, the domestication and irradiation process did not detrimentally affect the SIT released fly behaviour against their natural predators. However, my results confirmed that domestication affects behaviour, including mating behaviour, which may need to be further considered to improve the success of the SIT process. Overall, the results in this thesis suggest that the SIT process does not affect the predator-prey interaction in Q-flies, and released sterile males are not at a disadvantage when they are exposed to predators compared to wild counterparts. However, SIT released flies may differ in other aspects such as reproductive behaviour, which may have direct consequences on the effectiveness and efficiency of current Q-fly control measures. Therefore, further studies are recommended to identify the underlying mechanisms of these results, thereby improving SIT control of this pest.

History

Table of Contents

Introduction -- Chapter outline -- Chapter 1 -- Chapter 2 -- Chapter 3 -- Chapter 4 -- Summary and Conclusions -- Appendix 1

Notes

This thesis is presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy ADDITIONAL SUPERVISOR 3: Polychronis Rempoulakis

Awarding Institution

Macquarie University

Degree Type

Thesis PhD

Degree

Thesis (PhD), Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Macquarie University

Department, Centre or School

Department of Biological Sciences

Year of Award

2019

Principal Supervisor

Marie Herberstein

Additional Supervisor 1

Michelle Power

Additional Supervisor 2

Lizzy Lowe

Rights

Copyright: The Author Copyright disclaimer: https://www.mq.edu.au/copyright-disclaimer

Language

English

Jurisdiction

Queensland Australia

Extent

132 pages

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