Mango (Mangifera indica) orchard fruit fly population dynamics and correlation matrix with host factors and weather

Abstract

In order to analyze the population dynamics of fruit fly (Bactrocera dorsalis) species after placing the necessary number of
methyl eugenol traps (@6 per acre), the current study was conducted in the mango orchards at the Indian Agricultural
Research Institute, New Delhi, in 2020–2021 and 2021–2022. Fruit fly numbers were tracked every week and associated with
a number of meteorological factors. The oriental fruit fly was found to be the most common and plentiful of the fruit fly
species, followed by B. zonata, B. correcta, and B. cucurbitae. In mango farms, fruit fly numbers peaked in June and July,
which also happened to be the season of ripening, humidity, and precipitation. Fruit fly population dynamics have been
discovered to be influenced by a variety of variables, such as weather, the availability of preferred host plants and alternative
hosts, and fruit qualities. Male fruit fly seasonal trap catches exhibited a maximal but substantial positive association with
the lowest temperature (0.701**) and a moderately significant negative correlation (-0.612*). Fruit fly population variations
were shown to be positively correlated with relative humidity (r = 0.924**) and rainfall (r = 0.721**) at all orchard locations
under observation.