Description of Anastrepha sororcula and A-serpentina (Diptera : Tephritidae) eggs

The morphology of Anastrepha sororcula Zucchi and A. serpentina (Wiedemann) eggs are described by scanning electron microscopy. A. sororcula eggs pres ent a conspicuous sculpturing of the chorion at the micropylar end while th e eggs of A. serpentina are devoid of such ornamentation. The sculpturing o f the A. sororcula eggs, represented by ridges in a polygonal arrangement, is more developed in the ventral than in the dorsal side of the egg. The mi cropyle is located in the dorsal side near the egg apex and is surrounded b y a row of chorionic polygons. In A, serpentina the micropyle is located in a prominent rim very near the extremity of the egg. Aeropyles are found at the anterior end usually at the ventral side of the eggs. Fractured eggs o f both species showed that the chorion is cavernous throughout the egg body . It is suggested that these eggs may be able to perform a plastron-mediate d respiration. The results suggest that egg morphology may be useful to elu cidate taxonomic and phylogenetic relationship among Anastrepha species.