The Tephritidae are one of two

fly Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced ...

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

referred to as fruit flies, the other family being the

Drosophilidae The Drosophilidae are a diverse, cosmopolitan family of flies, which includes species called fruit flies, although they are more accurately referred to as vinegar or pomace flies. Another distantly related family of flies, Tephritidae, are true f ...

. The family Tephritidae does not include the biological model organisms of the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

Drosophila ''Drosophila'' (), from Ancient Greek δρόσος (''drósos''), meaning "dew", and φίλος (''phílos''), meaning "loving", is a genus of fly, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or p ...

'' (in the family Drosophilidae), which is often called the "common fruit fly". Nearly 5,000 described species of tephritid fruit fly are categorized in almost 500 genera of the Tephritidae.

Description Description is any type of communication that aims to make vivid a place, object, person, group, or other physical entity. It is one of four rhetorical modes (also known as ''modes of discourse''), along with exposition, argumentation, and narr ...

recategorization In social psychology, recategorization is a change in the conceptual representation of a Social group, group or groups. When deliberate, recategorization is often encouraged in order to mitigate bias by making salient a common ingroup identity tha ...

, and

genetic analyses Genetic analysis is the overall process of studying and researching in fields of science that involve genetics and molecular biology. There are a number of applications that are developed from this research, and these are also considered parts ...

are constantly changing the taxonomy of this family. To distinguish them from the Drosophilidae, the Tephritidae are sometimes called peacock flies, in reference to their elaborate and colorful markings. The name comes from the Greek τεφρος, ''tephros'', meaning "ash grey". They are found in all the

biogeographic realm A biogeographic realm is the broadest biogeography, biogeographic division of Earth's land surface, based on distributional patterns of terrestrial animal, terrestrial organisms. They are subdivided into bioregions, which are further subdivid ...

Description

For terms see

Morphology of Diptera Dipteran morphology differs in some significant ways from the broader insect morphology, morphology of insects. The Diptera is a very large and diverse Order (biology), order of mostly small to medium-sized insects. They have prominent compound ey ...

an
Tephritidae glossary
Tephritidae g1

Tephritids are small to medium-sized (2.5–10 mm) flies that are often colourful, and usually with pictured wings, the subcostal vein curving forward at a right angle. The head is hemispherical and usually short. The face is vertical or retreating and the frons is broad. Ocelli and cellar bristles are present. The postvertical bristles are parallel to divergent. Two to eight pairs of frontal bristles are seen (at least one but usually several lower pairs curving inwards and at least one of the upper pairs curving backwards). In some species, the frontal bristles are inserted on a raised tubercle. Interfrontal setulae are usually absent or represented by one or two tiny setulae near the lunula. True vibrissae are absent, but several genera have strong bristles near the vibrissal angle. The wings usually have yellow, brown, or black markings or are dark-coloured with lighter markings. In a few species, the wings are clear. The costa has both a humeral and a subcostal break. The apical part of the subcostal is usually indistinct or even transparent and at about a right angle with respect to the basal part. Crossvein BM-Cu is present; the cell cup (posterior cubital cell or anal cell) is closed and nearly always narrowing to an acute angle. It is closed by a geniculated vein (CuA2). The CuA2 vein is rarely straight or convex. The tibiae lack a dorsal preapical bristle. The female has an oviscape. The larva is amphipneustic (having only the anterior and posterior pairs of spiracle). The body varies from white to yellowish or brown. The posterior end of pale-coloured species is sometimes black. The body tapers at the anterior. The two mandibles sometimes have teeth along the ventral margin. The antennomaxillary lobes at each side of the mandibles have several transverse oral ridges or short laminae directed posteriorly. The anterior spiracles (prothoracic spiracles) end bluntly and are not elongated. Each has at least three openings or up to 50 arranged transversely in one to three groups or irregularly. Each posterior spiracle (anal spiracle) lacks a clearly defined peritreme and each has three spiracular openings (in mature larvae). These are usually more or less horizontal, parallel and usually bear branched spiracular hairs in four tufts.

