ABSTRACT
Among the fruit pests of tropical America, the fruit flies are considered of greatest economic importance, as they are key pests for most of the fruit crops. They are multivoltine insects with relatively high biotic potential, and great capacity to infest different native and exotic fruit species. They belong to the order Diptera, family Tephritidae. Five genera are important as pests: Anastrepha, Bactrocera, Ceratitis, Rhagoletis and Dacus, which are spread globally throughout the continents, except Antarctica (White and Elson-Harris, 1992). A few studies have highlighted the ecology and aetiological aspects of fruit flies, mainly focusing on the pupal and larval phases (Silva et al, 1996; Zucchi et al, 1996). Fruit flies have complex behaviour and taxonomy (Bateman, 1972; Steck and Wharton, 1988). Classification is exclusively based on adult morphological characteristics. The sexes are easily distinguished, as females have an ovipositor quite prominent at the end of the abdomen, with a long and fine tip. Taxonomic characteristics differentiating gender in larvae and pupae are not yet established (Salles, 2000).
