Local enhancement of arrivals of Ceratitis capitata females on fruit mimics

Mature female Mediterranean fruit flies, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), is olated from conspecifics for 7 days prior to testing in laboratory cages, w ere attracted to yellow plastic fruit-mimicking hemispheres or spheres in s ignificantly greater numbers when groups of conspecific females were presen t than absent on fruit mimics. Attraction of females to conspecifics occurr ed for females deprived of protein or continuously provided with protein si nce eclosion, for fruit mimics that were unbaited or baited with odor of fo od or fruit, and under single-choice as well as multiple-choice test condit ions. Attraction proved just as great to fruit mimics having dead conspecif ics as to mimics having live conspecifics, was evident also when fruit mimi cs were orange or white, and occurred also in response to presence of live Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) females on fruit mimics. We discuss our findin gs in relation to local enhancement, a form of social facilitation in insec ts and other animals.