Ecology

The larvae of almost all Tephritidae are

phytophagous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet (nutrition), diet. These more broadly also encompass an ...

. Females deposit eggs in living, healthy plant tissue using their telescopic

ovipositor The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typica ...

s. Here, the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e find their food upon emerging. The larvae develop in leaves, stems, flowers, seeds, fruits, and roots of the host plant, depending on the species. Some species are gall-forming. One exception to the phytophagous lifestyle is ''Euphranta toxoneura'' (Loew) whose larvae develop in galls formed by

sawflies Sawflies are wasp-like insects that are in the suborder Symphyta within the order Hymenoptera, alongside ants, bees, and wasps. The common name comes from the saw-like appearance of the ovipositor, which the females use to cut into the plant ...

. The adults sometimes have a very short lifespan. Some live for less than a week. Some species are monophagous (feeding on only one plant species) others are polyphagous (feeding on several, usually related plant species). The

behavioral ecology Behavioral ecology, also spelled behavioural ecology, is the study of the evolutionary basis for ethology, animal behavior due to ecology, ecological pressures. Behavioral ecology emerged from ethology after Niko Tinbergen outlined Tinbergen's f ...

of tephritid fruit flies is of great interest to biologists. Some fruit flies have extensive mating rituals or territorial displays. Many are brightly colored and visually showy. Some fruit flies show

Batesian mimicry Batesian mimicry is a form of mimicry where a harmless species has evolved to imitate the warning signals of a harmful species directed at a predator of them both. It is named after the English naturalist Henry Walter Bates, who worked on butt ...

, bearing the colors and markings of dangerous arthropods such as wasps or

jumping spiders Jumping spiders are a group of spiders that constitute the family Salticidae. , this family contained over 600 described genera and over 6,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiderscomprising 13% of spider species. Jumping s ...

because it helps the fruit flies avoid predation, though the flies lack

stinger A stinger (or sting) is a sharp organ found in various animals (typically insects and other arthropods) capable of injecting venom, usually by piercing the epidermis of another animal. An insect sting is complicated by its introduction of ve ...

s. Adult tephritid fruit flies are often found on the host plant and feeding on pollen, nectar, rotting plant debris, or honeydew. Natural enemies include

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

wasps of the genera

Diapriidae The Diapriidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. These tiny insects have an average length of 2–4 mm and never exceed 8 mm. They typically attack larvae and pupae of a wide range of insects, especially flies. The about 2,300 described ...

and

Braconidae The Braconidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. After the closely related Ichneumonidae, braconids make up the second-largest family in the order Hymenoptera, with about 17,000 recognized species and many thousands more undescribed. One analysis ...

Economic importance

Tephritid fruit flies are of major economic importance in

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

. Some have negative effects, some positive. Various species of fruit flies cause damage to fruit and other plant crops. The genus ''

Bactrocera ''Bactrocera'' is a large genus of tephritid fruit flies, with close to 500 species currently described and accepted. Name The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used ...

'' is of worldwide notoriety for its destructive impact on agriculture. The

olive fruit fly The olive fruit fly (''Bactrocera oleae'') is a species of fruit fly which belongs to the subfamily Dacinae. It is a phytophagous species whose larvae feed on the fruit of olive trees, hence the common name. It is considered a serious pest in t ...

(''B. oleae''), for example, feeds on only one plant: the wild or commercially cultivated

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

, ''Olea europaea''. It has the capacity to ruin 100% of an olive crop by damaging the fruit. ''

Bactrocera dorsalis ''Bactrocera dorsalis'', previously known as ''Dacus dorsalis'' and commonly referred to as the oriental fruit fly, is a species of Tephritidae, tephritid fruit fly that is endemism, endemic to Southeast Asia. It is one of the major Pest (organis ...

