''Rhagoletis cerasi'' (the cherry fruit fly or European cherry fruit fly) is a species of fruit fly in the family

Tephritidae The Tephritidae are one of two fly families referred to as fruit flies, the other family being the Drosophilidae. The family Tephritidae does not include the biological model organisms of the genus ''Drosophila'' (in the family Drosophilidae), w ...

Distribution

This species is widespread in most of Europe, except

British Islands The British Islands is a term within the law of the United Kingdom which refers collectively to the following four polities: * the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (formerly the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland); ...

, in western

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

, in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

and Altai. It was first detected in North America in 2016.

Description

''Rhagoletis cerasi'' can reach a body length of about .Mouche de la cerise
These small fruit flies have a shiny body, dark brown, almost black. Mesonotum shows silvery vittae. The wings are transparent, with four transverse dark stripes. Eyes are green with reddish reflections. The head is brown, while scutellum and the legs are yellow. V. A. Korneyev, S.V. Korneyev, R. I. Mishusti
The Carpomyini Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) of Europe, Caucasus, and Middle East: New Records of Pest Species, with Improved Keys
/ref> This species is very similar to '' Rhagoletis berberidis''.

Biology

The adults can be found from late May to early July. They feed on the sugary secretions produced by the cherry itself or by insects (such as the aphid honeydew). After 10–15 days the females lay 50-80 eggs one at a time in the pulp of the fruit. After 6–12 days the eggs hatch and white legless larvae 4–6 mm long come out and feed on the pulp of the fruit. During the ripening the larvae leave the fruit and pupate in the soil, where they overwinter. Usually this species have one generation every 1–2 years. These fruit flies are considered a major pest of

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...

crops Biological control of the cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis cerasi L. (Diptera, Tephritidae) by use of entomopathogenic nematodes: first experiences towards practical implementation
/ref> in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. They damage also the fruits of

apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus ''Prunus''. Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are also ...

honeysuckle Honeysuckles are arching shrubs or twining vines in the genus ''Lonicera'' () of the family Caprifoliaceae, native to northern latitudes in North America and Eurasia. Approximately 180 species of honeysuckle have been identified in both conti ...

barberry ''Berberis'' (), commonly known as barberry, is a large genus of deciduous and evergreen shrubs from tall, found throughout temperate and subtropical regions of the world (apart from Australia). Species diversity is greatest in South America a ...

bird cherry Bird cherry is a common name for the European plant '' Prunus padus''. Bird cherry may also refer to: * ''Prunus'' subg. ''Padus'', a group of species closely related to ''Prunus padus'' * ''Prunus avium'', the cultivated cherry, with the Latin e ...

and

snowberry ''Symphoricarpos'', commonly known as the snowberry, waxberry, or ghostberry, is a small genus of about 15 species of deciduous shrubs in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae. With the exception of the Chinese coralberry, '' S. sinensis'', wh ...

Gallery

File: Zeichnung kirschfliege ugglan.jpg, Drawing of ''cherry fruit fly'' File: Kirschmade.jpg, Larva in a cherry fruit File: Tephritidae - Rhagoletis cerasi.JPG, Image File:Rhagoletis cerasi - 2013-06-03.webm, Video clip *

Bibliography

*Luigi Masutti, Sergio Zangheri, Entomologia generale e applicata, Padova, CEDAM, 2001, p. 745-746, . * Mario Ferrari, Elena Marcon; Andrea Menta, Fitopatologia, Entomologia agraria e biologia applicata, 3rd ed., Bologna, Calderini Edagricole, 2000, .

References

External links

* *
Les Insectes

Kirschfruchtfliege

Species Profile: European Cherry Fruit Fly (''Rhagoletis cerasi'')
National Invasive Species Information Center,

United States National Agricultural Library The United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries, and serves as a national library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. Located ...

cerasi Agricultural pest insects Flies described in 1758 Articles containing video clips Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Rhagoletis-stub