Insects (2022) 13 (4 - 328)

Rafael A. Homem, Zeus Mateos-Fierro, Rory Jones, Daniel Gilbert, Andrew R. Mckemey, Glen Slade and Michelle T. Fountain (2022)
Field suppression of spotted wing drosophila (SWD) (Drosophila suzukii Matsumura) using the sterile insect technique (SIT)
Insects 13 (4 - 328)
Abstract: Drosophila suzukii (spotted wing drosophila—SWD) is an economically important pest of soft and stone fruit worldwide. Control relies on broad-spectrum insecticides, which are neither fully effective nor environmentally sustainable. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a proven, effective and environmentally friendly pest-management tool. Here, we investigated, for the first time, the potential of using SIT to control D. suzukii in field conditions without physical barriers that limit insect invasion. A proprietary method of rearing and irradiation with X-rays was used to obtain males that were > 99% sterile. Sterile males were released twice per week from April to October 2021 on a site in Kent, UK, where everbearing strawberries were grown in open polytunnels. The infestation of wild female D. suzukii was monitored weekly using red sticky traps with dry lure at the treated site and at two similar control sites that did not receive sterile male releases. Releases of sterile males suppressed the wild female D. suzukii population by up to 91% in comparison with the control sites. We thus demonstrated the feasibility of SIT to achieve season-long control of D. suzukii using early, sustained and dynamically targeted releases of sterile males. This provides a promising environmentally friendly method to control this important pest.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): Andrew R. McKemey, Michelle T. Fountain

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
control - general

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Drosophila suzukii	Strawberry (Fragaria)	United Kingdom