'' is another highly invasive pest species that damages tropical fruit, vegetable, and nut crops.'' Euleia heraclei'' is a pest of celery and parsnips. The genus ''

Anastrepha ''Anastrepha'' is the most diverse genus in the American tropics and subtropics. Currently, it comprises more than 300 described species, including nine major pest species, such as the Mexican fruit fly (''A. ludens''), the South American fruit ...

'' includes several important pests, notably '' A. grandis'', '' A. ludens'' (Mexican fruit fly), '' A. obliqua'', and '' A. suspensa''. Other pests are ''

Strauzia longipennis ''Strauzia longipennis'' is a large species of tephritid fruit fly known by the common name sunflower maggot. It is a minor pest whose larvae mine stems of sunflowers (Helianthus spp.). Damage from larval feeding on spongy tissue is usually lig ...

'', a pest of sunflowers and ''

Rhagoletis mendax ''Rhagoletis mendax'' is a species of tephritid fruit fly known by the common name blueberry maggot. The blueberry maggot is closely related to the apple maggot (''R. pomonella''), a larger fruit fly in the same genus. It is a major pest of plan ...

'', a pest of blueberries. Another notorious agricultural pest is the

Mediterranean fruit fly ''Ceratitis capitata'', commonly known as the Mediterranean fruit fly or medfly, is a yellow-and-brown fly native to sub-Saharan Africa. It has no near relatives in the Western Hemisphere and is considered to be one of the most destructive fru ...

or Medfly, ''

Ceratitis capitata ''Ceratitis capitata'', commonly known as the Mediterranean fruit fly or medfly, is a yellow-and-brown fly native to sub-Saharan Africa. It has no near relatives in the Western Hemisphere and is considered to be one of the most destructive fru ...

'', which is responsible for millions of dollars' worth in expenses by countries for control and eradication efforts, in addition to costs of damage to fruit crops. Similarly, the Queensland fruit fly (''

Bactrocera tryoni ''Bactrocera tryoni'', the Queensland fruit fly, is a species of fly in the family Tephritidae in the insect order Diptera. ''B. tryoni'' is native to subtropical coastal Queensland and northern New South Wales. They are active during the day, b ...

'') is responsible for more than $28.5 million in damage to Australian fruit crops a year. This species lays eggs in a wide variety of unripe fruit hosts, causing them to rot prior to ripening. Some fruit flies are used as agents of

biological control Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or plants by using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or o ...

, thereby reducing the populations of pest species. Several species of the genus ''

Urophora ''Urophora'' is a genus of tephritid or fruit flies in the family Tephritidae. Species *'' Urophora acompsa'' ( Hendel, 1914) *'' Urophora aerea'' ( Hering, 1942) *'' Urophora affinis'' (Frauenfeld, 1857) *'' Urophora agnata'' ( Hering, 1942) ...

'' are used as control agents against rangeland-destroying

noxious weeds A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is harmful to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or lives ...

such as starthistles and knapweeds, but their effectiveness is questionable. ''

Urophora sirunaseva ''Urophora sirunaseva'' is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus ''Urophora'' of the family Tephritidae. Distribution Greece, Turkey, Moldova, Ukraine, Israel; introduced to North America North America is a continent in ...

'' produces larvae that pupate within a woody

gall Galls (from the Latin , 'oak-apple') or ''cecidia'' (from the Greek , anything gushing out) are a kind of swelling growth on the external tissues of plants. Plant galls are abnormal outgrowths of plant tissues, similar to benign tumors or war ...

within the flower and disrupt seed production. '' Chaetorellia acrolophi'' is an effective biocontrol agent against knapweeds ''

Chaetorellia australis ''Chaetorellia australis'' is a species of tephritid fruit fly known as the yellow starthistle peacock fly. It is used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed yellow starthistle (''Centaurea solstitialis''). The adult f ...

