HABITAT MANIPULATION TO REDUCE PAPAYA FRUIT-FLY (DIPTERA, TEPHRITIDAE) DAMAGE - ORCHARD DESIGN, USE OF TRAP CROPS AND BORDER TRAPPING

We designed 2 papaya groves to test the concepts of trap cropping and border trapping to control Toxotrypana curvicauda. Intensive fruit sam pling in grove 1 indicated that the degree of fruit infestation decrea sed as the distance from the native vegetation (source of flies) incre ased. Rows planted 10 m away from the main block of papaya trees (trap crop) exhibited the greatest degree of puncture damage and larval inf estation in both experimental groves. Fruit damage was highest after t he rainy season was over and was spatially aggregated. We conclude tha t designing a papaya grove in such a way that a trap crop consisting o f plants located 10 m from the main block of trees (and. entirely surr ounding it) can reduce ny damage significantly. If pheromone-baited. f ly traps are hung in these peripheral rows, the trap crop effect can b e enhanced, and as a result, damage to the commercial block of trees c an be reduced even further. Such a fly management scheme should allow growers to avoid or drastically reduce pesticide applications. We disc uss our findings in relation to current knowledge of T. curvicauda beh avior and make suggestions for further improvement and large scale tes ting of the management scheme we propose.