'' and '' Chaetorellia succinea'', deposit eggs into the starthistle seedheads, where their larvae consume the seeds and flower ovaries. Since economically important tephritid fruit flies exist worldwide, vast networks of researchers, several international symposia, and intensive activities on various subjects extend from ecology to molecular biology (

Tephritid Workers Database The 'Tephritid Workers Database'' is a web-based database for sharing information on Tephritidae, tephritid fruit flies. Because these species are one of the most economically important group of insect species that threaten fruit and vegetable prod ...

). Pest management techniques applied to tephritid include the use of cover sprays with conventional

pesticides Pesticides are substances that are used to pest control, control pest (organism), pests. They include herbicides, insecticides, nematicides, fungicides, and many others (see table). The most common of these are herbicides, which account for a ...

, however, due to deleterious impact of these pesticides, new, less impactful and more targeted pest control techniques have been used, such as

toxic food baits Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a substr ...

male annihilation technique Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilisation. A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to a ...

using specific male attractant parapheromones in toxic baits or

mass trapping Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementary particl ...

, or even

sterile insect technique The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a method of biological pest control, biological insect control, whereby overwhelming numbers of infertility, sterile insects are released into the wild. The released insects are preferably male, as this is mo ...

as part of

integrated pest management Integrated pest management (IPM), also known as integrated pest control (IPC) integrates both chemical and non-chemical practices for economic control of pests. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization defines IPM as "the careful consideratio ...

Systematics

Tephritidae is divided into several subfamilies: *

Blepharoneurinae The Blepharoneurinae are a subfamily of the fruit fly 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 biologic ...

(5 genera, 34 species) *

Dacinae The Dacinae are a subfamily of the fruit fly family Tephritidae. Its 39 genera are distributed among three tribes: * Tribe Ceratitidini: ** '' Capparimyia'' ** '' Carpophthoromyia'' ** '' Ceratitella'' ** '' Ceratitis'' ** '' Eumictoxenus'' ** ...

(41 genera, 1066 species) *

Phytalmiinae The Phytalmiinae are a subfamily of tephritid fruit flies. Systematics The Phytalmiinae are grouped into four tribes The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldw ...

(95 genera, 331 species) *

Tachiniscinae The Tachiniscinae are a subfamily of the fruit fly family Tephritidae. They are treated by some authorities as a separate family, Tachiniscidae. An undetermined species of the genus ''Tachiniscidia'' has been reared from Saturniidae caterpillars ...

(8 genera, 18 species) *

Tephritinae The Tephritinae are a subfamily of tephritid fruit flies. Systematics The Tephritinae are grouped into 11 tribes: * Acrotaeniini: 99 species, 10 genera: ::'' Acrotaenia'', '' Acrotaeniacantha'', '' Acrotaeniostola'', '' Baryplegma'', '' Caen ...

(211 genera, 1859 species) *

Trypetinae The Trypetinae are a subfamily of tephritid fruit flies. Systematics The Trypetinae are grouped into seven tribes: * Adramini: 183 species, 26 genera: ::'' Acinoeuphranta'', '' Adrama'', '' Adramoides'', '' Brandtomyia'', '' Celidodacus'', '' ...

(118 genera, 1012 species) The genera ''Oxyphora'', '' Pseudorellia'', and ''Stylia'' comprise 32 species, and are not included in any subfamily (''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'').

Identification

* Richard H. Foote, P. L. Blanc, Allen L. Norrbom, 1993 ''Handbook of the Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) of America North of Mexico'' Cornell University Press (Comstock Publishing). * Merz, B. 1994. Diptera Tephritidae. ''Insecta Helvetica Fauna'' 10: 1-198. * White, I.M. 1988. Tephritid flies. Diptera: Tephritidae. * White I.M. & Elson-Harris M.M. 1994 ''Fruit Flies of Economic Significance: their Identification and Bionomics''. 2nd ed. International Institute of Entomology, London. * R.A.I. Drew and Meredith C Romig ''Tropical Fruit Flies of South-East Asia'' (Tephritidae: Dacinae) CABI * Hendel1914. Die Gattungen der Bohrfliegen. ''Wein. Entomol. Ztg.'' 33: 73–98. Keys to World genera Out of date but still the only world

monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...

. * Hendel, F., 1927. Trypetidae.In: Lindner, E. (Ed.). ''Die Fliegen der Paläarktischen Region'' 5, 49, 1-221. Keys to Palaearctic species but now needs revision (in German). * Séguy, E. (1934) Diptères: Brachycères. II. Muscidae acalypterae, Scatophagidae. Paris: Éditions Faune de France 28
virtuelle numérique
* Rikhter, V.A. Family Conopidae in Bei-Bienko, G. Ya, 1988 ''Keys to the insects of the European Part of the USSR'' Volume 5 (Diptera) Part 2 English edition. Keys to Palaearctic species but now needs revision.

Species lists

West Palaearctic including Russia

Japan

World list

Gallery

Image:Urophora.cardui.male.jpg, ''

Urophora cardui ''Urophora cardui'' or the Canada thistle gall fly is a Tephritidae, fruit fly which, contrary to its common name, is indigenous to Central Europe from the United Kingdom east to near the Crimea, and from Sweden south to the Mediterranean region, ...

'', male Image:Strauzia longipennis.jpg, ''

'' Image:Fruit fly Euaresta.jpg, ''

Euaresta aequalis ''Euaresta aequalis'' is a species of fruit fly in the genus '' Euaresta'' of the family Tephritidae. Description ''E. aequalis'' has elaborate markings on its wings, characteristic of the family Tephritidae, and brilliant green eyes. The diagno ...

'' Image:Procecidochares atra.jpg, ''

Procecidochares atra ''Procecidochares atra'' is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus ''Procecidochares'' of the family Tephritidae. Its galls are most common on '' Solidago altissima, S. gigantea, S. rugosa''.http://bugguide.net/node/view/68596 Bugg ...

'' Image:Euleia heraclei01.jpg, '' Euleia heraclei'' Image:Chaetostomella_cylindrica.jpg, ''

Cheatostomella cylindrica ''Chaetostomella cylindrica'' is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus ''Chaetostomella'' of the family Tephritidae. Distribution United Kingdom & Scandinavia East to Kazakhstan, South to North Africa, Turkey & Afghanistan. Refer ...

'' Image:Xyphosia.miliaria.male.jpg, ''

Xyphosia miliaria ''Xyphosia miliaria'' is a species of tephritid or Tephritidae, fruit flies in the family Tephritidae. Distribution This species is present in most of Europe, in the eastern Palearctic realm, and in the Near East. Habitat This species occurs in ...

'' Image:GoldenrodGallFlyLarva.jpg, ''Eurosta solidaginis'', gall maker on

goldenrod Goldenrod is a common name for many species of flowering plants in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, commonly in reference to the genus ''Solidago''. Several genera, such as ''Euthamia'', were formerly included in a broader concept of the genu ...

File:Procecidochares atra galls.jpg, Gall of ''Procecidochares atra'' on ''Solidago'' File:Rhagoletis suavis.jpg, ''

Rhagoletis suavis ''Rhagoletis suavis'', also known as the walnut husk maggot, is a species of tephritid or 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. ...

'' File:Eurosta solidaginis female.jpg, ''Eurosta solidaginis'', female

References

External links

;General
Natural Enemies of True Fruit Flies (Tephritidae)
,

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...

Tephritidae Information from the Diptera Site
*

;Identification
The Diptera site
Comprehensive guide to identification literature with a worldwide perspective. ;Galleries
Diptera.info images

Images at BugGuide

Family Tephritidae at EOL
Image Gallery ;Control

{{Authority control Insect vectors of plant pathogens Brachycera families Articles containing video clips Taxa named by Edward Newman